Citation
A history of the Reformation for children

Material Information

Title:
A history of the Reformation for children Switzerland, France, Holland, Spain, Italy, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark
Spine title:
Child's history of the Reformation
Creator:
Nangle, Edward
Drought, George ( Printer )
Achill Mission ( publisher )
Place of Publication:
Dublin
Publisher:
Sold at the office of the Achill Mission
Manufacturer:
George Drought
Publication Date:
Language:
English
Physical Description:
xii, 215 p. <1> leaf of plates : ill. ; 15cm.

Subjects

Subjects / Keywords:
Reformation -- Juvenile literature ( lcsh )
Embossed cloth bindings (Binding) -- 1852 ( rbbin )
Bldn -- 1852
Genre:
Embossed cloth bindings (Binding) ( rbbin )
Spatial Coverage:
Ireland -- Dublin
Target Audience:
juvenile ( marctarget )

Notes

Funding:
Brittle Books Program
Statement of Responsibility:
by Rev. Edward Nangle, A. B.

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University of Florida
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University of Florida
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This item is presumed to be in the public domain. The University of Florida George A. Smathers Libraries respect the intellectual property rights of others and do not claim any copyright interest in this item. Users of this work have responsibility for determining copyright status prior to reusing, publishing or reproducing this item for purposes other than what is allowed by fair use or other copyright exemptions. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions may require permission of the copyright holder. The Smathers Libraries would like to learn more about this item and invite individuals or organizations to contact The Department of Special and Area Studies Collections (special@uflib.ufl.edu) with any additional information they can provide.
Resource Identifier:
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44698247 ( OCLC )
ALH5250 ( NOTIS )

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Full Text
aE te
a RA oy
eel





‘‘ Drowning of the Protestants at Venice."





A. HISTORY

OF

THE REFORMATION

FOR CHILDREN.

SWITZERLAND, FRANCE, HOLLAND, SPAIN, ITALY,
SWEDEN, NORWAY, AND DENMARK.

BY
REY. EDWARD NANGLE, A.B.

Vol. B85.

DUBLIN:
PRINTED BY GEORGE DROUGHT,
6, BACL.ELOR'S-WALK.

SOLD AT TNE OFFICE OF THE ACHILL MISSION,
M4, HOLLES-STREET, DUDLIN.

1852,






PREFACE.

Tu1s, our third volume, finishes the History
of the Reformation. It is a remarkable fact,
that this is the only complete narrative of that
great event contained in any onework. Many
have written histories of the Reformation in
particular countries; but this is the only nar-
rative of that great religious awakening which
was manifested throughout the principal king-
doms of Europe in the sixteenth century.
Hoping that some of our young readers may
be excited by this very short account of this
the most important event which has taken



Iv PREFACE.

place since the establishment of Christianity
to desire further information, I think it well
to insert here a list of the books from which
Ihave gathered the facts related in my little
history :—Daubigne’s “ History of the Refor-
- mation ;” Fox’s ‘Book of Martyrs;” ‘‘ Life
of Edward VI.,” by Protestant Association ;
Hume's “History of England,” M‘Crie’s * His.
tory of the Church of Scotland ;” “Ireland
and her Church,” by Dean of Ardagh; “ Life
of Philip II.,” by Watson; Browning's ‘* His-
tory of the Huguenots; M‘Grie’s “ History
of the Reformation in Spain ;" M‘Crie's ‘ His-
tory of the Reformation in Italy ;” * Encyclo-
pedia Britannica.”

I now send forth this little volume with ear-
nest prayer that the preat Head of the Church
may make it instrumental in imbuing the minds
ofthe rising generation with such a sense of the



PREFACE. v

evil of Popery, as opposed to Christ's true re-
ligion, as may prompt them to join heart and
hand in the effort which is being made to de-

liver our fellow-subjects from its tyranny.

Achill, Aprit 30, 1852.

a2



Tne following chapters appeared in suc-
cessive numbers of the Acnit1 Missionary

Herawp.



CONTENTS.

—o~———

CHAPTER I.

Pacs

Extent of the Reformation—Zwingle—His Childhood—
His promising Genlus—The Dominicans and Franciscans
—The Virgin Mary appears to Jetser--The trick is dis-
covered—Men’s eyes begin to be opened . . .

CHAPTER IL

Zwingle is ordained a Priest—Obtains a Peusion from the
Pope—Gete a Glimpee of the Truth—Becomes a Soldier—
Discovers the Unholiness of the Church of Rome—The
Church of Einsidlen—Zwingle advances in the Truth, and
preaches what he knowa—Sale of Indulgences. .

CHAPTER III

Zwingle becomes Preacher at the Cathedral of Zurich—
Indulgences sold for a Horsve—The Seller of Indulgences
expelled from Zurich—Zwingle attacked by the Plague—
Preaches with success in Basle—Persecution—The Papists
shrink from Discussion—Francis Lambert . .

10

19



vil CONTENTS.

CHAPTER IV.

Pao

The Gospel spreads in Switzerland—Zwingle marries—
Meeting of the Reformers—Haller defended by the Ber-
nese against the Pope's Bishops—Zwingle persecuted by
his own Family—A coming Storm--Zwingle’s Prayer—
The Pore tries to tribe Zwingle—Indignation of the Peo-
ple against Idols . . . . * .

CHAPTER V.

A Discussion—An Idol burnt by « little Boy—Martyrdom
of Hottinger—The People of Zurich threatened—Their
firmness—A Min‘ster of the Gospel carried off by Soldiers
—A Convent burnt—Cruel Martyrdom of Wirth—His

85n and Rutiman—Their meckness and courage . .

CHAPTER VI.

Erasmus, Sir Thomas More, and the Wafer—The Mass aho-
lished at Zurich—-Great love among the Christians—The
Gceepel advances at Berne-—-The Nuns of Konigsfeldt—
£colampadius preaches with much success at Basle~The
Anabeptists . . . . .

.

CHAPTER VIL

The Anabapticts—Fanaticism of Schucker and his Sons—
Their error checked—Need of the Word and the Spirit—
Dispute between Luther and Zwingle about the Lord’s
Supper—Progrese of the Gospel——A Disputation—Happy
Results. .

29

39



CONTENTS.

CHAPTER VIII.

Pace

Martyrdom of Keyser—War—The Bernese refuse their aid
The Papists all unite—Zwingle’s feare—Unchristian
conduct of Zurich and Berne—Perplexities of Zwingle—
Zwingle goce to Battle—Defeat of the Protestants, and
Death of Zwingle . . .

CHAPTER IX.

Savage Enmity of the Romish Party—Death of Xcolam-
padius-~The Waldenses— William Farel—He goes to Paris
~-His Bigotry and Conversion—The Bishop of Mesux—
Queen Margaret. .

CHAPTER X.

Numerous Enemies to the Gospel in France—Persecution—-
The New Testament and Psalms printed in French—
Bishop of Meaux preaches the Gospel—-Threat of a Monk

—Cowardice of the Bishop~Martyrdom of Le Clere—
Reflections . .

CHAPTER XI.

Apostasy and Steadfastness—William Farel—Pereecution
—~—Imprudent zeal—A National Calamity turned against
the Reformers—The Hermit of Livry—His Martyrdom—
John Calvin

67

7



x CONTENTS,

CHAPTER XII.

Pace

John Calv'n—Ile studies the Bible-—Is forced to fly from
Paris—-The King condemns the Reformation, and puts
eight Protestants to death—Calvin quits France—Goes
to Geneva—Ia banished thénce, but soon recalled—~His
Laboure—Jlis Cruelty to Servetus—Founds a College—
Lis last Sickness and Death . .

CHAPTER XIII.

The Trotestante multiply in France—Take up Arme in
defence of thelr Liberty—Crafty Cruelty of Charles IX.
—Coligni—Massacre of St. Bartholomew—Rejoicings at
Rome—Henry IV.~Edict of Nentes—Louis XIV.—Bri-
bery and Apostasy—The Dragonades . . .

CHAPTER XIV.

More about the Dragonades—John Miguult—THWis Sufferings
for the Truth—Persecution of a Little Boy, and a Young
‘Woman, and others—The Protestants fly to Holland and
England—France much injured—Blind and mad Bigotry
of Louls X1V.—God's Judgment on the French Nation .

CHAPTER XV.

The Netherlands—The Reformation—Cruel Law of Charles
V.—Butchery of the Protestants—Philip IL—His Ty-
Tanny—His Subjects Rebel—Counts Egmont and Horn
—The Prince of Orange Assassinated-—Dreadful Slanghter

» 107

ng

133



CONTENTS. xi

Paar

of the Protestante—-The Duke of Alva—Character of
Philip I1.—His Miserable Death—-Success of the Refor-
meticn lk . . . . . « 146

CHAPTER XVI.

The Reformation in Spnin~Early Independence of the
Spanish Church—-Wickedness and Ignorance of the
Prieste—Cardinal Ximenes opposed to the General Cir-
culation of the Bible—The Inquisition of Seville—How
the Reformed Faith got into Spain—A Peasant con-
verted to Christ by the Inquisition—Horrid Murder of
Juan Diaz . . . . . » 155

CHAPTER XVII.

Conversion of Constantine, the Chaplain of Charles V.
—His Confession of Christ—His Sufferings and Death—
Many Men of rank and learning converted to Christ—-
Don Carlos de Ses0—His Confession of Christ, Condem-
nation, and Martyrdom—Real Criminals leniently dealt
with by the Inquisition . . . . « 166

CHAPTER XVIII.

Mar‘a de Bohorques—Confeses Christ, and is put to the
Torture—Her Martyrdom—Sufferings of Jane de Bohor-
quee—-Martyrdom of Maria Gornez and Seven other
Females—The Reformation put down in Spain by the
Inquisition—Hypocrisy of the Inquisitore—Effect of the
Suppression of the Reformation in Spain . . ~ 1%



=

xi CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XIX.

Pace

The Reformation in Italy—Sevanarola—The Writings of
the Reformers and the Bible Translated into Italian—
Corruption of the Romish Church—Progress of Reforms-
tion in Ferrara and other Italian Towns—Melancthon's
promising appesrances—Alarm of the Pope—The Inqui-
sition established—Sufferings of Christ's People .

CHAPTER XX.

Massacre of the Protestants of Santo Xisto—Torture and
Murder of the Inbabitante of La Guardia— Horrid
Butchery of Christ's People at Montalto—The Protestants

of Calabria-—The Martyrs at Venice put to Death by
Drowning . . . .

CHAPTER XXI.

The King of Denmark invades Swoden—Gustavus Vase is
carried into Denmark—His Escape—Returns to Sweden-—
Works in the Mines—Treachery—He stirs up the Pea-
sents to Revolt—Drives Christian out of Sweden -- Is
proclaimed King—Declares himeelf a Protestant—Estab-
Ushes the Reformed Religlon—Duty of Princes—Con-
cluding Remarks . . .

185



A HISTORY

or

THE REFORMATION.

—_@——-
CHAPTER I

Extent of the Reformation—Zwingle— His Childhood - ITis
promis: genius—The Dominicans and Franciecans—Tho
Virgin Mary appears to Jetscr—The trick is discovered—
Men's eyes begin to be opened.

Tue Bible tells us that ‘‘the works of the Lord —
are great.” What a great work God does in
the spring, when the snows of winter melt
away under the warm sun, and the trees and
shrubs, which seemed to be dead, put forth
leaves and blossoms; and this change takes
place not in one or two fields, or in one coun-
try, but over the whole face of the earth. Such
a work was the Reformation. It was a great
work—it was not confined to a few places. The
power of the Divine Spirit who did that great
work was felt throughout the whole of Europe.
B



2 A HISTORY OF

I have already told you how souls were brought
out of Popish darkness and death to the light
and life of Christ’s glorious Gospel, in Germany
and England; and if my life is spared to finish
the volume which I have now begun, I shall
tell you how the same great work was done in
Switzerland, France, the Netherlands, Italy,
Spain, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark. And
you will observe that this wondrous awakening
did not begin in one place at first, and then go
on from one country to another, but all Europe
felt an impulse at the same time, showing us
plainly that God, and not man, was the author
of the Reformation—the most wonderful event
in the history of man since Christianity was
first set up by miracles,

Tu a wild and remote part of the mountains
of Switzerland, at; the end of the fifteenth cen.
tury, there lived, in a place called the Wild.
haus, a man named Zwingle. He was a shep-
herd, and had a large family, who, with their
father, were all employed in taking care of
their flocks. He was the bailiff.of the parish,
and much respected by all his neighbours,



THE REFORMATION. 8

The third son of this shepherd, named Ulrich,
was born on New Year's Day, 1484, seven weeks
after the birth of Luther. During the summer
months, Ulrich Zwingle used to go with his
brothers and sisters through the mountains
seeking the best pasture for their flocks. The
long winter evenings were spent, in his father’s
cottage, in listening to the conversation of the
peasantry on the Scripture stories, mixed up
with superstitious legends, which were related
by his pious old grandmother.

Ulrich’s father saw that he was a lad of no
common mind, and thinking it ae pity that his
life should be spent in tending cattle on his
native mountains, he took him to his brother;
who was Dean of Wesen. The dean was
much pleased with his little nephew, and sent
him to a school in his own neighbourhood.
Young Zwingle was so clever that he soon
learned all the master could teach him, and
his uncle then removed him to another school
in the celebrated city of Basle. Here he made
still farther progrese in learning. The boys
of different schools used to have disputations



4 A HISTORY OF

in imitation of those which learned men used to
hold; and in these young Zwingle was always
victorious—so early did he display that talent
which God afterwards used for overturning
the Pope's false religion in a great part of
Switzerland.

From the school at Basle, Zwingle was re-
moved to Berne, and placed under the care of
Lupulus, a celebrated scholar. There was at
Berne a celebrated convent of the monks who
follow the rule of St. Dominic, and are called
Dominicans. These monks were engaged in a
forious dispute with the Franciscans, or fol-
lowers of St. Francis. The Franciscans con-
tended that the Virgin Mary was free from any -
taimt of sin; the Dominicans said that she was
conceived in sin. Now, the Dominicans were
right, because the Bible says that ‘all have _
sinned,” and “there is none righteous, no, not
one ;” and the Blessed Virgin confessed herself
to be a sinner, when she said, “ My spirit hath
rejaiced in God my Saviour.” .

But it was not by the Bible, as I shall show
you presently, that the Dominicans tried to



THE REFORMATION. 5

convince people that they were right, and that

the Franciscans were wrong. These monks

remarked that Zwingle had a very fine voice ;

they had also heard how clever he was: and
thinking that it would add greatly to the glory
of their order if they could get him to join them,
they did all they could to draw him over to
their party. Zwingle’s father heard of this, and
being afraid that these crafty and wicked men
might entrap his son, he took him away from
Berne. A fact which I am now going to tell
you, will show you how happy it was for Zwin-
gle that he escaped the snare which they laid
for him.

A young man named John Jetzer, of weak
mind, was admitted as a lay brother into the
Dominican convent. After a few nights he was
roused out of his sleep by deep groans. He
saw a tall white form standing beside his bed.
It spoke—*I am a soul escaped from the fires
of Purgatory.” Poor Jetzer shook with terror
as he said, “ God help thee, I can do nothing.”
The spectre in anger came near to Jetzer, and
seized him by the throat, reproaching him for



6 4 HISTORY OF

his refusal. Jetzer in great terror, cried out,
*¢ What can I do to save thee ?” The spectre
replied, ‘Scourge thyself for eight days, until
the blood comes, and lie on thy face in the
chapel of St. John ;” and having said this, it
vanished. Jetzer told what happened to his
confessor and the preacher of the convent, who
advised him to do as the spectre had told him.
A report soon went out through the city that a
soul in Purgatory had sought relief from the
Dominicans. The Franciscans were deserted 3
and the people ran in crowds to the church
where the holy man was to be seen lying on
the pavement. The soul from Purgatory had
told Jetzer that it would appear again to him
in eight days. It came at the appointed time,
and two spirits more along with it, who tor-
mented it so that it groaned most piteously. .
The spectre spoke. ‘Sertus,” it said, ‘ who
taught the Franciscans that the Virgin was
conceived without sin, is among those who
suffer the same horrible torments that I do.”
When the report of this spread through Berne,
the Franciscans were still more dismayed; but



THE REFORMATION. 7

the soul had told Jetzer that it would appear
to him again on a certain day, and that the
Virgin herself would accompany it. On tha
day fixed the astonished Jetzer saw Mary, as
he thought, appear in his cell. Ho could hardly
believe his eyes. She came to him kindly, gave
him, as she said, three drops of our Saviour’s
tears, and as many drops of His blood, with a
crucifix and a letter to Pope Julius IL., who,
she said, was appointed by God to set aside the
festival which had been instituted in honour of
the ImmaculateConception. Then comingclose
to the bed were Jetzer lay, she told him, in a
solemn voice, that she was going to bestow a
great favour upon him, and at the same time
she pierced his hand with a nail. Poor Jetzer
roared with pain, but Mary wrapt up his hand
in a eloth, that her son (as she said) had worn
at the time of the flight into Egypt. But this
one wound was not enough. The Franciscans
said that St. Francis had been marked with the
five wounds of Christ, and the Dominicans must
not have less glory. The Virgin, therefore,
gave Jetzer a wound in each hand and foot,



8 A HISTORY OF

and one in his side. When this was done, the
poor simpleton was placed in a room hung with
pictures of our Lord’s passion. Here he spent
many days without food, and his mind became
much excited. At times he was quite out of
his senses, foaming at the mouth, and seeming
ready to die. The monks from time to time
let in the people, who flocked in crowds to the
convent to see the man who had been visited
by departed spirits, and by the Virgin herself.
Many were deceived—even Lupulus, Zwingle’s
teacher, was among the number; and the Do-
minicans from their pulpit boasted of the glory
which God had put upon their order.

But at last the trick was found out. Mary
appeared again to Jetzer. She spoke, but
Jetzer fancied the voice was that of his confes-
sor. Having uttered his suspicion, Mary dis-
appeared, but she soon came again to censure
Jetzer for his suspicion. But bis doubts had
been awakened, and he now discovered that
the pretended Virgin was the prior of the con.
vent. The enraged dupe ran at the Virgin
with a knife in his hand, determined to avenge



THE DEFORMATION. 9

himself for the wounds which she had given
him; andthe Virgin, having returned the assault
by flinging a pewter plate at the head of the
poor brother, instantly vanished.

The Dominicans were much frightened when
they saw that Jetzer had discovered the plot;
and to prevent public exposure they tried to
poison him, but he contrived to escape out of
their hands. The Pope empowered his legate
and two bishops to inquire into the affair.
Four of the monks were found guilty, and were
burnt alive on the lst of May, 1509, in the pre.
_ sence of thirty thousand people. The report
of this wicked trick spread through Europe; -
and by opening men’s eyes to the frauds of the
monks, prepared the way for the Reformation.
How happy it was for young Zwingle that his
father took him away from Berne: if he had
not done so, he might have been entrapped
into the Dominican order; and who can say
that, like Luther, he would ever have come
forth from the cloister’ to hold up the light of
the glorious Gospel of Christ to his country.
men? :

Ba



10 4 HISTORY oF

CHAPTER II.

Zwingle is ordained a Priest—~Obtains a pension from the Pope—
Geta « glimpse of the Truth—Becomes a Soldier——Discovers the
unholiness of the Church of Rome—The Church of Einsidlen—
Zwingle advances in the truth, and preaches what he knows—
Sale of Indulgences.
In the year 1506, Zwingle, having finished his
studies, was invited by the people of Glaris to
become their priest. He was ordained by the
Bishop of Constance, and read his first Mass
at Wildhaus, on St. Michael's day, in the pre-
sence of all bis relations and many friends of
At this time the Pope used to employ Zwin-
gle's countrymen, the Swiss, to fight his battlea
as soldiers; and there was 8 man named Schin.
ner, who was made a Cardinal by Julius IL
This pretended Vicar of Christ was a great
warrior, and he was much pleased with Schin-
ner because he persuaded a great many of the
Swiss to jom his army. Schinner heard that
Zwingle was a very clever man; and thinking
that he might make use of him in the Pope’a



THE REFORMATION. ll

service, he made acquaintance with him, and
after a little time he got him a yearly pension
of fifty florins from the Pope. This was of
good service to Zwingle, for he was so poor
that he could not buy books to improve his
mind by reading, but this pension enabled him
to do go.

In the course of his reading he met with a
poem, written by Erasmus, in which Jesus
Christ is said to complain that men do not seck
eyery grace from Him, although he is the
source of all good. <‘‘Azz,” said Zwingle,
‘aLL,”—~and this word was ever present to his
mind. He then began to ask is it right to pray
to saints and angels for help, and bis mind
answered, “ No. It is needless, it is foolish!
Jesus Christ is the source of ati good,”

Some years after, Zwingle became acquaint.
de with Erasmus, and through him with many
learned men who afterwards took a leading part
in the Reformation. Among these was a very
good man named Oswald, Myconius, and Oco-
lampadius, who preached Christ with great
power as the only Saviour of sinners.



12 A HIStoRY of

But Zwingle did not yet know the truth.
The Pope was engaged in war with Francis L.,
King of France, and Schinner persuaded the
Swiss to join the Pope’s army; and Zwingle,
too, a minister of Christ by profession, became
s soldier. He forgot that the sword of the
Spirit should be his only weapon; and at last,
as you will see in the course of this history,
the Lord's words were fulfilled in his fall
**They that take the sword shall perish with
the sword.”

Zwingle, as a soldier, marched into Italy,
and there he learned much which prepared
him for the great work to which God was about
to call him. He remarked the difference in
the way of celebrating Mass at Milan and
Rome, which showed him that the Pope's
Church had not even that outward unity which
it claims. The sight of his countrymen, slaugh-
tered like sheep for the faithless and proud
Pope; filled him with anger ; and the coveteous-
ness and ignorance of the priests, the filthy
lives of the drunken monks, and the pride and
luxury of the bishops showed him that the



THE REFORMATION. 13

Charch of Rome had not that holiness which
marks thé true Church of Christ. He felt
more deeply than ever the need of reform in
the Church,

There was in Switzerland a celebrated mo-
nastery called Einsidlen. About the end of
the tenth century a church was built, in honour
of the Virgin, on the spot where a hermit had
been murdered several years before. And
this church was said to have been consecrated
by God himself, attended by numerous hosts of
angels, A Bull of Leo VILI. forbid any one
to doubt the truth of thislegend. This church
was therefore regarded as a very holy place,
and multitudes of pilgrims used to visit it every
year. It was to this place that Zwingle re-
moved from Glaris, in 1516, as priest and
preacher.

At the monastery of Einsidlen, Zwingle had
much time for study. The head of the mo-
nastery was a well-disposed man; he used to
invite learned men to spend some time with
him, and they used to read the Scriptures to-
gether. It was here that Zwingle wrote out



14 & HISTORY OF

with his own hand the Epistles of St. Paul;
he also learned them by heart, and some time
after, the other books of the New Testament,
and part of the Old. No man ever yet did
much to reform the Church who was not mighty
in the Scriptures. In proportion as Zwingle
learned the truths of the Bible, his life was re-
gulated by them. He now broke off from world.
ly pursuits which he used to follow in the days
of his ignorance. _

It was at Einsidlen, too, that Zwingle got
a deeper insight into the knavery of the Church
of Rome. An image of the Virgin which was
kept in the monastery, was said to work mira-
cles, Over the gate of the abbey was written,
** Here a plenary remission of sins may be
had.”- The hope of getting this indulgence
drew crowds of poor deceived souls to this nest
of superstition. The sight of these deceived
people stixred up the pity and zeal of the Re-
former. “ Do not think,” said he from the pul-
pit, “that God is in this church more than in
any other part of the world. God is every-
where, and hears you in all places as well as at



THE REFORMATION. 15

our Lady’s of Einsidlen. Can useless works,
long pilgrimages, offerings, images, prayer to the
Virgin and the saints, secure for you the grace of
God? What good is there in a smooth cowl, «
shorn head, along robe, or slippers embroidered
with gold? God looks at the heart, and our
hearts are far from him. Christ, who was once
offered on the cross, is the sacrifice and victim
that makes satisfaction for the sins of believers
to all eternity.”

The crowd of pilgrims listened with wonder
to these words. Some went away filled with
horror; but many went to Jesus, who was
preached to them as meek, gentle, and loving,
and carried back the tokens which they had
brought to present to the Virgin. The pil-
grums returned to their homes, everywhere
spreading the report of what they had heard
at Binsidlen, that ‘“‘ CHRIST ALONE SAVES, AND
HE SAVES IN ALL PLACES.” Often did whole
bands, amazed at these reporta, turn back with.
out finishing their pilgrimage. The number of
Mary's worshippers grew fewer and fewer every
day. It was their offerings which chiefly sup-



16 A HISTORY OF

plied Zwingle with the means of living; but this
faithful witness to the truth felt happy in
making himself poor, while he was enriching
the souls of his fellow-sinners with the precious
faith of the Gospel.

Zwingle now began to speak plainly to
Schinner. ‘ Popery,” said he, “is on a bad
foundation. If you do not cast away your
errors, the whole building will come down about
your ears with a crash.” He spoke with the
same freedom to Cardinal Pucci; he was the
Pope's legate, and tried to persuade Zwingle
not to preach as he did. But Zwingle said,
‘With God's aid I will preach the Gospel, and
this preaching will make Rome totter.” Zwin-
gle declared that he would resign the Pope's
pension, The legate entreated him to keep
it; and Zwingle, who had not then any inten-
tion of setting himself in hostility to the pre-
tended head of the Church, consented to re-
ceive it for threo years longer. ‘ But do
not imagine,” he added, “that for love of
money I will hold back the least particle of the
truth.”



JHE REFORMATION. 17

In the year 1518, a Franciscan monk, named
Samson, crossed’ the mountains which separate
Switzerland from Italy, to traffic, like Tetzel,
in the sale of indulgences. This impostor and
his hungry train first opened their trade in Uri.
They then passed on to Schwytz, the Canton in
which Zwingle lived. ‘I can pardon all
sins,” said the Italian monk ; “‘ heaven and hell
are subject to my power; and I sell the merits
of Christ to any who will purchase them, by
buying an indulgence, for ready money.”

Zwingle’s zeal took fire when he heard of
such blasphemies, He cried out to the people
in his preaching —* Jesus Christ the Sonof God
has said, ‘Come unto me all ye that are weary
and heavy laden, and I will give you rest.’ Is
it not, then, great wickedness and folly to say,
¢ Buy indulgences, hasten to Rome, give to the
monks and the priests, and if thou doest these
things I absolve thee from thy sins?’ Jesus
Christ is the only offering, the only sacrifice,
the only way.”

Jesus Christ, as He is set forth to us in the
Bible, is the great argument against all the



18 4 HISTORY OF

Pope's false doctrines. Zwingle used this ar-
gument, and Samson, the seller of indulgences,
was soon regarded throughout the whole can-
ton az a cheat and a seducer.



THE REFORMATION. 19

CHAPTER IIL

» Zwingle becomes Preacher at the Cathedral of Zurich—Indul-
gences sold for a horse—The seller of Indulgences
from Zurich—Zwingle attacked by the Plague—Preaches with
success in Basle—Persecution—The Pepists shrink from dis-
cussion—Francis Lambert,
Gop had been teaching Zwingle for the great
work he had to do, and now He put him in a
post where he could use what he had learned
with the greatest effect. Zwingle was chosen
to be the preacher in the cathedral of Zurich,
which was at that time the chief city of Swit.
zerland. The enemies of the Reformation did.
all they could to hinder Zwingle’s election, but
in vain. Zwingle preached faithfully and
powerfully, and multitudes flocked to hear
Samson, of whom I told you something in
the last chapter, was still going through Swits-
erland selling indulgences. He was received
in Berne with great honour; and to show you



20 A HISTORY OF

how blinded the people were, I shall tell you
a thing which happened there. A celebrated
knight, Jacques de Stein, came to Samson,
mounted on 2 beautiful grey horse, which the
monk admired very much. ‘Give me, said
the knight, ‘‘an indulgence for myself and my
five hundred soldiers, all my servants, and all
my ancestors, and I will give you my horse.”
The bargain was struck, the horse was led to
the monk's stable, and all these souls were
supposed to be free from the pains of Purga-
tory !

On the last day of his stay in Berne, Sam-
son stood on the steps of the high altar and
shouted to the people, ‘* Kneel down, say three
paters and three aves, and your souls will be ©
as pure as at the moment of your baptism.”
The people fell upon their knees, and then this
daring blasphemer cried out, “I deliver from
the pains of Purgatory and of hell all the souls
of the Bernese who are dead, whatever may
have been the manner and the place of their
death.”

Samson was making his way on to Zurich,



THE REFORMATION. 21

When he came to Bremgarten, Bullinger, the
dean, and father of Henry Bullinger, who
afterwards became a Reformer, would not let
him into his church. Samson was in a great
rage, and threatened to complain to the depu-
ties at Zurich. In the meantime, a great
change had been made in the minds of the
people of Zurich by Zwingle's preaching; and
when he heard that Samson was coming, he
publicly attacked the sale of indulgences.
‘No man,” he said, “can forgive sins but
Christ alone, who is God and man. So, buy
indulgences, but be assured that you are not
forgiven. Those who sell pardons of sin for
money are the companions of Simon the magi-
cian, the friends of Balaam, and the ministers
of the devil.” When Samson came to Zurich,
he was received courteously; but when the
people found that he had nothing to speak
about but Papal bulls, he was sent away.
Zwingle’s preaching, or rather Christ's holy
Gospel, had spoiled his marketin Zurich. He
went away in a great rage, and soon after re-



22 A HISTORY OY

turned to the Pope in Italy, bringing with him
a waggon, drawn by three horses, Jaden with
the money which his lies had wrung from the
people of Switzerland, in the name of his nias-
ter, the Pope.

When God has a great work for any of His
people to do, He often prepares them for it by
teaching them how weak and helpless they are.
If he did not deal thus with them they might
be puffed up with pride, and think that the
good which God did by them they did of them-
selves. It was thus God dealt with Zwingle;
the plague broke out in Switzerland, and Zwin-
gle was attacked by it. He was so very sick
that his friends gave up all hope of his recovery,
and it was.even reported that he was dead.
It was then that he composed the following

hymn :—

Lo! at the door

I hear Death’s knock !
Shield me, O Lord,

My Strength and Rock.



THE REFORMATION. 23

Thy hand, once nailed
Upon the tree,
Jesus uplift,
And shelter me.

Willest thou, then,
Death conquer me
In my noonday ?
So let it be.

Oh, may I die,
Since I am thine;
Thy home is made
For faith like mine.

Contrary to all the expectations of Zwingle
and his friends, it pleased God to restore him
to health. He rose from his bed of sickness
more devoted to the service of Jesus Christ
than ever. His zeal was more active, his
life more holy, and his preaching more power-
ful than before his sickness. Thus God was
training his servant for the great work which
He intended him to do. .

Some time after this, Zwingle visited the city
of Basle, to preach the Gospel there. A great
and lasting impression was made on many



24 A HISTORY OF

hearts. John Glother, a schoolmaster, wrote to
Zwingle, after-he had left Basle, to tell him
how much he had been affected by his sermons;
and Capito, having embraced the Gospel him-
self, began to preach it to the citizens in a
course of sermons on the Gospel of St. Mat.
thew. His congregation increased daily, and
the crowds who came to hear received the Word
of God with great gladness. Some time after
Capito was removed to Mentz; but his place
at Basle was supplied by a good young man,
named Hedio, who, besides preaching in public,
used to invite believers to his own house, that
he might instruct them in private.

You may be very sure that the enemies of
God were not idle while the Reformation was
goingon. Zwingle’s life was often threatened ;
God, however, protected him; but in other
places the servants of Satan were permitted to
carry their hatred of God's people to the last
extremity. An old man at Schaffhausen,
named Galsten, became a believer in the Gos-
pel. He could not be silent, his heart was so
glad ; so he tried to teach his wife and children



THE REFORMATION. 25

what he had learned himself. In his zeal for
Christ’s truth, he attacked the Romish priests
and their vain and wicked superstitions. He
soon became an object of hatred and terror
even to his own family. Fearing that they
would do him some mischief, he left his house,
and tried to hide himself in the forests; but he
was pursued by men and bloodhounds. He was
taken and dragged before the magistrates, who
commanded him te deny the faith of the Gos-
pel; and when he would not do this, they cruelly
cut off his head. —

There was a good man at Lucerne, named
Myconius. He was a great friend of Zwingle,
and was a schoolmaster. The people of Lu-
cerne disliked him very much because he was
a believer in Christ, and at last they banished
him from the canton. Poor Myconius had a
sickly wife and a-delicate little child, and he
did not know where to go. God, however, pro-
vided a home for him elsewhere; and the un-
grateful and wicked city which cast him out
continues under the power of the Papal Anti.
christ to this day,



26 _A HISTORY oF

The Gospel still continued to spread in
Zurich, and the Bishop of Constance sent
three deputies to try if they could put a stop to
its further progress. When the deputies came
to Zurich, they first called the priests toge-
ther, but Zwingle was there to answer them.
Then they assembled the magistrates, and tried
to prevail on them to use force against the
preachers of the Gospel. They did all they
could to keep Zwingle out of this assembly,
but the magistrates said that Zwingle and the
other preachers should speak in their own de-
fence. The deputies were very angry at this,
and would not hold any discussion with Zwin-
gle and his friends. This greatly helped the
Reformation, because the people thought that
if the Pope had a good cause, his partisans
would not shrink from defending it.

There was a Franciscan friar, who lived at
Avignon, named Francis Lambert. This man
got some knowledge of the Gospel by Luther's
writings, but when it was suspected that he
was believer, he was obliged to leave his na-
tive place. He went to Geneva, where he



THE REFORMATION. 97

preached the Gospel so far as he knew it, and
also at Lausanne, Friburg, and Berne. He
spoke boldly against the Sacrifice of the Mass,
the traditions of the Church of Rome, and the
superstitions of the monks. This extraordi-
nary man travelled about in his monk’s dress,
riding on an ass, which, as he was very tall,
hardly lifted his bare feet off the ground. He
eame to Zurich, and calling on Zwingle he
handed him a letter from Haller. Zwingle
was delighted to see him, and opened his
church for him. Lambert preached four ser-
mons, in which he exposed the errors of the
Church of Rome, but in the fourth he said
that it was right to pray to the Blessed Virgin
and the saints. When Zwingle heard this he
cried out in the church, “Brother, you are
mistaken.” The friends of the Pope were
much pleased at this. They were glad to find
that the friends of the Reformation were not
agreed among themselves; and they tried to
set Lambert and Zwingle to dispute with each
other. They said to Lambert—‘ He has
publicly contradicted you, and you ought to



28 A HISTORY OF

challenge him to argue the point with you
in public.” Lambert being zealous for what.
ever he supposed to be God’s truth, did so:
Zwingle you may be sure accepted the chal-
lenge. There was great excitement in Zu-
rich. The disputants met before a large
assembly. Zwingle showed from the Bible
how wrong it was to pray to the Virgin and
the saints. He spoke for along time and with
great power. All were now anxious to hear
Lambert’s reply. He stood up; then clasping
his hands and raising his eyes to heaven, he
said—I thank thee, O God, that by means
of this great and good servant of thine thou
hast brought me to a fuller knowledge of thy
truth. Henceforth,” he added, turning to the
people, ‘in all my troubles I will call upon
God alone, and I will throw aside my beads.”
He left Zurich on the next day, mounted on
his ass, to visit Erasmus at Basle, and thence
he went into Germany to visit Martin Luther,
at Wittemberg.



THE REFORMATION. 29

CHAPTER IV.

The Gospel spreads in Switzerland---Zwingle marries—Moeting

A coming storm~-Zwingle's prayer—The Pope tries to bribe
Zwingle—Indignation of the people against idols.

