The first examinacion of the worthye seruaunt of God mastres Anne Askewe the yo~ger doughter of Sir Wyllyam Askewe knyght of lyncolne shyre / latelye martyred in Smithfelde. by the Romysh popes vpholders.

The censure or iudgeme~t of Iohan Bale therupon, after the sacred Scriptures and Chronycles.

OF no lesse Christen constancie
was thys faythfull
wytnesse and holye
martyr of God, Anne Askewe,
nor no lesse a fast
membre of Christ by her
myghtye persyste~ce in hys veryte at thys
tyme of myschefe, than was the afore named
Blandina in the prymatyue churche.

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Thys shall wele apere in her ij. examynacyons
or tyrannouse handelynges
here folowynge. whome she wrote with
her owne ha~de, at the insta~t desyre of serten
faythfull men and wome~, yea rather
at the secrete mocyon of God, that the
truth theroff myght be knowne the worlde
ouer. As within short space yt wyll be,
yf the latyne speche can carye yt. Marke
wele the co~munycacyo~s here both of her
and of her examyners, so prouynge their
spretes as S. Iohan the Apostle geueth
yow counsell. 1. Io. 4. And than shall ye
knowe the tree by his frute, and the man
by hys worke. Anne Askewe.
To satisfie your expectatio~,
good people sayth she this was
my first examynacyon in the
yeare of oure Lorde M.D.xlv
and in the moneth of Marche,
first Christofer dare examyned
me at Sadlers hall, beynge one
of the quest, and asked yf I ded
not beleue that the sacrament
hangynge ouer the aultre was
the verye bodye of Christ realye.
Then I demaunded thys
questyon of hym, wherfore S.
Steuen was stoned to deathe?
And he sayd, he coulde not tell.
Then I answered, that no more
wolde I assoyle hys vayne questyon.
Iohan Bale.
A sacrament sayth Saynt Augustyne
ys a sygne, shappe, or symylytude of
that yt representyth, and no God nor yet
thynge represented. Thys worde reall
or reallye, ys not of beleue, for yt ys not
in all the sacred scriptures. Onlye ys yt
sophystycallye borowed of the paganes
lernynge by wynchestre & hys fellawes,
to corrupt our Christen faythe. Be ware
of that fylthye poyson. The perfyght
beleue of Steuen, Actorum vij. of Paule
Act. 17. and of Salomon, 3. Regum 8. et
2. Parali .6. was, that God dwelleth not
in temples made with handes. Agreable
vnto thys was the faythe of thys godlye
woman, whych neyther coulde beleue
that he dwelleth in the boxe. God
sayth, Esaie lxvj. Heauen is my seate,

Aij

not the boxe. Dauid sayth, Psalm. 113
oure God is in heauen, not in the pixe
Christ taught vs to saye, wha~ we praye
Matth. 6. Luce 11, our father which art
in heauen, and not our father which art
in the boxe. Now discerne and iudge.
Anne Askewe.
Secondly he sayd, that there
was a woman, whych ded testyfye,
that I shuld reade, how
God was not in temples made
with handes. Then I shewed
hym the vij. and the xvij. chaptre
of the Apostles actes, what
Steuen & Paule had sayd therin.
Wherupon he asked me, how
I toke those sente~ces: I answered,
that I wolde not throwe
pearles amonge swyne, for acornes
were good ynough.
Iohan Bale.
An ignorau~t woman, yea a beast with
out faythe, ys herin allowed to iudge the
holye scriptures heresye, and agaynst all
good lawes admitted to accuse thys
godlye woman the seruau~t of Christ, for
an haynouse heretyke, for the onlye readinge
of them. As peruerse and blasphemouse
was thys qwestmonger as she, &
as beastlye ignorau~t in the doctryne of
helthe, yet is neyther of them iudged yll
of the worlde, but the one permitted to
accuse thys true membre of Christ, and
the other to co~dempne her. Wherfor her
answere out of the vij. chaptre of Matthew,
was most fytt for them. For they
are no better than swyne, that so contempne
the precyouse treasure of the Gospell,
for the myre of mennys tradycyons.
Anne Askewe.
Thirdly he asked me, wherfor
I sayd, that I had rather
to reade fyue lynes in the Bible,
than to heare fyue masses in
the temple. I confessed, that I
sayd no lesse. Not for the dysprayse
of eyther the Epistle or
Gospell. But bycause the one
ded greatlye edyfye me, & the
other nothinge at all. As saynt
Paule doth witnesse in the xiiij

