Chapter CLIX: To Theodore Vitus.36 (16)

Nothing could have come to me more seasonably at this time than your letter, which I received two months after its despatch. For, in addition to the very great troubles with which I am so sorely consumed, there is almost no day on which some new pain or anxiety does not occur. I should, therefore, be in a short time entirely overcome by the load of evils under which I am oppressed, did not the Lord by his own means alleviate their severity; among which it was no slight consolation to me to know that you are enjoying tolerable health, such at least as your years admit of and the delicate state of your body, and to be informed, by your own letter, that your affection for me had undergone no change. It was reported to me that you had been so displeased by a rather free admonition of mine--which, however, ought to have affected you far otherwise--that you tore the letter to pieces in the presence of certain witnesses. But even if the messenger was not sufficiently trustworthy, still, after a long lapse of time, his fidelity was established by various proofs, and I was compelled at length to suspect something. Wherefore I have learned the more gladly that up to this time our friendship remains safe, which assuredly, as it grew out of a heartfelt love of piety, ought to remain for ever sacred and inviolable. But it greatly concerns us to cherish faithfully and constantly to the end the friendship which God has sanctified by the authority of his own name, seeing that herein is involved either great advantage or great loss even to the whole Church. For you see how the eyes of many are turned upon us, so that the wicked take occasion from our dissensions to speak evil, and the weak are only perplexed by our unintelligible disputations. Nor, in truth, is it of little importance to prevent the suspicion of any difference having arisen between us from being handed down in any way to posterity; for it is worse than absurd that parties should be found disagreeing on the very principles, after we have been compelled to make our departure from the world. I know and confess, moreover, that we occupy widely different positions; still, because I am not ignorant of the place in his theatre to which God has elevated me, there is no reason for my concealing that our friendship could not be interrupted without great injury to the Church. And that we may act independent of the conduct of others, reflect, from your own feeling of the thing, how painful it would be for me to be estranged from that man whom I both love and esteem above all others, and whom God has not only nobly adorned with remarkable gifts in order to make him distinguished in the eyes of the whole Church, but has also employed as his chief minister for conducting matters of the highest importance. And surely it is indicative of a marvellous and monstrous insensibility, that we so readily set at nought that sacred unanimity, by which we ought to be bringing back into the world the angels of heaven. Meanwhile, Satan is busy scattering here and there the seeds of discord, and our folly is made to supply much material. At length he has discovered fans of his own, for fanning into a flame the fires of discord. I shall refer to what happened to us in this Church, causing extreme pain to all the godly; and now a whole year has elapsed since we were engaged in these conflicts. Certain worthless wretches, after stirring up strife amongst us, in reference to the free election of God, and the sad bondage of the human will, and after creating a public disturbance, had nothing more plausible to urge in defence of their grievous opposition than the authority of your name.[401] And after they had found out how easy it was for us to refute whatever arguments they adduced, they tried to crush us, forsooth, by this artifice,--by asking, if we were willing openly to disagree with you. And yet, such was the moderation observed by us, that least of all did they extort what they were adroitly seeking to obtain. Therefore, all my colleagues and myself openly professed to hold the same opinion on that doctrine which you hold. Not a word escaped us, in the whole discussion, either less honourable towards yourself than was seemly, or calculated to diminish confidence in you.[402] Meanwhile, nevertheless, such indefinite and reserved expression of opinion cannot but pain me exceedingly; and it cannot but pain me, that opportunity is being left to the evil-disposed for harassing the Church, after our death, as often as they please; while the conflicting parties will array against each other the opinions of those who ought to have spoken, as with one mouth, one and the same thing. It is neither surprising, nor a thing greatly to be lamented, that Osiander has withdrawn himself from us; yet he withdrew only after a violent attack. For you were long ago aware that he belonged to that race of wild animals which are never tamed; and I always ranked him amongst the number of those who were a disgrace to us. And assuredly, the very first day that I saw him, I abhorred the wicked disposition and abominable manners of the man. As often as he felt inclined to praise the agreeable and excellent wine, he had these words in his mouth: "I am that I am;" also, "This is the Son of the living God;" which he manifestly produced as mockeries of the Deity. Wherefore, I have the more frequently wondered that such a despicable person should at all be encouraged by your indulgence. In truth, I was particularly astonished on reading a passage in a certain preface of yours, where, after the proof of his folly at Worms, you commended him rather more than enough. But let him retire: it is an advantage to us to have got rid of him. I had rather that certain others were retained. Nevertheless,--to pass by these also,--the opposition, which is too plainly manifest in our modes of teaching, pains me not a little. I, for my part, am well aware that, if any weight is due to the authority of men, it were far more just that I should subscribe your opinions than you mine. But that is not the question; nor is it even a thing to be desired by the pious ministers of Christ. This, in all truth, we ought both to seek, viz., to come to an agreement on the pure truth of God. But, to speak candidly, religious scruples prevent me from agreeing with you on this point of doctrine, for you appear to discuss the freedom of the will in too philosophical a manner; and in treating of the doctrine of election, you seem to have no other purpose, save that you may suit yourself to the common feeling of mankind. And it cannot be attributed to hallucination, that you, a man acute and wise, and deeply versed in Scripture, confound the election of God with his promises, which are universal. For nothing is more certain than that the Gospel is addressed to all promiscuously, but that the Spirit of faith is bestowed on the elect alone, by peculiar privilege. The promises are universal. How does it happen, therefore, that their efficacy is not equally felt by all? For this reason, because God does not reveal his arm to all. Indeed, among men but moderately skilled in Scripture, this subject needs not to be discussed, seeing that the promises of the Gospel make offer of the grace of Christ equally to all; and God, by the external call, invites all who are willing to accept of salvation. Faith, also, is a special gift. I think I have clearly expounded this whole question, involved and intricate though it be, in a book but very lately published. Indeed, the matter is so obvious, that no one of sound judgment can feel persuaded otherwise, than that you are giving out what is quite different from your real inclination. It increases my anxiety, and at the same time my grief, to see you in this matter to be almost unlike yourself; for I heard, when the whole formula of the agreement of our Church with that of Zurich was laid before you, you instantly seized a pen and erased that sentence which cautiously and prudently makes a distinction between the elect and the reprobate. Which procedure, taking into consideration the mildness of your disposition, not to mention other characteristics, greatly shocked me. Accordingly, I do not ask you to endure the reading of my book, or even a part of it, because I think it would be useless to do so. Would that we might have an opportunity of talking over these matters face to face! I am not ignorant of your candour, of your transparent openness and moderation; as for your piety, it is manifest to angels and to the whole world. Therefore, this whole question would be easily, as I hope, arranged between us; wherefore, if an opportunity should present itself, I would desire nothing more than to pay you a visit. But if it shall indeed turn out as you apprehend, it will be no slight comfort to me in circumstances sad and grievous, to see you and embrace you before that I shall take my departure from this world. Here we enjoy least of all that repose which you fancy we enjoy. There is much trouble, annoyance, and even disorder, among us. Full in view is the enemy, who are continually imperilling our lives by new dangers. We are at a distance of three days' journey from Burgundy. The French forces are but an hour's march from our gates. But because nothing is more blessed than to fight under the banner of Christ, there is no reason why these obstacles should prevent you from paying me a visit. Meanwhile, you will greatly oblige me by informing me of your own and the Churches' condition.--Adieu, most distinguished sir and heartily esteemed brother. May the Lord protect you by his power, guide you by his Spirit, and bless your pious labours. My colleague, and many pious and judicious men, reverently salute you.

