faith, and with spirit. For Christ Himself altogether is so offered and
given us in these mysteries, that we may certainly know we be flesh of
His flesh, and bone of His bones; and that Christ "continueth in us, and
we in Him." And therefore in celebrating these mysteries, the people are
to good purpose exhorted before they come to receive the Holy Communion,
to lift up their hearts, and to direct their minds to heavenward: because
He is there, by whom we must be full fed, and live. Cyril saith, when we
come to receive these mysteries, all gross imaginations must quite be
banished. The Council of Nice, as is alleged by some in Greek, plainly
forbiddeth us to be basely affectioned, or bent toward the bread and
wine, which are set before us. And, as Chrysostom very aptly writeth, we
say, "that the body of Christ is the dead carcase, and we ourselves must
be the eagles," meaning thereby that we must fly high, if we will come
unto the body of Christ. "For this table," as Chrysostom saith, "is a
table of eagles, and not of jays." Cyprian also, "This bread," saith he,
"is the food of the soul, and not the meat of the belly." And Augustine,
"How shall I hold Him," saith he, "which is absent? How shall I reach my
hand up to heaven, to lay hold upon Him that sitteth there?" He
answereth, "Reach hither thy faith, and then thou hast laid hold on Him."

We cannot also away in our churches with the shows, and sales, and buying
and selling of masses, nor the carrying about and worshipping of bread:
nor such other idolatrous and blasphemous fondness: which none of them
can prove that Christ or His Apostles did ever ordain, or left unto us.
And we justly blame the bishops of Rome, who, without the word of God,
without the authority of the holy fathers, without any example of
antiquity, after a new guise, do not only set before the people the
sacramental bread to be worshipped as God, but do also carry about the
same upon an ambling horse, whithersoever themselves journey, as in old
times the Persians' fire, and the relics of the goddess Isis, were