DIVINITY SCHOOL
TROWBRIDGE LIBRARY

HISTORY

GREAT REFORMATION

ENGLAND, IRELAND, SCOTLAND, GERMANY,
FRANCE, AND ITALY.

Bt Rev. THOMAS CARTER.

33" era ^ork:
PUBLISHED BY CARLTON & POETEE,
200 MTTLBERKY-STKEET.
BOSTON: J. 'P. MAGE B.
. • 1860.

Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1860, by
' CARLTON <& PORTER,
in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for the
Southern District of New- York.

INTRODUCTION.

The history of that greatest moral movement
of modern times, usually called the Reforma
tion, abounds in striking events and characters,
and is rich with inferences of wisdom and
truth. Rightly told, it furnishes also impress
ive lessons of piety and doctrine. Too often
it scarce can be repeated, and it should never
fade from the public mind. The want has
hence been felt by our publishers of a work
written in the spirit of the Reformers, em
bracing the entire scope of the subject, which,
less voluminous than that of D'Aubigne, should
present the story with popular effect. The
task was undertaken by Mr. Carter, and we

2 INTRODUCTION.
trust has been successfully performed. Pos-.
sessing a true sympathy with his subject, he
has presented its varied scenes and events with
a clear, fresh, earnest style. We commend ,it
to all readers who desire a brief but readable
and impressive history of the great movement.

AUTHOR'S PREFACE.

Such a work as is here offered to the public appeared
to me desirable for the following reasons :
1. No history of the Great Reformation in either
England, Ireland, Scotland, Germany, France, or
Italy has ever been published in this country, to my
knowledge, which was written here. The Reforma
tion is one of the most important events in the world's
history, and this nation is not the least interested in
such history.
2. The excellent history of Merle D'Aubigne^ in
five volumes, written in Europe, and published here,
only brings the German Reformation down to the
Confession of Augsburg in the year 1530, sixteen
years before the death of Luther ; the English Refor
mation down to the death of Cardinal Wolsey, also in
the year 1530; only commences the French Refor
mation, bringing it to the year 1525, and does not
touch Italy at all. Other volumes are to come which
will no douty equal in ability those already published.

4 AUTHOR'S PREFACE.
But a work which should seize the main facts, and
complete the history of each country by itself, pos
sessing the reader's niind with the grand events of
that era, by touching lightly on, or omitting minute
particulars, I supposed, must be one, if properly exe
cuted, of permanent value to all classes of readers.
3. The Protestant martyrs were heroes of their age.
If there ever have been men worthy of being remem
bered by posterity, they are the men. They were
pioneers in civil and religious liberty. They opened
the way, by their sufferings and death, to freedom in
worshiping God. The very fact that they fell in such
countless numbers renders an oblivion of them more
easy. It has been said that " the first pages of Prot
estantism are only read by the light of the flames
which consumed its martyrs. If I have helped
to rescue some of them from forgetfulness, and
to place them before my readers, as examples of
piety, zeal, and self-denial, I have attained one of
my objects.
4. In these easy times, and in this happy country,
where no one suffers death and imprisonment for
Christ's sake, it must be beneficial to the Christian
to look back and consider how much others have en
dured that they might be faithful to God. I have,
therefore, often introduced the persecuted saint as he
dies for Christ, go that Christians may be#led to inquire

AUTHOR'S PREFACE. 5
if they are ready to endure such hardness, as good
soldiers ; and if ready thus to suffer, then, as to other
crosses, the yoke will be easy aW the burden light.
5. The Bible, distributed and read among the people,
was one grand cause' of the Reformation. Where this
was not done there was no lasting fruit. I have
hoped that, in beholding this fact through the follow
ing pages, we might be moved to greater zeal in
spreading the word of God.
As to the plan of the workj my readers will per
ceive that it is varied as I have passed from one coun
try to the other. Otherwise a certain sameness must
ensue. In the English Reformation the passing events
are related principally by bringing forward the prom
inent Reformers. In Germany, aside from Luther,
who must appear in front in any history of the German '
Reformation, occurrences affecting more the nation
at large are placed before the reader. In France,
while individuals are kept in view, other events are
related having an intimate connection with the prog
ress of the truth in that country, but yet not identified
with the names of the Reformers. In Italy I have
endeavored, as in the English Reformation, to bring
up before the mind some of the devoted and suffering
men who have struggled to be true to God through
every trial of their faith, and whose names seem
almost forgotten among us.

6 AUTHOR'S PREFACE.
As to the authorities which substantiate the facts
that I relate, many of them I have given in the notes ;
but where the circumstances have been such as were
not likely to be doubted, I have often not incumbered
my pages with them. There is one work to which,
in writing on France, I am under special obligations,
and from which I have translated a number of the
incidents related in my history of the French Refor
mation. It is a valuable and able history of the
Reformation in France, by F. Puaux, published in
the year 1859 at Paris.
Great Bahrototoi., Mass.,
November, 1859.

CONTENTS.

GENERAL VIEW :
Page
Chapter I. — Beneficial Results of the Reformation  11
Chapteb H. — -Religiocs State of the Christian Woeld pre
vious to the Reformation  24
Chapter HI. — Some Causes of the Corruption of Chris
tianity previous to the Reformation  28

HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION IN ENGLAND :
Chapter I. — Geossetete and Wiolif  87
Chapter H — Lord Cobham  H
Chapter III. — Faust — Erasmus — Bilney  50
Chapter IV. — Latimer converted — Triumphs of the Bible
—Martyrdom of John Brown  57
Chapter V. — Divorce of Henrt VHE  63
Chapter VI. — Erasmus as a Reformer  .66
Chapter VII. — The Six and Ten Articles — Henry VHI.
and his Wives  69
Chapter VIII. — Cardinal Wolsey — Cromwell — Cranmer
— A Martyr  74
Chapter IX. — The Duke of Somerset and Cranmer  77
Chapter X. — Reign of Queen Mary  80
Chapter XI. — Translation of the Bible  85

8 CONTENTS. Pagx
HISTORY OF THE EEFOEMATION IN 1EELAND  91
HISTORY OF THE EEFOEMATION IN SCOTLAND  107
HISTORY OF THE EEFOEMATION IN GEEMANY :
'Chapter I. — Eome in her Zenith  121
Chapter II. — Death of John Huss and Jerome of Prague . 124
Chapter III. — Luther a Boy — A Monk — A Preacher .... 127
Chapter IV. — Luther at Eome  135
Chapter V. — Luther and Tetzel  137
Chapter VI. — Luther's Motives — Luther and Ignatius  147
Chapter Vn. — Efforts made to induce Luther to recant
• — He is excommunicated  154
Chapter VIII. — The Peasant War — The Jesuits  164
Chapter IX. — The Diet of Worms  167
Chapter X. — Melancthon — Bugenhagius  172
Chapter XI. — The Diet of Nuremburg — The Pope urges
the Execution of Luther  176
Chapter XII. — The Interim  184
Chapter X1H. — The name Protestant — Augsburg Confes
sion — League of Smalcald — Triumph of the Eeformers 189
Chapter XIV. — The Pope treats with Luther  195
Chapter XV. — Luther's Death  198
Chapter XVI. — The Council of Trent — Battle of Ins-
pruck — Treaty of Passau  200
Chapter XVII. — Gustavus Adolphus  203
Chapter XVIII. — Two Errors  ,  213
HISTOEY OF THE EEFOEMATION IN FEANCE :
Chapter I. — Eeligious Light in France before the Eefor-
mation — Her early Martyrs for Christ  219
Chapter II. — Would the Soman Catholic Church have
reformed herself ?  226

CONTENTS. 9
Pack
Chapter III. — Margaret de Valois — James Lefevre —
William Farel  232
Chapter IV. — Briconnet — Martyrdom of John Leclerc. 236
Chapter V. — Triumphs of the Gospel in France  240
Chapter VI. — Fall of Briconnet  244
Chapter VII. — Dramatic Representation of the Eeformers
and the Pope. . :  247
Chapter VHI. — Martyrdom of Pavannes and Schuch  250
Chapter IX. — The Inquisition introduced — Francis I. re
turns from Spain — Briconnet again — De Berquin.... 253
Chapter X. — A Church haunted  '.   260
Chapter XI. — Increase of Protestants — De Catueoe tried
and condemned — clement vii. and his beautiful nleoe
visit the Court of France  264
Chapter XII. — The Placards  270
Chapter XHE. — The Balancoire  272
Chapter XIV. — Decree against Cabrieres and Merindol- —
Banquet at Aix — The Council Chamber — The Col
porteur  276
Chapter XV. — A Roman Catholic's Testimony  285
Chapter XVI. — Massacre of Cabrieres and Merindol  287
Chapter XVn. — The Council of Trent— A Congregation
surprised — Fourteen Martyrs  291
Chapter XVIII. — Death of Francis I. — Margaret de
Valois  297
Chapter XIX. — Death of Michael Servetus  299
Chapter XX. — Causes which prevented the Eeformation
from spreading wider in France  302

HISTORY OF THE EEFORMATION IN ITALY :
Chapter I. — Savonarola  s"9
Chapter H. — Progress of the Gospel — Savonarola again. 316
Chapter in. — The Fire Ordeal  320
Chapter IV. — Trial and Death of Savonarola  322

10 CONTENTS. Paob
Chapter V. — The Boy Disputant — The Bible translated
into Italian  325
Chapter VI. — The Sympathy of the Reformers for each
OTHER  329
Chapter VII. — Adventures of Celius Seoundus Curio.... 332
Chapter Vin. —Devoted Women of Italy  336
Chapter IX. — Paleario  341
Chapter X. — Eloquence of Ochino— His affecting Death 345
.Chapter XI. — The Inquisition in Italy  351
Chapter XII. — Barbarity of the Inquisitors  358
Chapter XHJ. — Suppression of Protestantism in Italy. . . 363

HISTORY

THE GREAT EEFOEMATION.

GEIEEAL YIEW.

CHAPTER I.
RESULTS OF THE REFORMATION.
As we turn our attention to those great events
which transpired in- the religious world three centu
ries and more ago, it seems proper that we should
first glance at some of the results which have pro
ceeded from them. :
And if it should appear that we are now enjoying
many blessings which have come to us through the
means of the Reformation in the sixteenth century, it
will naturally lead us to take a greater interest in
what thus personally concerns us. Itwill tend, also,
to increase our gratitude to God, as we contemplate
not only the toils and sufferings of the Reformers, but
the advantages which,' by those toils and sufferings,
have accrued to ourselves.
The beneficial results of the great Reformation to
the ages succeeding it, down to our own day, are not
altogether of a religious character. They relate to
our welfare both in this world and the next. We
will name them in order.

12 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
1. A new impulse. has been given to knowledge.
A spirit of inquiry was roused, which led men to read
and think. The Roman Church said : " Submit your
selves to authority without examination ;" the Protest
ant Church says: "Examine, and su*bmit yourselves
only to conviction."
Few works were written in those days which pre
ceded the Reformation ; and these, shut up in the
monasteries, were hardly ever in the tongue of the
people. The Latin language was used by the few
who were authors, and by learned men. Even in
their vernacular, it was the boast of the peasant, the
nobleman, the prince, that they could neither read or
write. Study was rendered as difficult as possible to
the laity, and to both clergy and laity the reading
of all books tending to unshackle the mind was pro-
- hibited. Fra Paolo, mentioning an index of forbidden
books which was published at Rome in 1559, says,
among other things : " That in it, under pretext of re
ligion, the pope had condemned to excommunication
the authors of writings, solely because the authority
of princes and magistrates was supported in them
against the usurpations of ecclesiastics. Besides this,
the Roman inquisitors prohibited, en masse, all the
books printed by sixty-two printers, without regard to
their contents ; adding a general prohibition against
reading any book coming from the press of a printer
who should once in his life have printed any writing
coming from the pen of a heretic. So that," con
tinues the historian, " nothing was left to read."*
The Reformation broke these chains imposed upon
the mind, and overthrew the barriers which prevent
ed a free communication of thought. •
The way was thus opened to the study of ancient
* Histoire du Concile de Trente, lib. vi.

RESULTS OF THE REFORMATION. 13
writers and of Scripture; to the establishment of
schools ; to the encouragement of authors ; and the
nations were prepared for a general diffusion of-
knowledge. 2. A new impulse was also given to literature.
Great numbers of books were written for and against
the principles of reform. These writings greatly im
proved the languages in which they were written.
Take only one example or two. Luther's translation
of the German Bible has given a permanence, pre
cision, and force to the German tongue which it
never possessed before. The present English transla
tion of the Bible has not only been a model of the
language for its simplicity and beauty, but for over
two hundred years it has preserved our mother
tongue in comparative purity.
And where are now found the great writers of our
day? Nearly all of them in Protestant countries.
Where are found quarterly, monthly, weekly, and
daily journals scattered among the people ? In Prot
estant countries. In whose hands are found the large
publishing houses? Protestants. Compare even
countries where some districts are Protestant and
some Catholic, and in these are to be found the same
differences. Take Switzerland for instance. I quote
the words of an eloquent and learned French -author
who wrote fifty years ago :
" Switzerland will afford the same contrasts. • How
many celebrated men of letters have sprung from
Geneva, whom literature and the sciences called
with pride among us ! Berne, Lausanne, Basle,
Zurich, Schaffhausen have their literary annals filled
with celebrated names. The antiquarian Morel;
Haller, the creator of physiology, and also a great
poet ; Crouzas ; the Buxtorfs ; the Werensels ; Ber-

14 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
nouilli; Euler; Iselen, the first who conceived the
idea of writing a philosophical history of the human
race;' the Wetsteins; Gessner, the naturalist and
restorer of the natural sciences ; Gessner, the bucolic
poet; some other German poets, such as Bodmer,
etc., who have contributed so much to the restoration
of elegant literature in Germany, who have restored
it to national independence and originality ; in short,
a multiplicity of authors whom it would be super
fluous to name. Catholic Switzerland, on the con
trary, has not a single man of eminence of any
description to mention."*
Then as men read the writings of the Reformers
and their adversaries, a thirst for a knowledge of the
ancient languages was created,' both among the
Roman Catholics and Protestants. In the language
of one : "In proportion as the classic works of antiq
uity, those eternal models of the -beautiful, genuine
and sublime as nature, were more dispersed and
read, men's minds were gradually elevated to their
pitch, and shook off the barbarism of the Gothic
ages."f Still more they felt then the need of a living and
cultivated tongue in which they could convey their
conceptions to the people. All the modern lan
guages, with -the exception perhaps of the Italian,
were in the rude state which arises from a want of
use, and it was necessary that some great event,
* "Essay on the Spirit and Influence of the Reformation, by C. Vil-
lers ;" the work which obtained the prize' on this question (proposed by
the National Institute of France, in the public sitting of the 15th Germinal
in the yearx,) "What has been the influence of the Reformation by Luther
on the political situation of the different States of Europe, and on the
progress of knowledge ?"
t Stock's work "De bonarum LitterarumPalingenesia, sub et post
Reformationem."

RESULTS OF THE REFORMATION. 15
which should rouse all thoughts and agitate all
minds, should appear. Then only would men write,
and then only would they mad. This. subject was
found in the Reformation. Now only a few at any
time, even after their study became more general,
could read or write the ancient languages. Hence
it would not do to write in them for the people,
much less in that Latin jargon which the monks had
been using, and which was encumbered by all the
blemishes of centuries of corruption. Therefore,
their taste corrected by the study of the classics,
authors wrote to the people in the tongues which
they spoke, and gradually raised them toward the
standards which they themselves had studied. Thus
the controversies of the Reformation, which had
become the business of all Europe, furnished the
first active principle by which modern languages
were really fertilized, and were the furnaces in
which they were elaborated and purified.*
Says the Marquis D^Argens : " In these times of
ignorance Luther appeared, like one of those cheer
ing lights which, after a long tempest, announce
to mariners an approaching calm. This great man
did as much good to science as he did injury to the
court of Rome." " He not only ridiculed the opin
ions of the theologians, but their language and their
manner of writing. He was seconded in his under
takings by Calvin, and it is to these disputes on
religion that we are indebted for the restoration of
the fine and good style. The theologians of the dif
ferent parties eagerly strove with each other to write
correctly, and to prejudiee their readers by the purity
of their style."f * French pri^e essay above referred to.
t Histoire de I'Esprit Humain, torn. 1, p. 258.
Hist. TVIrmmtinn. -

16 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
The eagerness with which all classes received their
productions was astonishing. Especially was it so in
reference to Luther. " No writer for many ages had
seen his writings bought up with such avidity, and so
universally read from the throne to the cottage. They
were all reprinted several, times, pirated, hawked
over all the empire. The popularity, the natural
ease, the energy of expression which prevailed in
them, together with a doctrine which cheered and
elevated the soul, gained him the most upright and
judicious of all classes."*
The same thing may be said in a measure of the
Reformers in other countries ; and thus their writings
circulated, purifying, improving, and correcting the
modern languages of Europe.
Even the controversies of the Jesuits and Jan
senists gave rise to works which imparted precision,
strength, and delicacy to the French language.
3. The same impulse was given to the arts and
sciences. When every new idea was regarded with
suspicion, as it was by the court of Rome, it was hard
for the human mind to make progress in the arts.
When Copernicus had made those discoveries in as
tronomy which have rendered his name immortal, he
dared not publish them for years ; and it was only as
he was about to close his eyes in death that he be
held the first printed copy of his book. When Gali
leo afterward asserted their truth, he was accused by
the Inquisition, and condemned to perpetual impris
onment for heresy. But we need not stop to give ex
amples. We have only to compare Roman Catholic
with Protestant countries in our own day. Where
do we find agriculture carried on with spirit by the
aid of modern improvements ? In countries where
* M. Georges Muller of Schaffhausen, " Lettres sur les Sciences."

RESULTS OF THE REFORMATION. 17
the mind is free and the Bible is read. The traveler,
as he passes through Italy, Spain, Portugal, etc., is
struck with wonder at the absence of so many of
those agricultural instruments which modern science
has given us. Let him even pass through a Romish
province of Ireland or Switzerland, and then a Prot
estant one ; he will be amazed at the difference. In
one, a miserable cottage, covered with thatch,' the
fields badly kept, wretched rude peasants, and a great
abundance of beggars. In the other, neat, pleasant
houses, fields well inclosed, a culture well understood ;
and as he enters the houses, a still greater contrast in
the neatness and good arrangement of the interior.
Where again do all those inventions originate
which are applied to our manufactories, our vessels,
our buildings ? We are obliged to give the same an
swer. Where do numerous railways and telegraphs
cross each other, and follow each other's courses ?
Not in the dominions of the pope, but where the
spirit of Protestantism has pervaded the country.
.4. Commerce also has in a great measure followed
the march of the Reformation. When Spain rejected
the doctrines of the Bible, and shut up her noblest
sons and daughters in dungeons, or shed their blood
at her autos, her fleets, which had whitened every
shore, soon dwindled away, and her commercial in
fluence passed into other hands. And now, if we
should inquire what nations possess the commerce of
the world, the answer must be, those nations where
the mind is unshackled by Romanism, and where the
Bible is read by the people.
5*. The political benefits to the nations which have
come under the influence of the Reformation, have
been very great.
In Germany, before that great event, there was an

18 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
irregular aggregate of states, which necessity or con
venience had united into an ill-formed confederation,
the constitution of which was a true chaos. The
Reformation offered them a rallying point. They
embraced it as much from political motives as from
religious persuasion. By the league of Smalcald and
their subsequent struggles, they tried their strength
and acquired confidence in themselves, and from dis
order and disorganization arose order, unity, and
strength. Holland before the Reformation had no independ
ent existence as a nation. It formed part of the em
pire as it existed under Charles Y. After his death
it became part of the possessions of Philip IL, his son,
of Spain. Driven to madness by his furious persecu
tions, its inhabitants fought bravely for their religious
and political rights, until they became one among the
families of nations. A free republic was the result of
a determination to enjoy free thought and a free Bi
ble. Soon the Dutch fleets took the place of those
of Spain, and the political and commercial import
ance of the United Provinces became rapidly the re
ward of their efforts.
England has extended her influence and widened
her power just so far as she has adopted the princi
ples of the Bible. Compare her position with that of
Spain, Portugal, Italy, or any of those South Amer
ican nations upon which the blight of Romanism
hangs like a funeral pall, paralyzing their energies,
and what answer must we receive?
France has never been the abject slave of the Ro
man pontiff. She had always contended for what she
considered her peculiar rights, which she called the
liberties of the Gallican Church. Consequently the
minds of her people have never become so blinded,

RESULTS OF THE REFORMATION. 19
and her energies never so palsied as in those coun
tries where the pope held absolute sway.
Our own country is a child of the Reformation.
Its founders fled from oppression and persecution to
enjoy the liberty of thought for which the Reformers
contended. More than half a century ago, the elo
quent author whom I have quoted, in speaking of
this great republic, wrote as follows :
"But who can calculate [he is speaking of our
influence as a nation] that which it may one day
acquire on the colonial and commercial system so
important to Europe? Who can foretell all that
may result in the two worlds from the seductive
example of the independence achieved by the Amer
icans ? What new position would the world assume
if this example were followed ? And without doubt it
will be in the end. Thus two Saxon monks will have
changed the face of the globe. The Dominican Tetzel
came impudently to preach indulgences at the gates
of Wittemberg ; the open and vehement Luther was
indignant at it ; he raised his voice against the indul
gences, and all Europe was affected, put into a fer
ment, and inflamed. A new order of things was the
result ; powerful republics were formed. Their prin
ciples, still more powerful than their arms, were
introduced into all nations. Hence arose great revo
lutions ; and those which may yet arise are doubtless
incalculable."* 6. The despotism of the pope over the minds of
men has been broken. Before the time of Luther
the threatened anathema of the holy father made
kings tremble on their thrones. When the threat
was executed, and the thunders of the Vatican fell
with all their weight upon even the sovereign of
* French essay before referred to.

20 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
some powerful nation it was sufficient to drive him
from his dominions an humble suppliant to Rome ;
or it was sufficient to arm his subjects against him,
to close the churches, and to cause all religious rites
throughout his dominions to cease. But when light
began to pierce the gloom, all this was changed.
Paul III. cited Henry VIII. to appear before him,
and when he refused, the pope, attempting to wield
the power of his predecessors, declared him deposed
from his throne.* Pius V. pronounced the same
sentence on Elizabeth of England. Both were dis
regarded with impunity. Fiftj' years ago it was
said that " a simple courier, secretly expedited from
Paris, Vienna, or Lisbon to this ancient capital of
the world, procured sometimes a bull for the extincr
tion of a religious order, sometimes a reform, some
times a regulation, so many proofs of submission given
by the weak successor of so many arrogant pontiffs,
who only purchases his precarious existence at the price
of every complaisance which is required of him."
Over individuals his tyranny once was just as
complete. Even Luther did not pretend to oppose
the pope at first. However religious a man might
be, yet to get out of the Church, or to be anything
but a Roman Catholic, was a calamity not to be
thought of. He who was not a Roman Catholic was
not a man ; he was less than a man, and it was
accounted a good action to take his life. This was
the doctrine of the Church, and where infallibility is
claimed it must be its doctrine still, f How many
* Nos. . . Henricum privationis regni incurrisse pa_nam declaramus.
Bullar Magn.
t Ostendimus jam satis aperte justum esse ut hsereticus oocidatur; quo
autem genere mortis sit occidendus parum ad rem facit. Nam quocnnque
modo oocidatur, semper eonsulitur eeelesiiB. Alphorros a GVtTO. Da
Justa Hsereticonvm Peena, lib. ii, cap. 12,

RESULTS OF THE REFORMATION. 21
millions are ' now in Protestant countries, and even
scattered among the inhabitants of Roman Catholic
nations, who have been emancipated from this tyr
anny, and have no tremblings of heart because they
do not bear the name of Roman Catholic.
7. That civil and religious liberty has been
established in countries which have adopted the prin
ciples of the Reformation, and is one of the benefits
accruing from it, is so manifest that little more is
necessary to be said than simply to state it. It is
true that the Reformers sometimes persecuted each
other, and refused each other the rights for which
they had contended ; but this was the result of their
early training ; it was Romanism yet in the bone, a
chronic disease hard to eradicate and slow of cure.
But wherever their principles were carried out to
their legitimate results there we behold free men,
and liberty to worship God. We have only to com
pare Roman Catholic and Protestant countries to
behold in one, persecutions, banishments, and impris
onments for presuming to read the Bible differently
from a profligate priest, or for reading it at all; and
in the other, quiet and peace in serving God accord
ing to the conscience. No blood flows now where
the Bible has its home ; no prisons are filled to over
flowing ; no tortures are endured ; no inquisition
holds its dark sessions ; no flames are kindled to com
pel men to think alike.*
8. But above all other benefits derived from the
Reformation is that which arises from its influence
upon religion, and hence upon, morality. Rome
* Indeed, it may be truly said that the league of Smalcald, so intimately
connected with the Reformation, and the offspring of its early struggles,
was the first effective union of free provinces and states agamst their
oppressors in modern Europe.

22 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
forbade the reading of the Holy Scriptures. To do
so without permission of a priest was a crime.
Hence the prevalent ignorance and immorality.
True morality almost entirely disappeared, and
religion was reduced to a man's duties to the
Church. But as men began to study the Bible they
began to live according to it, and the more they
read it the more they were convinced of their want
of conformity to the will of God, while practicing
simply the rites of the Church.
They saw the nature of true religion and began
earnestly to seek for it. And as sincere men found
peace with God, and the tongue was touched with
hallowed fire, the good news spread from lip to lip,
and from heart to heart. Then their lives became
changed, and conversion to God brought forth its
promised effect. " Te shall know them by their
fruits." It now came to pass that whenever the Re
formers' doctrines became the doctrines of a nation at
large, that nation showed a decrease of immorality
and crime. And thus it has been ever since.
This will plainly appear by a reference to the sta
tistics of different countries. About sixty years ago
the following comparison was made :
"Cit. Rebmann, president of the special tribunal
of Mayence, in his 'Coup-d'oeil surl'Etatdes Quatres
Departemens du Rhin,' says that the number of male
factors in the Catholic and Protestant cantons is in
the proportion of four, if not six to one. At Angs-
burgh, the territory of which offers a mixture of the
two religions, of nine hundred and forty-six malefac
tors convicted in the course of ten years, there were
only one hundred and eighty-four Protestants, that is
to say, less than one in five. The celebrated philan
thropist Howard observed that the prisons of Italy

RESULTS OF THE REFORMATION. 23
were incessantly crowded : at Venice he has seen
three or four hundred prisoners in the principal
prison ; at Naples nine hundred and eighty in the
succursal prison alone, called Vicaria ; while he
affirms that the prisons of Berne are almost always
empty ; that in those of Lausanne he did not find
any prisoner ; and only three individuals in a state of
arrest at Schaffhausen."
Recently a table has been compiled from public
reports of the crime of murder, showing the number
of criminals annually to every million of the popula
tion. Eleven Roman Catholic states are compared
with Protestant England. It is as follows :
Roman Catholic Ireland  19 murders to a million of
" " Belgium.... 18
" " France  81
" " Austria.... 36
" " Bavaria  68.
" " Sardinia  20
" " Lombardy. . 45
" " Tuscany... 56
" Papal States 113
" " Sicily  90
" " Naples  174
Protestant England *.  4
Thus in and around the city of the pope, in those
very places where cardinals, monks, and priests are
in thickest swarms, where we should expect to find
purity and virtue, if those twin sisters bear any rela
tionship to Rome, there are. one hundred and thirteen
and one hundred and seventy-four murders in every
million to four in England.
And when such are the startling figures as to
one grade of crime, with good reason may we expect
* Seymour's " Evenings with Eomanists," cited by Eev. Charles Col
lins, D.D., in an article in the Methodist Quarterly Eeview for January
1857, page 45.

24 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
similar results in a comparison of all other offenses.*
What incalculable benefits then has the Reformation
brought to religion and morality !

CHAPTER II.

RELIGIOUS STATE OF THE CHRISTIAN WORLD PRE
VIOUS TO THE REFORMATION.
No candid person who has studied with any atten
tion the state of the world from the year 1200 to
1500, will deny that a religious reformation of some
kind was necessary at that time. The intelligent
Roman Catholics then living admitted it themselves.
The necessity of this reformation was most appar
ent among the clergy, because they were most con
spicuous. Priests, bishops, archbishops, cardinals, and
pope were, with an exception here and there, filled
with all unrighteousness. Innumerable examples
might be cited, but two or three will be sufficient as
illustrations. A bishop newly elected inquired after the library
of his predecessor. He was led to an arsenal filled
with military weapons. "Here are the books," he
was told, " of which your predecessors made use, and
which you must employ to defend your church
against your neighbors."
" The Archbishop of Treves was constantly at war,
* In the United States of America it is just the same. When an in
quiry was made not long ago at the House of Correction in Boston to test
this point, it was ascertained that out of forty boys there were two Prot
estant and thirty-eight Roman Catholic. And so it is all through our
prisons and our almshouses.

PREVIOUS STATE OF RELIGION. 25
and delighted in nothing so much as in extending his
territory by the chances of battle. The Bishop of
Eichstadt would say that he was not afraid of five
Bavarians, provided they would give him fair play.*
Caesar Borgia, Bishop of Pampeluna and Archbishop
of Valencia, was said to have been the strongest and
most handsome man of his age. He was not only a
bishop, an archbishop, and a warrior, but the person
ification of all that was murderous and cruel. He
procured the assassination of his eldest brother, and
caused his brother-in-law to be strangled before his
eyes. His father, Rodrigo Borgia, was pope. One
day the latter had prepared poison for a cardinal he
wished to get out of his way, but the cardinal, having
been warned of his intention, caused the poison to be
placed before the pope, who ate of it and died.f
Licentiousness also prevailed every where among
the ministers of religion. Priests and bishops being
forbidden to marry, almost everywhere kept their
mistresses, and the convents were dens of corruption.
"All of them in the capital," says one, " were houses
of ill fame."t
Their ignorance was as universal as their crimes.
Frequently they had never read either the Old or
New Testament. One both learned and celebrated
called for a copy of the New Testament, but quickly
fiung it from him with an oath because he had
opened on these words : " Swear not at all." " Either
this is not the Gospel," said he, " or we are not
Christians." If such were the morals of the clergy,
what must the people have been ?
This reformation was necessary also in the doc-
* Schmidt, Gesch. der Deutschen, vol. v.
t Sanato Gordon Tomasi Infessura etOb : Merle D'AubignS, vol. i,
p. 63-65. % Infessura.

26 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION. •
trines of the Church. We will notice one particular
only. Christ taught that we might come unto him
at once, without other mediators, and without any
previous ceremonies and works. He says : " I am
the way, the truth, and the life ; no man cometh
unto the Father but by me." Again: "There is
one mediator between God and man, the man Jesus
Christ." Such passages as these show that a direct
communication is opened between men and Christ.
If other mediators were not necessary, neither were
ceremonies and works, before coming. to Christ. The
prodigal son turns to his father, in the fifteenth chap
ter of Luke, without them. Jesus says himself:
" Him that cometh unto me I will in no wise cast
out;" and "the Spirit and the bride say, come ; and
let him that heareth say, come ; and let him that is
athirst, come ; and whosoever will, let him take the
water of life freely."
That this was far from being the way of salvation
previous to the Reformation will appear by an ex
tract from Myconius, which is as follows :
"The sufferings and merits of Christ were
looked upon as an idle tale, or as the fictions of
Homer. There was no thought of the faith by which
we become partakers of the Saviour's righteousness
and of the heritage of eternal life. Christ was looked
upon as a severe judge, prepared to condemn all who
should not have recourse to the intercession of the
saints or to the papal indulgences. Other interces
sors appeared in his place : first, the Virgin Mary,
like the Diana of paganism; and then the saints,
whose numbers were continually augmented by the
popes." How different all this was from that simplicity of
faith which marked the days of early Christianity,

PREVIOUS STATE OF RELIGION. 27
when thousands came at once to Christ ; when a
Philippian jailor in one night from a heathen became
a baptized believer ; when an officer of great author
ity under the Ethiopian queen, reading in his chariot,
invited Philip, the deacon, to sit with him, and
there, as they rode, listened while Philip preached
unto him Jesus, and there believed in Christ,
and while yet on his journey, the same day, was
baptized. Not only was a reformation necessary in morals
and doctrine, but gross superstitions had invaded the
Christian world.
Relics were worshiped and worn on the person
as means of obtaining salvation. Carcasses, bones,
arms, - and feet were exhibited everywhere in the
churches. In the Church of All Saints, at Wittem-
burg, was shown what the priests asserted was a frag
ment of Noah's Ark. In the same church were
thousands of other relics, one of which they declared
was a piece of wood from the cradle of our Sav
iour. Thus the temples of Christendom were filled
with pretended remains of sacred things, by seeing
or touching which the soul was supposed to be assist
ed in its efforts toward attaining the favor of God.
The heathen practice of self-inflicted tortures as
atonements for sin was also .greatly in repute. Men
attained the reputation of being saints by punishing
themselves, and not by real piety. One of the most
popular modes of doing this was by whipping or
flagellation. Processions headed by priests every
where appeared, each man whipping himself in the
most severe manner. Thus they marched through
the streets, imploring with great outcry and clamor
the mercy of God. The women inflicted the same
discipline upon themselves at home. In time, how-

28 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
ever, men, women, and children .joined the ranks,
and in the most inclement weather, in the darkest
nights, the streets- were crowded with wretches tor
turing themselves and calling for forgiveness.
These . are examples of the gross darkness and
degradation to which- nations called Christian had
fallen. It is true, there were illustrious exceptions
to this wide-spread spiritual desolation. There were
those scattered here and there who read the Bible,
and loved it, and followed it. But there was a great
contrast between the Church at this era and the
Church a hundred years after our Saviour, when
Ignatius, after being forty years Bishop of Antioch
was thrown to the wild beasts at Rome; who on
receiving his sentence exclaimed: "1 thank thee, O
Lord, that thou hast condescended to honor me with
thy love, and hast thought me worthy with thy
apostle Paul to be bound in iron chains 1"

CHAPTER III.

SOME CAUSES OF THE CORRUPTION OF CHRIS
TIANITY PREVIOUS TO THE REFORMATION.
We will show some causes of the corruption of
Christianity :
First. The natural depravity of the human heart,
which tends of itself to degeneracy in any Church
or community. The fathers at first were pious
men. But as generation succeeded generation, the
children grew up inheriting unchanged that iniquity
in which our race is born. In this state they may
long have been kept out of the Church, and its puri-

CORRUPTION OF CHRISTIANITY. 29
ty preserved; but the same calamity invaded the
ministry, and soon unregenerate pastors admitted
unregenerate members to their communion. Then
the Church became corrupt in morals, which soon
gave rise to corruption in doctrine, as it is very
questionable if false doctrines ever invade a Church
until it degenerates in morality.
We see this principle at work all through the his
tory of God's Church. It was said of the- Jewish
people on their first settlement in the land of Ca
naan: "And Israel served the Lord all the days of
Joshua, and all the days of the elders that outlived
Joshua." After this they degenerated, as the early
Christian Church did. At different times reforma
tions took place. One was under David, another
under Josiah, another under Hezekiah ; another, and
which seemed to take a kind of separate organization,
was the case of the sons of Rechab.
These reformations may sometimes have been but
partial, yet they show the state of the Church, and
how easily it glided away from spiritual life. And
when the great Head, both of the Church militant
and triumphant, came in person to his vineyard, he
found the general wickedness so great that the very
ministers who stood at the altar were the first to
accuse and murder him. Who will deny that if the
Church of the Old Testament, which was truly God's
Church, could thus degenerate, the same was possible
whh the Church of the new dispensation ?
Second. In the early ages the Christian Church was
constantly making aggressions upon the heathen
world, and receiving into its fold men who had
been trained in all the darkness and horrors of
heathenism. These, if converted, could not be sup
posed at first to have been fully sanctified. Some-

80 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
times, indeed, it must have happened that they were
not converted at all. They would naturally, there
fore, bring with them many of their early ideas and
prejudices, and by degrees these became incorpo
rated with Christianity. This is confirmed by the
fact that we observe a striking similarity between
the corruptions of Christianity and the worship of
paganism. Images everywhere filled the temples of
the latter, and thus it became with the former. A
multitude of inferior divinities worshiped in the
heathen world were changed, as pagan ideas came
into the Christian . Church, to saints. The minister
of the New Testament was changed to the heathen
priest, and a superstitious people conferred upon him
the powers which had been associated in their minds
with the idolatry of their fathers. The sacred days
of heathenism were changed to the saints' days of
Christendom, and observed with the festivities to
which they had been accustomed. The simple pub
lic worship of the New Testament and of primitive
Christianity was changed to the pompous .ceremonies
of idolatry. Thus Christianity, by its very aggres
sions, became sapped of its life and power. Its salt
became too diffused to conquer the great national
sins of paganism, and they became incorporated with
it; and the mass of its members, like the ancient
Samaritans, " feared the Lord, but served their own
gods" under Christian names.
But was Christianity a grand failure, as some miglif
be ready to assert on looking at the state of the
Church previous to the Reformation ?
By no means. It is true the Church was too much
like heathenism, but it was not heathenism. Even in
the darkest ages there were within it more morality
and more true religion than ever existed in paganism.

CORRUPTION OF CHRISTIANITY. 31
And besides, all throughout Christendom there were
truly pious men scattered here and there ; men who
read and loved the Bible ; men who had learned
there the difference between the superstitions around
them and the true knowledge of God ; ¦ men who
walked with God, while ignorance and darkness were
all around them. It is true they were few, and were
often, like the Tishbite, obliged to fly for their lives
to the wilderness and mountain ; but while they were
few compared to the mass, they were scattered all
over. They were in the hills and valleys of Switzer
land. They were hidden in the rocks of the Pyre
nees. They were in the secluded spots of the coun
try, and yet were to be found amid the busy hum of
the city. They were even sometimes found within
the too often licentious precincts of the convent and
monastery. If God had once in the dominions of
Ahab and Jezebel seven thousand men who had not
bowed the knee to Baal, he had thousands called by
the name of Roman Catholic who were truly his
children. Christianity then was not a failure, because it had
leavened the mass, and because it had raised up in
different countries, and in all the different ages of this
night of ignorance, many who became heirs of heav
en, and who are now enjoying an eternal weight of
glory with Christ. But how many struggles it must
have cost, when superstition bound the nations hand
and foot, to cast off the shackles, and to come forth
into the light of the Gospel. Blessed be God ! the
nineteenth century sheds a clearer light around us,
and men do not now walk amid the mazes of super
stition and error as they seek the pathway to
heaven. A third cause of the deplorable state of the Chris-
ii...... Reformation. 3

32 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
tian world previous to the Reformation was a mis
taken view as to the unity of Christians.
Our Saviour had laid much stress on this point.
In that memorable prayer which he made previous to
the crucifixion, and contained in the seventeenth
chapter of John, he had twice repeated "that they all
may be one," and only prays for the conversion of
the unregenerate world as the result of their oneness.
Was it because he cared so much less for sinners
than for his own children? No; this was not like the
Saviour's heart of pity, who came to die for a lost
world. It was because he knew the oneness of
Christians was the best means of drawing sinners to
himself. The early Church, then, and the Church of the mid
dle ages, did well in attaching so much importance
to the oneness of Christians. All honor be to Rome
for this ! If she had understood the nature of this
unity, it would have done much toward bringing her
back to the purity of early Christianity.
The mistake she made was twofold : 1. An exter
nal union was put in place of a real internal unity.
To be called by the same name was more than to
possess the same religion. Hence, if two men were
called Roman Catholic, and were both spiritual
Christians, they were regarded as one, not on account
of their spiritual unity, but on account of the name
they bore. Therefore it soon came to pass that those
who bore the name were regarded as one, whether
they possessed real religious union or not. And who
ever did not bear the orthodox name was nothing
but a heretic. 2. A union of doctrine was also sub
stituted for an internal religious unity. Not to be
lieve exactly as the Church did was regarded as
heresy, while the conduct and real Christian love of

CORRUPTION OF CHRISTIANITY. 33
the person was slightly thought of. So that when
superstitions were gradually engrafted upon true
Christianity, and had become, like the traditions of the
Scribes and Pharisees, carefully and ceremoniously ob
served, while the commandments of God were lost sight
of and forgotten, whoever would attempt a reformation
must attack the orthodox superstitions, and call the
people back to the commandments of God. When
ever any such attempt was made it was supposed to
be an attempt to destroy the unity of the Church, and
it was argued that individuals must rather suffer than
the whole Church, and under the name of heretics
such persons were led to the stake or the block ; and
thus attempts to rouse the Church or bring it to God
were crushed by death and imprisonment. Whereas,
if it had not been for this mistaken view of the ne
cessity of doctrinal union, men's minds would have
been free to seek for the truth, and to return to the
Christianity of the Bible.
A fourth cause, and the last one which we shall
mention, of the degeneracy of the Church, was the
neglect of the Bible. Few of the people could read,
and they cared not much to hear it read because
they knew so little about it, and had not any true idea
of its importance. They knew not, generally, that to
understand the Scriptures was necessary to make
them wise unto salvatipn. They knew not that the
word of God was absolutely necessary to enlighten
their minds and to guide them toward heaven. The
principle which in our day has become so well set
tled in the religious mind, that the daily and constant
searching of the Scriptures was necessary so as to
continue faithful to God, was then almost unknown.
But if the people had been able to read there
were few Bibles. Printing was nojjyasented until the

84 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
fifteenth century, and all the Bibles which existed
previously were written out with the pen, It was a
long and toilsome task to write out the whole Bible,
and a Bible was therefore an expensive article.
They were not met with as they are now in almost
every house. One might be found perhaps chained
in a town or in a convent, and there at certain times
persons might go and read it. But if a man wished
to possess one he would have to pay the price of a
small farm to obtain it.
But after all it was the fault of the clergy that the
Bible was neglected. Had they faithfully preached
its truths from the pulpit it would have incited the
minds of men to further examination. They would
have desired to know more of the text-book of their
ministers. What they heard in the sermons they
would have examined at home, or where they could
hear or have access to the sacred book.
But the ministers of that day cared more for hunt
ing hares than they did for hunting texts. They
were more in their element handling the sword than
in handling the Bible ; and when they came to preach
their hearts were sadly out of tune for the holy occu
pation. So they got rid of it if they could, and
repeated a Latin mass in its stead, with which most of
the people were better pleased than they would have
been with an awakening, soul-stirring sermon, which
might have disturbed their quiet. And when they
could not consistently avoid preaching they retailed
to the people stories of pretended saints, while Jesus
Christ, the Saviour, was seldom the subject of their
discourses.

THE

REFORMATION IN ENGLAND.

THE

REFORMATION IN ENGLAND.

CHAPTER I.
GROSSETETE AND WICLIF.
It has been generally, supposed that we are indebt
ed to Germany for the. great Reformation. This is a
mistake. England is. rather its true parent. Even
as far back as the reign of Henry II. , in the twelfth
century, we observe the spirit of the Reformers at
work in the hearts, of the English people. When the
Constitutions of Clarendon were passed by Henry and
his barons, one of which provided that all priests
should be tried by secular .authority, it was one step.
If the pope complained, as he did, and if the impe
rious Thomas a Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury,
left the kingdom in a fit of rage, it only shows that
old England was not even then perfectly under the
thumb of Rome.
And when that famous dispute arose, as to the
archbishopric, between the Augustine monks on one
side and the king and clergy on the other, in which
the pope names an archbishop who is obnoxious to
both, John, weak as he was, dared to dispute the
pope's right. Then Rome pronounced its interdict, by
which the people of England were deprived of all re
ligious services; the churches were closed every
where ; the sacraments were unadministered, and the

38 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
dead thrown into their graves without the burial
rites. Marriages could not take place, and the priests
throughout the realm refused to perform the smallest
office, in obedience to their head in Rome. Besides
this, the pope, assuming the ownership of England, be
stowed it on the king of France, with about as much
right to do so as the devil of old, when he offered to
give away all the kingdoms of this world.
The king was now alarmed, and submitted his
crown to the pope, and swore that he would hold it
from him and pay him tribute. The barons, however,
were not so abject. They protested against being
sold like slaves, even to the Bishop of Rome, and
therefore assembled with their retainers and soldiers
and took possession of London. In June, 1215, at
Runnymede, the king was forced to sign the cele
brated '¦'¦Magna Charta," which secured certain liber
ties to the people of England. It was not long before
the pope, who was ready enough, even at so great a
distance, to scent anything that looked like liberty,
pronounced it void; but so far were the barons and
people from yielding, that in the reign of Henry HI.,
the next king, they summoned a parliament, then,
called the mad parliament, which deprived the king
of much of his ancient power, and in the same reign,
by a determined struggle, organized the House of
Commons of the English parliament.
These were all steps toward the Reformation, for
they were opening the way for the independence of
the public mind.
About this time Robert Grossetete appeared. He
was born in the county of Suffolk in the year 1175.
He was a man of great piety and devotion to God ;
and though his advantages were few when a young
man, yet, taking pains to acquire a good education,

GROSSETETE AND WICLIF. 39
he rose by degrees until he was made Bishop of Lin
coln. This high position he used to spread evangel
ical religion wherever his influence could reach.
He called together the ministers who were under
his charge at stated times, and endeavored to teach
them the various duties required by the religion of
Jesus Christ. When he was seventy-eight years of
age the pope commanded him to bestow an import
ant benefice on a young man, an Italian, whom the
good bishop knew was unfit for the holy office.
Though a Roman Catholic in name, yet with a decis
ion and courage which do honor to his age, he posi
tively refused to obey, saying : " No man can obey
such mandates with a good conscience. On the con
trary, every faithful Christian ought to oppose them
with all his might." This was strong language to
use toward the pope, coming as it did from a bishop
of his own Church, and shows that he had adopted a
cardinal principle of Protestantism, namely, to obey
God rather than man.
When he died the pope exclaimed in triumph : " I
rejoice, and let every true son of the Church rejoice
with me, that my great enemy is removed."
Matthew Paris the historian, who lived at the same
time, though a Roman Catholic and a Benedictine
monk, says of this noble bishop :
" He was the open reprover of my lord the pope,
and of the king as well as the prelates. He was the
corrector of monks, the director of priests, the in-
strncter of the clergy, the patron of scholars, a
preacher to the laity, and the scourge of lazy and
selfish Romanists." The same writer declares that he
was a devout and humble man, and a diligent, vener
able, and indefatigable bishop.
If a Romish bishop could thus bear public testi-

40 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
mony against the abuses of his Church, and a Romish
historian of his own age could record it, and both es
cape the martyr's crown, it shows that the spirit of
reform, which had refused to be sold to Rome in the
time of John, and which had extorted "Magna
Charta" from their king, was not extinct in En
gland. In the year 1324, just seventy-one years after the
death of Bishop Grossetete, John Wiclif* was born
in Yorkshire, England. Very properly has he been
called the morning star of the Reformation. He was
truly a Protestant in this early and dark age of the
Church, for his whole life was a protest against the
errors of Rome. The great work which he accom
plished, and which has brought his name down with
honor to our times, is his translation of the Bible. It
had proved a lamp to his feet, and he desired that
others should enjoy its light. He was the first who
gave it to the people in the English language. How
strange it now seems to live in an age when there
was no Bible in the tongue of the people ; when if
read at all it must be read in Hebrew, Latin, Greek,
or some other foreign language ! The venerable Bede
had translated the Gospel of John, and some of the
Psalms had been translated by King Alfred, with
perhaps some other fragments ; but these had grown
so ancient that they were hardly in the language of
the masses. Such was the state of England, as to
Scriptural knowledge, previous to the time of this
great reformer.
Wiclif when at college became distinguished for his
great learning, while at the same time the study of
the Scriptures gave him the most intense delight, so
that he was called, while -yet a young man, Dr. Evan-
* Sometimes _spelled Wickliffe and Wyckliffc.

GROSSETETE AND WICLIF. 41
gelicus. Finding in the word of God that the prac
tices of the begging friars were not in accordance
with the divine commandments, he zealously opposed
them. When he was thirty-seven years of age he
was made master or president of Baliol College. At
forty-one he was appointed warden of Canterbury
Hall. Now he enjoyed the affection and esteem of
the highest dignitaries in the Church, notwithstand
ing that his views* differed so widely from the friars
and from Rome, which shows still that the clergy
were not all slaves of the Romish Church. Soon he
published a tract charging the monks with holding
fifty errors which he enumerated. When he was
fifty years of age, being appointed with others by
the king an embassador to Rome to settle some eccle
siastical disputes, he became more than ever con
vinced of the corruption of Romanism, because he
saw it with his own eyes, and when he returned
home he preached everywhere the true doctrines of
the Bible, and protested against those of the papal
Church. It was now time for the triple-crowned beast to
wake in his lair. Sending a mandate to England, he
directed Wiclif to be imprisoned, and if found guilty
of preaching the doctrines of the Bible, to be pun
ished. The archbishop and the Bishop of London
proceeded to execute the pope's commandment. But
the University of Oxford would not give him up.
The archbishop and bishop then issued a writ com
manding the chancellor of the university to bring
Wiclif before them. On the day appointed the great
reformer appeared, but he was accompanied by pow
erful champions. The celebrated John of Gaunt,
Duke of Lancaster, son of Edward III., and Harry
Percy, earl-marshal of the kingdom, were by his

42 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
side. Before the trial could proceed far Harry Percy
and the Bishop of London fell into a quarrel, and the
court was broken up and Wiclif escaped.
Five years later, being attacked by a dangerous
disease, the priests thought they might induce him
to recant upon his dying bed ; so four of them called
on him and reminded him of his supposed errors, and
hoped that in his last moments he would confess.
He listened to them in perfect %ilence. Then he
asked his servants to raise his head, and strong in
faith, he fixed his eyes upon them, and instead of
making the confession they hoped for, replied : " I
shall not die, but live, and again declare the evil
deeds of the friars." The priests hastily retired, and
Wiclif recovered and renewed the battle. A year
afterward he finished his great work, the translation
of the Bible.
God seems to have restrained his enemies until
this was accomplished, for shortly afterward the
priests succeeded in obtaining a decree from the
king, by which Wiclif was expelled from the univers
ity, and ordering that his publications should be
everywhere seized and destroyed. The pope then
cited him to appear at Rome to be tried as a heretic.
Wiclif forwarded a letter in reply, saying that Christ
had instructed him to the contrary, and taught him
to obey God rather than man. His health soon
failed, yet still this devoted minister of God con
stantly preached the doctrines of the Bible, until
in the year 1384, four years after he had given the
word of God to his countrymen, he died. Such was
the rancor of his enemies that some time after his
death they dug up his bones and burned them.
The circulation of the Scriptures in English was a
terrible blow to Romanism. It is true the printing-

GROSSETETE AND WICLIF. 43
press was not then in existence, and it was necessary
to write out every copy with the pen ; yet copies
were made everywhere, and they were read by the
nobility, by the middle classes, by the poor, in the
cities, in the country, from one end of the kingdom
to the other. Many a poor wanderer who had been
groping in spiritual darkness, found in them light
and peace. Many a guilty child of Adam, as he
mournfully inquired, " 0 where shall rest be found?"
here leaned upon the promises of God. Many a sor
rowful heart, overtaxed and overloaded by the cere
monies of Rome, here learned to distinguish between
the commandments of men and the commandments of
God ; between a load of vain observances, and the
service of him whose yoke is easy and whose burden
is light. Thank God for this first translation of the
Bible into the English language !. Multitudes adopt
ed the opinions of Wiclif in England, and were
furiously persecuted, until it was supposed they were
completely destroyed. - Their . blood flowed on all
sides. Lords and peasants, rich and poor, sealed their
testimony with their lives. Their prison yet remains
in England. It is called the Lollard's prison. It is
lined with thick oak plank. The door is nearly cov
ered with the heads of iron spikes. Tlie iron rings
to which those who read and loved Wiclif's Bible
were chained are still there, about five feet from the
floor ; and upon the walls, carved in the oaken plank,
are to be seen some of the precious promises of the
word of God, cut there in that gloomy prison by those
who had no other support. These promises were their
hope and strength when all human consolation had
fled forever. Could we follow them to the place of
execution, and behold them as they willingly gave
their lives for Christ, and see victim after victim as

44 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
they fell, it might lead us to realize that our trials and
our crosses are exceeding light. But could we fol
low them further on, and behold them after their
warfare is accomplished and their sufferings over, and
witness their joys with Christ in heaven, who would
not press forward to the attainment of the same
felicity ?

CHAPTER II.
LORD COBHAM.
I have said that England was the true parent of the
Reformation, rather than Germany. D'Aubigne^ in
his great work, though not distinctly stating this fact,
says that Wiclif was the first Reformer of Christen
dom, and that to him, under God, Britain is indebted
for the honor of being the foremost in the attack upon
the theocratic system of the' pope.* He says again
that after Wiclif's death England was almost won
over to the Reformer's doctrine.f And again, that the
opinions of Wiclif had spread over all Christendom.:].
An eminent writer has lately said : " The Reformation
began in England under the labors of John Wiclif, in
the fourteenth century." "The Reformation under
Luther and the English Reformers was but a revival
of the glorious work of God which two centuries be
fore had made a deadly thrust at the man of sin."§
It is right that we should be well acquainted with
the men who carried on this work after Wiclif's death.
They are the heroes of their age, and more deserve to
be carried down to posterity than those who have dis
tinguished themselves by the sword.
* Vol. v, p. 104. t Vol. v, p. 107. t Vol. i, p. 101.
§ Dr. George Peck, Methodist Quarterly Review, January, 1858.

LORD COBHAM. 45
Lord Cobham* was one of the most illustrious of
these in England. He lived about one hundred years
before Luther rose in Germany. Notwithstanding
the wealth and high position which he inherited by
birth, he became an humble Christian. The Bible,
as it had been translated by Wiclif, became the guide
of his life. As an officer in the king's army he was,
says a historian, " one of the bravest and best in
England." As a member of the Parliament he never
failed to advocate the religious and civil liberty of the
people. Hence he became greatly beloved by the
whole nation, with the exception of the Romish clergy
and their adherents. Having felt the peace of God
and the joys of religion in his own heart, with that
love to all men which is like a fire in the. breast of
every true Christian, he desired to communicate it to
others. He therefore hired men to copy the Bible
and other works of Wiclif, and employed persons,
something like the colporteurs of our day, to dis
tribute them abroad. He devoted also much of his ,
income to maintaining traveling preachers in the
dioceses of London, Canterbury, Rochester, and
Hereford. This did not suit the bishops and priests, and they
therefore began to contrive how they could put an
end to him. But Lord Cobham was in favor with the
king, and highly popular, and they dared not attack
him openly.
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Arundel,
requested the king to send commissioners to Oxford
to inquire into the growth of heresy. With this the
king complied, and the commissioners reported that
heresy was increasing, and that Lord Cobham was
the cause of it, because he encouraged the scholars of
* His title originally was Sir John Oldeastle.

46 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Oxford and other places to preach their heretical
opinions through the country. In other words, Lord
Cobham was an archheretic, because he was the
means of preaching to the people the truths of the
Bible and the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. The
world has always had need of many more such
heretics. Taking this report, the archbishop and a large
number of priests called on the king, and begged in
all humility and charity that his majesty would
suffer them, for Christ's sake, to put Lord Cobham to
death. The king replied that he thought such vio
lence would destroy truth rather than error, and that
he himself would see Lord Cobham and reason with
him. Henry V., the hero of Harfleur, conqueror of
France, and the great warrior of his age, had little
idea of true religion. He expected to be obeyed.
He sent for Lord Cobham, and reasoned with him as
to his doctrines and faith, exhorting him to renounce
his supposed errors and yield obedience to the pope.
The noble soldier and Christian disdained any kind
of equivocation, and replied :
"1 have ever been a faithful subject to my king,
next to my God, and hope I ever shall be. As for
the dominion of the pope, I never could see on what
foundation it is claimed, nor can I pay hvm any
obedience ; for as sure as God's word is true, it is fully-
evident to me that he is the great antichrist foretold
in holy writ."
The king was displeased with this answer, and he
thereupon gave the archbishop leave to proceed
against Lord Cobham as he chose, who was summon
ed speedily before the archbishop, and excommuni
cated from the Roman Catholic Church.
He now prepared a statement Of his faith, -and

LORD COBHAM. • 47
came with it to the king. Henry refused to receive
it, and told him to give it to bis judges. _ Being cited
again he refused to appear, and was committed to the
Tower. ¦ On September 23, 1413, he was brought before the
archbishop, who endeavored to lead him to a re
cantation. "We must believe," said the archbishop to him,
"what the holy Church of Rome teaches, without
demanding Christ's authority." And the priests
seconded what the prelate asserted, and cried out
" Believe ! believe !"
Lord Cobham replied : " I am willing to believe
all that God desires, but I can never believe that the
pope has authority to teach what is contrary to
Scripture." He was taken back to his prison.
Two days, afterward he was again taken before his
enemy, and as it was with our blessed Lord and
Saviom-, was loaded with insults by the priests. They
surrounded him on all sides with abusive language.
Then the archbishop called on him to confess his
offense. He fell on his knees, and lifting up his
hands to heaven exclaimed :
" I confess to thee, O God, and acknowledge that
in my frail youth I seriously offended thee by my
pride, anger, intemperance, and impurity; for these
offenses I implore thy mercy." Then standing up,
his face wet with tears, he said : " I ask not your
absolution ; it is God's only that I need."
The archbishop stood up, and all the priests and
people arose with uncovered heads, while the priestly
judge read the sentence of death.
He was again placed in the Tower, and now seeing
that death awaited him planned an escape from his
Hi'.t. R«fon_rmti-n. A

48 . HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
prison. One night he succeeded, and fled to Wales,
where he remained a fugitive for four years.
During that time Wiclif's Bible and Wiclif s writ
ings were found to be doing their work all through
out England. It had not been in vain that Lord
Cobham had labored for their dissemination. Even
in Europe they had been circulated to an amazing
extent. And though the devoted man, who was now
a fugitive from home and country for his zeal and
faithfulness, seemed to be checked in his career of
usefulness, the truths of the Bible were taking too
deep root in the hearts of the people ever to be ex
terminated. At the expiration of four years Lord Cobham was
captured in Wales and delivered up to his old enemy,
the Archbishop of Canterbury. Huss and Jerome
had been burned on the continent, and this seemed
to give a new impetus to persecution in Great Brit
ain. The Roman Catholic Church hoped completely
and finally to extirpate heresy. The fate of Lord
Cobham was therefore hurried with all the ardor and
zeal of priestly hatred, and a day was fixed for his
execution. Who was now to carry on the work of copying the
Bible ? Who was to pay the expenses of colporteurs
and encourage them in their hazardous work ? Who
was to support the itinerant preachers who were
spreading the knowledge of a crucified Saviour
among the English people ? Was the devoted man
who was ready with his pen, ready with his lips,
ready with his fortune, and even ready, according to
the custom of the times, with his sword to defend the
Gospel, was he to be taken away? The day ap
pointed arrived, and found him prepared to give his
life for Him whom he loved and served. Men entered

LORD COBHAM. 49
his prison and bound his arms behind his back, and
as they led him forth the people looked at his coun
tenance to see how he was about to meet death. It
was not sad, but cheerful, as if He who had once
walked with the three Hebrews had spoken to him
in his prison. No doubt but that the Saviour, to
whom he had committed all, was in that moment
very, very near to him. No doubt then there was a
glory about the promise, " My grace is sufficient for
thee," which we seldom realize. He was just enter
ing the valley of the shadow of death, but seemed to
fear no evil, because Christ was with him.
At last he came to the place of execution. They
dragged him there upon a hurdle of sticks, and the
journey must have seemed a long one. He saw the
gallows, and the iron chains by which he was to be
suspended, and he knew that he must die for Christ.
He fell upon his knees and, like Stephen and like his-
divine Master, prayed that God would forgive his
enemies. He then arose and addressed the multi
tude of people who were around him. Many of
them probably were his friends, and loved the Bible.
He exhorted them to be faithful in keeping its com
mandments, and then placed himself in the hands
of his executioners with the courage of a hero and
the patience of a martyr.
They fastened chains around his waist, and drew
him up from the ground, and below they kindled a
fire which they caused to burn slowly ; and there the
priests of that Church which claims to be the first
and only Church of Him who was meek and lowly in
heart, gradually roasted until he died the illustrious
Lord Cobham,. because he read and loved the Bible.
Thus, in the year 1417, passed from earth to heav
en one of the noblest champions of the truth of God.

60 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.

CHAPTER III.
FAUST  ERASMUS  BILNEY.
Loed Cobham is only one example of great num
bers who laid down their lives for Christ in those
perilous times when the word of God began to be
translated into the language of the people. They
died in the flames ; they languished and died in their
prisons ; they died on the rack, and gave their testi
mony one after another to the strength "of that grace
which comes from a present Saviour. Christians
give their testimony now, and even -sometimes hesi
tate to give it in favor of Him who hath lived and
died for them. They give their testimony in those
peaceful and undisturbed meetings which are ap
pointed for the purpose of speaking one to another;
but how little they think of the tortures, the fires, the
blood through which the witnesses of Christ have
passed in former years.
We will leave these scenes and pass to another
step in the great Reformation. About twenty years
after Cobham was burned printing was invented.
The year 1438 gave birth to an art which was to
multiply and scatter the Scriptures as men could
never before have conceived. It is remarkable that
God did not give to man this wonderful art while he
was fast bound in the night of Romanism. But when
light began to be received into the hearts of those
who were truly sincere, when they began to struggle
with their fetters, then it was that God bestowed
upon them a power which was to become like the
wished for fulcrum of Archimedes. The Bible was

FAUST — ERASMUS — BILNEY. 51
copied not by hand, but by movable metallic type.
John Faust (or Fust) came with his press to Paris,
and, as we are told,* began to print and sell his Bi
bles. One after another the purchasers came, until
men began to wonder how he could write them off
so rapidly. He must be a ready writer, they thought,
and his pen must have a strange power to produce
those volumes which he sold every day to the people ;
or else he must employ a great many men to do this
work for him. But this could not be, they reasoned,
for the handwriting was too uniform.,. They took up
a copy and looked at the pages, and they found the
first page, the middle, and the last all in the same
character. It must be, they said, all the work of one
man. But what was their astonishment when they
found that every copy, every Bible was exactly the
same. They came to him and asked him how it was
accomplished. Faust would not tell them, says our
chronicler, and kept his printing press concealed. . It
became noised abroad through the city, and every
one was amazed as they examined the Bibles they
had bought, when they saw that even every dot,
every cross, every flourish of the pen was the same.
At last it came to the ears of the priests, and they
soon decided the matter. It was the work of witch
craft, they said. True, it was not much like the em
ployment of the devil, to be working so diligently in
writing off numerous copies of the Bible; but their
theory was that the more the Bible was placed in the
hands of the people the more heretics were multi
plied, and as the devil was the natural father of here
sies and heretics, it must be a new and ingenious
trick on the part of the prince of darkness to take up
the quill and turn himself into a religious scribe.
* London Encyclopedia. Article, "Fust."

