(Winter and Spring.)
There was in Italy, as we have said in another place,[763] a city in which the love of letters flourished, and where the Gospel found a firm support: that city was Ferrara. It was embellished1 by a university, bishop2's palace, and cathedral; by the castle of the ancient dukes, the palace of Este; but its fairest ornament3 was Renée of France. That princess, daughter of King Louis XII., wife of the duke of Este, was not more distinguished4 by the graces of her mind and her learning, than by the love of holiness which shone in her, like a divine flame, according to the testimony5 of one of the most learned Christians6 of Italy.[764] For some time she had turned her attention towards heavenly science and theological studies, and had attracted successively to Ferrara the most eminent9 Christians of Italy—Curione, Occhino, Flaminio, and
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Peter Martyr10. Two young Frenchmen arrived in their turn some time before the events we have just described. One was called Charles d'Espeville and the other Louis de Haulmont. They soon made their arrival known to the duchess, who was expecting them; and Renée, whose heart had remained French, was happy to possess in her palace two such distinguished fellow-countrymen. She knew that they had left their homes on account of that Gospel of Christ which she herself had learnt to love in the society of her dear cousin, Margaret of Angoulême, the king's sister. She lodged11 them in the Palace del Magistrato, situated12 in the Piazza13 del Duomo, and adjoining the castle.[765]
=RENEE AND CALVIN.=
Louis de Haulmont was an amiable14 young man, pious15 but timid, still undecided as to the road he should take, and the victim of fierce struggles. His companion, Charles d'Espeville, was a man of humble17 appearance: his eyes were lively and piercing, his manner serious and firm, and everything in him indicated a soul of a different stamp from that of his friend. Haulmont's true name was Louis du Tillet; he was a canon and archdeacon of Angoulême; Charles d'Espeville was none other than John Calvin. As these two Frenchmen were about to sojourn18 in the states of a prince, a vassal19 of the pope, they were compelled (says Muratori) to appear under a false name and in a costume different from what they usually wore.[766]
Renée, whose compassionate20 heart had been so often touched by the recital21 of the terrible punishments and victorious22 faith which animated23 the evangelicals, could not look upon one of them who had escaped a dungeon24 and the scaffold, without experiencing towards him the feelings of a mother and a sister. 'She was struck with
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Calvin's fine genius,' says a catholic historian,[767] and the perfection with which he spoke25 and wrote the French language. She presented her two countrymen to the duke, as men of letters who had come to visit the brilliant Italy: this was a better claim to the favor of the grandson of Pope Alexander VI. than their condition as reformers.
Ferrara presented many subjects of interest to Calvin. The duke of Este liked to play the Medici: Bernard Tasso, a poet not without imagination, was secretary to the duchess; and his son, the illustrious author of the 'Jerusalem Delivered,' was soon to fill the court of Ferrara with his genius, his sorrows, his despair and folly26, caused (it is supposed) by his unhappy passion for the beautiful Leonora, daughter of Renée, and even to expiate27 by a seven years' captivity28 in a madhouse the crime of having loved a granddaughter of Louis XII. and Lucrezia Borgia. Celio Calcagnini, canon, poet, orator29, mathematician30, and antiquary, who guided in the land of the Muses31 the footsteps of the youthful Anne of Este, who afterwards became duchess of Guise32, and her friend Olympia Morata, was then also at the court of Este. A year sooner, the author of 'The Institutes of the Christian7 Religion' might have met the author of the 'Orlando Furioso;' but the somewhat discordant33 individualities of Calvin and Ariosto were not destined34 to be found side by side.
It was not the men of learning, however, whom the young theologian had come to see: it was the duchess herself. That princess, who had already received in France a few rays of evangelical light, did not yet possess a sufficient knowledge of Christian truth: she felt this, and was determined35 to seek above all things peace with God. She therefore had frequent interviews with Calvin. Holy Scripture36 was the subject of their conversation; the reformer explained to Renée one
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passage by another, and the light of heaven beaming from all these passages of Holy Writ37, carried brightness and warmth into the princess's heart. The young doctor spoke with simplicity38 and modesty39, but at the same time with affection and decision. 'If I address you, madam,' he said, 'it is not from rashness or presumption40, but pure and true affection to make you prevail in the Lord. When I consider the pre-eminence in which He has placed you, I think that, as a person of princely rank, you can advance the kingdom of Jesus Christ.' But even this consideration was not necessary to arouse the zeal41 of the evangelist of Noyon. The princess's noble character and her love for the Gospel touched him deeply. 'I observe in you,' he added, 'such fear of God, and such a real desire to obey Him, that I should consider myself a castaway if I neglected the opportunity of being useful to you.'[768] Calvin was the most profound and most earnest commentator42 of Holy Scripture; and Renée embraced with her whole heart the truths that he proclaimed, so that the reformer was able to say to her some time later: 'It has pleased God, madam, to enlighten you with the truth of His holy Gospel. Let us now confess that if God has withdrawn43 us from the depths of darkness, it is in order that we should follow the light straightforwardly44, turning neither to this side nor to that.'[769] The duchess profited by this advice. 'Calvin,' says Muratori, 'so infected Renée with his errors that it was never possible to extract from her heart the poison she had drunk.'[770]
=A CHRISTIAN WALK.=
An open Christian walk was difficult at a court where
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popery and worldliness ruled together. Hence Renée felt keenly the need of directions in harmony with the Word of God; and in her difficulties and agonies, at the times when she was about to faint, 'as if she was sunk in water almost over her head,' she had recourse to the evangelical theologian. Calvin then invited her always to walk 'forwards, in order that the gifts of God might increase in her.' 'The main point,' as he wrote to her some time after, 'is that the holy doctrine45 of our Master should so transform us in mind and heart, that His glory may shine forth46 in us by innocence47, integrity, and holiness.'[771]
Some of the most illustrious divines of Roman-catholicism have been, in France and other countries, the directors of princes; but there was a great difference between them and the reformer. That practical evangelist, whom Romish controversialists and others have reproached with speaking of nothing but doctrines48, urged the daughter of Louis XII. to 'seek after innocence, integrity, and holiness.'
