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by Patricia DeMers (Editor)
Sixteen years in advance of her widely approved translation of Jewel's Latin Apologia, Anne Cooke introduced a selection of sermons (Prediche) of the former Vicar General of the Capuchins, Bernardino Ochino, to an English readership. The 'Italian Luther', who had refused a summons to appear before Pope Paul III, and fled Italy to Geneva and then Augsburg, had landed in England at the invitation of Archbishop Cranmer in December 1547. Less than a year after his arrival, Sermons of Barnardine Ochine of Sena was printed without the name of the translator, and three years thereafter, Fouretene Sermons of Barnadine Ochyne, concernyng the predestinacion and eleccion of God. Translated out of Italian in to oure natyve tounge by A. C. appeared. Proving her aptitude for translation and eagerness to spread the word of the popular and prolific Italian evangelist, her work on the nineteen sermons forcefully articulates Evangelical and Spirituali tenets: the nature and excellence of antecedent election, lively and deep-seated faith that precedes works, rich citations of biblical texts to buttress claims, a heterodox endorsement of inner spirituality and practical activity, and freedom from obedience to Rome. Two distinct yet curiously similar temperaments blend in these translations. With limited contacts in English, the tormented sixty-year-old truth seeker had thrown off the Capuchin hood and devoted himself to writing. The capable, serious young noblewoman, who fervently espoused the Reform cause, experienced the need to prove and announce herself in a consciously homiletic mode.
