led you from God into opinions, and there you go astray; they have stirred you up to contention and wars, so that you have murdered one another, and wasted your native countries: They have bereaved you of body and soul, also of your goods and wits, and made you believe you did God good service in it, when you became enemies to those that are not of your opinion; and yet you are all thus blind [even on both sides] .
20. Behold! these are the curates over your souls, your spirituality, the clergy: Look upon Popery, whence hath that sprung? From the devil at Rome: He hath caused Asia, Africa, Assyria, Persia, and Greece, to depart from his deceit; for the Antichristian priest-devil hath blinded the whole world, and brought them into vain traditions and opinions, and turned them away from that unanimous love: He hath placed more holiness in one order and opinion than in another, and hath sold the highest degree of [sacerdotal] orders for money: That order which had much, and rich livings and revenues, must give much to the Chief Devil, that he might be fat, and a lord upon earth: The simple lay-people were persuaded these orders were holiness, and so worshipped before the dragon in the Revelation, and sought for pardon, absolution, and forgiveness of sins from thence: O how the common people were tied to them! Whomsoever spoke against it, was accounted a heretic, and the people burnt them with fire: Thus did the simple people do, and were persuaded they did God good service in it.
21. O thou simple holiness [devotion]! Thou art not guilty in so doing; neither shall it be imputed or accounted to you at the Last Day, (for you went on blindly in it); and though on that day the holy Martyrs shall be set before your eyes, yet you have been zealous for God in blindness: The Blessed Martyrs (who have seen the light of God) will not therefore cast you out of their congregation, seeing you knew not [what you did], but were blindly led on to do it.
22. Yet, behold and observe what a zealous will, or earnest desire can do, if one enters into the will of God with his whole desire; and although he knoweth not what he doth, and is zealous in a strange opinion, and yet his heart is directed into God, and believeth in ignorance, very stedfastly, that it is pleasing to God, in such an opinion many great wonders and works have been done in the midst of the Antichristian kingdom, for there is not any thing impossible to a strong faith.
23. Into these wonders hath Antichrist insinuated himself, and hath made almost as many opinions [tenets and sects] as there are days in the year, among which, in the believers, who have so in blindness believed in their opinion, even wonders and miracles have been done, and the Antichrist hath ascribed it to the opinion: whereas the opinion could not make a fly to stir, but the firm and strong
led you from God into opinions, and there you go astray; they have stirred you up to contention and wars, so that you have murdered one another, and wasted your native countries: They have bereaved you of body and soul, also of your goods and wits, and made you believe you did God good service in it, when you became enemies to those that are not of your opinion; and yet you are all thus blind [even on both sides] .
20. Behold! these are the curates over your souls, your spirituality, the clergy: Look upon Popery, whence has that sprung? From the devil at Rome: He has caused Asia, Africa, Assyria, Persia, and Greece, to depart from his deceit; for the Antichristian priest-devil has blinded the whole world, and brought them into vain traditions and opinions, and turned them away from that unanimous love: He has placed more holiness in one order and opinion than in another, and has sold the highest degree of [sacerdotal] orders for money: That order which had much, and rich livings and revenues, must give much to the Chief Devil, that he might be fat, and a lord upon earth: The simple lay-people were persuaded these orders were holiness, and so worshipped before the dragon in the Revelation, and sought for pardon, absolution, and forgiveness of sins from thence: O how the common people were tied to them! Whomsoever spoke against it, was accounted a heretic, and the people burnt them with fire: Thus did the simple people do, and were persuaded they did God good service in it.
21. O you simple holiness [devotion]! You are not guilty in so doing; neither shall it be imputed or accounted to you at the Last Day, (for you went on blindly in it); and though on that day the holy Martyrs shall be set before your eyes, yet you have been zealous for God in blindness: The Blessed Martyrs (who have seen the light of God) will not therefore cast you out of their congregation, seeing you knew not [what you did], but were blindly led on to do it.
22. Yet, behold and observe what a zealous will, or earnest desire can do, if one enters into the will of God with his whole desire; and although he knows not what he does, and is zealous in a strange opinion, and yet his heart is directed into God, and believes in ignorance, very stedfastly, that it is pleasing to God, in such an opinion many great wonders and works have been done in the midst of the Antichristian kingdom, for there is not any thing impossible to a strong faith.
23. Into these wonders has Antichrist insinuated himself, and has made almost as many opinions [tenets and sects] as there are days in the year, among which, in the believers, who have so in blindness believed in their opinion, even wonders and miracles have been done, and the Antichrist has ascribed it to the opinion: whereas the opinion could not make a fly to stir, but the firm and strong
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