Tae Gospel continued to spread in Switzer-
and. In Appenzel, a young man named Wal-
ter Klarer read Luther's works, and soon began
to preach the truths contained in them. An
innkeeper named Rausberg, and who was a
member of the Council of Appenzel, opened
his house for the preaching of the Gospel.
A famous captain named Berweger, who had
fought for the Popes, came back to Appenzel,
from Rome, at this time, and began to perse-
cute the friends of the Gospel. One day, how-
ever, remembering what bad things he had
seen at Rome, he began to read the Bible and
tohear the sermons of the Reformers. He was
soon after converted to Christ. When he saw



30 A HISTORY OF

the crowds who could not find room in the
churches coming to hear the Gospel, he said—
** Let the ministers preach in the fields and pub-
lic places.” Many tried to hinder this; but in
spite of all that they could do, the fields and
strects of Appenzel soon resounded with the
joyful news of the Gospel.

From Zurich the truth spread to the Grison’s
Country. So great an effect was produced by
the preaching of a good man called Jacques
Burkli, that 2 great many of the inhabitants de-
manded to have the Sacrament as our Lord in.
stituted it ; and a pious man writing to a friend
said—** Oh that you could see how the dwellers
in the Rheetian mountains are throwing off the
yoke of the Pope of Rome.”

About this time, Zwingle married a widow
lady named Anna Reinhardt. She was a very
good woman, and in every way suited to be
the Reformer’s wife; but fearing that some
who were not entirely free from Romish error
might be offended, he kept his marriage secret
for some time. This was not right. When
our actions are such as God is pleased with, we



THE REYORMATION. 31

should never be ashamed or afraid to make
them known. But the best men are so weak
that it is only the grace of God that can give
them courage to go on straight in the path of
righteousness.

In the beginning of July 1522 a meeting of
Reformers was held at Einsidlen. They came
from all parts of Switzerland. They drew up
& petition to the bishop and another to the
Government, requiring leave to preach the
Gospel without hindrance, and inviting them to
join them in the holy effort to break the Pope's
heavy yoke, and lead their countrymen back to
Christ. The good men at this meeting were
all of one mind, and continued so until death.

The petition of the Reformers stirred up the
enemies of the Gospel through Switzerland.
In the city of Berne there was a good man
named Berthold Haller ; he had not signed the
petition, but he preached the Gospel faithfully,
and for doing so he was summoned to the
town-hall, The magistrates were divided in
their opinion ; some of the most powerful among
them said that it was a cause which should



$2 A HISTORY OF

be tried by the bishop, and that Haller should
be given up to him. Haller’s friends were
much terrified at this. On his return home
from the town-hall, the people surrounded him ;
and a great body of the citizens, with arms in
their hands, kept watch before his house, deter-
mined to defend Haller against his enemies
even unto death. . This struck such terror into
the bishop and the magistrates that they were
afraid to lay hands on Haller, and he continued
to preach the Gospel.

Zwingle was much tried at this time by the
unkindness of his own family. His brothers
were worldly men, who sought nothing but the
praise of man ; they did not like to be the bro-
thers of one who was called a heretic, and they
feared that they might be shamed still more,
if Zwingle was put to death as a criminal, for
his religion. Zwingle wrote a letter to them,
in which among other things he said:—*¢ So
long as God permits me I will do His work
without fearing the world and its proud tyrants,
* * * My own strength is nothingness it-
self, and Iknow the power of my enemies ; but



THE REFORMATION. 33

I know also that I can do everything in Christ,
who strengthensme. * * * Banish all fear,
my dear brothers. If I have any fear, it is
lest I have been milder and gentler than suits
our times. What reproach, say you, will be
cast upon our family, if I am burned, or put to
death in any other way! Oh, my beloved bro.
thers, the Gospel receives this power from the
blood of Christ, that the most cruel persecu-
tors, instead of stopping, only help on its pro.
gress. Those alone are the true soldiers of
Christ who do not fear to bear in their body
the wounds of their Master; all my labours
have no aim but to tell men the treasures of
happiness that Christ has bought for us, that
all might take refuge in the Father, through
the death of the Son. _ If this doctrine offends
you, you cannot stop me: you are my brothers;
yes, my own brothers—sons of the same father,
the fruit of the same womb. * * * But if you
were not my brothers in Christ and in the work
of faith, then my grief would be so violent
that nothing could equal it. Farewell! I shall
never cease to be your affectionate brother, if
2



34 A HISTORY OF

only you will not cease yourselves to be the
brethren of Jesus Christ.”

The governments of the different Cantons
into which Switzerland is divided, seemed at this
time to rise like one man against the Gospel.
The petition from Einsidlen had stirred them
allup. Zwingle saw himself surrounded by ene-
mies; he had enemies in Zurich—enemies in
his own family. The monks and priests, filled
with fury, thirsted for his blood; the Govern.
ment threatened to crush the infant cause of
the Reformation; dnd his countrymen were en-
listing in foreign service to fight for the Pope,
and put down the preaching of the Gospel by
force of arms, It was in this state of things
that Zwingle brought all his anxieties to the
throne of grace. ‘O Jesus,” gaid he, “thou
seest how the wicked storm thy people’s ears
with their loud blasphemies. Thou knowest
how from my childhood I haye hated all dis-
putes; and yet in spite of myself thou hast thrust
me into this conflict. Therefore do I call upon
thee with confidence to finish what thou hast
begun. IfT have built up anything wrongly,



THE REFORMATION. 35

do thou throw it down with thy mighty hand.
If I have laid any other foundation than thee,
let thy powerful arm destroy it. O Vine, full
of sweetness, whose husbandman is the Father,
and whose branches are we, do not abandon
thy shoots! For thou hast promised to be with
us unto the end of the world.”

Soon after this the Pope sent a legate to
visit Zwingle. ‘The legate had a paper written
by the Pope, called a brief, in which the Pope
spoke of the Reformer as his “dear son.” He
also sent another person named Zink, to try if
he could gain over Zwingle to his side by flat-
tery and bribes. When this man was asked
by Myconius what the Pope had authorised
him to offer to Zwingle, he answered—“ Every
thing but the Papal chair ;” but by the grace of
God Zwingle could neither be frightened nor
coaxed from the service of Christ by threats or
flattery.

When God raises up upright men to preach
His Gospel, their labour is never in vain.
The cause of truth was prospering in Zurich,
A great number of priests petitioned the Gor



86 A HISTORY OF

vernment to make better rules for the clergy
of Zurich. It was decided to put away the
lazy and ignorant priests, and to place in their
stead learned, pious, and zealous men, who,
instead of reading Latin prayers and Masses,
should give a daily explanation of a chapter in
the Bible.

At this time a young priest, named Louis
Hetzer, published a book, which he called
«The Judgment of God against Images.”
This made a great impression on the people.
At a place called Stadelhofen, outside the city
of Zurich, stood a crucifix curiously carved ;
and it grieved every lover of the Bible to see
the superstition with which this piece of stone
was regarded by the people. A citizen named
Claude Hottinger, having met the miller of
Stadelhofen, to whom the crucifix belonged,
asked him when he intended to throw down
his idols? “*No one forces you to worship
them,” said the miller. ‘But do you not
know,” replied Hottinger, « that the Scripture
forbids us to have graven images?” * Well,
then,” said the miller, «jf you are authorised



THE REFORMATION, 87

to remove them, I give them up to you.”
Shortly after this, Hottinger and a number of
the citizens went to the crucifix and dug around
it, until it fell to the earth with a great crash.
This made a great tumult; the Papists cried
out that Hottinger and his friends should be
put to death. They were taken prisoners and
brought before the magistrates.

Zwingle, speaking of this from the pulpit,
said that the image-breakers were guilty of no
sin in the sight of God, but that they might
justly be punished by the laws of their country,
because they acted with violence and without
the authority of the magistrates.

The people were now 80 full of abhorrence of
Romish idolatry, that acts like this, of which
I have just told you, took place very often. A
priest one day, seeing a number of hungry
poor people, covered with rags, before the
church, turned his eyes to the costly ornaments
in which the images of the saints were decked,
and said:—‘ ‘I should like to strip those
wooden idols to buy clothes for these poor
members of Jesus Christ.” A few days after



38 A HISTORY OF

this the saints and all their gay ornaments
disappeared. The magistrates cast the poor
curate into prison, although they could not
prove that he took away the saints’ clothes, and
although he protested that he was innocent.
This made the worship of these images still more
detestable to the people. ‘ What!” they said,
‘is it these logs of wood that Jesus ordered us
to clothe ?—is it on account of these images that
he will say to the righteous, ‘I was naked, and
ye clothed me?’”

Thus the efforts that were made to check the
Reformation only helped it forward. When
God works, how vain it is for man to try to
hinder it.



THE REFORMATION. 39

| CHAPTER V.

A Discussion—An Idol burnt by a little boy—Martyrdom of
Hottinger—The people of Zurich threatened—-Their firmness
—A Minister of the Gospel carried off by Soldiers—A Convent
burnt—Cruel Martyrdom of Wirth—His Son and Rutiman—
Their meeknees and courage.

Saortiy after the events which are related in

the former chapter, Zwingle and Leo Juda,

‘another Reformer, met some priests before a
great assembly at Zurich, and proved, to the
satisfaction of many, that the religion of the

Pope was contrary to the religion of the Bible;

and several priests who heard what was said on

both sides went home determined to do all they
could to help on the Reformation: even little
boys began to despise the superstitions of the

Church of Rome. We are told of one, who

was a pupil in the school of Myconius, whose

duty it was to keep up the fire in the stove of
the schoolroom. One cold morning this little

fellow found he had no wood to put on the fire,



40 A HISTORY OF

but he thought to himself, ‘Why should I
want wood while there are idols in the church |”
Zwingle was to preach that day, and the bells
were ringing, but none of the congregation had
assembled, so the little boy, whose name was
Thomas Plater, entered very softly, laid hold
of an image of St. John that stood upon an
altar, and thrust it into the stove, saying,
¢* Down with you, for in you must go.” Now,
Ido not say that the little boy was right in
doing this, because the image did not belong to
him—if it did, he would have done well to de-
stroy it; but the act shows that Popery had
ceased to be respected even by children.

The progress of the Reformation in Zurich
filled the Pope’s followers with fury, and they
were determined to put a stop to it by force.
A good man named Hottinger, a native of
Zurich, lived in Lucerne, and here he made
no secret of his abhorrence of the Romish Mass,
and his love for the religion of the Bible. He
had occasion to go to a place called Waldshut,
on the other side of the Rhine, and there he
was seized by » man named Flockenstein, and



THE REFORMATION. 41

carried as a prisoner before the Diet which was
sitting at Lucerne. The Diet immediately con-
demned him to be beheaded. When told of
his sentence he gave glory to God. ‘That
will do,” said one of his judges; ‘we do not
sit here to listen to sermons; you can have
your talk some other time.” ‘‘ He must have his
head taken off this once,” said another, with a
laugh; “if he should ever get it on again, we
will all embrace his faith.” ‘* May God forgive
all those who have condemned me,” said the
prisoner. A monk then held a crucifix to
Hottinger’s lips that he might kiss it; but he
put it away, saying, “It is in the heart that
‘we must receive Jesus Christ.”

When he was led out to execution many
people in the crowd burst into tears, and Hot-
tinger said to them, “I am going to eternal
happiness.” When he came to the place where
he was to die, he raised his hands to heaven
and said, * Into thy hands, O, my Redeemer,
I commit my spirit!” In another minute his
head was struck off and rolled upon the scaf-
fold,



42 A HISTORY OF

After this the Diet sent a message to the ma-
gistrates and people of Zurich, calling on them
to give up the religion of the Bible, and to re-
turn to Popery ; but they replied to this message
by putting an end to processions in honour of
the Virgin, burying the relics, and taking the
images out of the churches. The people of
Zurich were well pleased at this. They said—
«Let our rulers follow the Word of God without
fear, and we will aid them. If any one seeks
to molest them, we will come to their support.”

But the Pope's followers were determined to
put down the religion of the Bible by force and
cruelty. There was a good minister named
Gixlin, who was pastor of Burg, upon the
Rhine. On the 7th of July, at midnight, a
number of soldiers entered his house and car-
ried him away, while he cried murder! His
neighbours, alarmed by his cries, started from
their beds, and scon a great crowd came to-
gether to inquire what had happened. When
they learned that their good minister had been
carried off, they went in pursuit of him, but
could not find him. They found themselves



THE REFORMATION. 43

near the convent of Ittingen, and some bad
men in the crowd forced their way into the
convent, and, having made themselves drunk
with the wine which they got there, they set
fire to the building. After this, deputies from
the Cantons of Switzerland met at Zug; no-
thing was heard but threats of death to the
people of Zurich. The magistrates of Zurich
were much frightened, and they determined to
make prisoners of any who had been in the
crowd when the convent was burnt. Among
these prisoners were three good men, Wirth
and his two sons, and as they were eminent for
their piety and love to the Bible, the deputies
of the Cantons demanded that they should be
given up to them. The magistrates of Zurich,
influenced by sinful fear, at last consented, but
on condition that they would only try them for
the burning of the convent, and not on account
of their faith. They consented to do so, but it
will soon be seen how far they were from keep-
ing their word.

Wirth and his two sons were carried as
prisoners to Baden, where a great crowd was



44 A HISTORY OF

waiting for them. At first they were taken to
an inn, and thence to the prison. They could
scarcely get on, the crowd were so anxious to
see them. ‘The father, who walked in front,
turned to his two sons and meekly said to them,
*¢ See, my dear children, we are, as the Apostle
says, men appointed to death, for we are made
a spectacle unto the world, and unto angels,
and to men.”

On the next day they were examined. The
old man was first brought in. He was put to
the torture without any regard to his age and
character, but he steadily denied having had
any part in the burning of the convent. He
was then accused of having destroyed an image
of St. Anne. Nothing could be proved against
his two sons, except that Adrian Wirth was
married, and that he preached after the man-
ner of Zwingle and Luther—and that John
Wirth had given the Sacrament to a sick man
” without bell and taper.

But the fury of their persecutors was only in-
creased by the proof of their innocence. From
morning until noon they inflicted the most cruel



THE REFORMATION, 45

tortures on the old man. His tears could not
soften his judges. John Wirth was treated
with still greater barbarity. «Tell us,” said
they to him in the midst of his anguish, ‘whence
did you learn this heretical faith ?~from Zwin-
gle, or from any other person?” And when he
exclaimed, “‘O merciful and everlasting God,
help and comfort me!” one of his profane tor-
mentors asked, ‘* Where is your Christ now?”
When Adrian Wirth appeared, Sebastian of
Stein, the deputy of Berne, saidtohim, “Young
man, tell us the truth, for if you refuse to do so,
I swear by my knighthood, that I gained on the
very spot where the Lord was crucified, that
we will open your veins one after another.”
They then fastened the young man to a rope,
and hoisted him into the air. ‘ There my little
master,” said Stein with a sneer, there is your
wedding present,” alluding to the marriage of
this youthful servant of the Lord. When the
examination was ended the deputies returned
to their Cantons, and did not meet again until
four weeks after. The wife of the elder Wirth,
carrying an infant child in her arms, came to



46 A HISTORY OF

Baden to intercede with the judges for her
husband and her two sons. John Escher, of
Zurich, came with her as her advocate. Among
the judges he saw Jerome Stocker, who knew
well the excellent character of the Wirths.
*¢ You know,” said Escher, * that Wirth has
always been an upright man.” ‘You say the
truth, my dear Escher,” replied Stocker, ‘he
has never injured any one; citizens and stran-
gers were always kindly welcomed to his table;
his house was a convent, an inn, and an hos.
pital_and so, if he had committed robbery or
“murder, I would have made every exertion to
obtain his pardon: but seeing that he has
burnt St. Anne, Christ's grandmother, he must
die!” “The Lord have mercy upon us!” ex-
claimed Escher.

Some time after, the deputies of nine Cantons
passed sentence of death on Wirth and his son
John, who appeared to be firmest in his faith,
and on another Zuricher, named Rutiman.
Adrian Wirth’s second son was pardoned at
the earnest entreaty of his mother. When the
officers went to the prison to bring the prison-



THE REFORMATION, a7

ers to the court, the old man said to Adrian—.
«My son, never avenge our death, although
we do not deserve punishment.” Adrian burst

* into tears. ‘* Brother,” said John, “the cross

of Christ must always follow his Word.”

After the sentence was read the three Chris.
tians were led back to prison—John Wirth
walking first, his father and Rutiman next, and
& priest bebind them. As they were crossing
the castle bridge, on which was a chapel dedi-
cated to St. Joseph, the priest called out to the
two old men—‘' Fall down upon your knees
and call upon the saints.” John Wirth, who
was in front, turned round at these words, and
said—** Father, be firm; you know that there
is only one Mediator between God and man,
the Lord Jesus Christ.” ‘* Assuredly, my son,”
replied the old man, “and by the help of his
grace I will continue faithful to the end.” Upon
this, they all three began to repeat the Lord’s
Prayer—‘ Our Father which art in Heaven”—
and so crossed the bridge.

They were next brought to the scaffold. John
Wirth, who loved his father very much, bade



48 A HISTORY OF

him farewell. ‘My dearly beloved father,” said
he, “‘henceforward thou art no longer my fa-
ther, and I am no longer thy son, but we are
brothers in Christ our Lord, for whose name
we must suffer death to-day, if it be God’s
pleasure ; my beloved brother, we shall go to
Him who is the Father of us all. Fear nothing.”
«‘ Amen!” replied the old man, ‘and may God
Almighty bless thee, my beloved son and bro-
ther in Christ!”

Thus, on the threshold of eternity, these good
men felt that every relation but that of children
of God would cease in that glorious state upon
which they were about to enter through the
bloody gate of martyrdom. Rutiman prayed
in silence. The greater part of the crowd shed
floods of tears.

All three then knelt down, and their heads
were cut off; the crowd, observing the marks
of the torture upon their bodies, cried aloud
with grief.

Thus, in Switzerland as well as in England,
the Church of Rome showed, by her savage
cruelty to the people of Christ, that she is the



THE REFORMATION. 49

great apostasy described by St. John in the
Revelations, as a harlot gaudily dressed, and
“ drunken with the blood of the saints and with
the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.” We may
wonder that Christ should permit that wicked
Church thus to murder His true people; but
when we think not only of the courage but the
forgiving gentleness with which the martyrs
bore their dreadful trial, we cannot but sec
that the power of Christ was more glorified in
them than if He had sent down fire from hea-
ven to consume their murderers—for ‘‘he that
ruleth his own spirit is greater than he that
taketh a city;” but it was the power of Christ’s
grace which strengthened the martyrs to rule
their spirit as they did. For I am sure that if
any one praised them for their gentleness and
their bravery they would refuse to take any
honour to themselves, and that each one of
them would say, like St. Paul, «Not I, but the
gtace of God which was in me.’>



50 A HISTORY OF

CHAPTE VI.

Erasmus, Sit Thomas More, and the Wafer—The Mees abolished
at Zurich—Great love among the Christians—The Gospel ad-
vances at Berne—The Nuns of Konigsfeldt—Acolampadius
preaches with much success at Basle--The Anabaptiste.

In the first volume of this history, you have

heard of that very learned man, Erasmus. In

the history of the Reformation in Switzerland
we meet with him again, and he still appears
as timid, wavering, and unsteady as ever. He
was, however, convinced that the Church of
Rome was teaching false doctrine. We have
clear proof of this in the following story relat-
ing to him and Sir Thomas More, the cele-
brated Papist Chancellor of England. Erasmus
and Sir Thomas had a short dispute about the
wafer which the priest pretends to change into
the person of Christ. Erasmus was contending
against this foolish and wicked notion of Anti-
christ, and when Sir Thomas More could not
convince him by sound arguments, he said to



THE REFORMATION. 51

him, “ Believe that you have the body of Christ,
and you have it really.” Erasmus made no re-
ply. Shortly after, when leaving England,
More lent him a horse to carry him to the sea-
side, but Erasmus took it with him to the Con-
tinent. More was very angry at this, and
wrote a sharp letter to Erasmus, calling on
him to restore his horse. Erasmus, in reply,
wrote him the following lines :—
“ You anid of the bodily presence of Christ—

Believe that you have, and you have him;

Of the nag that I took, my reply is the same—

Believe that you have, and you have him.”

This is very good, for it shows us the Papists,
when put on the defence of their religion, are
obliged to talk what every body would denounce
as rank nonsense if applied to the common con-
cerns of life. But a man may be convinced of
the foolery of Popery without having the ho-
nesty and courage to oppose it against his own
worldly interest. It was so with poor Erasmus.
He wrote to Zwingle—“ I shall not be unfaith-
ful to the cause of Christ, at leastso far as the age
will permit me.” His learning, great as it was,



52 A HISTORY OF

taught him nothing better than this. We must
pray for God’s Holy.Spirit to make us valiant
for His truth—so valiant that nothing may ever
hinder us from speaking openly in its defence.
There is nothing which our Saviour loathes more
than half-hearted service. If we would be His
disciples, we must be prepared cheerfully to lay
down our lives for the Gospel. Nothing but
God’s Holy Spirit can implant and sustain such
noble courage in our hearts. Peter thought he
could confess his Master ; he went on in his own
strength, and you know how shamefully he fell.
His fall is related in the Bible, for our warning.

I told you in the last chapter how those good
men, the Wirths, were cruelly put to death for
the Gospel ; but the people of Zurich showed
that they were not daunted by this, for imme-
diately after, they abolished the Romish Mass,
and restored the Lord’s Supper as Christ insti.
tutedit. There seemed just at this time to
have been an outpouring of the Holy Spirit on
the Christians of Zurich, like that which we
read of in the Acts of the Apostles as having
taking place on the Day of Pentecost. The



THE REFORMATION. 53

altars on which the wicked priests of Antichrist
pretended to offer their abominable mass.sacri-
fice were taken away out of the churches, and
decent communion tables were put in their
places, and a devout and attentive crowd press~
ed around them. On Holy Thursday the young
people, on Good Friday the men and women,
and on Easter Sunday the aged, received the
bread and wine which our Lord appointed to be
taken in remembrance of His body that was
given, and His blood that was shed for us.
The love of the first age of the Gospel was now
revived in Zurich. Enemies who had long
hated one another were seen embracing in bro-
therly love, after having taken the sacramen-
tal bread. Zwingle’s heart was greatly glad.
dened by such plain proofs of the work of God's
Holy Spirit in the hearts of the people.
«« Peace,” said he, ‘ dwells in our city; among
us there is no fraud, no dissension, no envying,
no strife. Whence can such harmony come
but from the Lord? And it shows that the doc-
trine which we preach inclines us to innocence
and peace,”



54 A HISTORY OF

Thus the Gospel was established in Zurich :
and when the people were told that several
States had refused to sit with them in future’in
the Diet, they calmly replied—<* Well, then, we
have the firm assurance that God the Father,
the Son, and the Holy Ghost, in whose name
our States were united, will not desert us, and
will at last, of His great mercy, make us sit at
the right hand of His glorious majesty.”

We now turn to the Canton of Berne, where
the Gospel, in the face of much opposition,
was also making progress. The Government
made a law that men should not preach from
the writings of Luther, or any other human
teacher, but that they should teach the doc-
trines of God freely and openly, as it is laid
down in the Old and New Testament,

There was in Berne at Konigsfeldt a convent,
where many devout ladies of high rank had
imprisoned themselves as nuns. Zwingle re-
ceived a letter from the Mother Abbess of this
convent, in which she thanked God that the
doctrine of salvation was spreading day by day
through his preaching of the Word of God;



THE REFORMATION. 55

and some time after, the nuns applied to the

Government to release them from imprisonment ,
in the convent, as they were persuaded that

they could serve God better in the bosoms of
their families; and, after some time, the liberty

which they asked was granted.

The celebrated city of Basle also showed fa-
vour to the doctrine of the Gospel. colam-
padius was the man raised up by God to turn
the hearts of his countrymen, in this place, from
superstition to true religion. Like Luther, he
had been a monk, and knew, by bitter expe-
rience, the cruel bondage in which the Church
of Rome holds its dupes. After escaping many
dangers with which he was threatened by the
fury of the monks and other partisans of the
Pope, he was made curate of St. Martin's
Church, and from his pulpit he sounded forth
the pure doctrines ofthe Gospel. An immense
crowd filled the church whenever he preached ;
and such an impression was made, that even
Erasmus, who lived in that city, was forced to
exclaim, ‘ A’colampadius triumphs !”

But the Gospel could not long continue to



56 A HISTORY OF

spread without interruption. Satan has, at all
times, laboured to hinder its progress, and his
great power over men was now used for that
purpose. Nothing can protect men from the
wiles of that evil spirit but the holy Word of
God, and therefore the Devil always strives to
turn men aside from the teaching of the Bible.:
He persuades Papists that they do not need
that Holy Book, as they have their priests to
teach them. He whispers to others, who, per-
haps, doubt or deny his existence, that their
own reason is able to guide them much better
than the Bible; and he deludes others to ima.
gine that they have an inward light from God
which teaches them all things, and that, there.
fore, the Scriptures are useless. Men had been
driven out of the first of these errors by the
preaching of the Reformers, but Satan now
filled the minds of many with vain notions, that
God had given them such an inward light that
they did not need the Bible any more. The
same sect also appeared in Germany, as I told
you in the history of the Reformation in that
country. Indeed it was when they were driven



TRH REFORMATION. 57

tut of Germany that they came into Switzer.
and. These bad people were called Anabap-
tists, and to such lengths were they driven by
Satan, that some of them burnt the New Tes-
tament, saying, ‘ The letter killeth, but the
Spirit giveth life.” I shall tell you more about
these wicked people in the next chapter, but
what has. been said may show you that we
should stand aloof from every teacher and
every church, which sets up any rule for our
faith and conduct but the Evoly Bible.



58 A HISTORY OF

CHAPTER VII.

The Ansbaptists—Fanaticiam of Schucker and his Sons—Their
error checked—Need of the Word and the Spirit—Dispute be-
tween Luther and Zwingle about the Lord's Supper—Progrese
of the Gospel—A Disputation-—Happy Results.

I promsep in the last chapter to tell my

young readers something about the Anabap-

tists, which would show how very dangerous
it is for people to set up their own fancies as
an inward light to guide them, instead of the

Word of God as written in the Bible.

In a solitary house near St. Gall, lived an
aged farmer, John Schucker, with his five sons.
Allin this house, including the servants, had
become Anabaptists, and two of the farmer's
sons, Leonard and Thomas, were among the
most zealous of these misguided people. On
a certain day they invited a large party to
their house; their father killed a calf for the
feast, and supplied the guests with plenty of
wine. The whole night was spent in telling



THE REFORMATION. 59

each other what they had learned from the
«* inward light.” Some of them, as they talked,
tos:‘ed about their arms and legs, and some of
them fell into convulsions.

In the morning, Thomas, who it seems had
lost his x*eason, took the calf’s bladder, and,
placing patt of the gall in it, came to his bro-
ther Leonard, saying, with a solemn voice,
*¢ Thus bitter is the death thou art to suffer!"
He then added, “Brother Leonard, kneel
down.” Leonard fell on his knees. Shortly
-after, Thomas bid him arise, and he rose up.
‘The old farmer and the rest of the Anabap-
‘tists looked on, wondering what God would do,
for they supposed that Leonard was doing what
God told him. Thomas commanded his bro-
ther to kneel down again; he obeyed. The
people who were present, being frightened
when they saw how gloomy Thomas looked,
said to him, ‘ Think of what you are about, and
take care that no mischief happens.” ‘Fear
not,” replied Thomas, “nothing will happen
but the will of the Father.” At the same time,
he hastily caught up a sword, and, striking a



60 A HISTORY OF

violent blow at his brother, who was still kneel.
ing before him, he cut off his head, crying out
with a loud voice, ‘‘ Now the will of the Fa‘cher
is finished.”

The people who were present were; struck
with horror at the deed, and gave verst to their
grief in groans and cries. Thomas, who was
nearly naked, ran out of the house, to St. Gall,
tossing about his limbs as he went. He en-
tered the house of a magistrate, and, with a dis.
tracted look and a wild cry, said to him, «I
proclaim to thee the day of the Lord!” The
news of this horrid event soon spread through
that part of the country. * He has slain his
brother as Cain slew Abel,” said the people.
The murderer was seized. ‘It is true I did
it,” said he, “ but it is God who did it through
me.” He was tried and condemned for the
murder, and lost his head by the sword of the
executioner. This dreadful event opened peo.
ple’s eyes, and put an end to the error of the
Anabaptists in that part of the country, There
is every reason to believe that the Devil was
the agent in the whole of this business, We



THE REFORMATION. 61

have no reason to think that God does not per-
mit that wicked spirit sometimes to possess the
bodies of men now, as we know he did in our
Lord’s time. Satan’s great object is to turn
men away from Christ’s true religion, and, as
that can only be learned from the Bible, read
or heard under the inward teaching of the
Holy Spirit, the Devil is always striving to
turn men aside from the Bible, and to persuade
them that there is no such thing as the inward
light of the Holy Spirit. By the error of the
Anabaptists, Satan taught men that they did
not need the Bible; and by the dreadful wick-
edness which they did, while they said they had
God's inward light in their souls, he gave think-
ing men some ground to suspect that the inward
light of the Spirit was nothing but delusion
and madness. The Devil's craft lay in sepa-
rating what God has joined together. God
has joined the Bible and the inward teaching of
the Spirit; but the Devil said to these unhappy
men‘ You do not want the Bible, the inward
light is enough for you; and thus he prepared
them to do any wickedness which he put into



62 4 HISTORY OF

their hearts. If we would escape from this
snare, we must never separate the Bible and
the inward light of the Spirit. It is by the
Bible that the Holy Ghost teaches the people
of God; therefore, if we desire to know the
will of God, we must “ search the Scriptures,”
and pray earnestly, at the same time, for the
teaching of the Holy Spirit. ‘Open thou
mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things
out of thy law!”

There was at this time a great dispute be-
tween Luther and Zwingle about the Lord’s
Supper. Luther taught, that although the
bread and wine remained, there was also pre-
sent in the sacrament the literal body of Christ.
Zwingle taught that the Lord’s Supper was in-
tended only to remind Christians of the Lord’s
body, which was given, and His blood which
was shed, for them. This difference of opinion
among good men shows us how imperfect the
best are in this present world. «Now we see
through a glass darkly ;” but itis a great com-
fort to know that God’s people will be brought
to the knowledge of all saving truth. Luther



THE REFORMATION. 68

knew enough to save him from the dreadfu
error of giving to a bit of bread the worship
which belongs to God, as the Papista do; and
Zwingle knew enough about the sacrament to
lead him into the enjoyment of the blessings
realized by those who receive it in humble de-
pendence on the grace of the Great Master of
the feast. This dispute between these leaders
of the Reformation also shows us that they
were influenced by a love of truth, and not by
a blind hatred to the Church of Rome.

But amid all the noise and confusion created
by the wickedness and ignorance of man, God,
by the small still voice of His Spirit, spoke to
the hearts of sinnera, and His holy truth con-
tinued every day to make new triumphs. In
the mountains of the Tockenburgh three priests
openly taught the truths of the Gospel, and
when they were persecuted by the bishop, these
good men said, ‘‘Convince us by the Bible that
we are wrong, and we will submit to the mean-
est of our brethren in Christ, otherwise we will
obey no one, not even the mightiest among
men.” This was the true spirit of the Refor--



64 4 HISTORY OF

mation, which took possession of many hearts
in Zwingle's native mountains.

The Gospel also ‘spread very much at this
time in Rhetia, where a good man named
Comander was faithfully preaching it. A
meeting was held at Ilantz, for a public con-
ference or disputation between the Protestants
and the Papists. The Bishop’s Vicar, who
was to dispute in favour of the Church of
Rome, did all he could to hinder this meeting,
but in vain. Comander stood up, and read
the following sentence, which he undertook to
defend—* The Church of Christ is born of
the Word of God; it must abide by this
Word, and hear no other voice.” He then
went on to prove this by many texts of Scrip.
ture. ‘ This is too long,” said the Vicar.
‘* When he is at table with his friends, listening
to the pipers,” said a man of Zurich, “ he does
not find the time too long.”

Shortly after this, a man arose and came
forward from the midst of the crowd, tossing
his arms about, and knitting his brows; he
rushed towards Comander, and many thought



THE REFORMATION. 65

he was going to strike hin. He was a man
named Berre, a schoolnaster of Coire. ‘I
have written out @ fsreat many questions,”
said he to the Reformer, “answer them in-
stantly.” ‘Iam ‘ere,” said Comander, ‘to
defend my doctrine; attack it, and I will de-
fend it, or else; return to your place; I will
answer you when I have done.” The school-
master rema‘med silent for some moments, and
then returned to his seat.

Tt was next proposed to discuss the doctrine
of the sacraments. The Abbot of St. Luke's
declared that he could not take up such a
subject without awe, and began to make the
sign of the cross. The schoolmaster again
came forward, and began to defend the Romish
doctrine from the text, “This is my body.”
«¢ But how,” asked Comander, ‘do you under-
stand these words, ‘ John is Elias?’” «I un-
derstand,” said Berre, who saw what Coman-
der was aiming at, “that he was really and
truly Elias.” ‘Why, then,” continued Co-
mander, “did John the Baptist himself say to
the Pharisees that he was not Elias?” The



66 a. HISTORY OF

schoolmaster was sil\nt; at last he replied, “It
is true.” Every one began to laugh, even those
who had urged him to s,>eak.

The Abbot of St. Lm‘xe’s then closed the
conference by a long specch. Some people
say that such discussions do 00 good, but this
is a great mistake ; they were a.nong the means
which God employed for showing men the
falsehood of Popery at the Refo. mation, and
when they are conducted in faith, they serve
the same purpose still, The dislike which the
priests show to such meetings, and + he diffi-
culty with which they are brought to taite any
part in them, shows that they feel them ,‘o be
injurious to their superstition. The discussion
at Ilantz proved to be so. Seven priests fo t-
sook Popery, and embraced the Gospel; com-:
plete religious liberty was proclaimed; the
idolatrous mass and the senseless mummery of
the Latin service ceased inmany of the churches,
and the Gospel was preached to the people; and
the worship of God, according to His Word, was
set up.



THE REFORMATION. 67

CHAPTER VIII.

lom of Keyser—War-—The Bernese refase their aid-—~The

Papiate all unite—Zwingle’s fears—Unchristian conduct of

Zurich and Berne—Perplexities of Zwingle—Zwingle goet to

Battle—Defeat of the Protestants, and death of Zwingle,

I must now draw the history of the Reforma-
tion in Switzerland to a close. I have not yet
told my young readers anything about two
great and good men, who helped on the work
of God against Popery in that country very
much—I mean Farel and Calvin ; but as they
were born in France, I shall not forget them
when I come, in the following chapters, to
speak of the Reformation there.

The Gospel never makes much way in any
place without violent opposition. Tire hatred
which it stirs up in the mind of fale’ man is
so great, that it aims at nothing short of the
death of those who receive it. It was .%0 in
Switzerland. The storm had been for a Long
time gathering, it burst fearfully at last.



68 A HISTORY OF

There was a good man nathed Keyser, a
minister of the Gospel, who had been appointed
pastor of Oberkirk; when he was going to
preach in his church he was seized by six men
of the Popish Canton of Schwytz, and brought
before the magistrates, by whose orders he was
burned to death.

When Zwingle heard of this he was very
angry, and advised the Protestants to take up
arms for their defence. This advice might
have been very suitable if Zwingle was a ma- -
gistrate or a general, but he seems to have for-
gotton that he was neither, but a minister of
Jesus Christ.

The Swiss were now arming in every direc-
tion, and the Papists sought the aid of Aus-
tria. Zwingle joined the Protestant army,
although th Council of Zurich wished him to
remain at ‘home with them.

The people of Zurich sought help from their
fellow-F’rotestants in Berne, but they refused
to aid them, saying, “Since Zurich has begun
the ‘war without us, let her finish it in like
mguner.” The Romish Cantons did not act



THE REFORMATION. 69

thus, but joined together as one man for the
defence of Popery.

When the army of Zurich was marching
onward, they were met by a man named Aebli,
a magistrate of Glaris. He entreated them
for the love of God to halt, until he should re-
turn to them in a few hours, when he hoped
to make an honourable peace.