52 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
The letters, too, did not look as if they had been
traced by a human hand, they were so deeply set in
the paper, and the ink was so curiously black ; they
were satisfied it was just such ink as Satan would
use. And those curiously wrought characters in red,
they were neither more nor less than the blood of the
magician himself. It must be so ; and a warrant was
therefore issued for the arrest of Faust, and he was
taken and cast into prison on the charge of witchcraft.
Apprehending serious consequences he revealed his
secret, showed his press, and was finally discharged.
In other places the mighty power of the press began
to be used also, sometimes, alas! for evil, but often for
good. In the march of mind the translation of the
Scriptures into the language of the people of the dif
ferent nations was one step ; their circulation by the
press was another important one.
We will come to a third. A man called Gerard
lived in Holland, and there loved the daughter of a
physician, whose name was Margaret. Gerard had
nine brothers who wished him to become a monk.
His parents joined his brothers in soliciting him to do
so, but Gerard had no disposition for such a life. It
may be that his attachment to Margaret formed the
chief obstacle to his embracing perpetual celibacy.
Rather than do so he abandoned his country and
friends, and went to Rome. Not long afterward
Margaret gave birth to a son. He was not informed
of it, but, on the contrary, his parents wrote to him
that the physician's daughter was dead. Filled with
sorrow, he hesitated no longer to yield to the wishes
of his family, and in a short time became a priest
of the Romish Church, taking consequently upon
him the vows of single life. In time he returned to
Holland, and there found Margaret still living. As a

FAUST — ERASMUS — BILNE Y. 53
priest he could not marry her, and she would never
marry another. There was one bond of union be
tween them, however, and that was their little son.
The most tender care was taken of him by his mother,
while his father bestowed every pains upon his edu-
, cation. While he was yet young Margaret died, and
his father, broken-hearted, was soon afterward laid in
his grave. The child fhey left became afterward the
great and learned Erasmus.
Erasmus, when yet a young man, was urged, as his
father had been urged, to become a monk. He
refused until his guardians defrauded him of his prop
erty, and then, forced, as it were, by necessity, took
upon him the vows of a priest. In the mean time,
while suffering the greatest poverty, he made every
¦ effort to obtain knowledge, purchasing books, it is
said, before he would even purchase clothes for him
self. Having completed his education, he obtained a
living by teaching. At thirty years of age one of his
pupils (Lord Mountjoy) invited him to England. This
was in the year 1497. There he became intimate
with several learned men, and from them no doubt
received ideas as to the Bible which afterward influ
enced his life. The next thirteen years he spent in
France, and other countries on the continent. In the
year 1510 he returned to England, where he continued
four years, and was appointed professor of divinity in
Cambridge. He then went to Basle, and in the year
1516 published his celebrated New Testament in
Greek and Latin, with notes. This was before Luther
took his stand against indulgences. Previous to this
Erasmus had acquired a great reputation for learning,
and his New Testament was eagerly read in the uni
versities and everywhere by the learned, and pro
duced a great commotion in England, France, Ger-

54 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
many, and other countries of Christendom. It raised
a storm which he himself did not expect. So truly is
it that the word of God is a two-edged sword wher
ever it penetrates.
The priests were frightened, and began to express
fbeir alarm.
" Here are horrible heresies," exclaimed one.
" If this book is allowed it will be the death of the
Roman Catholic Church," said another. " We must
turn this man out of the Church."
"Look here," said another; "this New Testament
commands men to repent instead of to do penance."
Another cried out: "He's a heretic, a forger of
lies, he's a goose; what do I say? he's a very anti
christ I"
Another said : " In this New Testament there are
three hundred dangerous, frightful passages. Three
hundred, did I say ? There are more than a 'thou
sand ! If we do not stop this leak it will sink the
ship." Erasmus himself was thunderstruck. He had no
idea of raising such a commotion. But his Greek
and Latin Testament went on doing the work among
the learned that Wiclif's Bible had done among the
people. Everywhere men were to be seen study
ing it. His enemies said afterward : " Erasmus laid
the egg which Luther hatched."
One example will be sufficient to show how the
word of God penetrated into the hearts of multitudes
who sincerely studied it.
Thomas Bilney was a young man of fine education,
who was earnestly trying to do the will of God. But
he found that he could not overcome his sins. His
conscience became thoroughly aroused. He felt that
he must obey Christ or he was fit for neither death nor

FAUST — ERASMUS — BILNEY. 55
heaven. Being a Roman Catholic, he had recourse
to the priests in confession, who prescribed various
penances ; but these gave him no relief. He paid them
for masses and indulgences until he found his purse
empty, and his conscience just as burdened as it was
before. Being of a feeble constitution his body wasted
away, and he knew not what to do. "Alas!" he
cried, " my last state is worse than the first." How
many in the darkness of Romanism have thus strug
gled, like Bilney, for light and peace !
One day he heard his friends talking about the
Greek and Latin Testament of Erasmus. " Perhaps,"
he said to himself, " there may be something in it
which will heal my burdened soul."
But he feared to obtain it because it was forbidden
by the priests. " Yet," he reasoned to himself, " is it
not the Testament of Jesus Christ?"'
At last he determined that he would have it, and
going by stealth to where it was sold in secret, he
bought it with trembling and fled to his room. There,
with his forbidden, treasure, he shut himself up and
opened the book. The first words which met his eye
were these : " This is a faithful saying, and worthy of
all acceptation, that Christ. Jesus came into the world
to save sinners." He read the passage over and over
again, and exclaimed : 0 mihi suamissvmam JPauU
sententiam/ Literally, "O most pleasant assertion
of Paul to me !" His heart was melted down, and he
found his thirsty soul refreshed with the waters of life.
In a letter to Tonstal, Bishop of London, he gives him
an account of his conversion. Referring to the text
just named, he says :
" This one sentence, through God's instruction and
inward working, did so exhilarate my heart, which
before was wounded with the guilt of my sins, and

56 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
almost in despair, that immediately I found wonder
ful comfort and quietness in my soul, so that my
bruised bones leaped for joy. After this the Scriptures
became sweeter to me than honey or the honeycomb ;
for by thehi I learned that all my travels, fastings,
watchings, redemption of masses, and pardons, without
faith in Christ were but, as St. Augustine calls them,
'a hasty running out of the right way,' and as the
fig leaves, which could not cover Adam's nakedness.
And as Adam could find no rest to his guilty soul
till he believed in the promise of God, that Christ, the
seed of the woman, should tread upon the serpent's
head, so neither could I find deliverance from the sharp
stings and bitings of my sins till I was taught of God
that lesson which Christ spoke of in the third chapter
of John : 'As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilder
ness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up ; that
whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but
have everlasting life.' As soon as, by the grace of
God, I began to taste the sweets of this heavenly
lesson, which no man can teach, but God alone, who
revealed it to Peter, I begged of the Lord to increase
my faith. And at last I desired nothing more than
that I, being so comforted by him, might be strength
ened -by his Holy Spirit and grace that I might teach
sinners his ways, which are mercy and truth, and
that the wicked might be converted unto him by
me, who also was once myself a sinner indeed."
Bilney was not allowed to enjoy this peace in
quiet. He was afterward burned to death for Christ's
sake. The night before his martyrdom some friends
visited him in prison and expressed their surprise at
his perfect cheerfulness. Bilney put his hand into
the flame of the candle and replied : " I feel by ex
perience that the fire is warm, yet I am persuaded

TRIUMPHS OF THE BIBLE. 57
by God's holy word, and by the experience of some
spoken of in it, that in the flame they felt no heat ;
and though my body shall be wasted, yet joy un
speakable shall follow."
The next day his body was burned to ashes.

CHAPTER IV.
LATIMER CONVERTED — TRIUMPHS OF THE BIBLE 
MARTYRDOM OF JOHN BROWN.
Hugh Latimer is a name intimately connected
with that of Bilney. He was a zealous and well-
meaning Romanist, and according to the dictates of
his conscience, made sincere efforts to serve God.
He as well as Bilney was in the University of Cam
bridge, and when he received his degree of bachelor
of divinity preached a discourse against the doc
trines which were then agitating Germany. His
sermon was much spoken of. Bilney, who heard it,
thought if such a young man could be gained over to
the true Gospel how'powerful an instrument he would
be to accomplish good. How could it be done ? He
knew it was a difficult task ; but he was resolved to try.
He went to Latimer's study, and told him he
wished to confess. And there, in the privacy of that
solitary chamber, he poured upon his heart the burn
ing story of his own conversion. He told him of the
load which he had once felt upon his own soul. He told
him of the struggles which he had made to remove it.
He told him how carefully he had observed the pre
cepts of the Church, and ho'w vain it had been to him.
And when he came to describe how he looked to Jesus

58 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
and believed, and trusted in him, and relied upon him,
and loved him, there was something in his voice which
went to the very depths of Latimer's heart. The same
Jesus who had said, "Lo; I am with you always !" was
helping him. But when he came to describe the joy
which he felt, and the witness which he had received
that God had taken away his sins, the heart of Lati
mer burned with new sensations, and there the holy
Spirit imparted to him the same peace, the same joy,
the same witness which Bilney had described.
From that hour the course of his life was changed,
and his talents, his piety, his eloquence were conse
crated to the cause of the Reformation. His suffer
ings and martyrdom for Christ will be referred to in
another place.
As the Scriptures were the true cause of the change
going on now in England, we must observe how they
were spread among the people. As it has been already
remarked, the New Testament of Erasmus in Greek
was doing its work in the universities, among the
learned. It is remarkable that in the great Reforma
tion three hundred years ago men were raised up from
the seats of learning, much as John and Charles Wes
ley, with their companions at OxTord, were raised up
a hundred years ago to reform the Church again.
But the people could not read Greek, and the English
language had so greatly changed since the time of
Wiclif that his translation, which Cobham had circu
lated, no longer answered their wants.
William Tyndale, of Oxford College, conceived the
grand idea of translating the Bible afresh. He began
the work, but persecution and the fear of discovery
drove him from Oxford to Cambridge, then to the
residence of Sir John Walsh, then to the house of
Humphrey Monmouth, in London, At last he is

TRIUMPHS OF THE BIBLE. • 59
obliged to fly from England and seek a refuge in Ger
many. He finishes Matthew and Mark at Hamburg.
At Cologne he is discovered, and his precious work
on the point of being seized. He finishes the New
Testament at Worms, and notwithstanding severe
laws against it, the word of God is printed in a
foreign country, transported and scattered all over
England. In the year 1535, assisted by Miles Cover-
dale, the whole Bible is translated into the English
language. It was a severe struggle, however, to carry the work
through all the difficulties they were obliged to
encounter. In those days, as well as now, men were
forced to eat and drink to live, and translating and
printing the Bible, though a grand and glorious busi
ness spiritually, was a very poor one financially. Tyn
dale and Coverdale were therefore often at their wits'
end. Even if they could have lived on air them
selves their workmen could not, and to pay the printer
was just as necessary then as now. Men were not
as ready to buy Bibles then as they are in these happy
days, and it was indeed a dangerous matter either to
buy or sell one. If Tyndale and Coverdale could
have had a prophetic view of the present business
of the British and American Bible Societies, what
encouragement it would have given them in their
work. At one time Tyndale was in a complete dilemma.
He was obliged to stop printing. At this moment
Providence raised up an unexpected customer. The
Bishop of London was in search of the heretics' books.
Especially did he seek that dreadful book, the Bible ;
dreadful to a wicked priest as well as to a wicked lay
man. He sent to Germany, to the very city where
Tyndale was, and by the intervention of a friend

60 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
bought up all the Bibles and Testaments on hand, and
took them to London and burned them ; while Tyn
dale, relieved of his embarrassment by the bishop's
money, went on, and with it brought out a new and
superior edition. It was singular enough to print the
English Bible in Germany, and then to send it by sea
to England, where multitudes of copies were disem
barked unknown to the priests, and sold or given
away. Perhaps the very fact that it was a forbidden
book caused it sometimes to be sought with more
eagerness ; and wherever it went it did not lie idly
on the shelf. Men who could read read it, and
those who could not carried it to a neighbor who
had more learning than themselves, and entreated
him to read for them. If a man could only spell out
the words, he would sit down by his fireside night
after night, and slowly read the visions of the prophets
or the miracles of Jesus. And many a tear was shed
by eyes unaccustomed tb weep, as chapter after chap
ter of the Gospel was read, and men found out how kind,
compassionate, and merciful the Saviour was. Some
would give a load of hay for a few favorite chapters,
and they would sit up all night, with the doors shut,
or hide themselves in the woods, to read and reread
them. It cost something, however, to possess the love
of God in those days, as well as to buy the Bible.
The following incident, which occurred before Tyn
dale's translation was published, will show the spirit
of the priesthood, and the danger incurred by oppos
ing them.
A priest on board the passage boat from London
to. Gravesend observed a fellow-passenger a little
nearer to him than seemed consistent with his dignity,
or rather with the dignity which he assumed, and he
said to him :

TRIUMPHS OF THE BIBLE. 61
"You are too near me; get further off. Do<j?ou
know who I am?"
" No, sir."
¦ " Well, then, you must know that I am a priest."
" Indeed, sir ; are you a parson, or vicar, or a
lady's chaplain?"
"No; I am a soul-priest; I sing mass to save
souls." " Do you, sir ? that is well done ; and can you tell
me where you find the soul when yon begin the
mass ?"
" I cannot."
"And where you leave it when the mass is en<Jed ?"
" I do not know."
" What ! you do not know where you find the soul,
or where you leave it, and yet you say that you
save it."
" Go thy ways," the priest replied ; " thou art a
heretic, and I will be even with thee."
The name of this man was John Brown. He was
an intelligent and -pious Christian, and had caught
too much of the spirit of the Bible to obey like a dog
the insulting command of a priest to get out of his
way. John Brown went home, and a few days after
ward, while seated with his family at the table, the
door of his house was suddenly opened, and a con
stable, accompanied by several assistants, rushed in
and seized him at the table. His wife and daughter
uttered the most heartrending cries ; but the officers
pulled him out of the house, tore him from his fam
ily, placed him on horseback, and tied his feet under
the animal's belly.
He was thrown into prison, where he lay forty
days.

02 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Jtt the end of that time the Archbishop of Canter
bury and the Bishop of Rochester called before them
the impudent fellow who doubted whether a priest's
mass could save souls, and required him to retract
this blasphemy. But Brown replied :
"Christ was once offered to take away the sins of
many. It is by this sacrifice we are saved, and not
by the repetitions of the priests."
At this reply the archbishop made a sign to the
executioners, one of whom took off the shoes and
stockings of the pious Christian, while the otirer
brought in a pan of burning coals, upon which they
set lys feet.
" Confess the efficacy of the mass," the two bishops
cried. " If I deny my Lord upon earth he will deny me
before his Father in heaven," he answered.
The flesh was burned off the soles of his feet to the
bones, and still he remained unshaken.
The bishops ordered him then to be given over to
the secular authority to be burned alive.
The day before he died his wife came to see him.
She found him sitting with his feet in the stocks, and
as she looked in his countenance she saw how much
changed his features were by suffering. She sat
down beside him weeping most bitterly, while he,
being hindered by his chains, could not even bend
toward her. Even if his feet had been free from
the stocks he could not have stood on them. He
said to her:
"I cannot set my feet to the ground, for the bish
ops have burned them to the bones ; but they could
not burn my tongue, and prevent my confessing the
Lord. 0 Elizabeth ! continue to love him, for he is
good, and bring up our children in his fear."

DIVORCE OF HENRY VIII. 63
On the following morning he was led to the place
of execution and fastened to the stake. His wife
and children were present and saw him die. The
fagots were lighted, and John Brown, full of confi
dence in the blood of Christ, clasped his hands and
repeated a hymn. Soon he was silent, for the flames
had done their work.
Cries of anguish then rent the air. It seemed as
if his wife and daughter would lose their senses. As
the bystanders shared their compassion and seemed
indignant toward their executioners, one of the con
stables rushed toward his daughter, crying:
" Come along; let us toss the heretic's children
into the flames lest they should one day spring from
their father's ashes."*
She escaped, however, but never forgot that fear
ful moment when the executioner's hand was almost
upon her.
Such were the scenes passing in England, while
sincere men were struggling to find the way of sal
vation.

CHAPTER V.
DIVORCE OF HENRY VIII.
We will now give a brief history of the celebrated
divorce of Henry VIII., of which so much has been
said. Henry came to the throne of England in the year
1509. He married Catharine, his deceased brother's
wife, daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella, and aunt
of Charles V., After he had lived with her eighteen
* History of the Reformation, by Merle D'Aubigne', vol. v, pp. 144, lib.
His*. Reformation. -

64 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
years he began to raise doubts as to the lawfulness of
his marriage, on the ground that Catharine was his
brother's wife, alleging that such a union was forbid
den by the Old Testament. We shall not judge
Henry too harshly when we say that his scruples
were anything but religious scruples. They arose
from two sources : his desire for a son, and his desire
for the beautiful and accomplished Anne Boleyn.
Henry applied to the pope for a divorce, which threw
his holiness into a singular dilemma ; for if he granted
the divorce to Henry he would have Charles V.,
Catharine's nephew, for his enemy, the weight of
whose arms he had already felt; if he refused the
divorce then Henry would be offended.
What could he do ? He put off the decision from
tirno to time. Cardinal Wolsey, the haughty Arch
bishop of York, and Chancellor of England, and who
was almost as much king as Henry, connived at the
delay of the pope, because he knew if Anne Bullen be
came queen it would be a triumph to the Reformation.
At length the pope, urged by Henry, appointed Car
dinals Campeggio and Wolsey to decide the matter,
with instructions to delay as long as possible, and not
to decide at all without further instructions from him
self. They delayed until Henry found they were
mocking him, when Campeggio hastily left England
and returned to Rome.
The divorce question not being yet settled, Thomas
Cranmer expressed the opinion that, it being a matter
in which the sense of Scripture is concerned, the
opinions of the universities should be obtained rather
than the decision of the pope; "because," said he,
" the pope has no authority to annul Scripture."
Henry, hearing of this opinion, made him his chap
lain, and on March 30, 1533, raised him to be Primate

DIVORCE OF HENRY VIII. 65
of England and Archbishop of Canterbury. In May,
1533, Cranmer pronounced sentence of divorce, after
a convocation of the clergy had declared the marriage
unlawful. In this court all the prelates of England
joined, except the Bishop of Rochester. About the
same time Henry married Anne Boleyn.
The pope threatened to excommunicate Henry, but
the latter defied his authority, and caused one act
after another to be passed overthrowing the pope's
authority in England, until the pontiff formally and of
ficially declared, with his cardinals, that the marriage
of Henry and Catharine was valid, and Henry was
pronounced excommunicated if he refused to adhere
to it. The king was not a, man to draw back, and
the next parliament completed the breach by affirm
ing that all payments to the pope, and all provisions,
bulls, and dispensations from him were abolished,
and that the king was the .only earthly head of the
Church. A convocation of the clergy declared in the same
year that the Bishop of Rome had, by the law of God,
no more jurisdiction in England than any other for
eign bishop, and that the authority which he and his
predecessors had exercised there was only by usurpa
tion and the sufferance of English princes.- This was
in the year 1534. Thus ended the pope's sway in
England. It was necessary now to break the power of the
pope's adherents in the kingdom, so as to prevent
their influence over the minds of the people; and
Henry soon after abolished the smaller abbeys, three
hundred and seventy-six in number, and appropri
ated their property and estates to his own use. He
soon afterward suppressed the larger ones' also. His
right to do so arose from the fact that they were

66 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
sworn friends of his enemy the pope, and would do
all in their power to sustain the pope's authority in
England. Besides, he had discovered by inspection
so many crimes and superstitions connected with
them, and they had absorbed so much of the property
of the kingdom, that he alleged it was but justice to
his subjects.
One thing is to be particularly remarked. Henr}r
separated England from Rome, but continued all his
life to sustain the Roman Catholic doctrines m En
gland, so that after all Henry VIII. was the in
strument only of producing a change in the head
of the Church, and not the cause of the Reformation.
That was to be found in the hearts of the English
people, thoroughly leavened as they had already
become by the doctrines of the Bible.

CHAPTER VI.
ERASMUS AS A REFORMER.
On the twelfth of July, 1536, the great Erasmus
died at the age of sixty-nine. Notwithstanding all
that has been said against his lukewarmness, he
wielded a trusty blade in favor of the Reformation.
As early as the year 1500, long before Luther was
heard of in the theological world, he had acquired
the reputation of being an eminent man of letters all
throughout Europe. A year before Luther spoke
out against the indulgences of Tetzel he published
his New Testament in Greek, which did its work
among the learnedeverywhere in Christendom. Not
long afterward his famous " Colloquies" were produc-

ERASMUS AS A REFORMER. 67
ing the same result among students in the quiet
recesses of their schools.
" His heart," says Rose,* " was certainly with the
Reformers." " He refused," says another, " a benefice offered
by the pope, and was indifferent as to a cardinal-
ship."! He long took the side of Luther, and spoke of him
as follows :
" Luther has committed two unpardonable crimes ;
he has touched the pope upon the crown and the
monks upon the belly."
" I know that a bishopric is at my service if I
would but write against Luther; but Luther is a
man of too great abilities for me to encounter ; and
to say the truth, I learn more from one page of
his than all the volumes of Thomas Aquinas."
Again, he says that Luther's doctrine was right in
the main, but that it had not been delivered by him
with a proper temper and with due moderation.
At last, when the acute mind of Erasmus saw that
Luther was adopting the severe doctrines of Calvin
on the predestination of one part of the human race,
and the reprobation of the other part, he wrote
against this doctrine alone. And lo ! a cry is raised
that he has attacked the Reformation at the instiga
tion of Rome. But where is the proof ? He received
no bishopric, no cardinalship for his pains. And if
he had been writing for Rome he would surely have
advocated some of her peculiar doctrines other than
free will.
The work he published was the " Diatribe de Lib
era Arbitrio," "A Discourse on Free Will," written,
* Biographical Dictionary, article Erasmus.
+ French Biog. Die. in £4 vols. Paris: 1815. Article, Erasmus.

68 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
as his accusers allow, in a strain of mildness arid can
dor. Luther replied, with his usual impetuosity and
severity, in a work called "De Servo Arbitrio," "On
the Bondage of the Will." Erasmus rejoined by his
" Hyperaspistes." We may blame him for receiving pensions from
Roman Catholic courts, but he had earned them by
his literary labors ; and if they would give them to a
man who had written so much against Rome, it
would not much help the reform for him to refuse
them. We do blame him for continuing all his life in
the papal Church ; but his death was not the death
of a Romanist. He died among Protestants, calling
on no saints, but on God and Christ, and using none of
the Romish ceremonies appointed for the dying.
"There is no necessity," says one of his biogra
phers, " to suppose that he acted against his con
science in adhering to the Church of Rome; no, he
persuaded himself that he did as much as piety
and prudence required from him in censuring her
defects." " We and all the nations of Europe are infinitely
obliged to Erasmus for spending a long and laborious
life in opposing ignorance and superstition, and in
promoting literature and true piety."*
We shall have occasion to refer to Erasmus again.
* Jortin's Life of Erasmus.

HENRY VIII. AND HIS WIVES.

CHAPTER VH.
THE SIX AND TEN ARTICLES  HENRY VIII. AND
HIS WIVES.
We have said that Henry VIII. did not reform the
Church. Neither did he himself change materially
either in doctrines or morals. He commenced life a
Romanist and ended it so, in all but submission to
the pope. In early life he wrote a work against
Luther in favor of the seven sacraments, for which
the pope rewarded him with the title of " Defender of
the Faith ;" and he continued to oppose whatever he
saw of true piety until the last. That Henry changed
not, and that the nation was not changed by him,
appears from the passage of the six articles, some
times called the whip with the six strings. They are
in substance as follows :
1. The doctrine of transubstantiation is confirmed.
2. The cup is forbidden in the sacrament.
3. The marriage of priests is forbidden.
4. Vows of celibacy declared obligatory.
5. Private masses for souls in purgatory upheld.
6. Auricular confession to be retained.
For unbelief in the first of these articles the
unfortunate doubter was to be burned at the stake.
For unbelief in any of the other five hanging was
the sentence. In all cases lands and goods were to
be forfeited. Many were convicted, burned, and
hanged in England for not believing in the six arti
cles. It is strange that Rome never hanged, or
burned, or imprisoned a man for not believing in
Christ ; but if he could not believe that a little round

70 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
wafer, which looked like a wafer, felt like a wafer,
and tasted like a wafer— if he could not believe that
this was the very body, the very flesh and blood of
Christ, the identical substance which was crucified on
Calvary, then he was led to the stake and burned to
death. O Rome, Rome, to what lengths of crime and
folly thou hast led thy votaries!
In the year 1536, and consequently after Henry
had broken with the pope, ten articles were concluded
on by a convocation of clergy, which show how much
of Rome there was yet found in those who ruled
England. Some of them are as follows :
Images are allowed.
Prayers to saints allowed.
Purgatory defended.'
Transubstantiation asserted.
Infants dying before baptism are declared to be
damned everlastingly, without hope even of getting
into purgatory. It was a fortunate thing for the in
nocent babes born in England at this time, that the
convocation of clergy which pronounced their final
condemnation had no power to. carry their sentence
into execution, and to deliver over the little ones
actually to the devil. The following questions,
which the pious Bishop Hooper was in the habit of
asking the clergy on his primary visitation, indi
cate certainly no great attainments in theological
knowledge. "How many commandments are there?"
" Where were they written ?"
"Can you say%them by heart?"
"What are the articles of the Christian faith?"
"Can you repeat them?"
" Can you recite the Lord's Prayer?"
" How do you know it to be the Lord's Prayer?"

HENRY VIII. AND HIS WIVES. 71
One of the ten articles, however, strikes a terrible
blow at Romanism. It asserts that we are justified
by faith in Christ only; by the merits of his death
and sufferings, and not by any merit of our own
works. If Henry VIII. of England did not change in
doctrines, neither did he in morals. We have
no disposition to hide what he was ; but in doing
so we give all the credit of his character to the
Romish Church. She educated him ; she made him
what he was, whether he continued to obey the pope
or not.
The licentious monarch was soOn tired of the beauty
of Anne Boleyn. He did not take as much trouble
to separate from her as he did to obtain his divorce
from Catharine. She was soon beheaded. The next
day he married Jane Seymour. In the mean time
the fires of Smithfield blazed around those who re
fused to believe the religious doctrines of their king.
It happened that three Roman Catholics did not be
heve exactly as Henry wished, and he burned them
with three Protestants, the Romanists declaring that
the worst part of their punishment was being coupled
in death with such heretical miscreants as the
Protestants. Jane Seymour did not live long. She died two
days after the birth of a son, who afterward became
Edward VI. After her death Henry took a good
deal of pains to find a wife who might suit him, and
at last fell in love with a picture of Anne of Cleves,
and immediately took measures to marry her. She
came to England, and he hastened to see her; but
was much disappointed at finding her very unlike the
picture, and declared that he never could love her."
To make it worse, she could speak nothing but Dutch,

72 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
and Henry did not understand this, and so she was
not very likely to win him by her conversation.
However, in the year 1539 he married, and in the
year 1540 divorced her ; but instead of beheading, he
very complaisantly adopted her as his sister.
He then married Catharine Howard. She was ex
ecuted, and he afterward married his sixth and last
wife, Catharine Parr.
Among all these we admire none more than his
first wife, Catharine of Arragon. She was a strict
Roman Catholic, and yet so true to her faithless hus
band, so sorrowful in her grief at the thought of sepa
ration from him, that we cannot but sympathize with
her. When she was cited before Wolsey and Campeggio
as legates of the pope, she rose from her seat, went
to the king, and fell on her knees before him in pres
ence of the whole assembly, and said, with tears in
her eyes :
"Sir, I beseechyou for all the love that hath been
between ns, and for the love of God, let me have
justice and right. Take some pity on me, for I am a
poor woman and a stranger, born out of yoilr domin
ions. I have here no assured friend, much less
impartial counsel, and I flee to you as to the head of
justice within this realm. Alas, sir, wherein have I
offended you, or what occasion given you of displeas
ure, that you should wish to put me from you ? I
take God and all the world to witness that I have
been to you a true, humble, and obedient wife, ever
conformable to your will and pleasure. Never have
I said or done aught contrary thereto, being always
well pleased and content with all things wherein you
had delight ; neither did I ever grudge in word or
countenance, or show a visage or spark of discontent.

HENRY VIII. AND HIS WIVES. 73
I loved all those whom you loved only for your sake.
This twenty years I have been your true wife, and
by me ye have had divers children, although it hath
pleased God to call them out of this world, which yet
hath been no default in me."
She spoke longer, but this is a sufficient sample of
her words ; and when she finished she bowed low,
and seemed to embrace her husband's knees. She
then, instead of returning to her seat, moved toward
the door. She was called again aloud :
" Catharine, Queen of England, come into court."
Some one said to her: "Madam, you are called
back." " I hear it well enough," she replied, " but go you
on, for this is no court wherein I can have justice'.
Let us proceed."
She returned to her palace, and never would appear
in court again.
We cannot help admiring, as we behold this scene,
the true devotion of such . a wife. She died three
years after she was divorced from Henry ; and shortly
before her death wrote to him an affectionate letter,
in which she addressed him as her most dear lord,
king, and husband. The concluding words of the
letter were : "I make this vow, that mine eyes desire
you above all things."
Henry VIII. died in the year 1547. As God made
Jehu (wicked though he was) the instrument of
breaking the power of the false god Baal, in Israel,
so did he make Henry the means of destroying the
authority of the pope in England. But Jehu did not
bring Israel back to the worship of Jehovah ; neither
did Henry lead his English subjects to the religion of
the Bible.

74 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.

CHAPTER VIII.
CARDINAL WOLSEY — - CROMWELL  CRANMER 
A MARTYR.
Before leaving the reign of Henry VIII. we must
devote a few pages to some characters and further
events connected with it.
Thomas Wolsey, the son of a butcher, struggled
up, by his own ability, to the dignity of cardinal,
pope's legate, and chancellor of all England. He
lived in great splendor, and having reached the high
est pinnacle of honor possible to him in England, he
aspired to be pope. In this he never succeeded, but
by his intrigues to obtain the triple crown satisfied
the king that he held too much power in his hands
to be a safe subject. His fall was still more sudden
than his rise. One step followed another in quick
succession until he was arrested for high treason.
He became completely unmanned when he found the
king was really against him, and, prostrated by his
misfortunes, died in the year 1530.
In the year 1535 John Fisher, Bishop of Roches
ter, and the celebrated Sir Thomas More, were exe
cuted because they would not acknowledge Henry as
head of the Church. -
Thomas Cromwell, the son of a blacksmith, was a
servant of Cardinal Wolsey, and when the latter was
accused, boldly and ably defended him ; and though
his master fell, Cromwell from that time rose in the
estimation of Henry until he made him secretary of
state, Earl of Essex, and lord chamberlain. Crom
well has been accused of injustice in his proceedings

CARDINAL WOLSEY. 7,5
connected with the suppression of the monasteries;
but having been appointed vicar-general by Henry,
to act in this very matter, such an accusation would
be made against him by the monasteries suppressed,
whether he deserved it or not. Cromwell, though he
had so earnestly defended Wolsey, became and al
ways continued to be a firm friend of the Reforma
tion, and whenever he could he promoted its interests.
In the year 1540 he yv&s accused of heresy and trea
son, and executed, his real crime being that he had
recommended Anne of Cleves to the king.
Thomas Cranmer, of whom we have already said
that he owed his elevation to an opinion he had
given on the divorce question, was always true to
the Reformers. Accused of heresy, he was protected by
Henry, and it has been said that he was the only one
to whom the faithless king was faithful. By his means,
with Latimer and1 some others, the Scriptures were
published openly, and a copy placed in many of the
churches, though the king afterward restricted the
reading of them to certain persons of rank and sta
tion, and then it had to be done quietly and in good
order. But the truth must be told, both of Crom
well and Cranmer, that though favorable to nearly
all the principles of the Reformation, yet there were
times when they themselves stood in the attitude of
persecutors. Perhaps they were influenced by the
fear of Henry ; perhaps by the widespread idea that
it was lawful to destroy heretics. But the true and
fundamental cause was, that the Romish Church had
educated them to believe that persecution was right.
Cranmer long believed that the real presence was in
the host, and it is related of him that his opinion on this
point was changed by witnessing the courage and
patience of the martyrs. >

76 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
We will close the reign of Henry VIII. by a brief
account of the martyrdom of Anne Askew. She is
but one of many who suffered in a similar manner.
This lady was descended from a good family, and
of an accomplished education. She had embraced
the Reformers' doctrines with zeal, and was arrested
for her opinions in March, 1545. In her examinations
she answered plainly as to her opinions. The follow
ing is part of her own account of her sufferings :
" They said to me then that I was a heretic, and
condemned by the law, if I would stand in my
opinion. I answered that I was no heretic, neither
yet deserved I any death by the law of God. But as
concerning the faith which I uttered and wrote to
the Council, I would not deny it, because I knew it
true. Then would they needs know if I would deny
the sacrament to be Christ's body and blood. I said :
' Yea, for the same Son of God who was born of the
Virgin Mary is now glorious in heaven, and will
come again from there at the latter day, like as he
went up. And as for that ye call your God, it is a.
piece of bread. For a proof thereof, mark it when
you list ; let it lie in the box but three months, and it
will be moldy, and so turn to nothing that is good.
Whereupon I am persuaded that it cannot be God.' "
Giving a further account of her examination, and
other things connected with her imprisonment; she
says : " Then did they put me on the rack because I
confessed no ladies or gentlemen to be of my opinion,
[meaning she did not betray to them those whom she
knew to be Christians,] and thereon they kept me a
long time; and because I lay still and did not cry,
my Lord Chancellor and Mr. Rich took pains to
rack me with their own hands till I was nigh dead.
The lieutenant then -caused me to be loosed from

THE DUKE OF SOMERSET AND CRANMER. 77
the rack, when I immediately swooned, and they
recovered me again. After that I sat two hours
reasoning with my Lord Chancellor, upon the bare
floor, where he, with many flattering words, per
suaded me to leave my opinions ; but my Lord God,
I thank his everlasting goodness, gave me grace to
persevere, and will do, I hope, to the very end."
And he did so, for she was soon afterward carried
to the stake and burned.

CHAPTER IX.
THE DUKE OF SOMERSET AND CRANMER.
The English Reformation, as we have said, com
menced in the time of Wiclif, about 1375. Luther's
fame and writings no doubt influenced the English
people to some extent, but* not sufficiently to sup
pose that it materially hastened or retarded the great
work. It was not until the accession of Edward VI.,
in 1547, that the great Reformation was acknowledged
by the nation. It dwelt before in the hearts of the
people and on the lips of the martyrs.
Conspicuous among those who were instrumental
in this important change were the Earl of Hertford
and Thomas Cranmer. The former was the uncle of
the young king, and he became Protector of the
realm during the king's minority. Created Duke of
Somerset, almost as soon as Henry VIII. died he as
sumed the direction of Edward's education, and he
took care that the books he read and the tutors who
instructed him should be thoroughly Protestant.
Too little has been said of what the Duke of Som-

78 .HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
erset accomplished for the reformation of England.
He is not behind many whose names have come down
with great luster to our times. The king, not ten years
of age when his father died, was too young'to accom
plish much himself; and Cranmer had no authority
beyond the limits of his ecclesiastical jurisdiction.
It is true he was the constant counselor of Somerset ;
but it was the latter who, step by step, boldly abolished
the peculiar practices of Romanism all over the king
dom ; and in doing this he conformed to the senti
ment of the great mass of the English people. This
fact shows how the leaven, which had been at work
since the time of Wiclif, had extended.
A most decisive step was to remove the images.
But even in this he proceeded with great modera
tion, for at first he allowed to remain all images
which might be supposed not to have been used
idolatrously. Afterward, finding it impossible to
distinguish between what has been called the rever
ence for them and the .worship of them, an order
was issued by which they were taken entirely from.
the churches, an event which seemed to announce
everywhere a complete religious revolution. What
a change must have been wrought in those who fre
quented the churches, when they could go one Sab
bath and behold their accustomed idols all throughout
the country, and the next Sabbath see that they
were gone, and this without tumult or insurrection !
Visitors were appointed to go through all the
churches, to correct the morals of the clergy, and to
abolish the ancient superstitions. They were directed
to restrain the people from sprinkling their beds with
holy water, from ringing bells, and using blessed
candles to drive away the devil.
The laws against the Lollards and many of the

THE DUKE OF SOMERSET AND CRANMER. 79
rigorous statutes against heretics were now repealed,
together with the famous " six articles." The cup was
allowed to the laity ; private masses were abolished ;
candles were forbidden to be carried about on Can
dlemas-day, ashes on Ash- Wednesday, and palms on
Palm-Sunday. Priests were also allowed to marry.
And as the advancing intelligence of the people
demanded the public prayers to Almighty God to be
in a language understood by them, some of the best
prayers of the Roman Catholic service, which had
come down from a time when the Church existed in
a comparatively pure state, were translated ; other
prayers were added to them, and these were incor
porated in what is now known as the book of Com
mon Prayer of the English Church. In this was
manifest the wisdom of Somerset and Cranmer.
Whatever was good in Romanism they were anxious
to retain, not only in the public services of religion,
but in the hearts of the people, lest they should
throw away all faith-, as men did in the French
Revolution, and go over to infidelity and atheism.
It has been asserted that these reformers of En
gland did not go far enough. This is certainly true ;
but it should be spoken to their praise rather than
otherwise. They were unwilling to overturn the re
ligious sentiment of the nation, and they could go
further as they gained more light. And this they
did, for in the same reign the book of Common
Prayer was revised, and oil in confirmation, extreme
unction, and prayers for the dead, were left out.
About fifty years afterward, in the iteign of James I.,
it was revised again.
Somerset, however, could not proceed thus without
making enemies. It seemed to be the genius of the
age that whoever would persevere with decision in

80 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
acting according to the principles of the Bible, must
some time or other lay down his life for it.
He was accused of treason, but acquitted of the
charge. The people, by whom he was greatly be
loved, expressed their joy by loud acclamations. He
was, however, condemned, without either proof or
probability of guilt, for felony, and not long after
ward executed. Many of the spectators came to the
place of execution to dip their handkerchiefs in his
blood, which they long preserved as a precious relic.
In 1553 Edward died, and Queen Mary came to
the throne.

CHAPTER X.
REIGN OF QUEEN MARY.
It was a happy circumstance for England that
Mary lived but a little over five years after her ac
cession to the throne. During that time she did all
she could to bring the nation back to Romanism.
All the statutes of King Edward with regard to re
ligion were repealed by one vote. Commissioners
were appointed to go to Rome and negotiate with the
pope for the giving up of the kingdom again to his
supremacy. The pope haughtily insisted that the
Church property which Henry VIII. had taken from
the monasteries should be restored. The Parliament
would not consent to this. Latin services were sub
stituted for the English all over the nation.
Gardiner, Bonner, Tonstal, Day, Heath, and Vesey
were restored to their sees ; and Holgate, archbishop
of York, Coverdale, bishop of Exeter, Ridley of Lon
don, Hooper of Gloucester, and Latimer, now in his

REIGN OF QUEEN MARY. • 81
old age, were thrown into prison. All preachers
were silenced, except such as should obtain a license ;
and at last, at the instigation of Gardiner, when the
queen seemed to be securely seated on her throne,
the fires of persecution were lighted.
Cranmer boldly and fearlessly ' opposed the new
order of things, and published a statement asserting
that it was the devil who was trying to restore the
Latin masses. He affirmed that the mass itself had
no foundation in Scripture, or in the practice of the
primitive Church ; but was, on the contrary, a plain
contradiction to antiquity and the inspired writings,
and was replete with many horrid blasphemies. He
was rewarded for this fidelity to his principles by
being charged as a conspirator, taking part with Lady
Jane Grey ; and thereupon he was convicted of high
treason. His execution however was delayed ; a
more cruel punishment awaited him.
Queen Mary now filled the Tower" and all the
prisons with the nobility and gentry of the kingdom.
And as she found herself becoming universally hated,
she was stimulated to greater cruelty.
The first one called on to take up his cross was
John Rogers, an aged, devoted, and talented minister
of London. He had assisted Tindale and Coverdale
in the translation of the Bible. Believing marriage
lawful to a priest as well as to any other man, he
had entered into that state, and was the father of ten
children. Neither his anxiety as to "the protection
and support of his wife and children nor his fear of
suffering could induce him to deny the principles
which he had cherished. When brought before his
judges he asserted that the pope was antichrist, and
that his religion was contrary to the Gospel. He
was condemned to be burned.

82 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
When the hour of his execution arrived, and they
came to conduct him to the stake, such was his tran
quillity and his firm trust in God that they found
him in a sound sleep, and were obliged to awake
him. On the way his wife and children approached,
wishing to see him; but Gardiner told him he was
a priest, and ought not to have a wife, and they were
not permitted to come near him. He was chained to
the stake, and burned to death.
Five days after John Hooper, bishop of Gloucester
and Worcester, a man of great piety, and sixty years
of age, was burned among the people to whom he had
preached. The accusations against him were that he
would not put away his wife, and that he did not be
lieve that the wafer used in the communion con
tained the real and actual body and blood of Christ.
A pound of gunpowder was placed at his feet, and
another pound under each arm, as a kind of mercy to
hasten his end. He was placed upon a high bench,
and bound to the stake by an iron hoop around his
middle. But the wood was green, and kindled slow
ly, and the wind, which was high, drove the flame
away from him, so that he was scorched only. Dry
wood was brought, but in such small quantities that
for a long time nothing but his lower extremities
were consumed, and he cried out, in great agony:
" For God's sake, good people, let me have more
fire!" Not 'until, the third fire did the gunpowder
explode, and even this did not end his suffering. He
still continued to pray, in a loud voice : " Lord Jesus,
have mercy upon me!" At length his tongue be
came so swollen that he could not articulate, and one •
of his arms dropped off before he expired. After he
had thus lingered in all the bitterness of a most cruel
death, he bowed forward and died.

REIGN OF QUEEN MARY. 83
Bishops Ridley and Latimer were burned together.
Latimer had been a zealous Roman Catholic in his
early years, and, like Paul, a persecutor of Protest
ants ; but as has been already related, he was led to
Christ by the ingenious plan of Bilney to reach his
heart by coming to confess. Ever since he had been
a faithful witness of the truth. He was now about
eighty years of age. Henry VIII. had raised him to
be Bishop of Worcester ; but on the passage of the
six articles he had resigned his bishopric rather than
countenance them. He was punished for this by
being imprisoned all the rest of Henry's life. When
Edward VI. came to the throne he was set at liberty,
and resumed preaching, but refused to be bishop
again. In the reign of Mary he was imprisoned
again, and remained in confinement until the year
1555, when he was brought to the stake.
When the flames rose up around him he rubbed
his hands in them and put them on his face, and soon
expired, apparently without much pain; but before
his death he made that remark to his fellow-sufferer
which has since become so memorable : " Be of good
comfort, Master Ridley, and play the man. We shall
this day light such a candle, by God's grace, in
England as I trust shall never be put out."
With Ridley it was different. ¦ The wood was so
piled around him that the flame was choked, and he
could be seen leaping up and down under the fagots,
suffering the most excruciating pain, while his lower
parts were burning, and crying again and again : " I
cannot burn ! I cannot burn !" One of the persons
standing by pulled the wood away from the top, when
the fire burned up freely, and then poor Ridley
turned himself eagerly toward it, as far as his chains
would permit, and the flames soon reached the gun-

84 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
powder tied around his neck, which, as it exploded,
put an end to his suffering.
One more example will be sufficient to give an
idea of the sufferings undergone by multitudes of the
saints of God during the short reign of bloody Queen
Mary, and of the atrocious and inhuman barbarity
of their persecutors.
Archbishop Cranmer, now sixty-seven years of age,
who had been protected by Henry VHI. notwith
standing his Protestant views, 'and who, during the
reign of Edward VI., had used his influence to obtain
toleration for Mary in her Romanist practices, was
brought from his prison to suffer death. We would
suppose that Mary, if she cared nothing for her
father's memory, would at least have remembered
the archbishop's kindness to her ; on the contrary,
she was bent on his destruction. As Ridley, Latimer,
and others had been urged to recant, so was Cranmer ;
and either wearied out by their solicitations or in
fluenced by the sight of his fellow-martyrs as they
died, he was induced to sign papers recanting his
former opinions. His persecutors, acting with a per
fidy which was nothing new to them, determined that
he should suffer notwithstanding. They told him he
must acknowledge his errors before the Church. Cran
mer consented, and they then gave secret orders that
¦ from the church he should be immediately led to the
place of execution.
He came to St. Mary's Church, and went into the
pulpit, when, instead of the recantation which they
expected, he said that he repented above all other
things that he had ever signed the papers ; and he
now affirmed what he had formerly believed ; " and,"
paid he, raising his arm, " forasmuch as my hand
offended, writing contrary to my heart, my hand

TRANSLATION OF THE BIBLE. 85
shall first be punished therefor, for, may I come tc
the fire, it shall b« first burned."
When he had said this they pulled him down from
the pulpit, aud led him away to the stake. As soon
as the fire began to burn he stretched forth his right
arm and thrust his hand into the flame, and held it
there until it was consumed, crying, " This unworthy
hand ! this unworthy hand !" Thus died one of the
best and most amiable of men. He was one of the
chief instruments, by the providence of God, in
establishing many of those reforms in England of
which we are now enjoying the benefit.
During all these scenes of suffering, Queen Mary
exhorted her bloodthirsty agents to continue their
pious labors. Thank God ! she died in the year 1558,
and Elizabeth came to the throne. The daughter of
Anne Boleyn, and Protestant in her views, she re
stored the principles of Edward VI., and for forty-five
years labored to promote the cause of true religion.
The doctrines of the Reformers became now so firmly
planted in the English nation that Romanism has
never been able to resume its sway.

CHAPTER XI.
TRANSLATION OF THE BIBLE.
It was the dissemination of the word of God by
the press, by the voice of the preacher, and by the
lips of private Christians as they spoke one to another,
that led to this triumph of the Reformation in England.
We will make some further reference to the transla
tions of the Bible into the English language.

86 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Some of the Psalms were translated by King Al
fred, in Saxon, about the year 900, -and possibly a few
other fragments ; and the whole Gospel of John was
translated by the venerable Bede into the same lan
guage about the commencement of the eighth century.
But the first translation into the English language
I of the whole Bible was made by John Wiclif about
the year 1360. No. more of this than the New Tes
tament has ever been printed, though manuscript
copies of the whole remain in public libraries.
The first printed Bible in our language was that
translated by Tindale, assisted by Miles Coverdale.
The New Testament was published, not in England,
but on the continent in the year 1526 ; and nearly
all the copies, as has been previously stated, were
bought up and burned by Bishop Tonstal and
Sir Thomas More. Thus furnished with money to
bring out a new edition, they published it again in the
year 1530, and the whole Bible in the year 1532.
This was also printed on the continent, and conveyed
by stealth to England. Tindale had hardly finished
his work when he went to his reward, for he was
taken up and burned in Flanders. Coverdale and
John Rogers prepared a new edition, in which the
Apocrypha was translated, and prefaces and notes
added from Luther's Bible. This was printed in
1537, and dedicated to Henry VIII., under the bor
rowed name of Thomas Matthews, whence this has
usually been called Matthews's Bible, though it was
still Tindale's version. It was printed at Hamburgh,
but a license was now obtained for publishing it in
England by the means of Archbishop Cranmer and
Bishop Latimer.
The first Bible then printed in England was Tin-
dale's translation, revised and amended by Coverdale,

TRANSLATION OF THE BIBLE. 87
and again examined by Cranmer, who wrote a preface
for it, from which it was called Cranmer's Bible. It
was printed in 1540, and by a royal proclamation
every parish was obliged to have a copy in its church,
under a penalty of forty shillings a month. Yet two
years after it was suppressed by the inconstant Henry
VIH., under the influence of the popish bishops. It
was restored under Edward VI., and again suppressed
under Mary, and restored again under Elizabeth, and
a new edition brought out in the year 1562.
The next English translation after Tindale's was
made in Geneva by Coverdale, Goodman, Gilbie,
Sampson, Cole, Wittingham, and Knox, who were
exiled by Queen Mary. The New Testament was
printed in 1557, the Old in 1560. This was called the
Geneva Bible, and was highly esteemed by the Puritans.
The next was called the Great English Bible, more
commonly the Bishop's Bible. Archbishop Parker,
resolving on a new translation for the public use of the
Church, appointed the bishops and other learned men
to take each a share to translate. It was published
in 1568 in large folio, and again in 1589 in octavo.
It was publicly used in the churches for forty years ;
but the Geneva Bible was read more in private, being.
frequently reprinted during that time.
The Roman Catholics, now finding it impossible to
keep the Scriptures from the people, caused a version
of their own to be made of the New Testament, as
favorable as possible to their doctrines, which was
published at Rheims in 1584, and called the Rhemish
Bible, or Rhemish translation. About thirty years
afterward the Old Testament was translated by them,
and published at Douay in 1609 and 1610. It was
translated from the Latin Vulgate, and is now known
as the Douay Bible.

88 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
The next was that which we now use. It originated
in the Hampton Court Conference in 1603, where,
objections having been made to the Bishops' Bible,
King James gave orders for a new English transla
tion. Fifty-four learned men were appointed to per
form this work by the king, as appears by his letter
to the archbishop, dated 1604. Seven of them were
probably either dead or had declined the task, before
the work was commenced, as Fuller's list of the trans
lators makes but forty-seven, who, being ranged under
six divisions, entered on their labor in 1607. In execut
ing their important work they divided it among them,
assigning to each one that part of the Bible which he
was most competent to translate ; and then they met
together, and one read the translation while the rest
held in their hands some Bible, either of the learned
tongues or French, Spanish, Italian, etc. If they
found any fault they spoke ; if not, he read on. . It was
published in the year 1611, and is commonly called
King James's Bible. After this all the other versions
.fell into disuse, except the Epistles, Gospels, and
Psalms in the Common Prayer Book of the English
and American Episcopal Churches. These were con
tinued according to the Bishops' translation until the
change of the liturgy in the year 1661, when King
James's translation was adopted in the epistles and
gospels ; but the Psalms in the Prayer Book remain
as in the old version to the present day.
Much has been truly said of the merits of our
present version. It probably comes nearer the orig
inal than any translation in the world, and no human
estimate can be made of the good it has done wher
ever the English language is spoken.

THE

REFORMATION IN IRELAND.

THE

REFORMATION IN IRELAND.

This beautiful island, famed for the hospitality and
warm hearts of its inhabitants, has a religious history
full of stirring incident. Long centuries ago the
smoke of human sacrifices went up from its hills, and
groves, and altars, while the shrieks of the expiring
victims were as incense to the ferocious worshipers.
About the year 400 the celebrated St. Patrick was
born in Scotland, from whence his parents removed
to France. While residing there, and when about
sixteen years of age, he was carried captive by pirates
to Ireland. In a strange land he remembered the
pious instructions of a truly Christian father and
mother; instructions which he had been too much
inclined to neglect when he lived peacefully at home.
While a slave, and keeping swine in the fields alone,
he lifted his heart to God, and received the joyful
witness of his adoption by the Saviour. He describes
himself the change which took place in him as fol
lows : " I was sixteen years old, and knew not the
true God; but- in that strange land the Lord opened
my unbelieving eyes, and, although late, I called my
sins to mind, and was converted with my whole heart
to the Lord my God, who regarded my low estate,
had pity on my youth and ignorance, and consoled
me as a father does his children."

92 , HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Again he says : "The love of God increased more
and more in me, with faith and the fear of his name.
And even before the light of day in the forests and
on the mountains, where I remained in the rain and
snow and frost, I was impelled to pray by the Spirit
of God which burned within me."*
Rescued from his pagan bondage, his mind turned
back to the land where God had spoken to his
soul. Night and day his mind was filled with the
desire to go and tell these heathens of the Saviour he
had found. Long he tarried, but at last was ready
to leave country, home, and friends for Christ's sake.
And he went and preached to them the Gospel of
our Lord Jesus Christ, and not the ceremonies of the
Church of Rome. St. Patrick was not a Romanist,
but a Christian.
After an absence of over a quarter of a century, and
when he was about forty-five years of age, he landed
in Ulster with some companions, whom he had
brought with him as missionaries. From their foreign
appearance the people took them to be pirates, and
prepared to drive them back. St. Patrick, who had
not forgotten the language he had learned when a
slave, told them his errand, and they were eventually
conducted to the halls of Tara, where king and people
listened with intense interest to the story of the cross.
Soon their idols and idol-worship were thrown aside,
and thousands embraced Christianity. Everywhere
St. Patrick went through the island, collecting the
people together in the fields by the sound of a drum,
and in their own tongue preaching to them a cruci
fied Saviour. It was thus that Ireland was brought
from the darkness of paganism to the light of the
Gospel. * Translated from Patr. Confess., Usser. 432.

IRELAND. 93
That St. Patrick was no Romanist Archbishop
Usher has proved. He certainly did not believe in
purgatory as strongly as some who have come after
him, for there is no mention whatever made of it in
the writings ascribed to him. His successors, how
ever, have fully atoned for St. Patrick's unbelief, as
they have asserted that the very place itself was to be
found in Ireland.
Cesarius, a German monk, advises all who doubt
to go to Ireland, to St. Patrick's purgatory, in Logh-
dergi, and he shall be convinced.* Dr. Tyrry, quoted
by the same author, says it is famous all over Europe ;
and O'Sullivan, in his Catholic History of Ireland,
has given us a description of the rooms and furniture,
and the several sorts of punishment, and the way to
get in and safely to get out. But our historian says
that the purgatory here ascribed to St. Patrick was
dug up, by order of the Lords Justices of Ireland,
in the year 1636, and was found to be only a small
cave. Neither did St. Patrick believe in the celibacy of
the priests ; for in one of the synods held by him it
was ordered that the wives of the clergy should not
walk abroad with uncovered heads, which shows that
the clergy had wives.f
But the purity of St. Patrick's doctrines, long after
his death, became so corrupted by the importation of
errors from Rome, that, had the saint landed again
in Ulster, though he might not have found the snakes
he was said to have expelled, he would hardly have
recognized the Church which he took so much pains
to plant.
* Hibernia Anglicana ; or, the History of Ireland from the Conquest
thereof by the English to the Present Time. By Richard Cox, Esq.
Published in London in the year 1689. i Hibernia Anglicana.

94 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Centuries after the Christian religion had been thus
introduced the Northmen began to send their fierce
warriors into the island. They burned the churches,
and plundered the inhabitants. At last they planted
a colony in Armagh, and about the year 815 Turge-
sius, the Norwegian, assumed the title of King of
Ireland. He subjected the native kings to his sway,
and through them collected a tax from the people,
called nose money, because he enforced the payment
of it by cutting off the noses of those who were
defaulters. O'Malachlin, an Irish chief, delivered his country
from the tyrant.
Next the Danes came pouring down upon the ill-
fated land, under their famous sea-kings. • The cele
brated Brian Borohme took the field against them in
the year 1000. Battle after battle was fought, and
when the old warrior was eighty years of age he was
still in the field. With whitened hair he rode from
rank to rank, a crucifix in one hand and his trusty
sword in the other, calling on them to follow where
he should lead.
The Danes were defeated, and either fled from the
country or were incorporated with the inhabitants.
We pass to the time when the trumpet of Luther
was giving no uncertain note on the continent of
Europe. Henry VIII. of England had thrown off
his allegiance to the pope, and was making endeavors
to conciliate the Irish chieftains, so as to introduce
among them his own views. O'Donnel, for instance,
was created Earl of Tyrconnel ; O'Neil Earl of Ty
rone, and O'Neil's son was honored with the title of
Lord Duncannon. The latter might have been very
powerful among his followers, and very expert in
rallying his forces to the wild Irish warfare, yet he

IRELAND. 95
was so poor that he had not the means to go to Lon
don to receive his new honor from the hands of the
ktng, but was obliged to borrow a hundred pounds
from the English governor, and with so little pros
pect of returning it in hard cash that he stipulated to
be allowed to repay it in cattle.
Men began to be thoroughly waked up now to the
subjects which had for years agitated England, Ger
many, and other parts of the continent. The writings
of Luther, Erasmus, and Melancthon had reached, and
been read and studied, in Ireland. One man seemed
destined to become its Luther. We refer to George
Browne, who was consecrated Archbishop of Dublin
in the year 1535. To him, with others, the king of
England committed the charge of reforming the
island. The archbishop, in pursuance of this trust, caused
all the relics and images to be removed out of the
two cathedrals in Dublin, and from all the churches
in his diocese ; and put up in their place the Lord's
Prayer, the creed, and the ten commandments. He
urged the ecclesiastics throughout the country to
throw off the allegiance of Rome, saying that even
the bishops of the Roman Catholic Church in ancient
times used to acknowledge kings and emperors to be
supreme in their own dominions.
He was violently opposed by the Archbishop of
Armagh, and by the pope, who sent over a bull of
excommunication against all who had or should own
the king of England's supremacy within the Irish
nation ; denouncing a curse on all of them and theirs
who should not within forty days acknowledge to
their confessors their sin.
On the other hand, the Parliament in Dublin passed
such acts as follow :
Hi.t, ttpformfttf'-n. 7

96 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
" An act against the pope, to suppress his usurpa
tions, and that it shall be premunire to defend or
assert his usurped authority."
" The act of faculties prohibiting the subjects from
paying any pensions, cences, portions, Peterpence,
or any other impositions to the use of the pope, and
extinguishing and suppressing them for ever."
And to prevent the monks and priests from dis
tinguishing themselves from the people in public, it
was enacted : " That no subject shall be shaved above
the ears, or wear glibbs, or crommealls /" (that is, hair
on the upper lip.)
These statutes were passed between the years
1535 and 1538. In the year 1541 a law was enacted,
by which theatrical representations and plays were
forbidden on Christmas and Easter, which shows how
these sacred days had been kept.
The Irish generally could not read the Bible, and
if they could, they had not many Bibles to read.
They, therefore, had no appeal from the authority of
the priests. Mother Church was the gospel to them ;
and to be cursed by the Church was the direst of all
calamities. All was commotion, therefore, when the
pope's bull arrived and became generally known.
And the friends of true religion, instead of printing,
and circulating, and preaching the Scriptures, as had
been done in Scotland, spent their time in contending
about the king's supremacy and the pope's rights.
Thus they lost ground.
As for the priests, they did not know even the first
principles of religion. Browne complained bitterly
of them, saying that a bird might be taught to speak
with as much sense as many of the clergy ; but that
they were crafty to cozen the poor common people.
The pope also did his part. He not only inflamed

IRELAND. 97
the religious bigotry of the people, but appealed to
their love of the Church at large. One Thady O'Brien
was seized, on whom was found a letter directed to
Shan O'Neil, sent from Rome, and dated May, 1538.
In this letter were the following words :
" His Holiness Paul, now Pope, and the Council of
the Fathers, have lately found in Rome a prophecy of
one Lucerianus, an Irish bishop of Cashel, in which
he saith that the Mother Church of Rome faileth
when, in Jreland, the Catholic faith is overcome.
Therefore, for the glory of the Mother Church, the
honor of St. Peter, and your own secureness, suppress
heresy and his holiness's enemies."
In the year 1541 the Archbishop of Armagh, Robert
Wachop, (who was famous for riding post best of
anybody in Christendom, although he was blind from
his cradle, so says an ancient chronicler,) introduced
the Jesuits into Ireland, by the favor and countenance
of Pope Paul III.
After the accession of Edward VI. to the throne of
England in the year 1547, an order was issued that
the English liturgy be used in Ireland ; and for the
abolition of monasteries and nunneries, as being the
nurseries only of vice or luxury.
The priests contrived a plan, and put it in execu
tion the second time the liturgy was used, which was
as effectual as any other could have been with the
superstitious people to make them hate the service.
In Dublin, among the images spared, was a marble
one of our Saviour holding a reed in his hand, with a
crown of thorns on his head. While the minister
was reading drops of red liquid, which looked like
blood, were seen coming through the crevices of the
crown and trickling down the face of the image. All
at once the contrivers of the trick started up and

98 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
cried aloud : " See how our Saviour's image sweats
blood ! But it must necessarily do this, since heresy
is come into the Church !"
The people were terrified at what seemed to them
a miracle, and an evident mark of the divine dis
pleasure, and hastened from the Church more than
ever convinced that the doctrines of Protestantism
were from the devil. The priests remained to laugh
over the success of their contrivance.
All through the reign of Edward the Reformation
made but dubious progress in Ireland. In the year
1553 Queen Mary came to the throne, who was, as is
well known, a furious Roman Catholic. As she had
done in England, she determined to destroy the re
formers in Ireland by fire and sword. She appointed
Dr, Cole, an agent of the blood-thirsty Bishop Bon
ner, to carry her designs into execution. He set out
in his journey, and arrived at Chester with his com
mission. There the mayor of the city, who was a
Roman Catholic, called on him. Dr. Cole took out
of his traveling bag a leather case, and said to the
mayor: "Here is a commission that shall lash the
heretics of Ireland."
The woman who kept the house where they were
talking was a Mrs. Edmunds, a Protestant, and
overheard this remark. She knew what it meant,
and having a brother in Dublin who was a Protest
ant too, who might be one of the first victims, she
was greatly troubled. A sudden thought struck her,
and she immediately determined that she would send
off Dr. Cole without his thunder if she could. So
while the mayor was taking his leave, and the doctor
politely accompanying him down stairs, and paying
to him the honors due to his station at the door, Mrs.
Edmunds was opening the leather case, and having

IRELAND. 99
found the commission, she took it out, and in its stead
placed a sheet of paper with a pack of cards, having
the knave of clubs at the top. She closed up the
case before the doctor returned, and left it just as it
had been lying when he went out. He took it up,
put it in his traveling bag, and prepared for his
voyage. Having embarked, he arrived at Dublin in
the year 1558. There, anxious to fulfill his pious
work of burning the heretics, he proceeded to the
castle of Lord Fitzwalter, the viceroy, taking his
leather case with him.
At a suitable time the privy council was assembled.
Dr. Cole was brought in, and made a speech, relating
upon what account he came over. He then presented
the leather box to the lord-deputy, who opened it that
the secretary might read the commission. Raising
the lid the knave of clubs met his astonished view !
and as the cards were taken out, there was no com
mission to be found. Dr. Cole insisted that he had
a commission, and searched the box himself; but
there was nothing but the cards. He expressed his
mortification to the viceroy and the persons present ;
but Lord Fitzwalter did not seem to take it much
to heart, for he replied :
" We must procure another commission, and in the
mean time let us shuffle the cards."
Dr. Cole set about returning to England immedi
ately, to get fresh authority ; but not having the
advantages of steam in those days, he was obliged to
wait for a favorable wind. While thus tarrying news
arrived that Queen Mary was dead, and the Prot
estants escaped the lashing that was intended for
them. Queen Elizabeth afterward granted Mrs.
Edmunds an annuity of forty pounds a year for this
humane act.

100 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
During the reign of Elizabeth the inhabitants of
Ireland were kept in a state of continual ferment by
their priests; They assured their deluded followers
that it was not only right to kill, but that they ob
tained the approbation of God by slaughtering the
Protestants ; and that all Roman Catholics who were
killed in this pious and charitable work would be
immediately received into everlasting happiness,
without passing through purgatory. Terms so easy
were eagerly embraced, and multitudes of the zealous
members of holy Mother Church thus purchased for
themselves a place in heaven, and even went straight
there from some midnight assassination scene, their
hands red with Protestant blood ! That is, if what
their priests told them was true.
Thus rebellion and violence continually prevailed.
It is true the English governors were sometimes op
pressive ; but the Irish inhabitants were so constantly
engaged in some act of bloodshed that they dared not
be lenient.
In the year 1602, when the sagacious and stern
Lord Mountjoy was appointed lord-lieutenant, there
began to be a change. The popish mode of buying
themselves off, which the Irish chiefs had pursued,
when they committed crimes, was broken up. The
manner in which this was practiced may be imagined
by the following incident. One of the lord-deputies
had told the unruly M'Guire that he was about
to send the sheriff into Fermanagh. M'Guire re
plied : " Your sheriff shall be welcome ; but let me
know beforehand what a sheriff's head is rated
at, that I may be prepared to levy the amount
upon the county, if my people chance to cut his
head off."
Lord Mountjoy reduced such men to a state of obe-

IRELAND. 1D1
dience, and the country began to enjoy comparative
tranquillity. During the reign of James I., who came to the
throne of England in the year 1603, great advances
were made in the social state of Ireland as well as in
the progress of true religion.
The immense tracts of land which civil war and
rebellion had depopulated were colonized by indus
trious English subjects, who emigrated from England
under the auspices of the Royal Irish Society, which
had been incorporated by James. The example of
civilized and enlightened men, and such were those
who went from England, would naturally have a good
effect upon the turbulent native people. The king
then declared all the people of Ireland to be equally
his subjects, and stationed a small standing army in
L'eland, which was to be regularly paid from England,
thus freeing the inhabitants from all the burden of
supporting the soldiers. Regular circuits for the ad
ministration of justice were also formed, and Ireland
was fast growing in prosperity and civilization. We
are much disposed to agree with Sir John Davies, as
quoted by Hume, that " James in nine years made
greater advances toward the civilization of Ireland
than had been made in the four hundred and forty
years which had elapsed since the conquest was first
attempted." But after all that was done we do not
read that the Bible was much circulated among the
people. This state of affairs went on, to some extent, from
1603 to 1641, and if Brian Borohme, that ancient
and true friend of Ireland, could have seen the altera
tions which had been wrought in his native country,
he would have denounced to death the traitor who,
for selfish motives, could light up the flames of war.

