Confession Of Jacques D’Auchy, Made Before The Commissary And The Inquisitor.

On Monday, the 1st of February of the same year 1558, I was again brought before the same inquisitor. After we had exchanged a few words, he asked me. “Have you not prayed the Lord for wisdom?” Jac. “Yes, and I need to pray to him daily.” Inq. “How is your conscience at ease?” Jac. “Very well; the Lord be praised for it.” Inq. “What are your views concerning baptism and the sacrament, about which we spoke?” Jac. “I hold the same views which I clearly stated to you before.” Inq. “Will you not believe differently?” Jac. “I would believe differently, were it given me to understand differently; but I will not speak as a hypocrite against my heart and conscience; for it is written that the Spirit of God fleeth all deceit.” Wis. 1:5. Inq. “Then, as I perceive, you have come to a full determination in regard to it.” Jac. “Yes, until I am instructed differently. My lord, do you suppose that these, namely, baptism and the sacrament, are the only objectionable things to me in your church?” Inq. “Well, what else is there objectionable to you?” Jac. “Many of the ordinances and institutions in your church, concerning which I do not find a word in the holy Scriptures.” Inq. “Yet we have no ordinance or institution, which I could not prove to you by the Scriptures.” Jac. “Where is the word mass recorded, or purgatory, or praying for the dead?” Inq. “I will prove it to you, namely, purgatory, and that we must pray for the dead.” Jac. “Where is it written in the holy Scriptures?” Inq. “Will you receive the books of the Maccabees?” Jac. “Yes indeed, for apocryphical books.” Inq. “What does apocryphical mean?” Jac. “The ancients used this name, to indicate that they are not authentic books, from which rules or ordinances may be taken.” Inq. “It is true that the doctors had some difficulty therein, but you may therefore not reject them.” Jac. “Yes, my lord, the reason why I will not receive them, is not only this, that I will not trust in what men have said, but also because I do not find that Christ or his apostles received them, or quoted any testimony from them.” Inq. “Yes, yes, where have you found that Christ or his apostles quoted anything from the books of the Kings?” Jac. “Enough.” Inq. “Where then?” Jac. “My lord, in the first place it is written in Matthew (12:1), that the Pharisees censured Christ, because his disciples plucked the ears of corn on the Sabbath. And Christ answered them: ‘Have ye not read what David did when he was a-hungered and they that were with him; how he entered into the house of God, and did eat the shewbread, which was not lawful for him to eat?’ Hence I say, that since Christ refers them to that which is written in the books of the Kings, he thereby shows that he receives them as authentic”277 Inq. “Well, do you find anything in the book of Joshua?” Jac. “Yes, my lord.” Inq. “What is that?” Jac. “My lord, you well know that James in his epistle (2:25) adduces a testimony or example from the book of Joshua, namely, the second chapter, when he speaks of Rahab the harlot, who was saved by her works in faith.” Inq. “Then you will not receive the books of the Maccabees, because Christ and his apostles have not quoted any testimony from them?” Jac. “No, and this for the reason, that they contain a doctrine which is contrary to all Scripture, namely, that of sacrificing and praying for the dead.” Deuteronomy 13:1. Inq. “If I would take the trouble, I could prove all our ordinances with the Scriptures, such as mass, confession, image worship, invocation of the saints, and others.” Jac. “I think not, and even if we were agreed, my lord, in every article, I should yet not want to unite with you, unless you should prove to me by the Scriptures that it is Christian-like to shed innocent blood on account of the faith, as you do.” Inq. “This is on account of errors.” Jac. “And even though it were because the Scriptures were understood amiss, yet I do not find in the Scriptures, that we may put any one to death on account of his faith.”

Inq. “O I can soon prove that heretics may be put to death; for it is written that if any heretics or false prophets should arise, they shall be put to death.”