Aebli was known to be a good man, and
therefore the captains of Zurich were inclined
to take his advice, but Zwingle tried to hinder
them. He said—‘ Our enemies are caught in
a sack, and therefore. they give you sweet
words; by-and-bye they will fall upon us, and
there will be none to deliver us.” You will see
how Zwingle's words proved to be true. A sort
of peace was made, and the advantage seemed
to be on the side of Zurich and the Reforma.
tion; but Zwingle did not think so. His mind
was bowed down with gloomy fear for the
future, and what followed will show you that
his fears were not groundless.

The bad feeling existing between the two
parties was increased by daily insults. At last



70 A HISTORY OF

Berne and Zurich determined not to supply
the five Romish Cantons with the food which
they used to purchase from them. They not
only did this, but they cut off the supplies which
were sent to them from other parts of Europe.
This was very bad indeed ; but we must tell it,
even though it was done by Protestants, for our
design is not to exalt any party, but to state
facts as they are. But we must remind our
readers that although such conduct was very
disgraceful to the people of Berne and Zurich,
it is no disgrace to the Bible, for the Bible con-
demns it. It says—‘‘If thine enemy hunger,
feed him; if he thirst, give him drink.” We
must beware, lest a false zeal for the Bible should
impel us to such acts as the Bible condemns.
The people of the five Cantons now became
furious. They said—‘ They block up their
roads, but we will open them with our right
arm.” Some attempts were made to settle the
dispute between the Cantons. A council of the
rulers of the Cantons was held at Bremgarten,
and for some time there was hope that good
feeling would be restored, but it was not so.



THE REFORMATION. 7

In the meantime, Zwingle was losing his
‘power in Zurich. The influence which he
gained as a Reformer he lost when he became
@ politician. People of all classes suffered
much from the violent measures which he re-
commended, and all the discontented pointed
at Zwingle as the cause of their misfortunes.

Zwingle was heart-broken ; he had taken up
the false notion, that the violent means. which
are used by the rulers of this world for support-
ing their rights should be employed in the ser-
vice of the Gospel. He wished to retire from
public life, but the rulers of Zurich besought
him not to desert them. ‘I will stay with
you,” said he, ‘and I will labour for the public
safety until death.”

Zwingle seeing that war was at hand, tried to
persuade the Protestants to make preparation
for it, but in vain; his influence was gone, and
& panic seemed to have seized every mind.
But the Romish Cantons decided upon war, and
made active preparations for it. Warning after
warning came to Zurich, but all was in vain.
At length the enemy was at hand, and all the



72 A HISTORY OF

force that could be got together to meet them
consisted of about 700 men, badly armed, and
without discipline. Zwingle marched with this
disorderly crowd to meet the powerful foe ; he
parted from his wife and children under the
sorrowful persuasion that they should never
meet again in this world.

At eleven o'clock on the following morning,
the little band of Zurich came within sight of
the powerful army of the five Cantons. They
fell on their knees and entreated help from
God. They then prepared themselves for battle.
Their force at this time had increased to about
1,200 men.

At four o'clock in the evening, the first shot
was fired by the army of the five Cantons.
After there had been much skirmishing, as
evening came on, the men of Zurich thought
that the battle would not be fought until the
next day; but suddenly a dreadful fire was
opened upon them in a wood where they had
posted themselves; many of their soldiers
fell, and the rest, to save themselves, lay flat
on the ground. ‘ Warriors,” said Zwingle,



THE REFORMATION, 73

who was there with a spear in his hand, “ fear
nothing; if we are this day to be defeated, our
cause is good: commend yourselves to God.”
The battle now commenced ; the men of Zurich
fought with desperate valour for a time, but a
panic seized them, and many fied. Some still
maintained their ground, and fell, after killing
many of the enemy, covered with many wounds.
The slaughter of the men of Zurich, considering
the smallness of their numbers, was very great;
amongst the slain, were twenty-five ministers of
the Gospel, who marched to battle at the head
of their flocks. The Romish soldiers trembled
with rage whenever they discovered one of these
ministers, and they sacrificed him as a chosen
victim to the Virgin.

Zwingle was at the post of danger—the hel-
met on his head, the sword at his side, and the
battle-axe in hishand. The battle had scarcely
begun, when, stooping to console a dying man,
a stone struck him on the head and closed his
lips. Yet Zwingle aruse, when two other blows
which hit him on the leg, threw him down
again. Twice more he stood up; but a fourth

E



74 A HISTORY OF

time he receives a thrust from a lance; he
staggers, and, sinking beneath so many wounds,
falls on his knees. Once more he lifts up his
head, and, gazing with acalm eye upon the
trickling blood, exclaims, <‘ What matters this
misfortune! They may indeed kill the body,
but they cannot kill the soul.” These were
his last words.

Zwingle was dead. put out in the Church of God. Happy had it
been for his native land if this great Reformer _
had wielded only the legitimate weapon of the
warfare in which he was engaged, “ The
sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”
The result of this contest greatly strengthened
the cause of Popery; it was restored at Brem-
garten and other places; priests and monks
swarmed everywhere. We bid farewell to this
sad scene in the words of the Psalmist, «Some
trust in chariots, and more in horses: but we
will remember the name of the Lord our God.
They are brought down and fallen: but we are
risen and stand upright.”



THE REFORMATION. 75

CHAPTER IX.

Bevage enmity of the Romish party—Death of Acolampadius—
The Waldenses~ William Farel—-He gocs to Paris—His bi-
go ry and conversion—-The Bishop of Meaux—Queen Margaret.

ZwrnctE had fallen on the field of battle.
His dead body was cut up into quarters, and
then burned—the ashes of swine were mixed
with his—and his remains were scattered by
his cruel enemies to the four winds of heaven.
Just at this time another great light of the
Swiss Reformation was taken away. A®colam-
padius, surrounded by his children and his
Christian friends, died calmly upon his bed,
happy at the prospect of being with Jesus.
The prospects of the Christian Church in
Switzerland were at this time very gloomy.
But often, when the eye can see nothing in
outward events but ground for discourage-
ment, the unseen Spirit of God, who is the
builder up of the Church, is silently working



76 A HISTCRY OF

on tle minds and hearts of men, and training
new chainpions to maintain His truth before
the world, It was so in this period of the
history. In another land God was preparing
a soldier of the cross, by whose means the
Reformation was to gain fresh victories in
Switzerland.

So far back as the ninth century, we find a
people living at the foot of the Alps, who
never ceased to warn the Church of the de-
ceits of the Bishop of Rome. Many and cruel
were the persecutions to which these good
men, who were called Waldenses, were ex-
posed. In the year 1487, a guilty wretch,
called Innocent VIII., who was then Pope,
wrote a Bull against these good people. ‘To
arms,” said this pretended vicar of Christ,
“and trample these heretics under foot, as
poisonous serpents.”

In obedience to this call, an army of eighteen
thousand men, and a number of other persons
who wished to enrich themselves by robbing
the good Waldenses, followed the Pope's legate.
The poor Christians, terrificd at the approach



THE REFORMATION. V7

of such a force, forsook their houses, and took
refuge in the caverns of the mountains. Not
a valley, not a wood, not a rock, escaped their
persecutors ; everywhere these humble Chris.
tians were hunted down like beasts of prey,
until the Pope’s soldiers, weared with pursuing
and murdering them, could execute their cruel
task no longer. ;

In the mountainous counfry which was the
scene of this cruel oppression, at a short dis-
tance from the town of Gap, was a manor
house, in which there lived a noble family
called Farel. In the very year that the Pope
was carrying on the cruel persecution, of which
I have just told you, a child was born in this
house, who was named William, and, as his
parents were Papists, he and his brothers and
sisters were trained up in all the errors and
superstitions of the Church of Rome.

William Farel was a very fine youth; he
had a sharp mind and a lively fancy; he was
very sincere and truthful; he was also very
eager in following what he thought to be
right, and so courageous that no difficulties or



78 A HISTORY OF

dangers could frighten him. The only fault
in his character seems to have been a head-
long rashness.

So long as young Farel thought that Po-
pery was the true religion of Christ, nothing
could surpass the zeal and diligence with
which he practised all its superstitions. He
was also very eager in the pursuit of know-
ledge, and, having learned all that could be
taught him in his native mountains, he was
very anxious to go to Paris, which was then
celebrated for its learning; and having got
leave from his parents, he set out for that
famous city.

At the time that Farel went to Paris many
men lived there who delighted much in study.
Among these was a person named Levevre.
He was a professor of divinity in the univer.
sity, and he had learned the great truth, that
all who desire the right knowledge of God
must seek it in the Bible. But Levevre's
eyes were not yet opened to see how the
Church of Rome had departed from the faith ;
he used to attend constantly at the Mass, and



THE REFORMATION. 79

none bent themselves more devoutly than he
before the images. Farel used to notice him
on these occasions, and being as falsely but
zealously devout as himself, he sought to be-
come acquainted with him. A great friendship
sprung up between Farcl and Levevre. Farel
looked up to him with all the respect of a son,
and Levevre regarded him with the affection of
a father.

The darkness of Farel’s mind at this time
was very gross. He tells us himself that he
regarded the Pope of Rome as the visible
head of the Church—a sort of God by whose
will souls might be saved. Whenever he heard
any one speak against the Pope, he would gnash
his teeth like a furious wolf, and would have
called down fire from heaven to consume the
guilty wretch. «I felieve,” said he, “in the
cross, in pilgrimages, images, vows, and relics.
What the priest holds in his hands, puts into
the box, and there shuts up, eats, and gives to
others to eat, is my only true God, and to me
there is no other either in heaven or earth.”
In another place he says—** Satan had so lodged



80 A HISTORY OF

the Pope, the Papacy, and all that is his in my
heart, that even the Pope had not so much of
it in himself.” How wonderful that God should
make such a man the instrument of bringing
thousands to the light of the Gospel!

But the darkness of Farel’s mind was not
driven away ina moment. He began to study
the Bible, and he soon found out that its
teaching and the teaching of the Church of
Rome were totally different ; then a terrible
struggle began in his mind, between his re-
spect for the Church of Rome and his reve-
rence for the Holy Scriptures. For a time, he
threw aside his Bible, and returned to the
superstitions of Rome, but his soul could find
no peace. At this time God was teaching his
friend Levevre, who now began to preach
the great truth, that a*Binner is justified and
saved, not by his own merit, but through faith
in the all-sufficient merits of Christ. Farel
embraced this truth with all the ardour of his
soul. Then,” said he, ‘“‘Popery was utterly
overthrown; I began to detest it as devilish,
and the holy Word of God had the chief



THE REFORMATION, 81

place in my heart.” In another place, speak-
ing of the wonderful change which God's grace
had wrought in him at the time, he says—
“« Now everything appears to me in another
form; Scripture is cleared up, prophecy is
opened ; the Apostles shed a strong light upon
my soul; a voice till now unknown—the voice
of Christ, my shepherd, my master, my teacher,
speaks to me with power. I was so changed,
that, instead of the murderous heart of a raven-
ing wolf, I came back quietly like a meek and
harmless lamb, having my heart entirely with.
Grawn from the Pope, and given to Jesus
Christ.”

While God was thus preparing Farel and
others to be preachers of His truth in France
(4.p. 1512), Luther was travelling to Rome
asa monk, and Zwingle was living as a man
of the world, careless of divine things: so that
we may say that the great Reformation of the
sixteenth century began in France; nor was it
communicated thence to Germany, and thence
to Switzerland. It sprung up in these coun-
tries by the immediate impulse of God’s Holy

B 2



82 A HISTORY OF

Spirit in the hearts ofmen. My young readers
should carefully note this, for it is a fact which
shows that this great religious movement had
its beginning with God, and not with man.
‘We must now pass over a period of several
years, when Farel, having been made a master
of arts, became lecturer at one of the princi-
pal colleges in Paris. Several were now won
over to the cause of true religion; among
whom was Brigonnet, the Bishop of Meaux,
who seems with much humbleness of mind to
have received the Gospel. But, as in the
days of the Apostles, there were saints in
Cwsar’s household, there were in the court of
the French King, at this time, some true dis-
ciples of Christ. Among the most illustrious
of these converts was Margaret of Alencon,
sister of the King, Francis I. This lady was
very beautiful, and very accomplished and
agreeable, greatly beloved by her brother and
by all who knew her, for her kind and amiable
manners. The French court at this time
was very wicked; the nobles who composed
it were either superstitious Papists or profane



THE REFORMATION. 83

infidels; and even among those who were not
grossly immoral, scarcely one could be found
who seemed to have a taste for anything be-
yond those vain amusements which draw away
the heart from God. Margaret, whose soul
was thirsting for something better than the
pleasures of 9 palace, heard from some of the
ladies of the court what Levevre, and Farel,
and others were teaching ; they lent her their
little books, and spoke to her of the Primitive
Church, of the pure Word of God—of wor-
shipping in spirit and in truth—-of Christian
liberty, which shakes off the bondage of man, ~
and binds the soul closer to God. Soon the
curiosity of this princess became awakened,
and she conversed on the things of God with
Levevre and Farel. Their zeal, their piety,
and the purity of their morals made a deep
impression on her; but it was the Bishop of
Meaux, whom she had long honoured with her
friendship, who became her principal guide in
the path of life.

This amiable princess soon after found how
truly the Apostle had written—<**All that will



84 A HISTORY OF

live godly in Christ Jesus, must suffer perseci-
tion.” The change which had taken place in
her was remarked by all. The ungodly and
immoral courtiers were very angry. ‘* What!”
they exclaimed, ‘‘even the sister of the King
takes part with these people!” She was ac-
cused to the King of having become a Protes-
tant, but as he loved his sister tenderly he
pretended to think that the charge was not
true. Margaret's great amiability lessened the
opposition for a time, but nothing but the
grace of God can effectually conquer the
hatred with which the hearts of natural men
rage against Christ’s true people.



THE REFORMATION. 85

CHAPTER X.

Numerous enemies to the Gospel in France—Persecution—The
New Testament and Psalms printed in French—Bishop of
Meaux preaches the Gospel—Threat of a Monk-—Cowardice
of the Bishop—Martyrdom of Le Clerc—-Beflections,

Tue mother of the French King, Louisa of
Savoy, was a very bad woman, and the Chan-
cellor of the kingdom, Anthony Duprat, who
was a great favourite of hers, was as wicked as
she. These two powerful persons were great
persecutors of Christ’s people. Francis was
very much guided by them. He made an agree-
ment with the Pope at Bologna, which gave
the Pope great power in France; and the Pope,
in return, gave him leave to appoint priests and
bishops in France. All this power was used
to put down true religion. In every age ‘the
‘kings and the rulers of the earth take counsel
together against the Lord and against His
Anointed ;” but in His own good time ‘‘ He
will dash them to pieces like a potter's vessel.”



86 A HISTORY OF

But there was another party in France who
were equally opposed to the Gospel. All the
superstitious priests and monks were as violent
against Christ’s true religion as the Pharisees of
old. A man named Beda was foremost among
this class,

The persecution raised by these enemies of
truth became so hot, that Levevre and Farel
were obliged to quit Paris, and retire to Meaux,
where they were kindly received by Briconnet,
the bishop of that place, who then seemed to
be a true Christian, but who afterwards proved
to be such as our Lord describes in the pa-
rable of the sower, who at first receive the Gos-
pel gladly, but who fall away when tribulation
and persecution arise because of the Word.
For a time, however, Meaux was the place
where true religion had a shelter. Many ex-
cellent men, whose hearts the Lord had touch-
ed, fled there from the persecution which was
directed against them in other places, and were
kindly received by the bishop.

Margaret, the King’s sister, was now left
alone in Paris, and she used often to write to



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12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00038.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00039.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00039.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00040.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00040.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00041.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00041.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00042.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00042.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00043.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00043.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00044.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00044.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00045.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00045.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00046.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00046.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00047.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00047.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00048.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00048.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00049.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00049.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00050.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00050.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00051.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00051.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00052.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00052.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00053.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00053.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:25 PM 00054.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00054.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00055.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00055.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00056.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00056.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00057.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00057.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00058.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00058.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00059.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00059.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00060.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00060.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00061.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00061.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00062.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00062.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00063.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00063.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00064.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00064.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00065.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00065.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00066.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00066.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00067.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00067.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00068.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00068.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00069.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00069.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00070.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00070.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00071.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00071.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00072.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00072.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00073.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00073.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00074.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00074.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00075.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00075.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00076.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00076.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00077.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00077.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00078.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00078.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00079.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00079.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00080.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00080.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00081.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00081.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00082.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00082.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00083.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00083.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00084.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00084.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00085.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00085.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00086.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00086.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00087.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00087.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00088.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00088.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00089.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00089.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00090.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00090.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00091.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00091.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00092.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00092.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00093.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00093.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00094.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00094.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00095.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00095.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:26 PM 00096.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00096.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00097.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00097.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00098.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00098.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00099.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00099.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00100.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00100.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00101.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00101.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00102.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00102.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00103.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00103.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00104.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00104.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00105.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00105.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00106.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00106.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00107.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00107.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00108.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00108.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00109.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00109.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00110.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00110.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00111.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00111.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00112.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00112.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00113.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00113.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00114.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00114.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00115.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00115.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00116.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00116.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00117.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00117.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00118.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00118.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00119.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00119.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00120.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00120.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00121.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00121.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00122.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00122.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00123.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00123.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00124.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00124.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00125.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00125.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00126.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00126.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00127.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00127.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00128.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00128.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00129.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00129.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00130.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00130.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00131.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00131.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00132.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00132.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00133.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00133.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00134.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:27 PM 00134.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00135.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00135.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00136.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00136.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00137.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00137.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00138.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00138.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00139.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00139.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00140.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00140.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00141.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00141.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00142.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00142.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00143.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00143.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00144.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00144.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00145.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00145.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00146.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00146.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00147.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00147.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00148.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00148.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00149.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00149.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00150.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00150.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00151.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00151.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00152.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00152.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00153.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00153.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00154.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00154.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00155.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00155.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00156.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00156.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00157.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00157.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00158.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00158.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00159.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00159.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00160.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00160.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00161.jpg is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

12/15/2014 12:53:28 PM 00161.jp2 is specified in the METS file but not included in the submission package!

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aE te
a RA oy
eel


‘‘ Drowning of the Protestants at Venice."


A. HISTORY

OF

THE REFORMATION

FOR CHILDREN.

SWITZERLAND, FRANCE, HOLLAND, SPAIN, ITALY,
SWEDEN, NORWAY, AND DENMARK.

BY
REY. EDWARD NANGLE, A.B.

Vol. B85.

DUBLIN:
PRINTED BY GEORGE DROUGHT,
6, BACL.ELOR'S-WALK.

SOLD AT TNE OFFICE OF THE ACHILL MISSION,
M4, HOLLES-STREET, DUDLIN.

1852,
PREFACE.

Tu1s, our third volume, finishes the History
of the Reformation. It is a remarkable fact,
that this is the only complete narrative of that
great event contained in any onework. Many
have written histories of the Reformation in
particular countries; but this is the only nar-
rative of that great religious awakening which
was manifested throughout the principal king-
doms of Europe in the sixteenth century.
Hoping that some of our young readers may
be excited by this very short account of this
the most important event which has taken
Iv PREFACE.

place since the establishment of Christianity
to desire further information, I think it well
to insert here a list of the books from which
Ihave gathered the facts related in my little
history :—Daubigne’s “ History of the Refor-
- mation ;” Fox’s ‘Book of Martyrs;” ‘‘ Life
of Edward VI.,” by Protestant Association ;
Hume's “History of England,” M‘Crie’s * His.
tory of the Church of Scotland ;” “Ireland
and her Church,” by Dean of Ardagh; “ Life
of Philip II.,” by Watson; Browning's ‘* His-
tory of the Huguenots; M‘Grie’s “ History
of the Reformation in Spain ;" M‘Crie's ‘ His-
tory of the Reformation in Italy ;” * Encyclo-
pedia Britannica.”

I now send forth this little volume with ear-
nest prayer that the preat Head of the Church
may make it instrumental in imbuing the minds
ofthe rising generation with such a sense of the
PREFACE. v

evil of Popery, as opposed to Christ's true re-
ligion, as may prompt them to join heart and
hand in the effort which is being made to de-

liver our fellow-subjects from its tyranny.

Achill, Aprit 30, 1852.

a2
Tne following chapters appeared in suc-
cessive numbers of the Acnit1 Missionary

Herawp.
CONTENTS.

—o~———

CHAPTER I.

Pacs

Extent of the Reformation—Zwingle—His Childhood—
His promising Genlus—The Dominicans and Franciscans
—The Virgin Mary appears to Jetser--The trick is dis-
covered—Men’s eyes begin to be opened . . .

CHAPTER IL

Zwingle is ordained a Priest—Obtains a Peusion from the
Pope—Gete a Glimpee of the Truth—Becomes a Soldier—
Discovers the Unholiness of the Church of Rome—The
Church of Einsidlen—Zwingle advances in the Truth, and
preaches what he knowa—Sale of Indulgences. .

CHAPTER III

Zwingle becomes Preacher at the Cathedral of Zurich—
Indulgences sold for a Horsve—The Seller of Indulgences
expelled from Zurich—Zwingle attacked by the Plague—
Preaches with success in Basle—Persecution—The Papists
shrink from Discussion—Francis Lambert . .

10

19
vil CONTENTS.

CHAPTER IV.

Pao

The Gospel spreads in Switzerland—Zwingle marries—
Meeting of the Reformers—Haller defended by the Ber-
nese against the Pope's Bishops—Zwingle persecuted by
his own Family—A coming Storm--Zwingle’s Prayer—
The Pore tries to tribe Zwingle—Indignation of the Peo-
ple against Idols . . . . * .

CHAPTER V.

A Discussion—An Idol burnt by « little Boy—Martyrdom
of Hottinger—The People of Zurich threatened—Their
firmness—A Min‘ster of the Gospel carried off by Soldiers
—A Convent burnt—Cruel Martyrdom of Wirth—His

85n and Rutiman—Their meckness and courage . .

CHAPTER VI.

Erasmus, Sir Thomas More, and the Wafer—The Mass aho-
lished at Zurich—-Great love among the Christians—The
Gceepel advances at Berne-—-The Nuns of Konigsfeldt—
£colampadius preaches with much success at Basle~The
Anabeptists . . . . .

.

CHAPTER VIL

The Anabapticts—Fanaticism of Schucker and his Sons—
Their error checked—Need of the Word and the Spirit—
Dispute between Luther and Zwingle about the Lord’s
Supper—Progrese of the Gospel——A Disputation—Happy
Results. .

29

39
CONTENTS.

CHAPTER VIII.

Pace

Martyrdom of Keyser—War—The Bernese refuse their aid
The Papists all unite—Zwingle’s feare—Unchristian
conduct of Zurich and Berne—Perplexities of Zwingle—
Zwingle goce to Battle—Defeat of the Protestants, and
Death of Zwingle . . .

CHAPTER IX.

Savage Enmity of the Romish Party—Death of Xcolam-
padius-~The Waldenses— William Farel—He goes to Paris
~-His Bigotry and Conversion—The Bishop of Mesux—
Queen Margaret. .

CHAPTER X.

Numerous Enemies to the Gospel in France—Persecution—-
The New Testament and Psalms printed in French—
Bishop of Meaux preaches the Gospel—-Threat of a Monk

—Cowardice of the Bishop~Martyrdom of Le Clere—
Reflections . .

CHAPTER XI.

Apostasy and Steadfastness—William Farel—Pereecution
—~—Imprudent zeal—A National Calamity turned against
the Reformers—The Hermit of Livry—His Martyrdom—
John Calvin

67

7
x CONTENTS,

CHAPTER XII.

Pace

John Calv'n—Ile studies the Bible-—Is forced to fly from
Paris—-The King condemns the Reformation, and puts
eight Protestants to death—Calvin quits France—Goes
to Geneva—Ia banished thénce, but soon recalled—~His
Laboure—Jlis Cruelty to Servetus—Founds a College—
Lis last Sickness and Death . .

CHAPTER XIII.

The Trotestante multiply in France—Take up Arme in
defence of thelr Liberty—Crafty Cruelty of Charles IX.
—Coligni—Massacre of St. Bartholomew—Rejoicings at
Rome—Henry IV.~Edict of Nentes—Louis XIV.—Bri-
bery and Apostasy—The Dragonades . . .

CHAPTER XIV.

More about the Dragonades—John Miguult—THWis Sufferings
for the Truth—Persecution of a Little Boy, and a Young
‘Woman, and others—The Protestants fly to Holland and
England—France much injured—Blind and mad Bigotry
of Louls X1V.—God's Judgment on the French Nation .

CHAPTER XV.

The Netherlands—The Reformation—Cruel Law of Charles
V.—Butchery of the Protestants—Philip IL—His Ty-
Tanny—His Subjects Rebel—Counts Egmont and Horn
—The Prince of Orange Assassinated-—Dreadful Slanghter

» 107

ng

133
CONTENTS. xi

Paar

of the Protestante—-The Duke of Alva—Character of
Philip I1.—His Miserable Death—-Success of the Refor-
meticn lk . . . . . « 146

CHAPTER XVI.

The Reformation in Spnin~Early Independence of the
Spanish Church—-Wickedness and Ignorance of the
Prieste—Cardinal Ximenes opposed to the General Cir-
culation of the Bible—The Inquisition of Seville—How
the Reformed Faith got into Spain—A Peasant con-
verted to Christ by the Inquisition—Horrid Murder of
Juan Diaz . . . . . » 155

CHAPTER XVII.

Conversion of Constantine, the Chaplain of Charles V.
—His Confession of Christ—His Sufferings and Death—
Many Men of rank and learning converted to Christ—-
Don Carlos de Ses0—His Confession of Christ, Condem-
nation, and Martyrdom—Real Criminals leniently dealt
with by the Inquisition . . . . « 166

CHAPTER XVIII.

Mar‘a de Bohorques—Confeses Christ, and is put to the
Torture—Her Martyrdom—Sufferings of Jane de Bohor-
quee—-Martyrdom of Maria Gornez and Seven other
Females—The Reformation put down in Spain by the
Inquisition—Hypocrisy of the Inquisitore—Effect of the
Suppression of the Reformation in Spain . . ~ 1%
=

xi CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XIX.

Pace

The Reformation in Italy—Sevanarola—The Writings of
the Reformers and the Bible Translated into Italian—
Corruption of the Romish Church—Progress of Reforms-
tion in Ferrara and other Italian Towns—Melancthon's
promising appesrances—Alarm of the Pope—The Inqui-
sition established—Sufferings of Christ's People .

CHAPTER XX.

Massacre of the Protestants of Santo Xisto—Torture and
Murder of the Inbabitante of La Guardia— Horrid
Butchery of Christ's People at Montalto—The Protestants

of Calabria-—The Martyrs at Venice put to Death by
Drowning . . . .

CHAPTER XXI.

The King of Denmark invades Swoden—Gustavus Vase is
carried into Denmark—His Escape—Returns to Sweden-—
Works in the Mines—Treachery—He stirs up the Pea-
sents to Revolt—Drives Christian out of Sweden -- Is
proclaimed King—Declares himeelf a Protestant—Estab-
Ushes the Reformed Religlon—Duty of Princes—Con-
cluding Remarks . . .

185
A HISTORY

or

THE REFORMATION.

—_@——-
CHAPTER I

Extent of the Reformation—Zwingle— His Childhood - ITis
promis: genius—The Dominicans and Franciecans—Tho
Virgin Mary appears to Jetscr—The trick is discovered—
Men's eyes begin to be opened.

Tue Bible tells us that ‘‘the works of the Lord —
are great.” What a great work God does in
the spring, when the snows of winter melt
away under the warm sun, and the trees and
shrubs, which seemed to be dead, put forth
leaves and blossoms; and this change takes
place not in one or two fields, or in one coun-
try, but over the whole face of the earth. Such
a work was the Reformation. It was a great
work—it was not confined to a few places. The
power of the Divine Spirit who did that great
work was felt throughout the whole of Europe.
B
2 A HISTORY OF

I have already told you how souls were brought
out of Popish darkness and death to the light
and life of Christ’s glorious Gospel, in Germany
and England; and if my life is spared to finish
the volume which I have now begun, I shall
tell you how the same great work was done in
Switzerland, France, the Netherlands, Italy,
Spain, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark. And
you will observe that this wondrous awakening
did not begin in one place at first, and then go
on from one country to another, but all Europe
felt an impulse at the same time, showing us
plainly that God, and not man, was the author
of the Reformation—the most wonderful event
in the history of man since Christianity was
first set up by miracles,

Tu a wild and remote part of the mountains
of Switzerland, at; the end of the fifteenth cen.
tury, there lived, in a place called the Wild.
haus, a man named Zwingle. He was a shep-
herd, and had a large family, who, with their
father, were all employed in taking care of
their flocks. He was the bailiff.of the parish,
and much respected by all his neighbours,
THE REFORMATION. 8

The third son of this shepherd, named Ulrich,
was born on New Year's Day, 1484, seven weeks
after the birth of Luther. During the summer
months, Ulrich Zwingle used to go with his
brothers and sisters through the mountains
seeking the best pasture for their flocks. The
long winter evenings were spent, in his father’s
cottage, in listening to the conversation of the
peasantry on the Scripture stories, mixed up
with superstitious legends, which were related
by his pious old grandmother.

Ulrich’s father saw that he was a lad of no
common mind, and thinking it ae pity that his
life should be spent in tending cattle on his
native mountains, he took him to his brother;
who was Dean of Wesen. The dean was
much pleased with his little nephew, and sent
him to a school in his own neighbourhood.
Young Zwingle was so clever that he soon
learned all the master could teach him, and
his uncle then removed him to another school
in the celebrated city of Basle. Here he made
still farther progrese in learning. The boys
of different schools used to have disputations
4 A HISTORY OF

in imitation of those which learned men used to
hold; and in these young Zwingle was always
victorious—so early did he display that talent
which God afterwards used for overturning
the Pope's false religion in a great part of
Switzerland.

From the school at Basle, Zwingle was re-
moved to Berne, and placed under the care of
Lupulus, a celebrated scholar. There was at
Berne a celebrated convent of the monks who
follow the rule of St. Dominic, and are called
Dominicans. These monks were engaged in a
forious dispute with the Franciscans, or fol-
lowers of St. Francis. The Franciscans con-
tended that the Virgin Mary was free from any -
taimt of sin; the Dominicans said that she was
conceived in sin. Now, the Dominicans were
right, because the Bible says that ‘all have _
sinned,” and “there is none righteous, no, not
one ;” and the Blessed Virgin confessed herself
to be a sinner, when she said, “ My spirit hath
rejaiced in God my Saviour.” .

But it was not by the Bible, as I shall show
you presently, that the Dominicans tried to
THE REFORMATION. 5

convince people that they were right, and that

the Franciscans were wrong. These monks

remarked that Zwingle had a very fine voice ;

they had also heard how clever he was: and
thinking that it would add greatly to the glory
of their order if they could get him to join them,
they did all they could to draw him over to
their party. Zwingle’s father heard of this, and
being afraid that these crafty and wicked men
might entrap his son, he took him away from
Berne. A fact which I am now going to tell
you, will show you how happy it was for Zwin-
gle that he escaped the snare which they laid
for him.

A young man named John Jetzer, of weak
mind, was admitted as a lay brother into the
Dominican convent. After a few nights he was
roused out of his sleep by deep groans. He
saw a tall white form standing beside his bed.
It spoke—*I am a soul escaped from the fires
of Purgatory.” Poor Jetzer shook with terror
as he said, “ God help thee, I can do nothing.”
The spectre in anger came near to Jetzer, and
seized him by the throat, reproaching him for
6 4 HISTORY OF

his refusal. Jetzer in great terror, cried out,
*¢ What can I do to save thee ?” The spectre
replied, ‘Scourge thyself for eight days, until
the blood comes, and lie on thy face in the
chapel of St. John ;” and having said this, it
vanished. Jetzer told what happened to his
confessor and the preacher of the convent, who
advised him to do as the spectre had told him.
A report soon went out through the city that a
soul in Purgatory had sought relief from the
Dominicans. The Franciscans were deserted 3
and the people ran in crowds to the church
where the holy man was to be seen lying on
the pavement. The soul from Purgatory had
told Jetzer that it would appear again to him
in eight days. It came at the appointed time,
and two spirits more along with it, who tor-
mented it so that it groaned most piteously. .
The spectre spoke. ‘Sertus,” it said, ‘ who
taught the Franciscans that the Virgin was
conceived without sin, is among those who
suffer the same horrible torments that I do.”
When the report of this spread through Berne,
the Franciscans were still more dismayed; but
THE REFORMATION. 7

the soul had told Jetzer that it would appear
to him again on a certain day, and that the
Virgin herself would accompany it. On tha
day fixed the astonished Jetzer saw Mary, as
he thought, appear in his cell. Ho could hardly
believe his eyes. She came to him kindly, gave
him, as she said, three drops of our Saviour’s
tears, and as many drops of His blood, with a
crucifix and a letter to Pope Julius IL., who,
she said, was appointed by God to set aside the
festival which had been instituted in honour of
the ImmaculateConception. Then comingclose
to the bed were Jetzer lay, she told him, in a
solemn voice, that she was going to bestow a
great favour upon him, and at the same time
she pierced his hand with a nail. Poor Jetzer
roared with pain, but Mary wrapt up his hand
in a eloth, that her son (as she said) had worn
at the time of the flight into Egypt. But this
one wound was not enough. The Franciscans
said that St. Francis had been marked with the
five wounds of Christ, and the Dominicans must
not have less glory. The Virgin, therefore,
gave Jetzer a wound in each hand and foot,
8 A HISTORY OF

and one in his side. When this was done, the
poor simpleton was placed in a room hung with
pictures of our Lord’s passion. Here he spent
many days without food, and his mind became
much excited. At times he was quite out of
his senses, foaming at the mouth, and seeming
ready to die. The monks from time to time
let in the people, who flocked in crowds to the
convent to see the man who had been visited
by departed spirits, and by the Virgin herself.
Many were deceived—even Lupulus, Zwingle’s
teacher, was among the number; and the Do-
minicans from their pulpit boasted of the glory
which God had put upon their order.

But at last the trick was found out. Mary
appeared again to Jetzer. She spoke, but
Jetzer fancied the voice was that of his confes-
sor. Having uttered his suspicion, Mary dis-
appeared, but she soon came again to censure
Jetzer for his suspicion. But bis doubts had
been awakened, and he now discovered that
the pretended Virgin was the prior of the con.
vent. The enraged dupe ran at the Virgin
with a knife in his hand, determined to avenge
THE DEFORMATION. 9

himself for the wounds which she had given
him; andthe Virgin, having returned the assault
by flinging a pewter plate at the head of the
poor brother, instantly vanished.

The Dominicans were much frightened when
they saw that Jetzer had discovered the plot;
and to prevent public exposure they tried to
poison him, but he contrived to escape out of
their hands. The Pope empowered his legate
and two bishops to inquire into the affair.
Four of the monks were found guilty, and were
burnt alive on the lst of May, 1509, in the pre.
_ sence of thirty thousand people. The report
of this wicked trick spread through Europe; -
and by opening men’s eyes to the frauds of the
monks, prepared the way for the Reformation.
How happy it was for young Zwingle that his
father took him away from Berne: if he had
not done so, he might have been entrapped
into the Dominican order; and who can say
that, like Luther, he would ever have come
forth from the cloister’ to hold up the light of
the glorious Gospel of Christ to his country.
men? :

Ba
10 4 HISTORY oF

CHAPTER II.