102 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
The year 1641 is known in Irish history as the era
of that bloody massacre which so much resembled
the day of St. Bartholomew in France.
Under the leadership of such men as Roger Moore,
the Lord M'Guire, and Sir Phelim O'Neill, who has
been called " the black-hearted," and " the author of
the worst atrocities of the rebellion," and who rivaled
Nero in his cruelty, it was arranged that on the night
of the 23d day of October, 1641, the Irish should
rise and murder every Protestant in the island.*
With wonderful secrecy their plans remained un
discovered, while arms and ammunition were distrib
uted all over the kingdom. To lull the suspicions of
their victims, the Roman Catholics showed every kind
ness to their Protestant neighbors, and never before
had they seemed so desirous of living in peace and
good-will. The 22d of October arrived, only one day before
the general rising ; Moore and M'Guire were in Dub
lin awaiting anxiously the appointed hour ; a host of
disguised followers were watching them, anxious for
the signal to crimson their hands with blood ; not a
doubt or fear seemed to disturb the whole city ; when
a man by the name of O'Conelly, one of the conspira
tors, conscience-stricken at the thought of murdering
so many innocent people, disclosed the plot.
Dublin was immediately aroused. Officers were
sent from street to street to warn the Protestants to
arm and prepare for a death struggle. It was just in
* Three years before, the Scotch, without violence, without bloodshed,
had signed a solemn covenant to serve God, and this covenant had gone
from one end of their country to the other, and by this covenant they
had maintained their religious liberty. The Irishman covenants with his
fellows that in the dark hour of night he will butcher every one not a
papist like himself. Can anything better than this show the difference
which then existed between tho people ?

IRELAND. 103
time to save the castle and the city. But no human
power could reach the rest of the island. There was
no steam car to rush on its errand of mercy, carrying
warning and weapons of defense to the ill-fated Prot
estants ; no telegraph to flash from one end of the
island to the other the tidings of their doom. O'Neill
and the other leaders all through the country were
true to their time and their bloody purpose. Men,
women, and children were without distinction put to
death. No former kindness, no present connections
were allowed to save any one who was guilty of being
an Englishman and a Protestant. "Never in the
.world's history," says one, " was massacre more un
relentingly carried on." The time of year had been
chosen on account of the darkness of the nights, and
full well did they employ the darkness to complete
their horrible butchery. Friends who had lived in
the same house with the murderers, neighbors who
had exchanged kind words with them the day before,
near relations who had been seated at the same table,
were slaughtered with horrible imprecations. And
everywhere the terrible work was conducted with the
most inhuman cruelty. " Some," says Fox, " were
laid with the center of their backs on the axletree of
a carriage, with their legs resting on the ground on
one side and their arms and head on the other. In
this position one of the savages scourged the wretched
object, while another set on furious dogs, who tore
to pieces the arms and upper parts of the body ; and
in this dreadful manner they were deprived of their
existence. " Great numbers were fastened to horses' tails, and
the beasts being set at full gallop by the riders, the
wretched victims were dragged along till they ex
pired."

104 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Women of all ages were slain with the most savage
ferocity. Young and innocent children were thrown
to dogs and swine. And these scenes took place,
not in one city, but everywhere.
At Portendown bridge one hundred and fifteen
men, women, and children were drowned.
In Killoman forty-eight families were massacred.
In Killmore two hundred families.
In Kilkenny not one Protestant escaped.
In some places they plucked out their eyes and
cut off their hands, and turned them into the fields to
die. In Tyrone three hundred were drowned. At
the river Bann one thousand ; and so all over Ireland.
The number thus murdered was estimated at one
hundred and fifty thousand.
For years Ireland was now filled with civil war,
until Cromwell and Ireton restored it to comparative
tranquillity. We have thus briefly seen some of the events pass
ing in Ireland during and subsequent to the time of
the great Reformation. The reason why greater
progress was not made in elevating the Papist popu
lation was the want of systematic, and continued, and
extensive circulation of the Scriptures in their own
language, and the want of primary and popular
schools in which the children might get a sufficient
education to enable them to read the Bible for them
selves. The friends of Ireland are devoting them
selves to this work now, and the time seems fast
approaching when Hibernia's hills and vales, her
rugged shores, and mountain slopes shall be blessed
with the pure light of the Gospel.

THE

REFORMATION IN SCOTLAND.

THE

REFORMATION IN SCOTLAND.

Patrick Hamilton, Abbot of Ferme, has been
called the first Scotch Reformer. When only twenty-
three he visited the continent of Europe, and there
met with Luther and Melancthon, by whom he was
instructed in the doctrines of the Gospel. While yet
young he was brought to trial for differing in opinion
from the Church of Rome, was condemned to the
flames, and the same day burned. This was in Feb
ruary, 1527, and the cruel spectacle, instead of check
ing the so-called heresy, served to advance it. One
of the Romanists said : " The smoke of Mr. Patrick
Hamilton infected as many as it blew upon."
From 1530 to 1540 ten persons suffered death for
confessing Hamilton's sentiments. And in the mean
time the numbers who turned from Romanism won
derfully grew ; among them were the Earls of Glen-
cairn and Errol, the Lords Ruthven and Kilmaurs,
Sir David Lindsay, and Sir James Sandilands.
In the year 1546 George Wishart, a priest, was
brought to the stake. After his conversion, instead
of preaching the ceremonies of the Church, like the
rest of the clergy, he began to proclaim the Gospel
with such power that it attracted the attention of
Cardinal Beaton. After some delay, the cardinal
succeeded in arresting him, and confined him in the

108 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Castle of St. Andrews. Articles of accusation were
brought against him some of which were as follows :
" That Wishart despised the holy mother Church
and deceived the people.
" That he ridiculed the mass.
"That he preached against seven sacraments.
" That he denied transubstantiation and the neces
sity of extreme unction.
" That he would not admit the authority of the pope.
"That he condemned prayers to the saints.
" That he allowed the eating of flesh on Friday.
" That it was lawful for priests to marry."
For such heresies he was brought to trial, where a
priest by the name of Lauder appeared as one of his
accusers. The manner in which the trial was con
ducted may be imagined when we learn that Lauder
was allowed to call him every barbarous name, such
as "renegade, false heretic, traitor, and thief," and
finally to spit in his face.
When this mockery of a trial was finished, sentence
of death was pronounced, to take place on the follow
ing day.
The next morning two friars from the cardinal came
to him ; one of whom put on him a black linen coat,
the other brought several bags of gunpowder, which
they tied about different parts of his body. His hands
were then tied behind him, and he was conducted to
the fatal spot. On the way some friars urged him to
pray to the Virgin Mary. He replied :
" Cease ; tempt me not, I entreat you."
Having arrived at the stake, the executioner
put a rope around his neck, and a chain about his
waist, upon which he fell on his knees and ex
claimed: " 0 thou Saviour of the world, have mercy upon

SCOTLAND. 109
me. Father of heaven, I commend my spirit into
thy holy hands."
He then addressed the spectators thus :
" Christian brethren and sisters, I beseech you be
not offended at the word of God, for the torments
which you see prepared for me ; but I exhort you
that ye love the word of God for your salvation, and
suffer patiently and with a comfortable heart for the
word's sake, which is your undoubted salvation and
everlasting comfort. I pray you also show my brethren
and sisters, who have often heard me, that they cease
not to learn the word of God, which I taught them ac
cording to the measure of grace given me, but to hold
fast to it with the strictest attention ; and show them
that the doctrine was no old wives' fables, but the
truth of God. For if I had taught men's doctrine I
should have had greater thanks from men. But for
the word of God's sake I now suffer, not sorrowfully,
but with a glad heart and mind. For this cause I
was sent, that I should suffer this fire for Christ's sake.
Behold my face; you shall not see me change my
countenance. I fear not the fire, and if persecution
come to you for the word's sake, I pray you fear not
them that can kill the body and have no power to
hurt the soul."
After this he prayed for his accusers, saying :
"I beseech thee, Father of heaven, forgive them
that have, from ignorance or an evil mind, forged lies
of me. I forgive them with all my heart. I beseech
Christ to forgive them that have ignorantly con
demned me."
Again he spoke to the spectators as the solemn
moment approached :
"I beseech you, brethren, exhort your prelates to
learn the word of God, that they may be ashamed to

110 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
do evil and learn to do good ; or there will come
upon them the wrath of God, which they shall not
eschew." The executioner then fell upon his knees before
him ahd said : " Sir, I pray you forgive me, for I am
not the cause of your death."
Wishart took the man by the hand and kissed him.
He was fastened to the stake, the fagots lighted,
and the gunpowder soon exploded. The martyr still
lived however, burned as he was by the powder and
surrounded by the flames. The governor of the castle,
who stood so near that he was singed by the flames,
exhorted him to be of good cheer, to which he replied :
" This flame occasions trouble to my body, indeed,
but it hath in no wise broken my spirit. But he who
now so proudly looks down upon me from yonder
lofty place," and he raised his arm, from which the
fire had burned the cords, and pointed to Cardinal
Beaton, " shall ere long be as ignominiously thrown
down as now he proudly lolls at his ease."
In about an hour his body was totally consumed.
Retribution was not long delayed. Cardinal Beat
on had arrived at the summit of his ambition. With
out being Regent of Scotland, he enjoyed all the
authority and power. He resided in the castle of
St. Andrews, which he had strongly fortified, and
rendered, according to all human calculations, im
pregnable. A numerous array of soldiers were his
body guard, the town entirely devoted to him, and
all the neighboring country filled with his people.
He felt that he was safe.
Norman Leslie, eldest son of the Duke of Rothes,
whom the cardinal had contemptuously and unjustly
treated, undertook to slay him in the midst of his
citadel. Early in the morning of the 20th of May,

SCOTLAND. Ill
1546, with fifteen men only, he entered by one of the
gates Of the castle, which had been opened for work
men who were finishing the fortifications. Placing
some of his men at the door of the cardinal's apart
ment, he woke up his servants one by one, and
turned them out of the castle. Quietly then entering
his room, he slew him. No one else was injured.
However unjustifiable this act may have been, it
delivered Scotland from a man whose pride was in
tolerable, and whose power, cruelty, and cunning
were great checks to the Reformation. The death of
Beaton was a fatal blow to the Roman Catholic re
ligion in Scotland.
About this time the celebrated John Knox began
to proclaim publicly the doctrines of the Reforma
tion. He was born in the year 1505, at Gifford.
When he was about thirty years of age he began to
see fully the errors of Rome ; but did not acknowl
edge himself publicly as a Protestant until he was
thirty-seven. He was a man who has been called
the intrepid reformer ; one of whom the Regent of
Scotland said at his grave : " There lies he who never
feared the face of man." His popular eloquence and
personal courage effected much for the Reformation
in Scotland.
Now Parliament passed a law by which the people
were allowed to read the Bible in their own language,
an act which perhaps more than anything, else con
tributed to the overthrow of Romanism. Lord Max
well was the principal mover in this measure. From
this time copies of the Bible were imported from
England in great numbers, and books were multiplied
in every direction, tending to show the pride and
superstition of the Romish clergy.
The principles of the Reformation from this time
Hint. Reformation. Q

112 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
spread with great rapidity. Everywhere men, women,
and children might be seen studying the Bible.
Both the Highlands and Lowlands of Scotland were
filled with Bible readers. They forgot their ordinary
pursuits, they forgot their accustomed pleasures, in
their ardor to learn the truths of the word of God.
Men who had not sufficient education to read it
themselves gathered round those who could. Con
troversial questions' were suggested, and instead of
spending their time in fierce debate, though this was
not always wanting, they searched the Scriptures.
Having read them once through, it seemed only to
whet their appetite to begin again. And what made
the Scriptures especially dear to them was, that it
was for them Hamilton, and Wishart, and their
countrymen had died. The truths they were quietly
reading in their fields and hamlets had supported
them in the flames, and it might be they would be
called upon to die for the same doctrines.
Bloody Queen Mary of England came to the throne
in the year 1553. Her bigotry and zeal to establish
again the papal power in England hastened its over
throw in Scotland. The persecuted Protestants fled
to the latter country, and filled the whole kingdom
with horror at the cruelties of the Roman Catholics.
Mary died in the year 1558, and was succeeded by
Elizabeth, who so long and so successfully defended
the Protestant cause.
In the year 1559 Mary of Guise, who was Regent
of Scotland, issued a proclamation commanding all
persons to observe the approaching Easter according
to the Romish ritual. But the Scotch had learned
too much of the Bible .to obey. The Earl of Glen-
cairn and Sir Hugh Campbell were, sent to expostu
late with her. Her answer was in substance as

SCOTLAND. 113
follows : " I am resolved to extirpate the Reformed
heresy from Scotland."
To carry out this resolution she summoned, on the
10th of May, all the Protestant preachers to appear
before her at Sterling.
The people assembled in great multitudes, deter
mined to defend their pastors. The regent, seeing
their numbers, promised to stop the trial, and the
people dispersed. But after this was accomplished,
and the 10th of May had arrived, she pronounced
the ministers to be outlaws.
Little was gained by this over the sturdy Scotsmen.
They were determined to stand by their ministers.
Just -at this time John Knox arrived, and imme
diately preached with great vehemence against image-
worship. A monk, who had heard the news, rushed
to the assembled priests, exclaiming, " John Knox,
John Knox is come ! He is here ! He slept last
night in Edinburgh !"
They were filled with dismay, for they knew the
character of the man. The Reformers again gave the
signal for rallying, and they were determined now to
show their Roman Catholic rulers that they were in
earnest. In Perth they broke the images to pieces ;
they tore the pictures, and almost leveled the monas
teries to the ground. It is said that John Knox cried
out, " Pull down the nests, and the rooks will fly off!"
They marched from town to town, and everywhere
the gates were thrown open to receive them. On
June 29, 1559, without striking a blow they took
possession of Edinburgh. This shows what a hold
the Reformation must have already taken on the
hearts of the people. The cause of it was that the
Bible had been thoroughly distributed among them.
To cement' their league more effectually the Prot-

114 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
estant leaders, among whom were Argyle, Morton,
Glen cairn, Lord Lome, and Erskine, of Dun, sub
scribed a bond, and called themselves the Congrega
tion of the Lord.
At Leith they met with a check. There was a
French garrison in that place, and the intrepid
Scotchmen could not take it. They applied to Queen
Elizabeth of England for help ; and in January, 1560,
an English fleet arrived, bringing an army of six
thousand soldiers, and two thousand horsemen. To
meet their allies the forces of the Reformers assembled
from all parts of the kingdom, and the combined
army, amounting to thirteen thousand men, beseiged
Leith. The garrison was soon reduced, the queen-
regent herself retired to the castle of Edinburgh,
where she died, and the leaders of the Congregation,
being now masters of the kingdom, went on to com
plete the work of the Reformation.
A Parliament. was convened, and it was found that
the Protestant members greatly outnumbered the
Romanist. Several acts were passed by this Parlia
ment having reference to the religious state of the
country. By such acts Protestantism was established,
and the Presbyterian form of Church government
adopted nearly as it exists at present.
Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots, afterward endeavored
to restore Romanism, but without suceess. Her own
downfall and flight left the kingdom to the Earl of
Murray, who has been called the "Good Regent,"
whose courage, military skill, and wisdom confirmed
more fully the Reformed religion among the people.
Romanism was defeated forever in Scotland, but
there was another struggle for the brave men who
had achieved this first victory.
James VI., after a reign of several years in Scot-

. SCOTLAND. 115
land, succeeded Elizabeth on the throne of England
in the year 1603, and thus became James I. of En
gland. Bent on uniting the religious worship of both
countries, he introduced, as far as he was able, among
the Scotch the Episcopal form of Church government.
The Scotch had no taste either for episcopacy or the
forms of prayer contained in the Prayer Book. John
Knox and their favorite leaders were Presbyterians,
and anything else was to them about the same as
Popery, which they abhorred. However, they wore
not able to resist the king. Pious ministers were
thrown out of their places and cast into prison. Prof
ligate hirelings were appointed to preach to the
people, and soon the effects became visible. Through
out the villages and cities vice and immorality of all
kinds increased rapidly. The Sabbath was neglected,
and the nation seemed fast tending to a state as bad as
previous to the Reformation. But in the Scottish high
lands, and in the obscure vales and hamlets were de
voted men ready to give their lives for Christ and their
Church. And in the cities too, amid the desecration
of the Sabbath by public amusements, processions,
noise, plays, and music, were men who met quietly
in some upper room or secluded spot to worship God.
If they could find a minister out of prison to preach
to them, he preached, but in a low and subdued
voice to prevent discovery. If there was no minister
they read the Bible, and preached to each other and
prayed ; but they dared not raise the shout of praise,
and hardly dared to pray in a voice that could be
heard outside, lest they should be dispersed by
soldiers or cast into prison.
They could hear the revelry without, the shouts of
the wicked, the uproar of mirth sometimes, and some
times of anger, and sad sounds they were to men

116 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
praying on the Lord's day ; but they prayed on, that
God would bring to them a better time. No wonder
the Scotchman now loves his Sabbath. No wonder
that many a long mile he will go to assemble in his
"kirk" with his brethren. His ancestors bought both
of these for him by many a struggle.
Year after year thus they prayed in secret, and
thus they met and talked to each other of the love of
Christ, and the leaven kept spreading until God heard
the supplications of his people.
Charles I. came to the throne of England and Scot
land in the year 1625.
In the year 1633 he visited his Scottish dominions,
where he.was received with affection and joy. He
met the love of the people by ordering a new liturgy
to be introduced into their national Church ; a liturgy
which was extremely obnoxious to them, by its ap
proaching more to the forms of popery than even the
English. On Sunday, July 23, this measure was to
be carried into effect throughout the nation. The
day arrived, and the various churches assembled.
The dean of Edinburgh was to officiate in St. Giles,
and when the congregation met, to give importance
to the service he was attended by judges, prelates,
and councilmen. The congregation came together as
usual. Nothing took place indicating the disposition
of the people until the service commenced. An old
woman, filled with indignation, then started up, and,
exclaiming loudly against what she called the mass,
threw the stool on which she had been sitting at the
preacher's head. The service was interrupted by a
wild uproar, in which the people made a rush for the
altar, and tried to get the preacher into their hands.
The magistrates however restored order, and turned
the most turbulent out of the church, locked the doors,

SCOTLAND. 117
and began the service again. But the people gathered
around the church in great numbers, broke the win
dows, burst open the doors, and rent the air with
exclamations of " A pope ! an antichrist ! stone him !
stone him !"
¦ All throughout Scotland the bishops and episcopal
ministers met with about the same success in imposing
the liturgy on the congregations.
The people were now thoroughly aroused, and as
if by one impulse they made a desperate effort to
secure their religious freedom.
They had not forgotten the old covenant which
their ancestors had signed against popery, and they
now determined to renew it against prelacy, A day
of fasting and prayer was proclaimed, and on the
28th day of February, 1638, a great crowd filled the
church of Gray Friars in Edinburgh, while sixty thou
sand Presbyterians assembled in the burial ground.
The parchment was unrolled in the church. Prayer
was made to God for success in their perilous under
taking. Then after some necessary explanations,
there was a silence deep and deathlike.
An old man came forward. His countenance be
trayed great feeling, and his hand trembled as he took
the pen. He signed the covenant. He was the Earl
of Sunderland, whose influence and possessions were
perhaps equal to those of any other Scottish noble.
Others now came forward, until all within the
church had signed. Carried outside and placed on
a tombstone, the people gathered round it. Then
the pent-up feelings, which had been choked and
smothered in those secret prayer-meetings, broke out.
Some wept, some sobbed, some shouted, some added
after their names " till death," and others, opening a
vein, wrote their names with their blood.

118 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
After the work was completed, and the feelings of
the people had subsided, the vast assemblage quietly
separated and went to their homes.
The next day it was carried to other places, crowds
accompanying it with tears and prayers, and thus it
kept on until it had gone all through Scotland.
There is one feature in the signing of the covenant
which gave it power and moral force. Not only did
the people protest against the papacy and episcopacy,
but they covenanted to serve God. Like the Jews in
the time of Nehemiah, they bound themselves to each
other to walk in God's law.
How the Scottish people were prepared to enter so
unanimously and so earnestly into this solemn coven
ant may be imagined by one fact. Three years before,
a young minister by the name of John Livingston
preached on a communion day at a church in Shotts.
He passed the whole night previously in prayer, and
in the morning he stood upon a tombstone and spoke
from the text, " Then will I sprinkle clean water upon
you," etc. The Spirit of God was present in such
power that five hundred persons dated their conver
sion from that sermon.
A legislative assembly was now held at Glasgow,
in which appeared a great many of the nobility of
Scotland. An accusation was brought against the
bishops for simony and other crimes, which was
publicly read in all the churches throughout the
country. Eight were excommunicated, four deposed,
and two suspended ; and it was then boldly declared
that all the acts of the Assembly and of Parliament,
touching their religion, since the accession of James
I., were null and void.

THE

REFORMATION IN GERMANY.

THE

REFORMATION IN GERMANY.

CHAPTER I.
ROME IN HER ZENITH.
When Luther arose on the horizon of the moral
world, thick darkness had settled down upon the
nations of Christendom.
" The violence of some popes ; the shameful lives
of others ; the licentiousness of the city of Rome ; the
corrupt manners of the clergy ; the appearance of two,
and sometimes three popes, each having a party,
abusing and excommunicating each other ; the exac
tions by means of indulgences ; the monstrous cruelty
of the Inquisition — all these had' at length waked up
men to think."*
The insolence of the popes in assuming temporal
power was no less than their violence and immorality.
" Clement VI., in the bull of anathema which he
issued against the emperor Louis of Bavaria, expresses
himself thus : ' May God strike him with imbecility
and madness ; may Heaven overwhelm him with its
thunders; may the anger of God, with that of St.
Peter and St. Paul, fall upon him in this world and
in the next; may the whole universe revolt against
him ; may the earth swallow him up alive ; may
his name perish from the earliest generation, and
* French Prize Essay of C. Villcrs.

122 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
may his memory disappear; may all the elements
be adverse to him; may his children, delivered into
the hands of his enemies, be crushed before his
eyes, etc' "*
Pretending to the right not only to govern the
whole earth, but to possess it as his own, the pope
deposed kings from their thrones, and conferred their
dominions on whom he chose. And when America
was discovered he assumed the right to give away
the parts already known, together with all portions
of it not yet discovered, f
The cruelty of Rome was equal to her insolence.
It was a good action to torture a man who was not a
Roman Catholic; so as to bring him into the bosom
of the Church ; and if he would not yield, it was right
to kill him, so as to destroy the effect of his heretical
example. £
Her avarice equaled her cruelty. The clergy
eagerly made use of every pretense to grasp earthly
riches, and as a consequence a great proportion of the
wealth of the nations was in their hands. This, to
gether with their ecclesiastical influence, enabled them
to seize the civil power, and the people were crushed
to the earth by the iron heel of civil and spiritual
despotism. The priests aimed at making the people
worshipers of the Church, instead of worshipers of
God ; observers of church ceremonies, instead of the
commandments of Christ ; followers of outward forms,
instead of inward purity ; trusting to a thousand mere
* French Prize Essay of C. Villers. Eainaldi Ann. Eecles.
t Bull of Boniface VIII., called Unam Sanctam, which closes with these
remarkable words : " Porro Subcsse Romano Pontifici omni humanie
creatura declaramus, dicimus, definimus, et pronunciamns omnino esse
de necessitate salutis."
X " Ostendimus jam satis aperte justum esse, ut hereticns oocidatur."
Alphonsus a Castro, De Justa Heretioorum Poena, lib. ii, cap. 12.

ROME IN HER ZENITH. 123
rites, instead of possessing true religion, and conse
quent morality.
They too well succeeded, and the people followed
their priests with a blindness which is yet feebly
illustrated in our own day by the unlearned Roman
ist toward his spiritual guide. I say feebly, because
in these days of light we can have but a small idea
of the absolute power of the clergy previous to the
Reformation. Was a man cursed then by the priest?
He might be honorable, pious, holy, and just ; but
notwithstanding this all intercourse with him imme
diately ceased. His own family and friends became
strange to him until the curse was removed. He
became worse than a leper in society. Was a nation
cursed ? There was a universal panic ; business ceased ;
the wheels of state stopped until the pope chose to
bid them move. Was a king cursed ? It was a signal
for his people to arm against him, and to tear his
crown from his head. His subjects were the tools of
an idle and vicious priest, and their sole religion was
implicitly to obey him.
Luther appeared, and a multitude of kindred spirits,
who, led by the Spirit of God and by the writings of
Wiclif, and others who had sought the truth, to the
fountain of all authority, the word of God, found
there no foundation for the absolute sway claimed by
the clergy ; but that, on the contrary, the Scriptures
were the only rule of faith ; and, lo ! by this princi
ple the priestly scepter was broken, and light burst
everywhere through the gloom.

124 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.

CHAPTER II.
DEATH OF JOHN HUSS AND JEROME OF PRAGUE.
Among those who studied Wiclif's writings and
then the Bible, a century before Luther, was a Bo
hemian boy, sixteen years of age. They made a
great impression on his heart and conscience, so much
so that he afterward called Wiclif an angel from
heaven, sent to enlighten him, and ever afterward
spoke of meeting with these works as the most for
tunate circumstance of his life. Though so young he
did not let the things which he read slip from him,
but began boldly a career of usefulness and devotion
to God. This Bohemian boy is described after this
event, by those who have written of him, as a real
Christian. Gentle and condescending to others, long-
suffering and full of charity toward their faults
and yet strict with regard to himself, the great
contest of his life was with sin. And yet from his
very childhood he is said to have been remarkably
exempt from faults which are common to other men.
It is John Huss of whom we speak, from whom the
Moravian brethren took their rise.
Having been ordained a Roman Catholic priest, he
was appointed pastor of a church. But the holy fire
that was in his heart broke forth, and in the pulpit as
well as in private he preached plainly against the
wicked lives of the priests and people. Wiclif's works
were translated into the tongue of the Bohemian peo
ple, and were read everywhere. This could not fail
to attract the attention of the pope, and the result of
it was that Huss and others were excommunicated

JOHN HUSS AND JEROME OF PRAGUE. 125
from the most holy and immaculate Mother Church
for following and teaching the word of God. This
only seemed to increase the number of those who
took sides with him. If he could not now preach he
could write and talk, and in both of these ways he
continued to labor for the advancement of Christ's
kingdom. While thus engaged he was summoned to appear
before the famous Council of Constance. The Em
peror Sigismund gave him a safe conduct to go and
return, relying upon which he appeared before the
fathers of the Romish Church. There he was accused
of being a heretic, to which he made a most powerful
defense. They urged him to recant ; but he replied
that he would rather die than knowingly preach
what was not true.
One day, as he was seated in the gallery suspecting
no danger, for the pope had promised him liberty and
protection as well as the emperor, he was suddenly
seized by a party of guards, and carried to a lonely
monastery on the banks of the Rhine, where he was
confined. This imprisonment was long and painful,
and so manifestly unjust that even liberal Roman
Catholics endeavored to procure his acquittal.
On the 7th of July, 1415, when about forty years
of age, he was condemned. The bishops immediately
stripped him of his priest's robes, and put a paper cap
on his head, on which devils were painted, with the
inscription, "A Ringleader of Heretics;" saying as
they placed it on him, " Hereby we commit thy soul
to the devil." He was then thrown, sick, exhausted,
and hungry, into a cold dungeon. Being brought
forth to the place of execution he was chained to the
stake, and was surrounded by fagots ready for the
match. All this time he seemed serene and happy.

126 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
The wood was kindled, and burned up all around his
body ; and as it burned they heard him singing in the
midst of .the fire. And he sang so loudly and cheer
fully that his voice was distinguished above the crack
ling of the flames and the noise of the multitude.
At last the smoke and flames blew in his face. When
the wind cleared them away, his body, half burned,
was hanging over the iron chain that bound him by
the waist. His sufferings were over, and he was, no
doubt, home at last.
Jerome of Prague was brought before the same
council, and thrown into prison. He was there tor
tured, and exposed to want of food, until a dangerous
sickness set in." Then, when he was weak in body and
prostrated by illness, the priests gathered around him
and in various ways endeavored to make him deny
his principles. He continued for some time immova
ble, but in an unguarded moment, and probably when
overcome by suffering, weakness, and hunger, he said
that he believed Wiclif and Huss were in error, and
that he was a firm believer in the Church of Rome.
Their triumph however was not long. Smitten by his
conscience, he soon came back to his old position, de
clared that he had done wrong, and asked for a trial.
There he manfully defended the doctrines for which
Huss had died, and seemed to be perfectly fearless
of death. He was led to the stake ; the fagots were
kindled around him, and in the year 1416, like his
friend Huss, he died singing in honor of Christ.
It was not in vain that Huss and Jerome gave
their lives for the truth. Their countrymen rose in
all parts, and with sword and pen fought bravely for
their religious rights. Though a hundred years before
the time of Luther, yet in Bohemia the doctrines of
reform made wonderful progress. Called sometimes

LUTHER A BOY — A MONK — A PREACHER. 127
Taborites, sometimes Hussites, until a portion of them
took the name of Bohemian brethren, they successfully
opposed the Emperor Sigismund, and gained national
fights for themselves, which produced the double
effect of disseminating greatly the truth, and prepar
ing the way for the times of Luther.
Two hundred congregations of such men, who had
borne all the persecutions and resisted all the encroach
ments of Romanism, existed in the beginning of the
sixteenth century, only a few years before Luther
raised his voice against the indulgences of Te.tzel.

CHAPTER HI.
LUTHER A BOY  A MONK  A PREACHER.
The Bohemian brethren thus prepared the way for
Luther and the principles which he advocated.
More than three hundred years ago a poor boy,
fourteen years of age, was seen begging for food in
Germany. From house to house he went, sometimes
repulsed, and sometimes receiving the coarse fare he
sought, until at last he returned to his home. This
was the school of Magdeburg, where he was seeking
an education, and in the intervals intended for recrea
tion employed in obtaining bread.
A year afterward the same boy, scantily clad, might
be recognized at the distinguished seminary of Eise
nach. Perhaps a stranger might not notice him at
first, but on looking closer he would be struck by the
deep seriousness and earnestness which marked his
features. Decision is on his lip, and notwithstanding
its calm gaze the fires of impetuous feeling sleep in
HLt. £ efrTiYinlinn. 0

128 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
his eye. Sometimes now he goes out and sings for
the food which nature demands ; and sometimes, weary,
discouraged, faint, and hungry, is ready to give up the
knowledge for which he so earnestly pants. *
This was Martin Luther, born in the year 1483 in
the town of Eisleben, of the Electorate of Saxony.
Consecrated to God by a truly pious father and a
devoted mother, whose earnest prayer had often been
that he might become a useful man, and contribute
to the spreading of the Gospel, Luther was perhaps
unconsciously preparing himself to fulfill their antici
pations. We behold him again, when eighteen years of age,
at the University of Erfurth, distinguished for his
talents and genius, applying himself to a course of
preparation for the study of the law.
Two years passed, and the young man was looking
forward to a career of honor and earthly greatness.
These aspirations were interrupted by an event which
altered the whole course of his future life. Reading
in the library of the university one day, he met with
a Bible.* He took it up and looked at it, and read
some passages. The more he read the more he
wished to read, until he saw that he was not a Chris
tian as he thought he was. He became alarmed at
his spiritual condition. An intimate friend about the
same time was suddenly assassinated,-)- which, with a
* Some authors think he found the Bible first in the monastery he after
ward entered ; but the best authorities favor the text. See Merle D'Au-
liigne's His. Ref., vol i, p. 156. Also Mathesius's Life of Luther, p. 3.
t Michelet, in his Memoirs of Luther, published in Paris in 1835, says
that his friend was killed by lightning at his side. Audin, also a French
author, makes the same statement in his Life of Luther, published in
1845. Many other authors, both before and after them, give us a similar
relation. The encyclopedias have fallen into the same error. See Eees's
Enc. ; Edin. Eno. ; Biog. Univ., Paris, 1821 : Biog. Univ., Bruxelles, 1843 ;
Cyc. of Biog., N. Y., 1856. Sec also Enc. Britan., down to seventh edition,

LUTHER A BOY— A MONK — A PREACHER. 129
wound he accidentally received from his own sword,
and a violent thunder-storm, served to deepen his
impressions. Believing, according to the custom of the times,
that true religion was to be found in the cells of the
monasteries and nunneries, he determined to renounce
the study of law, and secure his salvation by becom
ing a monk. Accordingly, when he was nearly
twenty-two years of age, he entered the convent of
the hermits of St. Augustine. Here he renounced
all the worldly honor and fame which he had hoped
to enjoy as a lawyer. But how truly did God give
him a hundred fold! for what would his fame have
been as a lawyer compared with what it has been as
a reformer? So certain is it that even as regards
the things of this life men do not generally lose but
gain by renouncing them for God. But it was no
doubt a struggle for Luther, as it is for every one.
He wrote to his friends, bidding them farewell. It
must have been a sorrowful day to him, as he sat in
his lonely cell, with the solitary life of a monk before
him, penning words of adieu to his mother, father,
and other relatives. The next day he sent these let
ters to them, with the clothes he had worn until then.
1852. The eighth edition, however, of the Encyclopedia Britannica, pub
lished in 1857, corrects the statement, and says that Luther's friend was
killed by assassination. This is evidently correct. Mathesius, who was
a eotemporary of Luther, says : " A good comrade of his was assassinated,
and a tremendous thunder-storm, with lightning, frightened him." Pp.
3, i. Moritz Meurer, in his Life of Luther, published at Dresden in 1852,
follows Mathesius, and adds, in a note : " What is here related is based
on the testimony of three intimate friends of Luther, Melancthon, Mathe
sius, and Ratzenberger (his family physician toward the close of his life ;)
all other accounts are less authenticated, and in part probably embellished.
. " This apocryphal account [that a friend called Alexius was struck
dead by lightning] is repeated by most of the moderns without examina
tion." Merle D'AubignS also, in his History of the Reformation, follows
Mathesius, vol. i, p. 159.

130 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Did he succeed in obtaining what he sought ? No.
He was as greatly disappointed after he had been a
short titrfe in the convent as many have been who
have entered such places since his time. Luther
neither found the employments he expected, nor did
he find the peace of mind which he was seeking. If
he attempted to study as he had done at the univers
ity, he was constantly interrupted by the monks.
They did not believe in so much learning. They
were gratified that a young man of his ability and
knowledge should abandon the university for their
order ; but they thought it would be well to humble
him, so they gave him the lowest employments. The
former master of arts performed the offices of porter,
gate-opener, sweeper, and chambermaid in general
for. the convent. And when he got through the
friars Vould say : . " Away with your wallet through
the town ;" and he would then start with his bread
bag, and wander from street to street, and from door
to door, begging for the monks, until returning weary
with his work he would shut himself up in his nar
row cell, and seek to gain a few moments for reading
and study. The monks would soon find him in his
solitude, and take him away from his books, saying:
"Come, come! It is not by studying, but by beg
ging bread, corn, eggs, "fish, meat, and money that a
monk renders himself useful to the cloister." Per
haps Luther, having early learned the trade, was an
adept in the art. He would submit, lay aside his
books, and take up his bag again. He persevered in
such occupations, believing them to be acceptable to
God, until the university to which he had belonged
interceded for his relief from them, and he was freed
from his tasks.
Now he gave himself up with new zeal to study.

LUTHER A BOY — A MONK — A PREACHER. 131
A Bible which was fastened by a chain in the con
vent was his favorite book. In it he constantly sought
the comfort which he had hoped to find by becoming
a monk. Shut up as in a prison, he struggled con
stantly against the evil inclinations of his nature.
Penances and mortifications were resorted to in vain.
Fasting and prayer seemed to bring no relief. A little
bread and a herring were often his only food. O how
earnestly he wished to have in his heart the assurance
of his salvation ! This was the great want of his soul.
Without it there was no happiness for him. He says
of his own spiritual state at this time :
" I tortured myself almost to death in order to pro
cure peace with God for my troubled heart and agi
tated conscience ; but surrounded with thick darkness,
I found peace nowhere. I went every day to con
fession, but that was of no use to me. Then, bowed
clown with sorrow, I tortured myself by the multitude
of my thoughts. ' Look,' I exclaimed, ' thou art still
envious, impatient, passionate. ... It profiteth thee
nothing. 0 wretched man, to have entered this sacred
order !' "
John Staupitz was at this time vicar-general of the
Augustine monks throughout Germany. Though a
Roman Catholic priest, he was a good man. Amid
all the corruptions and darkness of his age, he had
sought light from the Scriptures, and had at last found
peace with God. He became acquainted with Luther,
and pitied his condition, for it resembled what his own
had been. .
" Why are you so sad, brother Martin ?" said he
one day.
"Ah," replied Luther, with a deep sigh, "I do not
know what will become of me. It is in vain that I
make promises to God ; sin is always the strongest."

132 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Staupitz then told him his own religious experience ;
and that he had found his own promises were broken
again and again before he had obtained strength from
God ; and taught him to trust at once to the Saviour's
love, without waiting to become any better.
" Look at the wounds of Jesus Christ," he continued.
" Look to the blood that he has shed for you ; it is
there that the grace of God will appear to you. In
stead of torturing yourself on account of your sins,
throw yourselves into the Redeemer's arms. Trust
in him; in the righteousness of his life, in the atone
ment of his death. Do not shrink back; God is not
angry with you, it is you who are angry with God.
Listen to the Son of God. He became man to give
you the assurance of divine favor."
But Luther did not think he, had the repentance
necessary to salvation, and he replied, as many seekers
of religion have done. :
" How can I dare believe in the favor of God so
long as there is no real conversion in me. I must be
changed before he will accept me."
Staupitz endeavored to show him that trust in God,
confidence in him even while yet sinners, works in us
love to God ; and as we love God we love whatever is
good and whatever is his will. Thus our conversion
takes place, for God, who has said to actual sinners,
" Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ," as soon as they
begin to do so and to trust in his goodness, sends his
promised Spirit in their hearts, whose heavenly influ
ences produce this humble love, before which the cold
heart melts and sin disappears, and the new-born Chris
tian can say, in the language almost which Staupitz used
to Luther, " We love him because he first loved us."
Then, if he will go on in labors of love, and in the works
prompted by a living faith, from this commencement

LUTHER A BOY — A MONK — A PREACHER. 133
of sauetification, the same Spirit will lead him from
being a child in Christ to the full stature of a perfect
man, wherein every Christian grace shall be matured,
and shine before men and God with a constant and
steady light.
All this Staupitz did not perhaps explain to Luther,
but what he did say to him filled the mind of the sor
rowful monk with fresh hope.
He began to search the Scriptures with new views,
but yet seemed not to come into the light which he
sought. He was often distressed at the thought of
death ; and his own wickedness, compared with the
holiness of God, filled him with fear.
There was an aged monk in the convent to whom
Luther confided all his sorrows. He referred him to
the Apostles' Creed, and repeated kindly, " I beheve
in the forgiveness of sins." Luther repeated the
words, "/believe in the forgiveness of sins."
"Ah," said the old man, " you must believe not
only in the forgiveness of David's and of Peter's sins,
for this even the devils believe. It is God's command
that we believe our own sins are forgiven us. Hear
what St. Bernard says : ' The testimony of the Holy
Ghost in thy heart is this : Thy sins are forgiven thee.' "
From this moment light sprung up in Luther's
heart. From this time he dates his conversion.
Two years passed in the convent and Luther was or
dained priest. Another year, and the Elector of Saxony
called him from his seclusion to become professor in
the new University of Wittemberg. He shortly began
to preach in the public square of that city. But to
him whom we have been accustomed to regard as the
personification of courage it was no easy task. It was
no light cross to stand up and speak for Christ.
" 0 Dr. Staupitz, Dr. Staupitz," said he to the

134 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
vicar-general, " I cannot do it ! I shall die in three
months. Indeed I cannot do it."
" Well, Sir Martin," he replied, " if you must die
you must ; but remember that they need good heads
up yonder too. So preach, man, preach, and then
live or die as it happens."
This was good advice, and Luther took it and
preached, and became the great and useful man he
was. There was one thing in his sermons which par
ticularly struck his hearers. He sought to say what
would convert them rather than what would amuse
them, as others had done. His deep seriousness,
and the peace and joy which filled his heart im
parted to his eloquence a divine warmth which others
had not possessed, and soon the chapel could not con
tain the people who came to hear him. He was then
invited to preach in the city church, and produced a
still stronger impression ; but yet, though converted
to God and preaching the true Gospel, was still a firm
Roman Catholic. He was not, however, long to re
main so, for when the mind is enlightened and the
heart changed the errors of Rdmanism naturally drop
off; or if they do not, they take an opposite course
and gather round the soul, and by degrees stifle the
feelings and quench the pure light burning in the
inner sanctuary of the heart. '

LUTHER AT ROME. 135
CHAPTER IV.
LUTHER AT ROME.
Luther's confidence in his Church was first shaken
by his well-known journey to the city of Rome. He
was sent there as agent for seven monasteries of his
order in a dispute which they had with the vicar-
general. He expected to find in the city of the popes,
in the grand center of the Roman Catholic Church,
great sanctity. He thought to himself that a visit to
such a holy place would be the means of doing him
much good, and of advancing him greatly in piety.
He started on his journey and came into Italy, but
what was his astonishment to find the sacred domin
ions of the pope worse than his own country Germany.
When night came he was entertained in a rich
Benedictine convent, where the splendor of the apart
ments, the delicacy of the food, and the richness of
the monks' dresses filled him with wonder. Silk
robes, luxurious furniture, and marble pavements were
strange sights to the German monk. But when Friday
came, on which he certainly thought all good Roman
Catholics should confine themselves to fish, he,saw
the table loaded with meat. He would keep no longer
silence, but said :
" The Church and the pope forbid such things."
The Italian monks were angry, and the porter of
the monastery soon after hinted to Luther that it would
be dangerous for him to stay longer.
He hurried on toward Rome, certain that he would
there find true piety. At last he discovered the
spires of the city in the distance, and immediately

136 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
knelt down, devoutly saying, " Holy Rome, I salute
thee." He entered and traversed the streets as one who
was treading on holy ground. But soon he found
that his brethren the priests in the heart of the Church
were no better than their Benedictine brothel's ; that
eating meat instead of fish on Fridays was a very
venial sin compared with the practices which he now
beheld. And if he had undertaken the task of reprov
ing all the wickedness he saw in his associations with
the priests, as he did on his entrance into Italy, he
would have found enough to do to have detained him
a long time in the metropolis of the pope. The people
were no better than the priests, fulfilling the old prov
erb, " Like priest, like people." Luther said himself:
" The city is filled with disorder and murder ; no one
can imagine what sin and infamous actions are com
mitted in Rome ; they must be seen and heard to be
believed. Thus they are in the habit of saying, ' If
there is a hell Rome is built over it.' It is an abyss
whence issues every kind of sin."
Still he followed up those ceremonies which he be
lieved would be beneficial to his soul. One day he
was repeating mass very earnestly when one of the
priests said to him, " Quick ! quick ! send our lady
back her Son !" profanely alluding to the bread in the
sacrament. He found that they had repeated seven
masses while he had not finished one.
Another day he undertook to ascend Pilate's Stair
case on his knees, as a penance. Before he reached
the top he seemed to hear a voice as from the bottom of
his heart : " The just shall live by faith." He started
to his feet without finishing the penance, and saw at
once the absurdity of the action.
It seems singular to us, in this age of light, that

LUTHER AND TETZEL. 137
Luther, who was no doubt a converted man, should
cling so long to the errors of Romanism ; but when
we consider the period in which he lived our wonder
ceases. There is one thing very certain, that he left
Rome far less a Roman Catholic than when he came
there. We have thus traced the great Reformer through
two periods of his life — his conversion, and the com
mencement of his disenthraldom from the papacy.
Let us pause a moment, and consider the deep waters
through which he was compelled to pass in coming
thus far ; and let us thank God for the light which is
given to us, the clearer Gospel day which shines upon
the pathway of those who would come unto Christ
now. And while we pause, while we consider the
great desire and earnestness of Luther to find peace
to his troubled conscience, let us imitate him by be
lieving in Christ as our Saviour.

CHAPTER V.
LUTHER AND TETZEL.
Having described the conversion of Luther and his
visit to Rome, we will not stop to narrate circum
stances having reference principally to Luther as an
individual, but proceed to notice what brought him
directly into collision with the Papal Church.
Leo X. was raised to be pope at the early age of
thirty-eight years. He was a lover of the arts and
of learning, and at the same time a lover of pleasure.
Extremely prodigal, he required large sums to keep
up the style of magnificence and luxury in which he

138 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
lived. He therefore had recourse to a scheme which
had been practiced at different times since the
eleventh century by the pope when his purse needed
replenishing. This was the sale of certain paper
documents, called indulgences, by which forgiveness
of sins was promised to all who paid the sum named
for the purchase of them.
In a book called the "Tax of the Sacred Roman
Chancery" the sum to be paid for each particular
sin is specified.* Some of them are as follows :
For taking a false oath in a criminal case, nine
shillings. For robbing, twelve shillings.
For burning a neighbor's house, twelve shillings.
For murdering a layman, seven shillings and six
pence. For laying violent hands on a clergyman, ten shil
lings and sixpence.
The form of the indulgence ran thus :
* The Boman Catholics have sometimes been anxious to repudiate this
work, saying it was published by a Protestant. It is true that it was pub
lished by Antoine du Pinet, a Protestant ; but where did Du Pinet get
it? Did he find it in the Boman Catholic Church, or did he invent it .
It is easy to settle this question by a reference to the history of the book
itself. It was published by the Papal Church many times before Du
Pinet gave it to the Protestant world, and also at different times after
ward. The dates of some of such publications are as follows : At Rome
in 1471 ; again in I486,. 1492, 1503, 1508, 1509, 1512, and 1514. At Cologne
in 1515 and 1522. At Paris in 1520, in 8vo ; 1531, 1533, and 1545, in 16mo.
At Venice in 1532 and 1584. Two editions, without date, were published
between 1472 and 1486, under the eyes of the popes Sixtus IV., Innocent
VIII., Alexander VI., Pins III., Julius IL, and Leo X. "Nothmg," says
Za France Protestante, " is more authentic than this appraisement, which
puts almost the same price upon the absolution of murder, incest, violence,
the most abominable crimes, as upon the transgression of the laws of the
Church in reference to fasting and abstaining from meats ; that is to say,
a few crowns. We must add that Du Pinet, far from exaggerating, has
not even produced all the abominations contained in the original Latin."
France Protestante, torn, iv., p. 44. ; Bulletin de I'Histoire du Protes-
tanisme, annee 1854, p. 210 ; "Histoire de la Ref. Franc., par F. Puaux,
vol. i, p. 407.

LUTHER AND TETZEL. 139
" May our Lord Jesus Christ have mercy upon
thee, and absolve thee by the merits of his most holy
passion. And I, by his authority, that of his blessed
apostles Peter and Paul, and of the most holy pope,
granted and committed unto me in these parts, do
absolve thee, first, from all ecclesiastical censures, in
whatever manner they have been incurred ; then
from all thy sins, transgressions, aid excesses, how
enormous soever they may be, even from such as are
reserved for the cognizance of the holy see, and as
far as the keys of the holy Church extend. I remit
to you all punishment which you deserve in purga
tory on their account ; and I restore you to the holy
sacraments of the Church, to the unity of the faith
ful, and to that innocence and purity which you
possessed at baptism ; so that when you die the
gates of punishment shall be shut, and the gates of
the paradise of delight shall be opened ; and if you
shall not die at present, this grace shall remain in
full force when you are at the point of death. In
the name of the Father, the Son,' and the Holy
Ghost. Friar John Tetzel, commissary, has signed
this with his own hand."*
To carry out this infamous traffic in the souls of
men agents were appointed in different places, or
whole countries were sometimes farmed out, the same
as a patent right is sold for a certain district or state.
And as it would not fall very religiously on the ears
of the people to say to them that the youthful pope
wanted the money for his own personal pleasures, the
capital idea was hit upon of applying some of it to
carry on the building of that vast edifice, the immense
proportions of which succeeding generations have
gazed at in wonder, known as St. Peter's Church in
* D'Aubigne's Beformation, vol. i, p. 217.

140 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Rome. The indulgence sellers then proclaimed that
when the people paid their money to obtain the certi
fied forgiveness of their sins, it was to build the great
church of the apostle ; and what was not used up by
the agents, and then by Leo, was applied to this
charitable object. It was certainly a very singular
and ingenious way of raising money lv_ ..uild a church,
but then it'was sanctioned by him who claimed to be
the head of all Christendom, the so-called vicegerent
of heaven, the infallible pontiff of Rome, and there
fore to most of the people it was all right. That the
money realized was not very scrupulously used for the
edifice of St. Peter may be inferred from one fact.
A sister of Leo was married to a bastard son of Inno
cent VIII., a former pope. Through their influence
Leo had been created cardinal when only fourteen
years of age. Now, having reached the popedom,
he showed his gratitude by bestowing upon his sister
all the money that would be realized through the sale
of indulgences from Savoy and that part of Germany
between Savoy and the sea.*
John Tetzel, sometimes called John Thecel or
Tecalius, a Dominican monk, was -the chief commis
sary in this blasphemous trade for Germany. He
traveled about with a great equipage, and wherever
he went there was a great stir among the people. To
obtain forgiveness of sins, and a preparation for
lieaven, has always been an important subject for
fallen man; but now that the terms seemed to be
made so easy, multitudes flocked to obtain the
precious boon.
Tetzel was not backward in recommending the
articles of his trade. In approaching a town with his
procession, he sent a messenger to the authorities say-
* History of Council of Trent, published at London in 1676, p. 5.

LUTHER AND TETZEL. 141
ing, " The grace of God and of the Holy Father is at
your gates." He was then conducted to the church
by the priests, the nuns, and the people, men and
women, young and old, with music, lighted tapers,
banners, and bells, and opened the market. From
the pulpit he then preached to the people.
" Come," said he, " and I will give you letters all
properly sealed by which even the sins that you intend
to commit may be pardoned.
" I would not change my privileges for those
of St. Peter in heaven ; for I have saved more
souls by my indulgences than the apostle by his
sermons. " There is no sin so great that an indulgence cannot
remit ; and even if any one (which is doubtless impos
sible) had offered violence to the blessed virgin Mary,
mother of God, let him pay, only let him pay well,
and all will be forgiven him.
" But more than this," said he, " indulgences avail
not only for the living but for the dead.
" For that repentance is not even necessary.
" Priest ! noble ! merchant ! wife ! youth ! maiden !
do you not hear your parents and your other friends
who are dead, and who cry from the bottom of the
abyss, ' We are suffering horrible torments ; a trifling
alms would deliver us ; you can give it and, you will
not.' "At the very instant that the money rattles at the
bottom of the chest the soul escapes from purgatory
and flies liberated to heaven.
" With twelve groats you can deliver your father
from purgatory, and you are ungrateful enough not
to save him. 1 declare to you though you should
have but a single coat yon ought to strip it off and
sell it in order to obtain this grace. The Lord our

142 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
God no longer reigns. He has resigned all power to
the pope."
When he had finished this kind of preaching then
the business commenced. The penitents confessed, and
put the money demanded by the priests into the box,
and received their papers, which were to give them a
right and title to heaven as a deed at law gives a man
a right to a lot of land.
Tetzel met with occasional difficulties however in
his pious work.
The wife of a shoemaker had obtained a letter of
indulgence, contrary to her husband's will, for which
she had paid a gold florin. She died shortly after
ward. After her death her husband, finding the
paper, did not have any mass said for the repose of
her soul as is usual. The priest thereupon charged him
with contempt of religion, and the magistrate sum
moned him to appear in court. The shoemaker, tak
ing his wife's indulgence with him, went to answer
the complaint.
"Is your wife dead?" said the judge.
"Yes," he replied.
" What have yon done for her?"
"I have buried her body, and commended her
soul to God."
" But have you had a mass said for the repose of her
soul ?"
" I have not ; it was of no use. She entered heaven
at the moment of her death."
" How do you know that?"
" Here is the proof." Saying thus he took the in
dulgence from his pocket, and the magistrate read
from it that the woman who had received it would
not go into purgatory but would at once enter into
heaven.

LUTHER AND TETZEL. 143
" If," added the husband, " the reverend gentleman
maintains that a mass is still necessary, either my wife
has been deceived by our most holy father the pope,
or the priest is deceiving me."
The argument was conclusive, and the shoemaker
was acquitted.
Another illustration may not be out of place. A
Saxon nobleman hearing Tetzel at Leipsic was dis
pleased with his falsehoods. He was resolved to en
trap him. Going to him he asked ;
" Have you the power to pardon sins which men
intend to commit?"
" Most assuredly ; I have received full powers from
his holiness for that purpose."
" Well, I desire to take a slight revenge on one of my
enemies without endangering his life, if you will give
me a letter of indulgence that shall fully justify me."
Tetzel demanded thirty crowns for the indulgence
asked. The nobleman paid it and went his way.
Tetzel shortly afterward finished up his business at
Leipsic, and left the place. As he passed through a
wood, the Saxon nobleman was lying in wait, and
there fell upon him and beat him, and carried off the
money-box. Tefzel was in a great rage, and brought
a complaint for the assault. The nobleman produced
his indulgence and was acquitted.
But Luther was now about to raise his voice against
this sacrilegious business. One 'day some persons
who had bought their indulgence papers, and perhaps
doubted their efficacy, came to confession while Luther
was attending to this part of a priest's duty at Wittem-
berg. They confessed that they had been guilty of
great crimes. Luther reprimanded them, told them
they must forsake their sins ; but' they replied that
they would not, and he thereupon told them that he
Hisi. Ki'turiiiftuon. JQ

144 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
could not absolve them. They then appealed to their
indulgences, and showed them to Luther, who replied
that he had nothing to do with such papers, and added,
" Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish ; be
ware," he continued, " how you listen to the clamors
of these indulgence merchants ; you have better things
to do than buy these licenses which they sell at so
vile a price."
This was the origin of the celebrated dispute between
Luther and Tetzel.
Some of the persons to whom Luther as a priest re
fused to grant absolution, complained to Tetzel, who
became violently enraged that any one would dare
to oppose him. As inquisitor he threatened to bring
Luther before the Inquisition and bnrn him ; who, so
far from being daunted, prepared his ninety-five
theses, and according to custom when notices were
given or discussion invited, he affixed them to the
doors of the church in Wittemberg. This was the
31st day of October, in the year 1517, at noon, before
a crowd of people. It is said that within a month
these theses were known throughout Christendom,
and were soon translated from Latin, the language in
which they were written, into German, Dutch, and
Spanish. This may be considered as the commence
ment of the Reformation in Germany. By many they
were received with great joy. The Bishop of Wurz-
burg, Lorenzo de Bibra, read them with delight, and
publicly declared that he approved of Luther. It
was this bishop to whom a gentleman once said he
intended to put his daughter in a convent. " Better
give her a husband," the good bishop replied. The
Emperor Maximilian read and admired them, and said
afterward, "What is your Augustine doing ? In truth
his propositions are not contemptible. He will play

LUTHER AND TETZEL. 145
the monks a pretty game." Even Leo the pope, when
asked to treat Luther as a heretic, replied : " 'Tis a
mere monkish squabble ; the best way is not to meddle
with it." At another time he said : " It is a drunken
German who has written these theses ; when the fumes
have passed off he will talk very differently." Rome
has seldom been so charitable toward those who oppose
her doctrines ; but Leo, though pope, was rather a man
of the world than a Roman Catholic, and cared more
for luxury and enjoyment than he did for the Church.
But mapy bitterly opposed Luther's propositions.
Tetzel himself wrote theses in answer to them, and
thus Germany was soon in a public ferment. Men,
from the statements and arguments of priests, had re
course to the Bible to know who was right ; and the
more they read the Bible the more they were prepared
to see all the errors of the Roman Catholic Church.
Thus Luther went farther than he intended to do. In
his ninety-five theses he had no intention of attacking
the pope. Being still a Roman Catholic he rather
defends him, saying that the indulgence sellers were
doing wrong to the head of the Church. But men's
minds were waked up. In seeking the forgiveness
of sins at the confessional, and through the indulgences
of Tetzel, they had not found the peace which they
hoped for. The Spirit of God moving upon the hearts
of the people, directed them to the words of him who
opposed the indulgences, and many hearts were shaken
in the trust which they had placed upon their " certi
fied papers," and were led to say, " Perhaps after all
these written pardons will not be good for anything
at the hour of death ; and doubting thus a written
pardon, they were led to doubt the priest's word, and
from that to search carefully the Bible to 'find some
true foundation."

146 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
The public preaching and writings of -Luther also
awakened many. He directed them to the very point
at which they were to aim for salvation.
"Ifa man," said he, " does not experience within
himself that peace of conscience, that joy of heart
which proceeds from the remission of God, there
are no indulgences that can aid him, even should
he purchase all that have ever been offered upon
earth. " It is not the works which expel sin ; but the sin
once expelled, good works will follow. For good
works must be performed with a joyful heart, with a
good conscience toward God, that is, with remission
of sins.
" The remission of the sin is in the power neither of
the pope, nor of the bishop, nor of the priest, nor of
any other man, but reposes solely on the word of
Christ and on your own faith. For Christ designed
not to build our consolation, our salvation, on the
word or on the work of man, but solely on himself, on
his word and on his work.
"A pope or a bishop has no more power than the
lowliest priest as regards remission of sins. And
even were there no priest, each Christian, even a
woman or a child, can do the same thing. For if a
simple Christian says to you, " God pardons sin in the
name of Jesus Christ," and you receive this word with
a firm faith, and as if God himself were addressing
you, you are absolved.
" If a pious Christian consoles thy conscience with
the word of the cross, let it be man or woman, young
or old, receive this consolation with such faith as
rather to die many deaths than to doubt that it will
be so before God. Repent. Do all the works in thy
power, but let the faith thou hast in pardon through

LUTHER AND IGNATIUS. 147
Jesus Christ be in the foremost rank, and command
alone on the field of battle."
Such preaching as this, so different from the preach
ing of indulgences, did not die upon the lips of the
speaker. It was carried everywhere by those who
heard it. It was a complete tearing away of the power
of the priesthood. It was destroying the doctrine of
the necessity of the prayers of the saints. It was
bringing men right to the Saviour, to that mercy-seat
where Christ was seated full of goodness and truth,
not needing or desiring the intercession of any one,
but more willing than all men, than all saints, than
all the angels of heaven, to hear and answer prayer.
Ever ready to look upon the broken and contrite in
heart, and to listen to the most feeble prayer.

CHAPTER VI.
LUTHER'S MOTIVES  LUTHER AND IGNATIUS.
We will pause in our narrative to consider two or
three things which seem properly to come in here.
Luther's motives in resisting Tetzel have been vio
lently assailed. It has been said that he was jealous
because the sale of indulgences was given to a Do
minican friar instead of an Augustine, he belonging
to the latter order. Authors other than Roman
Catholic have retailed this scandal. To correct this
statement we use some remarks added by Dr. Mac-
laine to his English translation of Mosheim's Eccle
siastical History, vol. iv, which show conclusively the
folly of this imputation. We give it without abridg-

148 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
ment, as it is an important question in deciding upon
Luther's character :
" Dr. Mosheim has taken no notice of the calumnies
invented and propagated by some late authors, in order
to make Luther's opposition to the publication of in
dulgences appear to be the effect of selfish and ignoble
motives. It may not, therefore, be improper to set
that in a true light ; not that the cause of the Reforma
tion (which must stand by its own intrinsic dignity,
and is in no way affected by the views or characters
of its instruments) can derive any strength from this
inquiry, but as it may tend to vindicate the personal
character of a man who has done eminent service to
the cause of religion.
" Mr. Hume, in his history of Henry VIII., has
thought proper to repeat what the enemies of the
Reformation, and some of its dubious and ill-informed
friends, have advanced with respect to the motives
that engaged Luther to oppose the doctrine of
indulgences. This elegant and persuasive historian
tells us that the 'Austin friars had usually been em
ployed in Saxony to preach indulgences, and from
this trust had derived both profit and consideration ;
that Arcemboldi gave this occupation to the Domini
cans ;* that Martin Luther, an Austin friar, professor
in the University of Wittemberg, resenting the affront
put upon his order, began to preach against the
abuses that were committed in the sale of indulgences,
and being provoked by opposition proceeded even to
decry indulgences themselves.'f It were to be wished
that Mr. Hume's candor had engaged him to examine
this accusation better before he had ventured to re
peat it. For, in the first place, it is not true that
* Hume's History of England under the House of Tudor, vol i r. 119
t Id. ib., p. 120. yf •

LUTHER AND IGNATIUS. 149
the Austin friars had been usually employed in
Saxony to preach indulgences. It is well known
that the commission had been offered alternately,
and sometimes jointly, to all the mendicants, whether
Austin friars, Dominicans, Franciscans, or Carmelites.
Nay, from the year 1229 that lucrative commission
-fras principally intrusted to the Dominicans;* and
in the records which relate to indulgences we rarely
meet with the name of an Austin friar, and not one
single act by which it appears that the Roman pon
tiff ever named the friars of that order to the office
under consideration.
" More particularly it is remarked that for half a
century before Luther, (that is, from 1450 to 1517,)
during which period indulgences were sold with the
most scandalous marks of avaricious extortion and
impudence, we scarcely meet with the name of an
Austin friar employed in that service, if we except a
monk named Palzius, who was no more than an un
derling of the papal questor, Raymond Peraldus,
so far is it from being true, that the Augustinf order
were exclusively, or even usually employed in that
service.:]: " Mr. Hume has built his assertion upon the sole
authority of a single expression of Paul Sarpi, which
has been abundantly refuted by De Prierio, Palla-
vicini, and Graweson, the mortal enemies of Luther.
" But it may be alleged that, even supposing it was
not usual to employ the Augustine friars in the prop
agation of indulgences, yet Luther might be offended
at seeing su'ch an important commission given to the
* See Weismanni, Memorabilia Historise Sacra? N. T., pp. 1051-1115.
+ Augustin and Austin are used indiscriminately.
X See Harpii Dissertat. de Nonnullis Induigentiarura, sec. xiv et xv.
Questoribus, p. 384-387.