The relations of Calvin with the duchess lasted all his life, and they were always marked with frankness and respect. Touched with a zeal so Christian and so pure, she loved and honored him, 'as long as he lived,' says Theodore Beza, 'as an excellent instrument of the Lord.'[772] Even when he could no longer hold a pen on account of his extreme weakness, Calvin, borrowing the hand of his brother, wrote to her; and to her were addressed the last three French epistles of the reformer.[773]
=THE COUNTESS OF MARENNES.=
The duchess of Ferrara was not the only person whom Calvin called at that time to a Christian life. 'Many
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others, especially among those about her person, were seduced,' says Muratori; that is to say, brought over to evangelical truth.[774] These conversions49, probably, must not be ascribed solely50 to Calvin: some, like Renée, had already enjoyed a certain knowledge of the Gospel; others were afterwards strengthened in their faith; but all received something from the young reformer. Soon after his arrival at the court of Ferrara, Calvin had remarked a lady of great intelligence and learning, who was one of its principal ornaments51. This was Anne de Parthenay, first lady of honor to the duchess, and wife of Antoine de Pons, count of Marennes, first gentleman to the duke. The countess of Marennes was a great musician, and often sang in the duchess's apartments, where she was admired for the beauty of her voice.[775] But Anne busied herself with more serious labors53. Not satisfied with studying the Latin authors, she had a taste for Greek, and 'intrepidly55' translated the poets and prose writers.[776] That eminent woman did more: she read books of divinity, and even took a particular pleasure in 'discussing almost every day with the theologians the matters of which they treated.'[777] She therefore talked with Calvin on these subjects, and before long the pure and living faith of the reformer gave a new direction to her soul. Hitherto she had been somewhat of a 'blue-stocking,' but now she 'ceased to have any confidence in herself,' and sought in the holy books and in her Saviour56 the means of quenching57 the thirst for knowledge and the divine life which tormented58 her. From that hour she became a new creature and a 'good huguenot.' She even won over her husband to the convictions that were
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dear to herself, and, so long as the countess lived, the latter showed himself a great lover of virtue59 and of truth.[778]
Adjoining the hall of Aurora60, where Renée and her court usually assembled, was a chapel61 adorned62 by the pencil of Titian. Until now Calvin had only spoken in the duchess's apartments, and respect naturally prevented the servants (according to the historians of the Roman church) 'from inquiring too curiously63 into what occurred there.'[779] But ere long Renée began to think that she ought not to keep for herself only and a few court favorites the words of life and light which fell from the lips of the French divine. While listening to them, she had felt the bitterness of sin and the fear of God's judgments64; but she had at the same time tasted the sweets of pardon and eternal life. Ought not others to enjoy them also? Should she prevent those from entering who desired to enter?
Calvin was ready. Renée invited him to preach in Titian's chapel. Had he not preached in the catholic churches of Noyon, Angoumois, and Poitou? The duchess threw open the doors of that service to all who desired to take part in it. The count of Marennes and his wife, the youthful Jean de Parthenay, seigneur of Soubise and brother to the countess, with other members of that family, the count of Mirambeau, Anne of Beauregard, Clement65 Marot, and Leon Jamet, the ex-clerk of finance, who had fled from Paris after the affair of the Placards—were all present at these meetings.
The charms which French people found in a French service might excuse these assemblies in the eyes of the duke of Este. But they were soon joined by learned Italians, friends of the Gospel, and among others by Giovanni Sinapi and his brother, as well
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as by the pious, sprightly66, and beautiful Francesca Baciro, whom Giovanni Sinapi married two years later.[780] At this epoch67 so glorious for Italy, when Curione taught at Pavia, protected by the admiration68 of his hearers; when Aonio Paleario at Sienna glorified69 Jesus Christ, 'the king of every people;' when Mollio at Bologna commented on the Epistles of Saint Paul to the great scandal of the pope; when Juan Valdes, Peter Martyr, and Occhino filled Naples with the Gospel; when Christ's truth seemed to be gliding70 even into Rome itself, a Frenchman, under the patronage71 of a French princess, was announcing in Ferrara the same Gospel, but with a voice even more distinct. What a future for Italy, if Rome had not extinguished these lights! There was gathered around the preacher a serious and friendly audience in the chapel of the castle of Ferrara.
Calvin, full of the truths he had just set forth in his Institutes, 'put forward that Word of the Lord whose majesty72 by a holy violence constrains73 souls to obey it,' and showed that this 'Gospel, whose smallness many folks despised, as if it crouched74 at their feet, so far surpassed the range of the human mind that the greatest geniuses lift their eyes in vain, for they can never see the top.'[781]
=ANNE OF BEAUREGARD.=
Among the persons whose heart sought after God was the beautiful Anne of Beauregard, who, though still very young, had accompanied Renée to Ferrara. Being betrothed75, and all radiant with the joy of her youth, she was soon to be called to other altars than those of marriage. Falling ill, she profited by the Word she had heard, and, content with Christ alone, despised the world. Death cut down that beautiful flower. Renée regretted her bitterly; all the court wept with her;
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and Marot, who was then at Ferrara, wrote these melancholy76 lines upon her tomb:
De Beauregard, Anne suis, qui d'enfance,
Laissai parents, pays, amis et France,
Pour suivre ici la duchesse Renée;
Laquelle j'ai depuis abandonnée,
Futur époux, beauté, fleurissant âge;
Pour aller voir au ciel mon héritage.
Laissant le monde avec moins de souci
Que laissai France, alors que vins ici?[782]
The count of Marennes, a man of no decision of character, often attended Calvin's preaching. He was rather afraid that the duke, his master, would be displeased77; still the duchess herself had arranged these meetings. The countess, his wife, whose humble servant he was, asked him to join them; his brother-in-law, Soubise, also invited him; Marennes, therefore, followed the others to chapel, being urged from without and not from within.