JOHN CALVIN.

[_Calvin's Lat. Corresp._ Opera, tom. ix. p. 66.]

[401] The same fact is related in a letter of Calvin to Dryander
in the following terms: "After that monk let loose against us from
the service of M. de Falais had been condemned, a plot having
been clandestinely hatched, a noisy fellow was found who, not
only at table in private families, but up and down the taverns,
kept constantly bawling, that we made God the author of sin, and
otherwise traduced our ministry in the most insulting manner
possible. When I saw that these evenomed words were spread about
everywhere, by means of which profligate men were intriguing, by no
means covertly, to overthrow the whole kingdom of Christ in this
city, I mildly admonished the people to be on their guard against
them. I also pointed out to the Senate how dangerous dilatory
measures were in such dissensions. Those who had suborned him to
molest me, by their intrigues so protracted the cause, that I was
kept in suspense upwards of three months. For among the judges
there were several who favoured the adverse party. But among many
injuries, there was nothing I felt more keenly and bitterly than
that this affair forced me into a hateful contest with M. Philip,
with whom, however, I broke in such a manner that I never spoke of
so great a man except in honourable terms."--_Library of Geneva._
Vol. 107, _a_.

[402] We can judge of this from the remarkable memorial of Calvin to
the Seigneurie, entitled _La Cause contre Trolliet_, where we meet
with these words:--"That party, Noble Seigneurs, which is desirous
of bringing Melanchthon and myself into mutual conflict, is doing
great wrong to both of us, and in general to the whole Church of
God. I honour Melanchthon as much for his superior learning as
for his virtues, and above all, for having laboured so faithfully
to uphold the Gospel. If I find fault with him, I do not conceal
it from him, seeing that he gives me liberty to do so. There are
witnesses in abundance on his side, who know how much he loves me.
And I know that he will hold in detestation all those who, under
cover of his name, seek to blacken my doctrine."--6th Oct. 1552.
(Library of Geneva, vol. 145.) Calvin's preface to Melanchthon's
_Common Places_ may also be consulted. Geneva, 1546, 8vo.

Osiander had published many writings against Melanchthon, in which, by a strange reversing of the orthodox doctrine, he attempted to derive Justification from God the Father, by forgetting the part which belonged to Jesus Christ as the Redeemer. See Seckendorf, and Melch. Adam, p. 229.