150 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Dominicans exclusively, and that, consequently, this
was his motive in opposing the propagation of in
dulgences. To show the injustice of this allegation
I observe, "Secondly. That in the time of Lnther the preach
ing of indulgences was become such an odious and
unpopular matter, that it is far from being probable
that Luther would have been solicitous about obtain
ing such a commission either for himself or for his
order. The princes of Europe, with many bishops,
and multitudes of learned and pious men, had opened
their eyes upon the turpitude of this infamous traffic ;
and even the Franciscans and Dominicans, toward
the conclusion of the fifteenth century, opposed it
publicly, both in their discourses and in their writ
ings.* Nay, more, the very commission which is
supposed to have excited the envy of Luther was
offered by Leo to the general of the Franciscans, and
was refused both byiim and his order, f who gave it
over entirely to Albert, Bishop of Mentz and Magde
burg. Is it then to be imagined that either Luther
or the other Austin friars aspired after a commission
of which the Franciscans were ashamed? Besides,
it is a mistake to affirm that this office was given to
the Dominicans in general, since it was given to Tetzel
alone, an individual member of that order, who had
been notorious for his profligacy, barbarity, and
extortion. " But that neither resentment nor envy were the
motives that led Luther to oppose the doctrine and
publication of indulgences, will appear with the utmost
evidence if we consider, in the third place, that he
was never accused of any such motives, either in the
* See Walch. opp. Luther, torn, xv, pp. 114, 283, 312, 349 ; Seckendorff,
Hist. Lutheranismi, lib. i, see. vi, p. 13. t See Walch. loc. cit., p. 371.

LUTHER AND IGNATIUS. 151
edicts of the pontiffs of his time, or amid the other
reproaches of the cotemporary writers who defended
the cause of Rome, and who were far from being
sparing of their invectives and calumnies. All the
cotemporary adversaries of Luther are absolutely
silent on this head. From the year 1517 to 1546,
when the dispute about indulgences was carried on
with the greatest warmth and animosity, not one
writer ever ventured to reproach Luther with these
ignoble motives of opposition now under consideration.
I speak not of Erasmus, Sleidan, De Thou, Guicciar
dini, and others, whose testimony might be, perhaps,
suspected of partiality in his favor, but I speak of
Cajetan, Hogstrat, De Prierio, Emser, and even the
infamous John Tetzel, whom Luther opposed with
such vehemence and bitterness. Even Cochlseus was
silent on this head during the life of Luther ; though,
after the death of that great Reformer, he broached
the calumny I am here refuting. But such was the
scandalous character of this man, who was notorious
for fraud, calumny, lying, and their sister vices,* that
Pallavicini, Bossuet, and other enemies of Luther,
were ashamed to make use either of his name or tes
timony. " Now, may it not be fairly presumed that the co-
temporaries of Luther were better judges of his
character, and the principles from which he acted,
than those who lived in after times? Can it be
imagined that motives to action which escaped the
prying eyes of Luther's cotemporaries, should have
discovered themselves to us, who live at such a dis
tance of time from the scene of action, to M. Bossuet,
to Mr. Hume, and to other abettors of this ill-con
trived and foolish story? Either there are no rules
* Sleidan, De Statir. Rel. et Reip. in Dedic, Epist. ad August. Elector.

152 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
of moral evidence, or Mr. Hume's assertion is entirely
groundless. "I might add many other considerations to show the
unreasonableness of supposing that Luther exposed
himself to the rage of the Roman pontiff, to the
persecutions of an exasperated clergy, to the severity
of such a potent and despotic prince as Charles V.,
to death itself, and that from a principle of avarice
and ambition. But I have said enough to satisfy ¦
every candid mind. Whoever is desirous of knowing
more on this subject need only consult 'Histoire du
Renouvellement l'Evangile, par Gerdes, torn i, p. 96,'
quoted by La Courayer in his translation of the His
tory of the Reformation by Sleidan, torn, i, p. 1 ;
and finally, Letter XI. of L'Enfant's book, entitled,
' Preservatif contre la Reunion avec le Siege de Rome,
ou Apologie de notre Separation d'avec ce Siege.
Amsterdam, 1723. 4 vols.' This letter is in the first
volume, p. 27, and following ones."
Luther has also been accused of harshness, and vio
lence in his language. This has some foundation in
truth. But when we consider the times in which he
lived, the Church in which he had been reared, we
must say, as we have already said in a general sense,
that the vestiges of Romanism yet were clinging to
him. What could be expected of the humble monk
when the holy father himself uses such language as
is found in the different documents which proceeded
from the holy see ?
Take, for example, the one found in our first chap
ter, issued by Clement VI., commencing :
" May God strike him with imbecility and mad
ness ; may heaven overwhelm him with its thunders ;
may the anger of God, with that of St. Peter and St.
Paul, fall upon him in this world and in the next."

LUTHER AND IGNATIUS. 153
If anything could stir a man ¦ up to severity it
would be the spirit in which Luther has been assailed
by his adversaries. An extract from Damianus, one
of the first historians of the Jesuits, will show this.
He is comparing Luther with. Ignatius de Loyola, the
founder of the Jesuits.
" In the same year, 1521, Luther, moved by a con
summate malice, declared war openly against the
Church. Wounded in the fortress of Pampeluna,
having become, better and as it were stronger from
his wound, Ignatius raised the standard in defense of
religion. " Luther attacks the see of St. Peter with insults
and blasphemies. Ignatius, as if to undertake his
cause, is miraculously cured by St. Peter.
" Luther, subdued by rage, ambition, and lust,
quits a religious life. Ignatius, eagerly obeying the
call of God, changes from a profane to a religious life.
" Sacrilegious Luther contracts an incestuous mar
riage with a holy virgin of God. Ignatius binds
himself by a vow of perpetual continency.
" Luther contemns all the authority of his supe
riors. The first precepts of Ignatius, full of Christian
humility, are to submit and obey.
" Luther declaims like a fury against the holy see.
Ignatius everywhere supports it.
" Luther draws as many from it as he can. Igna
tius conciliates and brings back as many to it as
he can.
"All Luther's studies and enterprises are directed
against it. Ignatius, by a special vow, consecrates
his labors, with those of his associates, to it.
" Luther detracts from the veneration and worship
of the sacred rites of the Church. Ignatius maintains
all veneration for them.

154 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
" The sacrifice of the mass, the eucharist, the
mother of God, the tutelary saints, the indulgences
of the pontiffs, and the things attacked by Luther
with such fury, were objects which the industry of
Ignatius and his companions was eagerly and con
tinually employed in seeking new modes of cele
brating. " To this Luther, the disgrace of Germany, the hog
of Epicurus, the destroyer of Europe," the accursed
portent of the universe, the abomination of God
and men, etc., God, in his eternal wisdom, opposed
Ignatius."

CHAPTER VII.
EFFORTS MADE TO INDUCE LUTHER TO RECANT 
HE IS EXCOMMUNICATED.
While the pope regards with indifference the
ninety-five theses of Luther, the minds of the Ger
mans are wonderfully waking up. Leo is soon
forced to see that the movement is becoming more
formidable than he supposed. He therefore appointed
Cardinal Cajetan to try Luther, with instructions
either to obtain a recantation from him, or keep him
safely until he could be brought to Rome.
Was Luther now to become a martyr, and suffer
death as others had done for their piety ? He is sum
moned to Augsburg. He goes, and would probably
have soon been on his way a prisoner to Rome, had
not his friends obtained for him a safe conduct soon
after his arrival, and before he had shown himself to
the cardinal.

LUTHER EXCOMMUNICATED. 155
Urban of Serra Longa, pretending to be his friend
waited on him and urged him to be reconciled to the
Church, and recant what he had said and written.
He told him that the cardinal was favorable to him,
and if he would show an humble spirit all would be
well. He advised him, when he came into his pres
ence, to conduct himself as coming before a prince
of the Church, to prostrate himself with his face to the
ground, and when told to rise, to get up upon his
knees, and then to wait for further orders before he
ventured to stand upright.
In due time Luther appeared before Cajetan, and
according to the directions he had received pros
trated himself, and when the cardinal told hijn to rise,
he rose to a kneeling posture, until he was told again
to rise, and then he stood up. Luther afterward rose
above this abject reverence toward the heads of the
Church, of whom Christ had said, " Be ye servants."
Both of them remained silent for some time. What
must have been the impression which the great Re
former then made upon the cardinal ? There he stood,
as an eloquent historian has described his appearance,
with " a coarse, rugged, plebeian face," " with great
crags of cheek bones, a wild amount of passionate
energy." " But in his dark eyes were floods of sor
row ; and deepest melancholy, sweetness, and mystery
were all there." *
At last Luther spoke :
" Most worthy father, in obedience to the summons
of his papal holiness, and in compliance with the
orders of my gracious lord- the Elector of Saxony, I
appear before you as a submissive and dutiful son of
the holy Christian Church, and acknowledge that I
have published the propositions and theses ascribed
* Carlyle.

156 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
to me. I am ready to listen most obediently to my
accusation, and if I have erred, to submit to instruc
tion in the truth."
The cardinal replied :
" My dear son, you have disturbed all Germany by
your dispute on indulgences. I understand that yon
are a very learned doctor in the Holy Scriptures, and
that you have many followers. For this reason, if
you desire to be a member of the Church, and to find
a gracious father in the pope, listen to me. Here are
three articles which, by the command of our holy
father, Pope Leo X., I have to set before you : First,
You must bethink yourself, own your faults, and re
tract your errors, propositions, and sermons. Secondly,
You must promise to abstain in future from propa
gating your opinions. Thirdly, Bind yourself to be
have with greater moderation, and avoid everything
that may grieve or disturb the Church."
Luther then made what Cajetan must have consid
ered a very bold request.
" Most' holy father, I beg you will show me the
pope's brief, by virtue of which you have received
full powers to treat of this matter."
"This request, my dear son, cannot be granted.
You must confess your errors, keep a istrict watch
upon your words for the future, and not return like a
dog to his vomit, so that we may sleep without anxiety
or disturbance ; then, in accordance with the order
and authorization of our most holy father, the pope, I
will arrange the whole business."
Luther made a still bolder request.
" Condescend then to inform me in what I have
erred." Cajetan replied:
" Most dear son ! here are two propositions that you

LUTHER EXCOMMUNICATED. 157
have advanced, and which you must retract before
all : First, The treasure of indulgences does not con
sist of the sufferings and merits of our Lord Jesus
Christ. Second, The man who receives the holy sacra
ment must have faith in the grace that is presented
to him."
He then proceeded to combat what he called
Luther's errors, saying :
" In confuting your errors, I will not appeal to the
authority of St. Thomas and other doctors of the
schools ; I will rely entirely on Holy Scripture, and
talk with you in all friendliness."
But Cajetan, instead of confining himself to Scrip
ture, proceeded to quote one of the constitutions of
Pope Clement, when Luther replied :
" I cannot receive such constitutions as sufficient
proofs on matters so important ; for they pervert
the Holy Scriptures, and never quote them to the
purpose." Cajetan replied :
"The pope has power and authority over all things."
" Except Scripture," Luther rejoined quickly.
Thus they continued until, when faith was referred
to, Luther asserted :
"As to the article of faith, if I make the slightest
concession I should renounce Jesus Christ. I cannot,
I will not yield on this point, and, with God's grace,
I will never yield."
Cajetan then assumed a more positive manner,
saying :
" Whether you will or whether you will not, you
must retract that article this very day, or upon that
article alone I shall reject and condemn your whole
doctrine." " I have no will but the Lord's. Let him do with

158 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
me as seemeth good to him. But if I had four hund
red, heads, I would rather lose them all than retract
the testimony which I have borne to the holy Christian
faith." " I did not come here to dispute with you. Retract
or prepare to suffer the penalty you have deserved."
This was closing up the argument in a very sum
mary manner, and Luther prepared to withdraw.
The cardinal proposed to' him to go to Rome. This
would have been to have delivered himself into the
lion's mouth, even under protection of a safe conduct,
which Cajetan offered him. A second and third con
ference took place, at the close of which the cardinal
said :
" Retract, or return no more."
Several days passed. Luther wrote to the cardinal,
but received no reply. He began to fear they were
plotting some plan forcibly to seize him and carry
him to Rome, or to take his life by some shorter
means. He therefore prepared an appeal to the pope
himself, in which he asserted that he appealed from
the pope ill-informed to the pope better informed.
This appeal was posted on the cathedral gates two or
three days after he left Augsburg. He also wrote a
letter to Cajetan, part of which is as follows :
"Most woethy Father in God: Your paternal
kindness has witnessed — I repeat it, witnessed and
sufficiently acknowledged my obedience.' I have un
dertaken a long journey, through great dangers, in
great weakness of body, and despite of my extreme
poverty ; at the command of our most holy lord, Leo X.,
I have appeared in person before your eminence;
lastly, I have thrown myself at the feet of his holiness,
and I now wait his good pleasure, ready to submit to

LUTHER EXCOMMUNICATED. 159
his judgment, whether he should condemn or acquit
me. I therefore feel that I have omitted nothing
which it becomes an obedient child of the Church
to do.
" I think, consequently, that I ought not uselessly
to prolong my sojourn in this town. Besides, it would
be impossible ; my resources are failing me, and your
paternal goodness has loudly forbidden me to appear
before you again unless I retract.
" I therefore depart in the name of the Lord, desir
ing, if possible, to find some spot where I may dwell
in peace. . . ."
Luther early in the morning flies on horseback
from Augsburg. He returns to Wittemburg.
Cajetan was greatly annoyed, for his victim had
escaped from him, and he had accomplished nothing.
The pope would blame him, and the whole affair
would be discreditable to him as a great officer of the
Church. He wrote to Frederic, the Elector of Saxony, one
of the powerful protectors of the infant Reformation,
and one whose name should be among the foremost
in a history of the German Reformation, to send him
to Rome, or to expel him from his territory. Frederic
refused to accede to the pope's desires.
About this time the Emperor Maximilian died, in
consequence of which the pope found himself so much
embroiled in political matt»rs that he had little time
to attend to Luther. The Elector Frederic became
protector of the empire, by which, for a short period,
he held the supreme power in his hands. The pope
thereupon, hoping to win Frederic to his side, sent
him the golden rose, a gift which had been long con
sidered one of the choicest which could come from _
Hi-t. R. «.miiitlnn, ] \

160 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
the Roman court, and one which had always been
greatly prized even by kings and princes. But
Frederic, instead of publicly receiving it as a very
distinguished honor, coldly requested that it might be
delivered to one of his officers to be conveyed to him.
Notwithstanding all that had yet occurred, and
notwithstanding all that Luther had written, and all
that had been written against him, he seems still to
be a true Roman Catholic, as the following extracts
from a letter to the pope written about this time will
testify :
" Blessed father, may your holiness condescend to
incline your paternal ear, which is that of Christ
himself, toward yo.ur poor sheep, and listen kindly to
his bleating? What shall I do, most holy father? I
cannot bear the lightnings of your anger, and I knoV
not how to escape them. I am called upon to retract.
I would most readily do so could that lead to the
desired result. But the persecutions of my adver
saries have circulated my writings far and wide, and
they are too deeply graven on the hearts of men to
be by any possibility erased. . . . Most holy father,
I declare in the presence of God, and of all his
creatures, that I have never desired, and that I shall
never desire to infringe, either by force or by strata
gem, upon the power of the Romish Church or of
your holiness. I confess that nothing in heaven or in
earth should be preferred above that Church, except
Jesus Christ alone, the L©rd of all."
This letter shows how little Luther thought of
separating from the Romish Church. Had she
allowed him, and those who wished to live according
to the Bible, to remain peaceably within her pale, his
adversaries might with more justice talk of Luther's
separation. But he was followed up by complaint

LUTHER EXCOMMUNICATED. 161
after complaint, persecution after persecution, until he
was excommunicated and driven from the Church
with the most bitter denunciations. Let no one, then,
hereafter say that Luther separated from Rome, but
that Rome separated from Luther, and drove him
from her.
Shortly before the above letter was written the
pope had appointed a new legate, Charles of Miltitz,
either to obtain a recantation from Luther, or to bring
him to Rome. If he only could be brought to any
place within the pope's power, and away from the
protection of Frederic, it would'be easy to dispose of
him. Miltitz, arriving in Germany, took a course of
the utmost apparent mildness toward Luther. He
saw it was of no use to adopt any other. He heard
complaints against Tetzel, the indulgence peddler, the
adversary of Luther. Most severely did he reprimand
him, until he, who had once been so arrogant, became
stricken with shame, and never afterward recovered
himself. He died shortly after, a prey to remorse
and grief.
Miltitz seemed to have much success with Luther,
for they both went so far as to agree that each party
should be silent for the future, and until some bishops
might be appointed by the pope to name the articles
which Luther must retract.
This silence, however, did not last long, for Eccius,
a Romish champion, broke the agreement by a public
dispute with Carlstadt, into which Luther was brought,
who then publicly disputed with Eccius, and here the
Reformer took a fresh stride in the knowledge of
truth, and here his eyes were more than ever opened
to see the errors of Rome. Even subsequent to this
dispute Miltitz urged him to some agreerjjpnt with the
pope ; but he now took an uncompromising attitude,

162 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
and, instead of yielding any ground to the legate,
wrote the celebrated letter or memorial to the pope
in which occurs the following words : " Let no one,
most holy father, imagine that I will sing a palinode
unless he wishes to arouse a still greater tempest.
I will admit of no restraint in interpreting the word
of God." Noble sentiment ! It is a blessing to us
that Luther ever uttered it, and that with firmness he
adhered to it. Had he wavered, it would have de
stroyed the confidence of men in his positions, and
thrown back, no one can tell how far, the infant Ref
ormation. His writings had already been scattered
and translated through the greater part of Europe ;
and what a stroke to true religion it would have been,
could it have been said by Romanists that their
author no longer acknowledged their truth !
In the mean time the pope published a bull in
favor of indulgences, on which Luther published a
memorial appealing from the pope to a general coun
cil, an act of great impiety toward the holy father ;
at least so considered by the latter. On the 15th day
of June, 1520, and after receiving the memorial just
referred to, the pope published a second bull, in
which he set forth some of the pernicious, poisonous,
and scandalous doctrines of Luther. Among them is
the following : " To say that burning heretics is con
trary to the will of the Holy Ghost." This was one of
Luther's assertions, one of Luther's doctrines. But the
most holy father, and head" of the most holy Catholic
Church, insists that any such statement is curtailing
his liberty and stinting his privileges, and that it is a
pernicious, poisonous, and scandalous heresy. It
would be outrageous to cut him off from burning his
Bible-readigg subjects.
The bull goes on to say that Luther shall be ex-

LUTHER EXCOMMUNICATED. 163
communicated, unless in sixty days he forward a recan
tation to Rome, or else, as it is literally expressed,
" which would be far more agreeable to us, that he
come to Rome in person." As to the last clause no
one could doubt the truth of that. It would be far
more agreeable to the heart of the tender and com
passionate father to see Luther in Rome, so that he
might at leisure, through his inquisitors, burn, tor
ture, and tear his flesh, and leave his body to wear out
in some filthy dungeon until he could make him be
lieve in the virtue of indulgences.
But Luther had more good sense than to go to
Rome, or to send any recantation within the sixty
days allotted to him. On the contrary, he publicly
burned the pope's bull amid a vast assemblage of
people at Wittemburg, renounced the authority of the
pope, exhorted the princes of Europe to shake off the
oppressive yoke, and offered thanks to God that he
was selected as the advocate of true religion, and a
friend to the liberties of mankind.
He also published a document, in which he says he
has no desire to be absolved from the censures leveled
against him. "Farewell," he concludes, "farewell,
O Rome, thou thrice-accursed abomination!' Thou
art filled with so much impiety and foolishness as are
unworthy even to be refuted !"
At last, on the 6th day of January, 1521^ sentence
of final excommunication was thundered against
Luther, in which he is declared a heretic, a son of
perdition, and an eternal outcast, expelled the com
munion of the faithful, and delivered over to Satan.
This is an important day for the German Ref
ormation. The manner in which the pope's bull of excommuni
cation was received shows what progress the doctrines

164 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
of the Bible had made. A century before it would have
shaken the foundations of the whole kingdom ; now
it was read and spoken of in Germany with contempt.
Such success had God given his faithful witnesses.

CHAPTER Vni.
THE PEASANT WAR  THE JESUITS.
The year 1521 is a year to be remembered in the
history of the Reformation. It is the year in which
Luther renounces Rome; the year in which Rome
afterward renounces him ; the year of the well known
Diet of Worms, in which he is condemned by that
body ; the year of the breaking out of the celebrated
peasant war ; and the year in which Ignatius de Loy
ola, founder and first general of the order of Jesuits,
is wounded1 at the siege of Pampeluna, and resolves
to devote himself to works of piety.
To these two latter events we will briefly turn our
attention. As in France in the time of the French
Revolution, the superstitions of Romanism had driven
men to infidelity, so in Germany and the neighboring
countries, as Luther sounded the trumpet of the Gos
pel, and men began to feel they were free to think,
it was not to be expected that nations unable gene
rally to read, and trained in the absurdities of Rome,
would be able to go just so far and no further. It
came to pass that while Luther and those who had
sufficient light from the word of God knew when
to stop, a great many others went from one extreme
to the other. Under the leadership of Munzer, Stub-
ner, etc., multitudes of peasants and others assembled,

THE PEASANT WAR — THE JESUITS. 165
and held that among Christians, properly instructed,
the office of magistrate was unnecessary ; that the
distinctions occasioned by birth, rank, or wealth,
should be abolished ; that all Christians, throwing
their possessions into one stock, should live together
as one family, and that polygamy was to be allowed.
Pretending to have received visions and revelations
from heaven, they rapidly propagated their doctrines.
Luther and the other Reformers raised their voices
loudly against them, and the peasants perceiving this
undertook to spread their opinions by force of arms.
Munzer put himself at the head of a numerous army
and declared war against all laws, governments, and
magistrates, saying that Christ himself has now to
take the reins of government into his hands. They
were defeated by the Elector of Saxony, and Munzer
put to death. Again in 1533 a large party of them
settled at Munster, and made themselves masters of
the city, but were ultimately defeated.
There is no doubt that such fanaticism retarded the
progress of the Reformation. Reasonable men saw
that their tenets were absurd, and yet associated them
with the tenets of Luther, when in fact they were
only the reaction of the mind long bent in one way,
and long in ignorance and spiritual chains.
We turn to Ignatius. His influence and that of
his followers upon the early Reformation was not so
great as it has since been upon the progress of true
religion in Roman Catholic countries. The rise of
the Jesuits was not rapid enough at first to accomplish
a great deal. Charles V. did not encourage them ;
the universities of France resisted their introduction
into the country, and when in 1540 the pope author
ized their institution their disciples were said to be
but ten. In the year 1608 their number amounted

166 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
to ten thousand five hundred and eighty-one. Before
the close of the sixteenth century they had obtained
the chief direction of the education of youth in every
Roman Catholic country in Europe, and had become
the confessors of almost all their monarchs. In spite
of their vow of poverty their wealth increased with
their power, and they soon rivaled in the extent and
value of their possessions the most opulent monastic
fraternities. And wherever they went the minds of
men became more and more enslaved. The pernicious
doctrine of constant and absolute submission to the
authority of their superiors without examination, left
no recourse to the Bible, or to any other standard.
And as they increased they ingrafted this essential
tenet of Romanism upon the mind wherever the rising
light of the Reformation had broken it off. And if
they went as missionaries to foreign lands, as they did
everywhere, it was not the Gospel they taught, but
submission to Rome and their order. It was not a
renunciation of heathen idolatry which they incul
cated upon their ignorant converts, but an incorpora
tion of idol worship into religion under the name of
Christianity. It was not a forsaking of sin which they
preached, but a regulation of it under priestly direc
tion. Entering a country with all the apparent hu
mility of true Christians, they commenced their labors
among the people ; and as their power and influence
increased, their humility was laid aside, and an abso
lute sway over heart, mind, and conscience aimed at
or established. And such also was their system in
education. There have been learned men and pol
ished writers among the Jesuits, we admit, but their
education has always been partial and one-sided ; and
wherever they have the instruction of young persons
confided to them it is the same thing. They teach the

THE DIET OF WORMS. 167
languages and the arts, but at the same time more effec
tually instill what is truly Romanism, whether called
60 by them or not. They make their pupils like those
valuable slaves of the great men of antiquity, who
were grammarians, poets, rhetoricians, skillful dan
cers, and musicians, everything but freemen.
We return now to the thread of our narrative.

CHAPTER IX.
THE DIET OF WORMS.
The Diet of Worms, as we have said, Avas held in
the year 1521. It was the first great ecclesiastical
assemblage since Charles V. had come to the throne
of Germany. Here Luther was to be arraigned. The
object of this arraignment was not to condemn him by
the pope, for that was done already, but to obtain his
condemnation by a sufficient authority to get him out
of the hands of Frederic of Saxony.
Girolamo Aleander was appointed by the pope to
superintend there the extermination of the wide
spread heresies. A man of great ability, he appeared
before the princes of the Church, and by an Oration
of three hours in length urged them to take immedi
ate steps to crush the religious rebellion.
The Elector Frederic, ever on the alert when
Luther was concerned, checked the rising hopes of
Aleander by urging that Luther should not be con
demned unless he were present. This seemed so
reasonable that the proposition was carried, and Lu
ther was forthwith summoned before the Diet of

168 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Worms. At the same time a Safe conduct from the
Emperor Charles V. was sent to him.
We might as well say here that in Frederic, Elector
of Saxony, Luther possessed not only a decided friend,
but a very powerful one. As it has been remarked,
he had become protector of the empire ; this was pre
vious to the accession of Charles V. Afterward the
imperial throne itself was offered to him, which he
declined. And now when Charles V. had become
monarch of the German states and the immense pos
sessions which belonged to the crown of Spain,
Frederic still retained his influence.
When the summons arrived for Luther from Worms
his friends were alarmed, and begged him to pay no
attention to it. They reminded him that John Huss,
though protected by a safe conduct, had been seized
at the Council of Constance, , and burned. But Lu
ther was determined to go at all hazards. With a
courage which well befits the Christian character, he
replied :
" I will neither recant nor flee. I will go to
Worms in spite of all the gates of hell and the prince
of the power of the air."
Tlie imperial herald waited to accompany him,
and without delay he set out. The journey was a
complete triumph for the Reformer and the Reforma
tion. Everywhere great multitudes assembled to
greet the man who had so boldly lifted his voice
against the oppressions and errors of Rome. But
his friends feared that he was on his way to the mar
tyr's crown. They thought he would never come
alive out of the hands of his enemies ; and after he
had started they wrote to him, urging him to return.
His answer has become like household words :
" In the name of the Lord, I will be there. I will

THE DIET OF WORMS. 169
enter into the very month of Behemoth, and there
acknowledge Christ. Into that place will I go,
though there be in it as many devils as there are
tiles upon the houses."
How gloriously would the kingdom of God roll
onward if the breast of every Christian were fired by
a courage like this ! We are not often called, as
Luther was, to brave imprisonment and death ; we
are not now called to go from city to city where
bonds and violent persecutions await us ; but we are
called to possess a like courage, held in reserve for
any such possibility; and then those lighter crosses
and trials which occur in the daily life will sit easy
on the already consecrated heart.
On the 16th day of April, 1521, Luther entered
Worms. There also crowds of people gathered round
to express their sympathy and admiration of his
courage. As he approached the assembly the next morning
an old captain of the imperial army laid his hand on
his shoulder, saying:-
" Monk, beware what you do ! You are in more
danger than any of us have ever braved upon the
field of battle ; but if you are in the right road, go
forward in God's name, and be sure that he will not
forsake you."
He entered the assembly. There was the Emperor
Charles V. ; there were the barons of Germany ;
there were the ecclesiastical princes and heads of the
Church ; a tribunal than which a more imposing had
seldom assembled. And the poor monk entered and
stood among them, awaiting his judgment. Already
excommunicated, already under the ban of the pope,
could he expect any mercy from those who were
greedy to emulate their master in persecution ?

170 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
It would be difficult to describe the feelings with
which lie waited for the commencement of the pro
ceedings against him. It must have been with the
most intense excitement that he looked around upon
the august assembly. It may have been with some
thing like regret that he had ever ventured among
them, or with a kind of fear that he should never be
able to leave the place alive ; or rather, was not the
God of Israel there, giving triumphant boldness to
his heart, as he did to Elijah on Carmel, and as he
did to Daniel among the lions ? Was there not One
by his side, just as near to him as he 'once was to
Shadrach and his two companions, as they walked
loose in the midst of the flames ?
The proceedings were commenced against him.
Two principal questions were demanded of Luther:
one was, whether he acknowledged the books which
had been so widely circulated under his name ; the
other, if he would now retract their contents.
Luther replied humbly, calmly, and yet decidedly.
He said that when he had inculcated Christian faith
and morals, his accusers allowed he had done so in a
scriptural manner. To retract these portions would
be to deny that on which all were agreed. In. other
parts of his writings he said he had attacked the abuses
of the papacy. To retract here would be to help to
continue these abuses. The remainder of his publica
tions, he admitted, had been written in a too vehement
and acrimonious spirit ; but these he could not take
back, fearing he might sanction those practices of the
Church which were contrary to Scripture. He ap
pealed again to Scripture, saying if they would con
vince him from this, he would be the first to cast his
books into the flames.
He spoke with gentleness and mildness, holding

THE DIET OF WORMS. 171
his feelings in perfect control. But he was told in
replji that he had only traveled from the question,
and he was efpected to give a direct reply. " It was
then," says one of his biographers, " that the mighty
heart of the Reformer conceived an answer, which, for
pregnant solemnity and calm heroism,^s, beyond all
other words in modern history, sublime."
" Since, then, «your imperial majesty, and your
highnesses now assembled, -require a plain, simple,
and brief answer, I will render one without reserva
tion or evasion. Unless I shall be convinced by the
testimony of Scripture, or by other and manifest
reasons, (for upon the authority of popes and councils
alone I cannot rely, since it is clear that they have
often erred, and even contradicted one another,) I
neither can nor will revoke anything that I have writ
ten, seeing that to act against conscience is neither
safe nor honest. Here I stand. I can do no other.
God help me ! Amen."
Sentence of outlawry was pronounced upon Luther,
to take effect in twenty-one days from his departure
from the diet. After that time whoever would read,
print, or circulate any of his writings, or countenance,
harbor, or assist him, was to incur the same penalty
as himself. And every subject of the emperor was
charged to aid in capturing or destroying him.

172 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.

CHAPTER X.
MELANCTHON  BUGENHAGIUS.
The edict which was passed against Luther declared
" that it belonged to the duty of ijae emperor to ad*
vance religion, and to extinguish heresies which began
to spring up; . . . that friar Martin Luther en
deavored to stain Germany with that contagion, so
that if he were not hindered all that nation would fall
into a horrible ruin ; that Pope Leo had fatherly
admonished him, and after that the assembly of car
dinals, and other excellent men, had condemned his
writings and decreed him a heretic if within a cer
tain term he revoked not his errors ; and had sent by
Girolamo Aleander, his nuncio, a copy of that bull
of condemnation to him, the emperor, as protector of
the Church, desiring him it might be put in execution
in the empire, his kingdoms, dominions, and prov
inces ; that notwithstanding this, Martin amended not
himself; yea, mitttiplied his books daily, full not
only of new heresies, but even of those which have
been long since condemned by holy councils, and
not only in the Latin tongue, but in the German also,
naming in particular many of his errors; he con
cluded that there was no writing of his where there was
not to be found some contagion or deadly sting, so that
it might be said that every word was a poison ; that
these things being considered by him, the emperor,
and his counselors of all nations subject unto him,
treading in the steps of the Roman emperors, his pre
decessors, having conferred in that Diet of Worms
with the electors, and many of other states of the

MELANCTHON — BUGENHAGIUS. 173
empire by their counsel and assent, (though it was
not fit to hear a man condemned by the pope, ob
stinate in his perverseness, and a notorious heretic,
notwithstanding to take away all occasion of cavil,
many saying it was necessary to hear the man before
the pope's decree was executed,) he resolved to send
to fetch him by one of his heralds."*
This specimen is sufficient to convey an idea of
what the whole document was.
Thus condemned, Luther left Worms to go home.
He had not gone far when a band of armed and
masked horsemen surrounded and seized him. He
was carried by them to the Castle of Wartburg.
Was he then so soon to meet his fate ? Was the
Protestant cause so soon to be deprived of their cour
ageous and eloquent defender? Thank God, no.
These armed men were the soldiers of the elector
Frederic, his friend, and they seized him for the pur
pose of protecting him from those who would seek his
life. He continued in this retreat about ten months,
and there, besides other valuable works, conceived
the design, and commenced the translation of the
Bible, which, with the help of Melancthon, he com
pleted in the year l'523.
It was about this time that Henry VIII. uninten
tionally conferred a great benefit on the advancing
cause of truth. Entering the theological arena, by
his kingly dignity he attracted the notice of all sides,
and by writing against Luther led men to read Luther's
writings. By publishing his celebrated work on the
seven sacraments in defense of popery, and for which
the Roman pontiff conferred on him the title of " De
fender of the Faith," he brought forward the Romanist
doctrines for examination. Luther seized the pen to
* History of the Council of Trent, by Father Paul, published in 1070.

174' HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
defend his principles, and as if the high position of
his royal adversary called forth his sharpest invec
tive, his reply was not only convincing and forcible,
but one of great severity.
In the mean time Luther's writings were fast spread
ing, not only over his own land, but throughout Europe.
A great many of the Churches of Germany were
taking important steps toward reform. Some were
removing the pictures ; some threw from their shrines
the images ; some were giving the cup to the laity ;
some abolishing auricular confession, and some doing
all of these at once.
Luther returned from the Castle of Wartburg to
Wittemburg, and notwithstanding the pope's anathe
ma and charge to capture him, no one was found to
execute the order.
While these events are passing we behold the justly
renowned Melancthon commencing his career as a
Reformer in the University of Wittemburg as Greek
Professor.- At this time (1521) he had been three
years associated with Luther, and was now twenty-
four years of age. Philip Melancthon was fourteen
years younger than his great cotemporary, yet so tem
pered was he with mildness and caution, that he was
just the person necessary to stand by the side of the
impetuous Reformer in, the war he waged against the
doctrines of Romanism. There is no doubt but that
Providence placed them together in this work. At
the same time the zeal of Melancthon was always
steadfast. His " Loci Theologici" opened the way to
a clear exposition of the doctrines of the Reformers,
and itself became a model to them. His name soon
became known throughout Europe. He was invited
to England, and even to France, by the persecuting
Francis I. ; but political reasons prevented him from

MELANCTHON — BUGENHAGIUS. 175
going to either country. It was Melancthon who
drew up the Confession of Augsburg, and the apology
for it. Sometimes he was accused of being too moder
ate, and sometimes suffered from Luther's vehemence ;
but when we consider the turbulence of the times,
we can hardly overrate the value of such a spirit to
the cause he advocated. He continued united with
Luther in close bonds of friendship until they were
broken by the death of the latter. Above all other
praise is that accorded to Melancthon of being a pure-
minded, humble, gentle, faithful Christian.
It was in this year also (1521) that John Bugen-
hagius, at the age of thirty-six, met with Luther's
treatise on the Babylonish captivity.
" He is the most pestilent heretic that ever infested
the Church of Christ," he cried.
He took it up again and read it more attentively,
and then said :
" The whole world is blind, walking in Cimmerian
darkness ; this man alone sees the truth."
He had received some first impressions from a tract
written by Erasmus, but now avowed the principles
of the reform so boldly that he was forced to leave
his place of residence. He came to Wittemberg,
where he became pastor of the Reformed Church,
and continued at his post, preaching and writing, for
thirty-six years.
Hist. Reformation. 1 2

176 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.

CHAPTER XI.
THE DIET OF NUREMBERG  THE POPE URGES THE
EXECUTION OF LUTHER.
The printing-press now took up the works of the
Reformers and spread them with great rapidity. It
is wonderful how the number of religious publica
tions increased after Luther's writings began to
appear. In Germany thirty-five publications were issued
during the year 1513 ; in the year 1517, thirty-seven.
But in the year 1518 there were seventy-one ; in
1519, one hundred and eleven ; in 1520, two hundred
and eight ; in 1521, two hundred and eleven ; in 1522,
three hundred and forty-seven ; and in 1523, four
hundred and ninety-eight. And these books were
written almost all by Luther and his friends, and the
majority published at Wittemburg.*
And they were carried by men whom we now call
colporteurs into every corner of the empire ; some of
them were men who had once been monks and priests,
who had read them until their own hearts were fired
by their spirit ; some were men who had worked upon
their farms and at their trades, who for the love of
Christ left their homes to spread the Gospel ; and
some who could not read themselves, sold them, and
listened to their contents as they stopped a night on
the road, or exhibited them in the open highway to
some one more learned than themselves.
In the year 1522 the Diet of Nuremberg was held.
It was now to be seen whether the edict of Worms
* D'Aubigne", vol, iii, p. 103.

THE DIET OF NUREMBERG. 177
would be enforced against Luther or not. The pope
sent, as nuncio, Francisco Chieregati, to urge pro
ceedings against the Reformers. ' Having arrived, he
presented the pope's letters to the assembly, bear
ing date November 25, in which the holy father
complained :
" That Martin Luther, having been condemned by
the sentence of Leo, and the sentence executed in
Worms by the emperor's decree, published through
out all Germany, he persevered notwithstanding
in the same errors, continually publishing books
full of heresies, and that he was favored not
only by the meaner sort, but even by the nobles
also." " He exhorteth the princes and people not to make
show of giving any consent to so great an abomina-'
tion by tolerating it any longer. He showed them
that it was a most shameful thing to suffer themselves
to be led out of the way of their ancestors by a poor,
simple friar, as if only Luther were of understanding
and wise. He advertiseth them that if Luther's fol
lowers have denied obedience to the ecclesiastical
laws, much more will they esteem basely of the secu
lar ; and if they have usurped the goods of the Church,
much less will they abstain from those of the laity ;
and having dared to lay their hands upon the priests
of God, they will not spare the houses, wives, and
children of them. He exhorteth them, if they cannot
reduce Martin and his followers into the right way by
fair means, to proceed to sharp and fiery remedies, to
cut the dead members from the body, as anciently
was done unto Dathan and Arjiram, to Ananias and
Sapphira, to Jovinian and Vigilantius; and finally,
as their ' predecessors did against John Huss and
Jei-ome of Prague, in the Council of Constance, whose

178 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
example, in case they cannot otherwise do, they
ought to imitate."*
To the good and great Elector of Saxony the pope
addressed a special epistle, in which he said that the
elector " should consider what blemish it would be to
his posterity to have favored a frantic man, who put
confusion into the world with impious and foolish in
ventions, turning upside down the doctrine estab
lished by the blood of the martyrs, labors of the
holy doctors, and arms of the most valiant princes ;
that he should walk in the paths of his ancestors, not
suffering his eyes to be dazzled by the fury of a petty
companion, to follow errors condemned by so many
councils." Having delivered his letters, the nuncio appeared
in person before the diet, and urged them to proceed
against " that pestilent doctrine of Luther." For this
he gave seven reasons :
" The fwst, because the worship of God and charity
toward their neighbor moved them thereunto.
" Secondly. The infamy of their nation ;" that is,
the infamy of having allowed Luther's sentiments to
spread among them.
" Thirdly. Their own honor, showing themselves
not to degenerate from their predecessors, who were
present at the condemnation of John Huss in Con
stance, and of the other heretics, leading some of
them to the fire, even with their own hands, and that
they would not fail of their own promise and con
stancy, the greater part of them having approved the
emperor's edict against Luther.
'•'¦Fourthly. That the injury should move them
which Luther had done to their progenitors, publish
ing another faith than that which they 'believed,
* Council of Trent, p. 23.

THE DIET OF NUREMBERG. 179
and concluding by consequence that they are all
in hell.
" Fifthly. They ought to be moved by the mark
which the Lutherans aim at, which is to weaken the
secular power, after they have annihilated the eccle
siastical, by a false pretense that it is usurped against
the Gospel, although they craftily make show to pre
serve the secular only to deceive them.
"¦Sixthly. That they should consider the dissensions
and confusions raised in Germany by that sect.
"And, finally, he desireth them to observe that
Luther treadeth in the same way that Mohammed
did long ago."
The nuncio, having thus delivered himself, pro
ceeded to notice the state of Rome itself, and candidly
acknowledged the wickedness of the Church in that
city. He did this by authority of the pope, hoping it
would conciliate the princes, and lead them to put
confidence in the promises of the pontiff.
" Confessing that some years since some abomina
tions have been committed even in that holy see,
many abuses in spiritual things, many transgressions
of the commandments, and lastly all things turned to
the worst ; so that it may be said that the infirmity
is passed from the head to the members, from the
popes to the inferior prelates, insomuch that there
hath been none which hath done good, no, not one.
For the amendment of which evil himself is resolved
to employ all his wits, and use all diligence that the
court of Rome, from whence, peradventure, all this
mischief proceeded, should be reformed first of all ;
which he will the rather do because he seeth that all
the world doth earnestly desire it. Notwithstanding
that no man ought to marvel if he shall see that all
the abuses be not suddenly amended ; for the disease

180 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
being inveterated and multiplied, it is necessary to
proceed slowly in the cure, and to begin from things
of greatest weight, to avoid the confounding of all,
by desiring to do all together."*
Of the diet's answer, which was in writing, and
which was in effect its decree, we give portions at
some length, as it was a most important document in
this stage of the Reformation.
" Concerning the demand to execute the sentence
given against Luther, and the edict of Worms, they
answered that they were most ready to employ all
their power to root out heresies ; but that they had
omitted to execute the sentence and edict for most
weighty and urgent causes, in regard that the greater
part of the people was persuaded by Luther's books
that the court of Rome had brought many grievances
upon Germany ; so that if anything had been done
for execution of the sentence the multitude would
have entered into suspicion that it was done to uphold
and maintain the abuses and impiety, and popular
tumults would have been raised, with danger of civil
wars. Wherefore the}r said that in such difficulties
more fitting remedies were necessary ; especially
himself, the nuncio, having confessed, in the pope's
name, that these evils proceeded from the sins of
men, and promised a reformation of the court of
Rome ; the abuses whereof, if they were not amended,
and the grievances removed, and some articles re
formed, it was impossible to make peace between the
ecclesiastics and seculars, and to extirpate the present
tumults. And because Germany had consented to
the payment of annates upon condition that they
should be spent in the war against the Turks, they
being paid so many years and never converted to
* Council of Trent, p. 24.

THE DIET OF NUREMBERG. 181
that use, they desired the pope that from henceforth
the court of Rome might not be troubled to exact
them, but that they might be left to the exchequer
of the empire for the expenses of that war. And
whereas his holiness demanded counsel of the means
by which he might oppose himself to so great incon
veniences, they answered that if the treaty were not
of Luther onlj*, but of rooting out altogether many
errors and vices which by long custom and for
divers respects have taken deep root, by some igno
rantly, by others maliciously defended, they deemed
no remedy more commodious, effectual, and oppor
tune than if his holiness, by the emperor's consent,
would call a godly, free, and Christian council, so
soon as it were possible, in some convenient place in
Germany, that is, in Argentine, in Mentz, Collen, or
Metz ; not deferring the convocation thereof above a
year ; granting power to every one, as well ecclesias
tical as secular, to speak and give counsel for the
glory of God and salvation of souls, any 6ath or
obligation to the contrary notwithstanding. Which
they, thinking that his holiness ought speedily to exe
cute, and being desirous to make for the interim the
best provision they were able, were resolved to
treat with the Elector of Saxony that the Lutherans
should neither write nor print any more ; and that the
preachers throughout all Germany should be silent in
those things that might cause, popular tumult, and
should preach the holy Gospel sincerely and purely,
according to the doctrine approved by the Church ;
not moving disputations, but reserving all controver
sies to the determination of the council. That the
bishops should depute godly and learned men to be
superintendents over the preachers, to inform and
correct them, yet so as that no suspicion might be

182 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
given that it was done to hinder the truth of the
Gospel ; that hereafter no new thing should be printed
before it was seen and allowed by honest and learned
men. Hoping by this means to provide against the
tumults, if his holiness will take order against the
grievance, and ordain a free and Christian council ;
not doubting but that the tumults will so be quieted,
and the greater part reduced to tranquillity. For
undoubtedly all honest men would respect the determ
ination of the council, when they saw that it was to
be celebrated quickly.
" Concerning married priests and religious men
who returned to the world, they thought it sufficient
if the ordinaries did impose upon them canonical
punishments, because the civil laws had made no
provision against them. But in case they commit
any wickedness, that the prince or magistrate in
whose territory they shall offend ought to give them
their due chastisement."*
This answer did not satisfy the pope's nuncio, and
he went on to reply to it. "He said that to refrain
from executing the decree against Luther to avoid
scandals was not right, that they ought to esteem the
salvation of souls more than worldly tranquillity ; and
that Luther's followers were by no means justified by
any faults of the Court of Rome, but that they ought
to bear with all patience whatever was amiss. And
thereupon he entreated them to execute the sentence
and edict before the diet ended. As to a council, he
hoped that it would not displease his holiness if they
had demanded it in more fitting terms, and therefore
besought them to take away all those words that might
give him any umbrage: as those, that the council
might be called by the emperor's consent ; and those
° Council of Trent, p. 26.

THE DIET OF NUREMBERG. 183
others, that the council might be celebrated rather in
one city than another. For if they were not taken
away it seemed they would bind his holiness's hands,
a thing which could not produce any good effect.
As to the preachers, he was anxious that the pope's
decree might be observed, and that none should preach
until his doctrine was examined by a bishop of the
Church. This of course would silence completely all
Luther's adherents. He said further that the answer of
the diet as to the printers and publishers of books in no
way pleased him ; that they ought to execute the sen
tence of the pope and emperor, to burn the books and
punish the divulgei'S, earnestly advertising them that
all consisted in this. That in reference to their pay
ment of annuities he would say nothing; his holiness
would answer that in a convenient time. But for the
married priests, the answer would not have displeased
him had it not had a sting in the tail,\where it was
said that if they shall do any wicked thing theyr shall
be punished by the princes and magistrates: For this
would be against the liberty of the Church, -and the
sickle would be put into another man's field, and
those men wduld be censured by the world who are
reserved unto Christ."*
It is no wonder for another reason that the nuncio
considered this clause as having a sting, for by saying
they were to be punished for any wickedness by the
magistrate or prince, it rather strongly implied that
there was no real sin in the marriage of a priest.
The diet did not like this answer any better than the
nuncio liked theirs, and after long discussion it was
resolved to give no other.
After the nuncio had taken his departure the secular
princes made a long complaint apart, reducing it to. a
* Council of Trent.

184 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
hundred heads, which they called centum gravamina.
These they sent to the pope, protesting that they
neither would nor could endure them any longer, and
that they were constrained by necessity and the in
iquity of them to seek with all industry to free them
selves from them, and by the most commodious ways
they could.
In them they complained of the payment for dis
pensations and absolutions ; of the money which was
drawn from them by indulgences ; of the suits in law
which were drawn to Rome ; of the reservation of
benefices and the abuses of commendsss and annates ;
of the exemption of the ecclesiastics in offenses ; of
excommunications and unlawful interdicts ; of lay
causes drawn before the ecclesiastical judge by divers
pretenses ; of the great expenses in consecrating
churches and church-yards ; of pecuniary penance ;
of expenses to have the sacraments and the burial.
All which were reduced to three principal heads : to
inthrall the people, to rob them of their money, and
to apprppriate unto themselves the j urisdiction of the
secular magistrate. Thus ended the Diet of Nuremberg.

CHAPTER XII.
THE INTERIM.

In a little while all these things were printed, the
pope's instructions, the nuncio's speech, the replies,
and the hundred grievances, and spread over Ger
many and other nations, and even to Rome itself.
The candid confession of the pope, that all the mis
chief proceeded from the court of Rome and from the

THE INTERIM. 185
ecclesiastical order, was not relished there, for they
knew it would encourage their adversaries. They
blamed the pope much for acknowledging it, and
commended the wise policy of Leo X., who had at
tributed the bad opinion which Germany conceived
of the manners of the court to the want of knowing
it. But least of all did they like the attack upon their
purses which the bold Germans had made.
The pope's confession, which was meant to concili
ate, was no better received in Germany than in Rome,
for the people said it was meant to lull them to sleep,
and to gain time, so as to treat with their princes, and
the better to bind the common people in their old
chains. The pope's promise to remedy the abuses of
the Church by degrees they treated as a joke, saying
it was well said, step by step, if.it had not been that
a whole age was between one step and another.
Adrian VI. was almost too good for the position in
which he was placed. He was called away from the
embarrassments and cares which surrounded him al
most as soon as he received the relation of his nuncio
from Nuremberg. He died September 13, 1523.
'How was the action of the diet now to affect the
progress of the Gospel ? Not unfavorably, for the Re- ,
formers, though forbidden to write and print, saw that
their cause was defended by the princes, and they
feared little their opposition in spreading their books.
And as to preaching, each party interpreted the edict
according to their own views. They Were forbidden
to preach those things which might cause popular
tumult. The priests said they were not to preach of
those things brought in by Luther, and of the reproofs
which he had so forcibly dealt against them. The
Protestants said they were not to speak of those abuses
of their doctrine by the Anabaptists, with which their

186 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
adversaries had stirred up the people against them.
And that part of the decree which commanded to
preach the Gospel according to the doctrine of writers
approved by the Church, the Romanists understood,
according to the schoolmen; but the Lutherans said
it was to be understood of the holy fathers, Hilary,
Ambrose, Augustine, and the like.
The late pope being dead, Julio de Medicis was
raised to the pontifical chair under the name of Clem
ent VII. A man of far greater cunning and political
management than Adrian, he set himself about the
affairs of Germany. A diet was to assemble again in
Nuremberg in three months, and he sent a legate
with his instructions to appear before it. Lorenzo
Campeggio, Cardinal of St. Anastasia, started in great
hope that he would succeed better than the former
nuncio in setting the good Germans right in their re
ligious views. It would require too much space to
detail the proceedings of this diet as fully as we have
done the kst. The legate urged them to put in exe
cution the decree of Worms against the Lutherans.
To burn and otherwise destroy all who differed from
Rome they thought was the most effectual way to
bring them back to the true mother Church. But the
diet, not regarding this as a settled truth, would nqt
grant their request, and no result was reached of im
portance. The Germans, however, reiterated their
demands for a general council to be held in Germany.
After the diet had broken up, and the Protestant
princes had left it, the legate brought together those
who favored Rome in Ratisbon, and caused a decree
to be made by them, that the edict of Worms against
Luther should be put in execution as far as possible
in all their dominions and states. That in the mass
and sacraments no change should be made; and that

THE INTERIM. 187
all apostates, monks, nuns, and married priests, and
those who received the communion without confession,
or ate forbidden meats, should be punished. And as
the University of Wittemberg was a nest of heresy,
they commanded all their subjects to depart from that
place within three months. As this and other regu
lations which they pretended to make were legislating
within the bounds of the princes who had been at
Nuremberg, and were not at Ratisbon, it was hardly
to be expected that the latter would receive the new
decrees with a very warm welcome. The legate of
the pope did not expect they would. He rather de
sired to satisfy his master than he did the Germans,
and to convince him that he had made an arrange
ment which would prevent the necessity of a general
council, to which the pope was extremely averse.
In. the mean time there was'another personage who
had not been present at its session, who was little
satisfied with the decree of Nuremberg. The Emperor
Charles V. was at war with France, and desired
greatly the influence of Clement in his favor. He
therefore wrote to the princes reproving them sharply
for presuming to give so positive an answer to a foreign
potentate without his consent, commanding them to
enforce the edict of Worms, and that if they wanted
a general council it was his bnsiness to arrange it with
the pope, and that all regulations in religious matters
he and the holy father would attend to themselves.
The emperor's letters were more imperious than the
Germans were accustomed to receive from his prede
cessors, and, in the quaint language of an old historian,
" moved very dangerous humors in the minds of many
princes, which, floating up and down, might easily
have come to a troublesome conclusion."
The insurrections of the peasants, however, and the

188 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
wars consequent upon them in Germany ; the battle
of Pavia, and the capture by Charles of Francis L,
Xing of France, in Italy, turned the minds of men in
other directions.
It was not until the year 1526 that another diet was
held. In June all the German states of the empire
assembled in Spira. An event, however, which prop
erly belongs to our subject, occurred the year before,
which we will now notice.
In the year 1523 some nuns escaped from an Au
gustinian convent by concealing themselves in bar
rels. A careless spectator would have supposed there
was passing him simply a load of empty barrels ; but
there were hearts there, weary of the gloomy life they
had led, and now beating high with hopes of freedom.
They were soon among friends, where they were com
paratively safe. One of these escaped nuns was
Catharine Von Bora, to whom Luther was married in
June, 1525, he being at that time forty-two years of
age and Catharine about twenty-six.
His enemies, and even some friends, have censured
him for this step ; but Luther was no doubt well con
vinced that there was no authority in the Scriptures
requiring celibacy in a minister of God. Melancthon
and Carlstadt were married in the year 1520.
In the year of Luther's marriage his friend and
protector, the noble and powerful advocate of the
Reformers' principles, Frederic of Saxony, died. He
was succeeded by his brother John, a firm supporter
also of their doctrines.
We return to the Diet of Spira, which was held, as
we have said, in the year 1526, an assembly of more
than ordinary importance to the Protestant cause.
So many different interests were represented that for
a long time it seemed impossible to come to any con-

THE NAME PROTESTANT. 189
elusion. There were the ministers of the emperor,
there were the adherents of Luther, and there were
the partisans of Rome. Their contentions ran so high
that several of the princes prepared todeave the diet
rather than yield to the demands of the ecclesiastics.
The emperor's friends feared that their sittings would
be broken up, and a civil war between the German
states would be the consequence. They therefore
yielded on their side in some things, and brought the
others finally to settle on a decree which requested
the emperor to provide for a council in Germany
within a year, or a universal council of all Christendom
within the same space ; and that in the mean time
all the princes and states should' so govern in their
provinces and jurisdictions that they might give a
good account of their actions to God and the emperor.
This latter clause was the material part. It was
called the interim, .and gave the liberty to regulate
religious matters according to the pleasure of each
ruler. It became famous afterward, as it was a first
step toward the religions liberty which the German
princes afterward claimed.

CHAPTER XIII.
THE NAME PROTESTANT  AUGSBURG CONFESSION
 LEAGUE OF SMALCALD  TRIUMPH OF THE
REFORMERS.
We will not tarry at intermediate minor events,
but pass to the second Diet of Spira, which was held
in the year 1529. There severe edicts were passed
against the Protestants, notwithstanding the opposi-

190 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
tion of the Elector of Saxony and of the princes
favorable to him. Then an important era opens be
fore us in the history of the German Reformation, an
era which beholds a regularly organized opposition to
papal aggression.
A formal protest was subscribed and published
against the decrees of the diet. It was signed by
John of Saxony, Ernest and Francis, dukes of Bruns-
wick-Lunenberg, Wolfgang of Anhalt, George, mar
grave of Brandenberg, and Philip, landgrave of Hesse-
Homberg. Several of the free towns of Germany
soon declared their adhesion to them, including the
great cities of Strasburg, Ulm, and Nuremberg. This
protest appeared on the 19th day of April, 1529, and
should be ever memorable as having been the source
of that title which has come down to our times with
increasing luster, the title of Protestant.
The pope now urges Charles .to severity, saying
that the edict of Worms should be executed without
heeding anything that the Protestants could say ; that
all their excuses were only pretenses of impiety, and
that he should use force against the first disobedience.
Such a course, said he, is the only one suited to the
emperor's office as advocate of the Church of Rome,
and to the oath he had taken. It was better to pro
ceed to force than let the reins loose to popular license,
to the ambition of the grandees, and perverseness of
the arch-heretics.
Charles determined to act according to the pontiff's
advice, and to go personally into Germany and put
an end to all religious opinions different from the
orthodox, and, if need be, to the men holding them.
It was a work a little too great both for the emperor
and pope.
He appointed an imperial diet, to be held at Augs-

THE NAME PROTESTANT. 191
burg on the 8th of April, 1530, and set out himself to
attend it in the March preceding, determined that his
disobedient subjects should return to their obedience
and to the arms of the holy mother Church, and that
the troublesome heretic sermons and heretic books
should be banished forever from the empire.
The pope appointed Cardinal Campeggio to repre
sent him as legate, and Peter Paul Vergerius as
special nuncio to Ferdinand, the emperor's brother,
in Germany, with instructions to labor with him to
prevent all disputations in the diet and all consulta
tions concerning religion. The holy father found that
these religious conferences at the diets were bringing
out too much Hght, and that men thus got hold of too
much of the Bible to remain good Catholics ; and his
idea was to compel them to believe just by pointing to
the fagot and the block ; and if they were not con
vinced by such strong arguments as these, it was use
less to reason with them, and the surest and the quickest
and the safest way was to make an end of them at once.
By way of gaining Ferdinand, Vergerius was
authorized to allow Frederic to take a contribution
from the clergy of Germany to help him in his war
against the Turks, and to use the gold and silver
ornaments of the churches for the same purpose. A
very fair arrangement, no doubt, it seemed to the
good father, to make the German priests pay for
bayoneting Turks, as well as cutting the throats of
Protestants. In due time the emperor arrived at Augsburg. A
grand procession took place on the following day, at
which the Protestants did not appear, which the
pope's legate regarded as an insult to his holiness.
The diet having commenced, a document was pre
sented by the Elector of Saxony and other princes,
Hi.t. Refonnntiin. ^3

192 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
written by Melancthon, and containing the religions
views of the Reformers. The emperor refused to have
it read on that day, and it was put off until the next,
when it was publicly read before the assembly. The
pope's legate, however, would not be present. This
paper was the celebrated Augsburg Confession, after
ward so well known. The followers of Zwingle also
presented their confession, which was in substance
the same as the other, except in the doctrine of the
sacrament. Before any action was taken the emperor caused
the Lutheran confession to be read by the legate, so
that he might have his advice upon it. The latter
found himself in a singular dilemma. He could not
approve of it, and he hardly dared to say much
against it for fear of fresh discussions in the diet,
which he was greatly afraid of; and he told the em
peror that there was such an itching of ears to hear,
that by attempting to correct their errors the remedy
would be worse than the disease. He at last came to
the conclusion to have a confutation of their articles
read, but not to give them any copies, for fear they
should reply to it again ; and that instead of argu
ments, the Protestants should be plied with threats and
promises of favors. Melancthon, however, answered
the legate's paper in what is known as the " Apology
for the Augsburg Confession."
After much debate seven Roman Catholics were
appointed and seven Protestants to confer together.
They were not able to agree, and then the number
was reduced to three on each side, who were equally
unable to come to any conclusion. The princes were
then urged separately and privately, but nothing
could induce them to yield a single principle ; and
finally, seeing that the majority was against them, and

THE NAME PROTESTANT. 193
that the emperor was determined to put things to
extremes, and unwilling by their presence to give any
seeming countenance to the edict about to be passed,
they left the diet.
The emperor then caused a decree to be passed
altogether in favor of the Romish Church. Nothing
was to be changed in the mass ; , the images should
remain, and be restored where they had been taken
away ; that married priests should forsake their wives ;
that the people should be exhorted to hear mass, to
pray to the Virgin Mary and other saints ; that the
monasteries and other sacred edifices which had been
destroyed should be rebuilt, and that every one was
to employ all his forces, possessions, life and blood, to
preserve this decree, and that the imperial chamber
proceed against whomsoever shall oppose it.
It was also resolved to request the pope to call a
council in six months, to be held within a year.
It may be supposed that this decree would have
satisfied the pope. But this was far from being the
case. He bitterly complained that the confessions
had been read at all, or that any conferences had
been held to settle the religious differences. It was
his business alone to do that. Every one else was to
believe as he said ; and if they did not, all that the
emperor and princes had to do was to draw the sword
and smite them.
But the worst of all was to ask him to call a coun
cil. It was assailing his dignity even to request him
to do so. If a council was necessary he could call it
himself, without any suggestion from the diet or
emperor. But it was done, and done by his friends, and it
would seem like a fresh schism if he refused. So he
issued a summons for a general council, exhorting

194 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION. .
kings and princes to attend it ; but that he might
make sure that it could not be held without a further
order from himself, he named no time or place for its
meeting. As this was a material omission, men who
had not great faith in the pope's sincerity regarded it
as a kind of subterfuge.
•In the mean time the Protestants were not idle.
They saw their danger, and were resolved to provide,
as far as possible, against it. Denying the authority
of the emperor in matters of religion, they formed a
solemn alliance at Smalcald to defend with their
utmost vigor their religion and their liberties against
the encroachments threatened by the decree of Augs
burg ; and to carry this into effect they agreed with
each other to maintain an army to defend .their
opinions. They next sent letters to the kings of France and
England, whose replies encouraged them to hope for
succor from them.
In the mean time accusations were brought against
the Protestants, and sentences passed in several places
against them ; but public opinion was so strong in
their favor that they were not executed. Besides,
Charles was too much occupied in carrying on a war
against the Turks to desire a civil war among his own
people ; and he feared that if he undertook to compel
the united princes to obey the edict of Augsburg he
would bring himself into collision with France and
England. He was therefore disposed to yields and
on the 25th day of July of the following year (1581)
he agreed to what is known as the pacification of
Nuremburg, in which the previous severe edicts were
annulled and the Protestants allowed to use their own
ceremonial of devotion, and to profess publicly the
Reformed religion.

THE POPE TREATS WITH LUTHER. 195
This was a triumphant day for Luther and his
friends, a day in which they saw the principles for
which they had so long and so earnestly struggled
legally recognized and sanctioned in their country.

CHAPTER XIV.
THE POPE TREATS WITH LUTHER.
In the year 1534 Clement VII. died, and was suc
ceeded by Paul III., a pope who was said to have had
many virtues, and who himself, among them all,
esteemed his own powers to dissemble the greatest.
He made up his mind that he would not appear to
be so much afraid of a council as Clement had been.
He went to work earnestly to calm the storms which
had rendered so uneasy the seat of his predecessor.
One of his first acts was to bring Vergerius from
Germany, to ascertain exactly how matters stood in
that country. Sending him back, he told him to see
Luther and the other Reformers, and by persuasions
and promises to bring them to Rome. It was a
remarkable step for the pope to take, thus to treat
with the humble friar. We will see with what
success.* Vergerius found Luther at Wittemberg, and ad
dressing him with great respect, went on to deliver
his message from the pope. He told him that the
pope and college of cardinals esteemed him exceed
ingly, and were infinitely grieved at the loss of one
who, if he had been employed in the service of God
and the apostolical see, (which, said the subtile nun-
* Council of Trent, pp. 68-TO.

