VOLUME 3

AN ANSWERE VNTO SIR THOMAS MORES DIALOGE

LOCATION
KEY Commentary Side Textual Bibliographic Scriptural
¶How a christen man can not erre / and how he maye yet erre

And as they synne not / so they erre not. And on the other syde as they synne / so they erre: but never vn to deeth and damnacion. For they never synne of purpose ner holde any erroure maliciously / synnynge agenst the holygoste / but of weakenesse and infirmitie. As good obedient childern / though they loue their fathers commaundementes / yet breake them oft / by the reason of their wekenesse . And as they can not yelde them selves bond vn to synne / to serue it: even so they can not erre in any thynge that shuld be agenst the promises which are in christe. And in other thynges their erroures be not vn to damnacion / though they be neuer so greate / because they hold them not maliciously. As now / if some when they reade in the new testament of Christes brethern / wold thynke that they were oure ladies childern aftir the birth of christe / because they know not the vse of speakynge of the scripture or of the hebrues / how that nye kinsmen becalled brethern / or happly they might be Iosephes childern / by some first wife / neyther can haue any to teach him for tiranny that is so greate / yet coude it not hurte him / though he died therin / because it hurteth not the redempcion that is in christes bloude. For though she had none but christ / I am therfore neuer the moare saued / neyther yet the lesse / though she had had. And in soch like an hundred that plucke not a mans faith from Christ / they might erre / and yet beneuer the lesse saued no though the contrary were written in the gospel. For as in other synnes /

80/3–4 God . . . only. Cf. John 4.23–24.

80/4 Faith to his promises. Cf. Gal. 3.22, Heb. 6.12.

80/12–13 Fastynge . . . goinge. Cf. CWM 6/1.44/14–19.

80/13 pilgrimage. More defends pilgrimages in Bk. 1, Ch. 4 and 16, cf. 62/1n. The Messenger describes the shrine of St. Valery in Bk. 2, Ch. 10, cf. 123/25n.

80/14–15 god . . . drinke. Cf. Ps. 50.13.