CCCVI.--TO MONSIEUR DE FALAIS.[403]

[403] No date. Written evidently about the end of 1552. This letter,
the last which Calvin wrote to M. de Falais, throws a great light
on the circumstances of their rupture, of which Jerome Bolsec's
process was the occasion. Banished from Geneva for his attacks on
the doctrine of predestination and his invectives against Calvin,
Bolsec had found means to interest in his cause M. de Falais, whose
physician he was, and who interceded to no purpose for him with his
judges: "Master Jerome is better acquainted with my constitution
and what affords me relief than any other doctor that I know....
It is to him after God that I am indebted for my life."--_Archives
of Geneva._ Letters of the 9th and 11th November 1551. These steps
undertaken from a feeling of humanity, would certainly not have
indisposed Calvin, if M. de Falais had not too openly taken part
with Bolsec against the Reformer. Calvin bitterly complained of it,
"that M. de Falais should write that he (Bolsec) was not a bad man,
and for the sake of an obscure wretch should hold up his reputation
as a subject of mockery." Letter to the ministers of Bâle, January
1552. Expelled from Geneva and settled at Thonon, Bolsec contrived
to envenom this difference which the recollections of a long
friendship should have appeased, and which terminated in a painful
rupture. In a vehement letter, Calvin, at that time suffering from
bad health, took leave of his old friend, whose name he erased four
years afterwards from the preface to his Commentary on the first
Epistle to the Corinthians, in order to substitute in its place that
of the Marquis de Vico.

Rupture of Calvin with that Seigneur.

[GENEVA, 1552.]

MONSEIGNEUR,--Since you esteem your cause with respect to me so good, I shall not add to your satisfaction by avowing myself in the wrong, which indeed would be mere hypocrisy on my part. For I know that I myself had already long ago pointed out to you the conduct of the man, and his acts are moreover matter of public notoriety. Since that time you have bestowed on him such eulogiums, that the person who recited them to me employed these words, that he had never heard of a man held in such esteem. When you went such lengths, after having been duly informed by me, your object in extolling him so highly must have been to have us and our whole doctrine condemned; of which, he has shewn himself so deadly, so furious, and so diabolical an enemy, that he has not blushed to write:--The God of Calvin is hypocritical, mendacious, perfidious, unjust, the provoker and patron of crimes, and worse than the Devil himself. Thus then, that I may express my opinion of you frankly, I ought to renounce God and his truth, as well as the salvation which I hope for through it. Such I believe, is not your intention, but, if from the humanity and mildness of your disposition, you are content not only to remain ignorant of the character of the man who makes war on God, but also, by lending no credit to our testimony, you furnish a handle for rendering us odious, suffer me, I entreat you, to have some zeal in maintaining the honour of my Master. But you will say, that I should at least have given you some intimation of the affair. I reply that after having been thus obliquely disgraced by you, I wished to guard against exposing myself to derision. If ten hours earlier I had been made aware of the words which I have quoted, I should have contented myself with letting you know what I had on my heart. As it chanced, your friend immediately after, or the following day, asked me if I had seen you. I replied that I had, and that I was sorry for it, and I added that were you to pass a hundred times, I should avoid all contact with you more carefully than with the most avowed enemies, since in showing yourself so intimate with that man, you were, as I have since been informed, the panegyrist of Castalio,[404] who is so perverse with all kinds of impiety, that in truth I had a hundred times rather be a Papist. Your friend then asked me if I had any objections to your being informed of that. I replied that it was with that intention that I had spoken to him on the subject, since I had not been made aware of the fact sufficiently in time. If he has divulged more than that, he has acted contrary to my opinion, my wishes, and even his own promise. To have told you that you were quite infected with the errors of that monster, was running counter to the ends I had in view, for I told him that you must needs have hated us gratuitously, to praise in our despite such a monster. The substance of what I said was that I should have been more painfully affected by such an injury coming from any other than you, such was the confidence I had in your integrity; but I was still more sorry to see you adhering, not knowing for what reason, to a person who is more detestable than all the Papists in the world. And in fact, I said to him several times, that I knew not how, nor wherefore, nor, indeed, what that meant. And since even at this present moment you love to follow a lesson quite opposed to that which I have learned in the school of my Master, for you say that you are well-pleased to forget the evil which may be in him; and yet we are told: Behold dogs, observe, mark, shun, and beware of them.... I leave you the object of your affections!--If I have been too sharp and bitter, pardon me, you have obliged me to be so. And that you may know that I feel neither anger nor ill-will, I write to you the present letter, as one who is preparing to appear before God, who afflicts me anew with an evil which is for me as it were a mirror of death before my eyes. I will supplicate him, Monseigneur, that in having pity on me, and receiving me to his mercy, he may preserve and guide you by his Spirit, and increase you in all prosperity along with Mademoiselle and your whole family.[405] Your servant,

JOHN CALVIN.

[_Fr. orig. autogr.--Library of Geneva._ Vol. 107, _a_.]

[404] See vol. i. pp. 403, 409. Settled at Bâle, Castalio had just
published his Latin version of the Holy Scriptures, which being
judged with excessive severity by the Reformed Divines, drew on him
numerous enmities.--_Bibla Sacra Latina_, Basil, 1551.