196 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
cio, are joined together,) might have brought forth
inestimable fruit ; and that they would do whatsoever
they could to regain him. He said- that the pope
blamed Cajetan for his rigor, and the cardinals cen
sured him also. Even the pope, Leo X., was to be
condemned for the same thing. He did not wish to
dispute with him as to the controversies in question,
because he professed not divinity ; but common rea
son was sufficient to convince him that it was good to
reunite himself to the head of the Church: for his
doctrines, which had come to light and been published
within eighteen years, had already raised innumer
able sects, who detested each other, and so many
popular seditions, with the death and banishment of
so great multitudes, that it could not be supposed it
came from God. He might well assure himself that
it was pernicious to the world when so much evil
came from it. "And," continued Vergerius, "it was
too great a self-love, and too great a conceit of one's
own worth, for a man to trouble the whole world in
sowing his own opinions. If you have made an
innovation on the faith in which you were born, and
brought up for thirty-five years, for your conscience
and salvation's sake, it was sufficient to keep it within
yourself. If the love of your neighbor moved you,
why did you trouble the whole world unnecessarily,
seeing that without it men did live, and God was
served in tranquillity ?
" The confusion has gone so far," said he, " that the
remedy cannot be deferred. The pope is resolved to
apply it by calling a council. That he is a munificent
prince, and takes special notice of persons of merit ;
and that if Luther would come into the bosom of the
Church again, the holy father would grant him dis
tinguished honors, and ho would stand a good chance

THE POPE TREATS WITH LUTHER. 197
of being a cardinal, or perhaps pope." What a
thought ! Luther a pope ! And what a temptation,
after all the cares and perplexities through which he
had passed !
The Reformer replied with the vehemence which
was natural to him. He said he made no account of
the esteem which came from the court of Rome. He
feared not their hatred, nor regarded their good-will,
but applied himself to the service of God as much as
he could, though when he had done all he was but
an unprofitable servant ; that he saw not how the
services of God were joined with those of the papacy,
but as darkness with light ; that nothing in all his life
was more profitable to him than the rigor of Leo and
Cajetan, which he could not ascribe to them, but to
the providence of God. For not being as yet in those
times illuminated in all the truth of Christian faith,
but having only discovered the abuses of indulgences,
he was ready to have kept silence in case his adver
saries had done the like. But the writings of the
master of the holy palace, the insulting of Cajetan,
and the rigor of Leo constrained him to study and. to
descry many other less tolerable abuses and errors of
the papacy, which he could not, with a good con
science, refrain from declaring to the world. That
• the nuncio had ingenuously confessed that he under
stood not divinity, which appeared clearly by what
he said ; because as to its doctrine being new no one
could call it so but he that believed that Christ, the
apostles, and the holy fathers lived as now the pope,
cardinals, and bishops do. Neither can any argument
be drawn against the doctrine from the seditions hap
pened in Germany, but by him that hath not read the
Scriptures, and knoweth not that this is proper to the
word of God and the Gospel, that it stirreth up troubles

198 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
and tumults even to the separation of the father from
the son wheresoever it is preached. That this was the
virtue of it — to give life to them that hearken to it,
and to bring greater damnation. to whosoever reject-
eth it.
Many other things Luther said in his reply,* assert
ing at the close that the nuncio, yea, the pope himself
would sooner embrace his faith than he would abandon
it. Vergerius tried some of the other Protestant
preachers, but met with the same result from them.
We may judge it was not a hasty or partial attempt
which the nuncio made to move the Reformers, for he
did not return to Rome until the year 1536. Then
he gave an account of his embassage to the pope, as
suring him that there was no hope at all of Luther
and his accomplices, except to oppress them with war.
The pope sent him to the emperor to incite him to
that righteous work, but the latter was not ready yet
to proceed to extremities.

CHAPTER XV.
LUTHER'S DEATH.
Through various vicissitudes theReformers struggled
without coming to open hostilities with their adver
saries until the year 1546. This was an eventful year.
It witnessed Luther's death. It witnessed the famous
Council of Trent fully organized, having formally
opened in 1545 ; and resulting from it, the commence
ment of a bloody war between the Protestants and
their relentless foes. * Council of Trent.

LUTHER'S DEATH. 199
The religious hero of Germany had grown infirm.
Though but sixty-three years of age, cares beyond the
ordinary lot of men had fallen to his share. Study,
toil, and anxiety had made great inroads upon a con
stitution once so strong.
Early in 1546 he came to Eisleben, his native place,
to settle some disputes between the noblemen of that
place. Here he was received with great pomp, but
was soon taken sick, and it became evident to
others and to himself that his recovery was doubt
ful. On the 16th of February he said to one of his
friends :
" Here I was born and baptized ; what if I should
remain to die here also."
On the 18th of the same month, only two days after
ward, he died. Just before he lost his speech he
prayed aloud in these words :
" O my heavenly Father, God of our Lord Jesus
Christ, the Father of all consolation, I thank thee for
having revealed to me thy well-beloved Son, in whom
I trust, whom I have acknowledged and preached
and loved ; but whom the pope, and they who have
no religion, persecute and oppose. To thee, O Jesus
Christ, I commend my soul. I am casting off this
earthly body and passing from this life ; but I know
that with thee I shall abide eternally."
Death approached, finding in him the same firm
faith which he had preached, and a sure and steadfast
hope of eternal life.
He then repeated three times the words :
" Into thy hands I commit my spirit ; thou hast
redeemed me, 0 God of truth !"
One said to him :
"Dearest father, do you verily confess Jesus Christ
the Son of God, our Saviour and Redeemer ?"

200 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Making a great effort, he replied in a tone loud
enough to be heard by all around him :
"Yes."
This was his last word. In the language of an elo
quent writer: "The coldness of death gathered on
his face and forehead ; his breath came heavily, and
with eyes closed and his hands clasped, he remained
apparently unconscious of what passed around him,
until, between two and three o'clock, the tide of mor
tal life ebbed back, leaving the mighty spirit landed
in eternity."
Perhaps no one felt Luther's death more than Me
lancthon, who has been called the greatest of his sur
viving associates. He burst into tears when the sad
tidings were conveyed to him, exclaiming, in the lan
guage -of Elisha : " My father, my father, the chariot
of Israel and the horsemen thereof."

CHAPTER XVI.
THE COUNCIL OF TRENT  BATTLE OF INSPRUCK—
TREATY OF PASSAU.
In the year 1545 a council of the Church assem
bled to settle the differences of opinion which agitated
the world. The Protestants refused to participate in
it because it was to be held at Trent, a place within
the jurisdiction of the pope. They had insisted upon
its being held in some other city. Long had a gen
eral council been talked of, and now it was to be seen
whether peace should come from it, as was antici
pated, or not. Almost as soon as it met, decrees
were promulgated against the Reformers, and the

THE COUNCIL OF TRENT. 201
pope and the emperor resolved on the utter extirpa
tion of all who refused conformity to them, and an
army was raised to reduce them to obedience.
The Protestant princes flew to arms. It was their
only remaining refuge. They attacked the emperor's
camp at Ingoldstadt ; but in consequence of divisions,
and the failure of France in paying the subsidy which
she had promised, they were soon obliged to abandon
their position. The heroic John Frederic, Elector of
Saxony, betrayed by his nephew Maurice, Duke of
Saxony, was obliged to direct his march homeward.
The emperor, Charles V., pursued him closely, so that
he might destroy his army before he could recover
his vigor. He overtook him near Miihlberg, on the
Elbe ; and on the 24th day of April, 1547, a bloody
action took place between them. The Protestant
army was completely routed, and the Elector of Sax
ony, who had so long and ably defended their cause,
was taken prisoner. The brave and courageous Land
grave of Hesse, the other principal Protestant leader,
was persuaded to throw himself on the mercy of the
emperor, and to implore his pardon. Charles had
promised that if he did so he should be restored to
liberty ; but notwithstanding his promise, he was
basely detained a prisoner.
Maurice was declared Elector of Saxony.
The prospects of true religion were now gloomy
enough. The Protestants seemed to be subdued, and
their enemies triumphed.
Relief came, however, from .a quarter which was
not expected. Maurice, now Elector of Saxony, be
gan to think that the Emperor Charles had conceived
designs against the liberties of the Glrman princes.
He determined to take effectual measures to crush
them ; and entering into an alliance with the King

202 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
•
of France, and a number of the German princes,
with great secresy and expedition he raised a power
ful army ; and in the year 1552 he marched against
Charles, who was at Inspruck, expecting no foe, and
attacked and completely defeatedmim.
In this struggle the King of France, though a Ro
man Catholic prince, rendered great service to the
Protestant cause ; so much so that he received the
title of "Protector of the German liberty, and avenger
of the captive princes."
It was as a consequence of this battle that the
treaty of Passau was concluded, which is considered
the foundation of the religions liberty of the German
Protestants. By this treaty it was agreed that the contending
parties should enjoy the free exercise of their religion,
until a diet assembled, which was to be in six months,
and that this religious liberty should continue always,
if it should be found impossible to agree as to doc
trines and worship.
The diet proposed was delayed by various circum
stances until the year 1555, when it met at Augsburg.
On the 25th day of September it was enacted,
" that the Protestants who followed the Confession of
Augsburg should be for the future considered as en
tirely free from the jurisdiction of the Roman pontiff,
and from the authority and superintendence of the
bishops; that they were left at perfect liberty to. enact
laws for themselves relating to their religious senti
ments, discipline, and worship; that all the inhabit
ants of the German empire should be allowed to
judge for themselves in religious matters, and to
join themsel^s to that Church whose doctrine
and worship they thought the most pure and con
sonant with the spirit of true Christianity ; and that

v GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS. 203
all those who should injure or prosecute any persons
under religious pretenses, and On account of their
opinions, should be declared and proceeded against
as public enemies of the empire, invaders of its lib
erty, and disturbers of its peace."
Thus in the year 1555 religious liberty became
triumphant, and from this time we may date one of the
signal victories of the great Reformation in Germany.
As we come to this successful result of the Re
formers' labors, and look back and behold the strug
gles which their religious liberty has cost them, we
rejoice at this day in one thing, they have, never since
given up ihe Hible. While we mourn over the present
coldness of the national Church, and cannot deny the
obscurity which has come upon those great doctrines
for which Luther contended, yet the Germans still
cling to the Bible. Their fathers suffered, and shed
their blood for the right to read it, and they have
never forgotten the lesson which they learned. Com
mencing with childhood, they t'each their children to
read, perhaps, more universally than any other nation
of Europe ; and there is no restriction to the word of
God. All may read it, and multitudes do so ; and
multitudes who are the countrymen of Luther have
been led to Christ, even in our own country, and are
now faithful witnesses to the truth.

CHAPTER XVII.
GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS.
There are some events subsequent to, yet so in
timately connected with the Reformation in Ger
many, that they seem to form part of it.

204 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Seventy-five years after the last-named Diet of
Augsburg, notwithstanding the victory which the
Reformation had achieved, and notwithstanding about
seventy years' peaceable enjoyment of their religion,
the Protestants of Germany seemed to have lost
everything before the victorious and cruel Tilly ex
cept Magdeburg.
The next year that city also fell with horrible
slaughter into the hands of the ferocious conqueror,
now an old man of seventy years, who, when implored
by his own officers to have mercy on the unresisting
citizens, told them to return in an hour, and said
coolly that " the soldier must have something for his
labor and danger." In less than half an hour tlie
work of blood was at its height. The furious soldiers
spared neither age nor sex.
Three or four days after the carnage Tilly rode
slowly through the city, gloating oh the heaps of dead
bodies with which the streets were covered.
Was the work of the Reformers then lost? Did
Luther, Melancthon, Erasmus, and thousands of pious
Christians live in vain for Germany ? No ; not if the
great work had stopped where it then was, for great
numbers had washed their robes and made them
white in the blood of the Lamb, and were already
safely home in heaven.
But a deliverer was at hand in this hour of extreme
peril for the truth of God.
Gustavus Adolphus, the renowned King of Sweden,
had been long watching the struggles of his sufferina
brethren with intense interest. He at last determined
to leave" his kingdom and march to their assistance.
Entering the Senate-house at, Stockholm on the
20th of May, 1630, he bade farewell to his country
men. He had already taken every precaution to

GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS. 205
leave his kingdom in safety in case he should never
return ; and as he took his little daughter Christina
in his arms, he made the nobles swear fidelity to her
if he should perish. As he proceeded with his part
ing address, his emotion was so great that he was
obliged to pause for some time, while the whole as
sembly was bathed in tears.
" It is not lightly," said he, " or without due de
liberation, that I involve myself and you in this new
and dangerous war. Almighty God is my witness
that I fight not for my own pleasure. The emperor
has offered me, in the person of my ambassador, the
grossest insults; he has assisted my enemies, my
friends and brethren he persecutes, tramples my re
ligion in the dust, and stretches out his hand to seize
my crown. The oppressed people of Germany ur
gently implore our aid, and, if it please God, they
shall not be disappointed. I know the dangers to
which my life will be exposed: these I have never
shunned, nor do I hope eventually to escape them.
It is true, that until the- present hour the Almighty
hath marvelously preserved me ; but I shall die at
last in defense of my native land. I commend you
all to the protection of heaven. Be upright, be
conscientious, walk unblamably, so shall we meet
one another again in eternity. To you,, my counsel
ors, I first address myself. May God enlighten you,
and fill you with wisdom, that you may ever advise
that which conduces most to the welfare of my king
dom. You, brave nobles, I commend to the protec
tion of God. Go forth and prove yourselves worthy
descendants of those heroic Goths who laid ancient
Rome in the dust. You, ministers of the Church, I
exhort to unanimity and concord. Be yourselves
ensamples of those virtues which ye preach, and

206 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
abuse not your dominion over the souls of my people.
To you, deputies of the burgher and peasant orders,
I wish the blessing of heaven, a joyful harvest to re
ward your toils, fullness to your barns, and abundance
of all .the good things of life. For all, absent as well as
present, I offer my prayers to heaven. I now bid you
affectionately farewell — farewell, perhaps forever !"
On the 24th of June, 1630, Gustavus landed at
Usedom. His brave Swedes were the most for
midable soldiers of the time, thoroughly disciplined,
experienced in battle, and their hearts fired with the
thought that they were fighting for God and their
oppressed brethren.
As soon as they landed in Germany their king fell
upon his knees and implored the help of God in his
undertaking. His army consisted' of only sixteen
thousand men, and the Protestants hailed his arrival
with great joy, and called him the " Lion of the
North." But at Vienna they regarded him with con
tempt, and named him in derision the " Snow King,"
because they said he would melt away as he ap
proached the south. It was soon to be decided
which was right.
Gustavus Adolphus advanced to Berlin, whore he
made a treaty with George William, the elector, and
eighteen thousand Saxons joined the Swedes. Thence
he marched to Leipsic, where the Imperial and
Swedish armies met. The difference between them
was extremely striking, as is shown by the following
description :
" In the camp of Gustavus religious service was reg
ularly performed, sometimes to the army in general, on
which occasions the king was always present ; some
times by the chaplain of each regiment to those more
immediately intrusted to his charge. The kindness

GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS. 207
with which the Swedish soldiers treated the unarmed
citizens and peasants, the strict morality of their lives,
and the gentleness of their manners, rendered them
universally objects of respect and love, and presented
a striking contrast to the fearful oaths and shouts of
licentious revelry with which Tilly's camp resounded
day and night, and to the cruelties practiced by his
soldiers on the defenseless inhabitants."
On the 7th of September, 1631, the battle com
menced, from which it appears that Gustavus had
been over a year already in Germany. This time had
been principally employed in making suitable pre
liminary arrangements with the Protestant princes.
The Swedish soldiers Wore no armor, so that they
might be prepared for rapid movements, and had
with them only a light train of field artillery. The
imperialists, wore cuirasses, greaves, and helmets, and
relied much on their heavy ordnance.
Gustavus Adolphus, dressed in a simple gray sur-
tout, with a white hat and gray feather, rode in front
jof the line and exhorted his men to fight bravely.
They were arranged in separate bodies, while Tilly's
army was formed in one long line, with his artillery
on a hill just behind him.
And now the fate of Protestant Germany appeared
to rest on this eventful day. The scene of carnage
opened with a cannonade which wrapped everything
in smoke and fire, and continued about two hours.
Tilly then, leaving his position on the hills, marched
against the right wing of the Swedes. Turned aside
by their destructive fire, he poured impetuously on
the Saxons, who sbon fled in confusion.
While fortune seemed thus turning against the
army of Gustavus, the redoubtable Pappenheim, at
the head of his terrible cuirassiers, charged the
Hi.t. Reformation. 14

208 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Swedes. They were firm against the shock as the
ground they stood upon. Again rallying, they
rushed impetuously upon the northern heroes, but
were again repulsed. Irritated, and accustomed to
see everything yield before them, they formed the
third time, and the third time were obliged to fall
back. Thus six times they endeavored to break
the ranks of the courageous Swedes. The seventh
time they advanced, maddened by their ill success,
and by the thought of all their former victories, de
termined to overwhelm their foemen. The Swedes
received them with the same unflinching courage.
They were repulsed the seventh time, but as soon as
their ranks broke the order was given to advance,
and the Swedes drove them before them with great
loss. Pressing on to the heavy artillery of the Im
perialists, they seized it, and immediately turned it
against Tilly, who was pursuing the Saxons. Then
attacking Tilly on the side next to them, they threw
him into irrecoverable confusion.
The Imperial army was soon almost annihilated,.
Four regiments of veterans, gray in the service, re
solved to be cut in pieces rather than yield, and fought
desperately until night came on. Tilly, now seventy-
two years of age, who had never before been defeated,
and never wounded, stood his ground, as if determined
not to leave the field. He had received three bullets
in his body, and was on the point of being slain by a
Swedish officer when he was rescued, and then fled.
All along his route his defeat was celebrated by a
song, the chorus of which was, " Fly, Tilly, fly," and
everywhere this chorus, sung by hundreds of voices,
reached his ears.
After this victory the country people rose in a
mass, and joined the army of Gustavus in great nnm-

GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS. 209
bers. Now the banks of the Neckar and the Rhine
resounded with shouts of joy as the army of the liber
ator advanced, and -wherever they went the hand of
fellowship was extended to the Swedes.
Again Tilly rallied, took the town of Rotenburg,
and entrenched himself in a strong position on the
river Lech. Gustavus soon advanced to the opposite
bank, and during three days kept up a constant can
nonade. Then for the first time the Imperialists be
held a bridge which the Swedes had constructed
under cover of the smoke, over which a large portion
of their army had already crossed. In a transport of
rage Tilly rushed forward to meet them, but a cannon
ball struck his thigh, producing a wound of which he
soon afterward died.
The celebrated and infamous Wallenstein succeeded
Tilly in the command of the Imperial troops, who, by
his personal influence and his immense private re
sources, soon succeeded in raising a formidable army.
The two armies met near the village of Liitzen on the
6th of November.
In front of the Swedish line Gustavus knelt down
before his soldiers, and prayed to the God of battles
for success. The whole army then sang Luther's
battle hymn, "A steadfast fortress is our God," the
field music of the different regiments playing the ac
companiment. The king then mounted his horse
and rode through the ranks encouraging his soldiers.
The battle-cry of the Swedes was, "God with us;" that
of the Imperialists, " Jesu — Maria."
We will give a description of this battle, so import
ant to the Protestant cause in Germany, in the words
of one from whom we have already quoted :
" The fog in some measure dispersing about eleven
o'clock, the two armies began to be visible to each

210 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
other, and at the same moment the village of Liitzen
was discovered to be in flames, having been set on
fire by order of the Duke of Friedland, lest he should
be outflanked on that side. Half an hour later Gus
tavus gave the signal of attack, and the Swedish
infantry rushed forward to carry the trenches ; but a
murderous fire of artillery and small arms compelled
them to retreat. The voice of Gustavus soon rallied
them, and they fought with great fury, but without
making any impression on the Imperialists, until
Colonel Winkel, with a regiment of cavalry, forced
his way across two of the trenches, followed by the
Swedish body-guard. The battery was soon carried
and the guns turned against the Imperialists, then re
taken by Wallenstein, and again carried by the
Swedes, whose right wing was everywhere victorious
but their left, galled by the heavy fire from the wind
mill battery, was beginning to give way, when Gus
tavus rode forward, for the purpose of rallying them
The swiftness of his horse rendering it impossible for
the heavy cavalry to keep pace with their leader, he
soon found himself almost alone in the midst of the
enemy. Here a subaltern of the Imperial army, ob
serving the respect with which the unknown officer
was treated by his few followers, naturally concluded
that he was a person of importance, and called out to
a musketeer, ' Shoot that man, for I am sure that he
is an officer of high rank.' The soldier immediately
fired, and the king's left arm fell powerless by his side.
At this moment a wild cry was raised : ' The king
bleeds, the king is wounded.' 'It is nothing,' shouted
Gustavus, 'follow me.' But the pain soon brought
on faintness, and he desired the Duke of Lauenburg,
in French, to lead him out of the throng. While the
duke was endeavoring to withdraw him without being

GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS. 211
noticed by the troops, a second shot struck Gustavus,
and deprived him of his little remaining strength.
'I have enough, brother,' he said in a feeble voice
to the duke ; ' try to save your own life.' At the
same moment he fell from his horse, and in a short
time breathed his last. % His horse, bathed in blood,
and galloping wildly about the field, gave the first
intimation to the Swedish cavalry that their king had
fallen. A furious struggle for the recovery of his re
mains then took place between them and the Croatians,
and the disfigured corpse of Gustavus was soon buried
beneath a heap of dead. Meanwhile the sorrowful
tidings had reached the main body, and goaded the
Swedes almost to desperation. They fought with a
fury which nothing could resist, and the enemy was
already retreating when Pappenheim appeared, and
the battle began afresh. Nothing could exceed the
fierceness of this second engagement. The Swedish
yellow regiment, the flower of their army, lay dead,
each man in his rank, without having yielded an inch
of ground. Count Piccolomini, one of the imperial
generals, had seven horses shot under him, and re
ceived six wounds, but would not quit his post until
the battle was decided. Wallenstein rode through
the field like one bearing a charmed life ; right and
left his attendants and his cloak were pierced through
and through with bullets ; yet he escaped an wounded,
to fall at last by the hand of an assassin.
" Pappenheim received two shots in his breast and
was carried out of the battle. While they were con
veying him to the rear a rumor reached him that his
great rival was slain. The countenance of the
dying man brightened at this intelligence. ' Tell the
Duke of Friedland,' he said, 'that I lie here without
hope of life, but I die in peace, knowing that the

212 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
enemy of my faith has also fallen.' The mists of even
ing put an end to the fight. So little were the Swedes
aware of the advantage which they had gained, that
the question of an immediate retreat was seriously
discussed between Bernard of Saxe Weimar and Gen
eral Kniphausen ; and great was their surprise when
the light of morning made them aware that Wallen
stein had withdrawn his troops and left them masters
of the field.
" But the victory was dearly purchased. More
than nine thousand men lay dead on the field of bat
tle ; the whole plain, from Liitzen to the canal, was
strewed with the wounded and the dying.
" But the most melancholy feature of the Swedish
triumph was the loss of him who had died to achieve
it. " Thus fell, in the thirty-eighth year of his age,
Gustavus Adolphus, the great protector of Protest
antism in Germany."
Bernard of Saxe Weimar succeeded Gustavus in
command of the Swedes.
" The war in which Gustavus Adolphus defended
the Protestant cause, known as the Thirty Years' War,
was finally terminated by the peace of Westphalia,
signed October 24, 1648, which established the rela
tive claims of the Catholic and Protestant parties on
a basis which has remained almost undisturbed to
the present day."

TWO ERRORS. 213

CHAPTER XVIII.
TWO ERRORS.
We have now gone over a ground which has
been considered more in detail by different historians,
and we will devote a few pages to two important
errors of Luther, which, we doubt not, seriously
retarded the great work in which he was engaged.
Luther erred in contending so vehemently in favor
of his doctrine of. consubstantiation. To say that the
body and blood of Christ was literally present with
the bread and wine in the communion was not far
from Romanism. To hold this doctrine, as Luther
did, is not what we complain of, but harshly to
oppose those who, in the grand points of the Refor
mation, agreed with him, is what we condemn. Thus
Luther opposed Zwingle, the great Reformer of Swit
zerland. Thus he opposed Carlstadt, and his lan
guage could not be otherwise but prejudicial to the
cause for which he had so bravely fought. It is
strange that such a. mind as his did not see this, and lay
controversies aside, to fight with more effect the com
mon adversary. It is answered, that the darkness of
the times is Luther's excuse ; that it is wonderful he
did as much as he did. This is true, but should not
lead any one to conceal the truth. We may love the
memory of the man. We will be thankful to God
for all he accomplished, but at the same time we will
try to learn a lesson at the point where he erred.
But this is not all. We hesitate not to state that
Luther erred in his controversy with Erasmus, of
whom we have spoken fully in the history of the

214 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Reformation in England. D'Aubigne, as the exponent
of a Calvinistic theology, condemns Erasmus, and
eulogizes Luther in every point. Too many before
D'Aubigne, of like sentiments, have joined in a kind
of hue and cry against Erasmus. We admit that he
was timid. We admit that he quailed sometimes at
the thought of committing himself fully to the cause
of the Reformation ; but we cannot admit that the
great and learned Erasmus was the base coward he is
represented. It was through Erasmus that the New Testament
in Greek had been circulated in the colleges and
among the learned men of all Europe. It was the
" Colloquies" of Erasmus which had done such execu
tion among all classes against Romanism. It was of
Erasmus that men said, that he laid the egg that
Luther hatched. It was of Erasmus that they asserted
in Paris, he picked the lock which Luther opened.
And now it is asserted* that he went to work to
oppose the Reformation because he was fond of glory
and desired notoriety ; that " a capacious genius, and
the greatest reputation of the age were wanted to
oppose the Reformation," and that "Erasmus an
swered the call."
We cannot think thus. Erasmus said himself, " It
is possible that Erasmus, by writing against you, will
be of more service to the Gospel than certain dunces
who write for you, and who do not permit *him to be
a simple spectator of this tragedy."
He saw that Luther was in error on the subject of
predestination, and in the year 1525 published his
celebrated " Dissertation on the Freedom of the Will."
The reader will get some idea of his views, and
those of Luther, from short extracts. Erasmus says :
* D'Aubigne", vol. iii, p. 277.

TWO ERRORS. 215
" Some think that man can neither will nor com
mence, and still less perform any good work without
the special and continual aid of divine grace ; and this
opinion seems probable enough. Others teach that
man's will is powerless, except for evil, and that
it is grace alone which works in us any good-; and
finally, there are some who assert that there has never
been any free-will either in angels, or in Adam, or in
us, either before or after grace ; but that God works
in man both good and evil, and that everything
happens from an absolute necessity."
Erasmus took the first of these positions ; but D'Au
bigne says* he made use of arguments which con
futed it, and which the most decided Pelagian might
employ. And this because he quoted passages of
Scripture in which God offers man the choice be
tween good and evil, and because from these passages
Erasmus argues as follows: "Man must, therefore,
have the power to will and to choose ; for it would
be ridiculous to say to any one, Choose, when it was
not in his power to do so." Is not Erasmus right in
this proposition ? We think Erasmus was nearly
correct, both in his position and in the argument
cited, and that man, by the grace of God, has the
power to choose.
Luther replied, asserting that man had no free-will
in reference to God. He might have a free-will in
relation to the things of this life, to manage his farm,
his house, and all temporal things ; but in the things
of salvation he had none. He cited triumphantly the
passage of our Saviour, "Without me ye can do
nothing ;" and harshly taunted Erasmus with having
tried to overthrow it, when, in fact, he had employed
almost these very words in the position which he
* Hist, of the Reformation, vol. iii, p. 280.

216 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
took, that man cannot will, commence, or perform a
good work without divine grace.
D'Aubigne says, " Erasmus was vanquished." We
think the able historian would have judged otherwise
if he had not been born and educated in the Calvin
istic theology. We assert, moreover, that if Luther
had continued as he commenced, and urged men to
repentance and holiness, and told them, as Erasmus
did, that, by the aid of God's Spirit, they had the
power to choose, and must choose, the Reformation
would have spread still wider over Germany. And
that another effect would also have taken place : that
men who had broken loose from Romanism would
have been less engaged in controversies concerning
election, and predestination, and reprobation, and more
zealous to fulfill the laws of God, and enjoy holiness
of. heart.
A late writer says : " The monk of Wittemburg,"
that is, Luther, "was at first a warm friend and ad
mirer of the great scholar ; but finding that the lib
eral spirit of Erasmus was not ready, to adopt the
extreme tenets of the Reformers, he at first expostu
lated with, then ridiculed, and then denounced his
former friend as a time-server, a coward, and a foe to
true religion."*
Luther, however, accomplished the great and glo
rious work for which he was eminently fitted. We
admire his character, his courage, his decision; but
candor requires that we should not conceal his im
perfections. * New American Cyclop., Art., Erasmus.

THE

REFORMATION IN ERANCE.

THE

REFORMATION IN ERANCE.

CHAPTER I.

RELIGIOUS LIGHT IN FRANCE BEFORE THE REF
ORMATION — HER EARLY MARTYRS FOR CHRIST.
*
Long before the time of Luther, France promised
much in favor of true religion.
In the first place, she believed she was not bound
body and soul to the pope, but that she had certain
rights which could not be trampled upon ; these were
denominated the- liberties of the Gallican Church,
and for these she earnestly contended.
In the second place, the kings of France had re
peatedly assumed a noble independence in defiance
of the pope. Philip-le-Bel, in defense of the rights
of France, actually caused Boniface VIII. to be ar
rested in the midst of his states by a few soldiers,
under the Chancellor Nogaret. On one occasion the
King of France, having at his disposal a sufficient
number of votes of the sacred college to elect the
pope, offered the tiara to a French bishop, on con
dition that he should reside in France. The delighted
prelate fell into the snare, was elected, and Avignon
became the pope's residence for seventy years instead
of Rome. Clement V. and his successors found
themselves by this step in the power of the kings of
France, and for many years the popes were only

220 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
instruments in the hands of the French monarchs.
This was called the seventy years' captivity, and was
one of the greatest blows which Romanism received
previous to the Reformation.
In the third place, for centuries before the Reform
ation there were multitudes in France who advocated
the doctrines of the Bible.
On this point we will dwell more at large. It is
true that all through the dark ages there were many
witnesses of Christ in all nations who protested
against the practices of the Roman Catholic Church ;
but in France these witnesses appear to have been
particularly numerous. »
There was Berengarius, archbishop of Angiers.
There was Nicholas de Lyra, of whom it was said,
" Si Lyra non lyrasset,
Lutherus non saltasset."*
There was Peter Bruis. There was Henry, of
Toulouse ; and there were the Waldenses and Albi
genses, whose existence in France could be traced
back five or six centuries before the Reformation.
Some suppose the Waldenses tobk their rise from
Peter Waldo, who^lourished in the twelfth century ;
but this is probably a mistake. Waldo was one of
their disciples ; but they existed previously, and the
name itself is found in an ancient confessio n of their
faith before his time, brought to light by Pictetus.
Crantz (in his history of the United Brethren) says
that they date their origin from the fourth century,
when one Leo, under Constantine the Great, opposed
Sylvester, the Bishop of Rome. Reinerius, a Roman
Catholic historian, says that some averred their exist
ence to be from the time of Sylvester ; others, from
* If Lyra had not made the music, Luther would not have danced.

FRANCE BEFORE THE REFORMATION. 221
the very time of the apostles. • M. Sismondi, in his
history of the Crusades against the Albigenses, says :
" Those very persons who punished the sectaries with
frightful torments have taken it upon themselves to
make us acquainted with their opinions, allowing at
the same time that they had been transmitted in
Gaul (France) from generation to generation, almost
from the origin of Christianity."
Their doctrines were those which are now gener
ally called evangelical. A Roman Catholic writer
says that their first error, was affirming that the
Roman Catholic Church was not the Church of Christ ;
and that they rejected images, crosses, relics, auricular
confessions, indulgences, absolutions, clerical celibacy,
masses, prayers for the dead, purgatoiy, invocation to
saints and to the Virgin Mary, holy water, extreme
unction, confirmation, processions, and such things.
As to their morality, an ancient inquisitor, who is
of course their enemy, says : " These heretics are
known by their manners and conversation, for they
are orderly and modest in their behavior and de
portment. They avoid all appearance of pride in
their dress. They neither indulge in finery, nor are
they mean and ragged. They avoid commerce, that
they may be free from deceit and falsehood. They
get their livelihood by manual industry. They
are not anxious about amassing riches, but content
themselves with the necessaries of life. They are
chaste, temperate, and sober. They abstain from
anger. Even when they work, they either learn or
teach." Seisselius, archbishop of Turin, admits that,
" their heresy excepted, they generally live a purer
life than other Christians."
Reinerius, already quoted, gives one cause of their
great increase as follows :

222 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
" All of them, men and women, night and day,
never cease from teaching and learning. The first
lesson which the Waldenses teach those whom they
bring over to their party is to instruct them what
manner of persons the disciples of Christ ought to be ;
and this they do by the doctrine of the evangelists
and apostles, saying that those only are the followers
of the apostles who imitate their manner of life."
These were the Christians who preserved and spread
the doctrines of the Reformation in France. But it
must not be supposed they did so in quiet. Fierce
and bloody persecutions were constantly their lot.
About the year 1228 such numbers of them were
seized that the Archbishops of Aix, Aries, and Nar-
bonne took compassion on them, and thus expressed
themselves to the inquisitors :
" We hear that you have apprehended such a num
ber of Waldenses that it is not only impossible to
defray the charge of their food and confinement, but
to provide lime and stone .to build prisons for them."
In the year 1400 great numbers of them were
murdered, and multitudes driven into the Alps in the
depth of winter, where they were frozen to death.
In the year 1487, or, according to Fox, 1488, Pope
Innocent VIII. set on foot a persecution against them.
He sent the Archdeacon of Cremona to France, who,
on arriving in Dauphine, obtained the assistance pf
the king's lieutenant. They marched a body of troops
to the Valley of Loyse. There they found, however,
that the inhabitants, hearing of their approach, had
deserted their dwellings, and had fled to the caves and
mountains. They pursued them like beasts of prey,
throwing them headlong down the precipices, or
slaughtering them in whatever way their ferocity
dictated. Many, however, took refuge in caverns,

FRANCE BEFORE THE REFORMATION. 223
where they were able to elude their murderous pur
suers by knowing the intricate windings of these places
of their concealment. The archdeacon and lieutenant,
not being able to reach them, caused the months of
the caves to be filled with fagots, which being lighted,
the unfortunate Waldenses within were suffocated.
On searching the caves multitudes of men and
women were found dead. Four hundred infants were
discovered who had been smothered in their cradles
by the smoke, or clasped in their mothers' arms.
About three thousand men, women, and children Were
destroyed in this persecution.
Louis XII., who has been called " the father of his
people," came to the throne of France in the year
1498. While the unrelenting Romanists were carry
ing on their persecutions in Dauphine, the Waldenses
petitioned him for redress. Their innocence appeared
so evident to the king's commissioner, that he said
"he only desired to be as good a Christian as the
worst of them." The king thereupon ordered that
their property should be restored to them. The Arch
bishop of Ambrune defeated the king's intention by
alleging that the Waldenses had been excommuni
cated, and that their goods could not properly be re
stored until the sentence of excommunication was re
moved. Application was made to the pope to remove
this sentence, but he and the archbishop together took
good care that this should never take place, and it
never did.
On one occasion in Provence the pope undertook to
persecute the Waldenses. Louis, the King of France,
on hearing of it, sent messengers to inquire into
the matter. These messengers reported that the Wal
denses were not such dangerous or bad people as they
had been represented ; that they lived with perfect
Hi.t. Reformation. 15

224 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
honesty, were friendly to all persons, caused their
children to be baptized, had them taught the Lord's
prayer, creed, and ten commandments ; expounded
the Scriptures with purity, kept the Lord's day sacred,
feared God, honored the king, and wished well to the
state. " Then," said the king, " they are much better
Christians than myself or my Catholic subjects, and
therefore they shall not be persecuted." He was as good
as his word, and sent orders to stop the persecution.
At this time there were also great numbers of the
Albigenses, who are to be distinguished from the
Waldenses, scattered all through the south of France.
The pope determined to extirpate them. He called
on the nobles of France to assist him, promising them
spoil, wealth, and honor in this world, and certain sal
vation in the next. Multitudes flocked to his standard.
It was an easy way to purchase salvation and heaven.
The city of Bezieres was besieged. The governor,
thinking it impossible to defend the place, came out
to the pope's legate and implored mercy for the in
habitants, intimating that there were as many Roman
Catholics as Albigenses in the city. The legate
replied that all excuses were useless ; the city must
be delivered up to his discretion. The governor
returned, and told the inhabitants that he could ob
tain no mercy unless the Albigenses would embrace
the worship of the Church of Rome. The Roman
Catholics in the city pressed them to comply ; but
they nobly answered that they would not forsake their
religion for the base price of their frail life. That
they would rather displease the pope, who could but
kill their bedies, than God, who could cast both body
and soul into hell. Whereupon the popish party sent
to the legate, begging him not to include them in the
chastisement of the Albigenses, and that the best way

FRANCE BEFORE THE REFORMATION. 225
was to win them over by gentleness. The legate
fell into a violent passion, and declared that if
all the city did not acknowledge their fault they
should taste of one curse, without distinction of
religion, sex, or age.
A general assault was made, and the city was
taken by storm, when every cruelty that barbarity
could invent was practiced. " Nothing was to be
heard," says Foxe, " but the groans of men who lay
weltering in their blood, the lamentations of mothers,
who, after being violated by the soldiery, had their
children taken from them, and dashed to pieces before
their faces. The city being fired in various parts,
new scenes of confusion arose. In several places the
streets were streaming with blood ! Those who hid
themselves in their dwellings had only the dreadful
alternative to remain and perish in the flames, or
rush out and fall by the swords of the soldiers."
A messenger had been sent, inquiring how they
should distinguish the innocent from the guilty.
Amalric, abbot of Citeaux, the pope's legate, replied :
" Kill them ; kill them all ; kill man, woman, and
child. Kill Roman Catholics as well as Albigenses ;
for when they are dead the Lord knows how to pick
out his own."
Thus, with barbarous cruelty, the beautiful city
of Bezieres was reduced to a heap of ruins, and sixty
thousand persons were murdered !"
The infamous Simon, Earl of Monfort, was soon
afterward appointed leader of the papal forces. He
attacked the castle of Beron, and making himself
master of it, ordered the eyes to be put out and the
noses to be cut off of all the garrison, one person
alone excepted, who was deprived of one eye only,
that he might lead the rest away. ¦

226 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
These are specimens of the cruelties practiced in
France by the Roman Catholics previous to the
Reformation. As that era approached fresh light
seemed to be breaking on the nation from different
quarters. Louis XII. called together all the clergy
of France, by their representatives at Tours. This as
sembly declared that the king had a right to wage war
on the pope. This was a bold step against Romanism.
In the year 1512 Thomas de Vio advanced in one
of his works the idea that the pope was the absolute
monarch of the Church. Louis XH not approving
of this doctrine, laid the book before the university,
where a refutation of Vio's assertion was read, and
received with great applause. Thus the truth was
making rapid progress in France.

CHAPTER II.

WOULD THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH HAVE
REFORMED HERSELF?
We have already spoken of the great corruption of
the Church at the time of the Reformation. Roman
Catholic writers have freely admitted this. Says
one : " Rome, formerly so pure and so holy, is but a
shop in which everything is sold — orders, priesthood,
sins, sacrifices, masses ; for her, gold is everything'."
" I pass over in silence les impudiciUs et les
adulteres, by abstaining from which a person be
comes the derision and jest of the others. In fact,
the laity consider it as so certain that no priest
observes celibacy, that in most of the parishes they
will not have a priest at all unless he has a concubine,

WOULD THE ROMAN, CHURCH REFORM? 227
so that their own families may be in less danger.
Even then they are not safe."*
Says Silverius, who was afterward pope, under
the name of Pius II. : " If for good reasons they have
taken away marriage from priests, for better reasons
it ought to be restored."f
Says the Cardinal Cusan, in speaking of the clergy :
" All their care is for the temporal, nothing for the
spiritual.":): Clemangis says in another place : " What are nun
neries in these times but execrable houses of Venus,
or receptacles of young and wanton persons ; so that
now to make a girl a nun is to prostitute her."§
Would not the Roman Catholic Church have
reformed itself? History, by facts, answers, No.
Adrian VI., when he was pope, confessed candid
ly the deplorable state of the Church, and urged
reformation. He was the only one who was so
candid. The prelates of the Church opposed him,
accused him of impolicy in making such a confession,
and soon afterward he died, it is supposed, by poison.
Great joy was manifested after his death in Rome.
Some young men put up a crown, formed of
branches of trees, at the door of his physician, with
the inscription : " To the liberator of his country."
He was too good for Rome.
Fra Paolo Sarpi, the author of the celebrated work
called "The Council of Trent," undertook to narrate
everything connected with that assemblage literally
and exactly. Though a theologian of the senate of
Venice, when his work appeared it was too literal
* Clemangis Epist. ad Joan de Gersono.
t Platine, Tie de Pie H.
J Nicolas Cusan, lib. 3, de Concord. Cath., c. 29.
§ Liber de Euina Ecclesias. His. de la Ref. France. Par F. Puaux.
vol. i, p. 10.

228 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
and too exact for the clergy. An attempt was made
to assassinate him. Afterward, when the surgeon
was extracting the steel from the wound, he frigidly
remarked, " I perceive in this the manner of Rome."
And when at length the Council of Trent met in
the year 1545, professedly to reform, and for eighteen
years deliberated on the state of the Church, what
was accomplished ? Nothing.
When Innocent VIII. died, the college of cardinals
met to elect another pope. The Bishop of Concord
delivered a sermon of great eloquence, repre
senting the degeneracy of the Church, and the
great necessity of electing an able and holy pontiff.
He urged them to this by menacing them with all
the curses of God if they did not faithfully accom
plish it. After such a discourse who did they
choose? The infamous Roderick Borgia, known as
Alexander VI.
But the manner in which the high dignitaries of
Rome proposed a reform, forbids us to suppose that
they would ever have brought it about.
The celebrated Cardinal Pallavicini undertook to
defend the Papacy against what Fra Paolo had said.
Jurieu in his abridgment of the Council of Trent,
analyzing the book of the cardinal, says :
" Behold in what manner Pallavicini represents to
us the Roman Church. He confesses that it is influ
enced by a worldly and carnal policy. He avows
that its present government is formed according to
the rules of this world, and he insists that this is
according to the intention of Jesus Christ.* He ap
proves the practice of the Church in applying its
wealth to sustain the great, pomp of the Court of
Rome, composed of cardinals and other numerous
* Livre 1, c. 25.

WOULD THE ROMAN CHURCH REFORM! 229
officers. He pretends that by this outward show
infidels and Mohammedans will be drawn to the
faith.* So as to attract unbelievers, and to preserve
in the Church those who are there already, the
Court of Rome employs sensual delights and other
pleasures; she loves theaters and spectacles; she
affects even to have them on a more magnificent
scale than the world, so as to conquer the world by
its own arms."f
Julius III. consulted three bishops as to, the means
of more firmly establishing the holy see after it had
been shaken by the Reformation. The three bishops
met at Cologne in the year 1553, and presented to
the pontiff a memorial, which could pass for a satire
against Rome, if the authenticity of the curious doc
ument were not placed beyond doubt. We can only
give a few brief extracts from it.
The prelates remind the pope that their communi
cation must be secret and confidential, and then go
on and state that the Lutherans truly hold the doc
trines of Christ and his apostles as taught in early
times, and thatthe Roman Catholics rather conformed
to the opinions of the pope and whatever the Church
taught. That in the time of the apostles, and for
years afterward, ("We confess it without disguise."
say the bishops,) there were no cardinals and no
pope, no great revenues, no expensive temples, no
monasteries, and no priories. When they come to
propose a remedy for the heresies which had given
so much trouble to the holy father, they recommend
first that in France and Italy a hundred new bishops
should be created, and fifty cardinals. Thirty or
forty of the most able of these should, reside at Rome,
and aid the pope by their counsels; the rest should
* Liber 8, c. 17. t Liv. 6, c. 3. ; liv. 6, e. 25. Introd. 8.

230 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
remain in their respective dioceses, where their
principal and special business should be to amuse
the people by games, spectacles, and diversions of all
kinds, {omne genus deliciis.) Paul did not thus un
derstand the duties of the episcopate, but times have
greatly changed since then ; what it is necessary to
save now is not the boat and nets of St. Peter, but
the Vatican with its magnificence, and the papal
throne with its authority. They proceed to other
remedies'. We will give a translation of their own
words. "The holy cardinals and bishops must celebrate
mass frequently in person with all possible pomp and
magnificence, consecrate in public baptismal fonts,
ordain priests, bless temples, altars, cemeteries, bap
tize bells, receive novices ; for these are the things
which astonish and charm the vulgar."
"Among us every year, on holy Friday, the thrice
holy oil of unction, for the sick is consecrated. This
ceremony is performed by a bishop surrounded by
twelve priests, who accompany the practice by three
adorations, and the same number of salutations, exor
cisms, and insufflations, (insuffationibus.) Let your
holiness direct that for the future it should be neces
sary for this consecration at least five salutations
and twenty priests; order also that, to the oil, be
sides balm, should be added some production of a
great price, such as manna, for example, and let it be
declared that it fell in the desert, and that therefore
it is employed with good reason."
"When the water of baptism is consecrated salt
and oil are mingled with it; direct that a little vine
gar should be added, because it was offered to Christ
upon the cross."
" In the dedication of a temple the bishops write

WOULD THE ROMAN CHURCH REFORM? 231
upon ashes, with their cross, the Latin and Greek
alphabets ; direct that they should add the Hebrew
alphabet, because it was in these three languages
that the inscription on the cross was written. Pro
vided that they know it ; however this is not of much
importance, for they certainly do not know the Greek
alphabet and hardly the Latin, and yet they write
both on this occasion, so that it is the same as if they
knew them."
" Order that the bishops, instead of confining them
selves to the palm of the hand in anointing the priests,
anoint also the back, and pour the oil upon the head
and the body; for if a few drops can sanctify, a greater
quantity of oil will sanctify more."
" When bells are baptized, incense and perfumes
are burned before them ; add music also and amber
for the greater edification of the public, and to draw
greater respect."
" When a bishop prepares to celebrate worship
with pomp and magnificence, he is distinguished from
the ordinary priests by a great number of ornaments,
such as the bones or relics of some dead person, set
in a cross of gold ; direct him to carry, suspended from
his neck, a whole arm, or leg, or head of some Saint ;
this will greatly contribute to increase the piety of
the crowd of people, and will produce in all who are
engaged in the services an incredible respect, (in-
credibili admiratione")
"All these ceremonies have been invented by
sovereign pontiffs ; you, who are a sovereign pontiff,
can augment the number; you must do so if you
would attain the end we have pointed out."
" The Gospel is, of all the books, that which has
contributed the most to raise against us the tempests
which have ruined us. Whoever examines it with

232 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
attention, and compares it afterward with what cus
tom has introduced in our churches, cannot fail to
remark that many of our doctrines are very far from
those which the Gospel teaches, and are often even
contrary." They naturally conclude that it ought
not to be translated into the vulgar tongue.*
We ask again: Would not the Roman Catholic
Church have reformed itself? We answer, yes; if
plunging deeper into superstition and the darkness of
the middle ages could be called a reform.

CHAPTER III.
MARGARET DE VALOIS  JAMES LEFEVRE  WIL
LIAM FAREL.
Louis XII., who, as we have already said, nobly
protected his people against the persecutions and
encroachments of the Roman Catholics, died in the
year 1514, after a reign of sixteen years.
The brilliant Duke of Angouleme, afterward known
as Francis I., succeeded him. Francis was a young
man of twenty-two years of age, of fine figure and
carriage. In the manly exercises of the day, in the
gracefulness of his manner, in agreeable conversation,
no one surpassed him. An accomplished soldier, he
had already gained a name for himself in the vic
torious field of Marignano. Military glory was his
* Avis sur les Moyens propres a soutenir l'Eglise Eomaine ; pre'sente' au
Pape Jules IH., par quelques ^v^ques rSunis a Bologne. Bibliotheque
i.mpe'riale, vol in fol. B, No. 1038. De l'appendice ad f ossiculum re
rum expelendarum et fugiendarum, etc., vol. ii. Histoire de la Reforma
tion Franchise, par F. Puaux. Paris, 1859. Vol. i, pp. 355-357, etc.

MARGARET DE VALOIS. 233
idol, and beyond this, pleasure was the grand object
of his life.
Francis had a sister. Young and beautiful in per
son, of fine education, and great natural abilities,
Margaret de Valois was one of the most, attractive
persons in the French court. A French writer says
of her : " Seldom has a woman received from heaven
greater and more various gifts. Born upon the steps
of the throne, she united to the graces of body the
most brilliant qualities of the mind."
Never, perhaps, was a sister's love greater for a
brother than was the love of Margaret for Francis.
Brought up in the midst of everything that was gay
and dazzling, they had enjoyed pleasure together, and
together sought happiness in those earthly joys which
are as unsatisfactory in a monarch's household as in
the most humble cottage.
There was a man at this time in Paris, of humble
origin, little personal pretensions, small stature, but of
great intellect, learning, and eloquence. His name
was James Lefevre, and, according to Erasmus, he
occupied the first rank in the University. Born in
the year 1455, he was now nearly sixty years of age.
No one could be more religious than he was in prac
ticing all the ceremonies of the Romish Church. It
was while he was engaged in collecting the legends
of the saints that his confidence in those ceremonies
was shaken. He could not resist the impression that
they were filled with superstition. Giving up his
task he turned to the Bible. It was not long before
his heart became so filled with its doctrines that he
could not keep silence. He proclaimed them in his
writings. He taught them in the University, as Luther
and Melancthon did afterward in Germany, and the
hearts of the students took fire as they listened to the

234 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
word of God. Margaret de Valois, while she shone,
the center of attraction in a dissipated court, heard of
the so-called new doctrine. The ladies of her court
brought her Lefe'vre's writings, and it was not long be
fore she heard him preach. Her heart turned to the
Gospel, and she soon became known as a convert to it.
She was not alone. The impressions made urjon the
students were not all transient. Among them was
William Farel, born in Dauphine in the year 1489.
He listened to Lefevre and wondered. He was his
intimate friend, and like him zealous in all points for
the Romish Church. Farel said himself, in speaking
of his faith in Rome :
" I believe in the cross, in pilgrimages, in images,
vows, and relics. What the priest holds in his hands,
puts into the box, and there shuts it up, eats and
give others to eat, is my only true God, and to me
there is no other, either in heaven or upon earth."
Referring afterward to his state at that time, he says :
" Satan had. so lodged the pope, the papacy, and all
that is his in my heart, that even the pope had not so
much of it in himself."
And now, like Lefevre, he began to read the Scrip
tures. Astonishment seized his mind as he found
their teaching so different from the teaching of his
Church. He hesitated and feared greatly.
" What shall I do ?" he often inquired with intense
anxiety. Sometimes he was alarmed at the thought
of his seeming presumption in daring even to question
any doctrine of the Church. He went so far as to
give up the Bible, and retired to the cell of a monas
tery near Paris, hoping to gain the peace for which
he sighed. He afterward said, in reference to the time
he remained among the monks :
" I was wholly employed, day and night, in serving

WILLIAM FAREL. 235
the devil after the fashion of that man of sin, the
pope. I had my pantheon in my heart, and such a
troop of mediators, saviours, and gods, that I might
well have passed for a papal register.
While this struggle was going on in his mind he
heard Lefevre. preach, and the word came with power
to his heart. The doctrine of justification by faith,
by the merits of Christ alone, possessed to him a won
derful fascination. He yielded to its influences. He
turned to the Scriptures and sought light. It was
hard to renounce what had so long seemed right to
him. It was hard to tear from his heart what he had
so long held sacred, and above all the worship of the
virgin, for it had been implanted there from his very
infancy ; but he saw now that the word of God must
be his guide. He saw there that Jesus was his only
advocate, and, with the Father and the Holy Spirit,
the only object of worship. The struggle ceased.
He believed in Jesus Christ as his Saviour, as his
only Saviour, and his heart was filled with peace
and joy.
Farel afterward became to France a little like what
Luther was to Germany. And much more would he
have accomplished than he did had he enjoyed the
same opportunities as Luther. He seemed to be fitted
by nature to do great things. He is described as " a
man of invincible courage, great piety, learning, inno
cence of life, and unassuming modesty." His powers
of eloquence were so great, that it is said of him,
" swords were drawn, and bells rung while he was
preaching, but in vain ; and such was his ardor and
force of expression that he seemed rather to thunder
than to speak. His prayers also were wonderful ;
his heart seemed to lift the hearts of his hearers to
heaven."

236 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Thus, before Luther had commenced his career as
a Reformer in Germany, Lefevre and Farel were dis
seminating the truths of the Bible in France.
The French Reformation was not the result of the
German reform, but, proceeding from the same causes,
it marched side by side with it. "Elle fut la soenr,
et non lafille de la Reformation Allemande."*

CHAPTER IV.
BRICONNET  MARTYRDOM OF JOHN LECLERC.
Among those who, with Farel, had received the
good seed in their hearts at this time, were Gerard
Roussel, Martial Mazurier, Pavannes, Michel
d'Arande, and others, who looked up to Lefevre as
their spiritual father and guide.
Margaret de Valois, in the midst of a royal though
profligate circle of relations and friends, continued to
give evidence of a sincere desire to follow Christ.
Another in high position was added to their number.
William of Montbrun, son of Cardinal Briconnet,
received eagerly the doctrines of the Bible from the
lips of Lefevre. William, whom we shall call Brigon-
net, was bishop of Meaux, and he had no sooner felt
the heavenly fire in his heart than he set about reform
ing his diocese. He found that a majority of the
priests within his jurisdiction lived at Paris, away
from their parishes, enjoying in the capital the money
they received for watching over the souls of their
parishioners. He convoked a synod of his clergy, to
be held October 13, 1519, in which various steps
* Histoire de la Eof. Fran., par F. Puaux, Paris.

MARTYRDOM OF JOHN LECLERC. 237
were taken to disseminate the truths of the Bible
among the people. The curates were examined as to
the performance of their duties. Out of one hundred
and twenty-seven, fourteen only were accounted faith
ful. The Franciscan monks were forbidden to enter
his pulpits at all. His labor was not in vain. Among
the common people there began to be a great inquiry
after the truth. Briconnet and his curates proclaimed
the true Gospel from the pulpits. The morals of the
people were reformed, and superstitions rapidly dis
appeared. Among those who listened and believed in Christ
was one John Leclerc. He was a wool-carder of
Meaux. His heart became inflamed with zeal and
courage, so that what he felt in his own soul he
declared boldly to others around .him. Neither did
he stoj^here.; he went from house to house exhort
ing the people to give up their sins and turn to God.
Perfectly fearless of the priests, he wrote and pub
lished a proclamation against the pope, and put up
placards on the gates of the cathedral, stating that
the poj>e was antichrist. Happy would it have been
for France if all her Reformers had been as bold as
John Leclerc !
The monks were furious. The wool-comber was
seized and cast into prison. Tried and condemned,
his sentence was, to be whipped three days through
the city, and on the third to be branded on the fore
head. Leclerc was1 led out to receive the punishment
to be inflicted on him. His hands were bound, and
with his back bared to the whip he was led through
the city. His track was soon marked with blood,
ahd as blow after blow was laid upon him, the
immense crowd which followed yelled, some with
rage, while others seemed to show compassion.

238 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
There was one woman whose countenance no one
could mistake. She, if no one else did, spoke to him
words of pity and love. She was his motlier !
"At last, on the third day," says one, "when the
blood-stained procession was ended, they halted with
Leclerc at the usual place of execution. The hang
man prepared the fire, heated the iron that was to
stamp its burning mark on the evangelist, and
approaching him, branded him on the forehead as a
heretic. A shriek was heard, but it did not proceed
from the martyr. His mother, a spectator of the
dreadful scene, and wrung with anguish, endured a
bitter strife ; it was the enthusiasm of faith struggling
in her heart with maternal love ; faith prevailed at
last, and she exclaimed, with a voice that made the
adversaries tremble, ' Glory to Jesus Christ and to
his witnesses !' "* •
Leclerc was set at liberty. We afterward meet
with him at Metz, at a time when the people were
about to celebrate one of their great festivals. Once
in a year the people of Metz were in* the habit of
making a pilgrimage to a chapel about a league
from the city. There they sought the pardon of
their sins, and worshiped the image of the virgin and
other saints contained in the chapel.
Though Leclerc had suffered stripes, imprisonment,
and burning for Christ's sake, yet his spirit was stir
red within him as he thought of their idolatry. He
was determined if he could to* prevent it. As it
became dark, the evening before the festival, he
went out to the place, and there he sat down silently
before the statues.
What his thoughts were we can only conjecture.
* Merle d'Aubigne', Hist. Ref., vol. iii, p. 391. Hist. Freuch Kef., par
F. Puaux, Paris, 1859. vol. i, p. 68. Crespin, livr. xi, p. 88.

MARTYRDOM OF JOHN LECLERC. 239
He soon rose from his seat, and, animated by the
spirit of those righteous laws which denounce idola
try, he broke the images in pieces, and leaving their
fragments returned to the city at about daybreak.
And now the people, the monks, the priests, pre
pared for their pilgrimage. With banners and music,
a great procession marched out to the temple of idola-
atry. As they arrived at the place they beheld the
scene before them with astonishment and indignation.
The Philistines could not have been more surprised
when they found Dagon fallen to the earth mutilated,
than were the priests of Metz as they beheld the
broken fragments of their idols lying around the
altar. A general cry uprose from every mouth,
" Death, death to the sacrilegious wretch !"
They returned to the city and searched for Leclerc,
who they were sure had committed the act. He
was soon found, and seized, confessed that he had
broken the images, and at the same time, like Paul
before his accusers, preached Jesus to them, and told
them to worship God alone. His trial was of short
duration, and at its close he was sentenced to be
burned alive.
They led him out to execution. As he approached
the place he beheld men heating pinchers. He must
have known and felt the terrible use they were about
to make of them. But he seemed to be calm amid
the wild tumult and yells of the populace.
" They began," says the author we have quoted,
" by cutting off his right hand ; then taking up the
burning pincers they tore off his nose ; after this they
lacerated his arms, and when they had thus mangled
them in several places, they concluded by burning
his breasts. While his enemies were in this manner
wreaking their vengeance on his body, Leclerc's
Hist. Reformation. 1 &

240 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
mind was at rest. He recited solemnly, and with a
loud voice, these words of David: 'Their idols are,,
silver and gold, the work of men's hands. They
have mouths, but they speak not; eyes have they, but
they see not; they have ears, but they hear not;
noses have they, but they smell not ; they have
hands, but they handle not ; feet have they, but they
walk not; neither speak they through their throat.
They that make them are like unto them ; so is every
one that trusteth in them. 0 Israel, trust thou in
the Lord ; he is their help and their shield !'*
" The sight of such fortitude," says the author
referred to, " daunted their enemies, and strength
ened the faithful ; the people who had before shown
so much anger were astonished and touched with
compassion. "After these tortures Leclerc was burned by a
slow fire, in conformity with his sentence."
Again we repeat, happy would France have been
had all her Reformers possessed the courage of
Leclerc !

CHAPTER V.
TRIUMPHS OF THE GOSPEL LN FRANCE.
We have chosen to finish the history of Leclerc,
although it has carried us a Httle beyond the date of
the events which we were narrating.
We have said that Francis I. came to the throne in
the year 1514. Long afterward the Gospel seemed
to be gaining ground every year in France.
* Merle d'Aubign^'s Hist, of Ref., vol. iii, p. 407.

TRIUMPHS OF THE GOSPEL IN FRANCE. 241
In the year 1521 Noel B6dier, in whom alone
Erasmus declared there were three millions of monks,
at the head of the University of the Sorbonne, accused
and procured the condemnation of Lefevre. Was
the aged Christian, now sixty-six years old, to be
burned like Leclerc? Margaret de Valois was his
guardian angel. By her intercession with the king
she saved him : she did more ; by the power of the
love which she felt for her brother she induced
Francis to attend the preaching of the Reformers;
and though he had taken sides with the pope, though
a round of pleasures beset him on all sides, again
and again he was beheld listening to the eloquent
and persuasive sermons of Michel d'Arande. Full
of joy she wrote to Briconnet, thanking him for
having sent her this preacher.*
Notwithstanding the gayety and ambition of Fran
cis I., the word of God made such a deep impression
on him that he was not afraid to manifest his sympa
thies in favor of the Lutheran ideas which were
beginning to prevail on all sides. Even the notorious
Louise de Savoie, his mother, heard d'Arande with
interest, and was inclined to associate herself with the
king in projects of reformation. Margaret wrote in
November that they were both contemplating the
public avowal of their belief that the doctrines in
question were not heresy.f
. Briconnet wrote to her on the 22d December, 1521,
as follows : " I praise our Lord,, who has inspired in
the king a desire to execute what I have heard. In
doing so he will show himself to be a true vicegerent
of the true God."J
* NouveBes Letters de la Reine Maguerite, pp. 273, 274. Ref. Franc,
par F. Puaux, vol. i, p. 58. f Ibid.
X Gerard Roussel, par Schmidt, p. 18.

242 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
The favorable disposition of the king continued all
through the year 1522. Michel d'Arande continued
his explanations of the Holy Scriptures, and became
every day dearer to Margaret. Her mother, Louise
de Savoie, was at last convinced of the abuses con
nected with the Romish Church. In December,
1522, she wrote in her journal, which we translate as
literally as possible :
" My son and I, by the grace of the Holy Spirit,
begin to know the hypocrites ; white, black, smoky,
and all colors ; from whom may God, in his clemency
and infinite goodness, preserve and defend us ! for,
unless Jesus Christ is a liar, there is no more danger
ous generation to be found anywhere."*
Had Francis I. been more serious in his character,
had he followed up his religious impressions by for
saking his pleasures, to all human appearance the
papacy would soon have fallen to the ground in
France. In the mean time Briconnet is spreading the light
more and more in Meaux. His episcopal residence
was a refuge for the Reformers. Here might be found
at different times Lefevre, Farel, Roussel, the young
Le Comte, Mazurier, Caroli, and others who labored
in the same cause. Here was founded, by his ex
ertions, a Biblical school, in which young men were
prepared to go forth-throughout France and preach
the Gospel. It was maintained by the bishop's private
purse. Above all, here the New Testament was
translated by Lefevre into the French language. As
soon as it was published Brigonnet scattered it every
where, and everywhete it was received with great
eagerness. The vine-dressers, the mechanics, the
•
* Voyez Miohaud et Poujoulat : Nouvelle Collection de Memoires pour
servir a I'Histoire de France. Paris, 1838. Liv. v, p. 23.

TRIUMPHS OF THE GOSPEL IN FRANCE. 248
wool-carders, and wool-combers, who were numerous
in Meaux, seemed to have no other conversation than
talking of the Scriptures. Their Sundays and festival
days, instead of being days of hilarity and amusement,
were now employed in reading the word of God.*
It was a wonderful thing to behold these sincere men,
so lately stooping under the superstitions of Rome,
waking up from their sleep of death. The old idol
atry was tottering everywhere like a ruinous house.
Fame on swift wings carried all through France tid
ings of the zeal, th e spiritual life, the j oy of the faithful
Christians of Meaux.
" But," says a French author, " the devil was
watching, and the Sorbonne also."
The pious doctors of the University, with Bedier at
their head, again made«an effort to obtain a victim,
whom they might offei* upon their deserted altars.
Louis de Berquin had been, like Saul of Tarsus,
zealous in all points for the religion of his fathers.
He had been careful to observe the festivals and fasts,
to attend masses and confessions from his youth. But,
like Saul, the Spirit of God had arrested him, and he
became one of the pillars of the rising Church. Ber
quin was selected by the agents of the clergy. Hav
ing been arrested, they found in his possession some
writings of Luther, which he had translated into
French. This was in the month of May, 1523. He
Was sentenced to make a public abjuration, and to
promise not to write or translate anything contrary
to the faith of the Church. „ This was met by a direct
refusal. He was taken before the Bishop of' Paris,
when Margaret de Valois interposed, and saved
him also.
On the 1st1 of May, 1523, Lefevre was appointed
* Hist, des Martyrs, liv. iv, p. 170.

244 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
grand vicar at Meaux, where, in conjunction with
Briconnet, he labored to promote the cause of God.
Again he was summoned to retract, and again was
saved by the efforts of Margaret de Valois.
The bishop said about this time from the pulpit to
his pious- hearers : " If any one shall announce to you
a Gospel different from what you have received, let
him be anathema /" and, "if ever I change my
opinion, and preach to you anything contrary to what
I now teach you, do not believe me."

