"of it, and also of any other good grace needful for us:

and be merry in God, in whom also I am very merry, " and joyful. O Lord, what great cause of rejoicing "have we, to think upon that kingdom which he vouch"safeth for his Christ's sake freely to give us, forsaking "ourselves and following him.. Dear wife, this is truly "to follow him, even to take up our cross and follow "him; and then, as we suffer with him, so shall we "reign with him everlastingly, shortly. Amen.

GR

To his wife, a little before his burning.

RACE and comfort in Christ, Amen. Dear wife, be merry in the mercies of our Christ; and also ye my dear friends. Pray, pray for us every body. "We be shortly to be dispatched hence to our good "Christ; Amen, Amen. Wife, I would you sent me

my shirt; which you know whereunto it is consecrated. "Let it be sewed down on both sides, and not open. "O my heavenly Father, look upon me in the face of

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thy Christ, or else I shall not be able to abide thy coun"tenance; such is my filthiness. He will do so, and "therefore I will not be afraid what sin, death, hell and "damnation can do against me. O wife, always re"member the Lord. God bless you; yea, he will bless "thee, good wife, and thy poor boy also: Only cleave "thou unto him, and he will give thee all things. Pray, 66 pray, pray."

To Mr Robert and Mr John Glover; his last letter, writ ten on the morning in which he was burnt.

GR

RACE and consolation in our sweet Saviour Christ. Oh my dear brethren, whom I love in the Lord, being loved of you also in the Lord, be merry and "rejoice for me, now ready to go up to that mine in"heritance, which I myself indeed am most unworthy "of; but my dear Christ is worthy, who hath purchased "the same for me with so dear a price. Make haste my

dear brethren to come unto me, that we may be merry, "eo gaudio quod nemo tollet à nobis; i. e. with that joy "which no man shall take from us. O wretched sinner, "that I am not thankful unto this my Father, who hath "vouchsafed me to be a worthy vessel unto his honour. "But, O Lord, now accept my thanks, though they "proceed out of a not-enough circumcised heart. Sa"lute my good sisters your wives; and good sisters, fear

"the

RY

"the Lord. Salute all other that love us in the truth. "God's blessing be with you always, Amen. Even now "towards the offering of a burnt sacrifice. O my Christ " help, or else I perish !"

JOHN HOOPER.

BISHOP OF GLOUCESTER.

THIS great divine, who was born in 1495, was a native of Somersetshire, and received his academical education at Merton-College in Oxford, where he was sent in 1514, and placed under the tuition of his uncle John Hooper, who was made master-fellow of that house in 1513, and was also principal of St Alban's-Hall. In 1518, John Hooper, the nephew, was admitted batchelor of arts, which was the highest degree he took in this university, and about the same time completed it by determination. What became of him afterwards is not justly known: But it is reported, that he was one of the number of Cistercians, commonly called white monks, and continued so for some years, till he grew weary of a monastic life, and returned to Oxford, where he was converted by books brought from Germany, and soon became a zealous protestant.

In 1539, when the statute of the six articles was put in execution, he left Oxford, and got into the service of Sir Thomas Arundel, a Devonshire gentleman, to whom he became chaplain and steward of his estate. This gentleman was a Roman catholic knight, and was afterwards put to death with the protector, duke of Somerset, in the reign of Edward VI. He soon discovered that Hooper was a protestant, who thereby lost his protection, and was obliged to fly into France, where he continued some time among the reformed, till his dislike of some of their proceedings made him return to England. On his arrival in his native country,

country, he lived with a gentleman of the name of Seintlow, where he became known, and was sought after to be apprehended. Upon this, he disguised himself like a sailor, hired a boat, and went to Ireland, from whence he went to Holland, and so on to Switzerland. Bullinger was then at Zurick, where he succeeded Zuinglius in the chair. He likewise had been obliged to forsake his country on account of religion, and therefore gave a very friendly reception to Hooper, who was remarkable for his knowledge in the Greek and Hebrew languages, and who, by Bullinger's advice, married a Burgundian lady during his residence in that country.

Edward VI. came to the crown, in 1547, and Hooper came to England again, when he settled in London, where he frequently preached to the people on several reformed doctrinal heads, and particularly against pluralities. He had a great sweetness of temper, and was much regarded by all the party of the reformed, who inclined to a parity of church government. His residence in foreign parts, where Reformation bordered much upon levelling principles, had brought him into a train of thinking no way favourable to church discipline. He made the avoiding superstition a matter of conscience; but he run into the very extreme he shunned, by his zeal to avoid it; for he superstitiously declined usages, which he owned to be indifferent in themselves, only because they became important through the injunctions of superiors: However, it will appear, that he was flexible in those points, and that he could comply when he found the government was determined. He agreed perfectly well with Cranmer and Ridley in the main doctrines of the Reformation, and in zeal to promote it; yet they appear to have been very apprehensive of his principles. Hooper was a worthy conscientious man. In his life he was blameless; but somewhat too neglectful of those appearances, which are indispensable for giving reverence to power, either civil or ecclesiastic, in the eyes of those people, who see no farther than exteriors. He was a person of good parts, and well versed in the learned tongues : He was a good philosopher; but a better theologist, had not his principles been too rigid. He was now appointed chaplain to the duke of Somerset ; and perhaps, was more severely treated on that account, when his great patron lost the protectorship. In 1549, he became an accuser of bishop Bonner, when he was to be deprived of his bishopric,