THE REFORM AT GENEVA.--FORMULARY OF FAITH AND OF DISCIPLINE.
(END OF 1536-1537.)
[Sidenote: LIBERTY AND AUTHORITY.]
Calvin had displayed at Lausanne a steadfastness in the faith, and
a faculty of unfolding his views, which attracted more and more
attention to him. Bucer and Capito, in reading his _Institution_,
had already recognized the lofty reach of his intellect, and they
eagerly desired to have a conference with him on the evangelical
doctrine. They both wrote to him on December 1. ‘We acknowledge,’ said
Bucer, ‘that it is the Lord’s will to make use of you abundantly for
the good of our churches, and to make your ministry greatly useful.
We desire to be in agreement with you in all things, and we will go
to meet you wherever you please.’[438] Thus, then, the Strasburgers
acknowledged in Calvin a vocation for all the churches. They saw in him
the reformer. The author of the _Institution_ had in fact conceived
an ideal of a Church which was to take the place of the papacy--an
ideal difficult, perhaps impossible of realization in this world, but
to which he desired that Geneva should make as near an approach as
possible. Luther had announced with power the doctrine of remission of
sins, without concerning himself much about the constitution of the
Church. That doctrine, by penetrating the hearts of men, was to form
the congregation of the Lord. The great aim of Calvin was certainly to
proclaim before everything, like Luther, the redemption accomplished
by Jesus Christ, and the salvation which it gives; but he sought also,
more than the German reformer, to found a faithful Church, which, being
quickened and sanctified by the virtue of God’s word and the grace
of the Holy Spirit, should truly be the body of the Lord. Zwingli
had also busied himself with this subject; but there is an important
difference between the labors of the reformers of Zurich and Geneva.
At Zurich, Zwingli had looked downward: it was the people, so far as
they believed in the Scriptures, who were the foundation of the Church.
Calvin, on the other hand, looked upward, and placed the origin and the
subsistence of the Church in God himself. At Zurich, the Church existed
by the will of the reformed majority of the nation; at Geneva, it was
the will and the Word of God that formed it. At Zurich, the _fulcrum_
was in liberty; at Geneva, in authority. Both of these are salutary;
but each has its own danger. The best system is that in which authority
and liberty are combined; but this is not always easy to realize.
After Calvin’s return from the disputation of Lausanne, he resumed
his lectures and expositions of St. Paul’s Epistles in the church of
St. Peter. These lectures were well attended, and created an interest
which continually increased. Ere long, the superiority of the young
doctor and of his teaching, at once so profound and so animated,
excited in the Genevese the desire that he should definitely settle
among them. Towards the close of the year 1536, the office of pastor
was added to that of doctor. ‘He was elected and declared such in that
church by regular election and approbation.’[439] Calvin, at a later
period, felt bound to insist, in his letter to Cardinal Sadoleto,
on the regularity of that call. ‘In the first place,’ said he, ‘I
discharged in that church the office of reader, and afterwards that of
minister and pastor. And as far as regards my undertaking the second
charge, I maintain for my right that I did so lawfully and by a regular
call.’[440]
Calvin had not forgotten France, and he never did forget her. He had
himself just instigated an intervention of several German and Swiss
towns in favor of the French Protestants. It was doubtless on this
subject that he wrote from Lausanne to his friend François Daniel,
October 13, 1536: ‘To-morrow, if the Lord will, I am going to Berne,
respecting a business of which I will speak to you another time. I am
afraid that it may even be necessary for me to go as far as Basel,
notwithstanding the state of my health and the present ungenial
season.’[441] But nevertheless, without forgetting his old country, he
attached himself to his new one. That republic appeared to suit his
taste. Having become pastor at Geneva, he gave his attention to what
he had to do in order to substitute for the Church of the pope a real
evangelical Church.
[Sidenote: THE INDIVIDUAL AND SOCIETY.]
Farel, Viret, and Froment had begun the work at the right end. In
building a temple the first process is the cutting of the stones one by
one. Science has sometimes disparaged the individual. She has said, ‘An
individual, of whatsoever species it be, is nothing to the universe;
a hundred individuals, or a thousand, they are still nothing.’[442]
It is not so with individuals that have souls. Christ anticipated
and refuted these audacious assertions when he said, ‘What shall it
profit a man if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul?’ It
was by the conversion of individuals (Cornelius, Lydia, &c.) that the
Apostles established the Christian religion in the world; and it was
by proceeding in the same way that Farel and his friends laid the
foundations of Reform. Calvin, while appreciating this work, felt
nevertheless that another was necessary. After analysis must come
synthesis; and after the individual, society. Catholicism neglected
the individual, and concerned itself almost exclusively with society.