CHAPTER VI. ,
FALL OF BR*ICONNET.
The 15th of October, 1523, was a remarkable day
in the history of the French Reformation. All
through the summer the priests had been hard at
work. It is a peculiar trait in the character of the
Roman Catholic Church that she is never discouraged
by defeat. Whether she is laboring in the sixteenth
century to bring heretics to trial, or in the nineteenth
century, to drive the Bible from the common schools,
defeat after defeat seems only to impart to her new
strength to persevere. She had failed twice in getting
Lefevre into her hands ; Louis de Berquin had
escaped. Antoine Papillon had been accused also,
but the same noble woman had interposed and pro
tected him also.
Exasperated, Bedier and his colleagues determined
to take a bold step, and aim at higher game.
They accused Briconnet, the zealous bishop, who
was training young men for the Protestant ministry,

FALL OF BRICONNET. 245
in whose house the. New Testament was translated,
whose hearers were everywhere reading the word of
God. On the day we have named his people had
assembled to hear him preach. To their astonishment
he recommended to them the superstitions which he
had himself labored to destroy, and forbade the read
ing of a book of Luther which he had himself caused
to be translated.*
Their labors had not been in vain. The bishop
well understood the power of the priests, and his
heart failed him. He began to waver. They pressed
him on, and when they found that he yielded a little
they knew that he was in their power. Nothing then
would satisfy them but a complete humiliation. To
recant at Paris was not enough. He must do so be
fore his people to whom he had preached the Gospel
of Christ. Like the trembling Christian who, when
Satan tempts, violates his conscience in some small
matter, he is caught in the net spread for him by his
malignant adversary, and is hurried, struggling and
helpless, to complete destruction.
Lefevre and his friends, who had made the diocese
of Briconnet their asylum, were now obliged to sepa
rate from him. It must have been sad for the bishop
to part with them. He knew they were right in the
sentiments which they had embraced and labored to
gether to propagate, and shame was mingled with
grief in the bitter cup which he was forced to drink.
Had he been willing to bear the reproach of Christ,
and to have been singular among the other bishops
and prelates of the Church of Rome, no doubt the
name of William Briconnet would have come down
to us as the names of Luther, Zwingle, Cranmer, Knox,
* Guy Bret., p. 170, et suiv. His. Ref. Franc, par F. Puaux, vol. i,
pp. 64, 65. ¦ •

246 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
honored and revered throughout Protestant Christen
dom. He did not fall alone. Martial Mazurier was ac
cused of heresy, and thrown into • prison. Pierre
Caroli was charged with preaching false doctrines.
James Pavannes was included with them. Imitating
the Bishop of Meaux, the two first retracted, and
basely denied the doctrines they had preached."
Pavannes was firm, and asserted that he preferred
death to recantation. Mazurier, mortified that one
so young (Pavannes was a young student) should ex
hibit greater resolution than himself, visited him in
his prison.
" You deceive yourself, James," said he ; " you
have not seen the bottom of the sea, but only the
waves on the top. You are yet young, and men who,
like you, have made profession of the truth, have not
feared to retract to save their lives. I have done so.
Why will you not do the same ?" And then he spoke
to the young man of the torments which were before
him, and no doubt pointed out to him death at the
stake as a certain result of his firmness.
The student was shaken, and this was victory to
Satan ; for the Christian to falter is to fall ; a soldier
of Christ had better die in the ranks than waver in the
fight. On the 25th day of November, 1524, James Pa
vannes followed his two companions, and denied the
faith which he had espoused. He saved his life, but
lost his peace of mind. The priests were greatly en
couraged. They turned again toward Briconnet, and
determined to make an example of ,him the second
time. The Franciscan friars whom he had excluded
from his pulpits were his accusers. They said that he
had called them, from the pulpit, bigots, false prophets,

DRAMATIC REPRESENTATION. 247
scribes and Pharisees ; that he had distributed the Bible
in the vulgar tongue, and taught that all men had the
right to read it. The bishop had now a second oppor
tunity to become a confessor of Christ. How greatly we
desire, as we think of his labors in the cause of the
Reformation, as we consider his high position and
his great influence, that he will boldly confess the
charge and defy his persecutors ! How the faithful
men who have heard him preach, and who in their
workshops and fields have commended his piety, will
rejoice. Will he stand up for God again ?

CHAPTER VH.
DRAMATIC REPRESENTATION OF THE REFORMERS
AND THE POPE.
While the trial of the Bishop of Meaux is in prog
ress we will return to the king and his court. We
have said that the love of pleasure was a ruling passion
with the king. Even however in his pleasures and
the dissipations of his royal palace we may discover
the bent of his mind at this time.
It is in the year 1524. A numerous and chosen
company was gathered in the palace of the king to
witness a dramatic representation. The curtain rose,
and a strange spectacle met the eyes of the spectators.
The pope, clothed in his pontifical robes and wear
ing his triple crown,, was beheld seated on a high
throne. Around his holiness were cardinals, bishops,
and mendicant monks. On the middle of the stage
the eye distinguishes a heap of coals, black, as if dead,
but still smoking ; an old man with white hair is try-

248 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
ing to kindle them up, delivering at the same time,
to the pope and his attendants, a discourse upon the
corruption which reigns in the Church, and on the
necessity of proceeding to a reformation. This old
man is Reuchlin, the Lefevre of Germany. He is
heard with coldness by the holy father and his court,
but after him appears a man to whom the cardinals
give a grand and gracious reception. He has hardly"
opened his mouth when the spectator recognizes the
careful Erasmus. He speaks of the abuses of the
Church, but in measured words. He thinks that
some reforms ought to take place, but that it would
be dangerous to hasten them too much. Hardly has
he finished his speech when he takes his place behind
the cardinals, who speak to him very courteously, in
hopes of gaining to their side so eminent a theologian.
To Erasmus succeeds a personage who in no wise
resembles him. He enters armed, booted, and spurred.
His appearance is that of a warrior trained to battles.
He goes straight to the pope : " Thou art antichrist,"
he says to him ; " thy vices, and those of thy car
dinals and monks, have thrown the Church into an
abyss of corruption."
He then menaces him with the divine wrath, and
taking a pair of bellows blows with earnestness at the
black coals, from which proceeds a brilliant flame.
The clergy shrink back with fear, when all at once
the fiery denunciator falls dead on the stage. Joyfully
the monks bury him without any funeral honors. In
this actor Ulrich de Hutten is recognized, the terrible
pamphleteer. The pope, cardinals, and monks now
exhibit great joy. In the midst of their triumph a
monk of poor appearance advances. Though feeble
in body, he has an eye of fire and a firm step. He
throws a look of contempt and wrath upon the pope

DRAMATIC REPRESENTATION. 249
and his followers, and raising the logs of wood which
he carries in his arms he throws them on the coals,
and cries with a loud voice: "I will kindle a fire
which shall shine throughout the whole world, so that .
Christ, who has nearly disappeared from the earth by
your trickeries, shall appear again everywhere in
spite of you !"
At these words every one present recognizes Luther,
the great Reformer of Germany.
The fire burns high. The pope and his friends,
trembling, and seized with fear, try, but in vain, to
extinguish the flames, which, in immense spirals, rise
toward heaven. They do not, however, altogether
lose their courage, but deliberate upon what is best to
be done. Each one gives his advice, but the means pro
posed appear so insufficient that they are immediately
abandoned. They seem reduced to extremities, when
a new personage presents himself. He is little, short,
stout, and very fat; of a florid complexion, and
withal a monk of the mendicant orders.
" My order," says he, " has been founded to punish
heretical pravity ; if St. Peter, that is the pope, will
confide to me the task of restoring to the bosom of
the Church its revolted members, I promise to ex
tinguish the rising flame, and to bring eyery one into
obedience." The son of St. Dominic spoke with so much assur
ance that he inspired all the company with his own
confidence. Moved by his zeal, the pope promised
the monk, and those of his order, the highest eccle
siastical dignities. Then arming himself- with the
most terrible anathemas of his Church, the pope
thunders them against those who have kindled the
fire. But he does so with so much hate and wrath
that he is seized with a fit, which suddenly kills him.

250 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
At the sight of the pontiff struck down by death, the
room is filled with loud bursts of laughter, and the
curtain falls.*
And all this was witnessed and applauded by the
king, who, nine years later, became a most bitter
enemy of the Reformation.

CHAPTER VIII.
MARTYRDOM OF PAVANNES AND SCHUCH.
We return to Briconnet. He is accused and ar
raigned. But his trial itself was an abject humilia
tion. He had appealed to the Parliament, and his
appeal had been rejected ; and before two counselors
of the court, and two doctors of the Sorbonne only,
he, who was a bishop of Rome, the son of a cardinal,
a friend of the king, was condemned to pay a fine of
two hundred pounds, which became the price of
blood, because it was employed in defraying the ex
penses of prosecuting heretics in his own diocese.f
This was the 29th of November, 1525. From this
day we hear little of Briconnet, and nothing which
leads us to doubt that he was afterward a strict and
faithful Roman Catholic. Thus fell one of the most
early, one of the most zealous, one of the most emi
nent friends of the Reformation in France.
Such success encouraged the clergy to proceed
further. Mazurier, Caroli, and Pavannes. they sus
pected were not thoroughly converted back to Ro-
* Gerdesius, Hist. Evang. Renov., torn, ii, num. 48. Smedley, Hist, of
the Rel. Ref. in France, yol. i, p. 23. Histoire de la Ref. Franc, par
F. Puaux, vol. i, p. 218, etc.
t T.oussaint du Plessis, p. 288.

MARTYRDOM OF PAVANNES AND SCHUCH. 251
manism. So they arrested them again, and Mazurier
and Caroli protested earnestly their attachment to
Romanism, and again denied the cause which they
had once espoused ; but the young student, instead
of any such confession, deplored his former recanta
tion, and boldly declared his adherence to the Re
formers' doctrines. He had had no peace away from
God, but, filled with . sadness, constantly reproached
himself. As soon as he felt that he was suffering
for Christ's sake, as he knew he ought to have done
at first, his heart was filled with the peace which he
had once enjoyed.
With such sentiments he appeared before the Par
liament, who condemned him to the punishment of
fire, to be burned until he was dead. Led out to
the place of execution, he went up, intrepid and
serene, upon the wood which was to consume him.
By some want of foresight which was not usual
with them, they had neglected to, gag him. As
the people ran together in crowds to see him die,
he began to address them. Full of the spirit of
God, with joy upon his countenance, and joyful
accents upon his lips, the young man spoke to
them of Christ, and of the faith for which he was
about to die, with such eloquence, that one of the
doctors of the Sorbonne afterward remarked, " that'
he would rather the Church had paid a million of
gold, than to have allowed James Pavannes to speak
to the people."* The spirit which he displayed all
through his trial and execution served to strengthen
those who truly loved God. At the same time a
Lutheran was burned, known in history as the Her
mit of Livry.
A pastor by the name of Wolfgang Schnch was
* Ruchat, torn, iv, p. 138. Nouvelle edition.

252 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
another victim. He preached in the town of St.
Hippolyte. A threat having been made by the Duke
Antoine de Lorraine, that he would destroy the city
by fire and sword unless they returned to Rome, the
good pastor, to save his flock, came himself to the
duke, and was immediately thrown into a filthy
prison. Friar Bonaventura, who presided on the
trial, exclaimed when he saw him : " Heretic ! Judas !
devil !"
Schuch held up his Bible ; whereupon they rushed
on him, tore it away from him, and burned it. They
then condemned him to be burned alive. On hearing
the sentence he raised his eyes to heaven, mildly
saying : " I was glad when they said unto me, Let us
go into the house of the Lord." When they brought
him to the place of execution they burned his books
before his face, and called on him to retract ; but he
refused, saying : " It is thou, O Lord, who hast called
me, and thou wilt give me strength unto the end !"
While he stood on the pile, and while the fire
burned around him, he repeated the fifty-first psalm
until he was stifled by the smoke and flames."*
This was in the year 1525.
*His. Ref. Franc, par F. Puaux, vol. i, p. 72. Merle d'Aubigne',
His. Ref., vol. iii, p. 467.

THE INQUISITION INTRODUCED. 253

CHAPTER IX.
THE INQUISITION INTRODUCED  FRANCIS I. RE
TURNS FROM SPAIN  BRICONNET AGAIN  DE
BERQUIN.
A political event of great importance had taken
place at this time which turned against the Reforma
tion in France, and was afterward the cause of many
of the persecutions which occurred. The young and
ambitious Charles V. sat on the imperial throne.
Ruling over Spain, Belgium, a part of Italy, and of
the present France, joined to his immense states in
Germany and America, he was the most powerful
monarch of Europe. Only Francis I. on the throne
of France could hope to oppose him with any effect.
Francis undertook the task, and was captured by
Charles, at Pavia, on the 24th of February, 1525, and
held as a prisoner of state. The Duke of Alencon,
husband of Margaret de Valois, was slain in the same
battle. The realm was without a king. A universal
panic succeeded, and the priests then raised the cry
that it was a judgment of God because they had not
extirpated the heretics-
Louisa, the mother of Francis, seemed to lose all
her religious impressions, which never had been very
deep, and thought only of pleasing the pope, hoping
that through his influence Francis might be liberated
and Charles humbled.
She, therefore, had written to his holiness, inquir
ing how she could most effectually destroy the heresies
which were constantly springing up from reading the
Bible. The answer of the holy father, vicar of Jesus

254 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Christ, head of the Roman Catholic Church, was not
long delayed. It was as follows: "Introduce the
Inquisition." Inquisitors were accordingly appointed, consisting of
two laymen and two ecclesiastics. William Duchesne
was one of the latter. He was second only to Bedier
in persecuting zeal. The pope sent his brief, dated
May 20, 1525, approving of the appointment, and
stating that all who were found guilty of being
Lutherans were to be delivered over to the secular
arm, which was, to be burned alive.* Hence the .
executions which we have narrated, perpetrated while
the king of France was a prisoner and absent from
his kingdom.
The news from Spain added to the discourage
ment of the already disheartened friends of the Ref
ormation. The king was sick. They feared his life
was in danger, and that the throne would be left in
the hands of his mother, Louisa. Margaret of Valois,
in this position of affairs, declared her intention of
going to Spain, to make an effort to save her brother.
The announcement was received with great joy,
especially were those who loved the Bible full of
hope. The captivity of the king had let loose the
hatred of their adversaries ; his deliverance they
thought would check it. Great preparations were
made for her departure. Charles, the emperor, was
written to, who at first objected, saying it was the
duty of his ministers to arrange the affair.
" One hour's conference," exclaimed Selves, the
president, " between your majesty the king, my mas
ter, and the Duchess of Alencon would forward the
treaty more than a month's discussion between di
plomatists." * Merle d'Aubigne^ Hist. Ref., vol. iii, p. 452.

THE INQUISITION INTRODUCED. 255
She wrote to her brother before embarking :
" I will not delay either on account of my own se
curity, or of the sea, which is unsettled at this sea
son, to hasten toward the place where I may see
you ; for fear of death, imprisonment, and every sort
of evil are now so habitual to me, that I hold lightly
my life, health, glory, and honor, thinking by this
means to share your fortune, which I would desire to
bear alone."
It was while Margaret was in Madrid that Bricon
net finally and shamefully fell.
It does not come within the limits of our task to
follow the Duchess d'Alencon in her mission to Spain
to save her brother. We will meet her at her return
to France, where she learns with grief the persecu
tions which have taken place during her absence.
Immediately she took the suffering Christians under
her protection, snatched them from the hands of
Bedier, and the second time saved Louis de Berquin
from the hands of his enemies.
" It is affecting," says a late French writer, " to
behold this young and pious woman, serving her
God in the midst of a dissolute court, becoming for
the reformed the angel who opened to Peter the
prison gates within which the priests and Pharisees
had thrown him."*
Francis I. returned to his kingdom in the month
of March, 1526, after an absence of one year and
twenty-two days. Not well satisfied with what had
taken place in regard to the Reformers, he allowed
his sister to recall the* aged Lefevre and Gerard
Roussel. It was a day of great joy to the friends of
the Reformation when this event took place, and
Paris became a kind of rendezvous for those who
* Histoire de la Ref. Franc, par Puaux, vol. 1, p. 77.
. Ti.r. TJo'-'rmft.tnti. J f

256 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
preached the Gospel. It was not after all a perfectly
safe place. It was not long before the king began to
manifest a dislike to the Lutheran doctrines. It was
clear that he was more a Roman Catholic than he
had been previous to the battle of Pavia. There was
some cause for this. He would not renounce the
pleasures of this world for Christ, and having chosen
them, he turned naturally from the faith which con
demned them. This was not all. His two children
were hostages in Madrid, in the power of Charles V.,
who considered himself as the defender of the
Church. It was, he thought, for his interest to take
sides in religion both with the pope and Charles.*
But this was not all. He began to imagine that the
Reformers would attack the authority of kings as
well as that of the pope, and that his own crown,
which did not feel as secure upon his head since his
imprisonment in Spain, might be in danger. Bran
tome relates that one day Francis accidentally said
of the doctrines of Luther : "That this novelty tended
principally to the overthrow of monarchy, both divine
and human."
At another time he was speaking of the pope to
the nuncio of the latter, and reminding him of the
example of Henry VIII., when the nuncio replied :
" Truly, sire, you will be the first sufferer ; a new
religion given to a nation requires afterward only a
change of prince."f
, We discover here the probable source from which
Francis derived his opinion.
More and more feeble became the arm which had
protected the Protestants. A sister's influence was
not sufficient to resist the constant importunity of tho
* Hist. Bef. Franc, par F. Puaux, p. 78.
t French Prize Essay, by C. Villers, p. 133.

THE INQUISITION INTRODUCED. 257
priests. New victims were arrested and led to the
stake, and everywhere ceaseless, untiring efforts were
made by inquisitors to uproot the dreaded heresy. ;
Let us take one last look at Briconnet as he
labors now to destroy the faith which he had once
so loved.
It is the year 1528. A prisoner, whose name was
Denis, from the village of Rieux, was sleeping in his
cell. In these days of persecution, a man condemned
to death slept upon the damp slabs of his prison.
His sleep was sweet and peaceful, because he had in
his conscience the testimony, so precious at such an
hour, that he was ready to sacrifice everything rather
than deny his faith. His crime was Lutheranism.
He was waiting for the crown which God places on
the head of his chosen ones. The door opens. A
visitor enters and awakes him. His object is to
save the prisoner from certain death by inducing
him to recant. The sleeping man opens his eyes,
and immediately recognizes him who speaks to him.
With a look full of contempt and disdain he regards
his visitor, who, quailing beneath the eye of the
martyr, withdrew from his cell. It was Briconnet.
Denis was executed on the 3d of July, 1528.*
Louis de Berquin was the third time accused.
With a perseverance which would have done honor to
a better cause, the Romish Church was determined
to hunt him down. He was too eminent a man to
live a Protestant. Learning, wisdom, acuteness, elo
quence, united to great zeal and devoted piety, ren
dered him too formidable an adversary. Erasmus,
who was his friend, had warned him. "They will
kill you," he wrote. He was brought to trial, and
condemned to have his tongue pierced ; and if he
* Hist, de la Ref, France, par F. Punux, vol. i, p. 80.

258 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
would recant, to perpetual imprisonment ; if he would
not recant, to be burned.
• It is sad to meet in such a place the celebrated
William Bude\ sitting as one of the judges. He was
called the prodigy of France for his classical acquire
ments, and was the secretary and librarian of Fran
cis I. This eminent man, desirous of preserving to
the sciences and letters such a man as de Berquin,
came to him and urged him greatly to recant. He
at last succeeded, and de Berquin signed a recanta
tion. Hardly was the act committed when he repented
bitterly, and asked to be put to death with great ear
nestness, (demanda la mort a. grands cris,) so that he
might make some amends for what he had done.
Taking advantage of the absence of the king, who
had gone to Blois with his court, they led him out for
execution to La Place de Grive. Well remembering
the effect produced by the eloquence of Pavannes,
they took precautions to prevent any like occurrence
again, and when de Berquin began to speak to the
people hired men drowned his voice by their cries.
He was burned on the 22d of April, 1529.*
Thus died, at forty years of age, a man whose loss
was deeply felt by all the rising Church. His glori
ous death, however, was infinitely better than the
apostasy of Briconnet.
" The ideas," says the French author I have quoted,
' ' which Bedier wished to smother under the funeral
pyre of the martyr, were not such as perish in the
flames. They pass over ramparts and bayonets, and
even glide under the robe of an inquisitor. Men
wished to know De Berquin's crime, and when
they knew it many became his followers. Bedier
* Crespin, liv. ii, p. 97.

THE INQUISITION INTRODUCED. 259
triumphed in his hate, the martyr in his prin
ciples." Shall we pause a moment and look about us to
behold the flames as they rise around so many inno
cent victims of the Inquisition all throughout France
and Europe ? How many of them are forgotten !
The names of a few here and there only have come
down to ns, and they are almost forgotten by those
who are now enjoying the blessings which, in a
secondary sense, were purchased by their blood.
And yet they are as worthy of a place in history as
many whose names are like household words. They
are more worthy than the great captains and warriors
of the earth who have died on the battle-field. They
lived and fell for glory ; the martyrs lived and died
for Christ. We will then love and revere their
memory. They are our suffering brethren, suffering
not only for religion but for liberty of conscience.
We use again almost the words of the eloquent writer
to whom I have referred :
" Louis de Berquin was the forerunner of the
liberty of which England and America offer us the
model. These are the men who have changed the
face of the world which forgets them. O justice,
justice for these founders of our liberties! Justice for
their memory ! Glory for - their name ! Let the
clergy curse them'; but you, who regard thought as a
gift of God which no one can chain, bow with respect
before the precursors of modern liberty. . . . There
are crowns and palms for political scaffolds, but not
a single souvenir for the Protestant funeral pyres.
We leave thus in forgetfulness those who three cen
turies ago opened with their martyr hands the glori
ous temple of our liberties."
Let the Church of Rome point to our different de-

260 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
nominations if she chooses, and tell us that these
divisions are the result of our liberty. We will
reply, that so far from being antagonistic divisions,
they are but different bodies of one grand whole — one
glorious universal Church. Rome has a union of
form ; while Lutherans, Presbyterians, Congregation-
alists, Methodists, Episcopalians, Baptists, have a
union of life and spirit ; as the Churches of Corinth,
Ephesus, Philadelphia, Jerusalem, Galatia were but
different parts of one invisible Church in the days of
the apostles. Rome with her principle of authority
may make faithful automatons. Protestantism with
her principle of liberty makes thinking Christians.

CHAPTER X.
A CHURCH HAUNTED.
The efforts of the clergy seemed to be vain. The
fire spread everywhere. The Lutheran ideas seemed to
circulate in the air, and without consultation with each
other, in a hundred parts of France at a time, serious
men manifested their opposition to the superstitions
of the Church.
The priests found that the death of the men was
not the death of their principles. Indefatigable in
their efforts, they resorted to other means of destroy
ing heresy. The following is an example :
In the year 1530 the wife of the sheriff of Orleans
died. She seemed to have received some sparks of
truth, but no one suspected her of being anything but
a Roman Catholic. Some days before she died she
wrote in her will as follows :

A CHURCH HAUNTED. 261
" I wish to be buried without pomp, without candles,
without chants."
Her husband conformed religiously to her desires,
and she was buried in the church of the Franciscans,
where the sheriff had a family vault.
The friars of St. Francis, who had counted upon a
good round sum for the burial of one in her position,
did not conceal their bad temper and chagrin at the
impiety of the sheriff. The latter to pacify the Fran
ciscans offered them six crowns, but thinking it en
tirely too little they resolved to have their revenge.
Aided by two doctors of divinity from Paris, they
trained a young novice to the part which they wished
him to Tplaj. When he was properly instructed they
concealed him in the vaulted roof of their church.
At a signal agreed upon the novice made a noise so
frightful that it was impossible to go on with the service.
A superstitious terror seized the ignorant multitude in
the church. The monks asserted that it was a spirit,
and* proceeded to interrogate it ; they urged it to
answer, and the novice, perfectly trained to his part,
sometimes answered in words, and sometimes in mak
ing an unearthly noise. No one doubted that there
was a spirit in the church. Who would dare to sus
pect any trickery on the part of those men of God
who passed their time in praying and singing ?
It was soon known all throughout Orleans that a
spirit haunted the church of the Franciscans. On a
set day the monks invited some distinguished persons
to be present at the church, and hardly had the service
commenced when the same frightful noise was heard.
The friars seemed to be terrified and astonished.
" There is no longer any doubt," said they, " that
the church is haunted by an evil spirit. We must
drive it out." '

262 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Brother Colliman was appointed to this important
duty. Wax candles, salt, little bells, and holy water
are provided. He is armed with all the learned
formulas by means of which the Church conjures in
fernal spirits. Every eye is fixed upon the brother
who undertakes with solemnity his terrible and mys
terious mission. He addresses the spirit, and chal
lenges it to answer. It replies by redoubling its hurly-
burly {tintamarre). Brother Colliman in a loud voice
asks if it is not one of the souls interred in the church.
The spirit answered,
" Yes."
All present are filled with astonishment. Brother
Colliman mentions several names, asking it at each
time if it is the soul of the one he had repeated.
The spirit makes no answer. At last, after a great
many had been named, the monk asked if it could
be possible that it was the soul of the sheriff's wife.
With a voice strongly accented the spirit answered,
" Yes."
The congregation looked at each other in terror.
The exorcist continued his questions, and asked the
spirit what sin it had committed to be compelled to
wander on the earth. Naming the seven capital sins,
he demanded at each one if he was guilty of it.
No answer.
Could »the sheriff's wife, by some chance, have died
Lutheran ? This was the next question.
" Yes," said the spirit.
" Why then do you make such a racket [tapage] ?"
" Because her body is buried in the church."
" Must it be taken up ?"
"Yes."
The Franciscans immediately went to work. They
stripped the church of all its ornaments, and carried

A CHURCH HAUNTED. 26$
them to a large room in their monastery, saying that
their conscience forbade them to celebrate the holy
mysteries in a church haunted by an evil and heretical
spirit. This action of the monks made a great stir
among the people. The agent of the bishop learned
what was going on, and resolved to see for himself.
Having arrived at the place, he caused a jury to be
summoned for the purpose of holding an inquest upon
the whole matter. So as to proceed according to the
rules of the Church, he directed them to go through
all the exorcisms pointed out in the sacred canons.
The foreman of the jury, who appears to have been a
man of good sense, remarked that he thought it would
be well before commencing their operations to visit
the top of the church.
" If we should find there," said he, " a visible spirit,
it would be useless to proceed against an invisible
one." This judicious remark was received with great dis
approbation by the Franciscans. One of them,
whose name was Stephen d'Arras, spoke out : " Such
a visit would trouble the spirit in its functions."
While this dispute was going on, some boys re
solved to profit by the suggestion, and went up into
the roof to discover the spirit. The novice, who had
been listening to what was going on, got out of the way
in time to escape; but the monks, seeing the boys
above them, refused to go on with their exorcisms.
The sheriff, having learned what had taken place,
prosecuted the Franciscans for their conduct. The
latter demurred to the jurisdiction of the judges,
whereupon the king sent commissioners from Paris
to investigate the subject. It was some time before
they could come to any conclusion, and it may be
the Church of Rome would have enjoyed the credit

264 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
of another miracle in her annals if they had not
found the novice. He was very unwilling to say
anything about it.
" The Franciscans will kill me," said he.
On being assured that he would be protected, he
confessed the part he had taken, and swore to it in
the presence of the monks. The royal commissioners
condemned the latter to imprisonment and to be
stripped of their cowls. The first part of their sen
tence was executed, but the last part was prevented
by the popular feeling in favor of Rome.*

\ CHAPTER XI.
INCREASE OF PROTESTANTS  DE CATURCE TRIED
AND CONDEMNED  CLEMENT VII., WITH HIS
BEAUTIFUL NIECE, VISITS THE COURT OF
FRANCE.
Let us visit again one of those scenes where
Christianity reveals its wonderful power to sustain
the soul. " The -first pages of Protestantism are only
read by the light of the flames which consumed its
martyrs." As we have said, the death of Louis de Berquin
was producing a rich harvest. Learned men and
peasants inquired everywhere why the Sorbonne had
condemned and executed a 'man as illustrious for his
attainments in knowledge, as for his birth, and
everywhere the answer was repeated : " His crime
was that he preferred the Holy Scriptures to the
teachings of the Church."
* Histoire Ref. Franc, par F. Piiaux, vol. i,p. 214, etc.

INCREASE OF PROTESTANTS. 265
At Orleans, at Bourges, at Rouen, Lyons, and
Toulouse, and other cities, each one commented on
his death, and at all these places he found advocates.
The priests became more zealous. They added
victim to victim, imputing to their too great indul
gence their want of success. But the- death of one
Lutheran brought to life ten in his place. The clergy
did not see it.
John de Caturce was professor in the law school
of Toulouse. We are not told how he found the
pardon of his sins and became a Christian; but when
he did so he disdained, concealment, and openly
spoke to others of the love of Christ, which he felt
burning in his heart.
This was enough. He was arrested and thrown
into a dungeon. The particulars of his accusation
were: 1. He had made an exhortation at Limoux, (this
was the place of his birth.)
2. On the epiphany, (called sometimes in French
the day of kings, or feast of kings,) instead of having
it said in the company where he was, The king drinks,
he had caused it to be repeated, Christ reigns in our
hearts. 3. After the repast, instead of singing songs, or
dancing, he had thought best (or proposed) that
each guest should recite a verse from' the Holy
Scriptures. These crimes appeared heinous enough to bring
him before the Parliament. There he became a
witness for his Master, and all through the course of
his trial referred to the Scriptures, citing them, and
urging his adversaries to prove his guilt by their
authority. In the midst of the proceedings they stopped short j

266 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
they seemed to wish to save his life, and probably,
in fact, did desire to do so. They proposed to
acquit him if he would, in one of his public lessons,
simply declare that he had erred on three points.
De Caturce hesitated. He was yet young ; a bril
liant future seemed to be before him. Perhaps he
might live to be eminently useful in the cause of the
reform. It was easy to say that he had erred, and
did not seem to be much of a compromise. In that
moment Satan was spreading out before him all
his future life, and bidding him live to do good.
There he stood before his accusers and his judges
almost persuaded to yield.
Faith triumphed. He escaped the snare, and de
clared himself ready to die. He was condemned to
be burned alive.
On the 15th of June, 1532, St. Stephen's Place
was crowded by an immense concourse of people
who came to see him die. The clergy were beheld
coming in procession. There were judges, priests,
monks, executioners, in great pomp, displaying all
the ceremonies usual on such occasions. Much time
was occupied in the different forms, and during all
these long hours the martyr was engaged preaching
the Gospel to the people, or making replies to the
monks. According to custom, a pulpit was erected close
by the stake where the accused was to be burned.
A Dominican friar got into it to deliver what was
then called le sermon de la foi catholique. He took
for his text the first verse of the fourth chapter of
Timothy's first epistle. He read the words : " Now
the spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times
some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to se
ducing spirits and doctrines of devils."

INCREASE OF PROTESTANTS. 267
Here he stopped short. This of itself may have
been a very good text for the friar's purpose ; but it
was not finished, and had a most unfortunate con
clusion. Caturce cried with a loud voice : " Con
tinue the text ; finish reading it."
The Dominican seemed to be embarrassed, and was
silent. " If you do not wish to finish the passage I will do
it for j'ou," continued the martyr ; and in • a full,
strong voice, he concluded the text :
"Speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their conscience
seared with a hot iron ; forbidding to marry, and
commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath
created to be received with thanksgiving of those
which believe and know the truth."
It was often playing with edged tools for the Ro
man Catholics to deal much in Scripture before those
men who had ventured everything to its teachings.
The Dominican was silent with rage and shame,
and Caturce delivered, in the place of the sermon on
the Catholic faith, a sermon on the Lutheran faith.
He spoke with holy energy, and showed, in the
heavenly eloquence which proceeds from a renewed
heart, that he died only for having wished to be faith
ful to the teachings of the primitive Church. His
scholars, who were listening, were deeply touched.
They had once learned from him the science of law.
Now they were learning the way of salvation. He
died praising God in the flames.
Where was Margaret de Valois while these things
were passing?
Not able to serve all, but doing what she could to
protect the Protestants ; one day interceding with the
king her brother, the next encouraging some fainting
Christian.

268 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Soon after Caturce's death she published a religious
work which she had written herself, called, "The
Mirror of the Sinful Soul" (Le Miroir de VAme
Pecheresse.) It was soon in the hands of almost every
one, not escaping the keen eyes of Bedier and the
Sorbonne. It was immediately attacked by them
most bitterly, even from the pulpit, and with a rage
which prompted them to make use of personalities.
Margaret complained to her brother, who, as we
have already hinted, was beginning to show some
favor to the persecuting monks. Giving himself up
to his pleasures, Francis I. cared little either for the
pope or .the Bible, beyond what was of direct interest
to himself; but he was indignant that one so near
the throne should be attacked by the priests. A
number of those who had been most forward were
prosecuted and imprisoned, and Bedier himself was
banished from the court. This gave new courage to
the Reformers, and some who had fled returned to
Paris. Any favorable dispositions, however, on the
part of the king toward the Protestants which might
yet linger round his heart, were soon to disappear.
It came about thus :
On the 13th of October, 1533, Clement VII. made
his solemn entry into the city of Marseilles. This
pope, old in years and infirm, brought with him his
niece, a young and beautiful woman. By birth and
education an Italian, she possessed every accomplish
ment which wealth and a high position could procure
for her. Every eye was fixed upon her, and no one,
to behold that lovely countenance, would ever sup
pose that she was afterward to become celebrated for
her ingenuity and boldness in crime ; that the pres1
ent Duchess of Urbin was to become Catharine de
Medicis, the mother of Charles IX.

INCREASE OF PROTESTANTS. 269
The cunning pope said that he had come to Mar
seilles to present his niece to Francis I. But this was
only the apparent reason. The real one was to make
the king a more thorough Romanist, and to destroy
the influence of Margaret de Valois. For this purpose
he ' had calculated rightly that his fair companion
would be a valuable assistant.
The first public interview of the two monarchs was
one of great pomp. It took place in the presence of
the great dignitaries of the court of Rome and of
France. The pontiff, dressed in great splendor, was
seated on a high and glittering throne. The king of
France, with his head uncovered, advanced toward
him, knelt before the holy father, then swore obedience
to him, and kissed his feet, afterward his hand, and
was finally allowed the exalted privilege of kissing
him on his face. The eldest son of the king was per
mitted to enjoy the same favors, but the two younger
sons were only allowed to kiss his feet and hands.
The pope's old and shriveled face was denied to them.
It must have been a sad disappointment to the two
boys. The grandees of the court were only allowed
to kiss the sacred feet. The sub-nobility were allowed
to take a look at them. The Archbishop of Paris, in
the name of Francis, then addressed the pope as fol
lows: " The very Christian king, as the eldest son of the
Church, acknowledges him in all humility and devo
tion as pontiff and true vicar of our Lord Jesus Christ,
venerates him as successor of St. Peter, and promises
to him obedience and fidelity ; offering himself with
all his powers for the defense of his holiness and of
the holy apostolical see, as his predecessors have
done."* *Sismondi, Hist, des Francais, torn, xvi, p. 429.

270 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Inj due time, with marks of great mutual affection,
the two potentates separated. i
Francis I. did not always keep his promises, but
this time he was too faithful. As he returned from
Marseilles, he sent from Lyons to the Archbishop of
Paris letters containing the following words: "To
prosecute all those whom it was possible to convict
of the crime of heresy, who multiply and increase in
the good city of Paris."
This was on the 10th day of December, 1533, not
two months after the entry into Marseilles of his holi
ness. From this time Francis was cured of any pro
clivities toward the Reformation.
Who will say that the old pope did not thirst for
Protestant blood ?

CHAPTER XH.
THE PLACARDS.
During much of the time in which we now find
ourselves, Lefevre and Farel, strong in the faith, were
laboring in Geneva. The good seed was bearing a
great harvest in Switzerland, and parts of France
bordering on that country. The progress the Refor
mation had there made gave its adherents power to
destroy in important cities the superstitions of Rome,
and to establish Protestant worship.
A man by the name of Feret, sent to Switzerland by
the brethren in Paris, beholding their success returned,
filled with zeal and a desire to imitate what he had seen.
He succeeded in inspiring them with his own enthu
siasm, and they resolved upon a proceeding, not only

THE PLACARDS. 271
imprudent, but injurious to the cause for which they
were laboring. On the morning of the 18 th day of
October, 1534, the Parisians on awaking beheld their
public places placarded with little tracts. They ap
proached and read them. Great was their astonish
ment at beholdirig their mass attacked in a most vio
lent manner by epithets abusive and insulting. Many
who read were more indignant at the style than at the
matter contained in the placards. Some who would
have applauded an article by Melancthon against the
mass, were full of anger against the authors of the
papers they were reading, because they seemed to them
imprudent and uncourteous. The following fragments
are a specimen of th'eir style :
" True articles upon the horrible, great, and insup
portable abuses of the papal mass, invented directly
against the holy supper of our Lord (only "Mediator
and only Saviour) Jesus Christ."
"As hostile to God's holy word, with good reason
they ought to be rejected, and greatly detested."
" They are not ashamed to put the body of Jesus
in their wafers, and to allow him to be eaten by rats,
and spiders, and vermin, as it is written in their mis
sals : ' If the body of the Lord should be~ consumed by
mice and spiders, or a worm should be found in it, let
it be burned ahd put in the relic box.' 0 earth, why
do you not open to engulf these horrible blasphemers ?
0 detestable villains ! Is this the body of the Lord
Jesus, true Son of God ? Is he eaten by the mice and
by the spiders ? He who is the bread of angels and
the child of God, is he given to us to make meat for
beasts? O miserable wretches, if there is no other
evil in your infernal theology, but that yon speak ir
reverently of the precious body of Jesus, how greatly
would you merit the fagots and the fire, you blas-
Jfjiflt. Reformntf.j), J g «

272 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
phemers and heretics, the greatest in the world ! Light
then your fagots to burn and roast yourselves, not us,
because we do not wish to believe in your idols, your
new gods and false Christs, which are eaten by beasts
and you alike ; you who are worse than beasts, in
your trifling about your god of paste."
Francis I., on his return from Blois, found one of
these papers put up at the door of his room. He was
in a transport of rage ; he could not comprehend how
any one dared to offer him such an insult, and swore
that he would punish the guilty. The pope was thus
finding a powerful ally in the rash imprudence of the
Reformers. The placards, as they were called, soon began to
exhibit their results. Michael Morin, a man dissolute
in life and renowned for the ability with which he
captured heretics, and, when captured, convicted
them, was brought to court to attend to this business.
The prisons in a little while were gorged with men
and women accused by him, many of them from the
most noble families of France.

CHAPTER XIII.
THE BALANCOIRE.
Three months afterward a scene occurred which
showed with a terrible distinctness the dispositions
of the king.
On the morning of the 21st day of January, 1535,
in the midst of an immense concourse of people, a
religious procession issued from the church of St. Ger
main l'Auxerrois. At its head marched the priests,
clothed in glittering robes, carrying in little trunks

THE BALANCOIRE. 273
the relics of St. Germain, and St. Landry, and of St.
Genevieve. For this solemn occasion the holy chapel
had opened all its treasures, and, for the first time
since St. Louis, his relics, so renowned, were brought
out of their sacred resting-place to adorn the proces
sion. Among them was displayed, as worthy of the
most prominent place, the head of St. Louis. Old men,
as they looked at the imposing and splendid scene,
could not remember that they had ever beheld any
thing so striking. Bishops, mitered abbots, monks,
religious orders of all kinds were there represented.
The college of the Sorbonne was there in all its
dignity. After the Sorbonne came Du Bellay, bishop
of Paris, carrying in his hands the holy sacrament.
Francis I. followed, bareheaded, carrying in his
hands a large wax torch. After the king appeared the
princes, princesses, dukes, counts, and embassadors.
With a slow and solemn step the procession went
through the principal parts of the city, and halted in
six of its principal places, in each of which a magnifi
cent altar had been erected for the holy sacrament.
Thus far the Romish clergy appeared as worshipers,
according to the peculiar pomps and ceremonies of
their Church. More than this, however, is the object
of all this magnificent display.
By the side of each altar there is seen a gibbet, and
fagots ready to be lighted. Michel Morin, the grand
purveyor of the fete, had provided six Lutherans
for the occasion, one ior each altar. The people
seemed hardly able to contain their joy in the antici
pation of beholding their death.
Such a scene explains the horrible eagerness of
the murderers of St. Stephen, the first -Christian
martyr. In this atrocious and sacrilegious drama the Luther-

274 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
ans appeared most intrepid and courageous. God sus
tained them wonderfully. Not one of them showed
any signs of fear ; but all with a loud voice glorified
the Saviour, for whom they we're about to die. It
was for their faithfulness to him that they were thus
exposed as a spectacle, and delivered into the hands
of men more cruel than savage beasts. And yet,
when they gathered round them closely, and beheld
the mildness and serenity of these martyr heroes,
mingled with their decision, there were signs of pity
shown in that moving mass of people. Perhaps they
would have saved them if it had not been for one
man. That 'man was the king, who on this occasion
became himself the executioner.
He had decided that the Lutherans should be tied
to a beam, placed seesaw, which should lower so as
to plunge the victims in the flames and then should
rise immediately, and thus prolong their suffering
until the fire should burn the cords which bound
them, and they should fall into it.
They waited until the king came to the spot, so that
he might see the tortured men as they were lowered
into the fire. Francis then at each station gave his
own torch to the Cardinal of Lorraine to light the
flames, and immediately joined his hands and humbly
prostrated himself, imploring the divine pity upon his
people, until the death agonies were over. Six times
he, who was called the. father of letters, passed his
torch to the cardinal, six times he prayed for his
people, and six times he waited until the dying strug
gles of the victims were over.
The procession, which started at the Church of St.
Germain l'Auxerrois, came at length to St. Genevieve,
where a mass was sung, to thank God for the bless
ings which he had poured upon the Church.

THE BALANCOIRE. 275
Immediately after the procession there was a
splendid banquet in the archbishop's palace. After
it. was over the king made an address in which the
following passage occurs :
" I pray you to put out of your hearts and out of
your thoughts all opinions which would seduce you,
and that you will instruct your children and servants
in Christian obedience to the Catholic faith; and that
if you know any one infected by this perverse sect,
whether parent, brother, or cousin, you will reveal
him, for by silence you become his accomplice.
As for myself, your king, if I knew of one of my"
members stained by this detestable error, not only
would I deliver it to you to cut off, but more yet, if
I perceived that one of my children was tainted, 1
would myself sacrifice him. And because this day,
I know you to have a good will toward Jesus Christ,
I pray you to persevere. In doing so I will live with
you as a good king, and you with me as good faith
ful Christians and Catholic subjects, in peace, repose,
and tranquillity."*
And this is the man who once listened to the Gos
pel with pleasure ; a man whom Margaret de Valois
yet loved as her brother.
Some . historians think that the placards turned
-Francis I. from the reform. They may have influ
enced him, but the true causes were further back in
his history than this event. As we have already said,
he had turned his heart from the light, and the light
which was in him became dark. Added to this was
the fear that, after the Church, the Protestants would
attack the throne. The visit of Clement VII. and
Catharine de Medicis finished the work.
* Puaux, Histoire de la Ref. Franc, vol. i, p. 210, etc Sismondi,
Histoire de France, annee 1535. ;

276 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
On the 25th day of January, 1535, four days after
the grand procession we have referred to, a royal
edict appeared commanding the extirpation aad
extermination of the Lutheran sect and other
heresies. In this year another event took place which had a
great influence upon the Reformation in France.
The Institutions of the Christian Religion, by John
Calvin, were published when the author was but twen
ty-six years of age, "a work which," it has been
said, " has placed Calvin upon a pedestal from which
his enemies have failed to dislodge him; a work
which has made the Reformation in France what it
is at the present day."

CHAPTER XIV.
DECREE AGAINST CABRIERES AND MERINDOL 
BANQUET AT AIX  THE COUNCIL CHAMBER 
THE COLPORTEUR.
Between the years 1535 and 1540, the events
which took place were so similar that the narration
of one is a description of others. Martyrs were ar
rested and burned. They triumphed in their suffer
ings. And still the priests perceived that the so-
called heresy was not destroyed.
Upon the borders of the Durance there lived a
people who had been driven from Piedmont by per
secution, consisting of about eighteen hundred souls.
Their principal villages were Cabrieres and Merindol.
For two centuries, they had been here engaged in

DECREE AGAINST CABRIERES AND MERINDOL. 277
agriculture, and were distinguished as much for their
integrity, as for their dislike to the superstitions of
Rome. The rough and sterile lands on which they
dwelt had been transformed by them into fertile
fields. Living, as it were, in the midst of Roman Catholics,
it was strange that they had been left so long in com
parative quiet. It is true that some of them had been
executed or otherwise punished, but the mass of the
people had not been disturbed. Their time had now
come. Merindol was cited to appear, by fifteen of its
principal inhabitants, before the Parliament at Aix.
Certain of the fate which awaited them, they did not
go. On the 18th of November, 1540, a decree was
made which condemned ten of them to be burned
alive, their wives, children, parents, and servants to
be banished, and Merindol itself to be burned, de-
'molished, and rendered uninhabitable.
Some scenes which occurred only a few days after
the passage of this decree will not only show how it
was regarded, but will place before the reader the
manners of the people at this era more strikingly than
any formal description.
Around a table at Aix, covered with the most
delicate viands, were seated high dames of fortune,
priests, magistrates, and nobles. Among the guests
were the President Chassann6e, the Archbishop of
Aix, and a young lady claimed, by common report,
to be the mistress of the good bishop. During the
banquet she asked of the president when the execu
tion of the decree against Merindol was to take
place. The president pretended that he did not
hear. " What decree ?" asked a gentleman who was

278 HISTOKY OF THE REFORMATION.
t
present. The young lady gave an account of its
substance. "You are inventing a fable for us, Mademoiselle,"
said the Lord of Alenc, a man of true piety ; "if such
a decree has been made, it has only been made by
a parliament of women."
One of the counselors of the Parliament, the Lord
of Senas, answered :
" You are in error, Monsieur d' Alenc ; what Made
moiselle has told you is not a fable, and I think that
you would not call the Parliament of Aix a parlia
ment of women."
The Lord of Alenc protested his respect for the
sovereign court, and the Lord of Beaujeu spoke out
and said :
" This decree would astonish the savages and
Turks. I have never heard anything but good of the
people of Merindol. But here, is Monsieur le Presi
dent, who can tell us better than the women whatit is."
Before Chassann^e had time to reply, the young
lady looked at the archbishop and said :
" I would have been much astonished if there had
not been found some one in this company to defend
these miserable Lutherans ;" then raising her eyes,
she added in a louder voice, " If it pleased God that
all the Lutherans who are in Provence, nay, even in
France, had horns in front, we would see many
horns." The Lord of Beaujeu, casting on her a look of
contempt, replied :
" Might it please God that all the mistresses of the
priests should gabble like geese."
"Monsieur de Beaujeu, it is not decent to talk
against the Church. Remember that rio dog ever
barked at the crucifix without going mad."

DECREE AGAINST CABRIERES AND MERINDOL. 279
The archbishop began to laugh, and touching the
young lady on the shoulder, said :
" By my holy orders, you amuse me. You, Mon
sieur de Beaujeu, retain the lesson she has given
you." " I have nothing to do but to go to her school and
yours! And if I should say that the most of bishops
and priests are dissolute in their manners, I would
say nothing against the holy Church, unless a person
goes mad for speaking the truth."
The archbishop colored with anger :
" Monsieur de Beaujeu, you will render an account
of your words against the Church in the proper time
and place."
" I wish it might be to-day, my lord, and I will
prove much more than I say."
Another nobleman now interposed:
" Let ns lay aside," said he, " these troublesome
subjects. We are at the table, not to dispute but to
enjoy ourselves. By my friendship for you restrain
yourself for the future in these three things : First. Do
not regard the Lutherans. Second. Do not reprove the
ladies in their little pleasures too sharply. Third.
Do not look too closely at the lives of the ecclesias
tics if you would obey the injunction, ' Touch not
mine anointed — Nolite tangere meos Christos.' "
Much more was said, and the banquet finally
ended in a tumult.
Such scenes as these are sufficient to show that not
all the Roman Catholics approved of the persecution
against the Protestants. And it must not be supposed
that all the priests and monks did so. On the con
trary, it was true in those days, as it was in the time
of the apostles, " a great company of the priests were
obedient to the faith." While in France the cradle

280 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
of the Reformation was a university, in Germany it
was a monastery. And if there is any one in whom
a lover of the Bible has a right to feel more interested
than another, is it not a priest of -Rome when he
begins to inquire the way out of the labyrinth of
superstitions in. which he has been educated ?
There were monks yet in the Church who did all
they could to save the Reformers. This is illustrated
by the following incidents :
It was not many days after the events just nar
rated, when a grand council of ecclesiastics met at
Avignon, to devise measures by which the decree
against Merindol might be enforced. The Archbishop
of Aix presided, who opened the session in these
words : " Men, fathers, and brethren, you know that a
great tempest has risen against the Church of Jesus
Christ, and that the waves dash against it with such
fury that its destruction is threatened. The tempest
comes from the north. The offerings of the people
cease ; the pilgrimages are less frequent ; the devo
tions are lukewarm, and charity itself has grown cold
everywhere. That which is most alarming is, our
authority declines, our jurisdiction is misunderstood,
and the laws of the Church are despised. Ordained
by God to watch over kingdoms and people, we
ought to use all our power to destroy the Lutherans,
those foxes which mar the Lord's vineyard, those
whales which are endeavoring to sink the ship of the
Son of God. We have well commenced in obtaining:
a decree against the miserable heretics of Merindol ;
but it is necessary to execute it. Let us hasten, and
spare neither.time nor gold, so that God, in the day
of judgment, may not reproach us for having neg
lected to make to him this favorable sacrifice. As
to myself, I am ready ; I place at your disposition a

DECREE AGAINST CABRIERES AND MERINDOL. 281
hundred men, well armed and well equipped," to serve
until the Vaudois shall be completely destroyed."*
The prelate was silent. A murmur of approbation,
which rose from nearly every part of the assembly,
showed him that his words had found an echo. .After
some moments of silence, a Dominican monk, by the
name of Bassinet, who was a doctor of divinity, arose,
and said, that nothing should be done in> haste, for
fear that the inhabitants oFMerindol should be wrong
fully put to death ; that a deep examination of the
heresies for which they were reproached had led
him to believe that the faith of the heretics was con
formed to that of the Holy Scriptures ; that it seemed
to him wise and prudent to desist from past rigors,
and simply to punish, by pecuniary fines and banish
ment, those who spoke against the Church and the
pope ; and that, in reference to those who should ap
pear by the Holy Scriptures to be heretics and obsti
nate blasphemers, they could apply to them the
punishment of death or perpetual imprisonment."
• What courage it must have required to utter such
words in such an assembly ! They were received
with a murmur of disapprobation.
" 0 man of little faith !" cried the archbishop ;
" wherefore hast thou doubted ? Ah, master ! you re
pent of having well done. And do you not know
that you have spoken words which smell of the
sulphur and the fire ?"
"Master," said the Bishop of Aries, " can. any one
speak better of the Church than the Archbishop of
Aix?" ,
The Dominican was not embarrassed, but rose again
to speak. After having referred to the Pharisees,
who, in the days of Jesus Christ, overthrew the law
* Histoire dela Ref. Fran., par F. Puaux, vol. i, p. 39,40.

282 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
by their traditions, he boldly showed that the priests
were their successors, and then added :
" Because I must speak the truth, and as you call
me master in Israel, I will maintain by the Holy
Scriptures that this great pilot and patron of whom
we speak, our holy father the pope, his episcopal
sailors and seamen, who have abandoned the' ship of
Jesus Christ [Gospel ship] to embark in skiffs and
brigantines, are pirates arM corsairs of the sea, false
prophets and destroyers, and not pastors of the
Church of Jesus Christ."
These words, spoken with great energy, produced
a storm of anger on the part of the great majority of
the assembly.
" Get out of here, wicked apostate !" cried the
archbishop. "Thou art unworthy of being in this
company. Many, who have not merited as much as
thee, have been burned. These monkish beggars
and rascals spoil all."
These last words were received as an insult by the
mendicant orders, who complained of the outrage
thus offered to them. Such confusion ensued that the
discussion could not be continued, and the session
broke up.
After dinner the assembly again met. To avoid
what had occurred in the morning the inferior monks
were excluded. Only the doctors who were abbots
were admitted. There was no difficulty now, and it
was unanimously decided, at all hazards and at all
costs, to proceed to the execution of the decree. To
the archbishop was confided the whole management
of the affair, who wished to set out that very day on
his pious mission. A great banquet, however, which
was to take place the next day, detained him.
We follow the zealous ecclesiastic from the council

DECREE AGAINST CABRIERES AND MERINDOL. 283"
chamber to the feast ; and behold him, full of life and
spirit, mingling in those gay amusements, where, if
he could meditate piously upon the maxims of the
Church, he could not very well upon some which
Christ had given. Such as : " Every idle word that
men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in
the day of judgment ;" and, " Come out from among
them, and be ye separate ;" and, " The friendship of
the world is enmity with God."
The banquet was a magnificent affair, worthy of an
archbishop. The viands were costly and delicate,
the wines were old and of a rare quality, and the
most beautiful women of Avignon were present.
After the repast there were dancing and the sports
usual on such occasions.
Afterward the high prelates of the Church went
out to take a walk with the ladies. Passing by the
street des Changes, they stopped before a store to
look at some obscene pictures which were hung out
for sale. The true successors of the apostles in the
holy apostolic Church then bought a number of the
pictures, which they presented to the ladies who were
with them.
Continuing their walk, they came to a bookseller's
stand. The prelates in passing stopped a moment, as
they beheld some suspicious looking books. They
regarded' them more closely. They were not mis
taken. Lying on the stall for sale were French .and
Latin Bibles, which any one who had the means
might buy.
" Who has given you permission to sell these books ?
Do you not know that their sale is forbidden ?"
" The books that I sell," answered the other, " are
they not of more value than the pictures you have
bought for these ladies ?"

284 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
" I hope I may lose my share in paradise if this
man is not a Lutheran !" cried the Archbishop of Aix.
He caused him to be immediatedly seized and led
to prison. All the way crowds of people followed
him, hooting and shouting. Some cried, " To the fire
with him ! to the fire with him !" Others vociferated,
" The Lutheran ! the Lutheran !"
Here one spit in his' face ; there another pulled
his beard, and at every step some outrage was com
mitted on him. Bruised and wounded, and covered
with blood, he arrived at the palace jail. His trial
was not long. A few questions were asked him, which
he answered with a most wonderful presence of mind,
confounding his adversaries by the words of Scripture.
One of the judges, whose name was Laber, with some
others, endeavored to save him, alleging that the
punishment of death was too great for the crime of
having sold the Holy Scriptures. It was in vain.
Sentence was pronounced against him.
The same day that he was arrested he was tried,
condemned, and executed. It was a glorious day for
the martyr. He began it by distributing the word
of God ; he ended it by dying for Christ.
Having been conducted to the stake, that the cause
of his death might be known to all men, two Bibles
were hung around his neck, one in front and the other
at his back, and were burned with him. The torch
was applied to the wood, the flames gathered around
him, but his countenance and voice showed no signs
of pain. A heavenly peace was stamped upon his
features, and to the last sigh he continued to exhort
the witnesses of his death to search diligently the
Scriptures.

A ROMAN CATHOLIC'S TESTIMONY. 285'

CHAPTER XV.
A ROMAN CATHOLIC'S TESTIMONY.
All through France numerous executions are now
taking place for the crime of heresy. We can only
refer to one here and there as illustrations of the rest.
In the year 1542 a -letter was written by a Roman
Catholic to one of his friends, in which he relates,
with great candor, the circumstances connected with
the death of a young man, which show the power of
God's grace to support the soul in the hour of death.
The letter is dated July 10, 1542. We give an ex
tract from it :
"You ask me, my very honored friend, to com
municate to you exactly, what I have been able to
ascertain as to the Lutherans condemned to be burned.
" I have seen two executions of them myself. . . .
If you had. been there you would have wished that
their punishment might have been less rigorous. . . .
"The first was a very young man, yet without beard ;
the down had hardly come upon his chin. The people
supposed he was not yet twenty years of age. He
was the son of a shoemaker. The other was an old
man over sixty, already feeble with age, of a vener
able figure, and with a long white beard.
" The young man had said things which seemed
wrong concerning miraculous images, (here they not
only venerate them, but run from all parts to adore
them.) He had maintained that there was little differ
ence between them and the gods of stone which the
heathens used, and that they ought to be removed
from Christian temples if they became an occasion

286 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
of idolatry. He was accused of having said other
things which resembled the doctrines of Luther.
" When they exhorted him to recant, so far from
doing so, he declared that he was ready to confirm,
even by his death, what he had said. He was led be
fore the judges, and condemned to have his tongue
cut out, and afterward to be burned. . . .
" Without changing countenance the young man
presented his tongue to the knife of the executioner,
putting it out as far as he was able to do. The exe
cutioner drew it out further with . pincers, cut it off,
and struck the martyr with it several times on the
cheek. It is_said that some in the crowd who were
near him (0 pitie des Francais !) picked up the tongue
and threw it at the young man. Being placed after
ward on a cart he was drawn to the place of punish
ment. But to see him one would have said that he
was going to a festival. He descended voluntarily
and alone from the cart, and placed himself beside
the post which was to be the instrument of his execu
tion. When they had placed the chain around his
body, and when the crowd surrounded him with in
sults, the serenity with which he bore their mockings,
and the whole expression of his features were inde
scribable. He uttered no sound, but from time to
time spit out the blood which filled his mouth, and
directed his eyes toward heaven, as if he expected
further miraculous succor. When they had covered
his head with sulphur, the executioner showed him
the fire with a threatening air ; but the young man,
without being dismayed, made a movement of his body
to show that he was willing to be burned. In truth,
dear Cassander, I doubt whether the illustrious phi
losophers, who have written so much upon the con
tempt of death would have supported it with equal

MASSACRE OF CABRIERES AND MERINDOL. 287
constancy in the midst of such cruel torments. In
deed, this youth appeared to be raised above what is
human."*

CHAPTER XVI.
MASSACRE OF CABRIERES AND MERINDOL.
After various delays, during which many vain
efforts were made to draw the inhabitants of Merindol
into the Roman Church, during which the president
Chassann6e himself interposed in their behalf, and
Francis I. granted them a respite, that they might
recant, an order was obtained from the king to exe
cute the decree.
Over four years had passed in the mean time.
Chassannee was dead, and was succeeded by the Baron
D'Oppede, a man already renowned for his cruelty.
On the ninth day of January, 1545, the new president
received the royal letters patent. But, that he might
be sure of his prey, D'Oppede waited until an oppor
tune absence of M. de Grignam, governor of Provence,
should place him first in authority there, and should
put under his authority the armed force then in the
service of the governor.
It was the 12th of April, 1545, that the president
assembled the Parliament, and exhibited, and caused
to be read to them, the letters patent of the king.
Without any objection being made, commissioners
were appointed. They were Francois de la Fond,
Honor6 deTributiis, and Bernard de Badet. Guerin,
a lawyer, was to fill the place of the absent procurator-
general, and D'Oppede himself, at his own request,
* Histoire de la Bcf. Franc, par F. Puaux, vol. i, pp. 231, 232.
Hift. Reformation. 19

288 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
had the direction of the whole matter. " Thus," says
the writer from whom we quote, "the magistrate
becomes the executioner."
The very next day the soldiers were in motion, and
only four days after, on the 16th of April, 1545, Cap
tain Poulain, under the orders of the president, began
the burning of the villages of Papin, Cabrierette, La
Mothe, and Saint Martin, where the poor workmen
were killed without resistance; women and young
girls were violated, and then, with the little children,
murdered without pity. In many cases the breasts
of women were cut off, and afterward their little chil
dren were beheld, beside their dead bodies, dying of
hunger, the president having forbidden any nourish
ment to be given to them.
On the 17th and 18th the villages of Lourmarin,
Villelaure, and Treizemines were burned. No one
was found in them. On the other side of the Dur
ance, Genson and Laroque were burned, from which
the inhabitants had also fled.
At nine o'clock in the morning of the 18th of April
D'Oppede arrived at Merindol, where he found no
one but a young countryman, named Morisi Blanc,
who was tied to a tree and shot, and the village, con
sisting of over two hundred houses, burned.
On the 19th Cabrieres was besieged. On the 20th
it was agreed that if the people would surrender
their lives and property should be given to them.
About sixty men, unarmed, and thirty women, came
out of the village, depending on the promise made to
them. No sooner were they near enough than D'Op
pede and his followers rushed on them, bound twenty-
five or thirty, and led them to a neighboring field,
where they were in cold blood chopped literally to
pieces by the soldiers. The rest of the men were

MASSACRE OF CABRIERES AND MERINDOL. 289
carried off to Marseilles, Aix, and Avignon. The
women were shut up in a barn, which was fired at
the four corners, and when any opening appeared
they were driven back with pikes. Entering the
city, and hunting through cellars and concealed places,
every one was killed without mercy. No respect
was paid to either women or children. The number
killed here was estimated at eight hundred.*
Those who escaped wandered in the mountains,
and concealed themselves in caves and clefts of the
rocks. In their distress they asked D'Oppede to give
them permission to depart with their wives and chil
dren to the cities of Germany, where they could serve
God according to their faith. "We will give up
everything to you," they said ; " fields, houses, and
furniture. We will carry off nothing."
D'Oppede refused even this. "I know what I
ought to do with the people of Merindol," said he.
" I want to take them all, and send them to hell with
all the devils; both them and their wives and their
children. I will make such a destruction of them
that I will blot out their memory forever."
There was one, however, who had not forsaken
these suffering Christians. God was with them. It is
in this point of their history that one of their religious
services is described to us, as they assembled together
to ask help from Him who is mighty to save.
They read first the Holy Scriptures, and then
prayed to God that he would not abandon them in
the day of their trials. An old man then rose and
said: " The least solicitude that we ought to have is that
for our property and our lives. But what we ought to
fear is, that by torments and by our infirmities we may
* Histoire de la Ref. Franc, par F. Puaux, vol. i, p. 247-249, etc

290 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
fail in confessing our Lord Jesus Christ and his Gospel.
It is for this that we have need to turn our eyes from
the earth to the heavens, that God may grant us the
grace to persevere in his holy doctrine. As for us,
let us be firm, though the nations of the earth may
turn from the true religion and become idolators by
following Baal. Let us be firm, and neither bom
bardments nor cannon can shake our faith."
A second rose and said : " If the Son shall make
us free, we shall be free indeed ; and though, even,
we may walk through the valley and shadow of
death, we will fear no evil, for the Lord is with us.
It is he himself who says to us, ' I will never leave
thee, nor forsake thee.' Let us not fear those who
kill the body, and cannot kill the soul, but let us fear
Him, who is able to destroy both soul and body in
hell. Instead of abandoning the law, the ordinances,
and the doctrine of the Gospel, let us remember con
stantly this saying of the Saviour : ' He that persever-
eth unto the end shall be saved.'"
A third spoke of their past deliverances, ending
with these words : " For what shall it profit a man,
if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own
soul ? Let us be ready to die."
A fourth rose : " If it be the Lord's will to save us
he will do it. Let us not then be troubled as to what
man can do to us. If we must die, let it be without
fear, for the Lord will give us a celestial habitation,
in which there shall be no poverty, no misery, no
tears, no weeping, but joy and eternal happiness; let
us then rejoice in our tribulations, knowing that our
sadness shall be turned into rejoicing, and that when
the wicked shall be weeping and wailing and gnash
ing their teeth, we shall be in everlasting felicity."
As they thus spoke the blessed Comforter promised

THE COUNCIL OF TRENT. 291
by our Saviour was there among them. Tears, more
of joy than sorrow, flowed plenteously, and it seemed
almost as if a voice spoke to them from Heaven :
" I will not leave thee."
The young men then spoke, and encouraged their
brethren to faithfulness. And before their assembly
closed, they all felt new courage, and resolved afresh
to suffer all things from their implacable enemies
rather than renounce the faith which gave to them
the strength and joy which now dwelt in their
hearts. What became of these faithful men? Some died
on the rocks and mountains of hunger, some of cold,
some of fatigue, some from the excitement produced
by a constant dread of being seized, and some escaped
to strange countries, where they could worship God
according to their conscience.