[405] The history of M. de Falais, after his rupture with Calvin,
is enveloped in much obscurity. He left Geneva in order to settle
at Berne, lost his wife in 1557, and contracted a second marriage.
We know neither the date nor the place of his death. Is it true, as
Bayle affirms, that this seigneur, chagrined by the spectacle of
the divisions which he had witnessed at Geneva, at last returned to
the Catholic church? We are rather inclined to believe, from the
testimonies of Calvin and Beza, indirectly confirmed by the silence
of the Brabançon historians, that, though differing on some points
of Calvinistic theology, the great-grand-son of Philip of Burgundy
did not abjure the tenets for which he had sacrificed his fortune
and his country. See Bayle, _Dict., Art._ Philip of Burgundy, remark
G; Calvin, _Comment._ on the 1st Epistle of Saint Paul to the
Corinthians, dedication to the Marquis of Vico, 24th January 1556;
and the preface of Beza to the _Commentary_ on Joshua.

CCCVII.--TO MATHIEU DIMONET.[406]

[406] Mathieu Dimonet, a devout Protestant of Lyons, was arrested in
that town the 9th January 1553. In his letters to the ministers of
Geneva he has himself related the details of his trial:--"On Monday
9 January being in my house in presence of the king's lieutenant
and the official, who, after they had searched and visited my
books, found nothing, except a little book of spiritual songs set
to music...." Dimonet underwent a first examination, and was then
led away to the prison of the officialty. "I have undergone," says
he, "great assaults and temptations ... for on the one side, they
set before me tortures and death, then the shame and dishonour of
myself and my relations, the sorrow of my mother, who they said was
dying with grief and many other things ... which would have been
very hard for me to bear, unless the Lord had strengthened me by
his Holy Spirit." The prisoner courageously withstood the threats
of the inquisitor Oritz, and the pressing entreaties of his family.
The 15th July 1553, quite cheerfully, and praying to the Lord, he
endured the torment of death.--_Histoire des Martyrs_, p. 247.

Exhortation to patience and constancy under persecution.

_The 10th of January 1553._

VERY DEAR BROTHER,--Although I have not at present to sustain the like conflicts that you have, yet you will suffer the word of exhortation from me as if I were your fellow-prisoner, and in truth the zeal which moves me to write to you proceeds from nothing else. Yet I pray you to consider how we ought to refer all to the will and disposal of our heavenly Father, who calls every one of us in the order that he pleases. Sometimes he spares his children, until he has gradually led and prepared them, as we hear it said to St. Peter by the Master's own lips, "When thou shalt be old, they shall carry thee whither thou wouldst not." But it sometimes happens that he chooses novices, or at least such as have not been long disciplined to warfare. However that may be, there is this advantage that he is no less powerful to put forth his strength in the weak, rendering them at once invincible, than to continue it to those who have long experienced it. From what I hear, you have not been one of the first called to his knowledge; yet God has nevertheless put you among the foremost of his witnesses. He has bestowed such strength and steadfastness upon you at the first assault, that the enemies of truth have taken knowledge of the mark of Jesus Christ, which they cannot bear. I feel indeed by the sympathy I have for you (as I ought) that Satan ceases not to give you new alarms; but you must have recourse to Him who has made so good a beginning, praying him to complete his own work. If you have many trials, do not be greatly amazed on that account, even although you feel such frailty in yourself that you are almost ready to be shaken. Rather learn that it is by such means that God would humble you, that his help should be the better recognized by your need of it; and, moreover, that he invites you to call on his name, and to have all dependence on his grace, seeing there is need that we be forcibly driven to do so. I doubt not but that there may also be firebrands from without, who, under cover of friendship and relationship, will prove your worst and most mortal enemies, since to save the body they will do their utmost to draw the soul downward to perdition. And then, men's fancy is a marvellous workshop for forging out foolish imaginations, which disturb the true rest which we ought to have in the holy calling of our God, who commands us to look simply to himself, as indeed we have very good reason to do. Therefore we have need to be armed and accoutred at every point. But you need not be daunted, seeing that God has promised to equip his own according as they are assaulted by Satan. Only commit yourself to him, distrusting all in yourself, and hope that he only will suffice to sustain you. Further you have to take heed chiefly to two things: first, what the side is you defend, and next, what crown is promised to those who continue steadfast in the Gospel. The service of God, the boundless grace which he has manifested to us in his Son, and all the glory of his kingdom, are such precious things, that no mortal man ought to think it hard to spend his life in fighting against the base corruptions, whose reign throughout the world tends to bring to nought those blessings. And then, we know what will be the end of our warfare, and that He who has bought us will never suffer so dear a price as his blood to be lost, if we be but signed with it. Now we know how he owns as his own, and declares solemnly that he will own at the last day, all those who have confessed him here below. We do not know as yet what he has determined to do concerning you, but there is nothing better for you than to sacrifice your life to him, being ready to part with it whenever he wills, and yet hoping that he will preserve it, in so far as he knows it to be profitable for your salvation. And although this be difficult to the flesh, yet it is the true happiness of his faithful ones; and you must pray that it may please this gracious God so to imprint it upon your heart that it may never be effaced therefrom. For our part, we also shall pray that he would make you feel his power, and vouchsafe you the full assurance that you are under his keeping; that he bridles the rage of your enemies, and in every way manifests himself as your God and Father.

As I hear that our brother, Peter Berger,[407] is in the same prison with you, I beg you to greet him from me, and to give him my letters as common to you both. Let us go forward, until we have arrived at our goal--the being gathered together into the everlasting kingdom.

