Quest. We wil then examine yow without an oath. Are yow.a minister?

Answ. No, I was one after your orders.

Quest. Who disgraded yow ?

Answ. I disgraded my self through Gods mercy by repentance. (Then, after many wordes, they brought forth a paper, conteyning certaine articles in manner of questions, as foloweth.)

Quest. Is it lawful to vse the Lordes Prayer publickly or privately as a prayer, or no?

Answ. It is a doctrine to direct al our prayers by: but, seing it conteyneth the doctrine of the holy scripture, no man can vse the same, as a private or publick prayer, because he hath not present need to aske al the peticions therin conteyned, at one time: neither can comprehend them with feeling and faith.

Quest. Is it lawful or no? I wil heare no pratling.

Answ. It is not lawful, for any thing I can see by the scripture, for ther is no commaundement to say the very wordes ouer: and Christ and his apostles prayed in other words, according to their present necessitie.

Quest. Is it lawful to vse any stinted prayers either publickly or privately in prayer?

Answ. They are Apocrypha, and may not be vsed in the publick assemblie: The word, and the graces of Gods spirit, are onely to be vsed there.

Quest. Answer directly, Is it lawful to yse them publickly or privately?

Answ. Paul saith, in Rom. viij. The Spirit of God maketh request for vs; and, That we know not what to aske, but the Spirit helpeth our infirmities.'

Quest. Answer directly.

Answ. It is not lawful to vse stinted prayers, invented by man, either publickly or privately, for any thing I can see by the scriptures.

Quest. What say yow then to the book of Common Prayer? Is it superstitious, Popish, and idolatrous, yea or no?

Answ. I beseech yow, that I may not be vrged by your law; I haue thus long bene close prisoner, and therfore desire yow to shew me wherfore, and not now to entangle me by your law.

Quest. Is it not yowr law now, as well as ours? It is the Queenes law; yow are a good subiect.

Answ. I am obedient, as a true subiect; but I took it we had reasoned of your popish canons.

Quest. Is not the Common Prayer Booke established by the Queenes law?

L. Cheif. Iust. Tel us what yow thinke of the Booke of Common Prayer; yow shal haue libertie to cal back what yow wil againe. Answ. If it were in free conference, as it hath bene often desired by I would so doe.

VS,

Winch. Haue yow not vsed these wordes a yeare agoc, That it was Popish, superstitious, and idolatrous?

Answ. Yes, I thinke I haue; for it was taken out of the Popes portuis.

Quest. Why would yow not answer so before?

Answ. Because, I see, yow goe about to bring me with in the compasse of the law.

Iudge Anderson. What say yow now to it?

Answ. That ther ar many errors in it, and the forme therof is disagreeable to the scriptures.

Arch. Is it contrary to the scriptures ?

Answ. It must needs be contrary, if it be disagreeable.

Winch. Whither hold yow it idolatrous, superstitious, and Popish? Answ. I haue answered what I thinke of it; I hold it ful of errors, and the forme therof disagreeable to the scriptures.

Quest. What say yow for mariage? Did not yow marie one Boman and his wife in the Fleet?

Answ. No; neither is mariage a part of the ministers office.

Quest. Who did vse prayer?

Answ. I thinke, I did at that time vse prayer.

Quest. Who ioyned their handes togither?

Answ. I know no such thing; they did publickly acknowledge their consent before the assemblie.

Stanup. I wil make them doe penance for it.

Answ. Ther be some had more need shew open repentance, then they. Bish. They may make such mariages vnder a hedge; and it hath bene a long receiued order, to be maried by the minister.

Answ. No; ther were many faithful witnesses of their consentes; and, if it were not lawful, we haue many examples of the ancient fathers, who, by your iudgement, did amisse.

Quest. What say yow to the church of England? Is it a true established church of God?

Answ. The whole common wealth is not a church.

Iudge Anders. But doe yow know any true established church in the land?

Answ. If I did, I would not accuse them vntò yow.