The Gospel proceeds otherwise. Farel had been everywhere, enlightening
minds one by one with the torch of the Word. It was now needful to bind
together the souls thus enlightened. The Christian individual must
first be created, afterwards the Christian Church. The Reformation
had begun in Geneva with the law of life. Another law, the law of
unity, must now be fulfilled. Calvin was alarmed when he considered
the state of Geneva. ‘When I first came into this town,’ said he,
‘there was as it were nothing--no morals, no discipline, no life.
Preaching went on, and that was all. To be sure they burnt the idols,
but there was no reformation at all.’[443] This judgment is perhaps
too severe. It was twenty-eight years after the time referred to that
Calvin thus expressed himself; and the ‘wonderful conflicts’ which he
had been engaged in may possibly have led him to depict in too dark
colors the church which Farel had left to him. Be that as it may,
Calvin, while attaching the utmost importance to individual conversion,
was profoundly convinced that a task of another kind remained to be
achieved. We find that the same conviction possessed Luther when he
returned to Wittenberg after his confinement in the Wartburg. It is the
conviction that upon the revolutionary principle (and the revolution,
we must admit, had been necessary and admirable) the conservative
principle must erect itself.
[Sidenote: DIVISION AMONG THE HUGUENOTS.]
When a brilliant victory is won, we usually find, both in the world
and in the Church, that a number of men gather around the victor who
have indeed something in common with him, but who have at the same
time characters and propensities opposed to his own. All who muster
and fight under the same flag, however, have not always the same
thoughts and the same affections as the brave warrior who hoists the
flag. The Genevese, who were designated by the name of Huguenots,
had declared for the Reformation because it attacked the abuses and
the superstitions of popery, and because, in bidding them prove all
things, it restored to them those privileges of free men of which Rome
had robbed them; many had also been attracted by the love of novelty,
others by the prospect of a new career opened to their ambition. There
were doubtless a certain number of citizens who sincerely agreed with
the Reformation, with the faith which it professed, and with the morals
which it prescribed; but they did not form the most numerous class. In
any expedition of great daring, and which exposes to many toils and
privations, we know that many of the soldiers quit the standard under
which they first ranked themselves; so it was inevitable that a large
number of the Genevese would abandon the flag around which they had
rallied, and would place themselves in opposition to the leaders whom
at first they had followed. Calvin was not long in observing this.
‘The abomination of papistry,’ said he, ‘is now cut down by the power
of the Word.[444] The senate has decreed that its superstitions, with
all their _paraphernalia_, shall be suppressed, and that religion
shall be regulated in the city according to the purity of the Gospel.
However, the form of the Church does not appear to us to be such as the
legitimate exercise of our office requires. Whatever others may think,
we for our part cannot imagine that our ministry ought to be anything
so slight as that when once we have preached our sermon, we have
nothing to do but to fold our arms, like people that have done their
task.’
Calvin’s first thought for insuring a prosperous state of things in
Geneva--and this deserves to be noticed--was that it was essential to
pay great attention to Christian instruction. He had no sooner returned
from his journey than he began to draw up a catechism, to which he
added a confession of faith.[445] Although his own word was full of
force and authority, it was to the understanding, to the conscience,
and to conviction that he appealed. The Holy Scriptures possessed in
his eyes an infallible authority to which every soul of man is bound
to submit. Nevertheless, he did not mean that men were to submit in a
slavish manner, as Rome required; He would have them understand the
Holy Scriptures in order that they might grasp their truth and beauty.
‘It is mere nothing,’ said he, ‘that words are thrown out, until
our minds are enlightened by the gift of intelligence. If we cannot
comprehend with our own understanding and know what is right, how
should our will suffice to obey?’[446]
It was not difficult for the author of the _Institution Chrétienne_ to
compose, according to the same notions, a book designed for religious
instruction. Calvin therefore prepared a catechism in French, which was
not divided into question and answer. It seemed, from the way in which
it was drawn up, less fitted to be placed in the hands of children than
of masters, as a clue; or rather in the hands of adults, to aid their
attempts after self-instruction. It appears, nevertheless, that the
book was also used by children. It has hitherto been found impossible
to discover a single copy of it. It is conjectured that the leaves of
the book were used up, being torn out with the wear and tear of daily
lessons, as frequently happens still with school-books.[447]
[Sidenote: CALVIN’S CATECHISM.]