CHAPTER XVII.
THE COUNCIL OF TRENT  A CONGREGATION
SURPRISED  FOURTEEN MARTYRS.
The same year in which the inhabitants of Ca
brieres and Merindol died for Christ, the famous
Council of Trent opened its sessions.
March 11, 1545, was the day appointed for the
grand assemblage of the representatives of all the
clergy of Romanism of every nation.
When the cathedral opened its gates to receive the
assembled clergy three bishops only were present.
Fearing that it would furnish their adversaries with
an occasion to reproach them if they opened the ses-

292 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
sions of a great oecumenical council with such a small
number, they resolved to wait a few days until rein
forcements arrived. The few days were extended to
about nine months, and on the 13th of December,
1545, the Cardinal del Monte celebrated a solemn
mass, the Bishop of Bitonte preached a sermon, other
ceremonies were observed, the decree for the convo
cation was read, and the question then asked,
"Is it your desire that the council should be
opened?" Each one replied :
"Placet:'
And it lasted nineteen years !
It had been sitting but a little over two months
when one day a courier arrived at Trent with news
which caused among the bishops a universal trans
port of joy.
Luther was dead !
Their great enemy died on the 18th of February,
1546. Returning- to France we behold at the city of
Meaux, on the eighth day of October, 1546, a scene
which merits our attention.
It was where Briconnet had preached the Gpspel.
It was where he so shamefully fell. It was the city
of the martyr, John Leclerc, and where the clergy
had thought themselves masters of the field.
They were mistaken. The word of God grew, and
Christians multiplied under its teachings. They wor
shiped in lonely and solitary places, but the danger
which was continually hanging over their heads
helped to give life to their meetings. Thev had
formed a Church, and appointed one Pierre Leclerc
as their minister, under whose pious and faithful
ministrations the number of members constantly

THE COUNCIL OF TRENT. 293
increased, so that at times from three to four hund
red met together. It was then very difficult for
them to remain concealed. They were advised to
be on their guard.
On the 8th of September, 1546, they had met in
the house of one of their number, whose name was
Mangin. Leclerc was explaining to them a passage
from the First Epistle to the Corinthians, when sud
denly the lieutenant of the city, accompanied by his
sergeants, presented themselves before the astonished
assembly. " Wherefore so many people ?" said he to Leclerc.
" Why are they gathered here instead of going to
their parish churches ?"
" To hear the word of God," replied the pastor ;
" will you wait until we finish ?"
" To prison with you," quickly answered the
lieutenant. " Let us go where God pleases," said Leclerc.
The sergeants, on the order of their chief, bound
the pastor and sixty-two persons, consisting both of
men and women. A young girl, indignant at such
treatment for being found in such company, said to
the lieutenant :
" If you had found me in some place of sin you
would have been far from binding me thus."
"¦¦ Be silent," was his only answer.
He gave the signal of departure. It was a sad
spectacle to behold those sixty-two Lutherans as
they walked chained together without resistance to
their prison, singing the seventy-ninth psalm as they
marched .
" 0 God, the heathen are come into thine inherit
ance ; thy holy temple have they defiled ; they have
laid Jerusalem on heaps :

294 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
" The dead bodies of thy servants have they given
to be meat unto the fowls of the heaven, the flesh of
thy servants unto the beasts of the earth.
"Their blood have they shed like water round
about Jerusalem ; and there was none to bury them.
"We are become a reproach to our neighbors,
a scorn and derision to them that are round about
us." How appropriate were such words to their con
dition !
" Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of
thy name.
"Let the sighing of the prisoner come before thee;
according' to the greatness of thy power preserve
thou those that are appointed to die."
A few days afterward they were brought before
the Parliament at Paris, and fourteen of them were
condemned to. undergo the torture, and then to be
burned alive near the house of Mangin, where they
had been surprised engaged in their forbidden
worship. Their property was also confiscated.
The others, with the exception of five who were
discharged, were condemned to lighter punish
ments. After their condemnation they were taken to dif
ferent monasteries, and various efforts made to induce
them to recant. Finding these efforts useless, they
were delivered into the hands of the Prevot des
Marechaux to be led to Meaux.
It was a sorrowful journey to them. Exhausted,
physically and mentally, by the various scenes through
which they had passed, and looking forward to the
fearful death they were about to suffer, their hearts
sank within them. They were not less decided to
brave all for Christ's sake, but at that hour they

FOURTEEN MARTYRS. 295
could not triumph. An unexpected circumstance
seeihed to impart new courage to them.
As they rode silent and pensive through the forest
of Livry, suddenly a man presented himself before
them and cried:
" Brethren, take courage ! be not weary in giving
testimony for the Gospel !"
As the wagons drove quickly on the unknown man
began to run, and as he ran he raised his hand toward
heaven and said to them :
" Brethren ! brethren ! remember Him who is above.
Courage ! courage !"
It seemed almost as if a voice spoke to them from
God. The unknown man, who afterward turned out
to be a weaver by the name of Cauberon, was im
mediately seized, and added to the number of the
prisoners. The day after their arrival at Meaux they were
put to the torture. During this appalling proceeding
they exhibited a wonderful patience. While the ex
ecutioners worked even to fatigue, in dismembering
their bodies, one of them cried out with a holy joy :
" Courage, my friends, courage ! spare not this
miserable body which has so often resisted the Spirit,
so often resisted the- voice of its Creator." -
The monks, in the midst of this horrible scene,
never lost sight of what they called the salvation of
the martyrs. At last they proposed to them to pro
nounce some words in the ear of the priest.
"If you will do this," said they, "they will not
cut your tongue off."
Six of them, whether overcome by the agonies they
were enduring or by fear, or whether the words they
were to whisper appeared indifferent, consented, and
were saved from this infliction preliminary to their

296 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
death. The others, greatly grieved at the compliance
of their companions, could be moved neither by
menaces nor promises.
They were taken from their prison, and started for
the place of execution. Just as they left one of the"
officers said to Mangin :
" Give me thy tongue."
" Here it is," (Le voila,) he answered. It was
immediately cut off. The poor man was, however,
able to repeat three times :
" The name of God be praised!"
He and their minister, Leclerc, were drawn upon
a hurdle ; the others were honored with carts to
draw them to the place of their last sufferings.
The sacrifice commenced. The monks sang in
Latin, to drown, as much as possible, the voices of
the eight victims still able to use their tongues, who
now, in the midst of the fire, seemed endeavoring to
make up for the feebleness of the moment by exhort
ing their brethren to constancy.
All was soon over, and nothing remained to be
seen of these devoted men but their charred remains
in the midst of the smoke and ashes.
They died just a month from the day on which
they met to worship God in the house of Mangin.*
* Crespin Martyr en 1546. Histoire de la Ref. Franc, par F. Puaux,
vol, i, p. 2G4, etc

DEATH OF FRANCIS I, 297

CHAPTER XVIII.
DEATH OF FRANCIS I.  MARGARET DE VALOIS. '
It came at last the king's turn. He had been
long suffering under an incurable dis.ease. Splendid
palaces and sumptuously furnished apartments could
not cure him. Long nights, passed sleepless and in
great pain, gave him time for reflection, but seemed
to bring to him no true sense of his guilt in destroy
ing his Protestant subjects. He died March 3, 1547.
There was one person who felt deeply the death of
Francis. For forty days she shut herself up, and
passed the time in .prayers and tears. Margaret de
Valois had too much loved her almost worshiped
brother. Amid all his cruelties, amid all his vices,
her affection had never failed, and she now wept for
him, almost the only sincere mourner.
Francis was succeeded by his, son, Henry IL, who
was twenty-eight years of age, and who had married
Catharine de Medicis, the niece of Clement VII.
The true queen, however, was the beautiful Diana de
Poitiers, who, it is said, waited impatiently until the
late king had breathed his last sigh, that she might
enter in possession of her power. She was forty-
eight years of age when Francis died, but years had
scarce left their mark upon her beauty. Her intel
lectual powers were equal to her personal attractions,
and ruling Henry as her ambition and passion led
her, she became an implacable foe to the friends of
the Bible. It would be no praise to them to be able
to say that she was their friend.
" Pierre du Chattel, bishop of Chalons, pronounced

298 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
the funeral sermon of the king. It came near being
a dangerous sermon for him. In eulogizing Francis
he had exclaimed :
" I am persuaded that after so holy a life, the soul
of the king, on leaving his body, has been carried
to heaven without passing through the flames of
purgatory." The doctors of the Sorbonne, whose ears were
extremely nice in detecting heresy, saw in this state
ment a virtual abandonment of one of their favorite
doctrines ; for if one who was so openly and notoriously
a sinner could escape purgatory, why could not all
the world.
They prepared a complaint and sent it to the court.
The bishop was saved by the presence of mind and
wit of Jean Mendoze, high steward of the king, who
1 met the deputies at the door of St. Germain and said
to them :
" Calm yourselves, gentlemen-; if you had known
the good king, my master, as well as I did, you would
have better understood the Bishop of Chalons. Francis
was not a man to tarry long anywhere ; and if he did
take a turn in purgatory, they never would have been
able to persuade him to stay long there."
Margaret de Valois, whose history we have not fol
lowed because, alas ! it became less connected with
the Reformation as she grew older, did not long sur
vive her brother. She died in the year 1549. We
have admired her character, loved her memory, for
she was a witness for Christ in the midst of every
obstacle. She preserved her integrity and honor sur
rounded by a dissolute court. Her house afforded
refuge to the Protestant exiles ; her money distrib
uted the Bible ; but after all she failed greatly in
one thing : she had not the decision of character

DEATH OF MICHAEL SERVETUS. 299
which was necessary in her high position. And this
became more manifest as she advanced in years.
More and more she conformed to the ceremonies of
Rome, for she had never left the Church ; and when
she died, she died within its pale.
We tarry not to describe the persecutions and mar
tyrdoms with which France was now filled. Henry II.
inherited the faults of his father without his ability,
and ruled by Diana de Poitiers and the High Con
stable of Montmorency, who hated the Lutherans
more intensely than even Diana, he showed no mercy
to heretics. The coronation of his queen, Catharine de
Medicis, was honored by the burning of a number of
them as an amusement suited to such an occasion.
And the king condescended to be present, and grant
ed them the favor of witnessing their sufferings.

CHAPTER XIX.
DEATH OF MICHAEL SERVETUS.
We proceed to notice an event which, though it
occurred in Geneva, has an intimate connection with
the Reformation in France.
John Calvin (properly Cauvin) since the year 1541
had found a refuge in that city. There he had
labored with zeal an^l earnestness for God. With the
eloquent William Farel by his side, he had devoted
his time and talents to the cause of the Bible. A
man perfectly sincere, and mighty with the pen, few
were his match in argument. And too well he loved
his favorite field, for he was constantly engaged in

300 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
religious controversies.* This was not the best way
to spread the Gospel, and it was not the best exam
ple to set before his countrymen in France. Some
have said the times in which he lived justified him in-
this course. It may be a palliation, but cannot be a
justification of what is wrong in itself. The spirit of
Christ is the spirit of meekness and of love, long-suf
fering, and gentleness. Religious disputation, some
times necessary, sometimes useful, long and willfully
persisted in, leads away from all these. John Calvin,
now in controversy with the Roman Catholics, now
with his brethren the Protestants, again with some
ultra sectarians, found at length in his heart the same
persecuting spirit which was then raging among the
Romanists, and which, of all men, a French Protest
ant in those days should have been the last to receive
or nourish.
Michael - Servetus was a distinguished Spanish
physician. Having adopted Unitarian doctrines as
to the Deity, a number of letters passed between
him and Calvin. The latter became irritated, and, in
writing to Viret, we are astonished and grieved to
find the following lines :
" Servetus has written to me lately, and has joined
to his letter an enormous volume of his reveries,
warning me^with a fabulous arrogance that we will
see astonishing and unheard of things. He offers to
come here if I wish ; but I will not pledge myself,
for if he should come I will not suffer him, so far as
I have power, to depart living."f„
He did come to Geneva, and on Calvin's application
* The author of the article under the- head of " Calvin," in the new
American Encyclopedia, 1859, while eulogizing Calvin, says: "He was
engaged in perpetual theological disputations."
t Henry de Berlin, Hist, de Calvin.

DEATH OF MICHAEL SERVETUS. 301
he was arrested, tried, and finally, on the 27th day of
October, 1553, burned to death, the Reformer sanc
tioning the proceedings by which he suffered.*
This act has left a stain upon the memory of Cal
vin which no zeal, no ability, no reputation he has
acquired can ever remove. It has indeed been turn
ed into an accusation against Protestantism by those
who have said that Protestants themselves persecute
and burn as well as their adversaries. But it should
be remembered that the case of Servetus is but one
against the two millions and a half who have been
slain by Rome; and that one not justified but con
demned everywhere by the Protestant world, even
by the friends of Calvin himself.
We come to the year 1559, in which the Protest
ants beheld with joy that the judges began to be
more lenient in their punishments of heresy. In one
case, by a decree of the chamber of Tournelles, some
young persons who were convicted were only con
demned to banishment.
This decree caused great commotion. The clergy
appealed it to the general Parliament, and the
king himself came to hear the deliberations, while
the whole country looked on with anxiety for the
result. Henry as he listened became exasperated at
those who spoke in behalf of the prisoners, and before
any conclusion was arrived at, caused the arrest of
four of the speakers and threw them into the dun
geons of the Bastile, and evoked the case before his
own court, saying, that for the future the great busi
ness of his reign should be the extirpation of heresy.
He undertook too much. He was soon afterward
wounded in the eye at a tournament, and on the 10th
of July, 1559, died of the injury he received.
* Histoire de la Ref. Franc, par F. Puaux, vol. i, p. 340, etc

302 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.

CHAPTER XX.
CAUSES WHICH PREVENTED THE REFORMATION
FROM SPREADING WIDER IN FRANCE.
Before we conclude, we wish to give a reply to
the following questions:
Why did not the Reformation make*greater prog
ress in a country which promised at first so much ?
Why does Romanism again prevail as we behold it
at present?
The questions are nearly alike, and shall be taken
as one. Our answer is threefold :
1. The friends of the Bible were discouraged by
the lukewarmness or the apostasy of those profess
ing to be Reformers who were high in station, such
as Briconnet and Margaret de Valois, and afterward
Henry IV., and other illustrious names.
2. In France there was no powerful protector of
the Protestant party as there was in Germany and
England. In the latter country Henry VIII., bad as
he was, threw off allegiance to the pope and broke
his power. In Germany the noble Frederic, Elector
of Saxony, to whom the crown of the empire was
offered, always stood fearlessly by the side of Luther
and his party. In France there seemed to be one
person fitted by Providence to fill this place. It was
Francis I., a monarch of enlightened views, and in
many respects, during the first years of his reign,
possessed of a kind heart. He dearly loved his sister,
Margaret de Valois, who, as has been stated, had
embraced Protestant principles, a fact which ought

' WHY IT DID NOT SPREAD. 303
to have led him to regard these principles with favor.
More than a year's imprisonment in Spain, in the
hands of Charles V., had given him ample time for
reflection. A long separation from two 'of his chil
dren, whom he placed in the hands of Charles, to re
main as hostages until he had fulfilled his solemn
oath made at the time of his liberation, ought to have
created in his heart sympathy for his suffering and
persecuted subjects. But Francis returned to his
kingdom to break his oaths, to falsify his promises ;
and, as if destroying his Protestant subjects was a
congenial crime, he added this, as the pope and the
priests instigated him, to perjury and falsehood.
Many years afterward, when the great Henry IV.
came to the throne of France, a like opportunity of
blessing his country seemed to be placed in his hands.
He had been educated a Protestant. He was the
grandson of Margaret de Valois, and seemed, like Es
ther, to have been brought to the throne for a special
purpose — that he might lead the Reformation forward
to new triumphs ; but he joined himself openly to his
enemies, and Rome triumphed. It is true that he
protected the Protestants, that in his reign the edict
of Nantes "was published; but he could not undo the
sad effect of his apostasy.
3. We have previously inserted a quotation from
a French author, in reference to Calvin's Institutes,
part of which is as follows: "A work which has
made the Reformation in France what it is at the
present day." This assertion, instead of being true in
the sense in, which the author intended, we fear is
sadly and painfully true in another sense, and that
Calvin's great abilities were used in a manner rather
to repel than to attract those Roman Catholics who
were sincerely seeking the light. He not only adopted,
Hi". F.»f-rmnlirn. rn

304 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
as we have seen him practice them already, the harsh
views of St. Augustine, that it was right to persecute
and kill heretics, but he added to this the peculiar
views of St. "Augustine on predestination. That there
may be no mistake in the minds of our readers, we
give Calvin's own words :
" Predestination," says he, " by which God adopts
some to the hope of life, and adjudges others to eter
nal death, no one, desirous of the credit of piety, dares
absolutely to deny."
" Predestination we call the eternal decree of
God, by which he hath determined in himself what
he would, have to become of every individual of
mankind. For they are not all created with a similar
destiny ; but eternal life is fore-ordained for some,' and
eternal damnation for others. Every man therefore
being created for one or the other of these ends, we
say he is predestinated either to life or to death."*
If Calvin had simply held these doctrines, and
welcomed with the hand of fellowship and heart of
love those who could not receive them, as his follow
ers frequently do at the present day, we would have
little to say. But when he unchurches and gags all
who cannot stretch themselves to his Procrustean bed,
by saying " no one desirous of the credit of piety
dares absolutely to deny," we shudder as we think
of such doctrines, and such enforcement of them, in
those times which tried men's souls.
It is true that Luther held partially these views,
but he never gave them the prominence that Calvin
did. And we believe the more he advocated them,
the more he injured the great cause in which he was
engaged. Especially was this true in his unfortunate
controversy with Erasmus on free-will.
* Calvin's Institutes, book iii, ch. xxi, Allen's Trans., vol. ii, pp. 404,405.

DOCTRINE OF PREDESTINATION. 305
And when the Synod of Dort, in the year 1618,
affirmed in substance these doctrines, excluding and
condemning the Arminians, it was a fresh blow to
the Reformation, already a hundred years old. It is
with a kind of relief that we read even in Calvinistic
works that there was not a perfect unanimity in en
dorsing them by that celebrated assembly ; but that
the English divines and a few others maintained that
Christ died for all men.
Strange infatuation of the human heart, that while
the Roman Catholics were censuring them, the Re
formers should set up such a standard of doctrine,
and then ostracize all who would not receive it.
But such views were not merely held by Cal
vin as incidents, but prominently thrust forth as a
kind of doctrinal basis. We quote the remarks of a
Calvinistic writer already referred to, who, speaking of
the theological system of the Institutes of Calvin, says :
" It emphasized the divine holiness rather than the
divine love ; it made an abstract decree to take the
central place which only Christ can rightfully fill ; but
it is still the most complete system," etc., etc.
" The rational power of the work is owing to the
fact that it carries one dominant idea through all
parts of the system, the idea of the divine sover
eignty" etc.
" This election can come only from God, and it
includes only a part of the race, the rest being left
to perdition ; election and perdition (the horribile
decretum) are both predestinated in the divine plan ;
that plan is a decree, and this decree is eternal and
unchangeable." " Such," says he, " was the stern anatomy of the
system of predestination."* „
* New American Enc, 1859 : Articlo, John Calvin.

306 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
And such, we add, were the doctrines offered to
those who were seeking the light as they emerged.
from the darkness of Romanism, imbodied in a sys
tem, and stamped by the authority of those who were
leaders in the Reformation. In contemplating them,
we sympathize with Margaret de Valois as she beheld
what she must believe if she left Rome. Who can
tell what influence such doctrines, as they were thus
enforced, may have had in turning Francis I. from
the Reformation?
Here we pause. Though far from being an end of
the persecutions of the Protestants in France — -for the
massacres of Vassy, of Sens, of St. Bartholomew,
occurred afterward— yet to pursue their history fur
ther would require space beyond our purposed limits.
The year 1559 was a year of triumph to the French
Reformers. And when, in 1859, the three hundredth
anniversary of their Reformation was celebrated in
France, thousands of hearts gratefully felt that Rome
had no longer power to shed the blood of their com
patriots in the name of Christ.

THE

REFORMATION IN ITALY.

THE

REFORMATION IN ITALY.

CHAPTER I.
oAVONAROLA.
Italy, land of sculpture, painting, and of poetry ;
Italy, with her beautiful cities and lovely climate ;
Italy, with her long line of ancient ahd illustrious
heroes, has given to us men, not a few, who have
contended nobly for the truth of God, men who have
Hved and died for its defense.
It is true, the search for them must be compare
tively difficult, because their adversaries have always
held the civil and ecclesiastical power, and were un
willing to chronicle anything in their favor, and
have again and again suppressed and destroyed such
testimony; but yet we find it even in the writings
of those who have condemned them.
There was one man who led the van in the era of
which we write. Girolamo M. F. M. Savonarola has
been called the Luther of Italy. He is rather the
Wiclif, the morning star of the Reformation in that
country. Born in the year 1452, and dying in 1498,
at the age of forty six, he was not permitted to behold
the light which burst twenty-five years afterward
Upon the nations of Europe.
Early the Spirit of God moved upon his heart, and

310 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
early he sought a peace which was little known
among the doctors of the Church, but which an
inward conviction urged him to expect. Like Luther,
he believed that the cell of a monk was the surest
place to find it.
In his father's house the world and its allurements
almost perpetually presided. It was a place of
gayety, where the learned, and the wealthy, and the
powerful assembled, and seemed to him a place in
which it was impossible to live the religious life for
which he sighed. His mental struggles increased,
and soon became overwhelming and incessant.
Jerome, for that was the name by which he was
most commonly known, at last decided to leave the
paternal mansion and fly to a monastery. He was
now over twenty-two years of age, and knowing that
his father would oppose his purpose, he took the occa
sion of a grand festival, when his friends were engaged
in the processions, and spectacles, to leave home.
On the '24th of April, 1475, he found refuge in a
Dominican monastery at Bologna, as a candidate for
the vows.
The next day he wrote to his father. Some pas
sages in his letter will show his earnestness and
sincerity. He says:
" My Honored Father, — I doubt not that you grieve
much for my departure, and the more because I left
you secretly ; but I wish you to learn my mind and
intention from this letter, that you may be consoled. . .
"The reason which induces me to become a
monk is this : in the first place the great wretch
edness of the world, the iniquity of men, the vio
lence, the adultery, the theft, the pride, the idolatry,
the hateful blasphemy into which this age has

SAVONAROLA. 311
fallen, so that *bne can no longer find a righteous
man. For this, many times a day with tears I
chanted this verse :
" ' Heu fuge crudeles terras, fuge litus avarum.'
And this, because I could not endure the great
distemper of some of the people in Italy ; the more
also, seeing virtue extinct, ruined, and vice triumph
ant. This was the greatest suffering I could have in
this world; therefore daily I entreated of my Lord
Jesus Christ that he would rescue me from this de
filement. Continually I made my prayer with the
greatest devotion, imploring God, saying : ' Show me
thy path, for to thee do I lift up mine eyes.' ISTow
God has been pleased in his infinite mercy to show
it me ; and I have received it, though unworthy of
such grace. . . .
" Would it not have been most ungrateful if, hav
ing asked God to show me the straight path in which
I should walk, when he deigned to point it out to
me, I had not taken it? 0 my Saviour, rather a
thousand deaths than that I should be so ungrateful,
or so oppose thy will. ...
" Then, dearest father, you have rather to thank
our Jesus than to weep. . . .
" I could not have been so daring as not to yield
to that kind voice, especially to my Lord Jesus, who
says : ' Come unto me all ye that are weary and
heavy laden, and I will give you rest ; take my yoke
upon you and learn of me, for my yoke is easy and
my burden is light.' Because I know you lament
that I left you secretly, almost as a fugitive, let me
tell you that such was my distress and the agitation
of my inmost soul at quitting you, that if I had
expressed it, I verily believe, before I could have

312 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
departed from you, my heart would have broken,
and I should have changed my purpose and reso
lution ; therefore do not wonder that I did not tell
you 
" Soon will these days pass in which the misery is
present to us, and afterward I trust both you and I
shall be consoled in this world by grace, and in the
next by glory. Nothing remains, but that I request
you, with manly fortitude, to comfort my mother, of
whom I beg that, together with you, she will bestow
her blessing on me, and I will ever pray fervently for
your souls."
About this time his sentiments were very sweetly
expressed in a lyric, of which we give a verse or two
as an example :
" Heart ! no more delaying I
Heart I no more delaying !
From love divine thus straying I
" Thine own, my heart ! be never I
Wouldst thou repose secure thee !
In Jesus rest forever !
. Let not the false world lure thee ;
Whom it delights, assure thee,
The Lord is he betraying.
" My heart ! 0 haste to Jesus 1
Leave men to their disputing ;
His love alone can please us.
To calm the storm transmuting, •
His love we'll prove how suiting,
Tho world's dread fury staying.
" Heart I no more delaying !
Heart no more delaying !
From love divine thus straying."*
He now applied himself to prayer and study. Soon
he knew the, Bible almost by rote, but was grieved
to find' the monks very far from what he expected
them to be. His own life, however, was one of great
* Life of Girolamo Savonarola. London, 1843.

SAVONAROLA. 313
purity and piety, as acknowledged by Roman Cath
olic writers.*
He hesitated long before he would take the solemn
vows of the priesthood upon him, and did not begin
to preach until he was thirty-one years of age. This
was in 1483, the year of Luther's birth. He ascended
the pulpit of the Church of Lorenzo, in Florence.
The congregation was large. Much was expected
on account of the piety and reputation for learn
ing of the preacher. He commenced his sermon ;
but his constrained carriage and his ungainly fig
ure were very far from pleasing his hearers. A
piping voice did not heighten any good effect of his
sermon. He preached again, but with no better
effect. Day after day the number of his hearers
diminished, until at length only twenty -five were
left, including women and boys. He seemed to know
the cause himself, for he said afterward: "I had
neither voice, lungs, nor style. My preaching dis
gusted every one. I could not have moved as much
as a chicken.*'
He returned to his monastery greatly discouraged.
This was the man who was afterward followed by
such crowds of people that large churches could not
contain them, and under the eloquence of whose
words, his immense audiences burst out frequently
into loud weeping.
He now applied himself more earnestly to the
Bible, that he might understand more thoroughly, and
feel more deeply, its truths. A burning zeal to com
municate to others the joys which filled his own
heart urged him to other attempts to preach, and to
*P. Quetif, Ambroise Catharin, Bzovius, Baron, Alexandre, Nen,
Marsilo Ficia, Matthieu Toscan, Flaminins ; also Biographie Universelle
(French) in 84 vols. ; published at Paris, 1825, vol. xl, p. 564.

314 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
constant efforts to improve his voice and elocution,
until at length the power which he sought began to
assert its sway over his audience.
Now the cathedral of Florence could not contain
his enraptured listeners, and as his words poured
forth " from the divine fountain of life," says one of
his biographers, " the new light of Gospel truth sur
rounded his brows with a glory like the aureola of
saints." The same writer gives us some specimens of his
preaching :
" People of Florence, give yourselves to the study
of the Sacred Scriptures ! The first blessing is under
standing the Sacred Scriptures. Let us publicly con
fess the truth ; the Sacred Scriptures have been lock
ed up, their light has been almost extinguished
among men ! Has it not been set aside ? left in the
dust ? no longer studied ? Nothing has been attended
to but poetry and vanities."
" Florentines, I say to the wicked, Ve know it is a
proverb, ' Misery comes by sin !' Go, read ; when the
Hebrews did right and loved God they had always
prosperity; on the contrary, when they committed
iniquity God prepared a scourge for them ! Florence,
what hast thou done ? What sins hast thou commit
ted? How dost thou stand before God? Shall- I
tell thee ? Alas ! the measure is full ! thy plague is
at its height ! Florence, it is full !"
" I can no more, my strength fails ! O slumber no
longer, Lord, upon that cross ! Grant these our peti
tions, 0 Lord ! Look upon the face of thine anointed !
O glorious virgin ! O saints ! O ye blessed in Para
dise! 0 angels! O archangels! 0 all ye company
of heaven ! intercede for us with the Lord, that he
delay not to be gracious to us."

SAVONAROLA. 315
" Stretch forth, stretch forth thy hand, thy mighty
arm !"
" I can do no more. I think not what more to say.
There is nothing left for me but to weep. I would
dissolve in tears upon this pulpit. I ask not, O Lord !
that thou shouldest hear us for our merits, but for thy
mercy, for the love of thy Son."
At the conclusion he would frequently descend
from the pulpit bathed in tears, amid the sobs and
groans of the congregation.
We may well ask now what was the secret of his
eloquence ? Was it a better knowledge of the Bible ?
Doubtless this was an important help. Was it an
improvement in his elocution and voice? Doubt
less this was also a help. But we cannot help be
lieving that it was a mighty baptism of the. same
all powerful Spirit which rested upon John Wesley a
hundred years ago, that now came upon the Roman
Catholic monk.
We stop here a moment to notice the various
opinions which have been entertained in relation to
Savonarola. By one author he has been called a cheat and a
fanatic. By another it is said that by pretensions to
superior sanctity and by a fervid eloquence he hur
ried away the feelings of his hearers. But other
writers do him greater justice. That he was ah
errorist in some things we readily admit. Even yet
he remained a Roman Catholic, as may be seen by
the specimens of his sermons which we have given ;
and it is doubtful if he ever succeeded in freeing
himself from all the superstitions of Rome ; but that
he was a sincere man, a true and devoted Christian, a
noble patriot, we assert on- the authority of the best
informed historians.

316 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
Such preaching as we have described produced the
same fruit which the true Gospel ever produces. A
change in the manners of the people became visible,
and Florence, formerly the most corrupt, became the
most pious city of Italy.*
Another effect, which seldom fails to accompany
the first, appeared also. Enemies began to appear on
all sides. It was immaterial to them the good that
was accomplished for their country. That Savonarola
had for years, like a true citizen, contended for the
liberty of Florence was no recommendation to them.
That he had even kept aloof from Lorenzo de Medicis
the Magnificent, who, however good he might be in
many respects, Jerome thought was no true friend to
his country ; and, after Lorenzo's death, that he had
with all his eloquence pleaded for the republic and
succeeded, was nothing to them.
They denounced him to the pope for preaching
heresy, and the accusation was true, according to
what was considered heresy by the chief pontiff at
Rome.

CHAPTER II.
PROGRESS OF THE GOSPEL  SAVONAROLA AGAIN.
We behold thus scenes that were transpiring in
Florence only a few years before Luther's voice was
heard in Germany. But even centuries before, all
through Italy, there were many who sought the
knowledge of the word of God. Dante and Petrarch
had not been afraid to give a testimony, not a full
* Biographie Universelle, Paris, vol. xl, p. 565.

PROGRESS OF THE GOSPEL. 317
one, it is true, for the truth: Within the walls of
Rome, that ancient city where the pope and car
dinals sat upon their thrones and swept the streets
with their robes, were men reading in secret the Book
of Gdd. In Padua, the seat of learning, where much
that was useless received its name, was true wisdom
sought. And in Venice, queen of the sea, where all
that was beautiful and gay met in her ocean streets ;
where lofty palaces gave back the song of the gondo
lier, and where soft music gently fell upon her watery
bosom "from morn to dewy eve;" where merchant
princes assembled from various climes, and where
tlie goddess of commerce sat upon her imperial throne,
even there the humble, contrite heart looked to Jesus ;
and the music of his name floated on the waves,
echoed in palace courts, penetrated the humble cot
tage, and was often the only light of some damp cell
of the Inquisition.
In the magnificent streets of Milan and Genoa the
devoted Albigeois passed and repassed each other,
unallured by the pomp and luxury which surrounded
them. Charged by their adversaries with abominable
doctrines, such as disbelieving the Bible and reject
ing marriage,* there is nothing for which they were
more remarkable, their enemies themselves being
judges, than for the purity and innocence of their
lives. Among the hills and valleys of Italy these
faithful men had lived for centuries ; no doubt under
some name they had had representatives since the
time of Paul, and the rocks and mountains often re
sounded with the melody of their devotions. We are
told that some of them came in the fourteenth century
to Calabria, and settled in an uncultivated district of
country. Sbon the marks of a Protestant community*
° French Catholic Encyclopedia, de .'Abb. Glaire, vol. xvii.

318 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
appeared in all directions ; the place assumed a new
appearance ; villages arose in every direction ; the
hills resounded with the bleating of flocks, and the
valleys were covered with corn and vines.*
Let us return to Jerome Savonarola. The tiara
was then upon the head of the infamous and profligate
Alexander VI. Little cared he to be troubled by the
trial of a monk, for heresy. He would manage him
in a more easy way.
One day he sent for a bishop of the Dominican
order, the one to which Jerome belonged, and said
to him :
" I desire that, as a brother of the same order, you
will answer the sermons of Savonarola, and controvert
effectually their arguments."
"Holy father," replied the bishop, "I am prepared to
fulfill your commands ; yet permit me to remark, that
if I am to vanquish him I must be supplied with arms."
" Arms ! What arms ?" exclaimed the pope.
" The monk," continued the bishop, " says we ought
not to keep concubines, commit simony, or be guilty
of licentiousness. If in this he speaks truly, what
shall I reply?"
" What then must we do with him ?" inquired his
holiness. " Reward him," said the bishop ; " give him a red
hat ; make of him a cardinal and a friend at once.
Send to him Ludovico, a man equally learned with
himself, and let him argue with Savonarola, not for
getting, as his strongest argument, this offer, to be
promised on condition that he abstains from prophe
sying, and recants what he has said and written. "j-
* M'Crie, Ref. in Italy, p. 13 ; Perrin, Hist, des Vaudois, vol. i, pp. 196-
198. Leger, Part II, p. 883.
+ Life and Times of Girolamo Savonarola, p. 242. London, 1843.

PROGRESS OF THE GOSPEL. 319
Brother Ludovico accordingly, in pursuance of the
bishop's advice, came to Florence, and sought the
humble cell of Savonarola.
Kindly and patiently, for three days, he listened
to his arguments, and finally Ludovico offered him
the cardinalate, but Jerome remained unconvinced.
" Come," said he, " to my sermon to-morrow morn
ing, and you shall hear my answer."
Ludovico attended at the time appointed. The
sermon commenced. With more earnestness than
ever, the monk denounced the sins of the priests, and
at last exclaimed :
" No other red hat will I have than that of mar
tyrdom, colored with my own blood."
It is foreign to our subject to pursue all the partic
ulars of the life of Savonarola, to describe the noble
efforts which he made to preserve the liberties of his
country, against renewed efforts of the family of the
Medici. But no man, of all the list of Reformers in
the countries of Europe, deserves more the interest
of the reader than this Italian priest.
At last he was excommunicated by the pope, and
forbidden to preach. For a while he obeyed ; but
the fire which had driven him to overcome all obsta
cles at first, again burned within him. He stood
again in the pulpit, in defiance of the pope, while
greater crowds than ever gathered round him, and
spoke again to the people.
It was about this time that he preached against bad
books, and with such success that the Florentines
brought of their own accord, to " la place puhlique,"
great numbers of works containing licentious pictures,
including copies of Dante, Petrarch, and Boccaccio,
and made a bonfire of them.
The Franciscan priests now became furious, and
Hist. J-aformntin. 21

320 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
refused absolution, communion, and burial to all who
attended Jerome's preaching. One of them went so
far that, according to the custom of the times, he offer
ed to decide with him their dispute in the ordeal by fire.
The piety and good sense of Savonarola prompted
him to decline this offer, which he did at once. His
friends, however, urged him to accept, or, to allow
them to accept for him. Says one French author,
" Nearly all the Dominican monks of the province
of Savonarola, a crowd of priests and of seculars,
and even women and children, begged the favor of
going into the fire instead of Savonarola.* Even his
sisters and other noble ladies offered themselves.
Once, while walking in the garden of his monastery,
a beautiful child came, bringing a note in its own
handwriting, proposing to undergo the ordeal for him.
The child threw himself on the ground, and earnest
ly pleaded that he might be allowed to enter the fire.
Savonarola was deeply moved, and said, "Rise, my
son ; this thy righteous purpose is very acceptable to
God ; see that thou continue in this good disposition."
At last Jerome consented, and the parties prepared
for the ordeal.

CHAPTER HI.
THE FIRE ORDEAL.
All Florence was moved in expectation of the
strange spectacle, and the whole of Italy waited, with
great interest, to learn its result. It was decided
that if the champion of Jerome should be burned,
the latter should quit Florence within three hours,
* Biographic Universelle, vol. xl.

THE FIRE ORDEAL. 321
as an offender against the state. The time was in
April, 1498. The names of the champions were,
Dominico for Savonarola, and Rondinelli for the
Franciscans. The latter, however, was not the one
who had originally given the challenge. At twelve
o'clock the immense crowds had assembled, in the
streets, on housetops, and wherever there was any
chance to see. The immense pile was all prepared
for the fire. It was composed of faggots and brush
wood, and was nearly eighty feet long and six high.
Through the middle of its whole length, was a pass
age, two feet wide, and through this passage the
parties were to go. The wood was covered with oil
and pitch, and sprinkled with gunpowder.
At one o'clock the Franciscans were seen advancing
with great apparent humility, silently ahd barefoot,
following their champion, Rondinelli.
Hardly has the murmur of the crowd died away,
when the Dominican brothers are beheld approaching,
singing as they come. Savonarola walks at their
head, " his fine countenance," says one, " such as it
appears in the portraits and medals still extant, not
less ennobled by profound humility than by an almost
seraphic devotion."
The fire was now lighted, and was burning furiously,
waiting for its victims. The Franciscan, however,
was not quite so ready to go in as his brother monk
had been to give the challenge. He began to make
objections, insisting first that Dominico should take
off his robes, and next that he should not carry the
wafer in with him, because that, he asserted, would
be sacrilege. It is very probable that Rondinelli,
with the connivance of his brethren, never intended
to go in at all. If so, they had doubtless contrived
how to embarrass their adversaries.

322 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
In the midst of their disputes there came a furious
storm of rain and hail, with thunder, lightning, and
wind, and the fire was put out.
The Franciscans now aroused the people. They
spread the report that Savonarola and Dominico would
not fulfill their engagement. The people became
violent. They rushed to the convent, and after severe
and protracted struggles on the part of the friends of
Jerome, secured him, Dominico, and another monk,
and threw them into prison.

CHAPTER IV.
TRIAL AND DEATH OF SAVONAROLA.
A courier was dispatched to the pope, who, as he
did in the case of Luther, urged that the prisoners
should be taken to Rome for trial. This the senate
refused, but allowed them to be tried by judges sent
from Rome.
Savonarola was put to a long and tedious examina
tion, during which he maintained his intrepidity and
composure, asserting as true all that he had ever said.
The torture was then resorted to. One of the judges,
and we record it to his honor, Francesco degli Albizi,
would not remain to witness the sufferings of the
martyr, but left the room, saying, " This house should
not be polluted with the blood of the just."
To Jerome torture was a severe trial. Possessing
a sanguine temperament, and the acute feeling which
often accompanies great genius, his frame was ex
tremely sensitive, and his nerves excitable. Besides,
his constitution, never strong, was now weakened by

TRIAL AND DEATH OF SAVONAROLA. 323
austerities, and by great mental conflicts. He yielded
to the agonies which were inflicted on him, and con
fessed that he had fallen into error. The instruments
ceased their work, and his confession was written out
and read to him. Savonarola, the noble preacher,
the fearless patriot, the humble Christian, was himself
again. He declared boldly that what he had said
had been extorted by the agonies he had passed
through, and he maintained anew the truth of what
he had asserted.
Other tortures were then applied. Among the rest,
burning coals were placed at the soles of his feet, and
he was threatened with still more painful punishments.
Only doubtful declarations could be obtained from
him, which his judges have interpreted and recorded
as they chose, and when released, he reasserted what.
he had said before.
He was condemned at last to be burned in the
month of May, 1498.
It cannot fail to be interesting to know his thoughts
at this last and sad hour. The following are some of
the last that we find written by him :
"Sorrow has surrounded and besieged me with a
strong host, has taken possession of my heart, and
ceases not day and night to contend against me. . .
All that I see and hear bears the sign of sorrow. . .
The thoughts of my friends disturb and trouble me,
the remembrance of my brothers grieves me. . .
" Yes, thou, Lord, art my hope ; the highest refuge
art thou. . .
" Him, then, I will call. . . Surely he will come,
and not abandon me to shame. . .
"Look, he comes already; brings joy, teaches me
to contend, and says : ' Cease not to call ; speak with
confidence, and from a full heart.' On thee, 0 Lord,

324 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
have I trusted. . . I shall not be given over to
eternal shame. . .
" 0 wonderful power of hope ! before which all
sorrow yields, all ready consolation comes. Let, now,
sorrow be loud with all its host ; . . let the world press ;
... let enemies arise ; . . I fear nothing. On thee,
0 Lord, have I trusted. . . Thou art my hope. . .
My refuge art thou."
" For the sake of thy name thou wilt guide and
lead me."
His journal here was broken off because writing
materials were taken away from him.
While the bishop disrobed him, Savonarola was
silent and abstracted. His thoughts appeared far
away from the scene which was enacting before him,
until the bishop came to the words, " I separate thee
from the Church triumphant." His attention was
caught, and he spoke out: "From the militant, but
not from the triumphant ; that thou canst not do."
With Dominico and another monk he ascended
the scaffold, and the three died in the flames.
We have thought it best to refer at some length to
Savonarola, both on account of his piety and elo
quence, as well as on account of the great influence
which his writings must have exerted after his death.
As many as three hundred of his sermons have sur
vived him, besides many other works, printed and
distributed throughout Italy, all filled with a holy
unction, and inculcating devotion to God.
It is true that there were errors in his preaching;
but how could it be otherwise, when we consider that
he never came out fully like Luther from the Roman
Catholic Church, and never shook himself off from
the dominion of the pope ?

THE BOY DISPUTANT. 325

CHAPTER V.
THE BOY DISPUTANT  THE BIBLE TRANSLATED
INTO ITALIAN.
We will now look at the condition of Italy as it was
some years after the death of Savonarola, when the
writings of Luther were spreading beyond Germany.
In every city, in every hamlet, the writings of the
Reformers were beginning to penetrate. Frequently
not under the names of their true authors, for the
Italian monks had so vilified them that the simple
people were afraid of their very name. But they
were translated and circulated as Gospel treatises.
Even the portraits of the German preachers found
their way into Italy, where they were received some
times as pictures of the saints.
The priests said that Luther was an atheist; that
he denied the immortality of the soul ; that he was
even born of an incubus, wholly carnal, and composed
of grease and fat. The other Reformers were com
plimented with Hke flattering appellations.*
* From a French writer we translate the following extracts of an article
on the German Reformers, as a specimen of how they wrote and talked :
" There are men who appear in the world with the terrible mission of
trampling on, of chastising humanity. They pass like dark meteors
among the people. Around them flow blood and tears. Behind them
remain only ruins, and the dark silence of death and desolation. These
scourges of the earth, which history contemplates only with » kind of
terror, even across the dust of the sepulcher, are not the most cruel, nor
the most dreadful enemies of humanity."
" God, exhausted in patience by the crimes of the earth, raises up to a
corrupted people one of those men who sow, with bad doctrines, subvers
ive principles, ruin and death, in the field of the heart and the intellect."
" There is not, perhaps, in history a name more guilty than that of Mar
tin Luther, the patriarch of Protestantism."

326 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
The Italians, however, knew from experience that
some allowance was to be made for the prejudices of
their priests ; and when the German soldiers of Charles
of Bourbon, who sacked Rome in the year 1527, told
them that Luther, Melancthon, and their followers
were truly pious men, they were ready to believe,
and then their writings spread more speedily than
ever. Now, when the monks told some story about
the Germans they were contradicted by the people.
It soon came to pass that they feared not to contradict
them, even when they advanced some unscriptural
doctrine from the pulpit.
One day a monk was preaching at Imola. He told
them that it was necessary to purchase heaven by the
merit of their good works.
A boy who was present exclaimed :
" That's blasphemy ! for the Bible tells us that
Christ purchased heaven by his sufferings and death,
and bestows it on us freely by his mercy."
A dispute of some length followed between the
boy and the preacher. Provoked at the replies of
his juvenile opponent, and at the favorable reception
which the audience gave them, the monk at last
cried out :
" Get you gone, you young rascal ; you are but
just come from the cradle, and will you take it upon
you to judge of sacred things, which the most learned
cannot explain."
The boy answered :
" Did you never read these words : ' Out of
the mouth of babes and sucklings God perfects
praise.' "
The preacher quitted the pulpit in great anger,
making threatenings against his youthful opponent,
who was instantly thrown into prison, " where he

THE BOY DISPUTANT 327
still lies," says the writer of the letter from which the
account is taken.*
Thus the Gospel spread year after year through the
press, and by those burning words which fell from
consecrated hearts, where they that feared the Lord
spoke often one to another. A new day seemed to
be dawning on Italy.
In Modena, it was s,aid, the Scriptures became the
common topic of conversation. Persons of all ranks,
men and women in the streets, in shops, in churches,
talked of faith and of the doctrine of Christ. One of
its bishops said :
" I have found things which infinitely distress me,
and, while I perceive the danger, am quite at a loss as
to the means by which I can extricate myself in the
affairs of this flock, which with my blood I would
willingly secure to Christ, and clear from public
infamy. Wherever I go, and from all quarters, I
hear that the city is become Lutheran."
It was so in a great measure all over the king
dom. At last the pope himself could not avoid
seeing it. Pope Clement VII. spoke of it as fol
lows :
" From the report made to us, we have learned,
with grief of heart,, that in different parts of Italy the
pestiferous heresy of Luther prevails to a high degree,
not only among secular persons, but also among eccler
siastics and the regular clergy, both mendicant and
non-mendicant ; so that some, by their discourses and
conversation, and what is worse, by their public
preaching, infect numbers with this disease, greatly
scandalize faithful Christians who lie under the obe
dience of the Roman Church and observe its laws,
and contribute to the increase of heresies, the stum-
* M'Crie's Ref. Italy, p. 101. Schelhorni Amsenit. Hist. Eccl., torn, ii, p. 54.

328 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
bling of the weak, and the no small injury of the
Catholic faith."*
Was Italy, then, about to turn Protestant under the
very nose of the pope ?
One cause of the fast spreading light, besides
the preaching of the Gospel and the conversation of
the people, was the translation of the Bible ; and this
was not confined to one man or to one translation.
At least three translations were made about this time :
one by Teofilo, one byMarmochini, and one by Bru-
cioli. The latter was entitled "LaBibbia tradotta
in Lingua Toscana." The first edition appeared in the
year 1532, and was dedicated to Francis I., king of
France. The good Italian expected that Francis
would take some favorable notice of it; but he forgot,
or had not yet heard, that Francis was busily engaged
in extirpating heresy in France. He waited in vain
for an answer from the king ; and a Roman Catholic
French writer accounts for his silence by saying that
Brucioli's Bible was very badly written and full of
heresies, and that a commentary in seven volumes,
which Brucioli published upon the Bible afterward,
contained many more. This kind of evidence leads
us to believe that the Bible and its commentary were
effective and useful works.
It is a little remarkable, and looks as if the labors
of Savonarola had not been in vain, that all these
translations of the Bible were made by natives of
Florence. Of Antoine Brucioli it has been said that, as far as
the influence of the press is concerned, he is entitled
to the name of the Reformer of Italy.
* Raynaldi Annales, ad anno 1 530.

SYMPATHY OF THE REFORMERS. 329

CHAPTER VI.
SYMPATHY OF THE REFORMERS FOR EACH OTHER.
About the year 1530 a report was widely spread
that Melancthon had been persuaded to submit to
the pope. Many in Venice, hearing this report, were
greatly afflicted by it.
Lucio Paoli Rosselli addressed a letter to Melanc
thon, urging him, as he had been the instrument of
winning so many to Christ, to be firm and decided.
" In this cause," wrote the Italian, " you ought to
regard neither emperor nor pope, nor any other mor
tal, but the immortal God only. If there be any truth
in what the papists circulate about you, the worst
consequences must accrue to the Gospel, and to those
who have been led to embrace it, through your instru
mentality and that of Luther. Be assured that all
Italy waits with anxiety for the result of your assem
bly at Augsburg. Whatever is determined by it
will be embraced by Christians in other countries,
through the authority of the emperor. It behooves
yon, and others who are there for the purpose of de
fending the Gospel, to be firm, and not to suffer your-*
selves to be either frightened from the standard of
Christ by threats, or drawn from it by entreaties and
promises. I implore and obtest you, as the head and
leader of the whole evangelical army, to regard the
salvation of every individual. Though you should
be called to suffer death for the glory of Christ, fear
not, I beseech you ; it is better to die with honor than
to live in disgrace. Tou shall secure a glorious
triumph from Jesus Christ if .you defend his right-

330 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
eous cause; and in doing this you may depend
on the aid of the prayers and supplications of many
who, day and night, entreat Almighty God to prosper
the cause of the Gospel, and to preserve you, and its
other champions, through the blood of his Son.
Farewell, and desert not the cause of Christ."
A second time Rosselli wrote to Melancthon, urg
ing him to courage and constancy.*
Thus from different countries the children of God
watched in love over each other and the cause so
dear to them.
The Italians looked for, and received, the same
sympathy from their brethren which they extended
to them.
Baldassare Altieri, in the name of the brethren of
the Church of Venice, Vicenza, and Trevi so -wrote
to Luther, about the year 1542, that they felt ashamed,
and were unable to account for the fact that they
had so long failed to acknowledge the deep obliga
tions which they lay under to him, as the individual
by whom they had been brought to a knowledge of
the way of salvation ; whether it was the suddenness
of their emancipation had astounded their minds, or
whether a certain rustic bashfulness and servile dread
had deterred them from addressing so grave and holy
a personage. But now necessity, and the urgency
of their circumstances, had driven them to that course
which ingratitude and culpable negligence had hith
erto prevented them from taking. Antichrist had
begun to rage against them. Some of their number
had been obliged to leave the country, others were
thrown into prison, and the rest were in a state of
* M'Crie's Ref. in Italy, pp. 104, 105. Venetiis 8. 3 Kal. Augusti,
anno 1530. Coilestini Act. Comit. August., torn, ii, f. 274. Cselesthi, torn.
iii, {. 18. Woifi Lect. Memorat., torn, ii, pp. 344, 345.

SYMPATHY OF THE REFORMERS. 331
trepidation. As members of the same body, they
looked for the sympathy and assistance of their breth
ren in Germany, at whose call they had come forth
and espoused that cause for the sake of which they
were now exposed to such imminent danger. What
they begged of him was, to use his influence with the
evangelical princes of Germany, to write in their be
half, requesting the Senate of Venice to abstain from
that violence which the ministers of the pope urged
it to employ against the poor flock of Christ, and to
permit them to enjoy their own manner of worship,
at least until the meeting of a general council, in the
way of adopting measures to prevent all sedition and
disturbance of the public peace. " If God grant,"
said he, " that we obtain a truce of this kind, what
accessions will be made to the kingdom of Christ in
point of faith and charity ! How many preachers
will appear to announce Christ faithfully to the peo
ple ! How many prophets, who now lurk in corners,
exanimated with undue fears, will come forth to ex
pound the Scriptures. The harvest truly is great,
but there are no laborers. You know what a great
increase your Churches had, and what a'wide door
was opened for the Gospel, by the truce which, as we
understand, you have enjoyed for three years. Exert
yourselves to procure the same favor for us ; cherish
the common cause ; do your endeavor, that by this
means the consolation which is by Christ may be im
parted to us, who daily suffer for Christ, for it is our
fervent desire that the word of God may be spread
abroad ; but we have none to feed us, unless our want
be supplied out of your abundance."
And when the Italians were driven by persecution
from a country doubly dear to them by birth and by
its historic associations, they found a refuge among

332 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
their brethren in Germany, in Switzerland, in En
gland, where, for many years, they lived exiles from
home and kindred, multitudes of them dying there,
and others returning to die near the graves of their
ancestors, too often, alas ! denied the boon, by
being violently dispatched wherever they were
taken.

CHAPTER VII.
ADVENTURES OF CELIUS SECUNDUS CURIO.
We cannot better lay before the reader the progress
and shifting phases of the Italian Reformation than
by sketches of character.
Celius Secundus Curio was one of those devoted
men who labored in the cause of the Reformation in
Italy. He was born in Piedmont in the year 1503. At
nine years of age he was left an orphan, but being of
a noble family, he received a liberal education at
the University of Turin, his native city. His father
had bequeathed to him a Bible beautifully written,
which Curio read carefully, and before he was
twenty years of age became so enlightened by its
study that he embraced the doctrines of the Reform
ers. His next step was to read their writings, and
his mind was then filled with the desire to go to Ger
many. He set out, and on his journey, not fearing to
advocate the doctrines which he believed in, he
was seized by the spies of the bishop of Ivree and
thrown into prison.
After several months he was released through the

ADVENTURES OF CELIUS SECUNDUS CURIO. 333
intercession of his friends. The bishop, pleased with
his manners and valuing his talents, thought he
could draw him back to the doctrines of the Church
and attach him to himself by favors. Accordingly
he placed him in the monastery of St. Benigno,
where Curio, instead of being a learner, as the
bishop had hoped, occupied himself in teaching the
monks the doctrines of Luther.
They had a little box, which they kept sacredly on
the altar of their chapel, containing the relics of the
saints. One day Curio opened this box, took out the
reUcs^ and in their place put a Bible, containing an
inscription, the last words of which were as follows :
" In this are the true relics of the saints."
At the next solemn festival they discovered the
Bible in the box, and not considering it as potent or
as valuable as the relics, there was a great outcry
among the good brethren of the priory of St. Benigno.
Perhaps Curio thought the monks sufficiently enlight
ened through his teaching to be satisfied with the
exchange ; but he found the storm was becoming too
violent, and suspicion gathering round his head, he
concluded to give up his residence for the present
among them, and accordingly fled to Milan.
Several years passed, during which he traveled
through different parts of Italy, making a living by
teaching. In Milan he gained a great reputation for
learning, and there married. Removing to a village
in the territories of the Duke of Savoy, he continued
his occupation.
One day, with some of his friends, he went to hear
a Dominican monk preach, who, as usual, drew a
frightful picture of the German Reformers, and in
proof of what he said pretended to quote from a
work of Luther. After the sermon was over Curio

334 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
went up to the pulpit and invited the friar to look at
his quotations again. He produced the book which
had been referred to, and read the passages in the
presence of a good part of the audience. They
turned out to be entirely different from what the
friar had asserted, and the people, indignant at his
deceit and audacity, drove the preacher out of the
village. A complaint was made before an inquisitor
against Curio, who was arrested and carried a pris
oner to Turin, where his exchange of the relics of
St. Benigno for the Bible was brought forward as
strong evidence of heretical guilt. Knowing th.at his
friends possessed great influence, every precaution
was taken to prevent his escape or rescue, and he
was therefore placed in an inner room of the prison,
and, like Paul and Silas, his feet made fast in the
stocks. It was not long before they became so swollen
by confinement that he begged the jailer to release his
right foot for a day or two. During that time he avail
ed himself of some rags which were within his reach,
and a reed, to make an artificial leg, upon which he
placed his shoe, and when the jailer appeared he put
his real limb as far as possible out of sight, and beg
ged that he might be allowed to ease his left foot
instead of the right.
The keeper of the prison granted him this favor
on seeing that the right leg was secured, as he sup
posed, and thus Curio had both feet at liberty.
During the following night he attempted to make his
escape. Forcing the door of the room in which he
was confined, he felt his way through the dark pas
sages, dropped from a window, and finally scaled the
walls of the prison, and fled. Before he went, how
ever, he took his false leg from the stocks and pulled
it to pieces, and his persecutors, being greatly puzzled

ADVENTURES OF CELIUS SECUNDUS CURIO. 335'
to account for his escape, circulated the report that
he had effected it by magic*
The labors of Curio, as he thus traveled from place
to place, were the means of leading many to see the
corruptions of the Roman Catholic Church, especially
at Milan.
At Pa via his enemies made an effort to secure him
again, but the people and the scholars of the place
prevented them. At last, tired out by such pursuits,
he decided to leave Italy forever. He came to Pessa
and waited there until his family should join him.
The officers of the Inquisition were on his track, and
while he was at dinner the captain of the band
entered the room, and commanded him, in the pope's
name, to yield himself up a prisoner. Curio despair
ing of escape rose to do so, but unconsciously retain
ed the knife in his hand with which he had been
carving his food. It is said that the wicked flee
when no one pursueth, and so it was with the Italian
barisello. Seeing an athletic figure approaching
him with a large knife in his hand, he was seized
with sudden fear, and retreated to a corner of the
room, on which Curio, with great presence of mind,
walked deliberately out and through the armed men,
to where his horse was tied, which he mounted, and
the next moment galloped away from them.
His family shortly after followed him, and when he
was sixty-six years of age death put an end to his
trials. Curio wrote much, and wrote well, in Latin, Italian,
and French. His writings have been read extensively
in Italy, and it may be their work is. not yet done.
* M'Ciie's Ref. in Italy, pp. 113, 114 ; also,'Celii Secundi Curionis Pas-
quillus Eostaticus una cum aliis etiam aliquot Sanctis paritor et lepidis
Dialogis. Schelhorn Amenitates Hist. Eccles et Hist., vol. ii, pp. 759, 776.
Hisl. Rnforaiauun. 22 .

336 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.

CHAPTER VIH.
DEVOTED WOMEN OF ITALY.
The faithful and successful laborers in the work of
God are not of one sex only. In all ages devoted
Women have appeared, who have nobly done their
part in winning souls to Christ.
Julia de Gonzago, or Julie de Gonzague, as it is writ
ten by French historians, from whom we derive mostly
the incidents which we narrate, is numbered among
these. She was one of the most beautiful women
of her age, and not more distinguished for her beauty
than for her talents. At an early age she married
Vespasiano Colonna, duke of Trajetto, already an old
and infirm man. In the year 1528 she became a
widow, and though yet young, her love to her former
husband was so great that nothing could induce her
to marry again. The princes of Italy sought her
hand in vain. Non maritura she had adopted as
her motto, to show that her first attachment should
never die.
There was probably a reason for this which none of
her historians have recorded. We are not told when
she gave her heart to Christ ; indeed, all that the Roman
Catholic writers tell us in reference to this subject is,
as we must expect, unsatisfactory and prejudiced ; but
when we consider her talents, her learning,, and her
unspotted character, we think we have reason to be
lieve that, like the devoted Mrs. Fletcher, she gave
herself so fully to the cause of Christ as to leave little
room for earthly attachments. Her good deeds and her
rare personal attractions were celebrated in the sonss

DEVOTED WOMEN OF ITALY. 337
of the poets of her day, and we doubt not that her life af
ter her husband's death was spent, with her fortune, in
spreading the Gospel among her Italian countrymen.
In the year 1534 the fame of her beauty had reached
Solyman II. , the Turkish sovereign. He sent Barba-
rossa, his admiral, to carry her off, and bring her
forcibly to his dominions. The admiral arrived in the
night at her residence, took the place by assault, and
failed by a single moment of his prey. Julia, hearing
the noise, fled to the mountains, and remained there
until she could safely return.
Isabella Manricha, at Besegna, lived and embraced
the Reformed doctrine at Naples. With great zeal she
labored in the cause of Christ. Nothing could abate her
ardor in spreading to others a knowledge of the peace
which she had found. Persecutions and trials speedily
surrounded her on all sides. Being of a noble family,
her friends thought it a disgrace that their blood should
be tainted by heresy, and she was at last obliged to
renounce her home,' her rank, her fortune, .and her
country, and live an exile in poverty and solitude.
Ren6e, the duchess of Ferrara, daughter of Louis
XII., king of France, was born in the year 1510.
Notwithstanding her high rank and great accomplish
ments, she became interested in the questions which
were so deeply agitating the whole of Christendom.
Who can describe the many hours which she
spent in earnest prayer? Who can tell the mental
struggles which it cost to lay her titles, her wealth,
even her reputation, and at last her children, on the
altar of Christ. But she did so. She gave up all for
him. And when she beheld her suffering brethren
exposed to all those trials which the malice of the
Italian priests contrived against them, she could not
conceal her sympathy for them. And then she was

338 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
marked as their confederate. But this did not
prevent her from protecting and saving many who
fled to her palace for safety. Driven from their own
humble cottages by the relentless familiars of the In
quisition, men, women, and little children found an
asylum with her. The gates of her castle at Ferrara
the pursuers dared not pass.
High authority was at last invoked against her.
The pope was appealed to, who, instead of addressing
her, wrote to Hercules IL, her husband. He told him
that the minds of his children and servants were cor
rupted, and the most pernicious example held out to
his subjects ; that his house, which had been so long
renowned for the purity of its faith, and its fealty to
the holy see, was in danger of contracting the indeli
ble stain of heresy ; and that if he did not speedily
abate the nuisance he would expose himself to the
censures of the Church, and lose the favor of all
Catholic princes.
Thereupon the duke urged Ren6e to avert the dis
pleasure of his holiness by renouncing her opinions,
and conforming to the ceremonies of Romanism.
The duchess had gone too far thus to sacrifice her
conscience, and as well as we can judge from the
accounts which have come down to us, her husband
was unwilling to proceed to extremities.
The pope then addressed himself to Henry IL, king
of France, her nephew. Henry sent Oritz, an inquisi
tor, to the court of Ferrara. His instructions were
" that he was to acquaint himself accurately with the
extent to which the mind of the duchess was infected
with error ; he was then to request a personal inter
view with her, at which he should inform her of the
great grief which his most Christian majesty felt at
hearing that' his only aunt,' whom he had always.

DEVOTED WOMEN OF ITALY. 339
loved and esteemed so highly, had involved herself
in the labyrinth of those detestable and condemned
opinions. If, after all his remonstrances and argu
ments, he could not recover her by gentle means, he
was next, with the concurrence of the duke, to en
deavor to bring her to reason by rigor and severity :
he was to preach a course of sermons on the princi
pal points on which she had been led astray, at
which she and all her family should be obliged to
attend, ' whatever refusal or objection she might
think proper to make.' If this proved unsuccessful
in reclaiming her, he was next, in her presence, to
entreat the duke, in his majesty's name, to 'sequester
her from all society and conversation,' that she
might not have it in her power to taint the minds of
others ; to remove her children from her, and not to
allow any of the family, of whatever nation they
might be, who were accused or strongly suspected
of heretical sentiments, to approach her ; in fine, he
was to bring them to trial, and to pronounce a sen
tence of exemplary punishment on such as were
found guilty, only leaving it to the duke to give such
directions as to the mode of process and the infliction
of punishment, as that the affair might terminate, as
far as justice permitted, without causing scandal, or
bringing any public stigma on the duchess and her
dependents."* The daughter of Louis XII. was justly indignant at
such demands, and boldly and promptly refused to
violate her conscience. The pope's cruel orders were
carried into effect. She was confined a prisoner in
her palace, was forced to listen to her husband's up-
braidings, who would hear no defense from her. Her
* M'Crie's Ref. in Italy, p. 208 ; also Le Laboureur, Additions and
Memoirs de Michal de Castelnau, torn, i, p. 717.

