Chapter the First
SoME causes menen some poor priests to receive not benefices. The first for dread of simony: the second for dread of misspending poor men’s goods: the third for dread of letting of better occupation that is more light or easy, more certain, and more profitable on every side. For if men should come to benefices by gift of prelates, there is dread of simony; for, commonly, they take the first-fruits or other pensions, or hold curates in office in their courts or chapels, or other vain offices, far from priests taught and ensampled of Christ and his apostles. So that commonly such benefices come not freely, as Christ commandeth, but rather for worldly winning, or flattery, or praising, and thank of mighty men and lords, and not for ableness or cunning of God’s law, and true preaching of the Gospel, and ensample of holy life;. and therefore commonly these prelates and receivers be fouled with simony, that is cursed heresy, as God’s law and man’s law teacheth openly, and many saints. And great marvel it is so now, that since St. Gregory saith, in plain law of the church and other books, that such men as desire benefices should not have them, but men that flee them for dread of unableness of themselves, and great charge, as did Moses, Jerom, Austin, Gregory, and holy saints. And now who can fast run to Rome, and bear gold out of the land, and pay it for dead lead, and a little writing, and strive and plead and curse for tithes, and other temporal profits, that be cleped with Antichrist’s clerks rights of holy church, shall
[lead or constrain. hindering. profit. knowledge. called.]
have great benefices of cure of many thousands souls, though he be unable of cunning of Holy Writ, nor in will to teach and preach to his subjects but of cursed life, and wicked ensample of pride, of covetousness, gluttony, lechery, and other great sins. But if there be any simple man that desireth to live well, and teach truly God’s law, and despise pride and other sins, both of prelates and other men, he shall be holden a hypocrite, a new teacher, a heretic, and not suffered to come to any benefice. But if in any little poor place to live.a poor life, he shall be so pursued and slandered, that he shall be put out by wiles, cautels,’ frauds and worldly violence, and imprisoned, disgraced, or burmt, if Antichrist’s clerks may for any gold and cursed leasings. And if lords shall present clerks to benefices, they will have commonly gold in great quantity, and hold these curates in their worldly office, and suffer the wolves of hell to strangle men’s souls, so that they have much gold, and their office done for nought, and their chapels holden up for vain glory or hypocrisy, and yet they will not present a clerk able of cunning of God’s law, and good life, and holy ensample to the people, but a kitchen clerk, or a penny clerk, or wise in building of castles, or worldly doing, though he cannot read well his psaltér, and knoweth not the commandments of God, nor the sacraments of holy church. And yet some lords, to colour their simony, will not take for themselves, but kenerchiefs for the lady, or a palfrey, or a tun of wine. And when some lords would present a good man, and able for love of God and Christian souls, then some ladies be means to have a dancer, a tripper on tapis,/ or hunter, or hawker, or a wild player of summer’s games, for flattering and gifts going betwixt; and if it be for dancing in bed, so much the worse. And thus it seemeth that both prelates and lords commonly make a cursed Antichrist, and a quick fiend to be master of Christ’s people, for to lead to hell to Satan their master; and suffer not Christ’s disciples to teach Christ’s Gospel to his children, for to save their souls. And so travail to exile Christ and his law out of his heritage, that is Christian souls, that he bought not with rotten gold nor silver, but with his precious heart-blood that he shed on the cross by most burning charity. But in this presenting of evil curates, and holding of curates in worldly office, letting 8 them from their ghostly cure, be three degrees of traitery^ against God and his people. The first is in prelates and lords that thus hold curates in their worldly office: for they have their high states in the church, and lordships, for to purvey! true curates to the people, and to maintain them in God’s law, and punish them if they fail in their ghostly eure, and by this they hold their lordships of God. Then if
[knowledge. 5 contrivances. les. 4 kerchicf or mantle. a riding-horse.]
[/ tapestry. 4 hindering. treachery. provide.]
they make evil curates, and hold them in their worldly office, and let them to lead God’s people the rightful way to heaven, but help them and constrain them to lead the people to hell-ward, by withdrawing of God’s word, and by evil ensample giving, they be wayward traitors to God and his people, and vicars and procurators of Satan. Yet mere traitery? is in false curates that give mede^ or hire, to come into such worldly offices, for to spare their muck and lay it in treasure, and to get lordship and maintenance against ordinances, that they dare not clepe them to residence, and save their souls, but couch in lords’ courts, and lusts, and ease of their flesh, for to get more fat benefices, and purpose not speedily to do their ghostly office. More is to the lords that be led with such cursed heretics, Antichrists, traitors to God and his people, namely, traitors to lords themselves: where lords might not find in all their lordship true worldly men to rule their household and worldly offices, but if they take thereto curates that be openly false traitors to God and his people: where lords be so blinded, that they perceive not that such traitors that openly be false to God, that they will much more be false to them. But the most traitery is in false confessors,.that should by their office warn prelates and lords of this great peril, and clerks also that they hold none such curates in their worldly offices, for they do not this lest they should lessen lordship and friendship and gifts, and welfare of their stinking belly, and so they sillen/ Christian souls to Satan, for to have likings of their stinking belly, and make prelates and lords and curates to live in sin and traitery against God and his people, and so against the hire that lords give their confessors, they deceive them in their souls’ health, and maintain them in cursed traitery of God and his people: and thus almost all the world goeth to hell for this cursed simony and false confessors. For commonly prelates, lords, and curates, be envenomed with this heresy of simony, and never do very repentance and satisfaction therefore. For when they have a fat benefice, gotten by simony, they forsake it not, as they be bound by their own law, but wittingly^ use forth that simony, and live in riot, covetousness, pride, and do not their office, neither in good ensample, nor in true teaching. And thus Antichrist’s clerks, enemies of Christ and his people, by money and flattery and fleshly love, gathering to them leading of the people, and forbare! true priests to teach them God’s law; and therefore the blind leadeth the blind, and both parts run into sin, and full many to hell; and it is huge wonder that God of his righteousness destroyeth not the houses of prelates and lords and curates, as Sodom and Gomorrah, for this heresy, extortion, and other cursedness that they havest./
[hinder. treachery. reward, call. live. 7 vell. € true. ^ knowingly. — ’ withhold. J frequent.]