=ZEAL OF SOUBISE.=
Soubise, on the contrary, an independent man, of noble, decided16, and energetic character, went with his whole heart, and, after Renée, was the best conquest of the Gospel at Ferrara. In that fanatical age it was choosing a hard and miserable78 life; but the Gospel Word had conquered him, and he was determined to walk among the thorns. 'John of Soubise, a hero of the sixteenth century,' says Moreri, 'suffered himself to be perverted79 at the court of the duke of Ferrara, when Renée of France received there certain doctors of the pretended reformed religion.'[783] He had been trained for the profession of arms; he now found at Calvin's side the sword of the Word of God, and returning into France courageously80 'occupied himself in defending the truths he had believed.'[784] A gentleman of the king's
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chamber81, a knight82 of the Order, having had command of the French army in Italy, a man of great resources and great service, 'having effected a hundred masterstrokes,' he was, above all, very zealous83 for God; and, without neglecting the important affairs of the kingdom, he sought the salvation84 of the humblest tenant85 on his estates. A good old pastor86, Mulot des Ruisseaux, 'impelled87 by the singular virtue of the lord of that place' (Soubise), used to leave his house at the approach of night—the only time when evangelical Christians dared meet together—and visit the adjoining districts, everywhere teaching the Scriptures88. More than once, on hearing the signal of alarm, he had to hide in the woods and pass the night there. In a short time a great part of the people had forsaken89 mass.[785] Soubise even desired to convert Catherine de Medicis, and with that view held long conversations with the queen,[786] and the crafty90 Italian woman led him to hope for a moment that she was on the point of turning Protestant. The trouble that he had taken was not entirely91 lost. The duchess of Bourbon Montpensier, 'a woman of virile92 character and of wisdom beyond her sex,' as De Thou describes her,[787] being present at Soubise's conversations with Catherine de Medicis, received the truths which he was explaining to another; and somewhat later two of that lady's daughters, the duchess of Bouillon and the princess of Orange, bravely professed93 the doctrines of the Reformation.
By his only daughter, Catherine of Parthenay, Soubise was grandfather of the celebrated94 duke of Rohan.
It was not only among his compatriots at Ferrara that Calvin was a fisher of men. The traditions of certain families of the peninsula place several eminent
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Italians[788] among the number of those who heard and received light from him. One of them was a Neapolitan nobleman, the duke of Bevilacqua, then at Ferrara. His ancestors, who descended95 from the Boileaux, barons96 of Castelnau, a family which in France has produced many distinguished men, were of Languedocian origin, and had been compelled by the persecutions directed against the Vaudois and Albigenses in the thirteenth century to take refuge in the kingdom of Naples.[789] Bevilacqua discovered at Ferrara, in Calvin's teaching, the truth for which his forefathers98 had been compelled to leave France.
Another Italian, more eminent still, who used to attend these evangelical assemblies, was Titian, then about the age of fifty-eight. That great painter, who had decorated the castle of duke Alphonso of Este, was again at Ferrara. Possessing a calm, solid, judicious99, and truth-loving mind, devoted100 to nature, and seeking to represent her in all her truth, Titian was naturally struck with the pure and living religion which Calvin preached. The great artist was no stranger to the deep affections of the soul, and the sublimest101 heroism102 in his eyes was the devotedness103 of the Christians, who sacrificed their lives for their faith. There are no scenes more terrible and pathetic than those represented in his pictures of martyrs104. Nurtured105 with the writings of Dante, Petrarch, and other great men of Italy, who had shown themselves opposed to the abuses of the popes and their adherents106, Titian could applaud the opposition107 led by the young Frenchman against the papacy. But if at that time he greeted evangelical truths with
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admiration, there is no evidence that they sank very deeply into his heart. It would appear that Bevilacqua asked him to paint Calvin's portrait; but however that may be, the portrait still exists in the palace of the duke of Bevilacqua at Naples.[790] There is no indication that Titian preserved the impressions he received at Ferrara. 'Among those who seem touched by the beauty of the Gospel,' says Calvin, 'there is scarcely one out of ten in whose heart the Word of God is not stifled108.' Titian was, no doubt, an instance of the truth of the fact indicated by the Reformer.
=THE WORD STIFLED BY THE WORLD.=
Calvin had been a faithful and active workman in his Master's vineyard, yet he did not always meet with friendly and docile109 hearers, even in Ferrara. Among the persons forming the duchess's court, he had noticed a cringing110 person with insinuating111 manners, whose look and expression displeased him greatly. That man, by name Master François, chaplain to Renée was one of those double-hearted people who wish to satisfy God and their own cupidity112. Calvin had heard that the life of that priest was far from saintly. 'I do not interfere113,' he answered, when called upon to declare his opinion as to the chaplain's superstitious114 doctrines—'I do not interfere, for if I laid myself out to speak evil of him, I should have to speak of far different matters, on which
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I remain silent.' Master François, seeing the favor which the young stranger enjoyed at court, assumed an air of being convinced by his words, appeared to become his friend, and began to preach as evangelically as he could. He raised no objections to Calvin's meetings, but prevailed on the duchess to be present at mass also, which he continued to say, notwithstanding his evangelical appearances. Such a man could not please the upright and inflexible115 reformer. 'When I see any one extinguishing the light of truth,' he wrote one day to Renée, 'I cannot forgive him, were he a hundred times my father.'[791]
Calvin tried, therefore, to convince François that the celebration of what he called 'the sacrifice at the altar' was contrary to Holy Scripture. Whenever the chaplain went astray the reformer admonished116 him. 'I have often tried to bring him into the true path,' he said. The priest would then appear sorrowful, and ashamed of his weakness, and Calvin, pressing him still more closely, would succeed in 'making him confess his iniquity117.' But human respect still prevailed in François, and if any one about the court happened to be present at his conversations with the reformer, he would make excuses for himself before them.