A Latin translation of the catechism appeared at Basel in 1538.[448]
This catechism reveals in its first lines the true thought, the real
mind of Calvin. We say the real mind, because it is very different
from that attributed to Calvin by so many men who are filled with
prejudices, and for whom the word _Calvinism_ is like a scarecrow set
up on the top of a pole in the fields to frighten timid birds. ‘There
is not a man in existence,’ said he, ‘no matter how uncivilized he be,
no matter though his heart be altogether savage, that is destitute of
the religious sentiment. It is certain that the end for which we were
created is to know the majesty of our Creator, and to embrace him when
known, and to adore him with all fear, love, and reverence.’[449] Of
course this declaration does not show that Calvin was blind to the
evil that is in humanity. It does not prevent his declaring that ‘the
heart of man, which the poison of sin has penetrated to its inmost
depths, sins, not because it is constrained by necessity, but because
the will impels him to it.’ Calvin afterwards expounds, with the hand
of a master, the three great articles of the Christian Church--the
Decalogue, the Apostles’ Creed, and the Lord’s Prayer. But this is not
the place for a copy of his exposition.
Calvin, at the same time that he provided instruction for the young,
interested himself warmly in the character of the men and women who
were called to become members of the Church of God. As he longed for
a pure Church, his first care was to ascertain the purity of faith
and life of those who composed it. The great diversity of religious
opinions which then prevailed in Geneva troubled him, for he knew
that _every house divided against itself shall not stand_. ‘How,’
said he, ‘can we receive into a Church of the Gospel people who,
for all we know, may not have renounced papistical idolatries and
superstitions?’[450] The members composing a Church ought, in his
judgment, to be united by a bond both holy and strong. As Geneva had to
contend against the Goliath of the papacy, her strength must be found
in faith and union. Sound doctrine must be imprinted on the hearts
of the Genevese, in order that neither mysticism, nor infidelity,
nor a fanatical enthusiasm might approach to enfeeble and lead them
astray. Christians must ‘lean upon the promises of God with trust and
certainty, that they may stand firm against all the artillery which
might threaten the destruction of their confidence.’[451]
Before Calvin’s arrival, Farel had spoken to the council about the
necessity of preparing the edicts for establishing unity in matters
of religion at Geneva, but nothing had been done. Now that Calvin was
come, he conversed with his old colleague on the means of _making the
people live in the faith of God_. The two friends agreed to prepare a
confession of evangelical faith, and the author of the _Institution
chrétienne_ was in reality charged with the task of drawing it up;
not however without consulting Farel, who was better acquainted with
Geneva, and more clearly understood what was expedient, than the
newly arrived teacher. The biographers of Calvin, who were also his
friends and knew his labors better than any one, speak of this matter.
‘When he was named pastor,’ says one of them, ‘he prepared a brief
formulary of doctrine and discipline.’[452] ‘Then (after the Lausanne
disputation),’ says another, ‘a formula of Christian faith was published
by Calvin.’[453] It has been asserted that Calvin’s formula is lost,
but that Farel had at the same time prepared another, and that the
latter is preserved. In this assertion there are two statements highly
improbable: first, that separate confessions of faith were drawn up at
the same time by Calvin and Farel, for the same purpose: second, that
it is Calvin’s which is lost, and Farel’s that is preserved.
[Sidenote: THE CONFESSION OF FAITH.]