Quest. But what say yow, is not the whole land, as it standeth now ordered, a true established church?

Answ. No, not as the assemblics are generally ordered; if it please yow, I wil shew yow the reasons.

L. Cheif. Iust. No, yow shal haue time ynough hereafter to shew the reasons; it is not now to be stood vpon.

Quest. What doe yow say to the church of England, as it is now guided by bishopes? Is it antichristian?

Answ. By such bishopes and lawes, as it is now guided, it is not according to the scriptures.

Winch. Thow hast scriptures often in thy mouth; is it then antichristian?

Answ. Yea, I hold it contrarie to Christes word.

Quest, What say yow to the sacramentes then? Are they true sa

cramentes ?

Answ, No; they are neither rightly administered according to Christes

institution, neither haue promise of grace, because yow keep not the

couenant.

Quest. Speak plainly: are they true sacramentes, or no?

Answ. No; if yow haue no true church, yow can haue no true

sacramentes.

Quest. How say yow: are we baptised?

Answ. Yea, yow haue the outward signe, which is the washing, but

no true sacrament.

Quest. How can that be?

Answ. Very wel.

could not be suffred.'

Then I thought to haue shewed reasons, but I

Quest. Need we, then, to be baptised againe, if we had that Ministerie and gouernment, yow speak of?

Answ. No.

Quest. Should we be baptised at al?

Answ. Yea; or els, if we contemne it, we deny the profession of grace.

Quest. Do you hold it lawful to baptise children?

Answ. Yea; I am no anabaptist, I thanke God.

Quest. How far differ yow?

Answ. So far as truth from errors.

Quest. Yow haue a boy vnbaptised; how old is he?

Answ. A yeare and a halfe.

Quest. What is his name?

Answ. Abel.

Quest. Who gaue him that name?

Answ. My self, being father.

Quest. Why hath he not bene baptised?

Answ. Because that I haue bene in prison, and cannot tel where to goe to a reformed church, wher I might haue him baptised according to Gods ordinance.

Quest. Will yow goe to church to St. Brides?

Answ. I know no such church.

Quest. Will yow goe to Pauls?

Answ. No.

Quest. Do yow not hold a parish the church?

Answ. If al the people were faithful, hauing Gods law and ordinances practised amongst them, I doe.

Quest. Then yow hold, that the parish doe not make it a church? Answ. No; but the profession which the people make.

Quest. Doe yow hold, that the church ought to be gouerned by a presbyterie?

Answ. Yea; euery congregation of Christ ought to be gouerned by that presbyterie which Christ hath appointed.

Quest. What are these officers ?

Answ. Pastor, teacher, elder, &c. .

Quest. And by no other?

Answ. No, by no other then Christe hath appointed.

Quest. May this people and presbyterie reforme such thinges as be amisse, without the prince?

Answ. They ought to practise God's lawes, and correct vice by the censure of the word.

Quest. What if the prince forbid them?

Answ. They must doe that, which God commaundeth, neuerthelesse. Quest. If the prince doe offend, whither may the presbyterie excommunicate the prince, or no?

Answ. The whole church may excommunicate any member of that congregation, if the partie continue obstinate in open transgression. Quest. Whither may the prince be excommunicate?

Answ. Ther is no exception of person; and I doubt not, but her Maiestie would be ruled by the word; for it is not the men, but the word of God, which bindeth and looseth sinne.

Quest. Whither may the prince make lawes in the gouernment of the church, or no?

Answ. The scripture hath set downe sufficient lawes for the worship of God, and gouernment of the church, to which no man may adde, or diminish.

Quest. What say yow to the princes supremacie? Is her Maiestie supreme head of the church ouer all causes, as wel ecclesiastical as temporal ?

Answ. A supreme magistrate ouer al persons, to punish the euil, and defend the good.

Quest. Ouer al causes? &c.

Answ. No; Christ is onely head of his church, and his lawes may no man alter.

Quest. The Pope giueth thus much to the prince.