=THE CHAPLAIN AND THE INSTITUTES.=
One day, finding his discourses118 useless, Calvin determined to present him with 'a treatise119 of his;'[792] that is all he says. He does not mention the title of this work; but as it cannot have been either his commentary on Seneca's De Clementiâ or the Psychopannichia, it was evidently the Institutes of the Christian Religion, which he had just printed at Basle—these three works being at that time all the reformer had written. Even on the supposition that Calvin had left Basle before the actual publication of his book, it would have been very natural
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for him to take a copy with him when starting for Italy. Master François opened that volume, which, by God's grace, has imprinted120 indelible convictions in so many minds. This is the first notice we have of the reading of the Institutes: it is mentioned by Calvin himself, and took place during his Italian journey, in the castle of Lucrezia Borgia's son. These circumstances impart to it a peculiar121 interest. François probably did not read the whole treatise. The mass was the subject of difference between him and Calvin, and consequently it was that part of his work to which the latter referred him. There was much in it calculated to disturb the chaplain. 'Christ,' said the treatise, 'being immortal122, has been appointed by God everlasting123 priest; he has no need then for others to succeed him. Now do not those priests who offer sacrifice every day put themselves in Christ's place, and rob him of the prerogative124 of his eternal sacrifice?'[793] Further on he adds: 'The mass being established in such a manner that a hundred thousand sacrifices are offered up daily, swamps and buries the sacrifice of Christ which was offered as sole sacrifice. To set up an altar now is to pull down the cross of Jesus Christ. The mass blots125 out of the remembrance of men the Saviour's true and only death.' And still further on the chaplain read: 'The mass robs us of the fruits which resulted to us from the death of Christ; for who will believe himself redeemed126 by that death, when a new redemption is presented to him in the mass?' Other considerations put forward by Calvin in his book, were equally calculated to convince the priest.
Calvin who was not deficient127 in classical recollections and who anticipated a second Iliad in which the princes of the earth would meet—some to retain the mass, others to remove it—compares it, in conclusion, to that woman of antiquity128, so notorious by the impure129
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passions and the cruel war she stirred up. 'Assuredly,' he exclaimed, 'Satan never constructed a stronger machine to attack the kingdom of Jesus Christ. Behold130 that Helen under whose eyes the enemies of the truth are fighting with so much rage, with whom they commit adultery, and plunge131 into a spiritual impurity132 which is the most detestable of all.' He then draws up and displays the long catalogue of 'great and serious abuses' which the mass has engendered133, namely, disgraceful markets, illicit134 and dishonest gains, great extortions—all kinds of impurity, idolatry, sacrilege, and other 'consequences' that we omit.
=CALVIN AND FRANCOIS.=
The priest was greatly agitated135. The beauty of the language, the clearness of style, the energy of expression, the powerful logic8, the strength of affection, the rapidity and seriousness of the reproaches, the accusations136 and recriminations which fell upon his soul, like hailstones in a storm, and above all the idea that the mass robbed Christ of his cross and his crown, and insulted his divinity, alarmed François who had imagined nothing of the sort. He was 'convinced in his conscience;' he thought himself really guilty and exposed to great danger, while his anguish137 increased more and more. He hastened to the reformer, and there (says Calvin), 'he protested with strong oaths he would never assist at the mass, it being so great an abomination.'[794] The chaplain's emotion was sincere, only it was not permanent. He soon relapsed into his habitual138 condition, and recommenced preaching the word of God 'solely because he thought he might thus catch benefices and other prey139.' At a later period Calvin wrote of him: 'Madam, I know my man so well that I do not value his oath more than the chattering140 of a magpie141. If persons who can raise him to dignities, or are rich enough to fill his wallet, ask him to give glory to God, he will take
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pains to gratify them; but if any persecution97 should come, he will be quite ready to renounce142 the Gospel. He plays different parts at different times. It is not the duty of a Christian to speak ill of his neighbor, but there is no one with whom I wage such fierce war as with those who, under the cloak of the Gospel, play the hypocrite with princes, and by their cunning and tricks keep them always enveloped143 in clouds, without leading them to the true goal.[795] This man,' he said, 'is convinced in his conscience, and yet he continues doing what he acknowledges to be wrong.' He added: 'All the hatred144 which I have shown him hitherto is, that I have endeavored with all my power to edify145 him in what is right.'[796] Such were the struggles which the valiant146 champion of the Gospel had to maintain in the palace of the dukes of Este.
One of the duchess's ladies—her name is not known—who had found peace with God in the Saviour's death, refused to be present at mass. François attempted to convince her, but the young lady remained firm as a rock. 'She would not offend her conscience.' The angry priest complained to the duchess and did all in his power to deprive the young maid of honor of the kindly147 feeling which Renée was accustomed to show towards her. Before long the duchess herself was 'warned,' that those who 'conducted themselves like that young lady' would not be tolerated, seeing that they would give occasion for scandal. The princess, knowing full well that the duke would not permit any one at court to reject the mass, was in great distress148, and Calvin was informed of it by the countess of Marennes.[797] The enemies of the Reformation added falsehood
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to violence. The confessor tried to make the duchess believe that the churches of Germany had not discussed the matter, but that they admitted the mass. Calvin complained loudly of the great injury done to the churches of God. 'All the churches that have received the Gospel,' he wrote a little later, 'and even all individuals hold this article—that the mass ought not to be endured. Even Capito, one of those who endeavors earnestly to moderate matters, teaches in a work dedicated149 to the king of England, that it is the duty of Christian princes to drive from their realms such a detestable idolatry. There is now not a single man of reputation who is not of that opinion.'[798]
=CALVIN WRITES TO DUCHEMIN.=
During his residence at Ferrara, Calvin was not satisfied with combating the errors of those who surrounded him: he did not forget France, to which his heart was always attached; and he watched, although from afar, the friends he had left there. The superstitions150 of Italy and the profane151 spirit displayed by the priests in the midst of their relics152 and empty ceremonies, produced the same effect upon him as upon Luther, and made him all the more desirous to see his fellow-countrymen withdraw from the authority of the pope. He was therefore deeply moved by the news which reached him at this time. Nicholas Duchemin, with whom he had lived at Orleans, whose character he esteemed153, and of whom he had said, 'that he was dearer to him than his life,' had been appointed official or ecclesiastical judge, which brought him into close relations with the Roman clergy154 and worship. Calvin was alarmed and sent him a letter which, revised and enlarged, was published under this title: How we must avoid the papal ceremonies and superstitions, and observe the Christian religion with purity.[799] 'I do not mean,'
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said Calvin to his friend, 'that you should make a conscience of things which it is not in your power to escape, and with regard to which you should be free. I do not forbid your entering the temples which surround you, although numberless examples of impiety155 are witnessed in them daily. Although the images are consecrated157 to detestable sacrileges, I do not forbid you to look at them. It would not even be in your power, for the streets are full of a multitude of idols158. But have a care lest a too great license159 should make you overstep the bounds of liberty.'[800]
Duchemin was very sensible of the danger, and wishing to be at the same time faithful to the Gospel, and to preserve an advantageous160 appointment, had put this question to Calvin: 'How can I keep myself pure among the pollutions of Babylon?' Calvin showed him, as he had shown François, that the mass was the most dangerous enemy.