Whatever the fact may be, Farel, on November 10, presented the
Confession to the council; and that was quite natural. He had stood
for years in close relation with that body, and was recognized by it
as the chief leader in the Church: while Calvin, a new-comer, and
somewhat shy, was not fond of showing himself, and least of all of
appearing before the Council of the Two Hundred. Farel, therefore,
having been introduced into the hall of the great council, communicated
the document to them. He stood in the presence of the deputies of the
people of Geneva, who were invested with large powers and whom it was
dangerous to offend. But, although he took into consideration the
religious state of those whom he addressed, he laid before them the
purport of the Christian dispensation with that freedom, clearness, and
courage which were characteristic of the epoch of the Reformation, and
which appear strange to a generation more enervated, more unbelieving,
and more timid. ‘The rule of our faith and our religion,’ said he, ‘is
Holy Scripture alone, without admixture of anything invented by the wit
of man. We worship one God only, not putting our trust in any creature,
whether angel or saint, or men still living on the earth. Man, who is
by nature full of corruption, stands in need of enlightenment from God
that he may attain to the true knowledge of his salvation; and all that
is lacking in ourselves we receive from Christ. By his righteousness
we obtain remission of our sins. By the shedding of his blood we are
cleansed from all our stains. By his Holy Spirit we are born again in a
new spiritual nature. By our communion with him, the works which we do
are made acceptable to God.’[454]
It has been observed that this confession of faith, in twenty-one
articles, does not set forth the Christian doctrines in so complete
and didactic a manner as Calvin subsequently did. From this
circumstance it has been inferred that it was composed by Farel. A
reply to this reasoning is furnished in the statement of Theodore
Beza,--that the confession was adapted to the wants of the Genevese
Church, which had then hardly escaped from the corruptions of the
papacy. Calvin and Farel had given especial prominence to those
truths which stood in opposition to papal errors, and had not felt
it necessary to establish the doctrines which the Romish Church
had retained: for example, the doctrine of the Trinity. At a later
period, when these doctrines were controverted by men who professedly
adhered to the Reformation, Calvin felt the need of formally avowing
them; and this he did in his _Sommaire de la doctrine chrétienne_.
Further, we would willingly admit that there may have been, as some
competent judges suppose, a confession of faith prepared by Farel,
and that it was that which was presented to the people, if the two
contemporary writers whom we have cited were not silent about such
a document, and did not insist on that of which Calvin was author.
But there is stronger evidence still. Calvin himself, when speaking
of the publication of his catechism, says, ‘that he annexed to it _a
confession which was sanctioned_ (_editam_, published) _by the solemn
oath of all the people_.’[455] To us this appears to be decisive.
We shall presently see that the spirit pervading that confession is
exactly the spirit which at that time animated Calvin. If anyone
asserts the contrary, he must have forgotten the dispute which took
place between Calvin and Caroli. The best reception was given to the
work from the moment of its presentation to the government. The council
resolved, say the registers, that the articles proposed by Farel should
all be adopted.[456]
[Sidenote: FREQUENT COMMUNION.]
If the rule of faith were Christian, the rule of morals must be pure.
At the beginning of the year 1537, Calvin, doubtless in conjunction
with Farel, prepared a memoir on the subject of order in the Church.
On January 15 Farel stated the fact to the council; and the next
day the articles ‘presented by Master Guillaume Farel and the other
preachers’ were read before the Two Hundred.[457] The ministers
said,[458]--‘Considering what trouble and confusion prevailed in our
city before the Gospel was received by common consent, it has been
found impossible to bring everything into good order at once. But now
that it hath pleased the Lord to establish his rule here somewhat more
perfectly, we have thought it good and profitable to confer on these
matters; and we have decided to lay before you these articles.’
There was no ground of objection to this introduction.
‘It would be desirable,’ continued Calvin and his friends, ‘that the
holy supper of Jesus Christ should be celebrated every Sunday at the
least, since we are _made, in it, partakers of the body, the blood, the
life, the spirit, and all the benefits of Jesus Christ_, and because
it is an admonition to us to live as Christians in brotherly unity. It
was not instituted for commemoration two or three times in a year, but
for frequent observance. Such was the practice of the ancient Church,
until the abomination of masses was introduced, the effect of which was
the entire abolition of the Lord’s supper. However, as we foresee that
by reason of the infirmity of men, there might be some danger of that
sacred mystery falling into contempt through so frequent a celebration,
we have judged it well that the holy supper should be observed once a
month.’
It was natural that such good Christians as these reformers should
desire frequent communion. But the lesser council was of opinion that,
for the majority, the supper would be more solemn and more beneficial
if it were less frequent. It was therefore resolved to propose to the
Council of the Two Hundred that it should be celebrated not more than
four times in the year.[459] The reading of the memoir of the pastors
was continued.
‘But the main point is that the supper, which was instituted for the
purpose of uniting Christians in one spirit with their head and with
each other, should not be defiled and contaminated by any persons
whose evil life shows plainly that they do not belong to Jesus Christ.