Answ. No, that he doth not; he setteth himself aboue princes, and exempteth his preisthod from the magistrates sword.

Quest. What say yow to the oath of the Queenes supremacie? Wil yow answer to it?

T

Answ. If these ecclesiastical orders be meant such, as be agreeable vnto the scriptures, I wil, for I deny al forreigne power.

Quest. It is meant the order and gouernment, with al the lawes in the church, as it is now established.

Answ. Then I wil not answer to approue therof.

A breif Summe of the Examination of Iohn Penrie, by the Right Worshipful Mr. Fanshaw, and Mr. Iustice Young, the Tenth of the fourth Moneth April, 1593.

Fanshaw. It is strange vnto me, that yow hold such opininions, Penrie, as none of the learned of this age, or any of the martyrs of former times mainteyned. Can yow shew any writers, either old or new, that haue bene of your iudgment?

Penrie. I hold nothing, but what I wil be bound to proue out of the written word of God; and wil shew, in regard of the special pointes controuerted, to haue bene mainteyned by the holy martyrs of this land, who first assailed the Babylonish Romane kingdome; as, namely,

by Mr. Wicliffe, Mr. Brute, Mr. Purvey, Mr. White, &c. with many other the famous witnesses and martyrs of Christ in former times; and by Mr. Tindal, Mr. Lambert, Mr. Barnes, Mr. Latimer, &c. the lordes most blessed witnesses of this latter age. I speak nothing here of the doctrine and practise of the reformed churches in other countries, whom I haue wholly of my side, in controuersies of greatest moment. Fan. But doe the martyrs teach yow, that there is no church of Christ in England?

Pen. If yow mean by a church, as the most doe, that publick profession, wherby men doe professe saluation to be had by the death and righteousnes of Iesus Christ, I am free from denying any church of Christ to be in this land; for I know the doctrine touching the Holy Trinity, the natures and offices of the Lord Iesus, free iustification by him, both the sacraments, &c. published by her Maiesties authoritic, and commaunded by her lawes, to be the Lordes blessed and vndoubted truthes, without the knowledge and profession wherof no saluation is to be had.

Fan. Seing yow acknowledge, that her Maicstie hath established the truth in so many weightie pointes, seing she hath commaunded the true sacramentes to be administred; what mislike yow in our church? And why wil yow not be partaker of these truthes and sacramentes with us?

Pen. I mislike, 1. The false ecclesiastical offices. 2. The manner of caling vnto the offices. 3. A great parte of the workes, wherin these false officers are imployed. 4. The maintenance, or livinges, wherby they are mainteyned in their offices; al which I wil be bound to proue, by the Lordes helpe, to be deriued, not from Iesus Christ, but from the kingdome of antichrist, his great enemic. And, therfore, forasmuch as I cannot be partaker of the former holy thinges of God, but I must be subiect vnto the power of antichrist in these officers, and knowen by those markes, wherby his subiectes are noted; therfore I am enforced and bound to seek the comfort of the word and sacramentes wher I may haue them without the submitting of my self vnto any ecclesiastical power in religion, saue onely vnto that which is deriued from Christ Iesus the Lord, in whom al fulnes of power dweleth,' Col. i. 19. and from whom al those must deriue their power and office, vnto whom the saintes of God are to submitte their consciences to be wrought vpon in religion.

Againe, scing the forenamed four enormities of this church are markes which properly belong vnto the kingdome of the beast, viz. of the Romane antichrist, we dare not haue any communion and fellowship with them, nor be knowen by them, least we should be partakers of those most fearful and most dreadful iudgementes, which are denounced by the Spirit of God against al those, that haue communion with any of the irreligious inuentions of that beast, Reuel. xiv. 9. 10. These are the thinges, togither with the want of Christes true order, which I especially mislike, and the special causes why I dare not ioyne with the assemblies of this land: 1. The false offices, wherby these assemblies are guided, and by whom the whole worship is performed in them. 2. Their manner of caling. 3. A great paric of the