# The Acts and Monuments of John Foxe/Volume 3/Hildegard's Prophecy respecting Friars and Monks

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Hildegard's Prophecy respecting Friars and Monks.
Also, they shall instantly preach without devotion or example of the martyrs, and shall traduce the secular princes, taking away the sacraments of the church from the true pastors, receiving alms of the poor, diseased, and miserable, and also associating themselves with the common people, having familiarity with women, instructing them how they shall deceive their husbands and friends by their flattery and deceitful words, and rob their husbands to give it unto them: for they will take all these stolen and evil-gotten goods, and say, "Give it unto us, and we will pray for you;" so that they, being curious to hide other men's faults, do utterly forget their own: and alas, they will receive all things of rovers, pickers, spoilers, thieves, and robbers; of sacrilegious persons, usurers, and adulterers; of heretics, schismatics, and apostates; of noblemen, perjurers, merchants, false judges, soldiers, tyrants, princes; of such as live contrary to the law, and of many perverse and wicked men: following the persuasion of the devil, the sweetness of sin, a delicate and transitory life, and fulness even unto eternal damnation.
All these things shall manifestly appear in them unto all people, and they, day by day, shall wax more wicked and hard-hearted; and when their wickedness and deceits shall be found out, then shall their gifts cease, and then shall they go about their houses hungry, and as mad dogs looking down upon the earth, and drawing in their necks as doves, that they might be satisfied with bread. Then shall the people cry out upon them, "Woe be unto you, ye miserable children of sorrow. The world hath seduced you, the devil hath bridled your mouths; your flesh is frail, and your hearts without savour; your minds have been unsteadfast, and your eyes delighted in much vanity and folly; your dainty bellies desire delicate meats; your feet are swift to run unto mischief." Remember when you were apparently blessed yet envious, poor but rich, simple, mighty devout flatterers, unfaithful betrayers, perverse detractors, holy hypocrites, subverters of the truth, overmuch upright, proud, unshamefaced, unsteadfast teachers, delicate martyrs, confessors for gain, meek slanderers, religious, covetous, humble, proud, pitiful, hard-hearted, liars, pleasant flatterers, peace-breakers, persecutors, oppressors of the poor, bringing in new sects newly invented of yourselves, merciless, wicked, lovers of the world, sellers of pardons, spoilers of benefices, unprofitable orators, seditious conspirators, drunkards, desirers of honour, maintainers of mischief, robbers of the world, insatiable, preachers, men-pleasers, seducers of women, and sowers of discord. For Moses, the gloiuous prophet, spake very well of you in his song: "A people without counsel or understanding; would to God they did know, understand, and foresee the end."
This blessed Hildegard, whose prophecy this is, flourished about the year of our Lord, 1146, as it is written in Martin's Chronicles.
Hugo, also, in his second book of Sacraments, part ii. chapter 3, saith, "The laity, forasmuch as they intermeddle with earthly matters necessary unto an earthly life, they are the left part of the body of Christ. And the clergy, forasmuch as they do dispose those things which pertain unto a spiritual life, are, as it were, the right side of the body of Christ." And, afterwards, interpreting both these parts himself, he saith, "A spiritual man ought to have nothing but such as pertaineth unto God, unto whom it is appointed to be sustained by the tithes and oblations which are offered unto God; but unto the christian and faithful laity the possession of the earth is granted; and unto the clergy the whole charge of spiritual matters is committed, as it was in the Old Testament. And in his seventh chapter he declareth, how that certain things are given unto the church of Christ by the devotion of the faithful, the power and authority of the secular power reserved, lest there might happen any confusion; forasmuch as God himself cannot allow any disordered thing. Whereupon oftentimes the worldly princes do grant the bare use of the church, and oftentimes use power to exercise justice, which the clergy cannot; exercise by any ecclesiastical minister, or any other person of the clergy. Notwithstanding they may have certain lay-persons ministers unto that office; "but in such sort," saith he, "that they do acknowledge the power which they have, to come from the secular prince or ruler, and that they do understand their possessions can never be alienated away from the king's power; but, if necessity or reason do require, the same possessions, in all such case of necessity, do owe him obeisance and service. For, like as the king's power ought not to turn away the defence or safeguard which he oweth unto others, so, likewise, the possessions obtained and possessed by the clergy, according to the duty and homage which are due unto the patronage of the king's power, cannot by right be denied." Thus much writeth Hugo.