ALL SAINTS CELEBRATED IN FEBRUARY
Saints celebrated on the 3rd of February
BLESSED JOHN NELSON, PRIEST AND MARTYR
John Nelson was the son of Sir N. Nelson, knight, and was born at Shelton, near York. Being come to near forty years of age, and hearing of the college lately established at Douay, in Flanders, he went over thither, in the year 1574, in order to qualify himself there, by virtue and learning, for the priestly ministry, by which he might be of service to his native country, in reclaiming sinners from the errors of their ways. Accordingly, being judged by his superiors duly qualified, he was by them presented to holy orders, and was ordained priest at Bynche, by the archbishop of Cambray, in June, 1576, at the same time with Messieurs John Colington, Jonas Meredith. Roger Wakeman, and Richard Chapman. And he was sent upon the English mission the 7th of November the same year.
Mr Nelson was taken in London, upon the first of December, 1577 late in the evening as he was saying the matins for the next day following, and was presently sent to prison upon suspicion of papistry, as they term the catholic faith. And, after five or six days, he was brought forth to be examined before the high commissioners. Here they tendered him the oath of the queen's supremacy, which he refused to take; and being asked, why he would not swear? he answered: Because he had never heard, or read, that any lay prince could have that pre-eminence. And being further demanded, who then was the head of the church? he answered sincerely and boldly that the pope's holiness was to whom that supreme authority in earth was due, as being Christ's vicar, and the lawful successor of St Peter. Secondly, they asked him his opinion of the religion now practised in England to which he answered, without any hesitation that it was both schismatical and heretical. Whereupon they bid him define what schism was; he told them it was a voluntary departure from the unity of the catholic Roman faith. Then (seeking to ensnare him) they further urged, what is the queen then, a schismatic or no? He answered that he could not tell, because he knew not her mind in setting forth, or maintaining of, the religion now publicly used in England. The commissioners replied that the queen did both promulgate it and maintain it; and pressed him to tell them, if she did so, whether then she were a schismatic and a heretic, or no? Mr Nelson paused awhile, as being unwilling to exasperate his prince, if he might have chosen, but yet more unwilling to offend God and his own conscience, and to give scandal to the world, then he answered, conditionally: If she be the setter forth, said he, and defender of this religion, now practised in England, then she is a schismatic and a heretic. Which answer, when they had extorted out of him, they said, he had spoken enough, they sought no more at his hands.
So he was sent back to prison, and about seven weeks after was brought forth to his trial, where the same questions being again proposed to him, and he answering still the self-same to every question, as he had done before, sentence of death was pronounced against him, as against one guilty of treason, February the 1st, 1577-8.
When the sentence was pronounced against him, he never changed his countenance, nor did there ever appear in him any sign of a troubled mind: but he took his condemnation very meekly, and prepared himself with a good courage for death. The jailor's wife, moved with compassion, offered him wine, thereby, as she thought, to assuage the heaviness of his mind. But he would not taste it, saying, that he rather desired a cup of cold water, as more meet for him. And from the very hour the sentence was pronounced against him, till the hour of his death, he took no other food but bread and small-beer.
He was so delighted with prayer and secret meditation, that he would not hear of any other things willingly, especially if they were worldly matters. A friend of his, advised him to read and meditate upon the lives and deaths of the martyrs. Though he disliked not the counsel, yet he answered, that (by God's mercy) he had enough to occupy his mind withal, and to meditate upon full well. And being put in mind, by the same friend, with what alacrity and joy of mind many thousand martyrs had suffered the most exquisite torments for Christ's sake, and that they never complained nor shrunk thereat: he answered, that this same thought came often to his mind, and afforded him such comfort, that he no ways doubted but that he should find and feel the (like) grace of God's consolation in the midst of his agony.
And surely this courage and willingness to die came from this that on the Thursday before his arraignment and death, he had cleansed his conscience by confession, and had fortified himself by receiving the blessed Sacrament of the altar: for a priest coming to visit him, with others in company, desirous to communicate at Mr Nelson's hands. wishing it might be upon Candlemas day, because of the solemnity of the feast. After they had considered of the matter, they saw it was no fit day, because such festivals are more subject to suspicion; and therefore they concluded to defer it till the day after Candlemas day, but Mr Nelson, wished rather to prevent the feast and to communicate upon the Thursday before; which was done though (at that time) neither he nor any of his friends suspected that he should so shortly come to his martyrdom. When, behold! the very next day after, word was brought him that he was to be arraigned on the morrow, and should be undoubtedly condemned, if he did not revoke his former words: and so it fell out indeed, as you have heard. So that it was God's special providence that he pitched upon the Thursday before the feast; for otherwise he must have died without the sacred viaticum.