Aiij

chaptre of hys first Epistle to
the Corinthes, where as he doth
saye. If the trumpe geueth
an vncertayne sounde, who
wyll prepare hymselfe to the
battayle?
Iohan Bale.
A commaundement hath Christ geuen
vs, to serche the holye scriptures, Iohan.
5. for in them onlye is the lyfe eternall.
Blessed is he sayth Christ vnto Iohanwhych readeth and heareth the wordes
of thys prophecye, Apo. 1. But of the
latyne popysh masse, is not one worde in
all the Byble, and therfor it perteyneth
not to faythe. A strayght co~maundeme~t
haue almyghtye God geuen, Deutro. 12.
that nothynge be added to hys worde, nor
yet, taken from it. Put thu nothynge vnto
his worde saith Salomon, Prou. 30.
least thu be fou~de in so doynge, a reprobate
persone and a lyar. S. Paule wylled
nothynge to be vttered in a dead speche.
1. Corin. 14. as are your masse and mattens
but sylence alwayes to be in the
congregacyons, where as is no interpretour,
for fyue wordes sayth he auayleth

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more to vndersta~dynge, than x. thousande
wordes with the tonge. Thys proueth
te~ple seruyce of the papystes all the yeare,
to be worth nothynge.
Anne Askewe.
Fortlye he layed vnto my charge,
that I shuld saye, If an yll
prest mynystred, it was the deuyll
and not God. My answere
was, that I neuer spake soche
thynge. But thys was my
sayenge, That what so euer he
were, whych mynystred vnto
me, hys yll condycyons coulde
not hurte my faythe. But in
sprete I receyued neuer the lesse,
the bodye and bloude off
Christ.
Iohan Bale.
Christ sayth, Ioan. 6. Haue not I chosen
yow xij. and yet one of yow is a deuyll
meanynge Iudas that false & vnfaythfull
prest. No lesse sayth Peter. 2. Pet. 2
of those lye~ge curates, by whome the truthe
is blasphemed, and the people made

Aiiij

merchaundyce of in their couetousnesse.
If the yll frute than, be all one with the
yll tree in noughtynesse, the worke of a
deuyll must be deuylysh. God sayd vnto
the wycked prestes, Esa. j. Hier. 6. Amos
5. and Mala. 2. that he abhorred their
sacryfyces, and also hated them, euen at
the verye hart, wyllynge both heauen &
earthe to marke it. Into Iudas entered
Sathan, after the soppe was geue~ hym,
Ioa~. 13. where as the other Apostles receyued
the bodye and bloude of Christ.
The table was all one to them both, so
was the breade which their mouthes receyued.
The inwarde receyuynges than
in Peter and in Iudas, made all the dyuersyte,
whych was beleue and vnbeleue,
or faythe and vnfaythfulnesse, as Christ
largelye declareth in the vj. of Iohan,
where as he shewed afore hande, the full
doctryne of that mystycall supper. Onlye
he that beleueth, hath there the promes
of the lyfe euerlastinge, and not he that
eateth the materyall breade. Of God
are they taught, and not of men, whych
trulye vnderstande thys doctryne.
Anne Askewe.
Fiftly he asked me, what I
sayd co~cernynge confession? I
answered hym my meanynge,
whych was as Saynt Iames
sayth, that euerye man ought
to acknowlege hys fautes to other,
& the one to praye for the
other.
Iohan Bale.
Thys co~fessyon onlye do, the scripture
appoynt vs, Iac. 5. as we haue offended
our neyber: But yf we haue offe~ded God,
we must sorowfullye acknowlege it before
hym. And he sayth Saynt Iohan, 1.
Iohan. 1. hath faythfullye promysed to
forgeue vs our synnes, yf we so do, and to
clense vs from all vnryghtousnesse. If
the lawe of truthe be in the prestes mouthe,
he ys to be sought vnto for godlye cou~sell,
Mala. 2. But yf he be a blasphemouse
hypocryte or superstycyouse fole, he ys
to be shourned as a most pestile~t poyson.
Anne Askewe.
Sixtly he asked me, what I
sayd to the kynges boke? And
I answered hym, that I coulde

