Helen Vincent's is surely a good suggestion, leastwise for a start, though 
there is not likely to be anything utterly provocative there -- in the 
Homilies -- about the love(&charity)-enabling and faith-enabling "mysteries" 
of faith in a faithful(ly loving) God and the love of a trustworthy & 
lovable or love-worthy God.  The Homilies are deeply conventional on these 
subjects, and/but also close enough to Luther, yes?

E.g., , from the electronic text Helen Vincent graciously supplies the link 
to:

[Homilies I.4 Of the True and Lively Faith, 1-63ff.]:  

This faith (as Saint Paul describeth it) is the sure ground and foun-
dation of the benefites which wee ought to looke for, and trust to receiue
of GOD, a certificate and sure looking for them, although they yet sen-
sibly appeare not vnto vs. And after hee saith, Hee that commeth to
GOD, must beleeue, both that he is, and that he is a mercifull rewarder
of well doers. And nothing commendeth good men vnto GOD, so much
as this assured faith and trust in him. Of this faith, three things are
specially to be noted.

[margin]
Three things
are to be no-
ted of faith.

First, that this faith doth not lie dead in the heart, but is liuely and 
fruitefull in bringing forth good workes. Second, that without it, can
no good workes be done, that shall be acceptable and pleasant to GOD.
Third, what maner of good workes they be, that this faith doth bring
forth.

[margin]
Faith is full
of good
workes.

For the first, that the light can not be hid, but will shew forth it selfe
at one place or other: So a true faith can not be kept secret, but when oc-
casion is offered, it will breake out, and shew it selfe by good workes. And
as the liuing bodie of a man euer exerciseth such things as belong to
a naturall and liuing bodie, for nourishment and preseruation of the
same, as it hath need, opportunity, and occasion: euen so the soule that
hath a liuely fayth in it, will bee doing alway some good worke, which
shall declare that it is liuing, and will not be vnoccupied. Therfore when
men heare in the Scriptures so high commendations of fayth, that it
maketh vs to please GOD, to liue with GOD, and to be the children
of GOD: if then they phantasie that they bee set at liberty from doing
all good workes, and may liue as they lust, they trifle with GOD and
deceiue themselues. And it is a manifest token; that they bee farre from
hauing the true and liuely fayth, and also farre from knowledge, what
true fayth meaneth. For the very sure and liuely Christian fayth is, not
onely to beleeue all things of GOD, which are contayned in holy
Scripture, but also is an earnest trust, and confidence in GOD, that he
doeth regard vs, and that he is carefull ouer vs, as the father is ouer the
Childe whom hee doth loue, and that hee will bee mercifull vnto vs for
his onely sonnes sake, and that wee haue our Sauiour Christ our per-
petuall aduocate, and Priest, in whose onely merits, oblation, and
suffering, wee doe trust that our offences bee continually washed and pur-
ged, whensoeuer wee (repenting truely) doe returne to him, with our
whole heart, stedfastly determining with our selues, through his grace,
to obey and serue him in keeping his commandements, and neuer to
turne backe againe to sinne. Such is the true faith, that the Scrip-
ture doeth so much commend, the which when it seeth and considereth
what GOD hath done for vs, is also mooued through continuall assi-
stance of the Spirit of GOD, to serue and please him, to keepe his fa-
uour, to feare his displeasure, to continue his obedient children, shewing
thankefulnesse againe by obseruing or keeping his commandements, and
that freely, for true loue chiefly, and not for dread of punishment, or loue
of temporall reward, considering how cleerely, without deseruings wee
haue receiued his mercy and pardon freely.

[Homilies I.5 Of Good Works,1-8ff]:

Now by GODS grace shall bee de-
clared the second thing that before was
noted of fayth, that without it can no
good worke bee done, accepted and plea-
sant vnto GOD. For as a branch can
not beare fruite of it selfe (sayth our Sa-
uiour Christ) except it abide in the Vine:
so can not you, except you abide in me.
I am the Vine, and you bee the
branches, he that abideth in me, and I in him,
he bringeth foorth much
fruit: for without me, you can doe nothing.
And S. Paul prouueth that
the Eunuch had fayth, because he pleased
GOD. For without fayth

[margin]
Heb. 11.

(sayth he) it is not possible to please GOD. And againe to the Rom. he

[margin]
Rom.14.

sayth, whatsoeuer worke is done without fayth, it is sinne. Faith giueth
life to the soule, and they be as much dead to GOD that lacke fayth, as
they be to the world, whose bodies lacke soules. Without fayth all that
is done of vs, is but dead before GOD, although the worke seeme neuer
so gay and glorious before man. Euen as the picture grauen or painted,
is but a dead representation of the thing it selfe, and is without life,
or any maner of moouing: so be the workes of all vnfaythfull persons be-
fore GOD. They doe appeare to bee liuely workes, and indeed they bee
but dead, not auayling to the euerlasting life. They be but shadowes and
shewes of liuely and good things, and not good and liuely things indeed.
For true fayth, doth giue life to the workes, and out of such fayth come
good works, that be very good workes indeed, |&| without fayth, no worke
is good before GOD, as sayth S. Augustine.

