MarginaliaAn. 1555. February.enemies and autors of their death one with the other, we should finde no inequality betwixt them both, but that the aduersaries of M. Hooper seemed to bee more cruell and vnmercyfull. MarginaliaThe enemies of Maister Hooper and of Polycarpus compared.For they that put Polycarpus to death, yet ministred to hym a quicke dispatch, moued belike with some compassion not to haue hym stand long in the torment: where the Tormentors of M. Hooper suffered hym without all compassion to stand three quarters of an houre in the fire. And as touching the chiefe doers and autors of hys martyrdome, what Consull or Proconsul was there to be confererred with the Chauncellour here, which brought this martyr to hys burnyng? Let this suffice.

This good bishop and seruant of God being in prison, MarginaliaBookes and treatises written by Maister Hooper.wrote diuers bookes and treatises, to the number of. 24. whereof some he wrote to the Parlament in Latin, and one to the bishop of Chichester D. Day: besides he wrote of the Sacraments, of the Lords praier, and of the. x. cōmaundements, with diuers other.  

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A number of these documents were printed in the Rerum and never reprinted by Foxe: an appeal by Hooper to parliament, dated 27 August 1554 (pp. 299-305); a letter to convocation in 1554 (pp. 306-08) and a treatise by Hooper on the Lord's Supper (pp. 309-92). This material was preceded by a preface from Foxe to the reader (p. 298) and followed by a hortatory letter attacking transubstantiation, written by Foxe (pp. 392-96), and a summary of Hooper's arguments, cast by Foxe as logical formulae (pp. 396-403). All of this suggests that this material was initially intended as a separate volume and was instead incorporated in the Rerum, perhaps because Foxe had difficulty finding a publisher for Hooper's writings on the continent.

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¶ Here followe certaine of Maister Hopers Letters.  

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Hooper's Letters

All of the letters of Hooper which follow appeared first appeared in Bull's Letters of the Martyrs and were then reprinted by Foxe from 1570 onwards. This is a tribute to the zeal and scope of Bull's research and an indication of his very important contribution to the Acts and Monuments.

AS you haue heard the whole story of the lyfe and Martyrdome of this good man declared: so now let vs consequently adioyne some part of hys letters writtē in þ^e time of his imprisonment most fruitfull and worthy to be read,  

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Hooper's Letters

In these letters scriptural references are prominent, and the glosses are mainly concerned with indicating the recipients of the letters and with amplifying the basic points made by Hooper, without altering their focus or meaning (in contrast to Foxe's earlier marginal treatment of the disputations). Several of the glosses deal with the dangers of worldliness, underlining the other-worldly destination and values of Hooper ('Two thinges commaunded by S. Paule writing to the Collossians'; 'The first is to see and know what thinges are aboue and what thinges are beneath and and to discerne rightly betwene them'; 'The second is to set our affection vpon them that are aboue, and not vpon the other And this lesson is harder then the other'; 'How thinges of this world may be possessed, and how not'; 'Gaynes with Gods displeasure is beggary').

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The importance of suffering is also emphasised ('Afflictions be the messengers and seruauntes of God'; 'Pacience the gift onely of God'; 'To suffer for Christ, is honorable'; 'Example taken of our meate and drinke how thinges neuer come to their perfection before they be vtterly waysted'; 'Vnmortefied men, be no people to God'). This is in part related to the future (though in narrative terms, past) suffering of Hooper, but there are also glosses which allow Foxe's readers to apply Hooper's approaches to suffering to their own difficulties ('Read also M. Hoopers exposition vpon thys Psalme, most comfortable for all broken and afflicted hartes'; 'Read also the fourth chapter. of Eccle'). There are also glosses which point to the relations between the persecuted church and the actions of antichrist ('Iudgement first beginneth with the house of God'; 'Gods wrath vpon the beast and them that take his marke'; 'In this time of Antichrist is the pacience and fayth of Gods children tryed, whereby they shall ouercome all his tyranny read. Math. 24') and the inversion of values inherent in popery ('Errour taken for truth and persecution for Gods seruice').

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There are examples of glosses missing or out of place in either of the editions after 1570. A notable and rare case of an error in 1570 later corrected is 'The blacke horse in the Apocalyps chapt. 6. what it meaneth' (1570 and 'The pale horse in the Apocalips chap. 6. what it meaneth' (1576 and 1583.

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¶A letter of M. Hoper to certayne Godly professors and louers of the truth, instructing them how to behaue them selues in that wofull alteration and chaunge of Religion.  

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This first appears in Letters of the Martyrs, pp. 114-17.

MarginaliaA letter of M. Hooper to the faithfull brethren.THe grace, mercy, and peace of God the father thorow our Lord Iesus Christ, be with you my deare brethren, and with all those that vnfaynedly loue and imbrace his holy Gospell, Amen.

It is told me þ^t the wycked Idole þ^e Masse is stablished agayne by a law, & passed in the Parlamēt house. Learne þ^e truth of it I pray you, & what penalty is appointed in the Act, to such as speake agaynst it: also whether there be any cōpulsion to constraine men to be at it. The statute throughly knowne, such as bee abroade and at liberty, may prouide for them selues and auoyd the daunger the better. Doubtles there hath not bene seene before our tyme, such a Parlament as this is, MarginaliaThe fauourers of Gods word secluded out of the parlament, both in the hyer house and lower, against all right and reason.that as many as were suspected to be fauourers of Gods worde, should be banished out of both houses. But we must geue God thankes for that truth he hath opened in the time of hys blessed seruaunt King Edward the syxte., and pray vnto hym that we deny it not, nor dishoner it with Idolatry, but that we may haue strēgth and patience rather to dye ten tymes, then to deny him once. Blessed shall we be if euer God make vs worthy of that honour, to sheed our bloude for his names sake: And blessed then shall wee thinke the parentes which brought vs into this worlde, that wee should from this mortalitie bee caried into immortality. If we follow the commaundement of Saint Paule that sayth, MarginaliaColoß. 3.If ye then bee risen againe with Christ, seeke those thynges which are aboue, where Christ sitteth at the right hand of God: we shall neyther depart from the vayne transitory goodes of this world, nor from this wretched and mortall lyfe, wyth so great paynes as other do.