Zwingle is ordained a Priest—~Obtains a pension from the Pope—
Geta « glimpse of the Truth—Becomes a Soldier——Discovers the
unholiness of the Church of Rome—The Church of Einsidlen—
Zwingle advances in the truth, and preaches what he knows—
Sale of Indulgences.
In the year 1506, Zwingle, having finished his
studies, was invited by the people of Glaris to
become their priest. He was ordained by the
Bishop of Constance, and read his first Mass
at Wildhaus, on St. Michael's day, in the pre-
sence of all bis relations and many friends of
At this time the Pope used to employ Zwin-
gle's countrymen, the Swiss, to fight his battlea
as soldiers; and there was 8 man named Schin.
ner, who was made a Cardinal by Julius IL
This pretended Vicar of Christ was a great
warrior, and he was much pleased with Schin-
ner because he persuaded a great many of the
Swiss to jom his army. Schinner heard that
Zwingle was a very clever man; and thinking
that he might make use of him in the Pope’a
THE REFORMATION. ll

service, he made acquaintance with him, and
after a little time he got him a yearly pension
of fifty florins from the Pope. This was of
good service to Zwingle, for he was so poor
that he could not buy books to improve his
mind by reading, but this pension enabled him
to do go.

In the course of his reading he met with a
poem, written by Erasmus, in which Jesus
Christ is said to complain that men do not seck
eyery grace from Him, although he is the
source of all good. <‘‘Azz,” said Zwingle,
‘aLL,”—~and this word was ever present to his
mind. He then began to ask is it right to pray
to saints and angels for help, and bis mind
answered, “ No. It is needless, it is foolish!
Jesus Christ is the source of ati good,”

Some years after, Zwingle became acquaint.
de with Erasmus, and through him with many
learned men who afterwards took a leading part
in the Reformation. Among these was a very
good man named Oswald, Myconius, and Oco-
lampadius, who preached Christ with great
power as the only Saviour of sinners.
12 A HIStoRY of

But Zwingle did not yet know the truth.
The Pope was engaged in war with Francis L.,
King of France, and Schinner persuaded the
Swiss to join the Pope’s army; and Zwingle,
too, a minister of Christ by profession, became
s soldier. He forgot that the sword of the
Spirit should be his only weapon; and at last,
as you will see in the course of this history,
the Lord's words were fulfilled in his fall
**They that take the sword shall perish with
the sword.”

Zwingle, as a soldier, marched into Italy,
and there he learned much which prepared
him for the great work to which God was about
to call him. He remarked the difference in
the way of celebrating Mass at Milan and
Rome, which showed him that the Pope's
Church had not even that outward unity which
it claims. The sight of his countrymen, slaugh-
tered like sheep for the faithless and proud
Pope; filled him with anger ; and the coveteous-
ness and ignorance of the priests, the filthy
lives of the drunken monks, and the pride and
luxury of the bishops showed him that the
THE REFORMATION. 13

Charch of Rome had not that holiness which
marks thé true Church of Christ. He felt
more deeply than ever the need of reform in
the Church,

There was in Switzerland a celebrated mo-
nastery called Einsidlen. About the end of
the tenth century a church was built, in honour
of the Virgin, on the spot where a hermit had
been murdered several years before. And
this church was said to have been consecrated
by God himself, attended by numerous hosts of
angels, A Bull of Leo VILI. forbid any one
to doubt the truth of thislegend. This church
was therefore regarded as a very holy place,
and multitudes of pilgrims used to visit it every
year. It was to this place that Zwingle re-
moved from Glaris, in 1516, as priest and
preacher.

At the monastery of Einsidlen, Zwingle had
much time for study. The head of the mo-
nastery was a well-disposed man; he used to
invite learned men to spend some time with
him, and they used to read the Scriptures to-
gether. It was here that Zwingle wrote out
14 & HISTORY OF

with his own hand the Epistles of St. Paul;
he also learned them by heart, and some time
after, the other books of the New Testament,
and part of the Old. No man ever yet did
much to reform the Church who was not mighty
in the Scriptures. In proportion as Zwingle
learned the truths of the Bible, his life was re-
gulated by them. He now broke off from world.
ly pursuits which he used to follow in the days
of his ignorance. _

It was at Einsidlen, too, that Zwingle got
a deeper insight into the knavery of the Church
of Rome. An image of the Virgin which was
kept in the monastery, was said to work mira-
cles, Over the gate of the abbey was written,
** Here a plenary remission of sins may be
had.”- The hope of getting this indulgence
drew crowds of poor deceived souls to this nest
of superstition. The sight of these deceived
people stixred up the pity and zeal of the Re-
former. “ Do not think,” said he from the pul-
pit, “that God is in this church more than in
any other part of the world. God is every-
where, and hears you in all places as well as at
THE REFORMATION. 15

our Lady’s of Einsidlen. Can useless works,
long pilgrimages, offerings, images, prayer to the
Virgin and the saints, secure for you the grace of
God? What good is there in a smooth cowl, «
shorn head, along robe, or slippers embroidered
with gold? God looks at the heart, and our
hearts are far from him. Christ, who was once
offered on the cross, is the sacrifice and victim
that makes satisfaction for the sins of believers
to all eternity.”

The crowd of pilgrims listened with wonder
to these words. Some went away filled with
horror; but many went to Jesus, who was
preached to them as meek, gentle, and loving,
and carried back the tokens which they had
brought to present to the Virgin. The pil-
grums returned to their homes, everywhere
spreading the report of what they had heard
at Binsidlen, that ‘“‘ CHRIST ALONE SAVES, AND
HE SAVES IN ALL PLACES.” Often did whole
bands, amazed at these reporta, turn back with.
out finishing their pilgrimage. The number of
Mary's worshippers grew fewer and fewer every
day. It was their offerings which chiefly sup-
16 A HISTORY OF

plied Zwingle with the means of living; but this
faithful witness to the truth felt happy in
making himself poor, while he was enriching
the souls of his fellow-sinners with the precious
faith of the Gospel.

Zwingle now began to speak plainly to
Schinner. ‘ Popery,” said he, “is on a bad
foundation. If you do not cast away your
errors, the whole building will come down about
your ears with a crash.” He spoke with the
same freedom to Cardinal Pucci; he was the
Pope's legate, and tried to persuade Zwingle
not to preach as he did. But Zwingle said,
‘With God's aid I will preach the Gospel, and
this preaching will make Rome totter.” Zwin-
gle declared that he would resign the Pope's
pension, The legate entreated him to keep
it; and Zwingle, who had not then any inten-
tion of setting himself in hostility to the pre-
tended head of the Church, consented to re-
ceive it for threo years longer. ‘ But do
not imagine,” he added, “that for love of
money I will hold back the least particle of the
truth.”
JHE REFORMATION. 17

In the year 1518, a Franciscan monk, named
Samson, crossed’ the mountains which separate
Switzerland from Italy, to traffic, like Tetzel,
in the sale of indulgences. This impostor and
his hungry train first opened their trade in Uri.
They then passed on to Schwytz, the Canton in
which Zwingle lived. ‘I can pardon all
sins,” said the Italian monk ; “‘ heaven and hell
are subject to my power; and I sell the merits
of Christ to any who will purchase them, by
buying an indulgence, for ready money.”

Zwingle’s zeal took fire when he heard of
such blasphemies, He cried out to the people
in his preaching —* Jesus Christ the Sonof God
has said, ‘Come unto me all ye that are weary
and heavy laden, and I will give you rest.’ Is
it not, then, great wickedness and folly to say,
¢ Buy indulgences, hasten to Rome, give to the
monks and the priests, and if thou doest these
things I absolve thee from thy sins?’ Jesus
Christ is the only offering, the only sacrifice,
the only way.”

Jesus Christ, as He is set forth to us in the
Bible, is the great argument against all the
18 4 HISTORY OF

Pope's false doctrines. Zwingle used this ar-
gument, and Samson, the seller of indulgences,
was soon regarded throughout the whole can-
ton az a cheat and a seducer.
THE REFORMATION. 19

CHAPTER IIL

» Zwingle becomes Preacher at the Cathedral of Zurich—Indul-
gences sold for a horse—The seller of Indulgences
from Zurich—Zwingle attacked by the Plague—Preaches with
success in Basle—Persecution—The Pepists shrink from dis-
cussion—Francis Lambert,
Gop had been teaching Zwingle for the great
work he had to do, and now He put him in a
post where he could use what he had learned
with the greatest effect. Zwingle was chosen
to be the preacher in the cathedral of Zurich,
which was at that time the chief city of Swit.
zerland. The enemies of the Reformation did.
all they could to hinder Zwingle’s election, but
in vain. Zwingle preached faithfully and
powerfully, and multitudes flocked to hear
Samson, of whom I told you something in
the last chapter, was still going through Swits-
erland selling indulgences. He was received
in Berne with great honour; and to show you
20 A HISTORY OF

how blinded the people were, I shall tell you
a thing which happened there. A celebrated
knight, Jacques de Stein, came to Samson,
mounted on 2 beautiful grey horse, which the
monk admired very much. ‘Give me, said
the knight, ‘‘an indulgence for myself and my
five hundred soldiers, all my servants, and all
my ancestors, and I will give you my horse.”
The bargain was struck, the horse was led to
the monk's stable, and all these souls were
supposed to be free from the pains of Purga-
tory !

On the last day of his stay in Berne, Sam-
son stood on the steps of the high altar and
shouted to the people, ‘* Kneel down, say three
paters and three aves, and your souls will be ©
as pure as at the moment of your baptism.”
The people fell upon their knees, and then this
daring blasphemer cried out, “I deliver from
the pains of Purgatory and of hell all the souls
of the Bernese who are dead, whatever may
have been the manner and the place of their
death.”

Samson was making his way on to Zurich,
THE REFORMATION. 21

When he came to Bremgarten, Bullinger, the
dean, and father of Henry Bullinger, who
afterwards became a Reformer, would not let
him into his church. Samson was in a great
rage, and threatened to complain to the depu-
ties at Zurich. In the meantime, a great
change had been made in the minds of the
people of Zurich by Zwingle's preaching; and
when he heard that Samson was coming, he
publicly attacked the sale of indulgences.
‘No man,” he said, “can forgive sins but
Christ alone, who is God and man. So, buy
indulgences, but be assured that you are not
forgiven. Those who sell pardons of sin for
money are the companions of Simon the magi-
cian, the friends of Balaam, and the ministers
of the devil.” When Samson came to Zurich,
he was received courteously; but when the
people found that he had nothing to speak
about but Papal bulls, he was sent away.
Zwingle’s preaching, or rather Christ's holy
Gospel, had spoiled his marketin Zurich. He
went away in a great rage, and soon after re-
22 A HISTORY OY

turned to the Pope in Italy, bringing with him
a waggon, drawn by three horses, Jaden with
the money which his lies had wrung from the
people of Switzerland, in the name of his nias-
ter, the Pope.

When God has a great work for any of His
people to do, He often prepares them for it by
teaching them how weak and helpless they are.
If he did not deal thus with them they might
be puffed up with pride, and think that the
good which God did by them they did of them-
selves. It was thus God dealt with Zwingle;
the plague broke out in Switzerland, and Zwin-
gle was attacked by it. He was so very sick
that his friends gave up all hope of his recovery,
and it was.even reported that he was dead.
It was then that he composed the following

hymn :—

Lo! at the door

I hear Death’s knock !
Shield me, O Lord,

My Strength and Rock.
THE REFORMATION. 23

Thy hand, once nailed
Upon the tree,
Jesus uplift,
And shelter me.

Willest thou, then,
Death conquer me
In my noonday ?
So let it be.

Oh, may I die,
Since I am thine;
Thy home is made
For faith like mine.

Contrary to all the expectations of Zwingle
and his friends, it pleased God to restore him
to health. He rose from his bed of sickness
more devoted to the service of Jesus Christ
than ever. His zeal was more active, his
life more holy, and his preaching more power-
ful than before his sickness. Thus God was
training his servant for the great work which
He intended him to do. .

Some time after this, Zwingle visited the city
of Basle, to preach the Gospel there. A great
and lasting impression was made on many
24 A HISTORY OF

hearts. John Glother, a schoolmaster, wrote to
Zwingle, after-he had left Basle, to tell him
how much he had been affected by his sermons;
and Capito, having embraced the Gospel him-
self, began to preach it to the citizens in a
course of sermons on the Gospel of St. Mat.
thew. His congregation increased daily, and
the crowds who came to hear received the Word
of God with great gladness. Some time after
Capito was removed to Mentz; but his place
at Basle was supplied by a good young man,
named Hedio, who, besides preaching in public,
used to invite believers to his own house, that
he might instruct them in private.

You may be very sure that the enemies of
God were not idle while the Reformation was
goingon. Zwingle’s life was often threatened ;
God, however, protected him; but in other
places the servants of Satan were permitted to
carry their hatred of God's people to the last
extremity. An old man at Schaffhausen,
named Galsten, became a believer in the Gos-
pel. He could not be silent, his heart was so
glad ; so he tried to teach his wife and children
THE REFORMATION. 25

what he had learned himself. In his zeal for
Christ’s truth, he attacked the Romish priests
and their vain and wicked superstitions. He
soon became an object of hatred and terror
even to his own family. Fearing that they
would do him some mischief, he left his house,
and tried to hide himself in the forests; but he
was pursued by men and bloodhounds. He was
taken and dragged before the magistrates, who
commanded him te deny the faith of the Gos-
pel; and when he would not do this, they cruelly
cut off his head. —

There was a good man at Lucerne, named
Myconius. He was a great friend of Zwingle,
and was a schoolmaster. The people of Lu-
cerne disliked him very much because he was
a believer in Christ, and at last they banished
him from the canton. Poor Myconius had a
sickly wife and a-delicate little child, and he
did not know where to go. God, however, pro-
vided a home for him elsewhere; and the un-
grateful and wicked city which cast him out
continues under the power of the Papal Anti.
christ to this day,
26 _A HISTORY oF

The Gospel still continued to spread in
Zurich, and the Bishop of Constance sent
three deputies to try if they could put a stop to
its further progress. When the deputies came
to Zurich, they first called the priests toge-
ther, but Zwingle was there to answer them.
Then they assembled the magistrates, and tried
to prevail on them to use force against the
preachers of the Gospel. They did all they
could to keep Zwingle out of this assembly,
but the magistrates said that Zwingle and the
other preachers should speak in their own de-
fence. The deputies were very angry at this,
and would not hold any discussion with Zwin-
gle and his friends. This greatly helped the
Reformation, because the people thought that
if the Pope had a good cause, his partisans
would not shrink from defending it.

There was a Franciscan friar, who lived at
Avignon, named Francis Lambert. This man
got some knowledge of the Gospel by Luther's
writings, but when it was suspected that he
was believer, he was obliged to leave his na-
tive place. He went to Geneva, where he
THE REFORMATION. 97

preached the Gospel so far as he knew it, and
also at Lausanne, Friburg, and Berne. He
spoke boldly against the Sacrifice of the Mass,
the traditions of the Church of Rome, and the
superstitions of the monks. This extraordi-
nary man travelled about in his monk’s dress,
riding on an ass, which, as he was very tall,
hardly lifted his bare feet off the ground. He
eame to Zurich, and calling on Zwingle he
handed him a letter from Haller. Zwingle
was delighted to see him, and opened his
church for him. Lambert preached four ser-
mons, in which he exposed the errors of the
Church of Rome, but in the fourth he said
that it was right to pray to the Blessed Virgin
and the saints. When Zwingle heard this he
cried out in the church, “Brother, you are
mistaken.” The friends of the Pope were
much pleased at this. They were glad to find
that the friends of the Reformation were not
agreed among themselves; and they tried to
set Lambert and Zwingle to dispute with each
other. They said to Lambert—‘ He has
publicly contradicted you, and you ought to
28 A HISTORY OF

challenge him to argue the point with you
in public.” Lambert being zealous for what.
ever he supposed to be God’s truth, did so:
Zwingle you may be sure accepted the chal-
lenge. There was great excitement in Zu-
rich. The disputants met before a large
assembly. Zwingle showed from the Bible
how wrong it was to pray to the Virgin and
the saints. He spoke for along time and with
great power. All were now anxious to hear
Lambert’s reply. He stood up; then clasping
his hands and raising his eyes to heaven, he
said—I thank thee, O God, that by means
of this great and good servant of thine thou
hast brought me to a fuller knowledge of thy
truth. Henceforth,” he added, turning to the
people, ‘in all my troubles I will call upon
God alone, and I will throw aside my beads.”
He left Zurich on the next day, mounted on
his ass, to visit Erasmus at Basle, and thence
he went into Germany to visit Martin Luther,
at Wittemberg.
THE REFORMATION. 29

CHAPTER IV.

The Gospel spreads in Switzerland---Zwingle marries—Moeting

A coming storm~-Zwingle's prayer—The Pope tries to bribe
Zwingle—Indignation of the people against idols.

Tae Gospel continued to spread in Switzer-
and. In Appenzel, a young man named Wal-
ter Klarer read Luther's works, and soon began
to preach the truths contained in them. An
innkeeper named Rausberg, and who was a
member of the Council of Appenzel, opened
his house for the preaching of the Gospel.
A famous captain named Berweger, who had
fought for the Popes, came back to Appenzel,
from Rome, at this time, and began to perse-
cute the friends of the Gospel. One day, how-
ever, remembering what bad things he had
seen at Rome, he began to read the Bible and
tohear the sermons of the Reformers. He was
soon after converted to Christ. When he saw
30 A HISTORY OF

the crowds who could not find room in the
churches coming to hear the Gospel, he said—
** Let the ministers preach in the fields and pub-
lic places.” Many tried to hinder this; but in
spite of all that they could do, the fields and
strects of Appenzel soon resounded with the
joyful news of the Gospel.

From Zurich the truth spread to the Grison’s
Country. So great an effect was produced by
the preaching of a good man called Jacques
Burkli, that 2 great many of the inhabitants de-
manded to have the Sacrament as our Lord in.
stituted it ; and a pious man writing to a friend
said—** Oh that you could see how the dwellers
in the Rheetian mountains are throwing off the
yoke of the Pope of Rome.”

About this time, Zwingle married a widow
lady named Anna Reinhardt. She was a very
good woman, and in every way suited to be
the Reformer’s wife; but fearing that some
who were not entirely free from Romish error
might be offended, he kept his marriage secret
for some time. This was not right. When
our actions are such as God is pleased with, we
THE REYORMATION. 31

should never be ashamed or afraid to make
them known. But the best men are so weak
that it is only the grace of God that can give
them courage to go on straight in the path of
righteousness.

In the beginning of July 1522 a meeting of
Reformers was held at Einsidlen. They came
from all parts of Switzerland. They drew up
& petition to the bishop and another to the
Government, requiring leave to preach the
Gospel without hindrance, and inviting them to
join them in the holy effort to break the Pope's
heavy yoke, and lead their countrymen back to
Christ. The good men at this meeting were
all of one mind, and continued so until death.

The petition of the Reformers stirred up the
enemies of the Gospel through Switzerland.
In the city of Berne there was a good man
named Berthold Haller ; he had not signed the
petition, but he preached the Gospel faithfully,
and for doing so he was summoned to the
town-hall, The magistrates were divided in
their opinion ; some of the most powerful among
them said that it was a cause which should
$2 A HISTORY OF

be tried by the bishop, and that Haller should
be given up to him. Haller’s friends were
much terrified at this. On his return home
from the town-hall, the people surrounded him ;
and a great body of the citizens, with arms in
their hands, kept watch before his house, deter-
mined to defend Haller against his enemies
even unto death. . This struck such terror into
the bishop and the magistrates that they were
afraid to lay hands on Haller, and he continued
to preach the Gospel.

Zwingle was much tried at this time by the
unkindness of his own family. His brothers
were worldly men, who sought nothing but the
praise of man ; they did not like to be the bro-
thers of one who was called a heretic, and they
feared that they might be shamed still more,
if Zwingle was put to death as a criminal, for
his religion. Zwingle wrote a letter to them,
in which among other things he said:—*¢ So
long as God permits me I will do His work
without fearing the world and its proud tyrants,
* * * My own strength is nothingness it-
self, and Iknow the power of my enemies ; but
THE REFORMATION. 33

I know also that I can do everything in Christ,
who strengthensme. * * * Banish all fear,
my dear brothers. If I have any fear, it is
lest I have been milder and gentler than suits
our times. What reproach, say you, will be
cast upon our family, if I am burned, or put to
death in any other way! Oh, my beloved bro.
thers, the Gospel receives this power from the
blood of Christ, that the most cruel persecu-
tors, instead of stopping, only help on its pro.
gress. Those alone are the true soldiers of
Christ who do not fear to bear in their body
the wounds of their Master; all my labours
have no aim but to tell men the treasures of
happiness that Christ has bought for us, that
all might take refuge in the Father, through
the death of the Son. _ If this doctrine offends
you, you cannot stop me: you are my brothers;
yes, my own brothers—sons of the same father,
the fruit of the same womb. * * * But if you
were not my brothers in Christ and in the work
of faith, then my grief would be so violent
that nothing could equal it. Farewell! I shall
never cease to be your affectionate brother, if
2
34 A HISTORY OF

only you will not cease yourselves to be the
brethren of Jesus Christ.”

The governments of the different Cantons
into which Switzerland is divided, seemed at this
time to rise like one man against the Gospel.
The petition from Einsidlen had stirred them
allup. Zwingle saw himself surrounded by ene-
mies; he had enemies in Zurich—enemies in
his own family. The monks and priests, filled
with fury, thirsted for his blood; the Govern.
ment threatened to crush the infant cause of
the Reformation; dnd his countrymen were en-
listing in foreign service to fight for the Pope,
and put down the preaching of the Gospel by
force of arms, It was in this state of things
that Zwingle brought all his anxieties to the
throne of grace. ‘O Jesus,” gaid he, “thou
seest how the wicked storm thy people’s ears
with their loud blasphemies. Thou knowest
how from my childhood I haye hated all dis-
putes; and yet in spite of myself thou hast thrust
me into this conflict. Therefore do I call upon
thee with confidence to finish what thou hast
begun. IfT have built up anything wrongly,
THE REFORMATION. 35

do thou throw it down with thy mighty hand.
If I have laid any other foundation than thee,
let thy powerful arm destroy it. O Vine, full
of sweetness, whose husbandman is the Father,
and whose branches are we, do not abandon
thy shoots! For thou hast promised to be with
us unto the end of the world.”

Soon after this the Pope sent a legate to
visit Zwingle. ‘The legate had a paper written
by the Pope, called a brief, in which the Pope
spoke of the Reformer as his “dear son.” He
also sent another person named Zink, to try if
he could gain over Zwingle to his side by flat-
tery and bribes. When this man was asked
by Myconius what the Pope had authorised
him to offer to Zwingle, he answered—“ Every
thing but the Papal chair ;” but by the grace of
God Zwingle could neither be frightened nor
coaxed from the service of Christ by threats or
flattery.

When God raises up upright men to preach
His Gospel, their labour is never in vain.
The cause of truth was prospering in Zurich,
A great number of priests petitioned the Gor
86 A HISTORY OF

vernment to make better rules for the clergy
of Zurich. It was decided to put away the
lazy and ignorant priests, and to place in their
stead learned, pious, and zealous men, who,
instead of reading Latin prayers and Masses,
should give a daily explanation of a chapter in
the Bible.

At this time a young priest, named Louis
Hetzer, published a book, which he called
«The Judgment of God against Images.”
This made a great impression on the people.
At a place called Stadelhofen, outside the city
of Zurich, stood a crucifix curiously carved ;
and it grieved every lover of the Bible to see
the superstition with which this piece of stone
was regarded by the people. A citizen named
Claude Hottinger, having met the miller of
Stadelhofen, to whom the crucifix belonged,
asked him when he intended to throw down
his idols? “*No one forces you to worship
them,” said the miller. ‘But do you not
know,” replied Hottinger, « that the Scripture
forbids us to have graven images?” * Well,
then,” said the miller, «jf you are authorised
THE REFORMATION, 87

to remove them, I give them up to you.”
Shortly after this, Hottinger and a number of
the citizens went to the crucifix and dug around
it, until it fell to the earth with a great crash.
This made a great tumult; the Papists cried
out that Hottinger and his friends should be
put to death. They were taken prisoners and
brought before the magistrates.

Zwingle, speaking of this from the pulpit,
said that the image-breakers were guilty of no
sin in the sight of God, but that they might
justly be punished by the laws of their country,
because they acted with violence and without
the authority of the magistrates.

The people were now 80 full of abhorrence of
Romish idolatry, that acts like this, of which
I have just told you, took place very often. A
priest one day, seeing a number of hungry
poor people, covered with rags, before the
church, turned his eyes to the costly ornaments
in which the images of the saints were decked,
and said:—‘ ‘I should like to strip those
wooden idols to buy clothes for these poor
members of Jesus Christ.” A few days after
38 A HISTORY OF

this the saints and all their gay ornaments
disappeared. The magistrates cast the poor
curate into prison, although they could not
prove that he took away the saints’ clothes, and
although he protested that he was innocent.
This made the worship of these images still more
detestable to the people. ‘ What!” they said,
‘is it these logs of wood that Jesus ordered us
to clothe ?—is it on account of these images that
he will say to the righteous, ‘I was naked, and
ye clothed me?’”

Thus the efforts that were made to check the
Reformation only helped it forward. When
God works, how vain it is for man to try to
hinder it.
THE REFORMATION. 39

| CHAPTER V.

A Discussion—An Idol burnt by a little boy—Martyrdom of
Hottinger—The people of Zurich threatened—-Their firmness
—A Minister of the Gospel carried off by Soldiers—A Convent
burnt—Cruel Martyrdom of Wirth—His Son and Rutiman—
Their meeknees and courage.

Saortiy after the events which are related in

the former chapter, Zwingle and Leo Juda,

‘another Reformer, met some priests before a
great assembly at Zurich, and proved, to the
satisfaction of many, that the religion of the

Pope was contrary to the religion of the Bible;

and several priests who heard what was said on

both sides went home determined to do all they
could to help on the Reformation: even little
boys began to despise the superstitions of the

Church of Rome. We are told of one, who

was a pupil in the school of Myconius, whose

duty it was to keep up the fire in the stove of
the schoolroom. One cold morning this little

fellow found he had no wood to put on the fire,
40 A HISTORY OF

but he thought to himself, ‘Why should I
want wood while there are idols in the church |”
Zwingle was to preach that day, and the bells
were ringing, but none of the congregation had
assembled, so the little boy, whose name was
Thomas Plater, entered very softly, laid hold
of an image of St. John that stood upon an
altar, and thrust it into the stove, saying,
¢* Down with you, for in you must go.” Now,
Ido not say that the little boy was right in
doing this, because the image did not belong to
him—if it did, he would have done well to de-
stroy it; but the act shows that Popery had
ceased to be respected even by children.

The progress of the Reformation in Zurich
filled the Pope’s followers with fury, and they
were determined to put a stop to it by force.
A good man named Hottinger, a native of
Zurich, lived in Lucerne, and here he made
no secret of his abhorrence of the Romish Mass,
and his love for the religion of the Bible. He
had occasion to go to a place called Waldshut,
on the other side of the Rhine, and there he
was seized by » man named Flockenstein, and
THE REFORMATION. 41

carried as a prisoner before the Diet which was
sitting at Lucerne. The Diet immediately con-
demned him to be beheaded. When told of
his sentence he gave glory to God. ‘That
will do,” said one of his judges; ‘we do not
sit here to listen to sermons; you can have
your talk some other time.” ‘‘ He must have his
head taken off this once,” said another, with a
laugh; “if he should ever get it on again, we
will all embrace his faith.” ‘* May God forgive
all those who have condemned me,” said the
prisoner. A monk then held a crucifix to
Hottinger’s lips that he might kiss it; but he
put it away, saying, “It is in the heart that
‘we must receive Jesus Christ.”

When he was led out to execution many
people in the crowd burst into tears, and Hot-
tinger said to them, “I am going to eternal
happiness.” When he came to the place where
he was to die, he raised his hands to heaven
and said, * Into thy hands, O, my Redeemer,
I commit my spirit!” In another minute his
head was struck off and rolled upon the scaf-
fold,
42 A HISTORY OF

After this the Diet sent a message to the ma-
gistrates and people of Zurich, calling on them
to give up the religion of the Bible, and to re-
turn to Popery ; but they replied to this message
by putting an end to processions in honour of
the Virgin, burying the relics, and taking the
images out of the churches. The people of
Zurich were well pleased at this. They said—
«Let our rulers follow the Word of God without
fear, and we will aid them. If any one seeks
to molest them, we will come to their support.”

But the Pope's followers were determined to
put down the religion of the Bible by force and
cruelty. There was a good minister named
Gixlin, who was pastor of Burg, upon the
Rhine. On the 7th of July, at midnight, a
number of soldiers entered his house and car-
ried him away, while he cried murder! His
neighbours, alarmed by his cries, started from
their beds, and scon a great crowd came to-
gether to inquire what had happened. When
they learned that their good minister had been
carried off, they went in pursuit of him, but
could not find him. They found themselves
THE REFORMATION. 43

near the convent of Ittingen, and some bad
men in the crowd forced their way into the
convent, and, having made themselves drunk
with the wine which they got there, they set
fire to the building. After this, deputies from
the Cantons of Switzerland met at Zug; no-
thing was heard but threats of death to the
people of Zurich. The magistrates of Zurich
were much frightened, and they determined to
make prisoners of any who had been in the
crowd when the convent was burnt. Among
these prisoners were three good men, Wirth
and his two sons, and as they were eminent for
their piety and love to the Bible, the deputies
of the Cantons demanded that they should be
given up to them. The magistrates of Zurich,
influenced by sinful fear, at last consented, but
on condition that they would only try them for
the burning of the convent, and not on account
of their faith. They consented to do so, but it
will soon be seen how far they were from keep-
ing their word.

Wirth and his two sons were carried as
prisoners to Baden, where a great crowd was
44 A HISTORY OF

waiting for them. At first they were taken to
an inn, and thence to the prison. They could
scarcely get on, the crowd were so anxious to
see them. ‘The father, who walked in front,
turned to his two sons and meekly said to them,
*¢ See, my dear children, we are, as the Apostle
says, men appointed to death, for we are made
a spectacle unto the world, and unto angels,
and to men.”

On the next day they were examined. The
old man was first brought in. He was put to
the torture without any regard to his age and
character, but he steadily denied having had
any part in the burning of the convent. He
was then accused of having destroyed an image
of St. Anne. Nothing could be proved against
his two sons, except that Adrian Wirth was
married, and that he preached after the man-
ner of Zwingle and Luther—and that John
Wirth had given the Sacrament to a sick man
” without bell and taper.

But the fury of their persecutors was only in-
creased by the proof of their innocence. From
morning until noon they inflicted the most cruel
THE REFORMATION, 45

tortures on the old man. His tears could not
soften his judges. John Wirth was treated
with still greater barbarity. «Tell us,” said
they to him in the midst of his anguish, ‘whence
did you learn this heretical faith ?~from Zwin-
gle, or from any other person?” And when he
exclaimed, “‘O merciful and everlasting God,
help and comfort me!” one of his profane tor-
mentors asked, ‘* Where is your Christ now?”
When Adrian Wirth appeared, Sebastian of
Stein, the deputy of Berne, saidtohim, “Young
man, tell us the truth, for if you refuse to do so,
I swear by my knighthood, that I gained on the
very spot where the Lord was crucified, that
we will open your veins one after another.”
They then fastened the young man to a rope,
and hoisted him into the air. ‘ There my little
master,” said Stein with a sneer, there is your
wedding present,” alluding to the marriage of
this youthful servant of the Lord. When the
examination was ended the deputies returned
to their Cantons, and did not meet again until
four weeks after. The wife of the elder Wirth,
carrying an infant child in her arms, came to
46 A HISTORY OF

Baden to intercede with the judges for her
husband and her two sons. John Escher, of
Zurich, came with her as her advocate. Among
the judges he saw Jerome Stocker, who knew
well the excellent character of the Wirths.
*¢ You know,” said Escher, * that Wirth has
always been an upright man.” ‘You say the
truth, my dear Escher,” replied Stocker, ‘he
has never injured any one; citizens and stran-
gers were always kindly welcomed to his table;
his house was a convent, an inn, and an hos.
pital_and so, if he had committed robbery or
“murder, I would have made every exertion to
obtain his pardon: but seeing that he has
burnt St. Anne, Christ's grandmother, he must
die!” “The Lord have mercy upon us!” ex-
claimed Escher.

Some time after, the deputies of nine Cantons
passed sentence of death on Wirth and his son
John, who appeared to be firmest in his faith,
and on another Zuricher, named Rutiman.
Adrian Wirth’s second son was pardoned at
the earnest entreaty of his mother. When the
officers went to the prison to bring the prison-
THE REFORMATION, a7

ers to the court, the old man said to Adrian—.
«My son, never avenge our death, although
we do not deserve punishment.” Adrian burst

* into tears. ‘* Brother,” said John, “the cross

of Christ must always follow his Word.”

After the sentence was read the three Chris.
tians were led back to prison—John Wirth
walking first, his father and Rutiman next, and
& priest bebind them. As they were crossing
the castle bridge, on which was a chapel dedi-
cated to St. Joseph, the priest called out to the
two old men—‘' Fall down upon your knees
and call upon the saints.” John Wirth, who
was in front, turned round at these words, and
said—** Father, be firm; you know that there
is only one Mediator between God and man,
the Lord Jesus Christ.” ‘* Assuredly, my son,”
replied the old man, “and by the help of his
grace I will continue faithful to the end.” Upon
this, they all three began to repeat the Lord’s
Prayer—‘ Our Father which art in Heaven”—
and so crossed the bridge.

They were next brought to the scaffold. John
Wirth, who loved his father very much, bade
48 A HISTORY OF

him farewell. ‘My dearly beloved father,” said
he, “‘henceforward thou art no longer my fa-
ther, and I am no longer thy son, but we are
brothers in Christ our Lord, for whose name
we must suffer death to-day, if it be God’s
pleasure ; my beloved brother, we shall go to
Him who is the Father of us all. Fear nothing.”
«‘ Amen!” replied the old man, ‘and may God
Almighty bless thee, my beloved son and bro-
ther in Christ!”

Thus, on the threshold of eternity, these good
men felt that every relation but that of children
of God would cease in that glorious state upon
which they were about to enter through the
bloody gate of martyrdom. Rutiman prayed
in silence. The greater part of the crowd shed
floods of tears.

All three then knelt down, and their heads
were cut off; the crowd, observing the marks
of the torture upon their bodies, cried aloud
with grief.

Thus, in Switzerland as well as in England,
the Church of Rome showed, by her savage
cruelty to the people of Christ, that she is the
THE REFORMATION. 49

great apostasy described by St. John in the
Revelations, as a harlot gaudily dressed, and
“ drunken with the blood of the saints and with
the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.” We may
wonder that Christ should permit that wicked
Church thus to murder His true people; but
when we think not only of the courage but the
forgiving gentleness with which the martyrs
bore their dreadful trial, we cannot but sec
that the power of Christ was more glorified in
them than if He had sent down fire from hea-
ven to consume their murderers—for ‘‘he that
ruleth his own spirit is greater than he that
taketh a city;” but it was the power of Christ’s
grace which strengthened the martyrs to rule
their spirit as they did. For I am sure that if
any one praised them for their gentleness and
their bravery they would refuse to take any
honour to themselves, and that each one of
them would say, like St. Paul, «Not I, but the
gtace of God which was in me.’>
50 A HISTORY OF

CHAPTE VI.

Erasmus, Sit Thomas More, and the Wafer—The Mees abolished
at Zurich—Great love among the Christians—The Gospel ad-
vances at Berne—The Nuns of Konigsfeldt—Acolampadius
preaches with much success at Basle--The Anabaptiste.

In the first volume of this history, you have

heard of that very learned man, Erasmus. In

the history of the Reformation in Switzerland
we meet with him again, and he still appears
as timid, wavering, and unsteady as ever. He
was, however, convinced that the Church of
Rome was teaching false doctrine. We have
clear proof of this in the following story relat-
ing to him and Sir Thomas More, the cele-
brated Papist Chancellor of England. Erasmus
and Sir Thomas had a short dispute about the
wafer which the priest pretends to change into
the person of Christ. Erasmus was contending
against this foolish and wicked notion of Anti-
christ, and when Sir Thomas More could not
convince him by sound arguments, he said to
THE REFORMATION. 51

him, “ Believe that you have the body of Christ,
and you have it really.” Erasmus made no re-
ply. Shortly after, when leaving England,
More lent him a horse to carry him to the sea-
side, but Erasmus took it with him to the Con-
tinent. More was very angry at this, and
wrote a sharp letter to Erasmus, calling on
him to restore his horse. Erasmus, in reply,
wrote him the following lines :—
“ You anid of the bodily presence of Christ—

Believe that you have, and you have him;

Of the nag that I took, my reply is the same—

Believe that you have, and you have him.”