'Do not believe,' he said, 'in that conjuror161 who approaches the altar and begins to play his tricks, now turning this side, now that; at one time resting motionless, at another muttering his magic murmurs162, by means of which he pretends to draw Christ down from heaven to make reconciliation163 between God and man, and thus substitute himself for the Saviour dead and raised again.'[801]
The more Calvin reflected on Duchemin's position the more it alarmed him. He thought himself on the point of losing one of the earliest objects of his tender affection. A few moments longer on the verge164 of the abyss
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and his friend would fall into it. He called to him with all his strength and with a cry of anguish. 'I feel very great regret for your condition,' he said. 'I am sorry that you are not permitted to extricate165 yourself from that Egypt where so many monsters are always before you. A man thinks to himself that it is of no great importance to trifle a little in order to preserve the favor of the people, and to take part with others in wicked ceremonies. Then one foot is placed a little further on, and thus declining gradually, he falls from the straight path, and is precipitated166 to ruin and perdition. Let us be careful never to recede167, even a nail's breadth, from the obedience168 due to our heavenly Father. Awake, then, awake, most virtuous169 man! Display in your actions such piety156, goodness, charity, chastity, and innocence, that the superstitious, even while vexed170 that you are not like them, may be constrained171 to confess, whether they will or not, that you are the servant of God.'[802]
=CALVIN'S APPEAL TO ROUSSEL.=
It was not long before the Reformer received still more distressing172 news. It was not merely a disciple173, it was a teacher who grieved him. One of the men whom he esteemed the most was not only exposed to peril174, but had succumbed175. Calvin learnt that, on the death of Pierre d'Albret, bishop of Oleron, Queen Margaret of Navarre, who was falling away from evangelical simplicity, had sent to Rome to beg the vacant see for Roussel; and that, after some difficulty, the court of the Vatican had granted the favor. Roussel a bishop, and by favor of the pope! Calvin was amazed. People wrote to him that the appointment had been celebrated by the poets of Bearne, and that Roussel was overwhelmed with congratulations; and Calvin wondered whether his friend, amid the seducing176 songs of the sirens, would lend an ear to his warnings. He determined, however, to give utterance177 to the solemn voice of faithfulness. The stern language he addressed to the new
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bishop shows us, more clearly than the cleverest portrait, the great decision of his soul.
'It will seem to you that I dream,' he wrote to Roussel, 'if alone among the multitude of those who flatter you, I come to disturb the rejoicings. And yet, if you suffer yourself in the least degree to be cozened by such prettinesses, they will lead you into a heavy and dangerous forgetfulness. Those who have once drunk, be it but a little drop, of that cup of the Roman table, are intoxicated178 and bewitched.'[803]
Calvin pictured to himself the magnificent state of his friend, the great splendor179, the grand appearance, the mitre, crosier, mantle180 and ring, and all the rest of the paraphernalia181 with which he was bedizened; the riches, the pomp displayed in his household, the long train of servants, the dainty table, and a thousand other forms of luxury and superfluity, and exclaimed: 'Now that you have become the favorite of fortune, remember that He who appointed bishops182 (that is, God) wills that, while the people sleep, they should be in a watch-tower on a hill, casting their eyes on all around them, and that their voice should be like the sound of a trumpet183. With what faithfulness do you labor54 to raise up that which has fallen? True religion is defamed, mocked at, trodden under foot, and even entirely ruined; the poor people are deceived, abused, plundered184 by a thousand frauds, and led to slaughter185 ... and all that is done before your eyes! You not only let these things pass, but there is hardly any impiety in your diocese which you do not sanction by your seal!
'What ought to be done with one who, like you, deserts his captain, passes over to the enemy, and damages the camp in whose defence he had sworn to employ his life?
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'Blow the trumpet, watchman! Arm thyself, shepherd! Why waitest thou? Of what art thou thinking? Is this a time for sleep? What! a murderer, guilty of shedding blood, every drop of which the Lord will require of thee again! And thou art not afraid?[804]
'O Rome, Rome! how many good people thou corruptest who otherwise were not ill-born? How many among those already corrupted186 whom thou makest worse daily? How many of those whom thou hast debauched, whom thou plungest into eternal perdition?[805]
'O my dear Roussel, come out of that slough187 as soon as possible, for fear lest while lingering in it you should sink deeper and deeper into the mire52.[806]
'You will say, I know: "What then will become of us poor wretches188? Must we, who live at our ease, go into foreign lands, like needy189 vagabonds? Must we, who always have our pantry and cellar full, without any toil190, live upon coarse fare procured191 by the sweat of our brows and the labor of our hands?"[807]
'If you find such a life strange, you are not a true Christian. It is very hard, I confess, to leave one's birthplace to be a wanderer and a stranger. And yet the Lord, who is a marvellous worker, contrives192 that this poverty, so bitter in the opinion of men, is made pleasing to them, and that, tempered with a heavenly sweetness, it procures193 them especial pleasure.'