Let vs pray to our heauēly father that we may know and loue his blessed will, and the glorious ioy prepared for vs in time to come, and that we may know and hate all thinges contrary to his blessed wil, and also the paine prepared for the wicked in the worlde to come. MarginaliaHe exhorteth the brethren to resort and conferre among themselues together.There is no better way to be vsed in this troublesome tyme for your consolatiō, thē many tymes to haue assemblies together of such men and women as be of your religion in Christ, and there to talke and renewe among your selues the truth of your Religion, to see what ye be by the word of God, and to remēber what ye were before ye came to the knowledge thereof, to waygh and conferre the dreames and false lyes of the prechers that now preach, with

the word of God that retayneth all truth, & by such talke and familiar resorting together, ye shall the better fynde out all their lyes that now go about to deceiue you, and also both know and loue the truth that God hath opened to vs. MarginaliaConference amongst brethren comfortable.It is much requisite that the members of Christ, comforte one another, make prayers together, conferre one with an other: so shall ye be the stronger, and Gods spirite shall not be absent from you but in the midst of you to teach you, to comfort you, to make you wise in all Godly thinges, patient in aduersity and strong in persecution. Ye see how the congregation of the wicked by helping one an other, make their wicked religion and them selues strong agaynst Gods truth and hys people. If ye may haue some learned man that can out of the scriptures speake vnto you of faith and true honoring of god, MarginaliaDescent of Christes church frō the beginning requisite to be knowen.also that can shew you the descent of Christs church from the begynning of it vntill thys day, that ye may perceiue by the life of your forefathers these two things: the one that Christes worde, which sayd that all his must suffer persecution and trouble in the world, be true: the other that none of all hys before our tyme, escaped trouble: then shall yee perceaue that it is but a folly for one that professeth Christ truly, to looke for the loue of the world.

Thus shall ye learne to beare trouble and to exercyse your Religion, and feele in deede that Christes wordes bee true: MarginaliaIohn. 16.In the worlde ye shall suffer persecution. And when ye feele your Religion in deede, say ye bee no better then your forefathers, but be glad that ye may be counted worthy Souldiers for this warre: and pray to God when ye come together, that hee wyll vse and order you and your doinges to these three endes, which ye must take heede of: Marginaliaiij. Things to be taken heede of.the fyrst that ye glorify God, the next that yee edifye the Church and congregation, the thyrde that ye profyte your owne soules. In all your doynges beware ye be not deceaued. For although this tyme be not yet so bloudy and tyrannous as the tyme of oure forefathers that could not beare the name of Christ without daunger of lyfe and goodes: yet is our tyme more perillous both for body and soule. Therfore of vs Christ sayd: MarginaliaLuke. 18.Thinke ye when the Sonne of man commeth, he shall finde fayth vppon the earth? Hee sayd not, thinke ye he shall fynd any man or woman Christened and in name a Christian: but he spake of the fayth that saueth the Christiā man in Christ: MarginaliaFaith more scarser now then in the olde time vnder Tyrantes.and doubtles the scarsitie of fayth is now more (and will I feare increase) thē it was in the time of the greatest Tyrannes that euer were: & no maruell why. Read ye the vj. chap. of S. Iohns Reuelatiō, and ye shall perceiue amongest other thyngs, that at the openyng of the fourth Seale, came out MarginaliaThe blacke horse in the Apocalyps chapt. 6. what it meaneth.a pale horse, and he that sat vpon hym was called death, & hell folowed him. This horse is the tyme wherein hypocrites and dissemblers entred into the Church vnder the pretence of true Religion, as Monkes, Friers, Nonnes, Massyng Priestes, with such other, MarginaliaMo soules slayn by Monkes & Fryers &c. then bodyes by Tyrauntes.that haue killed mo soules with heresie and superstitiō, then all the Tyrannes that euer were, killed bodyes with fyre, sword, or banishmēt, as it appeareth by his name that sitteth vpon the horse, who is called death: for all souls that leaue Christ and trust to these hypocrites, liue to the deuill in euerlastyng payne, as is declared by him that foloweth the pale horse which is hell.

These pretensed and pale hypocrites, haue styrred the earthquakes, that is to witte, the Princes of the world, agaynst Christes Church, and haue also darkened the Sunne, & made þ^e Moone bloudy, & haue caused þ^e starres to fall from heauen, that is to say, haue darkened with mistes and dayly do darken (as ye heare by their Sermons) the cleare Sonne of Gods most pure word: the Moone, which bee Gods true preachers, which fetch onely lyght at the Sonne of Gods worde, are turned into bloud, prisons, and chaines, that theyr light can not shyne vnto the world as they would: MarginaliaThe 6. chapt. of the Apocalyps opened.Wherupon it commeth to passe that the starres, that is to say Christian people, fall from heauen, that is to witte, from Gods most true word, to hypocrisie, most deuilish superstition, and Idolatry. Let some learned man shewe you all the Articles of your belief and monumentes of Christian fayth, from the tyme of Christ hetherto, and ye shall perceiue that there was neuer mention of such Articles as these hypocrites teach. God blesse you, and pray for me as I do for you.

Out of the Fleete by your brother
in Christ Iohn Hoper.