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writing to the Thessalonians, he says, Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord, that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means, for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; who opposeth and exalteth himself above God, so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself as God. And now ye know what withholdeth, that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work; only he who now letteth, will let until he be taken out of the way. Again, St. Paul, writing to Timothy, speaks thus: Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith; giving heed to doctrines of devils, speaking lies in hypocrisy, forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe. Now let every one be asked, if the pope hath not forbidden certain meats, at certain times, and they must all confess he hath, for most folks have felt it; or, perchance, I should not be a liar if I said, that almost all folks have felt it.

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And concerning the prohibition of marriage, ask their own priests. St. Peter tells us, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, &c. St. John, in the Apocalypse, says, Seven angels poured out the vials of God's wrath upon the earth; and the signification is probable to be thus-The first vial to be the Assyrian monarchy, when the people of Israel became captive to Nebuchadnezzar.* The second the Persian monarchy. The third vial the monarchy of the Grecians, which Alexander first established. The fourth was the Roman monarchy, which the apocalypse, because of its grandeur, says, the fourth vial was poured upon the sun. The fifth is our antichrist the pope. The sixth vial is the dominion of Mahomet. The seventh vial signifies the end of the world, and the day of judgment.

In the following chapter he declares, that one of the seven angels came and talked with him, and showed him the state, honour, and riches of the pope: for he says, he saw a woman sit upon the beast, full of names of It is hardly necessary to say that these interpretations of prophecy do not appear to be correct.

blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns; and the woman was arrayed in purple, and scarlet colour, and decked with gold; having a golden cup in her hand, full of abominations, and filthiness of her fornications: and upon her forehead was written, Babylon the mother of harlots, and abominations of the earth, Rev. xvii. The seven heads signify the seven hills which antichrist dwells on; for Rome is built upon seven mountains. The seven horns are the number of the kings who made war with the Lamb, and the Lamb overcame them, for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings; then another angel came down from heaven, crying, Babylon is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils. Thence I hope, that the kingdom of antichrist shall be destroyed for though the wicked may prosper for a time, their dominion shall not last; but those who study the law of the Lord, their prosperity shall last for ever. St. Paul, writing to Timothy, says, This know also, that in the last days, men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, &c. 2 Tim. iii. And the prophet Isaiah saith, that Christ shall smite the earth, with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked, Isaiah xi.

Since we see then that the reign of antichrist shall not last for ever, we must wait for the destruction of Babylon, and submit ourselves to the will of the Lord.

THE CONCLUSION AND FIFTH PART.

In the first part of our book, we have proved and declared that Peter was not primate of the church, by confuting all the papistical reasons for it.

In the second, we have proved that they cannot produce and allege any true testimony, that St. Peter was at Rome.

In the third part, we have proved from themselves, that they have said they ought not to have the primacy.

In the fourth part, we have explained the prophecies speaking of antichrist. Since then the pope is that wicked one, very son of the devil, an antichrist, and an abominable tyrant, let us pray unto the Lord to preserve those still in the light who have seen it: and that he will show the sincere, pure, and true light unto those who sit in darkness that all the world may glorify God in this life, and

be partakers of the eternal kingdom of heaven in the world to come, by the merits of Jesus Christ our Saviour; to whom, with the Father, and the Holy Ghost, be all honour, glory, dominion, and praise, for ever and ever. Amen.

The original manuscript is written in French, by the king's own hand, and is entitled "L'Encontre les abus du Monde," that is, Against the abuses of the world, meaning, as Strype observes, the abuses imposed upon the faith and worship of christians by the pope, whom he calls Antichrist.

It is authenticated to be the king's own composition, by a note written at the end by his instructor in the French language; when translated, it is as follows:

"Just as a good painter can represent the visage, look, countenance, and bulk of a prince; so by the writings, words, and actions of a prince, one may easily understand what spirit is in him, and to what he is addicted. As one may see by the writings of this young king, who composed and wrote this book, being not yet full twelve years old, and without the help of any person living; except as to the subject, which he had heard of many, and the remembrance which he had of books that he had read. For, from the time he began to write the said book and until he had finished it, the said book was always in my keeping, even to the present time."

A very few corrections of small importance have been made by the French instructor.

A

SHORT CATECHISM,

OR,

PLAIN INSTRUCTION,

CONTAINING

THE SUM OF CHRISTIAN LEARNING, SET FORTH BY THE KING'S MAJESTY'S AUTHORITY, FOR ALL SCHOOLMASTERS TO TEACH.