Thus the young man of twenty-seven was already a teacher abounding194 in energy and good sense. These two letters, which (according to the most trustworthy evidence) were written at Ferrara, would of themselves be sufficient to mark his residence in that city with a special character. It was then he began to appear, to speak, and to lead with the authority of a reformer. In him God gave His church a teacher gifted with that indomitable firmness which, notwithstanding all obstacles
{441}
and all seductions, is able to break with error and to uphold the truth. At the same time He gave a man whose activity was not to be limited to the place where he lived, but whose wide spirit would embrace all Christendom, and who would be able to send into France, the Low Countries, England, Poland, and wherever it became necessary, the words of wisdom and of faith.
Calvin taught not only by his words but by his example. He might have been able, by softening195 down some expressions in the Gospel, to remain in the palace of the dukes of Este, and to enjoy the favor of princes. But if he required fidelity196 and renunciation in Roussel, he first possessed197 them himself. He made the sacrifices to which he invited others, and was ready to exchange the pleasures and brilliancy of a court for the horrors of a prison, or of a flight environed with danger. Calvin remained firm, as 'seeing Him who is invisible,' and preferred to be afflicted198 with the people of God rather than have a part in the joys of the great ones of the earth. This spirit of self-denial characterized him to the last. The friend of princes, the councillor of kings, he lived humbly199, having scarcely the means of supplying the ordinary wants of life.
=CALVIN'S INFLUENCE IN ITALY.=
It is said that Calvin visited Padua, Venice, and even Rome; but it does not appear that history can accept this tradition. It is probable that all the time he spent beyond the Alps was passed near the Duchess Renée. His influence, however, extended beyond the palaces and the principality of the dukes of Este. One of the men who may be considered the best judges, one of the literary historians of the peninsula, the jesuit Tiraboschi, declares that Calvin's sojourn at the court of Ferrara was more injurious to Italy than all the soldiers, active disciples200 of Luther, who propagated his doctrines there.[808]
{442}
And yet Calvin scarcely quitted Ferrara. Just when the star of Ariosto, which had shone over that city, had set, and when that of Tasso was about to appear, the star of Calvin shone there with a purer light than that of the bard201 of Orlando or of Godfrey. But the faithful Christian could not long remain in the bosom202 of worldliness and popery without suffering from their violent attacks. Calvin's sojourn was about to end in a tragic203 and unexpected manner.
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1
embellished
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| v.美化( embellish的过去式和过去分词 )；装饰；修饰；润色 | |
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bishop
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| n.主教，（国际象棋）象 | |
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ornament
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| v.装饰，美化；n.装饰，装饰物 | |
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distinguished
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| adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的 | |
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testimony
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| n.证词；见证，证明 | |
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Christians
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| n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 ) | |
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Christian
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| adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒 | |
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logic
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| n.逻辑(学)；逻辑性 | |
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eminent
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| adj.显赫的，杰出的，有名的，优良的 | |
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martyr
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| n.烈士，殉难者；vt.杀害，折磨，牺牲 | |
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lodged
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| v.存放( lodge的过去式和过去分词 )；暂住；埋入；（权利、权威等）归属 | |
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situated
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| adj.坐落在...的，处于某种境地的 | |
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piazza
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| n.广场；走廊 | |
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amiable
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| adj.和蔼可亲的，友善的，亲切的 | |
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pious
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| adj.虔诚的；道貌岸然的 | |
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decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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humble
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| adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低 | |
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18
sojourn
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| v./n.旅居，寄居；逗留 | |
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vassal
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| n.附庸的；属下；adj.奴仆的 | |
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compassionate
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| adj.有同情心的，表示同情的 | |
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recital
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| n.朗诵，独奏会，独唱会 | |
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victorious
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| adj.胜利的，得胜的 | |
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animated
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| adj.生气勃勃的，活跃的，愉快的 | |
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dungeon
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| n.地牢，土牢 | |
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spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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folly
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| n.愚笨，愚蠢，蠢事，蠢行，傻话 | |
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expiate
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| v.抵补，赎罪 | |
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captivity
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| n.囚禁；被俘；束缚 | |
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orator
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| n.演说者，演讲者，雄辩家 | |
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mathematician
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| n.数学家 | |
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31
muses
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| v.沉思，冥想( muse的第三人称单数 )；沉思自语说（某事） | |
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guise
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| n.外表，伪装的姿态 | |
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discordant
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| adj.不调和的 | |
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destined
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| adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的 | |
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determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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scripture
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| n.经文，圣书，手稿；Scripture:(常用复数)《圣经》，《圣经》中的一段 | |
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writ
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| n.命令状，书面命令 | |
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simplicity
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| n.简单，简易；朴素；直率，单纯 | |
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modesty
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| n.谦逊，虚心，端庄，稳重，羞怯，朴素 | |
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presumption
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| n.推测，可能性，冒昧，放肆，[法律]推定 | |
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41
zeal
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| n.热心，热情，热忱 | |
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42
commentator
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| n.注释者，解说者；实况广播评论员 | |
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43
withdrawn
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| vt.收回；使退出；vi.撤退，退出 | |
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44
straightforwardly
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| adv.正直地 | |
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45
doctrine
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| n.教义；主义；学说 | |
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forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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innocence
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| n.无罪；天真；无害 | |
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doctrines
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| n.教条( doctrine的名词复数 )；教义；学说；（政府政策的）正式声明 | |
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conversions
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| 变换( conversion的名词复数 )； （宗教、信仰等）彻底改变； （尤指为居住而）改建的房屋； 橄榄球（触地得分后再把球射中球门的）附加得分 | |
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50
solely
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| adv.仅仅，唯一地 | |
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51
ornaments
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| n.装饰( ornament的名词复数 )；点缀；装饰品；首饰v.装饰，点缀，美化( ornament的第三人称单数 ) | |
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52
mire
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| n.泥沼，泥泞；v.使...陷于泥泞，使...陷入困境 | |
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53
labors
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| v.努力争取(for)( labor的第三人称单数 )；苦干；详细分析；（指引擎）缓慢而困难地运转 | |
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54
labor
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| n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦 | |
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55
intrepidly
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| adv.无畏地，勇猛地 | |
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saviour
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| n.拯救者，救星 | |
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57
quenching
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| 淬火，熄 | |