Av

saye nothynge to it, bycause I
neuer sawe it.
Iohan Bale.
All craftye wayes possyble, sought thys
quarellynge qwestmonger, or els the deuyll
in hym, to brynge thys poore innocent
lambe to the slaughter place of Antichrist.
Moche after thys sort sought the
wycked Pharysees by serte~ of their owne
faccyon or hyered satellytes with the Herodyanes,
to brynge Christ in daunger
of Cesar, & so to haue hym slayne, Mat.
22. Mar. 12. Luce 21.
Anne Askewe.
Seuenthly he asked me, if I
had the sprete of God in me? I
answered if I had not, I was
but a reprobate or cast awaye.
Iohan Bale.
Electe are we of God sayth Peter
through the sanctyfyenge of the sprete j.
Petri j. In euerye true Christen beleuer
dwelleth the sprete of God. Io. 14. Their
sowles are the sanctyfyed temples of the
holye Ghost. 1. Corin. 3. He that hath not
the sprete of Christ sayth Paule is non
of Christes, Roma. 8. To them is the holye
Ghost geue~, whych heareth the Gospell
and beleueth it, and not vnto them
whych will be iustyfyed by their workes.
Gala. 2. All these worthye scryptures co~firme
her saynge.
Anne Askewe.
Then he sayd, he had sent for
a prest to examyne me, whych
was there at ha~de. The prest asked
me, what I sayd to the Sacrame~t
of ye aultre? & requyred
moche to knowe therin my meaninge.
But I desyred hym agayne,
to holde me excused concernynge
that matter. Non other
answere wolde I make hym, because
I perceyued hym a papyst.
Iohan Bale.
Mockynge prestes sayth Esaye hath
rule of the lordes people. Whose voyces
are in their dru~ckennesse. Byd that maye
be bydden, forbyd that maye be forbydde~.
kepe backe that maye be kept backe, here
a lyttle and there a lyttle. Esaie xxviij. A
plage shal come vpon these, for why,
they haue chaunged the ordynaunces,
and made the euerlastinge testament
of no~ effect. Esa. 24. They witholde
sayth S. Paule the veryte of God
in vnryghtousnesse, Roma. 1. They brede
cockatryce egges sayth Esaye and weue
the spyders webbe. Who so eateth of
their egges, dyeth. But if one treadeth
vpon them, there cometh vp a serpent,
Esaie 59.
Anne Askewe.
Eyghtly he asked me, if I
ded not thynke, that pryuate
masses ded helpe sowles departed.
And I sayd, it was great
Idololatrye to beleue more in
the~, than in the deathe whych
Christ dyed for vs.
Iohan Bale.
Here, ryseth the serpent of the cockatryce
egges, worckema~lye to fulfyll the afore
alleged prophecye. If their Masses
had bene of Gods creacyon, ordynaunce
or commaundement, or if they had bene
in anye poynt necessarye for mannys behoue,
they had bene regestred in the boke
of lyfe, whych is the sacred Byble. But
therin is, neither mencyon of Masse pryuate
nor publyque, seuerall nor commen,
syngle nor double, hygh nor lowe, by fote
not on horse backe, or by note as they call
it. If they be thynges added by mannys
inuencyon as they can be non other, not
beynge there named tha~ am I sure that
the scriptures call them fylthynesse, rust,
chaffe, draffe, swylle, droncke~nesse, fornycacyon,
me~strue, mannys dyrt, addersegges,
poyson, snares, the breade of wycked
lyes, and the cuppe of Gods curse. Their
orygynall grounde shulde seme to be taken
of the Druydes or pagane Prestes,
whych inhabyted thys realme longe afore
Christes incarnacyon, and had than
practysed sacryfyces publyque and pryuate.
Loke Cornelius Tacitus, Caius Iulius,
Plinius, Strabo, & soch other authours.
That name of pryuacyon added
vnto their Masse, clerelye depryueth it
of Christen communyon, where one man
eateth vp all, & dystrybuteth nothynge.
How soche ware shulde helpe the sowles
departed, I can not tell. But wele I
wore, that the wou~ded man betwixt Hierusale~
and Hierico, had no helpe of the~,
Luce 10. The Samarytane whych was
rekened but a pagane amo~ge them, was
hys onlye co~fort. in the most popysh tyme
was neuer more horryble blasphemye,
than thys is. Thys wyckednesse impugneth
all the promyses of God concernynge
faythe and remyssyon of synnes. It repugneth
also to the whole doctryne of the
Gospell. The applycacyo~ of Christes supper,
auayleth them onlye that be alyue,
takynge, eatynge, and drynkynge that is
therin mynystred. no more can the prestes
receyuynge of that sacrament profyght
an other man, tha~ can hys receyuynge
of Baptysme or of penaunce, as they
call it. If it profyteth not the qwyck,
how can it profyght the dead? No sacrifyce
is the Masse, nor yet good worke, but
a blasphemouse prophanacyo~ of the Lordes
holye supper, a manyfest wyckednesse,
an horryble Idololatrye, and a fowle abhomynacyon,
beynge thus a ryte of worshyppynge
without the worde, yea agaynst
the expresse worde of God.
Anne Askewe.
Then they had me fro~ thens,
vnto my lorde Mayre. And he
examyned me, as they had before,
and I answered hym dyrectlye
in all thynges, as I answered
the qweste afore.
Iohan Bale.
After thys sort was Christ ledde from
the examinacyon of the clergye to Pylate,
Matth. 27. In that the examynacyon
of the qweste and of the Mayre was all
one, ye maye wele knowe that they, had
both one scole mastre, euen the brutysh
byshopp of London. The ignorau~t magystrates
of Engla~de wyll neyther be godlye
wyse with Dauid & Salomo~, nor yet
enbrace the ernest instruccyons of God,
to be lerned in the scriptures, Psa. 2. Sapie~
6. but styll be wycked mynysters, and
cruell seruaunt slaues to Antichrist and
the deuyll, Apoc. 17. More fyt are soche
wytlesse mayres and gracelesse offycers,
as knoweth not whyght from blacke, &
lyght fro~ darkenesse. Esa. 5. to fede swyne
or to kepe kaddowes, than to rule a
christen commynalte. A terryble daye abydeth
them, whych thus ordereth the innocent.
Iaco. 2.
Anne Askewe.
Besydes thys my lorde mayre
layed one thynge vnto my
charge, which was neuer spoke~
of me, but of them. And that
was, whether a mouse eatynge
the hoste, receyued God or no?
Thys questyon ded I neuer aske,
but in dede they asked it of me,
wherunto I made them no answere,
but smyled.
Iohan Bale.
Is not here thynke yow wele fauerd
& wele fashyoned dyuynyte, to establysh
an artycle of the Christen faythe? Wylye
wynchestre answereth thys questyon as
folysh as it is, in hys wyse detectyo~ of the
deuyls sophystrye, fo. 16. Beleue sayth
he that a mouse can not deuoure God.
Yet reporteth he after, in fo. 21. that Christes
bodye maye as wele dwell in a mouse
as in ded in Iudas. Than foloweth fryre
fynke, fryre Peryn I shuld saye, a bachelar
of the same scole. And he answereth
in the ende of hys thirde sermon, that
the Sacrament eaten of a mouse, is the
verye and reall bodye of Christ. And
whan he hath affermed it to be no derogacyon
to Christes presens, to lye in the
mawe of that mouse. He deuydeth me
the one from the other, the sacrame~t fro~
Christes bodye, co~cludinge. That though
the sacrament be digested in the mouses
mawe, yet ys not Christes bodye there co~sumed.
O blasphemouse beastes, & blynde
bloderynge Balaamytes.
Bycause these ij. workemen be scant
wyttye in their owne occupacyon, I shal
brynge them forth here ij. olde artyfycers
of theirs to helpe the~, Guimundus Auersanus
a byshopp, to helpe byshopp Steuen,
& Thomas walden a fryre, to helpe
fryre Peryn. The sacramentes saye they
both are not eaten of myce, though they
seme so to be in the exteryour symylytudes.
For the vertues sayth Guimundus
of holye men, are not eaten of beastes,
whan they are eaten of them, li.2. de corpore
& sanguine dn~i. No marrye quoth
walden no more is the paynters occupacyon
destroyed, whan a picture is destroyed.
Marke thys gere for your lernynge.
But now cometh Allgerus a monke, more
craftye than they both, and he sayth li. 2
cap. 1. de Eucharistia, that as wele is
thys meate spirytuall, as materyall, because
Dauid calleth it the breade of Angels,