{Read above w/ AnFQ 260: "What James Russell Lowell says of Una, in his
famous essay on Spenser, might be more properly applied to Una's
rival [Duessa]--'who, like the visionary Helen of Dr. Faustus, has every 
charm of
womanhood except that of being alive.'"   See esp. the swooning "Fidessa" in 
I.11.44-45, the Lady whose faith is feigned, and therefore faint, and 
well-nigh dead: "Then turning to his Lady, dead with feare her found. // Her 
seeming dead he found with feigned feare, / As all vnweeting of that she 
knew, / And payned himselfe with busie care to reare / Her out of carelesse 
swowne.  Her eyelids blew / And dimmed sight with pale and deadly hew / At 
last she vp gan lift..."  -- Even though, because of the mirror language of 
allegory, the lady is only feigning to be faint (her faintness is presented 
as a feint, to secure Redcrosse's further charitable investment in keeping 
her alive, or defending her, along with the papally approved Henry VIII 
defending his faith in the sacraments).   Feigned or no, Fidessa's faint 
tells a truth, allegorically perforce, that the damsell is in distress 
because her faith is not a lively one. }

[Homilies I.6, Of Charity, 1-104ff.]:  

... surely hee [the uncharitable] loueth him [God] not,
whatsoeuer hee pretend: as Christ sayd, If yee loue mee,
keepe my commandements. For hee that knoweth my
commandements, and keepeth them, he it is (sayth Christ)

[margin]
Iohn 14.

that loueth mee. And againe he sayth, Hee that loueth me, will keepe my
words. And likewise hee that beareth a good heart and minde, and vseth well
his tongue and deeds vnto euery man, friend and foe, he may know there-
dwell with him: and hee that loueth mee not, will not keepe my words.
And likewise hee that beareth a good heart and minde, and vseth well
his tongue and deeds vnto euery man, friend and foe, he may know there-
by that he hath charitie. And when hee is sure that Almighty GOD
taketh him for his deare beloued sonne, as S. Iohn sayth, Heereby

[margin]
1.Iohn 3.

manifestly are knowne the children of GOD, from the
children of the Diuell: for whosoeuer doeth
not loue his brother, belongeth not vnto GOD.

-- Jim N.

----

On Mon, 5 Mar 2007 10:30:39 -0000
  "Vincent, Helen" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> You could try the Homily 'Of the True and Lively Faith', generally
> attributed to Cranmer, from the First Book of Homilies, handily
> available in an electronic edition at
> http://www.library.utoronto.ca/utel/ret/homilies/elizhom.html.
> 
> Helen Vincent
> 
> 
> Helen Vincent
> Curator
> Rare Book Collections
> 
> Tel: +44 (0) 131 623 3894
>Fax: +44 (0) 131 623 3888
> Email: [log in to unmask]
> 
> National Library of Scotland     
> George IV Bridge                    
> Edinburgh                             
> EH1 1EW
> Scotland
>  
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ________________________________
> 
> 	From: Sidney-Spenser Discussion List
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of James W. Broaddus
> 	Sent: 03 March 2007 13:24
> 	To: [log in to unmask]
> 	Subject: Luther on love of God
> 	
> 	
> 	 
> 
> 	I would like to find a sixteenth century English discussion of
> how a Protestant true and lively faith, the trust that the gospel
> promises apply immediately and directly to oneself, enables the first
> step toward fulfilling Jesus' commandments, to love God and to love
> one's neighbor as oneself. 
> 
> 	 
> 
> 	In his Treatise on Good Works, Luther explains how such a trust
> enables the ability to love God, a real problem for Luther before he had
> his illumination about the justice of God. Beginning with Augustine's
> comment that the works of the first commandment are faith, hope, and
> love, Luther says
> 
> 	 
> 
> 	.  . . such faith and confidence bring love and hope with them.
> Nay, if we see it aright, love is the first, or comes at the same
> instant with faith. For I could not trust God if I did not think that He
> wished to be favorable and to love me, which leads me, in turn, to love
> Him and to trust Him heartily and to look to Him for all good things. 
> 
> 	 
> 
> 	Could someone direct me to a comparable sixteenth century
> English discussion?
> 
> 	 
> 
> 	Jim Broaddus 
> 
> 	 
> 
> 	 
> 
> 	 
> 
> 
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[log in to unmask]
James Nohrnberg
Dept. of English, Bryan Hall 219
Univ. of Virginia
P.O Box 400121
Charlottesville, VA 22904-4121