This is very good, for it shows us the Papists,
when put on the defence of their religion, are
obliged to talk what every body would denounce
as rank nonsense if applied to the common con-
cerns of life. But a man may be convinced of
the foolery of Popery without having the ho-
nesty and courage to oppose it against his own
worldly interest. It was so with poor Erasmus.
He wrote to Zwingle—“ I shall not be unfaith-
ful to the cause of Christ, at leastso far as the age
will permit me.” His learning, great as it was,
52 A HISTORY OF

taught him nothing better than this. We must
pray for God’s Holy.Spirit to make us valiant
for His truth—so valiant that nothing may ever
hinder us from speaking openly in its defence.
There is nothing which our Saviour loathes more
than half-hearted service. If we would be His
disciples, we must be prepared cheerfully to lay
down our lives for the Gospel. Nothing but
God’s Holy Spirit can implant and sustain such
noble courage in our hearts. Peter thought he
could confess his Master ; he went on in his own
strength, and you know how shamefully he fell.
His fall is related in the Bible, for our warning.

I told you in the last chapter how those good
men, the Wirths, were cruelly put to death for
the Gospel ; but the people of Zurich showed
that they were not daunted by this, for imme-
diately after, they abolished the Romish Mass,
and restored the Lord’s Supper as Christ insti.
tutedit. There seemed just at this time to
have been an outpouring of the Holy Spirit on
the Christians of Zurich, like that which we
read of in the Acts of the Apostles as having
taking place on the Day of Pentecost. The
THE REFORMATION. 53

altars on which the wicked priests of Antichrist
pretended to offer their abominable mass.sacri-
fice were taken away out of the churches, and
decent communion tables were put in their
places, and a devout and attentive crowd press~
ed around them. On Holy Thursday the young
people, on Good Friday the men and women,
and on Easter Sunday the aged, received the
bread and wine which our Lord appointed to be
taken in remembrance of His body that was
given, and His blood that was shed for us.
The love of the first age of the Gospel was now
revived in Zurich. Enemies who had long
hated one another were seen embracing in bro-
therly love, after having taken the sacramen-
tal bread. Zwingle’s heart was greatly glad.
dened by such plain proofs of the work of God's
Holy Spirit in the hearts of the people.
«« Peace,” said he, ‘ dwells in our city; among
us there is no fraud, no dissension, no envying,
no strife. Whence can such harmony come
but from the Lord? And it shows that the doc-
trine which we preach inclines us to innocence
and peace,”
54 A HISTORY OF

Thus the Gospel was established in Zurich :
and when the people were told that several
States had refused to sit with them in future’in
the Diet, they calmly replied—<* Well, then, we
have the firm assurance that God the Father,
the Son, and the Holy Ghost, in whose name
our States were united, will not desert us, and
will at last, of His great mercy, make us sit at
the right hand of His glorious majesty.”

We now turn to the Canton of Berne, where
the Gospel, in the face of much opposition,
was also making progress. The Government
made a law that men should not preach from
the writings of Luther, or any other human
teacher, but that they should teach the doc-
trines of God freely and openly, as it is laid
down in the Old and New Testament,

There was in Berne at Konigsfeldt a convent,
where many devout ladies of high rank had
imprisoned themselves as nuns. Zwingle re-
ceived a letter from the Mother Abbess of this
convent, in which she thanked God that the
doctrine of salvation was spreading day by day
through his preaching of the Word of God;
THE REFORMATION. 55

and some time after, the nuns applied to the

Government to release them from imprisonment ,
in the convent, as they were persuaded that

they could serve God better in the bosoms of
their families; and, after some time, the liberty

which they asked was granted.

The celebrated city of Basle also showed fa-
vour to the doctrine of the Gospel. colam-
padius was the man raised up by God to turn
the hearts of his countrymen, in this place, from
superstition to true religion. Like Luther, he
had been a monk, and knew, by bitter expe-
rience, the cruel bondage in which the Church
of Rome holds its dupes. After escaping many
dangers with which he was threatened by the
fury of the monks and other partisans of the
Pope, he was made curate of St. Martin's
Church, and from his pulpit he sounded forth
the pure doctrines ofthe Gospel. An immense
crowd filled the church whenever he preached ;
and such an impression was made, that even
Erasmus, who lived in that city, was forced to
exclaim, ‘ A’colampadius triumphs !”

But the Gospel could not long continue to
56 A HISTORY OF

spread without interruption. Satan has, at all
times, laboured to hinder its progress, and his
great power over men was now used for that
purpose. Nothing can protect men from the
wiles of that evil spirit but the holy Word of
God, and therefore the Devil always strives to
turn men aside from the teaching of the Bible.:
He persuades Papists that they do not need
that Holy Book, as they have their priests to
teach them. He whispers to others, who, per-
haps, doubt or deny his existence, that their
own reason is able to guide them much better
than the Bible; and he deludes others to ima.
gine that they have an inward light from God
which teaches them all things, and that, there.
fore, the Scriptures are useless. Men had been
driven out of the first of these errors by the
preaching of the Reformers, but Satan now
filled the minds of many with vain notions, that
God had given them such an inward light that
they did not need the Bible any more. The
same sect also appeared in Germany, as I told
you in the history of the Reformation in that
country. Indeed it was when they were driven
TRH REFORMATION. 57

tut of Germany that they came into Switzer.
and. These bad people were called Anabap-
tists, and to such lengths were they driven by
Satan, that some of them burnt the New Tes-
tament, saying, ‘ The letter killeth, but the
Spirit giveth life.” I shall tell you more about
these wicked people in the next chapter, but
what has. been said may show you that we
should stand aloof from every teacher and
every church, which sets up any rule for our
faith and conduct but the Evoly Bible.
58 A HISTORY OF

CHAPTER VII.

The Ansbaptists—Fanaticiam of Schucker and his Sons—Their
error checked—Need of the Word and the Spirit—Dispute be-
tween Luther and Zwingle about the Lord's Supper—Progrese
of the Gospel—A Disputation-—Happy Results.

I promsep in the last chapter to tell my

young readers something about the Anabap-

tists, which would show how very dangerous
it is for people to set up their own fancies as
an inward light to guide them, instead of the

Word of God as written in the Bible.

In a solitary house near St. Gall, lived an
aged farmer, John Schucker, with his five sons.
Allin this house, including the servants, had
become Anabaptists, and two of the farmer's
sons, Leonard and Thomas, were among the
most zealous of these misguided people. On
a certain day they invited a large party to
their house; their father killed a calf for the
feast, and supplied the guests with plenty of
wine. The whole night was spent in telling
THE REFORMATION. 59

each other what they had learned from the
«* inward light.” Some of them, as they talked,
tos:‘ed about their arms and legs, and some of
them fell into convulsions.

In the morning, Thomas, who it seems had
lost his x*eason, took the calf’s bladder, and,
placing patt of the gall in it, came to his bro-
ther Leonard, saying, with a solemn voice,
*¢ Thus bitter is the death thou art to suffer!"
He then added, “Brother Leonard, kneel
down.” Leonard fell on his knees. Shortly
-after, Thomas bid him arise, and he rose up.
‘The old farmer and the rest of the Anabap-
‘tists looked on, wondering what God would do,
for they supposed that Leonard was doing what
God told him. Thomas commanded his bro-
ther to kneel down again; he obeyed. The
people who were present, being frightened
when they saw how gloomy Thomas looked,
said to him, ‘ Think of what you are about, and
take care that no mischief happens.” ‘Fear
not,” replied Thomas, “nothing will happen
but the will of the Father.” At the same time,
he hastily caught up a sword, and, striking a
60 A HISTORY OF

violent blow at his brother, who was still kneel.
ing before him, he cut off his head, crying out
with a loud voice, ‘‘ Now the will of the Fa‘cher
is finished.”

The people who were present were; struck
with horror at the deed, and gave verst to their
grief in groans and cries. Thomas, who was
nearly naked, ran out of the house, to St. Gall,
tossing about his limbs as he went. He en-
tered the house of a magistrate, and, with a dis.
tracted look and a wild cry, said to him, «I
proclaim to thee the day of the Lord!” The
news of this horrid event soon spread through
that part of the country. * He has slain his
brother as Cain slew Abel,” said the people.
The murderer was seized. ‘It is true I did
it,” said he, “ but it is God who did it through
me.” He was tried and condemned for the
murder, and lost his head by the sword of the
executioner. This dreadful event opened peo.
ple’s eyes, and put an end to the error of the
Anabaptists in that part of the country, There
is every reason to believe that the Devil was
the agent in the whole of this business, We
THE REFORMATION. 61

have no reason to think that God does not per-
mit that wicked spirit sometimes to possess the
bodies of men now, as we know he did in our
Lord’s time. Satan’s great object is to turn
men away from Christ’s true religion, and, as
that can only be learned from the Bible, read
or heard under the inward teaching of the
Holy Spirit, the Devil is always striving to
turn men aside from the Bible, and to persuade
them that there is no such thing as the inward
light of the Holy Spirit. By the error of the
Anabaptists, Satan taught men that they did
not need the Bible; and by the dreadful wick-
edness which they did, while they said they had
God's inward light in their souls, he gave think-
ing men some ground to suspect that the inward
light of the Spirit was nothing but delusion
and madness. The Devil's craft lay in sepa-
rating what God has joined together. God
has joined the Bible and the inward teaching of
the Spirit; but the Devil said to these unhappy
men‘ You do not want the Bible, the inward
light is enough for you; and thus he prepared
them to do any wickedness which he put into
62 4 HISTORY OF

their hearts. If we would escape from this
snare, we must never separate the Bible and
the inward light of the Spirit. It is by the
Bible that the Holy Ghost teaches the people
of God; therefore, if we desire to know the
will of God, we must “ search the Scriptures,”
and pray earnestly, at the same time, for the
teaching of the Holy Spirit. ‘Open thou
mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things
out of thy law!”

There was at this time a great dispute be-
tween Luther and Zwingle about the Lord’s
Supper. Luther taught, that although the
bread and wine remained, there was also pre-
sent in the sacrament the literal body of Christ.
Zwingle taught that the Lord’s Supper was in-
tended only to remind Christians of the Lord’s
body, which was given, and His blood which
was shed, for them. This difference of opinion
among good men shows us how imperfect the
best are in this present world. «Now we see
through a glass darkly ;” but itis a great com-
fort to know that God’s people will be brought
to the knowledge of all saving truth. Luther
THE REFORMATION. 68

knew enough to save him from the dreadfu
error of giving to a bit of bread the worship
which belongs to God, as the Papista do; and
Zwingle knew enough about the sacrament to
lead him into the enjoyment of the blessings
realized by those who receive it in humble de-
pendence on the grace of the Great Master of
the feast. This dispute between these leaders
of the Reformation also shows us that they
were influenced by a love of truth, and not by
a blind hatred to the Church of Rome.

But amid all the noise and confusion created
by the wickedness and ignorance of man, God,
by the small still voice of His Spirit, spoke to
the hearts of sinnera, and His holy truth con-
tinued every day to make new triumphs. In
the mountains of the Tockenburgh three priests
openly taught the truths of the Gospel, and
when they were persecuted by the bishop, these
good men said, ‘‘Convince us by the Bible that
we are wrong, and we will submit to the mean-
est of our brethren in Christ, otherwise we will
obey no one, not even the mightiest among
men.” This was the true spirit of the Refor--
64 4 HISTORY OF

mation, which took possession of many hearts
in Zwingle's native mountains.

The Gospel also ‘spread very much at this
time in Rhetia, where a good man named
Comander was faithfully preaching it. A
meeting was held at Ilantz, for a public con-
ference or disputation between the Protestants
and the Papists. The Bishop’s Vicar, who
was to dispute in favour of the Church of
Rome, did all he could to hinder this meeting,
but in vain. Comander stood up, and read
the following sentence, which he undertook to
defend—* The Church of Christ is born of
the Word of God; it must abide by this
Word, and hear no other voice.” He then
went on to prove this by many texts of Scrip.
ture. ‘ This is too long,” said the Vicar.
‘* When he is at table with his friends, listening
to the pipers,” said a man of Zurich, “ he does
not find the time too long.”

Shortly after this, a man arose and came
forward from the midst of the crowd, tossing
his arms about, and knitting his brows; he
rushed towards Comander, and many thought
THE REFORMATION. 65

he was going to strike hin. He was a man
named Berre, a schoolnaster of Coire. ‘I
have written out @ fsreat many questions,”
said he to the Reformer, “answer them in-
stantly.” ‘Iam ‘ere,” said Comander, ‘to
defend my doctrine; attack it, and I will de-
fend it, or else; return to your place; I will
answer you when I have done.” The school-
master rema‘med silent for some moments, and
then returned to his seat.

Tt was next proposed to discuss the doctrine
of the sacraments. The Abbot of St. Luke's
declared that he could not take up such a
subject without awe, and began to make the
sign of the cross. The schoolmaster again
came forward, and began to defend the Romish
doctrine from the text, “This is my body.”
«¢ But how,” asked Comander, ‘do you under-
stand these words, ‘ John is Elias?’” «I un-
derstand,” said Berre, who saw what Coman-
der was aiming at, “that he was really and
truly Elias.” ‘Why, then,” continued Co-
mander, “did John the Baptist himself say to
the Pharisees that he was not Elias?” The
66 a. HISTORY OF

schoolmaster was sil\nt; at last he replied, “It
is true.” Every one began to laugh, even those
who had urged him to s,>eak.

The Abbot of St. Lm‘xe’s then closed the
conference by a long specch. Some people
say that such discussions do 00 good, but this
is a great mistake ; they were a.nong the means
which God employed for showing men the
falsehood of Popery at the Refo. mation, and
when they are conducted in faith, they serve
the same purpose still, The dislike which the
priests show to such meetings, and + he diffi-
culty with which they are brought to taite any
part in them, shows that they feel them ,‘o be
injurious to their superstition. The discussion
at Ilantz proved to be so. Seven priests fo t-
sook Popery, and embraced the Gospel; com-:
plete religious liberty was proclaimed; the
idolatrous mass and the senseless mummery of
the Latin service ceased inmany of the churches,
and the Gospel was preached to the people; and
the worship of God, according to His Word, was
set up.
THE REFORMATION. 67

CHAPTER VIII.

lom of Keyser—War-—The Bernese refase their aid-—~The

Papiate all unite—Zwingle’s fears—Unchristian conduct of

Zurich and Berne—Perplexities of Zwingle—Zwingle goet to

Battle—Defeat of the Protestants, and death of Zwingle,

I must now draw the history of the Reforma-
tion in Switzerland to a close. I have not yet
told my young readers anything about two
great and good men, who helped on the work
of God against Popery in that country very
much—I mean Farel and Calvin ; but as they
were born in France, I shall not forget them
when I come, in the following chapters, to
speak of the Reformation there.

The Gospel never makes much way in any
place without violent opposition. Tire hatred
which it stirs up in the mind of fale’ man is
so great, that it aims at nothing short of the
death of those who receive it. It was .%0 in
Switzerland. The storm had been for a Long
time gathering, it burst fearfully at last.
68 A HISTORY OF

There was a good man nathed Keyser, a
minister of the Gospel, who had been appointed
pastor of Oberkirk; when he was going to
preach in his church he was seized by six men
of the Popish Canton of Schwytz, and brought
before the magistrates, by whose orders he was
burned to death.

When Zwingle heard of this he was very
angry, and advised the Protestants to take up
arms for their defence. This advice might
have been very suitable if Zwingle was a ma- -
gistrate or a general, but he seems to have for-
gotton that he was neither, but a minister of
Jesus Christ.

The Swiss were now arming in every direc-
tion, and the Papists sought the aid of Aus-
tria. Zwingle joined the Protestant army,
although th Council of Zurich wished him to
remain at ‘home with them.

The people of Zurich sought help from their
fellow-F’rotestants in Berne, but they refused
to aid them, saying, “Since Zurich has begun
the ‘war without us, let her finish it in like
mguner.” The Romish Cantons did not act
THE REFORMATION. 69

thus, but joined together as one man for the
defence of Popery.

When the army of Zurich was marching
onward, they were met by a man named Aebli,
a magistrate of Glaris. He entreated them
for the love of God to halt, until he should re-
turn to them in a few hours, when he hoped
to make an honourable peace.

Aebli was known to be a good man, and
therefore the captains of Zurich were inclined
to take his advice, but Zwingle tried to hinder
them. He said—‘ Our enemies are caught in
a sack, and therefore. they give you sweet
words; by-and-bye they will fall upon us, and
there will be none to deliver us.” You will see
how Zwingle's words proved to be true. A sort
of peace was made, and the advantage seemed
to be on the side of Zurich and the Reforma.
tion; but Zwingle did not think so. His mind
was bowed down with gloomy fear for the
future, and what followed will show you that
his fears were not groundless.

The bad feeling existing between the two
parties was increased by daily insults. At last
70 A HISTORY OF

Berne and Zurich determined not to supply
the five Romish Cantons with the food which
they used to purchase from them. They not
only did this, but they cut off the supplies which
were sent to them from other parts of Europe.
This was very bad indeed ; but we must tell it,
even though it was done by Protestants, for our
design is not to exalt any party, but to state
facts as they are. But we must remind our
readers that although such conduct was very
disgraceful to the people of Berne and Zurich,
it is no disgrace to the Bible, for the Bible con-
demns it. It says—‘‘If thine enemy hunger,
feed him; if he thirst, give him drink.” We
must beware, lest a false zeal for the Bible should
impel us to such acts as the Bible condemns.
The people of the five Cantons now became
furious. They said—‘ They block up their
roads, but we will open them with our right
arm.” Some attempts were made to settle the
dispute between the Cantons. A council of the
rulers of the Cantons was held at Bremgarten,
and for some time there was hope that good
feeling would be restored, but it was not so.
THE REFORMATION. 7

In the meantime, Zwingle was losing his
‘power in Zurich. The influence which he
gained as a Reformer he lost when he became
@ politician. People of all classes suffered
much from the violent measures which he re-
commended, and all the discontented pointed
at Zwingle as the cause of their misfortunes.

Zwingle was heart-broken ; he had taken up
the false notion, that the violent means. which
are used by the rulers of this world for support-
ing their rights should be employed in the ser-
vice of the Gospel. He wished to retire from
public life, but the rulers of Zurich besought
him not to desert them. ‘I will stay with
you,” said he, ‘and I will labour for the public
safety until death.”

Zwingle seeing that war was at hand, tried to
persuade the Protestants to make preparation
for it, but in vain; his influence was gone, and
& panic seemed to have seized every mind.
But the Romish Cantons decided upon war, and
made active preparations for it. Warning after
warning came to Zurich, but all was in vain.
At length the enemy was at hand, and all the
72 A HISTORY OF

force that could be got together to meet them
consisted of about 700 men, badly armed, and
without discipline. Zwingle marched with this
disorderly crowd to meet the powerful foe ; he
parted from his wife and children under the
sorrowful persuasion that they should never
meet again in this world.

At eleven o'clock on the following morning,
the little band of Zurich came within sight of
the powerful army of the five Cantons. They
fell on their knees and entreated help from
God. They then prepared themselves for battle.
Their force at this time had increased to about
1,200 men.

At four o'clock in the evening, the first shot
was fired by the army of the five Cantons.
After there had been much skirmishing, as
evening came on, the men of Zurich thought
that the battle would not be fought until the
next day; but suddenly a dreadful fire was
opened upon them in a wood where they had
posted themselves; many of their soldiers
fell, and the rest, to save themselves, lay flat
on the ground. ‘ Warriors,” said Zwingle,
THE REFORMATION, 73

who was there with a spear in his hand, “ fear
nothing; if we are this day to be defeated, our
cause is good: commend yourselves to God.”
The battle now commenced ; the men of Zurich
fought with desperate valour for a time, but a
panic seized them, and many fied. Some still
maintained their ground, and fell, after killing
many of the enemy, covered with many wounds.
The slaughter of the men of Zurich, considering
the smallness of their numbers, was very great;
amongst the slain, were twenty-five ministers of
the Gospel, who marched to battle at the head
of their flocks. The Romish soldiers trembled
with rage whenever they discovered one of these
ministers, and they sacrificed him as a chosen
victim to the Virgin.

Zwingle was at the post of danger—the hel-
met on his head, the sword at his side, and the
battle-axe in hishand. The battle had scarcely
begun, when, stooping to console a dying man,
a stone struck him on the head and closed his
lips. Yet Zwingle aruse, when two other blows
which hit him on the leg, threw him down
again. Twice more he stood up; but a fourth

E
74 A HISTORY OF

time he receives a thrust from a lance; he
staggers, and, sinking beneath so many wounds,
falls on his knees. Once more he lifts up his
head, and, gazing with acalm eye upon the
trickling blood, exclaims, <‘ What matters this
misfortune! They may indeed kill the body,
but they cannot kill the soul.” These were
his last words.

Zwingle was dead. put out in the Church of God. Happy had it
been for his native land if this great Reformer _
had wielded only the legitimate weapon of the
warfare in which he was engaged, “ The
sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”
The result of this contest greatly strengthened
the cause of Popery; it was restored at Brem-
garten and other places; priests and monks
swarmed everywhere. We bid farewell to this
sad scene in the words of the Psalmist, «Some
trust in chariots, and more in horses: but we
will remember the name of the Lord our God.
They are brought down and fallen: but we are
risen and stand upright.”
THE REFORMATION. 75

CHAPTER IX.

Bevage enmity of the Romish party—Death of Acolampadius—
The Waldenses~ William Farel—-He gocs to Paris—His bi-
go ry and conversion—-The Bishop of Meaux—Queen Margaret.

ZwrnctE had fallen on the field of battle.
His dead body was cut up into quarters, and
then burned—the ashes of swine were mixed
with his—and his remains were scattered by
his cruel enemies to the four winds of heaven.
Just at this time another great light of the
Swiss Reformation was taken away. A®colam-
padius, surrounded by his children and his
Christian friends, died calmly upon his bed,
happy at the prospect of being with Jesus.
The prospects of the Christian Church in
Switzerland were at this time very gloomy.
But often, when the eye can see nothing in
outward events but ground for discourage-
ment, the unseen Spirit of God, who is the
builder up of the Church, is silently working
76 A HISTCRY OF

on tle minds and hearts of men, and training
new chainpions to maintain His truth before
the world, It was so in this period of the
history. In another land God was preparing
a soldier of the cross, by whose means the
Reformation was to gain fresh victories in
Switzerland.

So far back as the ninth century, we find a
people living at the foot of the Alps, who
never ceased to warn the Church of the de-
ceits of the Bishop of Rome. Many and cruel
were the persecutions to which these good
men, who were called Waldenses, were ex-
posed. In the year 1487, a guilty wretch,
called Innocent VIII., who was then Pope,
wrote a Bull against these good people. ‘To
arms,” said this pretended vicar of Christ,
“and trample these heretics under foot, as
poisonous serpents.”

In obedience to this call, an army of eighteen
thousand men, and a number of other persons
who wished to enrich themselves by robbing
the good Waldenses, followed the Pope's legate.
The poor Christians, terrificd at the approach
THE REFORMATION. V7

of such a force, forsook their houses, and took
refuge in the caverns of the mountains. Not
a valley, not a wood, not a rock, escaped their
persecutors ; everywhere these humble Chris.
tians were hunted down like beasts of prey,
until the Pope’s soldiers, weared with pursuing
and murdering them, could execute their cruel
task no longer. ;

In the mountainous counfry which was the
scene of this cruel oppression, at a short dis-
tance from the town of Gap, was a manor
house, in which there lived a noble family
called Farel. In the very year that the Pope
was carrying on the cruel persecution, of which
I have just told you, a child was born in this
house, who was named William, and, as his
parents were Papists, he and his brothers and
sisters were trained up in all the errors and
superstitions of the Church of Rome.

William Farel was a very fine youth; he
had a sharp mind and a lively fancy; he was
very sincere and truthful; he was also very
eager in following what he thought to be
right, and so courageous that no difficulties or
78 A HISTORY OF

dangers could frighten him. The only fault
in his character seems to have been a head-
long rashness.

So long as young Farel thought that Po-
pery was the true religion of Christ, nothing
could surpass the zeal and diligence with
which he practised all its superstitions. He
was also very eager in the pursuit of know-
ledge, and, having learned all that could be
taught him in his native mountains, he was
very anxious to go to Paris, which was then
celebrated for its learning; and having got
leave from his parents, he set out for that
famous city.

At the time that Farel went to Paris many
men lived there who delighted much in study.
Among these was a person named Levevre.
He was a professor of divinity in the univer.
sity, and he had learned the great truth, that
all who desire the right knowledge of God
must seek it in the Bible. But Levevre's
eyes were not yet opened to see how the
Church of Rome had departed from the faith ;
he used to attend constantly at the Mass, and
THE REFORMATION. 79

none bent themselves more devoutly than he
before the images. Farel used to notice him
on these occasions, and being as falsely but
zealously devout as himself, he sought to be-
come acquainted with him. A great friendship
sprung up between Farcl and Levevre. Farel
looked up to him with all the respect of a son,
and Levevre regarded him with the affection of
a father.

The darkness of Farel’s mind at this time
was very gross. He tells us himself that he
regarded the Pope of Rome as the visible
head of the Church—a sort of God by whose
will souls might be saved. Whenever he heard
any one speak against the Pope, he would gnash
his teeth like a furious wolf, and would have
called down fire from heaven to consume the
guilty wretch. «I felieve,” said he, “in the
cross, in pilgrimages, images, vows, and relics.
What the priest holds in his hands, puts into
the box, and there shuts up, eats, and gives to
others to eat, is my only true God, and to me
there is no other either in heaven or earth.”
In another place he says—** Satan had so lodged
80 A HISTORY OF

the Pope, the Papacy, and all that is his in my
heart, that even the Pope had not so much of
it in himself.” How wonderful that God should
make such a man the instrument of bringing
thousands to the light of the Gospel!

But the darkness of Farel’s mind was not
driven away ina moment. He began to study
the Bible, and he soon found out that its
teaching and the teaching of the Church of
Rome were totally different ; then a terrible
struggle began in his mind, between his re-
spect for the Church of Rome and his reve-
rence for the Holy Scriptures. For a time, he
threw aside his Bible, and returned to the
superstitions of Rome, but his soul could find
no peace. At this time God was teaching his
friend Levevre, who now began to preach
the great truth, that a*Binner is justified and
saved, not by his own merit, but through faith
in the all-sufficient merits of Christ. Farel
embraced this truth with all the ardour of his
soul. Then,” said he, ‘“‘Popery was utterly
overthrown; I began to detest it as devilish,
and the holy Word of God had the chief
THE REFORMATION, 81

place in my heart.” In another place, speak-
ing of the wonderful change which God's grace
had wrought in him at the time, he says—
“« Now everything appears to me in another
form; Scripture is cleared up, prophecy is
opened ; the Apostles shed a strong light upon
my soul; a voice till now unknown—the voice
of Christ, my shepherd, my master, my teacher,
speaks to me with power. I was so changed,
that, instead of the murderous heart of a raven-
ing wolf, I came back quietly like a meek and
harmless lamb, having my heart entirely with.
Grawn from the Pope, and given to Jesus
Christ.”

While God was thus preparing Farel and
others to be preachers of His truth in France
(4.p. 1512), Luther was travelling to Rome
asa monk, and Zwingle was living as a man
of the world, careless of divine things: so that
we may say that the great Reformation of the
sixteenth century began in France; nor was it
communicated thence to Germany, and thence
to Switzerland. It sprung up in these coun-
tries by the immediate impulse of God’s Holy

B 2
82 A HISTORY OF

Spirit in the hearts ofmen. My young readers
should carefully note this, for it is a fact which
shows that this great religious movement had
its beginning with God, and not with man.
‘We must now pass over a period of several
years, when Farel, having been made a master
of arts, became lecturer at one of the princi-
pal colleges in Paris. Several were now won
over to the cause of true religion; among
whom was Brigonnet, the Bishop of Meaux,
who seems with much humbleness of mind to
have received the Gospel. But, as in the
days of the Apostles, there were saints in
Cwsar’s household, there were in the court of
the French King, at this time, some true dis-
ciples of Christ. Among the most illustrious
of these converts was Margaret of Alencon,
sister of the King, Francis I. This lady was
very beautiful, and very accomplished and
agreeable, greatly beloved by her brother and
by all who knew her, for her kind and amiable
manners. The French court at this time
was very wicked; the nobles who composed
it were either superstitious Papists or profane
THE REFORMATION. 83

infidels; and even among those who were not
grossly immoral, scarcely one could be found
who seemed to have a taste for anything be-
yond those vain amusements which draw away
the heart from God. Margaret, whose soul
was thirsting for something better than the
pleasures of 9 palace, heard from some of the
ladies of the court what Levevre, and Farel,
and others were teaching ; they lent her their
little books, and spoke to her of the Primitive
Church, of the pure Word of God—of wor-
shipping in spirit and in truth—-of Christian
liberty, which shakes off the bondage of man, ~
and binds the soul closer to God. Soon the
curiosity of this princess became awakened,
and she conversed on the things of God with
Levevre and Farel. Their zeal, their piety,
and the purity of their morals made a deep
impression on her; but it was the Bishop of
Meaux, whom she had long honoured with her
friendship, who became her principal guide in
the path of life.

This amiable princess soon after found how
truly the Apostle had written—<**All that will
84 A HISTORY OF

live godly in Christ Jesus, must suffer perseci-
tion.” The change which had taken place in
her was remarked by all. The ungodly and
immoral courtiers were very angry. ‘* What!”
they exclaimed, ‘‘even the sister of the King
takes part with these people!” She was ac-
cused to the King of having become a Protes-
tant, but as he loved his sister tenderly he
pretended to think that the charge was not
true. Margaret's great amiability lessened the
opposition for a time, but nothing but the
grace of God can effectually conquer the
hatred with which the hearts of natural men
rage against Christ’s true people.
THE REFORMATION. 85

CHAPTER X.

Numerous enemies to the Gospel in France—Persecution—The
New Testament and Psalms printed in French—Bishop of
Meaux preaches the Gospel—Threat of a Monk-—Cowardice
of the Bishop—Martyrdom of Le Clerc—-Beflections,

Tue mother of the French King, Louisa of
Savoy, was a very bad woman, and the Chan-
cellor of the kingdom, Anthony Duprat, who
was a great favourite of hers, was as wicked as
she. These two powerful persons were great
persecutors of Christ’s people. Francis was
very much guided by them. He made an agree-
ment with the Pope at Bologna, which gave
the Pope great power in France; and the Pope,
in return, gave him leave to appoint priests and
bishops in France. All this power was used
to put down true religion. In every age ‘the
‘kings and the rulers of the earth take counsel
together against the Lord and against His
Anointed ;” but in His own good time ‘‘ He
will dash them to pieces like a potter's vessel.”
86 A HISTORY OF

But there was another party in France who
were equally opposed to the Gospel. All the
superstitious priests and monks were as violent
against Christ’s true religion as the Pharisees of
old. A man named Beda was foremost among
this class,

The persecution raised by these enemies of
truth became so hot, that Levevre and Farel
were obliged to quit Paris, and retire to Meaux,
where they were kindly received by Briconnet,
the bishop of that place, who then seemed to
be a true Christian, but who afterwards proved
to be such as our Lord describes in the pa-
rable of the sower, who at first receive the Gos-
pel gladly, but who fall away when tribulation
and persecution arise because of the Word.
For a time, however, Meaux was the place
where true religion had a shelter. Many ex-
cellent men, whose hearts the Lord had touch-
ed, fled there from the persecution which was
directed against them in other places, and were
kindly received by the bishop.

Margaret, the King’s sister, was now left
alone in Paris, and she used often to write to
THE REFORMATION. 87

the Bishop of Meaux to tell him how lonely
she felt since her Christian friends were driven
away, and to ask his advice. The bishop
wrote to her to comfort her. Who could have
thought that the writer of such Christian let-
ters as Briconnet penned at this time, should
afterwards deny the truths of Christ’s religion
sooner than part with the honours and riches
of the world? But so it was.

In the meantime the truth was spreading at
Meaux. At first private meetings for prayer
and reading the Bible were held, and at last
the Gospel was preached in the churches. On
the 30th of October, 1522, Levevre published
the four Gospels in French, and in the follow-
ing year the whole of the New Testament was
printed, and this was followed the year after
by the printing of the Psalms. So ardent was
the desire to know the truth contained in the
Holy Scriptures, that poor tradesmen used to
converse with each other about them while
engaged at their work, and Sundays and holi-
days were spent in reading them, that they
might learn the way of the Lord. These poor
86 A HISTORY oF

people used to speak about the Bible to the la-
bourers, who came in great numbers at harvest
time to reap the corn which grew about Meaux;
and in this way the light went out from this
favoured spot to other parts of France.
Briconnet himself preached the Gospel from
the pulpit, and tried to spread abroad (to use
his own words) “that infinite, sweet, mild,
true, and only light, which enlightens every one
who receives it, and makes him a Son of God.”
He besought his flock not to listen to those
who would turn them aside from the Word.
‘Though an angel from heaven,” said he,
«should preach any other Gospel, do not listen
to him.” Sometimes, looking to the persecu-
tion which threatened him, he seemed to fear
that his courage would fail, and that he might
turn aside from Christ, and he would say to
his hearers—‘‘Even should I, your bishop,
change my speech and my doctrine, beware of
changing like me.” At that time it did not
seem likely that such a calamity should ever
happen. Not only was the Word of God faith-
fully preached, but the morals of the people
THE REFORMATION. 89

were improved, superstition was put down, and
all works of love and charity were practised.
But man is ever unsteady and inconsiant in
following that which is good.

The enemies of God saw with much anger
the good work which was going on at Meaux.
There lived in that place a monk named Roma,
who was a great enemy to true religion. One
day when Levevre and Farel, with other friends
of the Reformation, were conversing together,
Roma was present. Levevre spoke with great
delight how the Gospel was gaining the hearts
of men, and he said that he hoped that it
would spread all over France, and everywhere
overturn the inventions of men. When Roma
heard this he started up in a great rage, and
said—‘* Then I and all the monks and priests
will stir up the people to put down the Gospel
with the sword, and if the King allows you to
preach, we will drive him out of his kingdom
by his own subjects.”

This was not an idle threat. The lazy monks,
who lived by begging, found that the Gospel
had so opened the eyes of the people, that
90 A HISTORY OF

many refused to give them money and food, as
they used to do, and therefore they were wil-
ling to join Roma in his warfare against the
preachers. A crowd of these bad men went to
the bishop's house, and called upon him with a
loud voice to * crush the heresy,” as they called
the Gospel. Bricgonnet was much terrified,
but he did not yield, for he knew that Roma
and the monks were bad men. The monks
were much annoyed. Their leaders set out for
Paris, and accused the bishop before the par-
liament as a favourer of heresy. Briconnet’s
courage now failed. He yielded at first in
what seemed to be little matters, until, at
last, he was drawn on to deny the truth of the
Gospel, and to preach the errors of Popery.
Levevre, too, was frightened into silence; and
Farel, who would not deny Christ or His
truth, was compelled to fly. The monks
gloried in their supposed victory. They had
silenced or banished the preachers. But this
was not enough. Rome has ever thirsted for
the blood of God’s people, and without this her
partisans could not be satisfied.
THE REFORMATION. 91

There was at Meaux a wool-carder named
John Le Clerc. This humble tradesman had
learned true religion from the reading of the
Bible. He was gifted with great ability to
speak about the things of God; and when
Briconnet turned back to the errors of Po-
pery, and others who had not fled from Meaux
were afraid to speak for Christ, this faithful
man used to go from house to house encourag-
ing the people to trust in the Lord. He also
wrote a paper against the Antichrist of Rome,
and posted it on the gates of the Cathedral.
The priests and their followers were furious.
Le Clere was seized and thrown into prison.
After a few days he was brought to trial, and
condemned to be whipped on three successive
days, and then branded on the forehead with
a hot iron. When this cruel sentence was
executed, some of the crowd who followed the
martyr yelled with delight, others looked on
with silent pity; but his mother, who was a
faithful Christian, encouraged him with her
words and looks. When the hot iron was
placed on his forehead, the force of a mother's
92 A HISTORY OF

love overcame her for a moment, and she gave
a loud shriek; but faith supported her, and she
cried, with a voice which made the cruel priests
tremble—* Glory toJesus Christ and to His wit-
nesses.” This good woman remembered that
Jesus Christ had said— He that loveth son or
daughter more than me, is not worthy of me.”