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and a breade from heauen, Psa. 77.
That whych is materyall in thys breade
sayth he is consumed by dygestyon, but
that whych is spirytuall remayneth vncorrupted.
If we wolde attende wele vnto Christes
dyuynyte, and lete these oyled dyuynes
dyspute amonge olde Gossypes, we
shuld sone dyscharge myce and rattes,
weake stomakes and parbreakynge dronkardes,
of a farre other sort tha~ thus, he
that eateth my fleshe sayth Christ Io. 6.
and dryncketh my bloude, dwelleth in me
& I in hym. Thys eatynge is all one with
the dwellynge, & is neyther for myce nor
rattes, brent chauncels not dronken prestes.
For as we eate we dwell, and as we
dwell we eate, by a graunded and perfyght
faythe in hym. The substaunce of
that most godlye refeccyon lyeth not in
the mouth eatynge nor yet in the bellye
seadynge, though they be necessarye, but
in the onlye spirytuall or sowle eatynge.
No wyse man wyll thynke, that Christ
wyll dwell in a mouse, nor yet that a
mouse can dwell in Christ, though it be
the doctryne of these doughtye dowsepers,
for they shall fynde no scriptures
for it. If these men were not enemyes
to faythe and fryndes to Idolatrye, they
wolde neuer reache soche fylthye lernynge.
More of thys shall I wryte God
wyllynge in the answere of their bokes.
Anne Askewe.
Then the Byshoppes chaunceller
rebuked me, & sayd, that
I was moche to blame for vtterynge
the scriptures. For S.
Paule he sayd forbode women
to speake or to talke of the worde
of God. I answered hym,
that I knewe Paules meanynge
so well as he, whych is, j. Corinthiorum
xiiij. that a woman
ought not to speake in the congregacyon
by the waye of teachynge.
And then I asked hym,
how manye women he had seane,
go into the pulpett and
preache.