150 Verfe 6. Reafons of Chrifts withdrawings. Ch.5. ly and folemnly convinced and condemned the worship of Images: As also when Charles the Great did the like some fortie yeares after,at a Synod in Frankford. I opened to my beloved, but my beloved had withdrawne bimfelfe, and was gone: my foule failed when he spake: I fought him, but I could not finde him: 1 called him, but he gave me no answer.. I opened to my beloved.] This attempt of the Church in executing in fome places the decrees of these fynods was an opening of the doore to Chrift: Images and Idolatrie being fhut forth, there is a doore open for Chrift to enter. But my beloved had withdrawn himselfe, and was gone. ] Chrift did not delight to reveale himselfe in their publike affemblies, though Images were in fome places well removed, both because those decrees for removing of Images were not generally received and executed, through the comming in of the Bishop of Rome; and because the worship of God was still full of heathenish and Jewish fuperftitions, which Chrift tooke no pleasure in. My foule failed when he spake: ] The faithfull in thofe times were affembled Ch.5 How the Church ufd by her watchmen. 151 with feare and griefe, to confider how Chrift now fpeaketh to them afarre off, comes not neer to their hearts and consciences; fo that now, though they used fuch meanes to finde him as the times af. forded, yet Chrift did take no pleasure in those meanes, in those worships, nor, to their fenfe,in those that used them. The watchmen that went about the Citie Verse 7. found me, they fmote me, they wounded me ; the keepers of the walles took away my vaile from me. The watchmen that went about the Citie found me: ] These watchmen are the Bishops and Ministers of that time; as alfo the keepers of the wals may well bee the Magiftrates; for civill government is a wall of defence to the Church of God. They found me,] And yet the Church enquireth not of them, as fhee had done before of other watchmen,* Have you not feen him whom my foule loves? for fhe knew thefe watchmen were of another fpirit, rather wolves in sheeps cloathing,and more ready to beat her from Chrift, then to bring her to Chrift. They fimote me with cenfures of excommunications, as Grego· rie the third Pope of Rome did Leo IfauLA rus * Chap. 3.3. 152 The Church wounded by her watchmen. Ch.5. ricus for his endeavours. Afterwards, when fundry Chriftians,having intelligence that the Bishops and Doctors were affembled in a Temple at Byzantium, to give fen. tence for reftoring of Images, in the daics of the Empreffe Irene, came upon them, and forced them with weapons to leave off fuch decrees; thefe people were af. terwards dil-armed and banished into fundry Iflands. Thus were the faithfull fmitten with the cenfures of Excommunica tion by the watchmen of the Citie; of ba nishment by the keepers of the walls. They wounded me,] With the Canons of the fecond Councell of Nice; whither that Councell, affembled in the Temple of Byzantium, & fcattered by the people, was afterwards tranflated by the counfell of the Bishops of Rome. In this Councell Images were againe reftored, to the great griefe of the godly, yea to the wounding of their hearts. The fentence of a generall Councell in the behalfe of any error is no fmall wound to the whole Church. They tooke away my vaile from me,] when they forced the Bishops of Rhodes, Nice, Neo-Cefarea, Hierapolis, and others to Ch.5. Waldenfes why fo called. to recantation, who before had worthily oppofed Images. To bring men to open recantation, to lay open their nakedneffe, efpecially when they recant from the trueth, is to take away the vaile. 153 1 charge you, O daughters of Ferufalem, Verse 8. ifye finde my beloved, that ye tell him that I am ficke of love. I charge you,o daughters of Ferufalem.] The Church, finding her felfe fo hardly dealt with by the Minifters and Magiftrates, would not give over her fearch after Chrift; yet now feeketh him in the fellowship of private Chriftians, and stirreth them up to pray for her. Tell him I am ficke of love. ] That is, in your prayers acknowledge that the Church is ready to faile and perifh for want of his prefence and fellowship in his publike ordinances. What is thy beloved more then another Verse 9. beloved, o thou fairest among women ? &c.] The Chriftians,the daughters of Feru. falem, from this day forward, to the daies of Petrus Waldus (of whom the Waldenfes tooke their name) were very ignorant of Chrift, and therefore they ask who hee was, 154 The Albingenfes defeat the Pope. Ch.5. Ver. 10. was, and wherein better then another: But in ftead of him they magnified the Church; Holy mother Church was all in all with them: Her they acknowledged to be fairest among women, though they fee nothing in Chrift better then in another. My beloved is white and ruddy,&c.] Thus Petrus Waldus, a Citizen of Lions, opened Chrift to the daughters of Jerusalem, to the children of the Church,fetting before them the white innocency of true holineffe in him, and the ruddy ícarlet dye of his death. The righteoufneffe and death of Chrift plainly, yet powerfully, opened by him, brought many to behold Chrift, and to profeffe him; who (when by perfecution ftirred up against them by the Bishop of Rome they were difperfed into many places) multiplied exceedingly, and being then called Albingenfes, in many battels fought against the fouldiers which Pope Innocent the third had fent against them, under conduct of Simen Mounteford, and others figned with the croffe: in many of which the Albingenfes prevailed, helped by Reymund Earle of Thelus, and Peter King of Aragon;though after |