1553.

An Injunction given by the King our Sovereign Lord, his most excellent Majesty, to all Schoolmasters and Teachers of Youth, within all his Grace's realms and dominions, for authorizing and establishing the use of this Catechism.

Edward the Sixth, by the grace of God, King of England, France, and Ireland; Defender of the Faith; and of the Church of England, and also of Ireland, the Supreme Head:-To all Schoolmasters and Teachers of Youth.

WHEN there was presented unto us, to be perused, a short and plain order of Catechism, written by a certain godly and learned man, we committed the debating, and diligent examination thereof, to certain bishops, and other learned men, whose judgment we have in great estimation. And because it seemed agreeable with the scriptures, and the ordinances of our realm, we thought it good, not only for that agreement to put it forth abroad to print: but also, for the plainness and shortness, to appoint it out for all schoolmasters to teach. That the yet unskilful and young age, having the foundations laid, both of religion and good letters, may learn godliness together with wisdom; and have a rule for the rest of their life, what judgment they ought to have of God, to whom all our life is applied; and how they may please God, wherein we ought, with all the doings and duties of our lives to travail.

We will therefore and command, both all and each of you, as ye tender our favour, and as ye mind to avoid the just punishment of transgressing our authority, that ye truly and diligently teach this Catechism in your schools, immediately after the other brief Catechism which we have already set forth: that young age, yet tender and wavering, being by authority and instructions of true religion stablished, may have a great furtherance to the right worshipping of God, and good helps to live in all points according to duty. Wherewith being furnished, by better using, due godliness toward God, the Author of all things; obedience toward their king, the shepherd of the people; loving affection to the commonweal, the general mother of all; they may seem not born for themselves, but be profitable and dutiful toward God, their king, and their country.

Given at Greenwich the 20th of May, the 7th year of our reign

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DURING the reign of king Edward VI., efforts were for the first time made for the catechetical instruction of young persons in the doctrines of truth, set forth especially for their use, in the English tongue. Several works were published with this design, the latest and most complete was the Short Catechism, approved by the synod in 1552. It was set forth by the king's authority, and one of the latest public acts of king Edward, was an injunction to all schoolmasters and teachers of youth to use the same. On queen Mary's accession to the throne, much opposition was made to this catechism. In the first convocation, Dr. Weston, a zealous papist, brought in a bill, declaring it to be pestiferous, full of heresies, and unauthorized by the late synod. All present, excepting six, agreed with him. Philpot then stood up and defended the catechism, desiring that some of the learned men concerned in the setting forth that book, might be called before them, and suffered to defend it; but this of course was not allowed.

Weston, who had himself subscribed to it in the former synod, afterwards charged Ridley with being the author. The latter declared he was not, though he admitted having perused and approved it. Ponet, bishop of Winchester in queen Elizabeth's reign, is supposed by Tanner and some others to have written this catechism, but there appears no doubt that the author was Dr. Alexander Nowell, then head master of Westminster school, subsequently an exile in queen Mary's reign, and dean of St. Paul's under queen Elizabeth.

It was published and set forth under his own name, in a revised and considerably enlarged form, after his return from exile, and was then approved by the convocation, and finally in 1570 set forth by authority. In each form it was printed both in English and Latin. Of the first edition, usually known as King Edward's catechism, Strype says, " It was certainly written by Alexander Nowell, as I find by comparing Nowell's catechism and this together. The speakers are the same in both. And in many places the very same questions and answers are given verbatim, only Nowell's catechism published under queen Elizabeth is much larger."

Ridley probably refers to this work in his Farewell to his Friends, and in his letter to the Brethren. (See Ridley, p. 141, 186.) Ponet may have been supposed to be the author, from the license to Day in 1553, which allows him to print this catechism, also containing permission "to print all the works and books devised or compiled" by Ponet.

The catechism is given in the present collection in its original form, as one of the most important pieces connected with the history of the reformation. The anxiety felt by the papists on account of the numerous catechisms set forth in the reformed churches, is shown by the introduction to the Catechism of the Council of Trent, which, after complaining of "the mighty volumes" of the heretics, and the infinite number of "their little books," states, "As many catechisms as there are provinces in Europe, nay, almost as many as the cities, are circulated, all of which abound with heresies, whereby the minds of the simple are deceived."

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