Paris himself bath painted in the most lively colors the corruptions and abominations of the fee of Rome, the tyranny, superstition, simony, and wickedness of the popes and clergy. A protestant historian could not more freely lash and expose the vices of the times, than he did who was a monk of St. Albans.

As they are not all Ifrael which are of Israel; fo neither have all the members of the Romish church believed: all her doctrins. Dante and Petrarch, the former of whom died, and the latter was born as well as died, in the fourteenth century, were (7) fevere satirists

upon

the times, and wrote freely against the temporal dominion of the pope, and the corruptions of the clergy, treating Rome as Babylon, and the Pope as Antichrift: and they probably did more hurt to the court and church of Rome by their wit and raillery, than others by invective and declamation. Peter Fitz Cassiodor, whether a fictitious or a real person, (8) addressed a remonstrance to the church of England against the tyranny, avarice, and exactions of the court of Rome, advising and exhorting the English to Thake off the Roman yoke from their necks. Michael

Cæsenas (7) Spanhemii Hift. Chris. Hift. Litt. p. 9 & 50. tian. Sæc.XIV.Cap.5. Sect. 8.et (8) Appendix ad Cave. p. 9. Robertus Gerius et Henricus 10. Collier's Ecclefiaft. Hift. Wharton in Appendice ad Cave B. 5. p. 561, &c.

(9) H.

Cæsenas and William Occam (9) exposed the various errors and heresies of John XXII to the number of 77; and secure in the protection of the

emperor, they set at nought the thunder of the pope's excommunications. Marsilius, a famous lawyer of Padua, (1) wrote a treatise intitled the defender of peace, wherein he advanced the

power of the emperor above that of the pope in things fpiritual as well as temporal; painted in the strongest colors the pride, ambition, and luxury of the court of Rome ; and abundantly proved that the pope had not by divine right the least authority or præeminence over other bishops. It is no wonder that the author and his book were condemned together. But there were other and better witnesses than these in this age. It

. was shown before from Thuanus, that the Waldenses and Albigenses being persecuted in their own country, fled for refuge into foreign nations, some into Germany, and some into Britain. In Germany they grew and multiplied so fast, notwithstanding the rage and violence of croisaders and inquisitors, that at the beginning of this century (2) it is computed, that there were eighty thousand of them in Bohemia, Austria,

and (9) H. Wharton in Append. 27. Dupin. ibid. Chap. 5 & 8. ad Cave. p. 20 & 28. Dupin. (2) Bzovius ad Ann. 1315. XIV Siecle. Chap. 5:

Spanhem. ibid. Cap. 6. Sect. (1) Wharton, ibid. p. 26, 1. Dupin. ibid. Chap. 8.

,

(3) Dupin.

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and the neighbouring territories; and they pertinaciously defended their doctrins even unto death. Among a variety of other names they were called Lollards from (3) one Walter Lollard, who preached in Germany about the year 1315 against the authority of the pope, the interceffion of saints, the mass, extreme unction, and other ceremonies and superstitions of the church of Rome; and was burned alive at Cologn in the year 1322. In England also they were denominated Lollards, tho' there was a man more worthy to have given name to the sect, the deservedly famous John Wickliff, the honor of his own, and the admiration of all succeeding times. Rector only of Lutterworth, he (4) filled all England, and almost all Europe with his doctrin. He began to grow famous about the year 1360 by preaching and writing against the superstitions of the age, the tyranny of the

,

pope, the erroneous doctrins and vicious lives of the monks and the clergy; and especially by defending the royal and ecclesiastical jurisdiction against the usurpations of the popes and mendicant friers. The more he

The more he opposed, the more reason he found for opposition. He translated the canonical scriptures into the English language,

and wrote comments upon them. He demonstrated the antichristianity of popery, and the abomination of desolation in the temple of God. He asserted the one true facrifice of Christ, and

opposed the sacrificeof the mass, transubstantiation, the adoration of the host, the seven facraments, purgatory, prayers for the dead, the worship of saints

, and images, and in short all the principal corruptions and superstitions of thechurch of Rome. His success too was greater than he could have expected. The princes, the people, the univerfity of Oxford, many even of the clergy, favored and supported him, and embraced his opinions. His enemies have charged him with several heterodox notions; but many years ago was pubļished An apology for John Wicklif; showing his conformity with the now church of England, &c; colleEted out of his written works in the Bodleian library by Thomas James keeper of the same, at Oxford 1608. This truly great and good man died of a palfy the last day of the year 1387, but his doctrins did not die with him. His books were read in the public schools and colleges at Oxford, and were recommended to the diligent perusal of each student in the university, till they were condemned and prohibited

by by the council of Constance in the next century. His followers the Lollards in the year 1395 presented (5) a remonftrance to the parlament, which contained these with other articles; that when the church of England began to mismanage her temporalities in conformity to the precedents of Rome, faith, hope, and charity began to take their leave of her communion ; that the English priesthood derived from Rome, and pretending to a power superior to angels, is not that priesthood which Christ settled

upon his apostles; that injoining celibacy to the clergy was the occasion of scandalous irregularities in the church; that the pretended miracle of transubstantiation runs the greatest part of christendom upon idolatry; that exorcisms and benedictions pronouncedoverwine, bread, water, the mitre, the cross, &c, have more of necromancy than religion in them; that

made for the dead is a wrong ground for charity and religious endowments; that pilgrimages, prayers and offerings made to images and crosses, are near of kin to idolatry; that auricular confeffion makes the priests proud, lets them into the fecrets of the penitent, gives opportunities for intrigues, and is attended with scandalous con