After this, Le Clerc went to live in Metz,
and here he preached the Gospel as faithfully
as he had done at Meaux, being assisted by a
converted friar, named Chatelaus, and a very
learned man, called Master Agrippa, who had
found the way of life from reading Luther's
writings. Lambert, another converted friar,
of whom I told you something in the history
of the German Reformation, also laboured for
a while in this city, after his return from Wit-
temberg. The Gospel, by the ministry of
these good men, had gained over some of the
chief families in Metz, but the common people
still continued to follow the old superstitious
ways of Popery, and Le Clerc’s heart was
pained to see this great city still plunged in
idolatry.
THE REFORMATION, 93

On a certain day the people used to go to a
chapel, which was about a league from the
city, to worship the images of the Virgin and
some celebrated saints, vainly thinking that by
thus breaking God's plain command they would
obtain the pardon of their sins. On the eve of
this day Le Clere was thinking of what God
had said—** Thou shalt not bow down to their
Gods ; but thou shalt utterly overthrow them,
and quite break down their images.” He
thought that this command was addressed to
him, and his courageous and faithful soul at
once determined on what he should do. He
went to the chapel on that night, he took down
the images, broke them to pieces, and scattered
the fragments about the floor of the chapel.
He then returned to the city, which he reached
by daybreak unseen, except by a few persons
as he entered the gates.

All was now in motion in the city, and the
whole of the people, headed by the priests
and monks, and bearing banners, went forth
to worship the images; but when they came
to the chapel and found their gods lying in
94 A HISTORY OF

fragments on the ground, their rage was un-
bounded, and * Death! death! to the wretch
who did this,” was the cry which came from
every mouth. In great haste they returned
to Metz; the suspicion of the enraged crowd
at once fell on Le Clerc. This was confirmed
by those who saw him returning to the city
early in the morning. He was seized and
dragged before the judges. He confessed
that he had destroyed the idols, and exhorted
the people to worship God alone. He was
condemned to be burned alive. He was im-
mediately carried to the place of execution.
His right hand was cut of; then his nose was
torn off with red hot pincers. His arms were
then torn in the same cruel manner ; then his
breasts were burned. While all this was
going on, amid the yells of priests, monks and
people, the martyr was calm and composed,
reciting solemnly 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
THE REYORMATION. 95

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. O Israel, trust thou
in the Lord; He is their help and shield.”
—Psalm, cxv. 4-9. The sight of such courage
daunted the priests, and the rage of the people
was changed into pity. After these tortures
were ended, Le Clerc was burned by a slow
fire. Such was the death of the first martyr
of the Gospel in France.

I cannot close this chapter without calling
my young readers to mark how the Church
of Rome has shewn the cruelty of her nature
in every place. Everywhere has the prophe-
cy been fulfilled, which describes her as
‘¢ drunken with the blood of the saints, and
with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.” I
must also request my young readers to observe
how this part of the history teaches us that
man is nothing, and that all our sufficiency is
of God. If Briconnet had been as faithful and
96 A HISTORY OF

courageous as the holy bishops Cranmer, Rid-
ley, Latimer, Hooper, and Farer, who died for
Christ in England, we might think it was their
learning which made them so strong ; but here
we find a learned bishop going against his own
conscience and denying Christ’s truth, that he
might keep his riches and his title, while an
humble wool-carder confesses his Lord, and
glorifies His name in the midst of the most
dreadful tortures. Thus God chooses the fool-
ish, weak, and despised things of the world to
confound the mighty, that no flesh should glory
in His presence.

Iam sure you admire John Le Clere very
much, as a fearless martyr of Jesus. I often
think with much pleasure of seeing him with
the whole of the noble army of martyrs shining
in the brightness of their Master's glory in His
everlasting kingdom.
THE REFORMATION, 87

CHAPTER XI.

Apostasy and Steadfastnese—William Fare!l—-Persecution—Im-
prudent zeal—A National Calamity turned against the Re-
formers—The Hermit of Livry— His Martyrdom—John Calvin.

Taz cause of Christ still struggled on in France

under heavy trials. Martial Mazurier had

shewn great zeal against Antichrist. He even
threw down with his own hands an image of

St. Francis at Meaux. But when the persecu-

tion became sharp, Mazurier could not bear to

lose his rank and his riches for the sake of

Christ, so he turned back to Popery again,

and even became a zealous seducer and perse-

cutor of the Lord’s people.

But all were not so inconstant. There were
those, who, by God's grace, had received the
good seed in an “ honest and good heart,” and
they brought forth fruit unto perfection.
Among these was a priest named Chatelaus,
who was seized at Metz, and when the priests
could not make him deny his Saviour, they
burnt him alive.
98 A HISTORY OF

Farel, that noble confessor of Christ, still
continued his dangerous labours in his Master's
service. His brothers, Daniel, Walter, and
Claude, were won over by him to the Gospel.
We find him at this time earnestly labouring
in the Gospel at Gap. The priests soon took
the alarm there, and Farel was violently driven
from the city. He then travelled through the
country, preaching in private houses and in
the fields—hiding himself from his enemies in
the woods and caverns. A great number of
poor peasants heard the Gospel from his lips,
and received it.

The persecution in France was so severe that
many good men were obliged to leave their
country ; some of these went to Basle, in Swit-
zerland, and formed a French Protestant
Church. Farel, after some time, joined the
exiles in Basle, where he was kindly received,
as a dear brother in Christ, by A:colampadius.
A warm friendship united these good men—
such friendship will last for ever.

But Farel was always desirous to spread the
Gospel in his own country, and, therefore,
THE REFORMATION. 99

when he was invited to go and preach in Mont-
beliard, he did not for a moment shrink from
the danger. Farel’s labours here were not un-
fruitful. ‘On every side,” said he, in a letter
to a friend, “‘ men are springing up, who de-
vote all their powers and their lives to extend
the kingdom of Christ as widely as possible.”
At Lyons also there was a stir, where the
Gospel was publicly preached, with the sanction
of the King’s sister Margaret.

At Montbeliard the Gospel continued to
spread, until an imprudent act of Farel’s
obliged him to fly from the city. One day he
was walking on the banks of a little river,
which runs through the town, when, on reach-
ing the bridge, he met a crowd of people saying
prayers to St. Anthony, while two priests
marched infront, carrying an image of the saint.
Farel said to himself—** Shall I give way ?—
shall I hide myself? No,” he said; ‘this
would be an act of cowardly unbelief.” He
boldly advanced, seized the image out of the
priest’s hands,’and threw it into the river ; then,
turning to the astonished crowd, he said, ‘Poor
100 A HISTORY OF

idolaters, will ye never forsake your idolatry !”
The crowd, struck with awe, stood still for a
moment. Some one in the crowd cried out,
«The image is drowning.” Shouts of rage
were heard in an instant, and all vowed that
they would tear in pieces the wretch who had
thrown the object of their worship into the
water. But Farel, we know not how, escaped
from their violence.

We do not praise this act of Farel’s; he had
no right to use such violence; still we must
confess that there is something more noble in
the zeal of the Reformer than that cold pru-
dence which shrinks from the least danger, and
fears to make the least sacrifice to forward the
kingdom of God. Farel, on account of this
act, was obliged to hide himself from the rage
of the people, and at last to quit Montbeliard.

About this time a great calamity befell
France: the king was taken prisoner in bat-
tle, by the Emperor Charles V. The nation
was sunk in the deepest sorrow at this disgrace,
and the priests accordingly told them, that this
misfortune came upon the country as a judg-
THE REFORMATION. 101

ment from God, because they permitted the
Reformers to preach the Gospel. In an ad-
dress, published by the Parliament at this time,
they said—‘*‘ Heresy has raised its head among
us; and the King, by neglecting to bring the
heretics to the scaffold, has drawn down the
wrath of heaven upon the nation.” The priests
in their pulpits preached the same thing. One
of these bad men said in a sermon— We must
use force against the persons of these false
teachers (meaning the Reformers) ; for those
who resist the light must be put down by tor-
ture and by terror.”

The Pope was very well pleased at this, and
wrote a letter to the Parliament ordering the
Inquisition to be set up in France. Thus a
terrible blow was given to the Reformation.
Some, from fear of death, denied Christ and
His truth; others manfully confessed him, and
were burnt; among the latter, the most re-
markable were, a pastor named Schuch, a
young man vamed James Pavanne, and the
Hermit of Livry, near Paris. I must tell you
something about this last-mentioned person.
102 A HISTORY oF

‘When he was a Papist he was grieved at the
wickedness of the world, and went to live alone
in the forest of Livry, three leagues from Paris.
As he wandered about, he met with some peo-
ple from Meaux, who told him how Jesus
Christ had made full atonement for the sins of
believers. He believed the glad tidings, and
his heart was so full of joy in the knowledge of
this great truth that he could not be silent.
He went from house to house, speaking of the
Gospel of Christ to the peasants, telling them
that it told them of free and full pardon, which
was far better than the priests’ absolutions.
The rumour of this soon reached the priests in
Paris. The Hermit was dragged from the
forest, thrown into prison, and condemned to
be burnt to death by a slow fire. The great
bell of the church of Notre Dame in Paris was
sounded ; a large crowd was gathered. The
Hermit, clothed in garments covered with pic-
tures of devils, was led out before the gates of
the church, calm and firm; the priests in vain
tried to make him confess, or worship a crucifix
which they held before him; he would say no-
THE REFORMATION. 103

thing, but that his sole hope was in the pardon
of God. Some of the priests, seeing how firm
he was, and that his constancy was making an
impression on the people, cried aloud, “ He is
damned ; they’re leading him to hell-fire.” The
great bell, which had continued to toll, was now
silent, and the martyr having declared, in answer
to the last question of his enemies, that he was
resolved to die in the faith of his Lord Jesus
Christ, was burnt to death by a slow fire.

But while wicked men were thus destroying
Christ’s faithful witnesses, God was prepar-
ing mightier ones to fill their places. Among
the people who heard the sound of the bell
which rung at the burning of the ‘‘ Hermit
of Livry,” was a young scholar, of sixteen,
named John Calvin, a student at the college
of La Marche. Brought up in the false ways
of the Church of Rome, instead of mourning
over the cruel fate of the martyrs, he thought
they were treated as they deserved. The
blood which flowed in Paris made him think
that the religion for which the victims suf-
fered must be very bad. But when God af-
104 a HISTORY OF

terwards enlightened his mind, the recollec-
tion of these horrers could not hold him back
from entering on that path which seemed to
lead only to the prison and the stake.

John Calvin, when at college, was remark-
able for the purity of his morals. He had a
great horror of sin, and used to reprove his
fellow-students so sharply for it, that they gave
him the nickname of the accusative case.

He was also very clever; indeed, he was so
quick in learning, that his class-fellows could
not keep up to him, so that his master was
obliged to take him out of the class, and let
him go on singly to fresh studies. Such
was the youth who was destined in the pur-
pose of God ,to take a leading part in expos-
ing the errors of Popery, and in restoring the
Christianity which was taught by Christ and
His Apostles.

When John Calvin was a little boy, it was
& common practice in the Church of Rome
to give the titles of bishops and priests to
children, and to allow them a sum of money
yearly. A little boy, only four years old, was
THE REFORMATION. 105

made coadjutor (or helper) to the Bishop of
Metz; another little boy, who was only
eight years old, was made Cardinal by Leo
X.; and a little girl, only seven years old, was
called Mother Angelica, and put to rule as
helper over the nunnery of Port Royal. So
John Calvin was given a benefice before he
was twelve years of age. On the eve of Cor-
pus Christi, the bishop solemly cut off the
child’s hair, and by this ceremony John be-
came a member of the clergy, and had the
privilege of holding a benefice without resid.
ing on the spot. How little did the bishop,
and those who witnessed this solemn mockery,
think that this child should one day expose
the errors of that Church, to the service of
which he was thus early enlisted.

In the meantime, the friends of the Pope
carried on a murderous persecution against
the disciples of Christ. So bold were they
become, that the chaplain of Margaret, the
King's sister, Michael d’Orande, was threatened
with death, if he did not cease to preach the
Gospel, Another person of high rank, An-

F2
106 A HISTORY OF

thony Papillen, a sincere disciple of Christ,
and greatly beloved as such by Margaret, died
at this time; and the general report even
among the enemies of the truth was, that he
was poisoned. The wickedness of the Church
of Rome will never be fully known until that
great day when the earth shall no more cover
her slain.
THE REFORMATION. 107

CHAPTER XII.

John Calvin~~He studies the Bible—Is forced to fly from Paris
—-The King condemns the Reformation, and puts eight Pro-
testants to death-—Calvin quits France—Goes to Geneva—Ie
banished thence, but soon recalled—His Labours—HisCruelty
to Servetus--Founds a College—His last Sickness and Death.

I rotp you something about John Calvin in

the last chapter, and before I proceed with the

history of the Reformation in France, I must
tell you something more about that great Re-
former. John Calvin was intended for the
priesthood of the Romish Church; as a pre-
paration for it, the top of his head was shaved,
and he was even permitted to preach, but he
never acted as a priest—that is, he never pre-
tended to change a wafer into Christ, and to
offer Him up as a sacrifice, which the priests
of the Church of Rome wickedly pretend to
do.

Calvin had a relation named Olivetan, who
was a believer in Christ. This good ma
108 4 HISTORY OF

tranglated the Bible into French, and, for his
reward, was poisoned at Rome the year after
the Bible was printed. Olivetan advised Cal-
vin to study the Bible, as the only book in
which he could learn the true religion of
Jesus Christ; and Calvin took his advice,
although he had at this time given up all
thoughts of becoming a clergyman, and was
studying the law, that he might become a
lawyer.

While Calvin was studying the law, he was
very diligent in trying to spread the know-
Jedge of the true religion of Christ. Indeed,
his taste led him to the study of Divine truth,
in preference to every other subject ; and when
his father died, in 1532, he returned to Paris,
determined to become a minister of Jesus
Christ. While he was in Paris, he became
acquainted with Nicholas Cope, the Rector of
the University. Cope was to deliver a lec-
ture on the feast of All Saints, and Calvin
persuaded him to tell the people some of the
truths of the Bible. The priests and some
members of Parliament were much enraged
THE REFORMATION. 109

at this, and ordered Cope to appear before
them, but by the advice of some of his friends,
he made his escape to Basle. The priests
then sent men to take Calvin, and he only
escaped from them by dropping from the win-
dow of his bed-room by his sheets. His
pursuers searched his study, and seized many
letters, by which the priests found out seve-
ral who used to write to Calvin, and were
friendly to Christ’s true religion. After this,
Calvin could not remain long in any place
with safety, but he wandered about from
place to place, teaching those who believed in
Christ, who used to join him in celebrating
the Lord’s Supper, in caves or retired gardens.

Gerard de Rousel and Corald, two Augus-
tinian monks, being protected by Margaret, the
King’s sister, continued in Paris for two years,
preaching the Gospel. At last, they were
dragged out of their pulpits, and shut up in
prison. The King himself was so grieved at
the manner in which Christ’s true religion was
spreading, that he ordered a public procession,
in which, with his Queen and children, he
110 A HISTORY OF

walked bare-headed, carrying a lighted taper
in his hand ; and he did this to show how sorry
he was for the spread of what he called heresy.
At the same time, he commanded that eight
Protestants should be burned alive, in fourprin-
cipal parts of the city; and he swore before all
the people, that he would not spare his own
children, if they became tainted with the Pro-
testant faith.

Calvin now saw that it was fall time for
him to quit France, and he fixed on Basle as
the place of his retreat; he remained there for
some time, when he was led by God's provi-
dence to Geneva.

William Farel, that zealous servant of Christ,
of whom you have already heard, and another
good man, Peter Viret, had succeeded, at the
hazard of their lives, in spreading the know-
ledge of true religion to a great extent in the
city of Geneva. The priests were so full of
malice against them, that they induced a wicked
woman to pretend that she was a convert, and
to hire herself as cook at the house where Farel
and his friends lodged and boarded, in order
THE BEFORMATION. ill

that she might poison them. On the day when
she mixed the poison with their food, Farel did
not dine at home, but Viret partook of the meal,
and, although the poison did not immediately
kill him, it destroyed his health, and he pined
away. This miserable woman confessed her
crime, and was executed, and one of the priests
whom she named as having induced her to
commit the murder, was imprisoned. On the
27th of August, 1535, the Senate decreed that
the Reformed faith should be the religion of the
State.

Such was the state of things at Geneva, when
Calvin arrived. He was induced by Farel to
remain in that city, and, by the united votes of
the Church and the magistrates, be was chosen
preacher and professor of divinity. But the
faithful servant of Christ must never expect a
continuance of favour from those who are not
Christians in heart, as well as outwardly. Cal-
- vin saw much in the conduct of the people of
Geneva which was contrary to the purity of
the Gospel. He was also grieved to observe a
disposition to mix up the old superstitions with
112 A HISTORY OF

Christ’s ordinances, and he did not fail to lift
up his voice against these abuses; but his
faithfulness gave so much offence, that the
Government declared that Calvin should be
banished from the city. When Calvin was
told of this unrighteous sentence, and that he
should leave the city within two days, he said—
«Truly, if I had served man, I should have
had but a poor reward. But 'tis all well; I
have served one who always fulfils His pro-
mises to his servants.”

Calvin retired to Zurich, and thence to Basle
and Strasburgh, where he met many friends ofthe
Reformation, who gave him a cordial welcome.
Thus it is that God mixes the bitter and the
sweet for His servants. Had they nothing but
trials, they would faint under the burthen ; but,
on the other hand, if they enjoyed unmixed
prosperity, they would forget the glorious rest
to which their Master calls them. In Stras-
burgh, Calvin was appointed professor of di-*
vinity, and, by the consent of the magistrates,
he founded a French Church, of which he
became the minister there. Also, he married
THE REFORMATION. 118

the widow of a good man, a lady ofhigh repute
for her piety ; they lived happily together for
nine years, when she died, leaving one son, who
also died before his father.

The people of Geneva soon began to lament
the loss of the faithful minister of Christ, who
had been banished from their city, and made
great efforts to induce him to return. Calvin
was at first unwilling to do so, but his friend
Bucer at last persuaded him. On the 13th of
September, he entered Geneva, amid the shouts
of the people. Calvin addressed-the citizens,
reminding them of their sins, and telling them
plainly that if they wished to keep him among
them as their minister, they should reform their
lives. Calvin's labours in Geneva were inces-
sant; besides preaching twice on every second
Sunday, he was engaged in public teaching,
or regulating the discipline of the Church, on
every day of the week except Saturday. Many
foreigners came to live in Geneva, that they
might enjoy the benefit of his ministry; and
his fame was so great, that his judgment was
sought from all the countries of Europe. It
il4 A HISTORY OF

is wonderful how a person so actively em-
ployed, could find time to write all the excel-
lent books which Calvin left after him. I
cannot tell you all the troubles which Calvin
encountered in upholding Christ’s true reli-
gion against its open enemies and pretended
friends; but I must notice a painful fact in his
life, which his friends will not defend, and
which his enemies bring forward with unholy
boasting, to the discredit of the Reformer.
There was a bad, but very clever man,
named Servetus, a native of Spain. This man
wrote several books against the true Gospel of
Christ, in which he denied that our Blessed
Lord was God. Calvin and the other Reform.
ers were much grieved at the printing of such
wicked works. Calvin did all he could to re-
claim Servetus from his errors, by writing to
him, but without effect. At length, Servetus
came to Geneva, and remained there for several
weeks, defending his blasphemies in the most
offensive manner. He was seized by the Go-
vernment, and confined in prison. He was

tried, and condemned to be burnt alive. Cal-
THE REFORMATION. 115

vin had taken an active part in the imprison.
ment of Servetus, and there is little doubt but
that he approved of the horrible sentence pro-
nounced upon him. This part of the Reform.
er’s conduct cannot be defended. Nothing
could be more contrary to the religion of Christ.
The duty of His ministers towards such wn
happy persons as Servetus is, to try to convinee
them of their errors by Scripture; but if this
method of reclaiming them fails, they are to be
left to the judgment of God, to whom alone
they have to answer for their errors. The fear
of bodily punishment may make a man conceal
his real opinions, but it cannot change them.
All we can say for Calvin in this matter is, that
the Swiss Reformers, without exception, agreed
with him in thinking that Servetus should be
put to death for his errors. Nor should we be
too hasty to blame them. We should recollect
that they had all been from infancy members
of the Church of Rome, which punishes with
every severity of cruelty those who deny the
truth of her doctrines. It is an established
principle in that Church, that heresy is to be
116 A HISTORY OF

punished by death, and we need not wonder
that the Reformers did not all at once so learn
the mind of Christ, as to give up this false
principle. Let us be thankful that the light of
the Bible has now corrected this great error, 80
that to put a man to death for his religious
opinions would be considered by every Protes-
tant Church as a murder. The Church of
Rome alone holds fast to this false principle,
and acts upon it when she can; and she will
continue to do so until the Lord destroys her
by the brightness of His coming. She never
can mend, for she has set aside the Bible, and
proudly boasts that she cannot err.

The last great act of Calvin's life was his
persuading the Government at Geneva to es-
tablish a College, with three Professors—Greek,
Hebrew, and Philosophy. His health was now
fast failing, but he could not be induced to re-
lax his labours, for ‘ nothing,” he said, “* was
more troublesome to him than an idle life.”
On the 2nd of February, 1564, he delivered
his last sermon. He was now afilicted with
mapy diseases. In his agonies he was often
THE REFORMATION. 117

heard to say, with uplifted eyes, ‘ How long,
O Lord?” But as soon as he got a little relief
he would return to his reading, or take up his
pen; and when his friends asked him to give
himself some rest, he replied, “ Would you,
that when the Master comes he should find me
idle?”

He attended a meeting of the ministers on
the 10th of March, and a meeting of the ma-
gistrates on the 27th. His sickly appearance
drew tears from many eyes, as he affectionately
bid farewell to his friends, for he knew that he
should never meet them again.

On Easter Sunday he was carried, by his own
earnest desire, to the church, where he received
the sacrament from Beza, joining in the services
with a cheerful countenance, but a feeble voice.
On the 27th and 28th of April he delivered
charges to eome members of the Government
and the ministers, full of Christian wisdom.
Hearing that his friend, William Farel, now
seventy-five years of age, was coming from
Neufchatel to see him, he wrote to him in the
most affectionate manner to spare himeelf the
118 A HISTORY OF

fatigue of the journey, but this faithful friend
could not deny himself the gratification of seeing
the great Reformer once more before their se-
paration on earth. From this time to the
period of his death he was almost in continual
prayer. At eight o'clock, on the evening of
the 17th, he gently departed. He was buried
the next day without any parade, and, according
to his own desire, no tomb was set up to mark
the spot where his remains were laid. But he
needs no such memorial ; the epitaph of this
great and good man has been and will be per-
petuated in the hearts of thousands, from ge-
neration to generation, who love the holy prin-
ciples which he so fearlessly and ably defended,
and who hope to meet him in that day when
Jesus Christ shall return in glory to this earth,
and all His saints with Him.
THR REFORMATION. 119

CHAPTER XIII.

The Protestants multiply in France—Take up Arms in defence
of their Liberty—Crafty Cruelty of Charles [X.—Coligni—
Massecre of &t. Bartholomew—Rejoicings at Rome— Henry IV.
—Edict of Nantee—Louis KIV.—Bribery and Apostasy—The
Dragonades.

We must now return to the history of the Re-
formation in France. I told you in the last
chapter how the persecution against the people
of God was so sharp in that kingdom, under
Henry of Navarre, that John Calvin fled out
of the country to avoid it. Francis II., who
succeeded Henry of Navarre, was also a cruel
persecutor of the Protestants; but still their
number continued to increase, and they became
so numerous and strong a party, that they took
up arms in defence of their liberty, in the reign
of Charles [X., who succeeded to the throne
of France, in 1560, and who was, as you will
soon hear, a cruel persecutor of the Lord’s
people.
120 A HISTORY OF

The war lasted, with little interruption, for
seven years. Peace was then made, and the
Protestants were promised to be permitted to
follow the religion of the Bible without inter-
ruption. After this the King pretended to feel
kindly towards his Protestant subjects. He
invited, their leader, the Admiral Coligni, to
the court, and spoke so kindly to him that
he quite deceived him, although many of his
friends cautioned him not to trust the King’s
fair speeches.

On the 22nd of August, 1571, as Coligni
was walking from the King’s palace to his
lodgings, a shot was fired at him from a win-
dow, which carried away the second finger of
his right hand, and wounded him severely in
his left arm.

Coligni believed that he received this injury
from the Duke of Guise, who was the head of
the Pope's party. Coligni’s friends now ad-
vised him to leave Paris, and if any one at-
tempted to hinder him, they were strong enough
to have forced their way out of the city. Co-
ligni’s friends wished him to get away from the
THE REFORMATION. 121

King, for they knew that he was his enemy,
but they could not persuade him. The crafty
Charles, on the evening of the day that Coligni
was wounded, called upon him and spoke to him
very kindly, telling him at the same time that
he would order his friends to lodge about his
house, and that he would hinder the Papists
from entering that part of the city after it was
dark. All this satisfied the Admiral that the
King was his sincere friend. We shall now see
how much he was deceived.

At the very time that the wicked King was
pretending such kindness to the Protestants,
he was hatching a dreadful plot for their de-
struction. The execution of this bloody de-
sign was entrusted to the Duke of Guise.
A large number of soldiers were ordered to be
in arms, and when a great bell was rung at
midnight, they were to do their dreadful work.
Some say, that as the fatal hour drew near, the
King’s conscience troubled him about shedding
the blood of so many of his subjects, who had
come to Paris at his command and trusting
his promise; but his mother, more cruel and

G
122 A HISTORY OF

hardened than himself, called him a coward,
and set before him the great danger he was in
from the Protestants, and so induced him to
give his consent to the massacre. Others say
that the King himself urged on the massacre,
and that, when some proposed to murder only
the leaders, he cried out—‘If any are to die,
let there not be one left to reproach me with
having broken my promise.” It is probable
that both accounts are true. The King may at
first have hesitated, but when he resisted the
warning of conscience, there was nothing to
hold in the cruelty of his nature, and his feet
ran swifter than ever to shed blood.

Midnight at length came—the fatal bell
tolled—a body of Swiss soldiers, who were all
Papists, headed by the Duke of Guise, who
was accompanied by several persons of rank,
attacked the Admiral’s house. Having forced
open the doors, the foremost of the murderers
rushed into his bedroom. He asked the old
man, if he was Coligni? He replied that he
was, adding, ‘“‘ Young man, respect these gray
hairs ;” to which he replied by running him
THE REFORMATION. 123

through ihe body with a sword. The body
was then thrown out of the window ; as soon
ag it fell to the ground, the Duke of Guise,
wiping the blood off the face, kicked it with
his foot. The body was then given‘up to the
fury of the Popish rabble, who dragged it to
the common gallows, where they hung it by
the feet. The head being cut off, was carried
as a bloody present to the King's mother,
who caused it to be embalmed, and sent to
the Pope of Rome.

In the Louvre, several Protestants were mur-
dered under the King’s eye, while his mother
stood at the window looking on these dreadful
scenes with much enjoyment. And the King,
seeing the Protestants who dwelt on the
other side of the river flying for their lives,
called for his long gun, and fired upon them.
In the space of three or four days, ten thou-
send Protestants were destroyed in the city of
Paris, by the most cruel deaths which malice
itself could invent. Nor was this dreadful
massacre confined to the city of Paris alone.
By order of the King, the cities which were
124 4 HISTORY OF

chiefly inhabited by Protestants, were visited
with like cruelty; so that in the space of two
months, 30,000* Protestants were butchered.
This dreadful massacre is generally known as
the Massacre of St. Bartholomew, because it
took place on the “eve of St. Bartholomew’s
day.

When the news of this dreadful butchery
reached Rome, it was received by the Pope
and his priests with the greatest joy. They
were particularly glad to hear that it was
done by express command of the King. The
Pope, and a great many of his priests marched
to the church of St. Mark, in solemn proces-
sion, to thank God; and on the following Mon-
day a mass was performed—a jubilee, or time
of rejoicing, in which the Pope pretended to
forgive people their sins, was published through
the whole of Europe—the cannons of St.
Angelo were fired—the whole city illuminated;
and to prove to all men in every age what a
bloody superstition Popery is, a medal was

* Some historians assert that not less than 100,000 perished,
THE REFORMATION. 125

struck, on one side of which was a likeness of
Gregory XITI., and on the other, an angel
slaying the poor Protestants, with these words
on the medal—** Huguenotorum Strages,” that
is, the slaughter of the Protestants.

In 1572, the miserable King who planned
and carried out the St. Bartholomew massacre,
died under the most terrible agonies of mind
and body. He was succeeded by Henry III.,
in whose reign the Protestants again took up
arms, and obliged the King to show them some
justice. Henry IIL., being soon after mur-
dered by a monk, named James Clement, was
succeeded by Henry IV., who was a Protes.
tant; but as the Papists gave him much oppo-
sition, he became a Roman Catholic, to please
them. I have said that he was a Protestant,
but he was only onei n name; had he been a
true Protestant, he would not have given up
a heavenly crown for an earthly one. Nor did
he even gain what he sought; he died by the
hand of one of the party he tried to please,
for he was stabbed to death in his carriage
on the 10th May, 1608, by a man named
126 A HISTORY OF

Ravilliac, who was employed by the Jesuits
to do the bloody deed. It was in Henry's
reign that the celebrated Edict of Nantes was
granted. By this, the Protestants had full
power to worship God according to his Word;
and, bad it always remained in force, France
would probably be a Protestant country at
this day: The Pope’s priests knew this well,
and therefore they spared no pains to get this
just law set aside, and we shall see how sadly

they succeeded. .

The next King of France was Louis XIII.
He, too, was a persecutor of the Protestants,
notwithstanding the Edict of Nantes. The
Protestants were again forced to take arms
in defence of their liberties, and-the Edict of
Nantes was confirmed.

We now come to the reign of Lous XIV.,
called the Great ; but I think when you hear
what he was, and what he did, you will see
that the praise of the world is often bestowed
most largely on the most unworthy, and that
those things which are highly esteemed among
men, are an abomination in the sight of God.
THE REFORMATION. 127

This miserable King was as great a slave
to his own lusts as he was to the Pope, for
at the very time that he was doing the Pope’s
will, by trying to force every Protestant in
France to deny the true faith of Christ, he
was living in adultery with a wicked woman,
named Montespan, who had forsaken her hus-
band, and who was as devoted to the Pope as
Louis himself. This union of superstition and
gross immoralty is not uncommon.*

For some years the Pope's party thought
much how they could induce the Protestants
to forsake the true religion, and to join them
in their wicked superstition. The first plan
which they tried was bribery. No man was
appointed to any office in the State but a Pa-
pist, and to abjure the true faith was certain
of being followed by promotion. By this
means, many Protestants of high rank, who
loved this present evil world more than Christ,
were drawn over to Popery. I shall tell you

® It is said that Louis XIV., the vile adulterer anid cruel op-
pressor and murderer of God's people, never mised hearing
mass daily during his whole life, except twice.
128 A HISTORY OF

one instance of this. A Protestant gentleman,
named Lesdigniares, sought the situation of
Constable, one of the highest offices under the
Government, but the King would not appoint
him, because he refused to become a Papist.
But thetemptation was too strong for him, and
after a while he consented to the King’s terms.
Claude Bullion, who had before denied the
faith, put this question to him on the day of
abjuration— Do you believe in Transubstan-
tiation?” “Yes.” ‘Then you are to be a
Constable?” Lesdigniares replied, “ that he
was ever obedient to the command of the
King,” and, turning to those who were present,
the vile apostate said—** So now, gentlemen, we
will go to mass.” This conversion, brought
about by the same means which induced Judas
to betray Christ, was celebrated with great
pomp for four days, and the convert received
the sword of state from the King’s own band.
Miserable man! he forgot the solemn words of
Christ—‘* What shall it profit a man, though
he should gain the whole world, and loose his
own soul?”
THE REFORMATION. 129

But this method of conversion only told upon
men of high station; it did not reach the com-
mon people; and as the King sought nothing
less than the bringing back of the whole nation
to Popery, he invented a method for converting
them too. I shall tell you something about it
here, but the full account of it must be kept
for the next chapter.

The King sent a Popish priest, called a mis-
sionary, to 8 Protestant town or district, who
called on all the inhabitants to be converted.
When this summons was refused, the priest
was followed by a regiment of dragoons. The
soldiers, by order of the King, were lodged at
the Protestant houses, where they carried on
every sort of plunder and violence. They
broke their furniture—threw about their corn
—and let their wine run about their cellars;
while others carried their plate and other
valuable articles to the market-place, and sold
them to the Papists. By such means as these
the Protestants of Montauban alone, in four or
five days, were robbed of above a million of
money. But this was not the worst.

a2
130 A HISTORY OF

They turned the dining-rooms of gentlemen
into stables for their horses, and treated the
owners of the houses with every sort of insult
and cruelty, lashing them about from one to
another, day and night, not suffering them to
eat or drink; and when they began to sink
under fatigue and pain, the Pope's cruel sol-
diers laid them on a bed, and when they were
a little recovered they repeated the same tor-
tures.

In several places the Pope’s dragoons burned
the hands and feet of men, and the breasts of
women with red-hot irons; they stripped the
women, and hung them up by the feet and
arms, and thus exposed them naked to public
view. Mothers who were giving suck were
tied to posts, while their infants were placed
within their sight, gasping for the nourishment
which the afflicted mothers could not give
them; some they bound before a great fire,
and when they were half roasted they let them
go. They hung up men and women by the
hair, and set fire to damp straw under them,
the smoke of which suffocated them ; others,
THE REFORMATION. 181

with a rope round their bodies, were plunged
into wells ; some they made drunk, by pouring
wine down their throats with funnels, and then,
when reason was gone, they made them say
that they were Papists; some they cut with
knives, and others were seized by the nose
and other parts of the body with red-hot pin.
cers. In some places they tied fathers and
husbands to the bed-posts, and then, before
their eyes, treated their wives and daughters in
a manner that delicacy will not suffer me to
mention. If any tried to escape, they pursued
them to the woods and fields, where they shot
them like wild beasts. The Popish priests
feasted their eyes with these horrid doings,
making them matter for sport and laughter.
Such were the celebrated Dragonades, by
which Louis XIV., with the approval of the
Pope and his priests, laboured to put down,
and with too much success, Christ’s true reli-
gion in France. I shall tell you more about
these deeds of darkness in the next chapter ;
but I cannot close this without calling upon
my young readers to praise God, whose good
132 A HISTORY OF

providence has delivered us from the Pope's
cruel yoke. I must also ask them to mark
how this part of the history of the Reformation
shows how the prophecies of the Bible about
the cruelty of the Pope and the Church of
Rome have been fulfilled. The Prophet
Daniel foretold that the Pope should “ wear
out the saints of the Most High” (chap. vii.
25), and that he should “‘ make war with the
saints, and prevail against them” (verse 21).
And in the Book of Revelations the Church of
Rome is represented as a wicked woman,
‘drunken with the blood of the martyrs of
Jesus."—Rev. xviii. 6. But the same sure
word of prophecy assures us that the success
of the wicked Pope is only for a short time.
** Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death
of his saints.” Christ will soon come again in
great power and glory to reign as a king, and
then the bodies of His murdered saints will rise,
to share for ever the glory and happiness of
His kingdom, and to be living proofs through
eternity to all God’s intelligent creatures that
** Ile is faithful who has promised,”
THE REFORMATION, 133

CHAPTER XIV.