[407] Peter Berger of Bar-sur-Seine, burgess of Geneva, was seized
at Lyons three days after the scholars of Lausanne, whom he rejoined
in the dungeons and preceded to martyrdom. "Having mounted the
stake, he said, 'Lord, I commit my soul to thee.' Then looking up
to heaven with steadfast gaze, and crying aloud, he said, 'To-day I
see heaven open;' and immediately after, this saint yielded up his
spirit to God."--_Histoire des Martyrs_, p. 234.

* * * * *

I had forgotten one point, which is, that you should reply to adversaries reverently and modestly, according to the measure of faith God gives you. I say this because it is not given to every one to dispute. Indeed the martyrs themselves were no great scholars, nor subtile to enter upon profound disputations. Thus humbling yourself under the guidance of the Spirit of God, answer soberly, according to your knowledge, following the rule of Scripture, "I have believed, therefore I speak." Yet let not that hinder you from speaking frankly and plainly, in the full persuasion that He who has promised to give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay, will never fail you.

[_Fr._--_Printed in Histoire des Martyrs_, lib. iv. p. 247.]

CCCVIII.--TO CHRISTOPHER FABRI.

Congratulations on the subject of his approaching
marriage--Calvin's regret that he cannot be present at the
ceremony.

GENEVA, _13th January 1553_.

I am exceedingly glad that you are about to get married, not only because it will be for your own private good, but also because the brethren have considered it to be for the good of the whole Church.[408] And while I do not indeed know enough of the lady, yet I confidently trust, from various conjectures, that each of you will turn out according to our wishes. We have good reason, therefore to congratulate you, and we feel thankful to God in no ordinary degree. I should gladly have been present at your marriage, had I not been detained at home by the wickedness of those who cease not to bring destruction upon themselves and the community by their madness.[409] I have good reason to call it madness, for they have never exhibited more unbridled licentiousness. I shall say nothing of their mischievous plots for the destruction of the faith, of their gross contempt of God, of their impious conspiracies for the scattering of the Church, of the foul Epicurism of their whole life; and this, not because these are light evils, but because they are not unknown to you. The entire Republic is at present in disorder, and they are striving to root up the established order of things. Had your marriage been a month later, I should have had more leisure. I cannot move a foot at present. I have not been through the city-gates for a month past, not even for recreation. Would that I had less ground for my excuse. Assuredly the season of winter would not have stood in my way. But we shall pray that your marriage may come off well, the effects of which will be felt even here. I would not have thought it labour lost to obtain a conversation with our beloved Farel and your chief magistrate, at the expense of the cold and irksomeness of a three days' journey. But one consideration was sufficient for me, that you wished me to discharge a duty which I was as willing to fulfil, as you were earnest in desiring it. I hope to find it more convenient to visit my friends on another occasion. Adieu, very dear brother in the Lord. Farel will pardon me for not writing him. Present my very kind regards to him. Louis, minister of Veissy,[410] left us lately; I see that his life has been a burden to him for some time past, owing to protracted debility. John Macard[411] supplies his place. We must have a quarrel with Philip.[412] Salute Maturin and the rest of our friends earnestly in my name. May the Lord watch over you and guide you by his Spirit. Amen.--Yours,

JOHN CALVIN.

[_Lat. orig. autogr._--_Library of the Company of Neuchatel._]

[408] Christopher Fabri [or Libertet] was on the eve of his second
marriage. We know nothing of his first wife. In a letter of May
1545, to Fabri, then pastor at Thonon, Calvin speaks highly of the
entertainment he received from his wife, on his return from a long
tour in the German Cantons: "I could never get your wife to treat
us in a plain, homely way.... She was willing to take advice. She
repeatedly requested that I should ask for whatever I chose, as if
it were my own; she adhered to her own opinion in this, however,
that she entertained us too sumptuously; for there was twice as much
food always prepared as there was any occasion for. We felt just as
much at home as if you had been present."--_MS. of the Library of
Neuchatel._

[409] In allusion to the efforts of the Libertine party, put forth
with increasing violence for the overthrow of ecclesiastical
discipline, and which gave rise during the same year to a decisive
struggle between the Reformer and his adversaries.

[410] A village on the banks of the Arve, a few miles from Geneva.

[411] John Macard, originally from the neighbourhood of Laon in
Picardy, took refuge in Geneva on account of religion. A man of
resolute character, and endowed with a manly eloquence, he rendered
eminent service to the Church alternately at Geneva and Paris, and
the latter reckoned him among the number of its most distinguished
pastors.

[412] The minister, Philip de Ecclesia, deposed on account of his
disorderly life.

CCCIX.--TO JOHN CHEKE.[413]

[413] John Cheke, preceptor of Edward VI., King of England, and
distinguished alike in science and in letters, won the esteem
and confidence of his royal pupil, who raised him to the rank
of knighthood, and who gave him in many ways the most precious
testimonies of his affection.--See Fuller's _Church History_, B.
vii.; sixteenth cent., 19, 20. Though a man of sincere piety, Cheke
was not possessed of a firmness of character equal to the variety
of his knowledge and the greatness of his talents. He survived his
pupil only to make a deplorable manifestation of the infirmity of
his faith under fear of the scaffold and of martyrdom. Arrested in
the Low Countries in 1556, by a secret order of Philip II., he was
conducted to London, imprisoned in the Tower, and escaped death only
by a solemn retractation. He then fell into a profound melancholy,
and soon after died, exhibiting sentiments of sincere repentance,
asking pardon of God and men for the sin of which he had been
guilty. See Strype, _Memoirs_, III., i. 515, and _Zurich Letters_,
first series, _passim_.