340 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
confidential servants were proceeded against as here
tics, whose sufferings eternity alone will reveal ; and
then, as a last resort, she was deprived of her four
children, who, as if to aggravate the cruelty of the
act, were taken from her, one by one, to be educated
in the Roman Catholic faith.
Ren6e survived her husband, and came afterward
to France, where she resided in the castle of Mon-
targis, and again protected the fugitive Protestants.
The Duke of Guise, her son-in-law, one day appeared
with an armed force before her walls, and commanded
her to dismiss the rebels whom she harbored, saying
if she did not that he would batter down the walls
with his cannon.
"Tell your master," said she, "that I shall myself
mount the battlements, and see if he dare kill a king's
daughter." She was however obliged to send away four
hundred and. sixty persons, to whom she had af
forded refuge. She parted with them ¦ in many
tears, and provided out of her own funds for the
expenses of their journey. She lived until the
year 1575.
Had we the space we might mention other faithful
women. These are sufficient, however, as examples.
That such examples were not rare may be inferred
from what is said by a writer in the following
century. "In Campania, where I now write, the most
learned preacher may become more learned and holy
by a single conversation with some women. In my
native country of Mantua, too, I found the same
thing, and were it not that it would lead me into a
digression, I could dilate with pleasure, on the many
proofs which I received, to my no small edification,

PALEARIO. 341
of an unction of spirit, and fervor of devotion in the
sisterhood, such as I have rarely met with in the
most learned men of my profession.*

CHAPTER IX.
PALEARIO.
Aonio Paleario, a native of Veroli, in Campagna
di Roma, bom about the year 1500, was one of the
great writers of the sixteenth century. Uniting a
wonderful eloquence of style with great force and
pathos, he became distinguished among all .classes.
Roman Catholic writers, while condemning his re
ligious opinions, hand his name down to us with
unlimited praises of his literary abilities. Some idea
may be formed of how much he contributed to the
progress of the Reformation in Italy, when we state
that of a work he wrote on the benefit of the death
of Christ forty thousand copies were sold in six
years, f and this in an age when . the circulation of
books was extremely small compared with what it is
at present.
He had been suspected of heresy before this work
came out. One day he was observed to laugh at a
rich priest who was seen every morning kneeling at
the shrine of a saint, but who refused to pay his
debts. He was asked at another time :
" What is the first ground on which men should
rest their salvation ?"
He replied : " Christ."
* Folengius, in Psalmos ; .Apid. Gerdesii, Ital. Ref., p. 261.
+ Shelhorn, Ergoet Zlichkeiten, vol. i, p. 27.

342 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
" What is the second ?"
" Christ."
"What is the third?"
" Christ."
On this one of his adversaries asserted that if he
were allowed to live there would not be a vestige
of religion left in the city. Paleario was arrested
and brought to trial. As a specimen of his style,, we
give some passages from the defense which he made :
" Is it possible to utter or conceive anything more
shameful? I had said that since He in whom the
divinity resided has poured out his life's blood so
lovingly for our salvation, we. ought not to doubt of
the good-will of heaven, but might promise ourselves
the greatest tranquillity and peace. I had affirmed,
agreeably to the most unquestionable monuments of
antiquity, that those who turn with their souls to Christ
crucified, commit themselves to him by faith, acquiesce
in the promises, and cleave with assured confidence
to him who cannot deceive, are delivered from all
evil, and enjoy a plenary pardon of their sins. These
things appeared so grievous, so detestable, so execrable
to the twelve — I cannot call them men, but inhuman
beasts — that they judged the author worthy of being
committed to the flames. If I must undergo this
punishment for the foresaid testimony, (for I deem
it a testimony rather than a libel,) then, senators,
nothing more happy can befall me. In such a time
as this I do not think a Christian ought to die in his
bed. I am not only willing to be accused, to be
dragged to prison, to be scourged, to be hung up by
the neck, to be sewed up in a sack, to be exposed to
wild beasts — let me be roasted before a fire, provided
only the truth be brought to light by such a death."
Turning to his adversary, he said :

PALEARIO. 343
" You accuse me of being of the same sentiments
with the Germans. What an illiberal charge ! Do
you mean to bind up all. the Germans in one bundle?
Are they all bad ? . . .
" By Germans you mean Ecolampede, Erasmus,
Melancthon, Luther, Pomeran, Bucer, and others who
have incurred suspicion. But surely there is not a
divine among us so stupid as not to perceive and con
fess that the writings of these men contain many
things worthy of the highest praise."
The eloquent defense of Paleario triumphed over
his adversaries, and he was set free.
Tears afterward he was taken again at Milan, and
accused of heresy. Two of the charges against him
were, that he denied purgatory, and that he ascribed
justification only to the merits of Christ. He was
carried to Rome and thrown into the prisons of the
Inquisition. "Here," says one account, "he con
fessed and died contrite." This, however, is not
likely, for the paper containing it has neither name
nor signature. The contrary appears at his trial from
the statement of another Romish writer, which is as
follows :
" When it appeared that this son of Belial was
obstinate and refractory, and could by no means be
recovered from the .darkness of error to the light
of truth, he was deservedly delivered to the fire, that,
after suffering its momentary pains here, he might be
bound in everlasting flames hereafter."*
Of the same spirit is another statement of Palea-
rio's conduct during the trial :
" When he saw that he could produce nothing in
defense of his pravity, falling into a rage he .broke
out in these words : ' Seeing your eminences have so
* Laderchii Annal., torn, xx, f. 204.

344 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
many credible witnesses against me, it is unnecessary
for you to give yourselves or me longer trouble. I
am resolved to act according to the advice of the
blessed apostle, Peter, when he says, ' Christ suffered
for us, leaving us an example that we should follow
his steps, who did no evil., neither was guile found in
his mouth ; who, when he was reviled, reviled not
again ; when he suffered, threatened not, but com
mitted himself to him that judgeth righteously.' Pro
ceed then to give judgment, pronounce sentence on
Aonio, and thus gratify his adversaries and fulfill
your office.' "
The reader can judge for himself how much these
words appear like falling in a rage. He was con
demned to three years' imprisonment in the Inqui
sition, and then to be hung, and his body afterward
burned. This was carried into execution in the
seventieth year of his age, on the third day of July,
1570. The day on which he died he wrote a letter to his
children, and another to his wife. They are very
- short, but the more affecting on that account ; because
it is probable that he had little opportunity to
write, and moreover feared their being suppressed,
or that his family would be harshly treated, if
he said anything offensive to his judges. The let
ter to his wife is as follows :
" My Dearest Wife, — I would not wish that you
should receive sorrow from my pleasure, nor ill from
my good. The hour is now come when I must pass
from this Hfe to my Lord, and Father, and God. I
depart as joyfully as if I were going to the nuptials
of the Son of the great King, which I have always
prayed my Lord to grant me, through his goodness

ochino. 345.
and infinite mercy. Wherefore, my dearest wife,
comfort yourself with the will of God and with my
resignation, and attend to the desponding family
which still survives, training them up, and preserving
them in the fear of God, and being to them both
father- and mother. I am now an old man of seventy
years, and useless. Our children must provide for
themselves by their virtue and industry, and lead an
honorable life. God the Father, and our Lord Jesus
Clirist, and the communion of the Holy Spirit, be
with your spirit.
" Thy husband, " Aonio Paleario.
" Rome, July 3, 1570."

CHAPTER X.
ELOQUENCE OF OCHINO  HIS AFFECTING DEATH.
Well worthy of record are many others who have
maintained the truth in Italy, who have lived and la
bored and died for Christ.
We might tarry at the name of Peter Martyr, who
wrote and published many volumes in favor, of the
reform. We might dwell upon the names of Peter
Paul Vergerio and John Baptist Vergerio, both
bishops of. the Roman Catholic Church, who re
nounced their honors and their station for Christ's
sake. The former was pope's nuncio at different
times, and actually came to Germany to oppose Lu
ther, and had an interview with him there. Again
he appeared on behalf of Francis I. at the Diet of
Worms ; and there, it is said, showed his first leaning
toward the doctrines of the Reformers.
But we turn to one whose life shows strikingly the

346 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
vicissitudes through which, in those days, the children
of God were compelled to pass.
Bernardin Ochinus, or Ochino, was born at Sienna,
in Tuscany, in the year 1487.
Early and anxiously he struggled for the remission
of his sins in the austerities and bodily sufferings rec
ommended by the Church of Rome. Vainly he sought
this precious boon. Believing the life of a monk to
be the means of obtaining it, he entered the Francis
can order of monks. Disappointed, he came back to
the world and studied medicine, but was conscience-
smitten for having abandoned the Franciscans. Again
he went among them, and soon became distinguished
for his piety and great talents. But still there was
no rest to his troubled heart.
The reformed order of the Capuchins had been
lately confirmed. Remarkable for their strictness of
discipline and austerity of life, he determined to go
among them, hoping thus to find the peace he sought.
When he was forty -seven years of age he took this
step, saying to himself: "Lord, if I am not saved
now, I know nothing more that I can do."
Now, as he read the Bible, he was sometimes per
plexed to reconcile the course he was pursuing with
what the Scriptures said as to salvation being the
free gift of God, through the death of Christ ; but
his desire to obey the Church for a while put to
silence the voice of truth within his heart.
A French writer, who calls him an ambitious and
apostate monk, thus describes him at this time :
" His austerities, his coarse clothing, his long
beard, his pale countenance, the opinion that was
entertained of his holiness, caused him to be regarded
as an extraordinary man. The greatest nobles, even
sovereign princes, filled with a deep respect fpr his

CONVERSION OF OCHINO. 347
person, went in advance of him, and disputed with each
other for the hopor of entertaining him, and loaded him
with distinguished marks of affection and confidence.
Though of a feeble frame, and somewhat advanced
in years, all his journeys were made on foot, and
the most rigid self-denial practiced in his food ; even
in the palaces of the great, who eagerly hastened to
receive him, and to offer him all the luxuries of their
luxurious life, he slept upon the hard floor. His
goodness was spoken of all over Italy."
Thus this poor self-denying 'monk was seeking to
know the way of salvation through Jesus Christ our
Saviour. So highly was he esteemed, that in the year 1538 he
was elected in Florence vicar general of the order of
the Capuchins. In 1541 he was elected again to the
same post in a chapter which was held at Naples.
With Paul III., the pope, he became a favorite, who
appointed him his father confessor and chaplain. It
was a singular position for him, the pope's confessor
and chaplain, and yeton the point of turning Protestant.
At last light dawned upon his heart. By search
ing the Scriptures he became convinced that the
death of Christ was the only ground of salvation, and
as he looked to Jesus the load of sin was. gone, and
God was reconciled. The writers who relate to us
the events of his life, tell of his great eloquence about
this time, but do not speak of its resulting from any
immediate cause. In the book of God we read,
" Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith
the Lord ;" and -we think we ought to ascribe his
great power over the people now to the Spirit of God,
though he yet remained for some time a Roman
Catholic. The author we have quoted thus describes
his eloquence.

348 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
"The people assembled in crowds to hear him
preach. There was no church large qnough to con
tain the multitude of his hearers."
Cardinal Bembo, so celebrated himself for his
talents, describes Ochino. He had sent to the Mar
chioness of Pescaro, begging her to influence Ochino
to visit Venice. He went accordingly, and Bembo
writes to the marchioness, in a letter dated February
23, 1539 :
" Assuredly, I never heard so edifying and holy a
preacher, and do not wonder that your highness
esteems him as you do. He discourses very differ
ently from any other that has mounted the pulpit in
my day, and in a more Christian manner ; bringing
forth truths of superior excellence and usefulness,
and enforcing them with the most affectionate ardor.
He pleases everybody above measure, and will
carry the hearts of all with him when he leaves this
place. From the whole city I send your highness
immortal thanks for the honor you have done us."
In another letter he says :
" I talk with your highness as I talked this morn
ing with the reverend father Frate Bernardino, to
whom I have laid open my whole heart and soul, as
I would have done to Jesus Christ, to whom I am per
suaded he is acceptable and dear. Never have I
had the pleasure to speak to a holier man than he."
On the 14th of April he writes again :
" Our Frate Bernardino, whom I desire henceforth
to call mine as well as yours, is at present adored in
this city. There is not a man or woman who does not
extol him to the skies ! O what pleasure ! 0 what
delight ! 0 what joy has he given !"
The Emperor Charles V., who attended his preach
ing in Italy, said of him :

ELOQUENCE OF OCHINO. 349
" That man would make the stones weep."
It was not long, however, before the priests discov
ered heresy in this wonderful eloquence. Indeed, he
was preaching the true doctrines of Protestantism,
with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven. As
they watched him closely they found little of the
virgin in his sermons, but much of Christ ; little of
the saints and tradition, but much of the Scriptures ;
little of purgatory, but much of heaven.
They denounced him to the pope, who summoned
him to Rome, and he proceeded humbly to obey the
summons, and would probably have soon died for
Christ, like Paleario, had he not been arrested by an
unforeseen circumstance. While on his way he
came to Florence, and there met with Peter Martyr,
who advised him not to put himself in the pope's
power, and he accordingly fled to Geneva in the
year 1542.
What a change to the devoted monk ! Only the
year before elected vicar general of his order ; only a
few weeks before in the full tide of his wonderful elo
quence ; and now a fugitive from his country and from
his friends. How truly he must have felt that he had
given up all for Christ.
The pope was so enraged when he heard that Ochi
no had turned Protestant, that he seemed about to
suppress the whole order of the Capuchins, and was
only pacified on receiving the most satisfactory as
surances that they had not adopted the creed of their
vicar general.
Bernardino afterward came to England, where he
resided until bloody Queen Mary came to the throne.
Being then obliged to leave, he came to Basil, then
became pastor of an Italian Church at Zurich, where
he remained until he was seventy-six years of age.

350 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
He was at this time accused of doctrines contrary
to the received opinions of the Reformers, and was
obliged to leave Zurich. He sought an asylum in
Basil, but the magistrates commanded him to leave
immediately. The poor old man, with two sons and
a daughter of his old age, wandered forth in the
depth of winter seeking a home. He went from
place to place until he came to Poland, where he
begged that he might be allowed to stay. The papal
nuncio, Commendon, ordered him to leave. He pre
pared to go. Some gentlemen, pitying him on account
of his age and infirmities, urged him to stay ; but he
meekly replied that men must obey the magistrates,'
and that he- would do so, even were he to die among
the wolves in the wood. This was the man who had
charmed a whole nation by his eloquence, and for
whom kings and princes had vied with each other
to receive him as their guest. He left Poland, with
his children, hoping to find a last resting-place in
Moravia. The journey was persevered in thrpugh
great want, exposure, and cold. It was too much -for
their strength. They were all taken with the plague
on the way, and his children, one after another, died
by his side. He, himself, partly recovered, and alone
went still on. Was there no home for him? Yes,
he had almost found it. Three weeks after the death
of his children he died, in Slawkaw, at the age of
seventy-seven.

THE INQUISITION IN ITALY. 351

CHAPTER XI.
THE INQUISITION IN ITALY.
The Inquisition had not been in active opera
tion for some years in Italy, but the time had come
when the holy fathers needed its help. The ordi
nary judges of heresy, and even the resident bishops,
were sometimes capable of feelings of humanity, and
their judgment was therefore slow, and perhaps
lenient, giving too often the accused person a chance
to fly before he was arrested.
Paul III. founded anew the holy office by a bull
dated the 1st of April, 1543, appointing six cardinals
as inquisitors general, with power to arrest suspected
persons, to imprison and try them, to nominate officers
under them, and to appoint inferior tribunals in all
places where they chose.
In Venice and other cities their authority was ob
stinately resisted by the government and by the people.
In Naples the inhabitants rose in arms, and military
force was employed to put them down. But Rome
persevered ; when she failed once she would try again,
until at last her designs were accomplished. The
establishment of the Inquisition in Italy brought
speedily with it the downfall of the principles of the
Reformers. A historian of the Roman Catholic
Church might well say " that the erection of the In
quisition was the salvation of the Catholic Church in
Italy."* Such numbers were soon arrested that the prisons
* Pallavicini, Istor. Council Trent, lib. xiv, c. 9.
H1.1. Reformation. ioo

352 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
were crowded. Being urged to recant, a few only
yielded at first ; but as their sufferings increased, and
severe tortures were applied, others, seized with con
sternation at the frightful scenes which they beheld
their friends pass through, as much as by what they
endured themselves, abjured the faith which they
had confessed, and on being liberated, either fleti
from the country or frequented the Roman Catholic
churches. Many, not caring for themselves, thought, only of
their children, who with piteous cries entreated then
that they might be released from the torture. Others,
when their sons and daughters were snatched from
their arms, to be trained up in the Romish communion,
accused themselves, that they might look upon their
loved ones again.
Not always, however, did the barbarous wretches
who acted as judges and executioners escape with
impunity. " At Faenza a nobleman, revered for his high birth
and distinguished virtues, fell under the suspicion of
the inquisitors of that city as a Lutheran. After being
long detained in a foul prison, he was put to the tor
ture. Not being able to extort from him what they
wished, the inquisitors ordered the infernal .operation
to be repeated, and the victim expired among their
hands. The report of this barbarous deed spreading
through the city created a tumult, in which the house
of the Inquisition wr.s attacked, its altars and images
torn down, and somu of the priests trodden to death
by the incensed multitude.*
It was rare, ho rvever, that retribution such 'as this
stayed the bloody work.
Sad was the sight of hundreds of men, women, and
* Eglinus ad BuUinger un, 29 Mart, 1568 ; De Porta, torn, ii, pp. 487, 488.

THE INQUISITION IN ITALY. 353
children as they assembled together to leave their
native country. At Loaarno the inquisitors sum
moned all the inhabitants in a body who had embraced
the Reformed religion. They came boldly, the men
leading their children, and the women carrying their
infants in their arms. When they attempted to de
fend themselves the deputies haughtily replied :
" W,e are not come here to listen to your faith.
The lords of the seven cantons have by the deed now
made known to you declared what their religion is,
and they will not suffer it to be called in question or
disputed. Say in one word, Are you ready to quit
your faith, or are you not ?"
The Protestants replied :
" We will live in it ; we will die in it."
And exclamations came from all parts of the
assembly :
" We will never renounce it."
. " It is the only true faith."
" It is the only holy faith."
" It is the only saving faith."
They were required to give their names to the
clerk, when two hundred persons immediately came
forward.* An order was made that they should leave their
country, and imposing a* fine on all who should afford
them any assistance or enter into conversation with
them. In the month of March, 1555, they bade an
eternal farewell to the land of their birth.
But if it were sad to behold them thus driven from
their homes, it was sadder still to witness the suffer
ings of many who were not permitted to go. Though,
as we have seen, many recanted, yet many died with
great intrepidity. ° Mnralti Oratio, pp. 160-104.

354 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
John Mollio was allowed to speak before his exe
cution. Some extracts will show his spirit :
"As for you, cardinals and bishops, if I were
satisfied that you had justly obtained that power
which you assume to yourselves, and that you had
risen to your eminence by virtuous deeds, and not by
blind ambition and the arts of profligacy, I would
not say a word to you . . .
" I am constrained to treat you without ceremony,
and to declare that your power is not from God, but
the devil. If it were apostolical, as you would make
the poor world believe, then your manner of life would
resemble that of the apostles . . .
" What can I think or say of your Church, but
that it is a receptacle of thieves and a den of robbers ?
What is your doctrine but a dream, a lie forged by
hypocrites? Your very countenances proclaim that
your belly is your god. Your great object is to seize
and amass wealth by every species of injustice and
cruelty. Yon thirst without ceasing for the blood of
the saints. Wherefore I appeal from your sentence,
and summon you, cruel tyrants and murderers, to
answer before the judgment seat of Christ at the last
day, where your pompous titles and gorgeous trap
pings will not dazzle, nor your guards and torturing
apparatus terrify us. And in testimony of this, take
back that which you have given me."
Thus saying he threw the flaming torch which he
held in his hand on the ground and extinguished it.
He was borne to immediate execution.*
Another method was used to extirpate the dreaded
heresies which could not be otherwise than effectual.
All suspected works was destroyed. Not the Bible
alone, but the writings of Erasmus, Cyprian, Jerome,
* Hist, des Martyrs, f. 264, 265 ; Gerdesii, Ital. Reform., p. 104.

THE INQUISITION IN ITALY. 355
and Augustine."* "The number of books," says
one, " committed to the flames was immense, so that
if they had all been collected into one place it would
have equaled the burning of Troy. There was not a
library, private or public, which escaped the disaster,
or which was not nearly annihilated. "-[•
But we will look at others among those courageous
men in Italy who died for Christ.
Ludovico Paschali, a minister in Calabria, was
arrested by order of one of the inquisitors. After
lying eight months in prison he was taken to Rome.
Chained on the journey to two other heretics, a pair
of handcuffs was put upon him so small that they
entered into his flesh and deprived him of all sleep.
" At night," said he, " the beasts were better treated
than we, for their litter was spread for them, while
we were obliged to lie on the hard ground without
any covering, and in this condition we remained for
nine nights. On our arrival at Naples we were thrust
into a cell noisome in the highest degree."
After he arrived at Rome his brother Bartolomeo
came to see hiin, with letters of recommendation,
hoping to procure his liberty.
" It was quite hideous," said Bartolomeo afterward,
" to see him with his bare head, and his arms and
hands lacerated by the small cords with which he
was bound."
Being overcome with grief at the sight, Ludovico,
though himself the sufferer, endeavored to soothe
him. " My brother, if you are a Christian why do you
distress yourself thus ? Do you not know that a leaf
cannot fall to the earth without the will of God?
Comfort yourself in Christ Jesus, for the present
* Hottinger, Hist. Eccl., torn, ix, p. 408. t Vita H. Bullengeri, p. 33.

356 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
troubles are not worthy to be compared with the
glory to come."
"No more of that talk," said the inquisitor.
" When we were about to part," said Bartolomeo,
"my brother begged to be removed to a less horrid
prison." " There is no other prison for you than this," was
the reply.
" At least show me a little pity in my last days,
and God will show it to you."
" There is no pity for such obstinate criminals as
you." " He will do it for the love of God," said his
brother. " All the other prisons are full," answered the
inquisitor. " They are not so full but that a small corner can
be spared for me."
" You would infect all who came near you by
your smooth speeches."
" I will speak to none who do not speak to me."
" Be content ; you cannot have another place."
" I must then have patience."
And God gave him ' patience, for he afterward
wrote : " I feel my joy increase every day as I ap
proach nearer to the hour in which I shall be offered."
" So inexpressible is my joy, that I seem to myself
to be free from captivity, and am prepared to die for
Christ not only once, but ten thousand times if it
were possible."
Shortly before his death he said to his brother :
"I give thanks to my God, that in tlie midst of my
long continued and severe affliction I have found
some kind friends, and I thauk you, my dearest
brother, for the tender interest you have taken in my

TnE INQUISITION IN ITALY. 357
welfare. But as for me, God has bestowed on me
that knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, which
assures me that I am not in an error."
In the month of September, 1560, he was strangled
and burned in the court adjoining the castle of St.
Angelo, the pope and a number of cardinals being
present to witness the spectacle."*
Of the persecutions in Venice Altieri writes :
" The persecution here increases every day. Many
are seized, of whom some have been sent to the
galleys, others condemned to perpetual imprison
ment, and some, alas ! have been induced by fear of
punishment to recant. Many have been banished,
along with their wives and children, while still
greater numbers have fled for their lives. Matters
are brought to that pass that I begin to fear for
myself; for though I have frequently been able to
protect others in this storm, there is reason -to appre
hend that the same hard terms will be proposed to
me ; but it is the will of God that his people be tried
by such afflictions."
He was afterward banished .from Venice, when he
wrote :
" Take the following particulars concerning my
return to Italy. I am well, with my wife .and Httle
child. As to other things, all the effect of my com
mendatory letters was an offer on the part of the
senate that I should be allowed to remain in safety
among them, provided I would yield conformity to
their religion, that is, the Roman; otherwise it be
hooved me to withdraw without delay from their do
minions. Having devoted myself to Christ, I chose
exile rather than the enjoyment of pleasant Venice,
* Hist, des Martyrs, pp. 506-516. Leger, Hist, des Eglises, Vaudois,
Part I, p. 204.

358 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
with its execrable religion. I departed accord
ingly, and went first to Ferrara, and afterward to
Florence."* Again he writes from some hiding-place in Brescia :
" Know that I am in great trouble* and danger of
my life, nor is there a place in Italy where I can be
safe with my wife and boy. My fears for myself
increase daily, for I know the wicked will never
rest till they have swallowed me up alive. 1 entreat
a share in your prayers."
This passage is peculiarly affecting, from the fact
that it is the last account we have of Altieri. Proba
bly he never escaped from Italy.

CHAPTER Xn.
BARBARITY OF THE INQUISITORS.
In Venice there were many Protestants. The
authorities of the city had .long resisted the priests in
defending them ; but at last the latter, in their blood
thirsty zeal, prevailed. Here drowning was the mode
of death inflicted on heretics. It was according to
the customs of this sea-girt Queen of the Ocean.
At the dead hour of midnight the prisoner was taken
from his cell and put into a gondola, attended only,
besides the sailors, by a single priest, to act as con
fessor. He was rowed out into the sea beyond the
two castles, where another boat was waiting;. A
plank was laid across the two gondolas, upon which
the prisoner, having his body chained and a heavy
stone affixed to his feet, was placed ; and on a signal
* Epist. ad Bulling, ex itinere 25, Aug. 1549.

BARBARITY OF THE INQUISITORS. 359
given the gondolas retired from each other, and he
was precipitated into the waves.*
Julio Guirlauda, the first man who thus died at
Venice, when put on the plank cheerfully bade the
captain farewell, and sank into the deep, calling on
the name of the Lord Jesus.
Antonio Ricetto was offered liberty and the restora
tion of all his property if he would return to Rome.
His Httle boy, twelve years old, was admitted to the
prison, where he fell at his feet, -and begged him in
the most pathetic words not to leave him an orphan.
He retained his firmness, and in the gondola and on
the plank prayed for those who put him to death.
Other parts of Italy beheld still more terrible
scenes. A writer in the year 1568, says :
" At Rome some are every day burned, hanged, or
beheaded ; all the prisons and places of confinement
are filled, and they are obliged to build new ones.
That large city cannot furnish jails for the number
of pious persons \vho are continually apprehended."f
Muretus, referring to this period, said :
" We know not what becomes of people here; I am
terrified every morning when I rise, lest I should be
told that such and such a one is no more ; and if it
should be so, we durst not say a word.":j.
In Calabria Stephano Negrinowas left to die of
hunger in his prison.
Francesco Gamba had taken the Lord's Supper at
Geneva, and for this he was seized at Lake Como,
thrown into prison, and condemned to the fire. His-
tongue was bored, that he might not speak to the
spectators ; but, kneeling down at the place of exe-
* M'Crie's Ref. p. 220 ; Hist, des Martyrs, f. 681 ; ' De Porta, torn, ii, p. 33.
t Thobias, Eglinus ad Bullingerum, 2 Mart, 1568 ; De Porta, torn, ii,
p. 486. X Thuana, Collect, des Maiseaux,.tom. i, p. 16.

360 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
cution, he prayed, and on rising waved his hand to
a friend as the sign which they had agreed- on that
he died trusting in Christ. He then stretched out
his neck to the executioner, who strangled him.
Afterward his body was burned.
Stefano Carlino was tortured until his bowels
gushed out. A Reformer, called Vermicel, was kept
on the instrument called the hell for eight hours.
A person of the name of Murzone was stripped
naked, beaten with iron rods, dragged through .the
streets, and felled with the blows of torches. His
little son was urged to recant, but refusing, was
taken to the top of a high tower, from which he was
thrown. Bernardino Conte was covered with pitch, and
burned to death before the people. The same in
quisitor put sixty women to the torture, the greater
part of whom died in prison in consequence of their
wounds remaining undressed.*
The following are extracts from a letter of a Roman
Catholic writer, who witnessed the scenes which he
describes. They were enacted in the year 1560 : .
"Most illustrious Sir: Having written you from
time to time what has been done here in the affair of
heresy, I have now to inform you of the dreadful jus
tice which began to be executed on these Lutherans
early this morning, being the 11th of June ; and, to
tell you the truth, I can compare it to nothing but the
¦ slaughter of so many sheep. They were all shut up
in one house as in a sheepfold. The executioner
went, and bringing out one of them, covered his face
with a napkin, or benda, as we call it, led him out to
* Perrini 202, 204-206 ; Leger, Hist, des Egleiss Vaud., torn, ii. p. 335;
M'Crie's Ref. in Italy, p. 250.'

BARBARITY OF THE INQUISITION. 361
a field near the house, and, causing him to kneel down,
cut his throat with a knife. Then taking off the
bloody napkin, he went and brought out another,
whom he put to death after the same manner. In
this way the whole number, amounting to eighty-eight
men, were butchered. I leave you to figure to your
self the lamentable spectacle, for I can scarcely re
frain from tears while I write ; nor was there any
person who, after witnessing the execution of one,
could stand to look on a second. The meekness and
patience with which they went to martyrdom and
death are incredible. Some of them at their death
professed themselves of the same faith with us, but the
greater part died in their cursed obstinacy. All the
old men met their death with cheerfulness, but the
young exhibited symptoms of fear. I still shudder
while I think of the executioner, with the bloody knife
in his teeth, the dripping napkin in his hand, and his
arms besmeared with gore, going to the house and
taking out one victim after another, just as the butcher
does the sheep which he means to kill. According
to orders, wagons are already come to carry away the
dead bodies, which are appointed to be quartered,
and hung up on the public roads from one end of
Calabria to the other. . .
"Even to-day a decree has passed that a hundred
grown up women shall be put to the question, ,and
afterward executed ; in order that there may be a
complete mixture, and we may be able to say, in well-
sounding language, that so many persons were pun
ished, partly men and partly women. This is all that
I have to say of this act of justice. It is now eight
o'clock, and I shall presently hear accounts of what
was said by these obstinate people as they were led
to execution. Some have testified such obstinacy and

362 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
stubbornness as to refuse to look on a crucifix, or con
fess to a priest; and they are to be burned alive.
The heretics taken in Calabria amount to sixteen
hundred, all of whom are condemned; but only
eighty-eight have as yet been put to death."*
A Neapolitan historian of that age, in speaking of
the Calabrian heretics, further says:
" Some had their throats cut, others were sawn
through the middle, and others were thrown from the
top of a high cliff: all were cruelly but deservedly
put to death. It was strange to hear of their obsti
nacy ; for while the father saw his son put to death,
and the son his father, they not only exhibited no
symptoms of grief, but said joyfully that they would be
angels of God ; so much had the devil, to whom they
had given themselves up as a prey, deceived them."+
Such were the means by which the enemies of
Christ sought to destroy the truth in Italy. They
have but too well succeeded. May we not, however,
hope that the time is fast approaching when Roman
ism, already weakened in the seven hilled city, shall
fall to rise no more ; and when that classic land shall
be a nation of devoted Christians, as she has once
been of martyrs ; a nation of Christian heroes, as she
has once been of renowned orators, poets, historians,
and warriors ; and when the true Gospel of Christ
shall bud and blossom as the rose ; when her power
among the nations shall be, not the iron heel of her
ancient kings and emperors, not the songs of her im
mortal bards, not the spiritual despotism of her popes,
but the love of Christ dwelling in the hearts of her
people. * Pantaleon, Rerum in Eccles. Gest. Hist., pp. 337, 338. De Porta,
torn, ii, pp. 309, 312.
t Tomaso Costo, Seeonda Parte del Compendio dell' Istoria di Napoli,
p. 257.

SUPPRESSION OF PROTESTANTISM IN ITALY. 363

CHAPTER XIII.
SUPPRESSION OF PROTESTANTISM IN ITALY 
CONCLUDING REMARKS.
We will endeavor now to show some of the means
by which the Protestant religion has lost its well-
fought ground in Italy.
A want of union among themselves was one of the
first. In the midst of Romanism, surrounded on all
sides by its prelates and minor ecclesiastics, nothing
but a firm adherence to each other throughout their
different cities and villages could save them. Being
one with each other is the strength of the Christian
Church everywhere, but especially in the midst of
dangers. And this oneness is shown, not by believing alike,
for no two men will do that, much less two bodies of
Christians; but by bearing kindly with each other's
imperfections, and by loving as Christians those in
whom, whatever name they may bear, we can discern
the image of the Master. What if they condemn me
and my denomination! What if they exclude me
from their pulpits ! No matter ; I will not return
evil for evil, but, as far as I am able, ascribe this to no
want of real charity, but seek in them the marks of
the Christian, and, where I can find them, hold myself
ready to extend the hand of fellowship and love.
The controversies of Luther and Zwingle, on the
subject of the sacrament, made sad havoc among their
brethren in Italy. Zwingle asserted that the bread
and wine were but signs of the absent body of Christ ;
while Luther maintained, not exactly that they were

364 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
changed into the body of the Saviour, as he had be
lieved in the Church of Rome, but that the latter was
in some mysterious manner present, materially and
actually, in the bread and wine. The Italians took
up the question, and thus their minds were diverted
from the earnest efforts which they had made to
spread the Gospel, and their hearts became alienated
from each other.
There is no doubt also but that the harsh doctrines
of Calvin on the decrees of God, harshly maintained
as they were by him, deterred many a sincere man
from leaving the Church of Rome, and were the
cause of many a bitter controversy among the Reform
ers, which as surely prevented the growth of the infant
Church, as unseasonable frosts and snow check the
verdure of spring.
Most thankfully do we record the fact that later
times have brought to us a wonderful change in this
respect. The true basis of Christian unity begins to
be understood. Not to suppose that it consists in a
name, or in an organization, as in' the Church of
Rome ; neither to suppose that it consists in giving
up our respective names as denominations, for that
would bring confusion in our ranks ; or in giving up
our organizations, for that would destroy efficiency
and force; but to march together, animated by one
spirit, against the common enemy, sin. What if the
regiment to which I belong is called Methodist ! I am
in the same grand army with my brethren of all de
nominations, and claim them as my fellow-soldiers.
What if my colors, as they wave on the field of bat
tle, be of a different hue from yonder struggling
column ! am I less or more a warrior, pressing on to
conquer the world ?' What if the music be quicker,
or slower, or sharper, or shriller, to which I tread as

SUPPRESSION OF PROTESTANTISM IN ITALY. 365
I hurry on to victory! am I less or more a soldier in
Immanuel's army?
Glorious things are spoken of thee, thou city of the
living God ! thou Church of these our latter days ! The
watchmen on thy walls, as they cry to each other,
" What of the night ?" already reply, " The morning
breaketh." At that last sad hour, when Jesus knew
that his hour was come, he prayed that they all might
be one. Again he repeated, that they all might be
one, made perfect in one, that the world might believe ;
" and," he added, " neither pray I for these alone,
" but for them also who shall believe on me through
their word." And now, after the lapse of eighteen
hundred years, more than ever before is this prayer
being answered. Brethren of all denominations
unite in the great benevolent associations of the day ;
unite in pentecostal union prayer-meetings ; unite in
sending the word of God throughout the earth ; and
as they labor in their respective fields, unite in
acknowledging each as members of the same great
household of faith.
Another cause w'hieh hindered the progress of the
Gospel, was the want of a sufficiently organized and
consolidated ecclesiastical body. There were, it
is true, Chnrches formed in different parts of Italy ;
but these were not so united to each other as to give
them strength. Had they been so, they might with
more success have overcome the divisions which came
among them. They had eloquent preachers, great
writers, zealous pastors, eminent scholars ;' but they
needed practical, comprehensive minds, who could
form them into one, keep them one, discriminate
among them whoever was determined to sow discord,
and be able to throw their united influence against
persecutors.

366 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
A third cause was a lack of aggressive, triumphant
faith. They could go to prison and die 'for Christ.
Great multitudes of them did so when brought to the
hour of trial, and nobly and calmly, like the old
heroes of their race, they suffered. But we do not
read of many who went voluntarily before bishops,
princes, and the pope, and confessed Christ. A bold,
a fearless faith, a faith that marches onward in the
face of enemies, is powerful with God.
Elijah stood before Ahab and said: "As the Lord
God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall
not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my
word." Again he stood before the king and fearlessly told
him that he and his father's house had been the troub-
lers of Israel in following Baal.
Again he stood alone upon Mount Carmel, in the
presence of eight hundred and fifty prophets, who
had usurped the place of Israel's priests, and who
were waiting for his blood, and raised his voice in
prayer, and lo ! the answering fire gives witness to his
truth, and the people by loud acclamations turn to
God. Italy needed men Hke the prophet Elijah.
It is not enough to speak and act for God. The
Christian must speak and act willingly and gladly :
willingly, because it is his business to use his tongue,
his time, his hands, 'his purse for the cause in which
he labors ; and gladly, because it is an honor to do
anything for Christ. He who measures out his service,
fearing that he may do too much, or more than others,
does not fulfill the spirit of his calling. He is a
Balaam in the Church, who desired to do what
Jehovah told him, ana yet, if he would allow him, to
secure the gold of Balak. This was not the, spirit of

SUPPRESSION OF PROTESTANTISM IN ITALY. 367
the apostles, when soon after the death of Jesus they
were brought before the council and beaten, who de
parted rejoicing that they were counted worthy to
suffer shame for him. It was not the spirit of Paul
and Silas, who, when beaten and bruised, and their
feet in the stocks, sang at midnight praises to God
until the prisoners heard them, until the angels heard,
and one of them came and loosed their fetters and
set them free. It was not the spirit of Peter, after he
had received that wonderful baptism at Pentecost;
who when brought before the priests forgot his per
sonal danger, and boldly charged them with the cruci
fixion of his Saviour. It was not the spirit of the
early disciples, who when possessors of lands or houses
freely sold them and laid the money at the apostles'
feet. The Italians suffered nobly, bravely, patiently,
gloriously ; but too often they waited for their enemies
to find them before they confessed Christ, instead of
finding out their enemies and at all hazards preaching
the Gospel to them. The Christian's warfare is always
an offensive warfare. To stand simply on the defens
ive, is to wait for Satan to surround him by his infernal
host. He must be winning souls to Clirist ; he must
be seeking to save them from their bondage. For
this he must meet mockery and insult, contempt and
scorn, blows and death, if necessary, and still press
on, work on, and God will fill his heart with joy. If
he will not do this, Satan will drive him to the wall,
strip him of his zeal and love, and, like Samson, he
will And his strength gone.
Italy needed men like Paul, like Knox, like Lnther.
Another cause which prevented the further prog
ress of the Italian Reformation was the nearness, the
almost omnipresence of the priesthood. For some
Hist. Reformation, 24

368 HISTORY OF TIIE REFORMATION.
time the priests did not take the alarm, but when they
did they left no means untried to extirpate the so-
called heresy. "A horde of commissioned spies were
dispersed oyer Italy, who, by means of the recom
mendations with which they were furnished, got ad
mission into private families, insinuated themselves
into the confidence of individuals, and conveyed the
secret information which they obtained in this way
to the inquisitors. Assuming a variety of characters,
they haunted the company of the learned and illiter
ate, and were to be found equally in courts and clois
ters."* Like birds of prey, they seized those who
were suspected of heresy, and either drove them from
the country or consigned them to imprisonment or
death. The Inquisition appointed, and foreign priests who
had no sympathy with the people having become the
judges, little ceremony was observed in the trial or
execution of the unfortunate heretics. It was a received
maxim that it was for the good of the Church, for the
good of the country, for the good of all Roman
Catholics yet remaining orthodox, that heretical
pravity should be uprooted in the kingdom. The
priests believed that the Bible-readers were noxious
weeds, which spread their pernicious vapors to all
around them, and that in charity they must be de
stroyed. Hence no ingenuity was spared to find
them out, and little mercy was extended to them
when discovered. Many of the preceding pages show
what sufferings followed the proceedings of the Inqui
sition. It is right that Christians should know what
their brethren suffered in former ages, that we may
be daily prepared to suffer the same now ; and if not
* M'Crie's Ref. in Italy, p. 204, Calcagmini Opera, p. 169. Olympiaj
Morata? Opera, p. 102,

SUPPRESSION OF PROTESTANTISM IN ITALY. 369
called actually to suffer them, be thankful to God that
we are spared, and thankful that we have an inward
consciousness that we possess the same courage. It
is right, moreover, that Christians should know and
carefully remember these things, because the so-called
Church which inflicted them still exists, her doctrines
the same, her organization the same, her priesthood
the same. She indeed boasts of her infallibility.
She thinks, then, she has done no wrong in pouring
out like rivers the blood of the martyrs, if this boast
be founded in truth. She has only been clearing the
world of pestilential errorists, whose presence and ex
istence were a plague to the community. But not of
individual members of the Church of Rome do we
thus speak. Many of them would blush to suppose
that their Church could ever, in these days, in this
country, imprison, banish, or execute a man for the
sake of his opinions. Many of them, kind and benev
olent in their social relations, have little idea of what
their Church has done, or can do had she the power.
We speak of those who rule the Church, her cardi
nals, bishops, and priests, to whose mandate every
member, whether far removed among the ice-bound
regions of the north, or in the farthest spot which man
has reached to the south, is bound to submit. Recent
events in Italy, especially in Venice, have shown that
her spirit is still the same. It only slumbers, to
awake with renewed fnergy as soon as she can grasp
the power.
And this Church, firmly planted, is among us. She
is here, in 41 most perfect organization, by which one
chief moves and regulates the whole, giving power and
promptness to her actions. And when she chooses to
attack, either secretly or openly, either separately or
together, either by stratagem or force, the principles on

370 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
which this government is founded, our telegraphs, with
lightning wings, are potent auxiliaries by which the
order given in Rome may fly to the most remote
confessional box of our country. She is here, in her
monasteries and nunneries, rapidly increasing, the
very institutions which, three hundred years ago,
were suppressed in England as enemies to the liber
ties of the state. She is here, in her Jesuits,- spread
like locusts, in every section of the country ; an
order of men which have been proscribed in the
countries of Europe because of their dangerous
intrigues against the state. She is here, in her
priests and bishops, greatly augmenting in numbers
year after year. She is here, in her immense
churches and cathedrals, where her teachers, who
are men among us but not of us, indoctrinate her
people. Do we fear the effect of all this ? Not if Christians
will faithfully do the work which this state of things
suggests. Three hundred years ago, in Ireland, men
fought for their religion. It was hand against hand,
and steel against steel. Three hundred years ago in
Scotland, men prayed, men preached, men covenant
ed, men distributed the Bible. for their religion, and
what was the result? Scotland became thoroughly
Protestant, and Ireland never gave up the supersti
tions of Rome. To the work of the Scotch Reform
ers God's providence calls eve^y Christian in Ameri
ca. Not only do our eternal interests depend on
faithfulness in this respect, but our institutions and
our religious liberty. Nay, the time may come when
our lives and the lives of our children will be the
forfeit. As we have said in speaking of the Italian
Christians, the warfare must be an offensive warfare.
The Bible must be carried to every home. The chil-

CONCLUDING REMARKS. 371
dren must be sought by faithful men and women,
who will teach them Christ. Colporteurs must be
multiplied everywhere. But how is this work done
now? One or two examples are sufficient. Nearly
the whole of the lower part of the city of New York,
where there are thousands and thousands of men and
women who have souls, has been left for Satan to run-
riot in. It is at present one of his grand missionary
fields. It is true that spacious and elegant churches
have been built up town, but even these are not in
tended for the mass of the people. There is no place
in them usually for the middle and lower classes.
What then is to become of the people in the great
center of commerce and religion? And are we ful
filling the trust which God has placed in our hands ?
We bid the children of an apostate Church wel
come to our shores. We rejoice in being able to
share with them the bounties of our harvest fields,
but what God requires of us is, that we should bring
the Gospel to their hearts. And this must be done
by greatly increased efforts among the Christians of
America. We cannot forbear another example ; it refers to
the country. Scattered throughout our villages are
thousands of Roman Catholic families, who are acces
sible to the kind words of those who love the Saviour.
But it is a fact that they are seldom visited by their
neighbors to speak to them of Christ. If a minister
or colporteur perchance proposes to call on them
the reply is too ready : " O he is a Roman Catholic !"
Shame, shame on such an answer! That he is a
Roman Catholic is a strong reason why he should be
visited. Enthralled by the priest, we should endeavor
to set him free. Thrown upon our shores in spiritual
destitution, we should clothe and feed him. If we do

372 HISTORY OF THE REFORMATION.
not thus overcome the errors of Rome, w'e may rest
assured she will overcome us. Placed in our hands,
we have become our brother's- keeper, and God will
require his blood. No other nation in all the world's
history has been situated as we are. No such cir
cumstances have ever called for such active zeal,
enlarged benevolence, and individual activity. O
for a voice to reach and thrill through every Chris
tian heart ! a voice which will wake up its slumber
ing energies, and rouse to active effort in the cause
of Christ !
When the trumpet sounds to arms, the soldier,
ready for battle, rushes to his standard ; when the
beacon-fire, far off, is beheld blazing on the mountain
top, the clansman flies to the appointed post ; and
now, when the indications of a divine providence,
as certain as ever was trumpet blast or beacon-fire,
call to increased action, let every Christian, armed
and equipped for war, be in his place.

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 extra gilt  2 00
This work embraces all the hymns in our standard Hymn Book, and no
more. It contains also more than three hundred of the most popular old
and new tunes in print, and is offered at a very low price for a book of its
cost, in the hope that it may be generally adopted.
Autobiography of Peter Cartwright.
Edited by W. P. Strickland.
12mo., pp.525. Muslin  $100
This is one of the most interesting autobiographies of the age. The
Bile of this remarkable book has averaged two thousand copies per month
since its appearance. Thirty-two thousand have been printed, and stiL
the orders come. It is useless to add anything by way of commendation.
Th* people will have it, and we are prepared to supply the continued
demand.
What must I do to be Saved?
By Jesse T. Peck, D.D.
18mo., pp. 192. Price  $0 35
A new revival book, written by request, designed to awaken the sinner,
guide the penitent to Christ, and establish the young convert.

BOOKS PUBLISHED BY CARLTON & PORTER,
200 Mulberry-street, New York.
Ministering Children.
A Story showing how even a Child may be as a Ministering Angel
cf Love to the Poor and Sorrowful.
Large 16mo., pp. 542. Price  $0 90
 Illustrated edition, gilt edges- ••• 1 25
 Morocco, gilt  2 00
This is one of the most moving narrations in the whole list of our pub
lications. Its sale in England has reached Fokty THOUSANn copies. The
illustrated edition contains more than a dozen superb cuts on plate paper.
Life in the Itinerancy;
In its Relation to the Circuit and Station, and to the Minister's
Home and Family.
12mo., pp. 335. Price  $1 00
Life in the Laity;
Or,_the History of a Station. By Rev. L. D. Davis, Author of
" Life in the Itinerancy." •
16mo., pp. 200. Price  $0 50
Chart of Life.
By Rev. James Porter, D.D.
12mo., pp. 259. Price  $0 60
The design of this book is to indicate the dangers and securities con
nected with the voyage of life, all which are . accurately and admirably
described.
Heroines of Methodism ;
Or, Pen and Ink Sketches of the Mothers and Daughters of the
Church. By Rev. George Coles.
12mo., pp. 336. Price  $0 90
Heroes of Methodism.
Containing Sketches of Eminent Methodist Ministers, and Char
acteristic Anecdotes of their Personal History. By Rev. J. B.
Wakeley. With Portraits of Bishops Asbury, Coke, and
M'Kendree. 12mo., pp. 470. Price  $1 00
 Morocco  2 00
Life-like and interesting sketches of early Methodist preachers, their
toils, hardships, and achievements, interspersed with anecdotes lively
and entertaining.

NEW BOOKS JUST PUBLISHED
BY CARLTON & PORTER,
200 Mulberry>street, New York.
HIBBARD ON THE PSALMS.
The Psalms Chronologically Arranged, with Historical Introduc
tions, and a General Introduction to the whole Book. By F.
G. HlBBAKD. 8vo. Price, $2 00 ; half morocco, $2 50 ; morocco, $5 00.
This work is commended by Eev. Dr. Spring, of the Brick Presby
terian Church, New York, in a letter to the Author, thus :
My Dear Brother, — I have not read the whole of your elaborate and
instructive work on the Psalms. I find that it needs to be studied rather
than read. So far as I have been able to study it, and compare it witli
the references, to me it appears a volume of great research and merit.
Had 1 studied it fifty years ago I should have been a wiser man and a better
minister of the Gospel.
Yours truly , in the love of the truth, Gardner Spring.
AUTOBIOGRAPHY OE DAN YOUNG,
A New England Preacher of the Olden Time. Edited by "W. P.
Stbiokland. 12mo. Price, $1 00.
A work of great interest to the public, and adds some accessions to our
denomintional history. — Quarterly JSeview.
" Dan Young was among the early preachers of New England, and
was personally acquainted with Jesse Lee} and the colleague of Hedding.
His remlniseenees of the preachers and oi the times are of an exceedingly
interesting character. As an autobiography it has all the interest connected
with the East that Peter Cartwright has with the West, while, at the same
time, none of the objectionable features which characterize that book are
to be found in it. The counsels of the old itinerant to the preachers,
traveling and local, and to the membership, are full of interest and value."
LIFE OF DR. ADAM CLARKE.
By Rev. J. "W. Etheeidge, M.A.
With a Portrait. 12mo. Price, $1 00.
The volume contains about five hundred jpages, and is ornamented with
an excellent likeness of ita distinguished subject. No one can understand
fully the great commentator and the secret of his greatness without read
ing this book. It should be bought and read through the whole Church,
and through the whole community. The book should be in every li
brary, public and private. The doctor belonged to the whole world.
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL ADYOCATE,
Which has an increasing subscription list of over
TWO HUNDRED THOUSAND.

BOOKS PUBLISHED BY CARLTON & PORTER,
200 Mulberry-street, New York.
Reasons for becoming a Methodist.
By Kev. I. Smith, for some Years a Member of the Close-Com
munion Calvinist Baptist Church. Including a brief Account of
the Author's Religious Experience up to the Time of his becom
ing a Methodist. 18mo. pp.160. Price  $0 30
This work was written by Eev. I. Smith, now a member of the New
England Conference. It was printed in Bo,ston a few years ago, and
seventeen thousnnd copies have been sold. Knowing the work from its
first issue, and believing it to be calculated to do great good, we have
recently bought" the plates, and shall soon bring out the nineteenth
edition, with some improvements, Brother Smith was formerly a Calvin
istic Close-Communion Baptist, but being placed .in circumstances obliging
him to consider the principles he professed to believe, he was led to re
nounce them. He subsequently joined the Methodists, and became a
preacher. This book develops the reasons which influenced his action in
the premises, and they are well stated. Preachers who are molested by
Baptist influences, will find this work just the thing to circulate. We
have put it upon our list to extend its usefulness, more than to make
money out of it.
The Pioneers of the West;
Or, Life in the Woods. By W. P. Strickland.
12mo., pp. 403. Price  SI 00
This decidedly popular book, which sketches to the life the Pioneer Ex
plorers, Settlers, Preachers, Hunters, Lawyers, Doctors, School Teachers,
and Institutions of the West, is meeting with an extensive sale.
The True Woman;
Or, Life and Happiness at Home and Abroad. By Jesse T.
Peck, D.D., Author of" The Central Idea of Christianity."
12mo., pp. 400. Price  $100
 Gilt edges  125
 Gilt edges, beveled  150
 Morocco  2 00
In this volume the author has illustrated his ideal of female character
hy a series of didactic precepts and familiar examples. His standard is
not taken from the prevailing customs and opinions .of society, but from
the highest teachings of Christian ethics. In his remarks on the intel
lectual cultivation of woman, he condemns novel-reading in decided
terms, regarding it as a "crime, murderous to the heart, the intellect,
and the body ;" while he as warmly recommends the perusal of literary
periodicals, and insists on having access to at least one daily or weekly
newspaper. The work isiwritten with great earnestness and feeling, with
<ui occasional exuberance of expression. — N. T. Tribune.

BOOKS PUBLISHED BY CARLTON & PORTER,
200 Mulberry-street, New York.
Compendium of Methodism.
A Compendium of Methodism : embracing the History and Pres
ent Condition of its various Branches in all Countries ; with i
Defense of its Doctrinal, Governmental, and Prudential Pecu
liarities. By Rev. James Porter, D.D. Revised edition.
12mo., pp. 501. Price  $1 00
This work has received universal favor. The facts that our bishops have put
it in the course of study for local preachers, and that it has been, translated into
the German .and Scandinavian languages, commend it to the confidence of all
Methodists. It* peculiar advantages are, 1.- That it gives a connected history of
Methodism from the beginning in all countries, and in all its denominations.
2. That it shows our doctrinal agreements and disagreements with other sects.
S. That it exhibits the different systems of church government in the world, and
the relative merits of each. 4. That it explains and defends all our prudential
means of grace and other peculiarities as no other book does. It. is a whole
library in one volume, and is a Za&or-saving as well as a mone?/-saving pro
duction. Its importance to preachers and others is indicated by the following
testimonials :
It is, in fact, a digest of Methodism. The arrangement and execution of the
several parts are admirable. The style is a model of perspicuity, ease, and vigor;
and in point of condensation, the volume is literally crowded with important
matter. We have hardly seen as great compactness without confusion, or an
equal number of pages from which so few could be eliminated without detriment.
But what is far more important than the mode of composition is the spirit which
pervades the work. The author writes with that candid discrimination so essen
tial to the proper discussion of the topics which he handles.— Ed. of North. Adv.
This work is a valuable acquisition to our Church literature. It embodies
much important information, arranged in a natural and convenient form, and
attbrds a good general outline of Methodism. It is a work of much merit. I do
cheerfully commend it, as a whole, to the favorable consideration of our friends
and the public generally. — T. Morris, Bishop of M. E. Church.
I like the book much. It will do good. Our people and friends ought to read
and study it thoroughly. It furnishes ,a satisfactory answer to the petty object
tions urged against the Methodists by a set of ecclesiastical croakers with which
we are everywhere beset. One gentleman, whom I let have a copy, after reading
it carefully, remarked, "It is the book needed ; I would not take twenty dollars
for my copy if I could not obtain another." — Rev. Justin Spaui.ding.
I have just finished the reading of this book, and I wish to express my decided
Approbation of it. It should be a family book, a Sunday-school book, and I would
add especially, a text-book for all candidates for the ministry. — J. T. Peck, D.D.
The work throughout is not a criticism on Methodist usages, but a statement
and defense of them. As such, we trust it will meet with the wide circulation it
deserves, both in and out of the Church.— Methodist Quarterly Review.
We have examined the book, and most cordially recommend our friends, one
and all, to procure i& immediately. No Methodist can study it without profit,
and gratitude to the great Head of the Church for the wisdom imparted to those
who have been the instruments employed in constructing the rules and regula
tions under which the operations of this most successful branch of the Church
are conducted. — Editor of the Christian Guardian, Toronto.
It is precisely the volume needed to instruct our people in the peculiarities of
our system. The special character of Methodism is here developed in such a
manner as to show that it is specially excellent, and worthy of special zeal and
special sacrifices. It is very systematically arranged, and therefore convenient
for reference on any given point. To the Methodist, especially the "official "
Mflthodist, this book is fitted to bp a complete manual : and to all others who
would understand what Methodism prec.is.lv is, as a whole, ur in any specific
respect, we commend Dr. Porters work as an acknowledged authority.—
A.. Stevens, LL.D.

BOOKS AND PERIODICALS.
CAELTON & PORTER,
Agents of the Methodist Book Concern, 200 Mulberry-street,
New- York, would call attention to a few of their numerous
publications. THE SUNDAY SCHOOL ADVOCATE
la a beautifully illustrated child's paper, edited by the distinguished friend of chil
dren, the veritable Francis Forrester, and is issued semi-monthly. The nine-
twonth volume will commence in October, 1859. The circulation is 'over 200,006
copies. Price 25 cents single, and 20 cents per copy when ten or more copies are
ordered to one address.

SABBATH-SCHOOL BOOKS.
Of these we have about 1,100 bound volumes, besides multitudes of Question Books,
llyinn Books, Picture Books, Catechisms, Cards, and Tracts, adapted to children of
all ranks and ages, and we are adding to the number monthly. They are being
ordered and prized by schools of all denominations.
Then we have a large list of other works, beautifully illustrated for gift-books for
children and youth, which are equal to any in the land, such as,

Harry Budd  Price 40 50
Illustrated Olio  O 70
Mi Step., to Honor  O 65
Uncle Toby's Library, 12 vols. 8 OO
Pictorial Catechism  0 70
Child's Sabbath-Ony Book  O 25

Poor Nelly  Price »0 88
Pictorial Catherines  O 65
Here and There  0 15
Historical Series, 10 vols  3 50
Henry's Birthday  OSS
Bird-Book  0 70

To these we may add the popular volumes, entitled,

Pllgrrlm's Proeress  Price $1 50
Path of Life  0 50
Munly Character  0 40
Bridal Greetings  0 80
Chart of Lire  O 60
The Successful Merchant  0 40

Y mine Man's Counselor.. Price 90 55
Yountr Lady's Counselor  O 55
Young Man Advised  O 75
Frank llnrley  O 30
Ministerial: Children  . O 90
Object of Life  O 75

HIBBARD ON THE PSALMS,
Giving tho time when, and the circumstances under which each Psalm was written,
is a new and splendid work for preachers, teachers, and for reading in farnilv wor
chip. Price, « 00. ' '
We havo BIBLES also, Royal Octavo and Imperial Quarto, in different styles of
binding, ranging in prices from S3 to $50 per copy. Besides, we have a large list of
Miscellaneous Works of various sizes and costs, on moral and religious subjects
which only need to be known to be appreciated.
Catalogues will be sent, gratuitously, to all who order, and ou
receiving the retail price of any of our books, we will forward
said books free of charge. Orders sent to us as above, or to
J. P. Mageb, No. 5 Cornhill, Boston; or J. L. Read, Pittsburgh,
Pa. ; or to H. H. Otis, Buffalo, N. Y.; or Swormstedt & Poe,
Cincinnati, or any other . Methodist Booksellers, will receive
prompt attention.

NEW BOOKS,
PUBLISHED BY CARLTON AND PORTER,
200 Mulberry-street, New-York.
f)K, SALE ALSO BY J. P. MAGEE, 5 CORNHILL, BOSTON, AND
H. H. OTIS, SENECA-STREET, BUPPALO.
A Model for Men of Business.
A Model for Men of Business : or, the Christian Layman contemplated
among his Secular Occupations. Revised and Modified from the
Lectures of Rev. Hugh Stowell, M. A.. Incumbent of Christ's
Church, Saltbrd. With an Introduction, by Rev. D. Cukry. 16mo.,
pp. 322. Price, 35 cents.
An excellent little volume, indicating its character in ita title-page, and forcibly
Presenting the morality of the Gospel to the acceptance of men of business.
'here is so much in every day life to call onr thoughts away from God — so much
to blunt our sensibilities to the moral principles which should govern and direct,
every Christian man in all his intercourse with the world, that a book like this
cannot but be a most profitable companion for all who desire to be at last accepted
In Christ Jesus. We welcome its appearance. For sale at the Methodist book
stores generally. — Jf'-t7i. Protestant.
This is a work much wanted to carry the sanctity of the Sabbath into the busi
ness of the week — to make religion, with business men, an ever-present and all-
pervading principle. It is well written, and highly edifying. Let it be widely
circulated. — Pittsburgh, Chfristian Advocate,
\
The Life and Times of Bishop Hedding.
Life and Times of Rev. Elijah Hedding, D. I)., late Senior Bishop of
the Methodist Episcopal Church. By Rev. D. W. Clakk, D. D.
With an Introduction, by Rev. Bishop E. S. Janes. Pp. 686.
Price, large 12mo., $1 50; 8vo., $2 00.
The Temporal Power of the Pope.
^he Temporal Power of the Pope : containing the Speech of the Hon.
Joseph R. Chandler, delivered in the House of Representatives of the
United States, January 11, 1855. With Nine Letters, stating the pre
vailing Roman Catholic Theory in the Language of Papal Writers.
By John M'Clintock, D. D. 12mo., pp. 154. Price, 45 cents.
Last winter Hon. Joseph K. Chandler, a Catholic, and Representative in Con.
gress from Pennsylvania, being hard pressed by anti-Romanist influences, made
a speech, in which he denied the political supremacy of the pope. In doing
this, be showed himself possessed of the cunning of a Jesuit, or the weakness
of a neophyte. Dr. M'Clintock, in a series of nine letters, has thoroughly ex
posed the weakness and sophistry of Mr. Chandler's speech. It is a volume for
Intelligent readers — none others will relish the learning and the nice discrimina
tion which pervade the work. — Northern Chrixtikm Advocate, Auburn, N. Y
A series of letters to the Hon. J. R. Chandler, stating the prevailing Roman
Catholic theory in the language of papal writers, forms the substance of this
volume. They were prepared in reference to the speech of Mr. Chandler, deliv-
eted at the last session of Congress, and from the position and character of the
writer, as well as from his mode of treating the subject, are eminently deserv
ing of public attention.— iV. Y. TriJnme.
Carlton & Phillips, No. 200 Mulberry-street, New-York, have just issued a
neat duodecimo vn'nmp of one hundred and fifty-four pages, with tho foregoing
title. It nei-ds not that we say the work is a most timely and masterly pro
duction. — ^extern C 'lu-iztian Adoocute.

NEW BOOKS,
PUBLISHED BT CARLTON AND PORTER,
200 Mulberry-street, New-York.
FOR SALE ALSO BT J. P. MAGEE, 5 CORNHILL, BOSTON, AND
H. H. OTIS, SENECA-STREET, BUFFALO.
Systematic Beneficence.
THREE PRIZE ESSAYS.
The Great Reform, by Abel Stevens.
Tlie Great Question, by Lorenzo White.
Property Consecrated, by Benjamin St. James Fry. Price, in one
volume, 40 cents.
This long-expected work is at length published. It comprises three essays.
The Great Reform, by Abel Stevens, covers 126 pages. It is invincible in
argument, stirring and eloquent in expression. Tub Great Question, by Rev.
Lorenzo "White, of the New-Eneland Conference, covers 284 pages. It lacks
the directness of the former, but is scarcely less powerful in argument or stirring
in appeal. The elucidation of Scriptural rules of beneficence should be carefully
studied. "We commend chapter tenth to the consideration of those in the
ministry who have excused themselves from giving, because they had given
themselves to the ministry. Property Consecrated, by Rev. Benjamin St.
James Fry, of tho Ohio Conference, covers 124 pages. It is full of strong thoughts,
clearly and forcibly expressed, and is well worthy of the honor awarded to it.
Its title is strikingly expressive as well as its arguments. —Ladies' Repository.
Selections from the British Poets.
By Eliza Woodwoiith. With twelve Illustrations. Large 12mo.,
pp. 365. Price $1.
The plan of this book of Selections is well conceived. It takes in the whole
range of British poets, from Chaucer down to Tennyson, and gives brief biograph
ical and critical notices of each, with some of their best and most striking pas
sages as specimens. — Methodist Quarterly Review.
Natural Goodness,
By Rev. T. F. Randolph Mercein, M, A. Price 65 cents.
Its full title-page will sufficiently declare its object. It is set forth as containing
"suggestions toward an appreciative view of moral men, the philosophy of the
present system of morality, and the relation of natural virtue to religion." With
out agreeimr witli the author fully in his view of the natural virtues, we have
lunnd his discussion one of the most interesting and able which has ever fallen
• Vr our notice, and we earnestly commend it to the attention of that large
of intelligent and amiable men who are resting upon their morality. For
sale by Ide & Dutton. — Christian Witness.
Daniel verified in History and Chronology.
Showing the complete Fulfillment of all his Prophecies relating to
Civil Affairs, before the close of the Fifth Century. By A. M.
Oseon, D. T). With an Introduction, by D. D. Whedon, D. D.
12mo., pp. 202. Price 60 cents.
4s the result of much patient study, "Dr. Osbon has here given us new and
striking views of that portion of Holy Writ to which his attention has been
pecially, directed. His positions are antagonistic to th:ise of all previous e-xpos-
,tors with which we are acquainted, lie states them clearly and forcibly, yet
with becoming modesty, and meets the objections to his theory with arguments
not easily refuted. — Cliristian Advocate and Journal.

i. Wm