Moyses and Elias appeared in the Mounte vnto Christ
our Lord: many haue bene raised from the dead both
in bodie and soule, and therefore soules after they are
departed, may returne on earth againe.

I

N like manner they obiect vnto vs, out of the 17. of Matthew, that Moses and Helias were sÉene in the Mount, (which is called by the olde Writers Tabor,) with our Lord Iesus, by the Apostles whom he had chosen for the same purpose, and that they did speake with him. Luke telleth of what matters they communed with him, to wit of his death, that is y? death of the crosse. Thereupon they gather, that the soules of dead men may come againe into earth & appeare vnto men: we haue graunted before that God is able to send soules again into the earth, but that it is his will so to do, or that it is necessary especially at these dayes, is not yet proued. Moses and Helias appeared appeared not to al the Apostles but only to thrÉe, neither did they speake to those thrÉe, they brought no new Doctrine, they commanded them not to build Churches in their honor, or to do any such like thing, whether that their soules came alone, or their bodies: also sure it is, they were not sent to the Apostles, but to Christ onely.

It was very necessary, that they which should be Christs witnesses, shuld very wel vnderstand, that both y? Law and the Prophets, do beare record vnto our Sauior Christ, that he shuld die for the world, and come again in the latter day, to raise vp the dead bodies, to glorifie them, & to carry them with him, into eternal blisse. And for this cause, God would haue these two excellent Prophets sÉene of the Apostles.

Lazarus soule did not only appeare, but he came againe both in bodie & soule, as Iohn witnesseth in his 11. chap. he is as it were a sure token, of our true resurrection, which shall be in the last day, as also others, which our Sauiour Christ, the Apostles, and in auncient time, the Prophets haue raised from the dead. You shall neuer read that either Lazarus, or any other haue tolde where they were while they were dead, or what kind of being there is in the other world, for these things are not to be learned and knowne of the dead, but out of the word of God.

The like may be said to that which is in the 27. chap. of S. Matthew, that when Christ suffered on the Crosse, the graues were opened, & afterwards on the day of his resurrection, many dead bodies did arise, & appeared to many at Hierusalem. The soules of the dead did not only appeare, neither did they warne the liuing, or command them to doo this or that for y? deads sake, to wit, either to pray for them, or to go on pilgrimage to saints, &c. But y? dead with their soules and bodies togither, came into the earth: for hÉereby God would shewe, that he by his death hath ouercome and destroyed death to the faithfull, and that at the last day their soules and bodies shall be knit togither, and liue with God for euer. Now what these holy men were that rose againe, and whether they remained any time in this present life, or died againe, or went with Christ into heauen, looke the Augustine. iudgement of S. Augustine in his 99. Epist. to Euodius, and his 3. booke De mirabilibus. cap.13.

Spiridion raised his daughter.
Ruffinus.

To these we may ioyne that which Ruffinus writeth in his ecclesiastical history, 1. booke, 5. chap. and which Socrates repeateth in his first booke & 12. chap. touching Spiridion Bishop of Cyprus. He had a daughter called Irene, with whome a certaine friend of hers left gorgious apparrell, she being more wary than nÉeded, hid it in the ground, and within a while died. Not long after cometh this man y? owned the apparel, & hearing say y? maiden was dead, goeth to her father whom sometimes he accuseth, & sometimes intreateth. The old father supposing this mans losse to be his owne calamitie, cometh to his daughters graue, & there calleth vpo god, beseeching him y? he wold shew him before y? time, the resurrection which is promised. And his hope was not in vaine, for the virgin being reuiued, apeared to her father, & shewed the place wher she had hid the apparel, & so departed again.

I wil not deny this thing to be true. For the like historie hath Augustine in his 137. epist. A certain yong man which had an euill name accused Boniface, Augustines priest, y? he inticed him to filthinesse. Now whe y? matter could neither be proued, nor disproued by sufficient reasons: both of them were bid to go to the graue of one Felix a Martyr, that by a miracle the truth might be known. They had not bin sent, vnlesse before this time also some secrete matters had bene knowne by this meanes: it may be wel answered, that they were good, or rather euil angels which did appeare.