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tormented
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| 饱受折磨的 | |
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59
virtue
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| n.德行，美德；贞操；优点；功效，效力 | |
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60
aurora
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| n.极光 | |
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61
chapel
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| n.小教堂，殡仪馆 | |
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62
adorned
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| [计]被修饰的 | |
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curiously
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| adv.有求知欲地；好问地；奇特地 | |
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judgments
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| 判断( judgment的名词复数 )； 鉴定； 评价； 审判 | |
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65
clement
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| adj.仁慈的；温和的 | |
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66
sprightly
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| adj.愉快的，活泼的 | |
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67
epoch
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| n.(新)时代；历元 | |
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68
admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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69
glorified
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| 美其名的，变荣耀的 | |
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70
gliding
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| v. 滑翔 adj. 滑动的 | |
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71
patronage
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| n.赞助，支援，援助；光顾，捧场 | |
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72
majesty
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| n.雄伟，壮丽，庄严，威严；最高权威，王权 | |
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73
constrains
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| 强迫( constrain的第三人称单数 )； 强使； 限制； 约束 | |
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74
crouched
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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75
betrothed
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| n. 已订婚者 动词betroth的过去式和过去分词 | |
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76
melancholy
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| n.忧郁，愁思；adj.令人感伤（沮丧）的，忧郁的 | |
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displeased
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| a.不快的 | |
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78
miserable
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| adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的 | |
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79
perverted
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| adj.不正当的v.滥用( pervert的过去式和过去分词 )；腐蚀；败坏；使堕落 | |
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80
courageously
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| ad.勇敢地，无畏地 | |
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81
chamber
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| n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所 | |
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82
knight
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| n.骑士，武士；爵士 | |
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zealous
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| adj.狂热的，热心的 | |
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84
salvation
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| n.（尤指基督）救世，超度，拯救，解困 | |
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85
tenant
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| n.承租人；房客；佃户；v.租借，租用 | |
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pastor
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| n.牧师，牧人 | |
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impelled
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| v.推动、推进或敦促某人做某事( impel的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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scriptures
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| 经文，圣典( scripture的名词复数 )； 经典 | |
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Forsaken
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| adj. 被遗忘的, 被抛弃的 动词forsake的过去分词 | |
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90
crafty
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| adj.狡猾的，诡诈的 | |
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91
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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virile
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| adj.男性的；有男性生殖力的；有男子气概的；强有力的 | |
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professed
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| 公开声称的，伪称的，已立誓信教的 | |
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celebrated
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| adj.有名的，声誉卓著的 | |
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descended
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| a.为...后裔的，出身于...的 | |
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barons
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| 男爵( baron的名词复数 )； 巨头； 大王； 大亨 | |
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persecution
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| n. 迫害,烦扰 | |
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forefathers
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| n.祖先，先人；祖先，祖宗( forefather的名词复数 )；列祖列宗；前人 | |
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judicious
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| adj.明智的，明断的，能作出明智决定的 | |
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100
devoted
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| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
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101
sublimest
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| 伟大的( sublime的最高级 )； 令人赞叹的； 极端的； 不顾后果的 | |
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102
heroism
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| n.大无畏精神，英勇 | |
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103
devotedness
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104
martyrs
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| n.martyr的复数形式；烈士( martyr的名词复数 )；殉道者；殉教者；乞怜者（向人诉苦以博取同情） | |
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105
nurtured
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| 养育( nurture的过去式和过去分词 )； 培育； 滋长； 助长 | |
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106
adherents
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| n.支持者，拥护者( adherent的名词复数 )；党羽；徒子徒孙 | |
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107
opposition
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| n.反对，敌对 | |
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108
stifled
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| （使）窒息， （使）窒闷( stifle的过去式和过去分词 )； 镇压，遏制； 堵 | |
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109
docile
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| adj.驯服的，易控制的，容易教的 | |
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110
cringing
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| adj.谄媚，奉承 | |
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111
insinuating
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| adj.曲意巴结的，暗示的v.暗示( insinuate的现在分词 )；巧妙或迂回地潜入；（使）缓慢进入；慢慢伸入 | |
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112
cupidity
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| n.贪心，贪财 | |
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113
interfere
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| v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰 | |
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114
superstitious
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| adj.迷信的 | |
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115
inflexible
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| adj.不可改变的，不受影响的，不屈服的 | |
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116
admonished
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| v.劝告( admonish的过去式和过去分词 )；训诫；（温和地）责备；轻责 | |
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117
iniquity
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| n.邪恶；不公正 | |
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118
discourses
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| 论文( discourse的名词复数 )； 演说； 讲道； 话语 | |
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119
treatise
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| n.专著；(专题)论文 | |
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120
imprinted
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| v.盖印（imprint的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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121
peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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122
immortal
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| adj.不朽的；永生的，不死的；神的 | |
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123
everlasting
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| adj.永恒的，持久的，无止境的 | |
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124
prerogative
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| n.特权 | |
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125
blots
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| 污渍( blot的名词复数 )； 墨水渍； 错事； 污点 | |
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126
redeemed
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| adj. 可赎回的，可救赎的 动词redeem的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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127
deficient
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| adj.不足的，不充份的，有缺陷的 | |
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128
antiquity
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| n.古老；高龄；古物，古迹 | |
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129
impure
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| adj.不纯净的，不洁的；不道德的，下流的 | |
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130
behold
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| v.看，注视，看到 | |
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131
plunge
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| v.跳入，(使)投入，(使)陷入；猛冲 | |
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132
impurity
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| n.不洁，不纯，杂质 | |
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133
