in The Three Laws of Nature, Moses, and Christ, Corrupted by the Sodomites, Pharisees, and Papists — Bale, John
Metadata
Play
The Three Laws of Nature, Moses, and Christ, Corrupted by the Sodomites, Pharisees, and Papists
Author
Bale, John
Year (catalogued)
1548
First performance
1538
Decade
1540s
Genre
Moral
Play type
Interlude
Speech prefix(es)
Fides Christiana.
Words
387
Characters
2117
Typicality
0.55 (cosine to cluster centroid)
TCP id
A02738
BritDrama no.
51
Cluster
Cluster 2 — Allegory, Nature & pageant voices
Important excerpts
No keyword-matching excerpt could be extracted (the cluster label doesn't share vocabulary with this character's speech).
Full speech
Most heavenly maker, in y to thu dost commau ̄ de me, Evermore will I, full prompt and diligent be. It hath pleased God, to put me in this office, To govern his church, and Christian congregation, And therein to do, as you shall me entice. Give me I pray you, soch wholesome exhortation, As may be to Man, a clear edyfycacyon. And I will be glad, to take your advertisement. As it shall become, any child obedient. More sweet than honey, are your three exhortations, And registered they be, in my momoryall. Now will I forward, to all the Christian Nations, And sem effect, these laws observed all, To the abolishment, of the dreams papystycall. Now the light is come, the darkness dyeth away, I trust in the lord, men will walk in the day. Good Christian people, to these three laws apply, First know that you have, a living God above, Than do him honour, and his name magnyfye, Worship him in spret. as the Gospel you does move Than obey your King, like as shall you behoove, For he in his life, that lord does represent, To safeguard of the joust, & sinners ponnyshment. See that you regard, soch laws as he does make, For they are of God, as Salomon does report. Of these laws doubtless, those laws their groun dings take. To the public wealth, to give aid, stre ̄ gth & continued ̄ fort For preservation, of all the Christian sort. In no case follow, the ways of Reygnolde Pole, To his damnation, he doubtless plays the foal. Save a endue respect, unto your country native, Which hath brought you up, & given you norryshment. Even from your cradles, to these days nutrytyue. So that you may do, to her wealth and preferment, My master to her, no hateful detriment. A dog to his Friend, will never be unloving, Lete reason in you, not loose his natural working. Pray all to the lord, for the long continuance, Of his graces life, in this world's habytacyon. And that of his nobles, he have true maintenance, In the principles, of this most worthy foundation. That he may to Christ, bring us from desolation. Pray for queen Bateryne, & y e noble lord protector With the whole counsel, that God be their direc tour,
Plot summary
Plot — The Three Laws of Nature, Moses, and Christ, Corrupted by the Sodomites, Pharisees, and Papists
God gives mankind three laws to guide him one by one through the three stages of his history. The Law of Nature has an altercation with Infidelity, who then raises Sodomy and Idolatry to confound the law and pervert mankind’s body and soul. He equips them with the paraphernalia of the Catholic church, and through their work the Law of Nature is afflicted with leprosy. Infidelity next engages Covetousness and Ambition to defeat the Law of Moses: they will exhaust the clergy with long services, and have devotions in Latin to inhibit understanding by the laity; laymen will also be deceived with false interpretations of the Bible, and strict laws against heresy will be enforced. The Law of Moses becomes a blind, lame cripple. Next Infidelity summons Hypocrisy and False Doctrine, who provide religious schism and popish relics. They raise up the clergy, the universities, and local government in opposition to the Law of Christ, who comes to preach. Infidelity competes with a sale of indulgences, and the Law of Christ is arrested, stripped, and taken to be burnt for heresy. Infidelity’s triumph is cut short by the arrival of a vengeful God, who ignores his claim that he is not responsible for the corruption of the laws, and smites him with water, the sword, and fire. God banishes the vices, curing the three Laws, and assigns them to teach Christian Faith, who then goes out to see those laws obeyed in all nations and the Catholic church extirpated.