Calvin apologizes for silence, and enjoins him to use his
influence with the King for the advancement of the Gospel in
England.

GENEVA, _13th Feb. 1553_.

I have hitherto avoided writing you, most distinguished sir, lest I should perhaps seem anxious to obtain what my own inclinations did not prompt. For as the friendships of the world are hollow, and ambition and deception everywhere prevail, so that those who cultivate sincerity are exceedingly few, it is absolutely necessary for us almost to regard all with suspicion whose uprightness of character we have not thoroughly tested. I have at length, however, found an exceedingly just motive for writing you, inasmuch as I have now frequently made bold to write to the King himself, and have never written a single letter to you, which was not at all becoming, seeing that it was owing to your influence (under the grace of God) that myself and the other servants of Christ were permitted access to him. And as for the past my excuse is easy, for I was at the first afraid lest those whom I was writing to exhort might have too little confidence in me, if I employed the service of others in presenting my letters; and I was again disinclined to give you any trouble, as no familiarity had passed between us. If I have in any way offended you in this matter, attribute it rather to my shyness than to my negligence. Nay, indeed, it is now a long while ago, that having been led thereto by the fame of your rare piety and excellent learning, I must have worthily esteemed you. Moreover, this one reason is sufficient to win for you the favour of all good men, viz., that England has a king whom you have trained by your labour, not only possessing very superior talents, but also a maturity of moral excellence beyond his years, who is extending a hand to the suffering--I should rather in fact say miserable--Church of God in these very sad times. Certainly, having deemed you worthy of this honour, the Lord has not only endeared you to those who experience the present benefit of it, but to as many as desire to see the Church of God re-established, or at least to see her remains gathered together. If then I bear testimony to that affection which I have so long cherished towards you in silence, I am persuaded this expression of my regard will not be unpleasant to you. And again, while you, in that splendid position of yours, do not require the humble offices of men like me, and I, in turn, content with my own poor state, am averse to impose any burden on you of my own account, let us nevertheless cherish towards each other a mutual goodwill throughout this fleeting life, until we find its full enjoyment in heaven. Let us meanwhile, with one accord, make it our study to adorn the kingdom of Christ, and, as far as in us lies, to extend and watch over it. For we see how numerous are its open and malicious enemies, whose fury is already kindled, and is growing greater day by day; and, on the other hand, how few is the number of those who have lent their name to the Gospel, how few are conscientiously labouring for the advancement of the glory of God. We see how much coldness, or rather how much indifference, there is among many men of influence; in a word, how much deadness there is throughout the world. And while I believe you will do so of your own accord, and stand in no need at all of any foreign stimulus, yet, with your accustomed good nature, I have no doubt but that you will take in good part what I have laid thus familiarly before you, and which it becomes every one of us earnestly to call to mind. I have indeed particularly to request of you, whenever at any time you think that the most serene King could be cheered forward by my exhortations, to advise me thereon, and, according to circumstances, that you will not grudge me your opinion. Adieu, most excellent and heartily esteemed sir. May the Lord guard you by his protection, continue to guide you by his Spirit, and bless your sacred labours.

JOHN CALVIN.

[_Calvin's Lat. Corresp._ Opera, tom. ix. p. 68.]

CCCX.--TO THE FIVE PRISONERS OF LYONS.[414]

[414] Declared guilty of the crime of heresy, and delivered over to
the secular arm by the Judge Ordinary of Lyons, the five students
made their appeal to the Parliament of Paris, while the authorities
of Berne strove in vain to save "leurs escholiers." Transferred
from dungeon to dungeon, during a trial which lasted for more than
a year, brought back at last from Paris to Lyons, to await the
sentence of their judges, the constancy of these young men never
faltered for a single day. At length, the 1st March 1553, they
received the communication of the decree of the Parliament of Paris,
which gave them over to the stake.--_Hist. des Martyrs_, lib. iv.,
p. 230. That melancholy intelligence soon spread around, and brought
mourning to Lausanne and to Geneva.

Exhortations to constancy--Mention of Oritz, the Inquisitor.

_7th March 1553._

MY BRETHREN,--We have been for some days past in deeper anxiety and sadness than ever, having heard of the resolve taken by the enemies of the truth. When the gentleman you wot of passed this way,[415] while he was dining very hurriedly, to avoid all delay, I drew up such a form of letters as seemed to me expedient to write. God has given, both to you and all his people, some further respite; we wait the event as it shall please him to dispose it, always praying him to uphold you, and not permit you to fall away; in short, to have you in his keeping. I feel well assured that nothing shakes the firmness which he has put within you. Doubtless, for a long time past, you have meditated upon the last conflict which you will have to sustain, if it be his good pleasure to lead you thereto, and have even so fought hitherto that long practice has inured you to fill up what remains. It cannot be but that you feel some twinges of frailty; yet, be confident that He whose service you are upon will so rule in your hearts by his Holy Spirit, that his grace shall overcome all temptations. If he has promised to strengthen with patience those who suffer chastisement for their sins, how much less will he be found wanting to those who maintain his quarrel,--those whom he employs on so worthy a mission as being witnesses for his truth! You must therefore keep this sentence in mind, that _He who dwells in you is stronger than the world_. We who are here shall do our duty in praying that he would glorify himself more and more by your constancy, and that he may, by the consolation of his Spirit, sweeten and endear all that is bitter to the flesh, and so absorb your spirits in himself, that in contemplating that heavenly crown, you may be ready without regret to leave all that belongs to this world.

