Aspects of Kentish Local History

deo nostro, to this entent that we schuld ther make our oblations & sacrifycys onto hym our lord & God. Thus I sey must yow that be religiouse men be now delyuerede from yowre captiuitie by an other Moyses, that is by this honorablie & devoutie father.¹ This is he that may welbe callyde Moyses, for Moyses in thegipte townghe is as moche to say as aqua water. He hadd theys name gevyn onto hym by cause that kyng pharos darter Tulit eum de aqua Exo x. fownde hym a yong babe swymmyng uppon the water in a basket. So this honorable prelat of the chirch, yowr visitor, may well (I say) be callyd Moyses, watter; quia aqua sapientie salutaris potauit illum dominus deus noster Eccli. 15. for owr lord God hath not only fownd hym swymmyng uppon the water of his holly lawes & doctrine but also he hath fyllyd hys sole plentuously with the same holsome water, This yowr loving Moyses consydering the greate dekay & seruitute that ye be in he is very desioriose to redeme yow from yt, and therfor I sey Ascendit in cor eius ut visitaret fratres suos filios israell, God hath put into his harte now to cume hither to visite yow his brithern in God the children of israell, viri videntes deum, men wich always schuld see God by yowr holy lyving. And thus do, he must needes say onto yow, as Moyses said onto Kyng pharo, Dominus deus hebreorum vocavit vos, ibitis in solitudinem viam trium dierum, ut immoletis domino deo vestro. The lord & god of yow israelites, of yow religiouse men, hathe callyd yow by hys grace inspyryd into yowr soles to cume onto hym into wildernes, by the

space of iii days yourney, ther to do sacrifice onto hym. Yf ye will thus go onto Gode thither as he hath callyd yow ther is no doute but he will delyuer yow from this yowr miserie, lyke as he dyde the childern of israell. Yow here that he hathe callyd yow, not to cume onto hym to the ale house, to the markat place where ye schall kard or dice ne yet onto the feldes, wher ye schall hake or hunte, scoote or baile: but he hath callyd yow in solitudinem, to cume onto hym into wildernes, wher as ye may lif in greate quietnes, for thexercysyng of your holly mediatations & prayers. And for this cause all religious men, at the begynning of religion war callyd monachi monacÒj d' Ñ in greke signyfith solitarius, a man that lyvith solitary alone: Thus all, I sey, religiouse men schuld go in solitudinem into ther closters & celles ther lyving soliterry withowthe worldly troble & bysynes ther so quietly spendyng ther lyvys in prayer & contemplation, but we se now of days that maney religiouse men do so diligently apply them selfes to worldly facultes & kraftes, that dyuers of them be accowntyd the chef devisors that be in englond of new & strawnge fascions in byldyng: in so moch that sume of them for this ther pollices & worldly wysdom be in greate favor with eritly princes & with other noble temporall men. All soche wordly religiouse men seynt paule reprovith, as apperithe evidently be the commawndment, wich he dyd gyve onto his disciple Timothe 2 c. 2. Labora sicut bonus
  ¹ No doubt Archbishop Warham ?