Sacrament Act 1547
| Year | 1547 |
(1 Edw. 6) C A P. I.
'T H E King's most excellent Majesty minding the Governance and Order of his most loving Subjects to be in most perfect Unity and Concord in all Things, and in especial in the true Faith and Religion of God, and wishing the same to be brought to pass with all Clemency and Mercy on his Highness Part towards them, as his most Princely Serenity and Majesty hath already declared by evident Proof, to the Intent that his most loving Subjects provoked by Clemency and Goodness of their Prince and King, shall study rather for Love than for Fear to do their Duties, first to Almighty God, and then to his Highness and the Common Wealth, nourishing Concord and Love amongst themselves; (2)Yet considereth and perceiveth that in a Multitude all be not on that Sort, that Reason and the Knowledge of their Duties can move them from Offence, but many which had need have some Bridle of Fear, and that the same be Men most contentious and arrogant for the most Part, or else most blind and ignorant: (3) By the Means of which Sort of Men, many Things well and godly instituted, and to the Edification of many, be perverted and abused, and turned to their own and others great Loss and Hindrance, and sometime to extreme Destruction: The which doth appear in nothing more or sooner, than in Matters of Religion, and in the great and high Mysteries thereof, as in the most comfortable Sacrament of the Body and Blood of our Saviour Jesus Christ, commonly called the Sacrament of the Altar, and in Scripture, the aSupper and bTable of the Lord, the cCommunion and dPartaking of the Body and Blood of Christ: (4)Which Sacrament was instituted of no less Author than of our Saviour, both God and Man, when at his last Supper amongst his Apostles, he did take the Bread into his Holy Hands, and did say, eTake you and eat, this is my Body, which is fgiven and gbroken for you . And taking up the hChalice or Cup, did give Thanks, and say, iThis is my Blood of the New Testament, which is shed for kyou, and for lmany, for the mRemission of Sins , that nwhensoever we should do the same, we should do it in the Remembrance of him, and to declare and set forth his Death and most glorious Passion, until his Coming. Of the which oBread whosoever eateth, or of the which Cup whosoever drinketh unworthily, peateth and drinketh Condemnation and Judgment to himself, making no Difference of the Lord's Body. (5) The Institution of which Sacrament being ordained by Christ, as is before said, and the said Words spoken of it here before rehearsed, being of eternal, infallible and undoubted Truth: Yet the said Sacrament(all this notwithstanding) hath been of late marvellously abused by such manner of Men before rehearsed, who of Wickedness, or else of Ignorance and want of Learning, for certain Abuses heretofore committed of some, in misusing thereof, have condemned in their Hearts and Speech the whole Thing, and contemptuously depraved, despised or reviled the same most Holy and Blessed Sacrament, and not only disputed and reasoned unreverently and ungodly of that most high Mystery, but also in their Sermons, Preachings, Readings, Lectures, Communications, Arguments, Talks, Rhimes, Songs, Plays or Jests, name or call it by such vile and...
To continue reading
Request your trial