[415] This was the pious merchant, John Liner, of Saint Gall.--See
the Letter of the 10th August, p. 358. He was present with the
prisoners at the bar of Roanne when they received their sentence
of death. He set out immediately for Berne, in order to try a last
application on the part of the seigneury of that town to the King
of France.--_Hist. des Martyrs_, pp. 230, 231. Various MSS. of the
library of St. Gall.

I have received a certain paper containing some very subtle arguments of that unhappy animal Oritz,[416] to prove that it is allowable to make idols. I do not know whether it is you who have sent it me, and whether you would have me to reply to it. I have not thought it worth while to do so, because I was in some doubt about it, and really I do believe that you have no great need of it. But if you like you shall have an answer to it by the first. There is one thing which I have to request of you: you saw some time ago the letters of a paltry mocker of God in this place, who does nothing but trouble the Church, and has never ceased to deal in that trade for five years past. I wish much that by the first, you would write a word of warning to make known his malice, as there is really no end to him. And this I beseech you, as you love the repose of this Church, which is more teased than you can well believe by internal foes.

[416] The inquisitor, Nicolas Oritz, who presided at the trial of
the five students. The paper here mentioned still exists in the
library of Geneva, 113, with this title:--"_Copy of a paper of the
Inquisitor Houriz, given to the prisoners for the Word at Lyons, to
be conveyed to M. Calvin to retain_."

And now, my brethren, after having besought our good Lord to have charge over you, to assist you in everything and through everything, to make you taste by experience how kind a Father he is, and how careful of the salvation of his own, I pray to be remembered in your prayers.

[_Fr._--_Printed in Hist. des Martyrs_, lib. iv., p. 247.]

CCCXI--TO EDWARD VI.

Recommendation of a French gentleman, a prisoner for the sake of
the Gospel.

FROM GENEVA, _this 12th March 1553_.

SIRE,--Although I had a petition to make to you for myself, I should not have the boldness to urge it, yet I think that you will not take it amiss, that I should make a request for another, when you are informed of the necessity which constrains me, and the merits of the case, which commends itself to you not less than to myself. It is, Sire, that there is a French gentleman detained prisoner in Paris[417] on account of some intercepted letter written by him to one of our friends, who was the king's lieutenant in the town of Noyon (of which I am a native), and retired to these parts;[418] added to which the said gentleman was already held suspected in the matter of religion. And being a man of some rank they kept an eye upon him, which has been the occasion of his seizure. Now, if my testimony has any weight with your Majesty, I can assure you, Sire, that he is as right-minded a man as you could anywhere meet with, excelling in all honour and virtue, endowed with graces which deserve to be loved and valued, and above all, confirmed in the fear of God. I know very well that this is great praise; but did you know him, Sire, I have no doubt that you would form a like judgment, and discover that I do not exceed due measure. Now, as he is beloved of all, both high and low, even of Monsieur de Vendosme and other princes, there is nothing save the cause of Jesus Christ on account of which he can be hated or rejected, which cause is so dear to you, Sire, that I hope you will not refuse to help him, if there be any means of doing so. I am aware that your Majesty cannot aid, as might be wished, all those who labour and are persecuted on account of the Gospel. But should it be your good pleasure to exert yourself for him of whom I treat, be assured, Sire, that in the person of one man you will console many who are at present greatly dismayed, while the foes of truth are fully intending to triumph if they succeed. But not to be too troublesome to your Majesty, I shall enter no further upon facts, which, if it seem good to you, you can better learn from the statements of the gentleman who delivers this. Only I beseech you, in the name of God, with all possible affection, yea as eagerly as I would on behalf of my own life, that it may please you to grant this request, namely, to ask the King of France to let him depart out of his country, together with his wife, also detained, and with as much of his property as can be withdrawn. In doing which you will not only lay me under obligation more and more to pray God to prosper you, but an infinite number of believers besides.

[417] This gentleman, whose name is not known, corresponded by
letter with Calvin, his countryman and friend. Shortly before his
arrest he wrote to Calvin on the subject of a fire, which had almost
entirely destroyed the town of Noyon, sparing, however, the house of
the Reformer: "I have no doubt," said he, "that God has left this
testimony against those of your town, who eight or ten days before
had burnt in effigy Monsieur de Normandie and the rest."--Latin
Letter of Calvin of 15th February 1553.

[418] Laurent de Normandie.

Sire, after having commended myself as humbly as I can to your kind favour, I pray our good Lord to keep you under his holy protection, and to govern you by his Spirit in all prudence, uprightness, and strength of purpose, and to make your crown to flourish more and more.--Your very humble and obedient servitor,

JOHN CALVIN.