We must not associate, says St. Paul, with those who are notoriously
profligate, covetous, idolatrous, railers, drunkards, or thieves. Care
must therefore be taken that only those come to the supper who are
approved members of Jesus Christ. To this end, our Lord established in
his Church the correction and discipline of _excommunication_. This
discipline existed in the Church until wicked bishops, or rather say
brigands assuming the title of bishops, converted it to an instrument
of tyranny, and abused it for the gratification of their own evil
lusts, to such a degree that, at the present day, excommunication is
one of the most cursed things to be seen in the realm of the pope. It
has therefore seemed to us expedient that this discipline should be
restored in the Church, according to the rule laid down in Scripture.
[Sidenote: EXCOMMUNICATION.]
‘Choose ye therefore certain persons of good report, belonging to all
quarters of the city, who may have an eye on each man’s life, in order
that, if they discover open vice in any one, the latter may be exhorted
by one of the ministers in a brotherly way to amend his life. If he
will not listen to the exhortation, then let the minister report to
the assembly what he has done for the reclamation of the sinner. If he
still persist in evil, then the time will be come to excommunicate
him; that is, to treat him as cast out of the society of Christians.
Should there be any who only laugh at your excommunication, it will be
for you to consider whether, in the long run, that contempt for God
and his Gospel is to be suffered.’ After thus insisting on a moral
life, the reformers required that the confession of faith which they
had presented should be put in force. ‘It is much to be suspected,’
said the ministers, ‘if it be not even plainly apparent, that there
are many of the inhabitants of this city who have not by any means
submitted to the Gospel, but still cherish in their hearts all manner
of superstitions. It would be a highly expedient course to begin in
the first place to ascertain who are willing to avow themselves of the
Church of Jesus Christ, and who are not. If those who are in agreement
with us in respect to the faith are to be excommunicated solely because
of their vices, much more ought those to be excommunicated who are
wholly opposed to us in religion; for there is no division greater than
that which is made by the faith. As yet it has not been ascertained
what doctrine each man holds; but this is _the real beginning of a
church_ (_le droit commencement d’une Église_). The remedy which has
occurred to us is that all the inhabitants of this city should be
bound to make confession and give a reason for their faith. And you,
Gentlemen of the Council, make you confession in your council, and
thus, by example show what each man will have to do.’
We have said that before Calvin’s arrival at Geneva, rules of
discipline were in existence and in force. There is here however
something new, as is evident from the language of the pastors. It is
_excommunication_. This is a point of great importance, for it was
on this subject that violent conflicts soon after began in Geneva.
It does not however appear, from the official records, that the
articles met with any opposition in the council. Surely a Christian
life and a Christian faith ought to characterize a Christian society.
If profligates and drunkards ought not to be admitted to what the
world calls good society, much more, they thought, ought they to be
excluded from a religious society. Moreover, they were _laymen_ of good
report who were to watch over moral order, and even those laymen were
appointed by other laymen, members themselves of the council. This
fact made a great difference between the Romish discipline and that
which the reformers desired. In this case there was no suggestion of a
reign of clericalism; and this doubtless contributed to the adoption
of the rules. Calvin was convinced that morality ought to distinguish
the reformed Church from the deformed (_l’église réformée de l’église
déformée_). Was it not dissolute living, both on the part of the laity,
and still more on the part of the monks and the priests, which had
called forth in the Church the sharpest rebukes? It was not possible
to purify the faith without purifying the life. That would have been
a flagrant contradiction. If the Reformation made light of morality,
it would destroy itself as Rome had done. With regard to doctrine, no
one supposed that the reformed Church could hold in its bosom either
Roman Catholics or pantheists who believed neither in God nor in the
immortality of the soul. Why then should it tolerate impure persons or
robbers? All this is true: but nevertheless there is something in the
system that does not work smoothly. Calvin was right, and he was wrong
too. We shall have to say wherein lay his truth and wherein his error.
The articles presented to the senate dealt also with the spiritual
songs of the Church. If only the minister speak, worship remains cold:
but the singing ‘has power to raise our hearts to God,’ said Calvin,
‘and to stimulate us to exalt his name.’ He urged the education of
children, ‘in order to correct the wonderful rudeness and ignorance in
which they were left through the negligence of their parents, and which
is not by any means allowable in the Church of God.’ Then he treated
of the order of marriage, ‘a subject involved in much confusion by the
pope, who undertook to establish degrees at his own pleasure.’ Calvin
closed his articles with an eloquent exhortation to the council. ‘Take
not these admonitions,’ said he, ‘as coming from us, but from Him who
gives them in his Word. And should any one allege the difficulty of
putting them in practice, let it not trouble you; for we must cherish
the hope that whenever we are willing to do what God has commanded, His
goodness will prosper our enterprise and bring it to a good end, as you
yourselves have found by experience to this day.’