Upon Monday, the 3rd of February, being the day of his martyrdom, he came very early, before day, up to the higher part of the prison; whereas, from Saturday till then, he had been kept in a low dungeon. Two of his nearest kinsmen coming to him, found him earnest at his prayers, with his hands joined together and lifted up, insomuch that the other prisoners there present did both mark it, and wonder at it much. When they had talked awhile together, and he saw them so full of sorrow, that they had much ado to abstain from weeping, yet for all that, he was nothing moved himself, neither gave any sign or appearance of sorrow, either in voice or countenance; but rebuked them, saying, that he looked for some comfort and consolation of them, in that case, and not by their tears to be occasioned to grieve; willing them farther, to lament and weep for their own sins and not for him; for he had a sure confidence that all should go well with him. When his kinsmen took their last farewell of him, they fell into such immoderate tears and lamentations, that he was somewhat moved therewith, but stayed and repressed nature by-and-by, and so dismissed them: and they were no sooner gone, but two ministers came in, seeking to remove him from his faith, but in vain; for he utterly refused to have any talk with them, desiring them to let him be in quiet, and so they did, and departed from him.
When he was brought forth of the prison, and laid upon the hurdle, some of the officers exhorted him to ask the queen's majesty, whom he had highly offended, forgiveness: he answered, I will ask her no pardon, for I never offended her. At which words the people that stood about him raged, saying, then he should be hanged like a traitor as he was. Well, said he, God's will be done; I perceive that I must die, and surely I am ready to die with a good will; for better is it to abide all punishment, be it ever so grievous, here, than to suffer the eternal torments of hell fire.
Being come to the place of execution, and put into the cart, the first words he spoke were, In manus tuas, &c. Then he besought such of the standers by as were catholics, to pray with him, and for him, saying, either in Latin or in English, the Pater, Ave, and Credo, which he himself said in Latin, adding thereto the Confiteor, and the psalms Miserere and De profundis; which being finished, turning himself round about to all the people, he spoke to them in this sort, I call you all this day to witness, that I die in the unity of the catholic church; and for that unity do now most willingly suffer my blood to be shed and therefore I beseech God, and request you all to pray for the same, that it would please God, of his great mercy, to make you, and all others that are not such already, true catholic men; and both to live and die in the unity of our holy mother the catholic Roman church. At which words the people cried out, Away with thee and thy catholic Romish faith: but this notwithstanding, he repeated the same prayer again.
Then he requested to be forgiven of all men, as well absent as present, if he had offended any; protesting that he forgave all his enemies and persecutors, desiring God also to forgive them. Here again he was willed to ask the queen's forgiveness; which he refused to do for a while. At last he said, if I have offended her, or any else, I ask her and all the world forgiveness, as I forgive all and so the hangman being ordered to despatch, Mr Nelson prayed a little while to himself, and then requested all such as were catholics to pray with him, that Christ, by the merits of his bitter passion, would receive his soul into everlasting joy. When the cart was drawn away, a great multitude cried with a loud voice: Lord, receive his soul.
He was cut down before he was half dead, and so dismembered and ripped up and, as the hangman plucked out his heart, he lifted himself up a little, and, as some that stood near, report, spoke these words, I forgive the queen, and all that were causers of my death: but I, though I saw his lips move, yet heard not so much and the hangman had three or four blows at his head before he could strike it off. His quarters were hanged on four of the gates of the city, and his head set upon London bridge. So far my old English author.
Mr Nelson suffered at Tyburn, February 3, 1577-8. Of him Mr Stow, in his chronicle, writes thus:
John Nelson, for denying the queen's supremacy, and such other traitorous words against her majesty, was drawn from Newgate to Tyburn, and there hanged, bowelled and quartered. One Sherwood was also hanged for the like treason, February 7.
Bishop Yepez, in his history of the English persecution, 1.2, c. 63, relates, that the devil, whom Mr Nelson had forced out of the body of a possessed person a few days before, mid threatened him, that he would have him taken up in a week, and that it should cost him his life.
From a printed account by an eye-witness of his death; and from an old Latin manuscript of Douay college.
Source: Bishop Richard Challoner, Memoirs of Missionary Priests, Volume 1
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