[_Fr. copy._--_Imperial Library. Coll._ Dupuy, vol. 102.]

CCCXII.--TO FAREL.[419]

[419] The reading of this letter, filled with the most lively and
disinterested testimonies of affection for Farel, calls to one's
mind the beautiful preface of Calvin's Commentary on the Epistle of
St. Paul to Titus, dedicated to Farel and Viret:--"I do not think,"
says Calvin, "that there have ever been friends who have lived
together in such fast friendship and concord, as we have done during
our ministry. I have been a fellow-pastor here with both of you. So
far from there having been any appearance of envy between you and
me, I always regarded us as one. We have since been separated. As
for you, Master William, the Church of Neuchatel, which you have
delivered from the tyranny of the Papacy, and won over to Christ,
called you to be its pastor; and as for you, Master Peter, you
stand in a similar relation to the Church of Lausanne. Each of us,
however, guards so well the place committed to us, that by our
united efforts, the children of God assemble within the fold of
Jesus Christ, and are even united in one company."--Dedication of
29th November 1549.

Serious illness and unexpected recovery of Farel--Calvin's joy.

GENEVA, _27th March 1553_.

When I recently performed the last offices of a friend towards you, as I indeed thought, I was desirous of escaping the remainder of the grief which was incidental to your premature death. I have suffered the punishment which I deserved for my overhastiness. And would that I had been the only one who suffered it. It made the thing worse, that I involved very many good men in the same grief with myself. Consoled, however, now by more joyful news, I am forgetting my folly and disgrace. And it is certainly proper that this wonderful goodness of God should absorb all cause for sorrow. Seeing now that your disease has left you, you must endeavour gradually to recover that vigour of mind which you exercised too actively in the most trying conflicts, and to regain possession of that strength of body which must needs be worn out and exhausted. Since I have buried you before the time, may the Lord grant that the Church may see you my survivor. My own private comfort is joined with the public good of the faithful in this prayer; for my warfare will be the shorter, and I shall not be subjected to the pain of lamenting your death. Yet I am not, in the meanwhile, averse, if it should so please God, to your life being so long lengthened out, as to allow me ten years of labour. But let us now live so for Christ, that we may be daily prepared to die for him; we ought, while we have opportunity, to prepare for what will befall us. Make it your sole study, in the meanwhile, to take care of your health, that you may soon recover. My brother will tell you better, orally, than I can here how many friends salute you. Adieu, very worthy brother. May the Lord, who, contrary to our expectation, has restored you to his Church, cause you ever to triumph over Satan and the wicked. Much health to your fellow-ministers and others.--Yours truly,

JOHN CALVIN.

[_Calvin's Lat. Corresp._ Opera, tom. ix. p. 69.]

CCCXIII.--TO CHRISTOPER AND TO THOMAS ZOLLICOFFRE.[420]

[420] _On the back._--To my kind brethren and friends, the brothers
Christopher and Thomas Zollicoffre, merchants of Saint Gall,
dwelling at Lyons. Pardon the mistake as to the names and the haste.

The 21st May 1552. The Seigneury of Berne, informed of the arrest of
the five Scholars of Lausanne, had written to the King of France to
solicit the deliverance of their "pensionaires." The burgomaster of
Zurich, John Hab, obtained an audience of this prince and found him
inflexible. The following year, March 1553, the Bernese solicited
anew the pardon of the five prisoners, condemned by the official of
Lyons and the parliament of Paris. It is to this last intercession,
urged forward by Calvin and Viret, that the letter of the Reformer
to the brothers Zollicoffre refers.

Last steps in favour of the Prisoners of Lyons.

FROM THE HOSTELLERIE IN LAUSANNE,

_28th March 1553_.

VERY DEAR MESSIEURS AND BRETHREN,--I write you this present letter in much haste, having only just arrived at the town of Lausanne. The occasion of my writing is, that Messieurs of Berne have written so warmly to the king, that if they are ever to obtain anything from him, we hope this appeal may be final. Now, the prisoners have signified that we are to apply to you for the expenses of the journey. We pray you, therefore, to consider and determine speedily what had best be done. If you have any fitter messenger to send to court, we beg of you to repay him his travelling expenses from Berne to Lyons. If you think that he ought to proceed further, be pleased to enjoin that money be furnished him without delay. May God of his infinite mercy prosper the despatch as we hope. I have addressed you privately, according to their instructions, and I believe that you will not object to be employed in an affair of this kind. Whereupon, after having affectionately commended myself to you, I beseech our gracious God to have you in his holy keeping, to guide you by his Spirit, and to make you prosperous.

Your humble brother and sincere friend,

JOHN CALVIN.

* * * * *

You can see the copies of the two letters which Messieurs of Berne have written. It might, perhaps, have been desirable that the first, dated the 15th March, should have been kept back.[421] But the thing is done. The remedy is good, inasmuch as the latter is as full as could be desired. Having perused the whole, we beg of you to forward them to the prisoners aforesaid. Our brother, Peter Viret, commends himself most heartily to you.

[_Fr. orig. autogr._--_Library of Saint Gall._ Vol. 7, p. 211.]