More about the Dragonades—John Migault—His Sufferings for
the Truth—Persecution of a Little Boy, and a Young Woman,
and othere--The Protestants fly to Holland and England—
France much injured—Blind and mad Bigotry of Louis XIV.
—God’s Judgment on the Freneh Nation.

T promisep in the last chapter to tell to my

young readers something more about the dread-

ful cruelties which the French Protestants
suffered under Louis XIV.; and this will end
the history of the Reformation in France.

Such was the terror with which the dragoons
filled ‘the minds of the poor persecuted Protes-
tants, that often when they came to a village
they would pretend to be Roman Catholics,
for the soldiers were not suffered to do any
harm to persons belonging to the Church of
Rome, and this threw a heavier burthen on
the steadfast Protestants, who could not be
frightened into a denial of Christ, for then the
whole support of the soldiers was thrown upon
them, and they were robbed by these cruel
184 A HISTORY OF

men just as they pleased. They demanded a
sum of money from them, and when they could
not pay it, they sold their cattle and furniture
below their value to Roman Catholics, so as to
make up the sum of money they wanted.
There was a faithful Protestant named John
Migault. He was a notary, when a law was
made which disqualified him, as a Protestant,
from following that business. By this means
he was reduced to poverty, and knew not how
to support a large family ; but the Protestants
of Moujon, knowing that he was a good man,
made him reader and registrar of their church.
But he was not long permitted to enjoy this
office. The next summer the dragoons were
sent to that place, and such was the terror of
the people that, within two hours after their
arrival, three of the first Protestant families in
the place denied their faith, and pretended that
they were Roman Catholics. A company of
soldiers rode up to Migault’s door, and the
officer asked Migault, with a stern voice, if he
and his family intended to become Roman
Catholics; and when Migault and his mother
THE REFORMATION. 185

told him that they would not change their re-
ligion, he turned his horse and rode away.
Shortly after, he had fifteen soldiers quartered
upon him, who behaved brutally, and made the
most insolent demands. It was necessary to
send to a neighbouring town to procure nice
food for the soldiers, and so Migault was
allowed to leave his house; he there learned
from some of his Roman Catholic neighbours
who were friendly to him, that his utter ruin
was intended—that the priests intended to have
him dragged by the soldiers to the mass-house,
and that if they could not force him to deny
his faith, they would say he had done so. To
avoid this, the unfortunate man hid himself in
a neighbour's house, and when the dragoons
found that he had escaped from their grasp,
they threatened to burn his wife unless she
would become a Roman Catholic.

In vain did some ladies intercede—the cruel
soldiers would not listen to them, and Migault's
wife would have been put to death had not a
Romish priest, who was a friend to the family,
succeeded in getting her out of the hands of
186 A HISTORY OF

the soldiers, by promising that if he could not
convert her by arguments he would deliver her
up to them again.

The next day every Protestant in the village
denied their faith, to save their substance and
their lives, with the exception of twenty fami-
lies, who left their houses and fled into the
woods when they heard that the dreadful dra-
goons were coming.*

Migault’s young family was a great hin-
drance to him in his flight. After everything
in his house had been sold, the rest was
destroyed—the soldiers broke even the doors
and windows. To increase poor Migault’s
sorrow, one of his children died, and the cruel
priests did all they could to get the body of
the child thrown to the dogs, to be eaten by
them. But his nurse would not consent to

" # Tt must not be thought that the Protestants were always £0
pliant in pretending to renounce their faith. The Duke de
Novilles, who commanded the King's military missionaries, thus
wrote to his royal master :—

“These wretches (meaning faithful Protestants) went to the
gibbet with the firm aesurance of dying as martyrs, and de-
manded no other fsyour than that they might be quickly
executed.”
THE REFORMATION. 187

this, and the remains were buried in the Pro-
testant burial ground.

Migault then removed to a small town called
Manzi, where he supported himself by teaching
a school, but even in this employment persecu-
tion followed him, for a law was made for-
bidding Protestant schoolmasters to take
boarders into their houses, and shortly after
he heard that the dragoons were again coming
to complete the ruin of those families which
had before escaped from them.

But the sufferings of Migault were light
compared with those of other faithful Protes-
tants. At Negreplisse, a town near Montau-
ban, they hung up Isaac Favin by his arm-pits,
and tormented him a whole night by pinching
and tearing off his flesh with pincers. They
made a great fire round a little boy, who was
only ten years old. He was a true believer in
Christ, and when he felt the heat of the fire,
instead of denying his Saviour, he cried out
with hands and eyes uplifted to heaven, “‘ My

‘God, help me!” And when the cruel soldiers
found that the youth was resolved to die rather
188 A HISTORY OF

than deny his faith, they snatched him from the
fire just as he was on the point of being burnt.

The Pope’s missionary dragoons laid hold of
@ youhg woman, and dragged her before the
magistrates. When she refused to abjure her
religion she was ordered to prison; then they
shaved her head, singed her body, and having
stripped her naked, led her through the streets
of the city, where stones were flung at her and
many a blow given to her; then they put her
into a large vessel of water up to her neck, and
when she had remained in it for some time
they took her out, and put on her a shift which
had been steeped in wine, which, as it dried
and stuck to her bruised and wounded body,
they tore off, and put another, which had also
been dipped in wine, in its place. This they
repeated six times, until her whole body was
raw and sore. When all these cruelties could
not shake her trust in Christ, they tied her up
by her heels to a gibbet, and let her hang there,
with her head down, until she died.

Some of the missionary dragoons were quar-
tered in the house of a faithful Protestant.
THE REFORMATION. 139

One day, having drunk plentifully of his wine
and broken all the glasses, they scattered the
fragments over the floor. When they had done
this they ordered their host to appear before
them, and told him that as he would not be of
their religion, he should dance barefooted be-
fore them for their amusement. They then took
off his shoes and drove him about the room,
and when his feet were so Jacerated with the
broken glass that he could no longer stand,
they stripped off his clothes and rolled him
naked about the room, until every part of his
body was full of the fragments of the glass.
After this they dragged him to his bed, and
having sent for a surgeon, they compelled him
to inflict further torments on their victim by
cutting out the pieces of glass with his instru-
ments. Such were the means which the Church
of Rome used to convert the Protestants of
France; and yet there are some so blind as to
deny that that apostate Church is the Babylon
of Revelation, ** drunken with the blood of the
saints and with the blood of the martyrs of
Jesus !”
140 4 HISTORY OF

Pressed by such cruelty on all sides, and
finding no rest for the soles of their feet in
their native country, the Protestants of France
fled by thousands, as fast as they could, to Eng-
land, and Holland, and North America. The
cruel King tried to hinder them, by making a
law that none should quit the kingdom without
his leave ; but, in spite of all that he could do,
they contrived to escape in such numbers, that
Holland was so filled with them, that the Go-
vernment were obliged to write to the King of
Sweden to receive them in his country, as Hol-
land could make room for no more; and the
refugees, as they were called, were so numerous
in England, that eleven regiments were com.
posed entirely of them. There were in London
twenty-two French churches supported by the
Government; about three thousand persons
were supported by public subscription ; many
received grants from the crown, and a great
number supported themselves by their own in-
dustry ; many more settled in Ireland. Some
families of the highest respectability, such as
the Saurins and La Touches, are descended
THE REFORMATION. 141

from these Protestant confessors, and the towns
of Porterlington and Lisburn were inhabited by
them.

France suffered severely from the loss of so
many good people ; for the most estimable of
the nobility and the most skilful and indus.
trious of the working classes were among the
zealous Protestants. But the cruel King, blinded
by his own murderous bigotry, and urged on by
the Pope and his priests, was prepared to sacri-
fice everything, if he could destroy his Protes-
tant subjects. On one occasion, when Louis was
told what injury he did to hiskingdom, he said
he knew it; but added, that he was so bent on
the extirpation of heresy (as he called the reli-
gion of the Bible), ‘ that if the doing it required
that with one hand he should cut off the other,
he would do it.” It should never be forgotten,
that while this wicked King was thus persuading
his conscience that, in murdering God's saints
he was doing God service, he was living in the
open commission of adultery. No wonder that
one who was thus sinning against light should
142 A HISTORY OF

be given over to such blindness as to mistake
evil for good, and good for evil. ,

My young readers may wonder that God
would permit his servants to be so cruelly per-
secuted, without instantly punishing their wick-
ed enemies; but I must remind them that there
is a day of judgment, when He will render to
every man according to his works, and that now
He punishes nations for their iniquity. His
dealings with France prove this most remark.
ably. The priests succeeded in weakening the
Protestant Church so much, that little was heard
of the religion of the Bible—the people thought
that Popery was Christianity. Then, after some
years, there rose up a number of bad men, who
called themselves philosophers. Voltaire was
one of these. They told the people that there
was no such thing as a true religion—that it
was invented by priests to get money for them-
selves, and upheld by kings as it helped them
to keep their subjects obedient to them; and
to prove this they pointed to the foolish cere-
monies and absurd doctrines of Popery, and the
THE REFORMATION. 143

wicked lives of the priests. By this means they
brought the greater number of the French peo-
ple to think with them, that there was no rea-
lity in religion. They rose up in rebellion,
murdered the King and Queen, and overthrew
the Government; they then attacked the priests,
took all their property from them, and treated
them with the same cruelty with which they had
treated the Protestants.

We shall close this sketch of the history of
the Reformation in France in the words of an
author who has written more fully on the same
subject :-—

‘* We cannot but adore and tremble when we
behold the retributive justice of the Almighty
in the late revolutions in France, and especially
in the cruelties inflicted on the Roman Catholic
clergy, who were called to endure those suffer-
ings from the vengeance of infidelity, which they
in their superstitious zeal had inflicted upon the
unhappy Protestants. Besides several millions
of French who have fallen in a war of twenty-
five years, which has more or less scourged every
144 A HISTORY OF

nation in Europe, two millions felt the avenging
hand of God in the horrible massacres of the
Revolution, which extended, like the persecu-
tion inflicted on the Protestants, even to the
unborn babe that perished with its butchered
mother, and the blood of no less than 24,000,
which was shed by the merciless hands of infi-
delity, seemed to silence the voice of that blood
which had so long cried for vengeance from
under the altar of heaven. Their churches were
razed to the ground or left in ruins, like those
of the oppressed Protestants ; the rights of con-
science were denied to them, as they had denied
them to others; they were banished, as the in-
nocent Protestants had been banished by them;
their estates were confiscated, as they had con-
fiscated the estates of others ; and they obtained
their chief asylums in the same countries whither
they had driven the scattered Churches of the
Reformed for refuge. The foreign Protestants
returned good for evil to these persecutors, who,
imbued with the spirit of their fathers, were
obliged to seek shelter in the hated bosom of
THE REFORMATION. 145

heretics, Can we call these facts to recollec-
tion, together with the devastations of the Pa-
pal territories, without exclaiming—* Verily
there is a God that judgeth the earth! Great
and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Al.
mighty! Just and true are thy ways, thou
King of Sainis.'” ,
146 A HISTORY OF

‘CHAPTER XV.

The Netherlande—The Reformation—Cruel Law of Charles V.—
Butchery of the Protestants—Philfp IT.—His Tyranny—His
Subjects Rebel—Counts Egmont and Horn—The Prince of
Orange Assassinated-~Dreadful Slaughter of the Protestanta——
The Duke of Alva~—Character of Philip I1.—His Miscrable
Death—Success of the Reformation.

Ir my young readers will look at the map of

Europe, they will see, at the east side of the

English Channel, opposite England, and about

ninety miles from it, a country lying between

the mouths of several great rivers. This coun-
try is called the Netherlands; and I am now
going to tell you how nobly the people acted
there at the time of the Reformation, in casting
off the yoke of Popery, in spite of all that a
cruel tyrant could do to fasten it upon them.
Philip II., King of Spain and son of the

Emperor Charles V., ruled over the Nether-

lands at the time that our history of the Refor-

mation in that country begins. As the people
of the Netherlands often went into Germany,
THE REFORMATION. 147

and the Germans often came into their country,
the great truths which Luther had brought out
from the heap of Popish rubbish“which covered
them, soon became known to the Dutch—for
so the people of the Netherlands are called—and
many received them. In the year 1521, Charles
V. made a law, that any person who believed
what Luther taught, or who printed on paper
any books written by him or his followers,
should be put to death as a traitor ; and several
writers of history tell us that this wicked law
was carried out with such strictness, that not
leas than fifty thousand in the Netherlands were
put to death for following Christ’s true religion
as itis taught in the Bible. Butall this cruelty
could not stop the progress of the Protestant
religion, which continued to spread more and
more.

When Philip II. came to rule over the Ne-
therlands, he was much grieved at the progress
which the Protestant religion had made, and
he was determined to put it down; among
other cruel laws, this bad king enacted that any
persons who attended the Protestant worship
148 A HISTORY OF

should, if they were men, be put to death with
the sword, and if they were women be burned
alive. Persons who even denied Christ and
went back to Popery were punished in this
way ; and even those who gave shelter to Pro-
testants in their houses, or neglected to inform
against them, were punished as severely as if
they were Protestants themselves. Nor were
the persecuted people of Christ even allowed
the benéfit of a fair trial; they were shut up in
prison on suspicion, and put to the torture to
make them accuse themselves when there was
no proof against them. Their accusers were
not brought face to face with them, nor were
they told what was the offence for which they
suffered. This injustice was practised, not by
the regular judges, but by persons appointed
by Philip himself. Besides this, the number
of bishops was increased from five to seventeen.
Philip lived chiefly in Spain, and he could not
depend on any one during his absence to execute
his cruel laws so well as the Pope's bishops.
To make all secure, he filled the country with
Spanish soldiers, who oppressed and insulted
: \
THE REFORMATION. 149

the people. The Dutch were so vexed with
this bad treatment that they even refused to
work at the great banks “which shut out the
ocean, saying, that it would be better for them
to be swallowed up in the sea than to prolong
a life which had become bitter to them by s0
many wrongs.

The dreadful tyranny of Philip caused all
the people to rise up in rebellion against him :
Counts Horn and Egmont, and William Prince
of Orange headed the insurrection, which the
Protestants were forced, by the persecution of
Philip, to join. Counts Horn and Egmont were
taken and beheaded, but the Prince of Orange
fought with great bravery and success against
the whole power of Spain, until he was assassi-
nated by Belthazer Gerard. The Prince of
Orange was a zealous Protestarft, and used all
his influence to help on the Reformation, while,
at the same time, he spared no pains to protect
Roman Catholics from being persecuted on ac~
count of their religion ; but no kindness can
overcome the hatred with which every true
follower of the Pope regards those who are
150 A HISTORY OF

zealous for .Christ’s true religion. The Pope's
priests hated the Prince of Orange on this ac-
count, and they encouraged Gerard to execute
his wicked design, to which the Devil tempted
him, partly by the hope of gaining a great re-
ward, which Philip had promised to any one
who should kill the Prince of Orange. Gerard
fired at the Prince as he left the dining-room
of his palace, into which Gerard had obtained
admittance by forged letters; three balls en-
tered his body. He cried out: “God have
mercy on me and this afflicted people: I am
grievously wounded.” He fell down and died
instantly. Gerard was seized, and when he
was examined, he confessed that he had told his
design to four Jesuits, who assured him that if
he should die in the execution of it, he would
be deemed a martyr by the Church! After
this his conscience seemed to trouble him for
the wicked deed which he had done. But
Popery soon stifled the voice of conscience,
and this miserable dupe of Satan declared,
“that hedid not repent of what he had done; that
he was conscious of having merited the favour
THE REFORMATION. 151

of God, and was sure of going to heaven!”
See how truly Christ said to his Disciples, “The
time cometh when whosoever killeth you will
think that he doeth God service.”

This miserable man was put to death in a
very cruel manner. The judges condemned
him to have his right hand burned off, and the
flesh to be torn from his bones with burning
pincers. Protestants when persecuted should
pray much to be preserved from a bitter and
revengeful spirit. Gerard deserved to die as 8
murderer, but his crime, great as it was, can-
not excuse the cruelty of such a death as his.

The highest praise was given to the mur-
derer by the Romish priests, and in many cities
they would have lighted bonfires and made
public rejoicing, but the people would not suf-
fer them; even the soldiers who used to fight
against the Prince of Orange refused to join in
rejoicing at his death, and openly declared their
condemnation of his murderer. See how Po-
pery, when it becomes thoroughly rooted in the
heart, makes people more like demons than
men. The priests rejoiced at a deed which
152 A HISTORY oF

even rough soldiers, who were used to blood-
shed and death, detested. I cannot tell you in
this little history all that the Protestants of the
Netherlands suffered from the cruelty of Phi-
lip in a war which he waged against them for
thirty years. One of Philip's generals, the
Duke of Alva, boasted that during the time of
his command, which lasted for five years and a-
half, he had put to death eighteen thousand
Protestants, besides a much greater number
whom he had put to the sword in the towns
which he took, and in the field of battle.

My young readers will not wonder at the
horrid cruelties which the Dutch endured
under the tyranny of Philip II., when I tell
them how bad a man he was. He put his wife
to death that he might marry his own niece,
for which the Pope granted him what he called
a dispensation ; he bargained with assassins to
poison the Prince of Orange, and he murdered
his own son, the unhappy Don Carlos. Yet
this vile man was very zealous for the Pope's
religion, and in trying to defend it he never
scrupled to break his most solemn promises
THE REFORMATION. 153

and to practise the most dreadful cruelties.
It was this same Philip IT. who married Queen
Mary of England, and took part in the bloody
persecution of God's people in that kingdom.
He also fitted out the great fleet which he called
the Invincible Armada, which was intended to
invade England, and subdue Queen Elizabeth
and all her subjects to Popish slavery ; but I
told you, in the History of the Reformation in
England, how God brought all his plans to
nothing. The end of this wretched enemy of
God was very miserable. Sores broke out in
his knees and breast, which gave him much
pain; the matter which ran from these sores
was very nauseous: swarms of lice were bred
in it, from which all the pains and skill of his
doctors could not deliver him. He lay in this
miserable state for more than fifty days, but he
gave no sign of repentance ; he was lulled into
a false security by those various means which
Popery has invented to give false peace to the
conscience, and his end showed the truth of
David’s words— The wicked have no bands in
their death, but their strength is firm,”
u2
154 A HISTORY OF

Thus Philip died, but the word of God grew
and increased. God’s purpose to deliver a
large portion of the Netherlands from the yoke
of Popery was accomplished. Throughout the
whole northern division of that country, com-
monly called the Seven United Provinces, the
religion of the Bible was established, although
the kings of the earth took counsel together to
hinder it. Since that time the light which the
Dutch received has been kindled to some extent
by their missionaries in Southern Africa and
parts of the East Indies. Thus we are taught,
when placed in the midst of wars and tumults,
to quiet our hearts, in the certain persuasion
that whatever the issue may be, the purpose of
God will stand; nothing can happen but what
His counsel has determined before to be done.
If His cause prospers against the efforts of His
enemies in any place, the praise is due to Him.
If it is crushed by the hand of persecution; as we
shall see it was in Italy and Spain, it was God’s
purpose that it should be so, and meek submis-
sion to his sovercign will is our duty. “Even
so Father, for so it seemed good in thy sight.”
THE REFORMATION. 155

CHAPTER XVI.

The Reformation in Spain—Early Independence of the Spanish
Church—Wickedness and Ignorance of the Priests—Cardinal
Ximenes opposed to the General Circulation of the Bible~-
The Inquisition of Seville—How the Reformed Faith got
into Spain—A Pessant converted to Christ by the Inqui-
sition—Horrid Murder of Juan Diaz.

Havre told you in the last chapter how God
made the Reformation to triumph, against all
the efforts of its enemies, in the Netherlands, we
now pass into Spain, where we shall find the
Church of Rome crushing the people and the
truth of Christ with the cruel hand of perse-
cution, still answering the description which is
given of her in the book of Revelation under
the simile of a wicked woman, “ drunken with
the blood of the saints, and with the blood f
the martyrs of Jesus.”

The ancient church of Spain was not subject
to the Pope of Rome; for eight hundred years
she withstood that tyrant. I cannot here tell
my young readers by what steps the Roman
156 A HISPORY oF

Antichrist at last succeeded in bringing the
Spaniards under his yoke; but, although they
were at last brought into bondage to him, there
were some faithful men who still held fast to
Christ and His true Gospel.

At the time of the Reformation the priests in
Spain were very ignorant and vicious, and the
people generally were no better than their
teachers. The Holy Scriptures were studied
by few even among the priests, and foolish
legends and lives of saints were read by the
people, for when men “ turn away their ears
from the truth they are turned unto fables.”
They all believed that the wafer was God, and
the question which the priests used commonly
to ask the sick before they gave them the sacra-
ment was, * Do you believe that this wafer is
the body of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost?”
There were even some who said that St. John
became the real son of the Virgin, because
Christ said to the Virgin on the cross, behold
thy son; by which words, said they, the body
of St. John was transubstantiated or changed
into that of Christ. Another person, named
THE REFORMATION. 167

Eimeric, wrote against this foolish notion. But
he did not consider that the same arguments
which would disprove the transubstantiation of
St. John’s body would also disprove the tran-
substantiation of the wafer.

In the beginning of the sixteenth century
Cardinal Ximenes employed several learned
men in publishing the Polyglot Bible, which is
so called because it was printed in Hebrew,
Chaldaic, Greek, and Latin, the word Polyglot
meaning many languages. But we are not to
suppose from this that the Cardinal was a real
friend to the Bible. This book was only for
the rich and the learned; it was in six large
volumes, which cost much money, and it was in
languages which none but the learned could
understand. Fernando de Tulavera, the first
Archbishop of Grenada, printed a Bible in the
Arabic language, for the use of the Moors who
lived in his diocese, and whom he hoped to
convert by the Word of God; but Cardinal °
Ximenes was much displeased with him, and
said, that to give the Scriptures to the common
people was to “throw pearls before swine !”
158 A HISTORY oF

Zealous Papists invariably carry out the maxim,
that “ignorance is the mother of devotion.”

In the first volume of this work I told my
young readers about the Inquisition, and I
shall now have to tell them a great deal about
its dreadful doings in murdering Christ’s faithful
people in Spain.

In the course of the first year in which it was
set up, the Inquisition of Seville burnt two thou-
sand people to death, and condemned seventeen
thousand to different punishments; and ac-
cording to a moderate reckoning from the same
date to 1517, the year in which Luther began
to preach, thirteen thousand persons were
burnt alive, eight thousand seven hundred were
burnt in effigy, and one hundred and sixty-nine
thousand seven hundred and twenty-three were
condemned to different punishments; making in
all one hundred and ninety-one thousand four
hundred and twenty-three condemned by the
Spanish Inquisition in the course of thirty-six
years. The Inquisition also showed its anti-
christian zeal in destroying the Holy Scrip-
tures; in 1490 many copies of the Hebrew
THE REFORMATION. 159

Bible were publicly burnt at Seville, and at
Salamanca six thousand volumes shared the
same fate. What a fearful thing to belong to
a Church which is answerable to God for such
cruelty and impiety! Surely every one who
trembles at His word will obey the divine com-
mand, ‘Come out of her my people, that ye
partake not of her sins, and that ye receive not
of her plagues.”

My young readers may judge from what I
have already told them, that the truths which
were brought to light at the Reformation were
known and believed in Spain by many at a very
early period ; and so they were. So early as the
beginning of the year 1529, John Froben, a
celebrated printer at Basle, sent to Spain a
quantity of Luther’s writings which he had re.
printed. These were in Latin, and, therefore,
could only be understood by the learned; but
in the course of the next year, the Reformer's
explanation of the Epistle to the Galatians, and
other books, were printed. Christ’s true Gos.
pel was also brought into Spain by some good
and learned men, who went with the Emperor
160 A HISTORY OF

Charles V. into Germany. The Inquisitors
were determined to root it out, and again to
plunge the nation in the darkness out of which
it was rising ; and God permitted them to suc-
ceed in their wicked purpose. We cannot tell
why, for He often acts in a way which baffles
our wisdom. Great glory was, however, brought
to Christ by the courage and firmness of His
faithful people, many of whom patiently bore
all the cruelties of the Inquisition rather than
purchase life and ease for a time by denying
thei? Master. I cannot in this little book tell
you all that history has handed down to us
about these faithful men and women, but I
must relate the sufferings of a few of the most
remarkable. There is a very curious fact told
about a simple Spanish peasant; it shows us
how vain it is to try to keep the sheep of Christ
from hearing and owning the voice of the Good
Shepherd. This man was brought before the
Inquisitors of Seville, and accused of having
said, among his friends, that he did not think
there was any Purgatory but the blood of Christ.
He confessed that he had thought so, but said
THE REFORMATION, 161

that hew as willing to give up his own thoughts,
and to believe only what the Inquisitors told
him. This did not satisfy his judges, who told
him, that by believing one error he had entangled
himself in many, for if there was no Purgatory,
then the Pope, who had decreed that there was,
could make mistakes like other men—then, if
the blood of Christ was the only means of clean-
sing our sins, the Church of Rome was wrong
in saying that men were to be saved partly by
their own sufferings, and the Reformers were
right in telling the people that they were to be
saved by the merits of Christ, through faith
only; and so on. In vain did the poor man
protest that such thoughts had never entered
his mind. He was sent back to prison, until
he should be prepared to retract them. The
consequence was, that he began to think se-~
riously about these things, and in the end he
became a firm believer in Christ.

But Christ’s people in Spain suffered from
the bigotry of their own countrymen, as well
as from the savage cruelty of the Inquisition ;
often did they experience the truth of our Lord's
162 A HISTORY oF

warning—‘* A man’s foes shall be they of his
own household.” The following is a remark-
able instance of this :—

Juan Diaz, a learned young Spaniard, a na-
tive of Cuenca, was converted to Christ. In
order that he might enjoy liberty of conscience,
he went to Switzerland. His brother, Dr. Al-
fonso, who held a high office at Rome, was very
angry when he heard of Juan’s conversion.
Some of Juan's friends in Switzerland advised
him to go privately into Germany, as they feared
that a Spanish papist, named Malvenda, who
was then in Switzerland, would make an at-
tempt upon his life. He went to Neuburg, a
small town in Bavaria. He was not long there
until his brother Alfonso found him out, and
came to him, and tried by every means in his
power to bring him back to the Church of Rome.
When he found he could not succeed, he changed
his plan; he pretended that Juan’s arguments
had shewn him the error in which he had been
living, and made him a convert to the Gospel.

. Juan never suspected him, and was much de-
lighted at the change which he thought had
THE REFORMATION. 168

taken place in his brother’s mind. Alfonso
having thus gained the confidence of his victim,
said that he must return to Italy, and earnestly
pressed him to go with him, saying, that he
might be much more useful in spreading the
knowledge of the Gospel there than in Germany,
‘where there were many to preach it, Juan was
disposed to go, but his friends dissuaded him
from doing so. Concealing the vexation which
he felt at this disappointment, Alfonso took an
affectionate leave of his brother, warned him to
beware of Malvenda, thanked him for the spi-
ritual benefit which he pretended to have re-
ceived from his instructions, and forced a sum
of money upon him as a token of his Christian
love. He then set out on his journey to Italy,
but next day he returned along with a man
whom he had brought from Rome, and spent
the night in a small village near Neuburg.
Early next morning, being the 27th March,
1546, they came to the house where Juan
lodged. Alfonso stood at the gate while his
companion knocked at the door, and telling the
servant that he bad a letter to Juan from his
164 A HISTORY oF

brother, he was shown up stairs. On hearing
of a letter from his brother, Juan sprung from
his bed, and throwing his dressing-gown about
him, he went to the room where Alfonso’s ac-
complice was, took the letter from his hand,
and, as it was still dark, went to the window to
read it, when the ruffian, stepping softly behind
him, killed his unsuspecting victim with one
stroke of an axe, which he had concealed under
his cloak ; he then ran down stairs to Alfonso,
and the two murderers fled on the way to Rome.

Alarmed at the noise which the assassin’s
spurs made on the stairs, a young man who
slept with Juan ran into the room where the
bloody deed was committed. The town was
instantly alarmed, and the murderers were pur-
sued and taken.

The prisoners were brought before the cri-
minal court at Inspruck, but through the in-
fluence of the Cardinals of Trent and Augs-
burg, the trial was put off. Every exertion
was made by the Protestant princes to have
the murderers brought to justice, but in vain ;
the Pope and his priests succeeded in protect-
THE REFORMATION. 165

ing them—they were, in the end, allowed to
escape untried and unpunished. The succes-
sor of Cain, with his bloody accomplice, ap-
peared openly at Trent, without exciting a
shudder in the breasts of the holy Fathers
assembled in council: he was welcomed back
to Rome, and in the end returned to his native
country, where he was received into the society
of men of rank and learning, who listened to
him while he coolly related the circumstances
of his sanctified crime ; and so far were the fol-
lowers of the Pope from being ashamed of all
. this, that the countrymen of Alfonso praised
him for murdering his brother. Hence it is
plain, that the Church of Rome has to answer
to God, the Righteous Judge, for this horrid
murder, in the day of righteous recompense,
which is coming.
166 A HISTORY OF

CHAPTER XVII.

Conversion of Constantine, the Chaplain of Charles V.—His
Confession of Christ—His Sufferings and Death—-Many Men
ofrank and learning converted to Christ--Don Carlos de Seso
—His Confession of Christ, Condemnation, and Martyrdom—
Real Criminals leniently dealt with by the Inquisition.

As I have not space in this small book to tell

you even a little of the history of every one of

the noble army of Christ’s martyrs in Spain,

I intend to finish this part of my narrative by

telling you about two or three of the most re-

markable.

Constantine Ponce de la Fluente was born
in San Clemente de la Manche. In his youth
he showed a great love for learning. He was
remarkable for his wit, which he used to em-
ploy against the idle and wicked monks. But
at this time he was not a believer in Christ,
and he indulged in vicious living, like other
young men of his age and rank. He after-
wards became a priest; and he was so eloquent
THE REFORMATION, 167

& preacher, that when the Emperor heard him,
he made him one of his chaplains, and after-
wards sent him with his son Phillip IL, into
the Netherlands. :

Before he left Spain, his mind had been
directed to the doctrines of the Gospel, and
his knowledge of them was increased by his
intercourse with several faithful men whom
he met in the Netherlands. In 1555, he re-
turned to Seville, in Spain, where he was ap-
pointed to teach divinity in the college, and
by this means a great many young men were
taught the true Gospel of Christ. He also
laboured by writing to ‘spread the knowledge
of true religion among all classes of his country-
men. Constatitine was envied and hated by
the priests, who now began to plot in secret
about giving him up to the. Inquisition as a
heretic, and nothing but the great favour with
which he was regarded by the people restrained
them from doing so.

At last, a general persecution began against
the Protestants of Seville, who were united
in a church with a pastor who preached to
168 A HISTORY OF

them. It was not to be expected that one so
famous as Constantine could escape. He was
among the first who was taken by the Inquisi-
tors, When brought before them, he defended
himself with such ability, daring them to name
any offence he had committed, that they were
much confounded, and Constantine’s friends
thought he would escape out of their hands.
But just at this time, a number of his writings
which he had concealed in the house of a Pro-
testant lady, were discovered. When the books
were produced, Constantine at once owned
that they were written by him, and expressed
his sentiments; he added, “ You need not seek
for any other proof against me, you have there
an open and full confession of my faith ; I am
in your hands, do with me as seemeth good.”
No arts or threats could induce him to in-
form of his brethren. Constantine was not
tortured on the rack as was usual—probably
he was spared out of respect to the feelings
of the Emperor; for after his death, he was
’ taken from the room in which he had been
confined, and thrust into a low, damp and
TRE REFORMATION. 168

filthy vault, where he endured more than his
brethren did from the engines of torture. Op-
pressed, and worn out with hardships and
privations, to which he was not accustomed,
he was heard to cry out, “O my God, were
there no Scythians, or cannibals, or pagans,
that thou hast permitted me to fall into the
hands of these baptised fiends!” He could
not live long insuch misery. Putrid air and
unwholesome food, together with grief for the
ruin of the Protestant Church in his native
country, brought on a dysentery, which put an
end to his days, after he had been nearly two
years in prison.

Not satisfied with all the cruel treatment
which they. gave Constantine during his life,
his enemies slandered him after his death, by
spreading a report that he killed himself in
prison. They also burned him in effigy at
the public auto da fe at Seville, in 1560; but
s0 much was his memory respected that the
people could hardly endure this insult offered
to him, and the Inquistors feared that they
would have risen up against them. The In-

I
170 _ A HISTORY oF

quisitors also forbid any one to read his books,
and they ordered a passage in a book, written
by Phillip II., to be blotted out, because Con-
stantine was said to be “the greatest philoso-
pher, the profoundest divine, and the most
eloquent preacher who had been in Spain for
many ages.” The folly of such attempts to
sully the fame of this great and good man, will
be plain to all in the day of Christ’s appearing,
when He will roll away the reproach of his
people.

Perhaps there never was in any other
country so large a proportion of persons of
rank and learing among the converts to a pro-
scribed and persecuted religion, as in Spain, at
the time of the Reformation. This portion of
church history shows us plainly that Christ
will have His elect, no matter what hindrance
may stand in the way of their conversion. A
little sketch of another of these illustrious
converts must close this chapter.

Don Carlos de Seso was held in such esteem
by Charles V., that he obtained from him in
marriage Donna Isabella, a descendant of the
THE REFORMATION. 171

royal family of Castile. This nobleman was
as illustrious for his learning and moral cha-
racter as he was for his high rank. While he
lived at Valadolid he united himself to the
Protestants of that place, and laboured zea.
lously to spread the faith in every place to
which his influence extended. Such a distin.
guished man could not escape the notice of the
Inquisition. An auto da fe was celebrated
at Valadolid in 1559, in the presence of Philip
II. and a great assemblage of bishops and
nobles of both sexes. Twenty-nine prisoners
appeared on the scaffold, among whom was Don
Carlos de Seso and his wife Donna Isabella.
Don Carlos was condemned to die; his wife
to lose all her property, and to be :mprisoned
for life.

Having been arrested at Logrono, Don Car-
los was thrown into the secret prison of the
Inquisition at Valadolid. His conduct during
the sufferings which ended in his burning at
the stake, was worthy of his‘noble character, as
a zealous follower of his crucified Master. In
the examinations which he underwent before
172 A HISTORY OF

the cruel Inquisitors, he never flinched from
boldly declaring his faith, nor could any dread
of torture force him to inform of his brethren.
When informed of his sentence, on the night
before his execution, he called for pen, ink, and
paper, and having written a confession of his
faith, he gave it to the officer, saying, ‘ This
is the true faith of the Gospel, as opposed to
that of the Church of Rome, which has been
corrupted for ages; in this faith I wish to die,
and in the remembrance and lively belief of the
passion of Jesus Christ, to offer to God my body
now reduced so low.”

The whole of that night and next morning
were spent by the friars in ineffectual attempts
to induce him to deny the faith. He was led
the next day to the stake, with a gag in his
mouth to prevent him from speaking to the
people. "When he was bound to the stake, the
gag was removed, and the friars began to exhort
him to confess. He replied in a loud voice and
with great firmness—‘‘I could prove to you
that you ruin yourselves by not imitating my
example, but there is no time. Executioners,
THE REFORMATION. 173

light the fire which is to consume me.” They
obeyed, and De Seso expired in the flames, with-
out a struggle or a groan. He died in the
forty-third year of his age.