engendered
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| v.产生（某形势或状况），造成，引起( engender的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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134
illicit
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| adj.非法的，禁止的，不正当的 | |
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135
agitated
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| adj.被鼓动的，不安的 | |
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136
accusations
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| n.指责( accusation的名词复数 )；指控；控告；（被告发、控告的）罪名 | |
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137
anguish
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| n.(尤指心灵上的)极度痛苦，烦恼 | |
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138
habitual
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| adj.习惯性的；通常的，惯常的 | |
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139
prey
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| n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨 | |
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140
chattering
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| n. （机器振动发出的）咔嗒声，(鸟等)鸣，啁啾 adj. 喋喋不休的，啾啾声的 动词chatter的现在分词形式 | |
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141
magpie
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| n.喜欢收藏物品的人，喜鹊，饶舌者 | |
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142
renounce
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| v.放弃；拒绝承认，宣布与…断绝关系 | |
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143
enveloped
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| v.包围，笼罩，包住( envelop的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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144
hatred
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| n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨 | |
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145
edify
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| v.陶冶；教化；启发 | |
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146
valiant
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| adj.勇敢的，英勇的；n.勇士，勇敢的人 | |
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147
kindly
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| adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地 | |
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148
distress
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| n.苦恼，痛苦，不舒适；不幸；vt.使悲痛 | |
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149
dedicated
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| adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的 | |
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150
superstitions
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| 迷信，迷信行为( superstition的名词复数 ) | |
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151
profane
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| adj.亵神的，亵渎的；vt.亵渎，玷污 | |
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152
relics
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| [pl.］n.遗物，遗迹，遗产；遗体，尸骸 | |
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153
esteemed
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| adj.受人尊敬的v.尊敬( esteem的过去式和过去分词 )；敬重；认为；以为 | |
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154
clergy
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| n.[总称]牧师，神职人员 | |
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155
impiety
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| n.不敬；不孝 | |
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156
piety
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| n.虔诚，虔敬 | |
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157
consecrated
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| adj.神圣的，被视为神圣的v.把…奉为神圣，给…祝圣( consecrate的过去式和过去分词 )；奉献 | |
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158
idols
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| 偶像( idol的名词复数 )； 受崇拜的人或物； 受到热爱和崇拜的人或物； 神像 | |
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159
license
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| n.执照，许可证，特许；v.许可，特许 | |
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160
advantageous
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| adj.有利的；有帮助的 | |
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161
conjuror
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| n.魔术师，变戏法者 | |
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162
murmurs
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| n.低沉、连续而不清的声音( murmur的名词复数 )；低语声；怨言；嘀咕 | |
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163
reconciliation
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| n.和解，和谐，一致 | |
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164
verge
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| n.边，边缘；v.接近，濒临 | |
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165
extricate
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| v.拯救，救出；解脱 | |
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166
precipitated
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| v.（突如其来地）使发生( precipitate的过去式和过去分词 )；促成；猛然摔下；使沉淀 | |
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167
recede
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| vi.退(去)，渐渐远去；向后倾斜，缩进 | |
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168
obedience
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| n.服从，顺从 | |
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169
virtuous
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| adj.有品德的，善良的，贞洁的，有效力的 | |
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170
vexed
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| adj.争论不休的；（指问题等）棘手的；争论不休的问题；烦恼的v.使烦恼( vex的过去式和过去分词 )；使苦恼；使生气；详细讨论 | |
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171
constrained
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| adj.束缚的,节制的 | |
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172
distressing
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| a.使人痛苦的 | |
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173
disciple
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| n.信徒，门徒，追随者 | |
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174
peril
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| n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物 | |
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175
succumbed
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| 不再抵抗（诱惑、疾病、攻击等）( succumb的过去式和过去分词 )； 屈从； 被压垮； 死 | |
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176
seducing
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| 诱奸( seduce的现在分词 )； 勾引； 诱使堕落； 使入迷 | |
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177
utterance
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| n.用言语表达，话语，言语 | |
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178
intoxicated
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| 喝醉的，极其兴奋的 | |
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179
splendor
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| n.光彩；壮丽，华丽；显赫，辉煌 | |
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180
mantle
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| n.斗篷，覆罩之物，罩子；v.罩住，覆盖，脸红 | |
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181
paraphernalia
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| n.装备；随身用品 | |
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182
bishops
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| （基督教某些教派管辖大教区的）主教( bishop的名词复数 )； （国际象棋的）象 | |
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183
trumpet
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| n.喇叭，喇叭声；v.吹喇叭，吹嘘 | |
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184
plundered
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| 掠夺，抢劫( plunder的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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185
slaughter
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| n.屠杀，屠宰；vt.屠杀，宰杀 | |
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186
corrupted
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| （使）败坏( corrupt的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）腐化； 引起（计算机文件等的）错误； 破坏 | |
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187
slough
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| v.蜕皮，脱落，抛弃 | |
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188
wretches
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| n.不幸的人( wretch的名词复数 )；可怜的人；恶棍；坏蛋 | |
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189
needy
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| adj.贫穷的，贫困的，生活艰苦的 | |
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190
toil
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| vi.辛劳工作，艰难地行动；n.苦工，难事 | |
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191
procured
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| v.（努力）取得， （设法）获得( procure的过去式和过去分词 )；拉皮条 | |
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192
contrives
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| （不顾困难地）促成某事( contrive的第三人称单数 )； 巧妙地策划，精巧地制造（如机器）； 设法做到 | |
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193
procures
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| v.（努力）取得， （设法）获得( procure的第三人称单数 )；拉皮条 | |
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194
abounding
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| adj.丰富的，大量的v.大量存在，充满，富于( abound的现在分词 ) | |
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195
softening
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| 变软，软化 | |
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196
fidelity
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| n.忠诚，忠实；精确 | |
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197
possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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198
afflicted
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| 使受痛苦，折磨( afflict的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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199
humbly
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| adv. 恭顺地，谦卑地 | |
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200
disciples
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| n.信徒( disciple的名词复数 )；门徒；耶稣的信徒；（尤指）耶稣十二门徒之一 | |
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201
bard
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| n.吟游诗人 | |
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202
bosom
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| n.胸，胸部；胸怀；内心；adj.亲密的 | |
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203
tragic
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| adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的 | |
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