I told you that twenty-nine persons appeared
among the condemned at the auto da fe, in
which De Seso was burnt. In order that my
young readers may rightly understand the deep
iniquity of the Church of Rome, by whose au-
thority the Inquisitors acted, I must tell them
the crimes and punishments of two of those
persons. One of them was proved to have
sworn falsely that a child had been circum.
cised, with the view of having the father of the
child burnt to death. Here was the crime of
perjury committed, as a means to procure the
murder of an innocent man; yet the wretch
who was convicted of this fearful crime was
only sentenced to receive two hundred lashes,
to lose the half of his property, and to work in
the galleys for five years.

The other criminal was proved to have per-
sonated an officer of the Inquisition, and for
this comparatively trifling offence he was sen-
174 A HISTORY OF

tenced to receive four hundred lashes, to lose
the whole of his property, and to work in the
galleys for life. Comparing these sentences
with the cruel death to which De Seso, who
was charged with no offence, save that of faith
in Christ, was condemned, it must be plain to
every one of common sensé that the Church of
Rome uses her power, not to prevent crime,
but to aggrandise herself, and that she is in-
fluenced by the same hatred to true holiness
which worked in the Jewish rabble, when they
preferred a murderer to the Lord of life.
Truly the apostate Church of Rome, in her
murderous persecution of Christ’s true people,
and her comparative gentleness towards cri-
mainals of the blackest die, still perpetuates the
fiendish cry Not this man, but Barabbas,”
THE REFORMATION. 175

CHAPTER XVIII.

Maria de Bohorquee—Confesses Christ, and is put to the Tortar e
—Her Martyrdom-—Sufferings of Jane de Bohorques—Mar-
tyrdom of Maria Gornez and Seven other Females~—The
Reformation put down in Spain by the Inquisition—Hypo-
crisy of the Inquisitors—Effect of the Suppression of the
Beformation in Spain,

Amone the noble army of martyrs in Spain,

the power of the grace of Christ was shown

forth in young and tender females not less
than in men. There were many who were
tortured, not accepting deliverance that they
might obtain a better resurrection. I shall
tell you about some of these in this chapter.
Donna Maria de Bohorques was the natural
daughter of a Spanish grandee of the first
class. She was only twenty-one years of age
when she was seized and imprisoned by the

Inquisition asa Protestant. She had been in-

structed by the celebrated Spanish Reformer,

Egidius ; and besides a deep knowledge of

Scripture, this young lady was acquainted
176 A HISTORY OF

with the Latin and Greek languages. Such
was her love for the Scriptures that she had
committed the Gospels to memory. When
seized by the Inquisitors she did not deny her
faith, but boldly defended it as the truth of
Christ. She was then put on the rack and
tortured. Under the torture she confessed
that she had told her sister Jane Bohorques
her opinions, and that she did not say she dis-
approved of them.

In consequence of Maria’s confession, her
sister Jane was seized by the Inquisition.
How they treated her shall be told presently.
As to poor Maria, they condemned her to
death, but she was not told of this unjust and
cruel sentence until the day before that which
was fixed for her execution. Before they told
her of her sentence, two Jesuits were sent to
her to try if they could persuade her to deny
the faith; and when they fuiled to do so, two
friars of the order of St. Dominic came to her
for the same purpose. These were followed by
several other zealous Papists, but they could
not shake Maria’s constancy, and they left her
THE REFORMATION. 177

cell filled with wonder at the ability with which
she answered all their arguments, and with
wrath at what they called her obstinancy. On
the day before her execution four Dominicans,
with several others, made their last effort to
convert Maria. She received them with much
politeness, but at the same time told them that
they might spare themselves the trouble of
speaking to her of their doctrines, since none
could be more concerned for the salvation of
her soul than she was—that she would renounce
her opinions if she had any doubt as to their
truth, but that since she had been imprisoned
in the Inquisition she was more confirmed in
their certainty than ever, since none of the
learned and zealous Papists who visited her
were able to bring forward any argument which
she could not readily and satisfactorily answer.

When Maria was brought out with several
others to the place of execution, Don Juan
Ponce de Leon, who had denied the faith, ex.
horted her to do the same. She replied to this
wretched apostate with holy indignation, call-
ing him ignorant, an idiot, and a babbler, ana

12
178 A HISTORY OF

telling him that it was no longer a time to
dispute, but that the few moments they had to
live ought to be employed in meditating on
the passion and death of their Redeemer, to
strenghten the faith by which they were to be
saved. While the melancholy procession was
forming to march to the place of execution,
Maria comforted her female companions, and
engaged them to join with her in singing a
psalm suitable to the occasion; upon which
the gag was putinto her mouth. It was taken
out after her sentence was read, and she was
asked if she would now renounce the errors to
which she had held with such obstinancy. She
replied with a firm voice—I neither can nor
will recant.”

Several priests and a great number of
monks earnestly entreated that she might be
spared if she would consent to repeat the
Creed. The Inquisitors granted the request ;
but scarcely had Maria finished it when she
began to show that it condemned the Popish
superstition, They did not give her time to
conclude: the executioner strangled her, and
she was then burnt,
THE REFORMATION. 179

I told you that the Inquisitors seized Maria's
sister Jane; she was married to a Spanish
nobleman, Don Francis de Vargos. This lady
was cast into the dungeons of the Inquisition,
because she listened to a declaration of her
sister’s faith, in silence. She was delivered of
a child in the prison, and eight days after her
delivery her baby was taken from her. A
young girl who was imprisoned in the same
dungeon with Jane was very kind to her; but
this poor young creature was brought before
the Inquisitors, and she soon after was carried
back, her limbs dreadfully bruised and almost
dislocated from the effects of the rack. Jane
returned her kindness as well as she could, but
even greater suffering was reserved for her.
Before she was recovered from her confinement
she was put to the torture ; the cords with
which her still feeble limbs were bound, cut
her to the bone, and, several blood-vessels
breaking in her body, torrents of blood flowed
from her mouth. She was carried back to her
dungeon in a dying state, and expired in a few
days after. The only amends which the In-
380 A HISTORY oF

quisitors made for this cruel murder was, that
they publicly declared Jane to be innocent of
the crime with which they had charged her.

At an auto da fe which took place at Seville,
on December 22, 1560, no fewer than eight
females of blameless character, and some of
- them distinguished by their rank and education,
suffered the most cruel deaths, because they
refused to trust in any saviour but Jesus,
Among these was Maria Gomez, who appeared
on the scaffold along with her three daughters
and a sister. After the sentence, which
doomed them to the flames, was read, one of
the young women went up to her aunt, from
whom she had learned the faith of Christ, and
on her knees thanked her for the instruction
she had received from her, implored her for-
givenesss for any offence she might have given
her, and begged her dying blessing. Raising
her up, and assuring her that she had never
given her a moment’s uneasiness, the old woman
went on to encourage her dutiful niece by re-
minding her of the promises and presence of
Christ, and of the everlasting joy which would
THE REFORMATION, 181

soon succeed their short sufferings. The five
friends then took leave of each other with tender
embraces and words of mutual comfort. The
Inquisitors beheld this touching scene with un-
moved countenance; and so thoroughly had
Popery subdued the charities of human nature
in the Spanish breast, that not a single pitying
word escaped the multitude at witnessing a
scene which was enough to harrow up the feel-
ings of the spectators, anddrive them to mutiny.

It was by such cruelties as these, perpetrated
by the Inquisition in every part of Spain, that
the Reformation was stopped in that country ;
the people of Christ were either murdered or
obliged to fly into other lands. The Popish
historian, Llorente, informs us, that the whole
number of those who were punished or disgraced
by the Inquisition amounted to 341,021, and
of these, 31,912, perished in the flames, chiefly
for their attachment to Scriptural Christianity.
Yet there are persons so infatuated as to assert,
that the Church which sanctioned and encou-
raged such wholesale massacre of Christ's people,
is not the foul apostasy which St. John describes
182 A HISTOBY OF

(Rev. xvii.) as drunken with the blood ef the
saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of
Jesus. Ishall end this hasty sketch of the Re-
formation in Spain, by noticing a fact in the
proceedings of the Inquisition, which shows
that that tribunal is as execrable for its hypo-
crisy as for its cruelty.

When the Inquisitors delivered their victims
into the hand of the secular judge, they besought
them to treat them with mildness and mercy.
But this pretence of Christian charity was no-
thing but an impious farce; they knew that
their victims would be strangled or burned,
and they had taken every precaution to oblige
the magistrates to execute their sentence. Five
days before the execution they informed the
officer of the number of persons to be put to
death, in order that he might provide enough
of wood to burn them ; and had the magistrate
presumed to change the cruel sentence into
perpetual imprisonment, though it were in one
of the remotest parts in America, he would
soon have felt the vengeance of the Holy Office.
Besides, the laws which condemned heretics to
THE REFORMATION. 183

be burnt had been confirmed by numerous bulls
of Popes, which commanded the Inquisitors to
see that they were executed, and accordingly
the magistrates were required to swear that
they would faithfully execute the sentences
against the persons of heretics without delay,
in the way and manner appointed by the laws
of the Church. Were it necessary to say any
more on this topic, we might add, that the very
appearance of the persons on the day of execu-
tion proclaimed the unblushing hypocrisy of
these tyrants. They implored the secular judge
to treat with kindness and compassion the per-
sons whom they themselves bad worn to skele-
tons by long imprisonment. They besought
him not to shed the blood of him from whose
body they had often made the blood to spring
upon the rack; nor to break a bone of her
whose tender limbs were already distorted and
mangled by their hellish tortures.

i The suppression of the Reformation in
Spain proved ruinous not only to the spiritual,
but temporal interests of that fine country.
Learning was checked ; commerce was inter-
184 ' A HISTORY OF

rupted; all the energies of the -human mind
were paralysed, and the national character
lowered. What has Spain achieved since the
sixteenth century? Contrasted with England,
the land of freedom and of enterprise, how
degraded does Spain appear. Let Englishmen
never forget that she possesses what Spain was
denied—religious liberty and an open Bible.
This reveals the secret of her prosperity. This
it is that makes her the envy and admiration
of the civilised world.
THE REFORMATION. 185

CHAPTER XIX.

The Reformation in Itely—Savanarola—The Writings of the
Reformers and the Bible Translated into Italian—Corruption
of the Romish Church—-Progress of Reformation in Ferrara
and other Italian Towns—Melancthon's promising appear-
ances—Alarm of the Pope—The Inquisition established—
Sufferings of Christ's People.

I am now going to tell you something about
the Reformation in Italy, which I am sure will
interest you much, as perhaps you have never
heard it before ; for many people do not know
what great progress the Reformation made in
the land of the Pope.

So far back as the year 1488, a monk named
Savanarola began to preach against the wick-
edness of the rulers in Church and State, as
well as the vices of the people. Being a man
of great ardour and eloquence, he produced a
great change in the outward conduct of many
people. But Savanarola did not preach the
true Gospel of Christ; and to increase his
power with the people, he did many things
186 A HISTORY oF

which we cannot approve. Still his faithful
warning, addressed to the wicked bishops and
priests, gave great offence, and they were de-
termined to silence him. This they did effec.
tually, by burning him to death on the 23rd of
May, 1498. Two years after Luther began
to preach against indulgences. His writings
found their way into Italy, where they were
eagerly read by the learned. The writings of
the other Reformers followed, and were trans-
lated into Italian. To conceal them from the
Inquisitors, they were printed under feigned
names, by which means they found their way
into Rome, and even into the palace of the
Pope. ‘Translations of the Bible into Italian
were also published a few years after the in-
vention of the art of printing. Indeed, many
of the Italians were prepared to welcome the
Reformation, being deeply persuaded of the
corruption of the Romish Church, for we find
the Bishop of Sibari, in 8 speech which he
made in the year 1527, declaring his belief that
Rome was the Babylon described by St. John
in the Book of Revelations ; and we learn from
THE REFORMATION. 187

a letter written by no less a personage than
Pope Clement VII, that the Gospel of Christ,
as preached by Luther and the other Reform.
ers, had many converts both among priests
and people, in different parts of Italy, before
the year 1530.

At Ferrara the Reformation made great
progress under the protection of its Dukes. In
1527, Hercules II. married Renata, the daugh- |
ter of Lowis XI of France. This ‘pious lady
had learned the Gospel of Christ from those
learned and good men who used to attend at
the court of Margaret, Queen of Navarre ;
and when she came to live at Ferrara, she used
all her influence with her husband in behalf
of the Reformers and the truths which they
taught.

Modena was also under the government of
the Duke of Ferrara, and here too the reformed
doctrine was received by many. The monks
and priests did all they could to hinder the pro-
gress of true religion ; but such was the power
of the friends of the Gospel, that learned men
would sometimes stand up in the churches and
188 : A HISTORY OF

contradict the falsehoods which were proclaimed
from the pulpit. A Popish historian, describing
the state of things at Modena, writes—‘ Persons
of all classes, not only the learned, but also the
illiterate, and even women, whether they meet
in the streets, in shops, or in churches, disputed
about the faith and the doctrine of Christ.”

In Florence, the capital of Tuscany, also,
the Gospel of Christ, although it encountered
violent opposition, had many disciples. Three
natives of this city translated the Bible into
Italian, and this fact is enough to show us that
the sacred volume must have had many readers
in the Duchy. The great number of persons who
afterwards fled from this delightful country, to
escape the crueltics of the Inquisition, proves
’ beyond all doubt that this was the case; and it
was, no doubt, the knowledge of this which
caused a friar to cry out from the pulpit—* Oh,
Florence! What is the meaning of Florence ?
—the flower of Italy; and thou wast so until
these people persuaded thee that man is justi-
fied by faith, and not by works.”

Bologna was under the government of the
THE REFORMATION. 189

Pope, but this did not prevent the light of truth
from shining into that city. John Mollio, a
native of Sienna, a friar and a professor in the
college, was the first preacher of the Gospel in
this place. What he preached he had learned
from the study of the Scriptures and the writings
of the Reformers. The number of persons
who favoured the Reformation in Bologna must
have been very great; for in 1545 a certain
nobleman offered to raise six thousand soldiers
to defend the Reforming party, if it was found
necessary to make war on the Pope.

Imola is also in the Papal states, and in this
city also the Reformation had many favourers.
There is a story connected with the entrance of
the Gospel into this place which will interest
my young readers, A monk, preaching one
day, told the people that they ought to pur-
chase heaven by the merit of their good works.
A boy who was present cried out—‘ 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
warm and long dispute took place between the
190 A HISTORY OF

youth and the preacher. Provoked at the
clever answers which the boy gave to his argu-
ments and the favour shewn him by the listeners,
the monk 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 youth replied—‘‘ Did you never
read those words, ‘Out of the mouths of babes
and sucklings God perfects praise?’” Upon
which the preacher quitted the pulpit in great
confusion and anger, breathing out threatenings
against the poor boy, who was some time after
cast into prison.

The Republic of Venice, even before any of
the people had openly declared for the Refor-
mation, resisted the cruelty and tyranny of the
Pope. The government would not permit him
to establish the Inquisition, and they permitted
the Bible and other religious books to be printed
and circulated through Italy.

The Gospel had made such progress in the
city of Venice between the years 1580 and
1542, that its friends, who had hitherto met
THE REFORMATION, 191

only in private, thought it full time to form
themselves into congregations, with pastors
over them, who should openly preach the truth.
Several members of the Senate were favourable
to this, and it was hoped that the whole body
might be brought over to sanction it.

Besides the places already mentioned, the
Gospel had several disciples in Milan—in
Naples, and in the Island of Sicily—in the
Pisani—in Sienna, Mantua, Locarno, Latina,
Lucca, and many other places.

The Reformation in Italy, like Spain, had
won over a large proportion of the learned and
noble. I cannot in this little book tell you of
those good men, how zealously they laboured
for Christ, and how courageously they braved
the malice of their enemies. Among these
faithful witnesses for Christ several ladies of
rank are entitled to a high place. But besides
those persons who separated themselves from
the Church of Rome, there was a great number
of learned men who wrote powerfully against
her errors and corruptions, although they did
not openly come out from her. Encouraged
192 A HISTORY OF

by these fair appearances, the friends of the
Reformation at one time expected that all Italy
would break loose from the tyranny of the
Pope. Melancthon, writing to George, Prince
of Auhalt, said—.‘‘ Whole libraries have been
carried from the late fair into Italy, though the
Pope has published fresh edicts against us. But
the truth cannot be wholly oppressed: our
Captain, the Lord Jesus Christ the Son of
God, will vanquish and trample on the Dra-
gon, the enemy of God, and will govern us.”
And another Reformer, describing the state of
Italy in 1536, wrote—‘ See how the Gospel
advances even in Italy, where it is so much
borne down, and exults in the mere prospect
of bursting forth, like the sun from a cloud, in
spite of all opposition.” But God’s thoughts
are not as our thoughts, nor His ways as our
ways. We shall now see how all these cheering
expectations were disappointed. The harlot
Church of Rome was permitted, in God’s mys-
terious providence, to crush the Reformation in
Italy, as she had done in Spain, with her blood-
stained hand ; thereby treasuring up for herself
THE REFORMATION. 193

wrath against the day of wrath and revelation
of the righteous judgment of God.

It was in the year 1542 that the Pope fire
became seriously alarmed at the progress of tl.e
Reformation in Italy. The first thing which
he did was to proceed against such of the clergy
as favoured the Gospel of Christ. In conse-
quence of this persecution many able preachers
of the truth were forced to fly from Italy. The
next step was to establish the Inquisition. Its
prisons were soon filled with the Lord’s people.
Those who escaped could no longer venture to
assemble in public, but they still continued to
hold private meetings, and it required all the
activity and cruelty of the Inquisition for
twenty years before they could find out and
murder all the friends of the Gospel.

I must now tell you some of the cruelties
which Christ's faithful people suffered at the
hands of the Inquisition. In the year 1551,
Galeazzo Trevio, a nobleman- of Lodi, was
burnt alive in the Milanese, confessing Christ
to the last. In the year 1558, two persons
suffered the same dreadful death, One of

K
194 A BISTORY OF

them, who had been a monk, was forced into a
pulpit, which was set up near the stake, to
recant, but instead of doing so he preached
Christ to the people, and was driven into the
fire with blows and curses. During the course
of the following year, scarcely a week passed in
which some faithful Christian was not burnt.
A young priest who had forsaken the idolatry
of the Mass was condemned to be hanged, and
dragged to the gallows at a horse’s tail. The
last part of the sentence was not executed, but
he was half-strangled, then cut down, and re-
fusing to recant, was literally roasted to death,
and his body cast to the dogs.

The same cruelties were practised in every
part of Italy by the Pope’s Inquisitors, and all
had not faith to glorify God in the fires like
those of whom I have just told you. Some, to
avoid persecution, used to go to Mass, and
behave outwardly in every. respect as if they
were Papists. This gave great offence to their
more faithful brethren, and prepared those
who were guilty of this sinful compliance for
openly denying Christ. Nor did this unfaith-
THE REFORMATION, 195

fulness always protect them; they were often
seized as suspected heretics and put to death.
A considerable number of Protestants, terrified
by the cruelty of the Inquisitors, agreed to quit
Italy, but when they came to the Alps, and
stopped to take a last view of their beloved
country, the greater part, struck with its beau-
ties, and calling to mind the friends and the
comforts which they had left behind, burst into
a flood of tears, and, abandoning their pur-
pose, returned to Naples. They had scarcely
arrived there when they were thrown into pri-
son, and having submitted to penance, spent
the remainder of their lives distrusted by those
around them, and pained with remorse for
having denied their Saviour. Those who think
to secure happiness by drawing back from any
sufferthg to which Christ calls them, will find
themselves wofully disappointed.

I must now close this chapter. In the next
I shall tell you more of the sufferings of Christ’s
faithful people in Italy.
196 A HISTORY OF

CHAPTER XX.

Massacre of the Protestants of Santo Kisto— Torture and Murder
of the Inhabitants of La Guardia—Horrid Butchery of Christ's
People at Montalto—The Protestants of Calabria—The Mar-
tyre at Venice put to Death by Drowning.

I am now going to tell you some of the dread-

ful cruelties which Christ's faithful people

suffered in Italy.

Most of the inhabitants of Santo Xisto were
Protestants. Two monks came to them and
spoke very friendly to them, telling them that
if they would turn back to the Church of
Rome they had nothing to fear. They then
invited the people to attend Mass, but, instead
of doing so, they all went out of the town,
into the woods. The monks were very angry ;
and when their Mass was finished, they went
to the neighbouring town of La Guardia,
where, as well as at Santo Xisto, the people
had all become Protestants. Having ordered
the gates to be shut, they called the inhabitants
THE REFORMATION, 197

together, told them that the people of Santo
Xisto had all turned back to the Church of
Rome, and invited them todo the same. The
simple people believed what the monks told
them, and dreading their threats, they said
they were willing to do as they advised them;
but no sooner did they find out the truth, than
they were overwhelmed with shame and vex-
ation, and determined to leave the town with
their wives and children, and join their bre-
thren who had fled into the woods. In the
meantime, the monks got a number of soldiers,
and with them they hunted the inhabitants
of Santo Xisto like beasts of prey, and having
found out the place where they were hid, they
fell on them with cries of ‘Murder them,
murder them!” Some of the Protestants es-
caped toa mountain, and having secured them-
selves among the rocks, they asked leave to
speak with the captain. ‘They entreated
him to pity them, their wives and children ;
that they wanted nothing but leave to quit
the country for some other place where they
hould have liberty to worship God in the
198 4 HISTORY OF

way they believed to be right. ‘They implored
him to take away the soldiers, as despair would
compel them to defend themselves.” The cap.
tain, instead of giving heed to their entreaties,
ordered his men to advance upon them by a nar-
row pass between the rocks. The Protestants
-attacked them, killed the greater part, and put
the rest to flight.

The monks wrote to Naples for more sol-
diers; Santo Xisto was given up to fire and
sword; the poor fugitives being hunted in the
mountains by the soldiers, many were slaugh-
tered, and many more, in flying from them,
were starved to death.

The Inquisitors pretended to be very much
displeased at this cruelty, and invited the peo-
ple of La Guardia to appear before them.
Encouraged by their flattering speeches, they
did so. But they had ne sooner appeared,
than seventy of them were seized, and sent in
chains to Montalto. They were put to the
torture by order of the Inquisitor Panza, who
hoped, by this means, to make them deny their
faith, and accuse themselves and their brethren
THE REFORMATION. 199

of having committed odious crimes in their
religious meetings. Stefano Carlino was tor-
tured until his bowels gushed out. Verminel,
in the extremity of his pain, promised to go to
Mass. ‘The Inquisitor hoped that he would
make him accuse his brethren, but although he
kept the exhausted sufferer on the horrid in-
strument called the hell, for eight hours, he
persisted in denying the calumny. Another
Protestant named Marzone was stripped naked,
beaten with iron rods, dragged through the
streets, and then knocked down with the blows
of torches. One of his sons, a boy, having
refused to deny the faith, was carried to the top
of atower, from which they threatened to
throw him, if he would not kiss a crucifix.
Tle refused, and the Inquisitor in a rage,
ordered him to be thrown down. The manner
in which this cruel Inquisitor treated females
is too disgusting to be told. He put sixty
women to the torture, the greater part of whom
died in prison, in consequence of their wounds
remaining undressed.

Horrid as these facts are, they. fall short
200 A HISTORY OF

of the barbarities which were committed at
Montalto, in the year 1560. The following
account of this massacre was given in a letter,
written by x Roman Catholic who witnessed
it to ,

“Most ILuustrious Sir,—Having written you
from time to time what has been done here in the
affair of heresy, EF have now to inform you of the
dreadful justice which began to be executed on these
Lutherans early this morning, being the 11th of June.
And, to tell you the trath, 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 execu-
tioner went, and, bringing out one of them, covered
his face with a napkin, or benda, as we call it, led him
out to a field near the house, and, causing him to
kneel down, cut hia throat with a knife. Then, taking
off the bloody napkin, he went and brought out
another, whom he put to death after the same man-
ner. In this way, the whole number, amounting to
eighty-eight men, were butchered. I leave you to
figure to yourself the lamentable spectacle, for I can
scarcely refrain 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 meek-
ness and patience with which they went to martyr-
dom and death are incredible. Some of them at their
THE REFORMATION. 201

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 a butcher
does the sheep which he means to kill. According to
orders, waggons 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. Unless his Holiness and the Viceroy of
Naples command the Marquis de Buccianici, the go-
vernor of this province, to stay his hand and leave off,
he will go on to put others to the torture, and multiply
the executions until he has destroyed the whole. Even
to-day, a decree has passed that a hundred grown-up
women shall be put to the question, and afterwards
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 punished, partly
men and partly women. This it 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 obstinancy and stubborness as to
refuse to look on a crucifix, or confess to a priest; and
they are to be burnt alive. The heretics taken in
Calabria amount to sixteen hundred, all of whom are
K2
202 A HISTORY OF

condemned ; but only eighty-eight have as yet been
put to death. This people came originally from the
valley of Angrogna, near Savoy, and in Calabria are
called Ultramontani. Four other places in the king-
dom of Naples are inhabited by the same race, but I
do not know that they behave ill; for they are a sim.
ple, unlettered people, entirely occupied with the spade
and plough, and I am told, show themselves sufficiently
religious at the hour of death.”

Lest the reader should be inclined to doubt
the truth of such horrid atrocities, the following
short notice of them, by a Neapolitan historian
of that age, may be added. After giving some
account of the Calabrian heretics, he says :—

* Some had their throats cut, others were sawn
through the middle, and others thrown from the top
of a high cliff: all were cruelly but deservedly put to
death. It was strange to hear of their obstinancy ;
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.”

Every form of death which could be ima-
THE REFORMATION. 203

gined was used to frighten Christ’s faithful
people from his service. In Venice, they
punished attachment to the religion of the
Bible by drowning. The manner in which
this was done was very dreadful. At the silent
hour of midnight the prisoner was taken from
his cell, and put into a boat, and attended by
a priest. He was rowed out some distance to
sca, where another boat was in waiting. The
martyr’s body was then made fast by a chain to
a plank, to one end of which a heavy stone was
secured; the two boats came near to each
other, and the plank was laid across the two—
a signal was given, the boats separated, and the
martyr was plunged into the deep ; the waters
closed over his head——no human eye could dis.
tinguish the place of his burial, but it was not
hid from the eye of God, as will be manifest to
all in that day, when “ the sea shall give up the
dead which are in it.”

By such means as we have mentioned, the
Pope succeeded in putting a stop to the Re-
formation in Italy. Why God permitted it,
we cannot te, but certainly the power of
204 4 HISTORY OF

His grace was shown forth in the faith and
patience of His people. In our next chapter
we shall finish our little sketch of the history
of the Reformation, by a hasty glance at what
God did in the sixteenth century, in the other
countries of Europe.
THE REFORMATION. — 205

CHAPTER XXI.

The King of Denmark invades Sweden—Gustavus Vasa ie car-
ried into Denmark—His Escape— Returns to Sweden-— Works
in the Mines—-Treachery—He stirs up the Peasants to revolt—
Drives Christian out of Sweden—Is proclaimed King—-De-
clares himself o Protestant— Establishes the Reformed Religion
—Duty of Princes—Concluding Remarks.

I am now going to tell you something about

the Reformation in Sweden, Norway, and

Denmark.

In the beginning of the sixteenth century,
when these countries were buried in Romish
idolatry, the King of Denmark, whose name
was Christian, made war on Sweden. He
persuaded the Swedes to chose him for their
head, and he proved a cruel tyrant, so that
the people soon repented of what they had
done in making him King. Among other
bad things which he did, he carried away
some of the Swedes to Denmark, where he
kept them in prison. Among these, was 8
man named Gustavus Vasa. Christian did all
206 A HISTORY OF

he could to win over Gustavus to his side;
but Gustavus was a noble-hearted man, who
desired more the welfare of his country than
his own good. One day, when he got leave
to go to hunt, he rode away into a forest,
where he changed his dress into that of a poor
peasant, and quitting his horse he travelled on
foot for two days through wild mountains
which were seldom trodden by the foot of man,
and arrived on the third at Flensburgh. Here
no one was admitted without a passport, and
Gustavus feared that if he went before the
officer on guard he would be known. Just at
this time the merchants of Lower Saxony were
coming to attend the great cattle fair at Flens-
burgh; he hired himself to one of them as a
servant, and in this disguise he got into the
city without observation, and made his way to
Lubec, which was beyond the Danish territory.

Christian was very angry when he heard
that Gustavus had escaped, and had the most
diligent search made for him. The adventures
of Gustavus in eluding the search of Christian
were very wonderful. When he made his
THE REFORMATION. 207

way into Sweden he tried to get people to
help him to make war on Christian, but he
was disappointed in every quarter. But God
had a great work for him to do, and, therefore,
his courage never failed him in the greatest
dangers, nor his fortitude under the greatest
trials. Pressed on every side he retired to
Delecarlia, where he might live with more se-
curity in the high mountains and thick woods,
if he failed in attempting to excite the inha-
bitants to revolt.

Attended by a peasant, to whom he was
known, after a laborious and painful journey
he arrived in the mountains of Delecarlia.
Scarcely had he finished his journey when he
found himself deserted by his guide, who had
carried off all his money with him. Thus
forsaken, he suffered extreme want; he was
obliged to go among the miners and work like
a slave under ground, but still the hope that
he should one day be the deliverer of his coun-
try never forsook him.

While Gustavus was working in the mines,
a woman observed that the collar of his shitt
208 A HISTORY OF

was embroidered. This excited curiosity, and
the miners, observing the noble deportment
of Gustavus, which his peasant dress could not
hide, began to suspect that he was not what
he pretended to be. The story came to the
ears of a gentleman in the neighbourhood,
who went to the mines to see the interesting
stranger. This gentleman, who had known
Gustavus in his prosperous days, at once re-
cognised him, and took him to his house, tell-
ing him at the same time that he would aid
him in raising an army to fight against the
Danish tyrant. Gustavus was well pleased at
this, thinking that all his hopes were soon to
be realised ; but this treacherous host sent in
the meantime to a Danish officer to tell him
what had passed, and Gustavus narrowly es-
caped with his life.

Gustavus next tried to stir up the peasants
of Delecarlia to revolt. He addressed them
when they were assembled at a great feast
which was held yearly at Mora. They re-
ceived him with the greatest enthusiasm, and
he at once led them on against the governor's
THE REFORMATION. 209

castle, which he took by assault, and put all
the garrison to the sword. This success
caused many more of the peasants to flock to
his standard. Some of the gentry also es-
poused his cause openly, and others secretly
supplied him with money.

Christian, hearing of what passed, sent a
force to oppose Gustavus, but Gustavus with
his peasant army defeated them. I cannot
tell you all the battles that were fought, and
all the dangers to which Gustavus was exposed
chiefly from the treachery of his allies. In
the end he was completely victorious, and
Christian was so hated by his own subjects,
the Danes, that they rose up in rebellion
against him, and he was obliged to fly into
Germany. Gustavus was unanimously chosen
King of Sweden, as the deliverer of his
country.

About this time the doctrine of the Gospel,
as preached by Luther and other Reformers,
had found its way into Sweden, and had made
many disciples. Before this Gustavus had
given much offence to the priests, by insisting
210 A HISTORY OF

that as they were very rich they should con-
tribute largely to make up the arrear of pay
due to the gallant soldiers, by whom he had
delivered Sweden from the yoke of the tyrant.
A short time after this, Gustavus began to
show a great partiality for the doctrines of the
Bible; so that it soon became plain that either
Gustavus should resign his throne, or that the
priests should give up the power which they
had usurped over the minds of the people.
Shortly after this, the dislike of the priests
for Gustavus was heightened by his granting
permission to have the Scriptures translated
into the Swedish language. In 1526, the King,
finding that the priests were forming a con-
federacy to destroy the friends of the Bible, as
they had done in other countries, went to
Upsal, and publicly declared his resolution of
reducing the number of oppressive and idle
monks and priests, who, under pretence of re-
ligion, fattened on the spoils of the industrious
peonie, At last, taking advantage of the war
betwen the Pope and the Emperor Charles V.
of Spain, Gustavus declared himself to be a
THE REFORMATION. 211

Protestant, and that he was determined to
establish the religion of the Bible throughout
his dominions, and at the same time he de-
graded the priests from the rank which they
had assumed, placing them, like the rest of his
subjects, under the civil rulers.

For some time the States hesitated to aid the
King in his work of reformation ; so that at
last he threatened to resign the kingdom, which
he said was doomed to perpetual slavery either
to its temporal or spiritual tyrants. The
States then consented to support the King, and
the Protestant religion was established through-
out the whole of Sweden—but not without
much opposition from many of his own sub-
jects, aided by Denmark and Norway; but
the steady and vigorous conduct of Gustavus
prevailed against every difficulty, and Pro.
testantism obtained a firm footing in the three
great northern kingdoms of Sweden, Norway,
and Denmark. If God had not raised up such
& man as Gustavus Vasa, the Pope might have
murdered all Christ’s people, and completely
rooted His truth out of these kingdoms as he
212 A HISTORY OF

did in Spain and Italy. The princes of the
earth hold their power from God, and they
are appointed to be the ministers of good to
His people. When they fulfil their duty in
this respect, we should be very thankful; when
they do not, it is a great calamity. See what
the Church of Christ suffered in France, Spain,
and Italy from wicked rulers. In the former
kingdom it was nearly destroyed, in the two
latter it was utterly annihilated; and who
so blind as not to see that God employed the
instrumentality of princes for establishing His
truth in Holland, England, Sweden, Denmark,
and Norway? We know assuredly that, let
the kings and rulers of the earth set themselves
as they will against the Lord and His Christ,
they do but imagine a vain thing, for God
will set His King upon His holy hill of Zion.
Every knee shall bow’ to Jesus; and it is our
duty to honour him as King of Kings and Lord
of Lords in the face of the most dreadful cruel-
ties which any earthly king can inflict. But
still, when our earthly rulers employ their
power a3 they ought for the furtherance of the
THE REFORMATION. 213

cause of Christ, it is to be acknowledged as a
great blessing; and, therefore, it is the duty of
all Christians to join in that prayer which the
Church of England offers for the Queen—
“Most heartily wo beseech thee with thy
favour to behold our most gracious sovereign
Lady Queen Victoria, and so replenish her
with the grace of thy Holy Spirit, that: she
may always incline to thy will and walk in thy
way.”

T have now finished my little sketch of the
Reformation, and I hope that what J have
written will stir up my young readers to desire
more information about it; to aid them in ob-
taining this, I have set down in the preface to
this volume a list of the books from which I
have gathered the facts recorded in this little
history.

In closing my bricf narrative, I would re-
mark that the Reformation was not the setting
up of a new religion, but the restoration of the
old. Popery is a great apostasy from the
ancient faith which was taught by Christ and
His inspired Apostles, and which is preserved
214 A WISTORY OF

without change in the oly Scriptures; the
Reformation was, therefore, a forsaking of the
new religion of the Pope and a return to the
old religion of Jesus Christ. The Bible clearly
foretold that such an apostasy should take
place ; but it also foretold that the Lord would
waste it away before the power of His truth,
but that it should not be entirely destroyed
until His second coming—,see 2nd Thess.
ii. 8. The predicted wasting began at the
Reformation, and the utter destruction will
come in God's own appointed time. Knowing
this, we shall be very guilty before God if we
do not use all our influence to rescue our fel-
low creatures from this dreadful apostasy,
against which God’s wrath will be fearfully
manifested in the days that are coming.

Let us also consider what thanks we owe to
God for our deliverance from Popery, and let
us show our gratitude, not only with our lips
but in our lives, by trusting in the Saviour,
and by labouring to frame all our tempers, our
thoughts, our words, and our actions according
to the teaching of that Holy Book of God, of
THE REFORMATION. 215

which the Pope of Rome had deprived our
forefathers, and which the Reformers, by
God’s mercy, restored to us. There is no
nation under heaven so favoured as England ;
and if any people so highly privileged still go
on in the way of unbelief and disobedience, it
may truly be said, that it will be more tolerable
for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judg-
ment than for them.

THE END.

Dublin; Printed by G. Drovant, 6, Bachelor's-walk,

ee ee
— Be Seren