Calvin thus set about his task like a great master. A catechism which
bore at once the impress of genius and of piety: a confession of faith,
pure and living: a Church order which had for its aim the removal of
vice and the quickening of piety:--these formed the threefold labor
with which the illustrious reformer began his work.
[Sidenote: THE ARTICLES APPROVED.]
The articles, after being sanctioned by the lower council, were carried
the same day before the Council of the Two Hundred, and were allowed.
The council further decreed that no shops should be open on Sundays
during the time of divine service: that all persons who had images and
idols in their houses should destroy them or bring them to be burnt:
that no one should sing foolish songs nor play at games of chance: and
finally that the syndic Porral and Jean Goulaz should be commissioned
to see to the maintenance of good morals in the city, and that people
led lives conformed to the will of God.[460] The choice of Porral was
very good: that of Goulaz, who was personally no enemy to play or to
taverns, was not so good. The council showed by these measures with
what seriousness it meant to proceed in the accomplishment of the
Reformation. Soon after it adopted another resolution. Many children
of Geneva were sent away to various places and intrusted to foreign
governors. The council decreed, January 30, that those persons who had
children at schools not in Geneva, should have them brought into that
town or placed in other _Christian_ schools; that otherwise the said
children would be deprived of citizenship.[461] This was a rigorous
measure; but it shows what spirit actuated the council, and its zeal in
the cause of sound education.
These important acts met with no opposition even from the citizens who
subsequently so sturdily resisted the rules of discipline. There was
however a certain show of opposition, but it was in mere sport. The
high-spirited youth of the town, easily excited, indulged in laughter
and sarcasm. They were especially annoyed at the zeal of the syndic
Porral, which crossed them in their pastimes; and when new syndics
had been elected, February 4, and Porral went out of office, these
youngsters began the next day to _play at Picca-Porral_. They wore in
the hat, as a badge, a leek (_porreau_), and served at their feasts a
dish of leeks. Each of them would prick the _porral_ with abundance
of jests. ‘Légier Beschaut and some other young men of the town’ were
imprisoned, February 5, for this sport.[462] Porral requested Farel to
accompany him to the prison, for the purpose of admonishing them. But
the young folk did not profit by it. Some have called them frolicsome,
others dissolute. We think that the former term is the most fitting.
As the council saw in the proceedings of the young culprits, says a
contemporary,[463] more of youth and foolishness than of malicious
intention, they set them at liberty four days after their arrest,
under promise to appear again when required. It is very likely that
Porral had acted with a little too much rigor in this affair.
[Sidenote: CALVIN’S REQUIREMENTS.]
The Genevese people testified their hearty acceptance of this
Christian constitution by electing, February 5, syndics devoted to
the Reformation. Other candidates of note were rejected. It was
acknowledged that the equality of the citizens was established by
this constitution, the rules applying to all alike, ‘and families of
the highest distinction being bound to submit like other people.’
This gratified the commonalty. Calvin, however, did not indulge in
illusions. He was afraid that a certain number of citizens, and even
some of the highest eminence, would oppose the Reform; and he urgently
required that all should be called upon to profess it. ‘In default
of this,’ he said, ‘he would stay no longer at Geneva.’[464] What he
had presented was for the benefit of all. If all would not accept it,
he would go away, for he had no intention of invading or usurping by
force or by fraud. On March 13, the council resolved to see to the
Lord’s Supper, and to the observance of the other articles.[465] On
April 17 it was decreed that a syndic, the captain of the quarter,
and the tithing men (_dizeniers_) should visit all the houses of the
tithings (_dizaines_) to propose the articles respecting the faith.
On the 27th of the same month it was resolved to print the confession
of faith, and to furnish a sufficient number of copies to the tithing
men for the inhabitants of their tithings, in order that when the
people should be visited they might be better instructed and well
informed.[466] Each man should know what he was going to do; there
must be no surprise. Calvin, indeed, was not content with the mere
instruction of the Genevese in accordance with the confession. It
would have sufficed Saunier, who saw with regret, at least at this
time, that adhesion to the formula of the confession was required of
every Genevese.[467] But it was not enough for Calvin that the document
should be officially recognized by the council as an expression of the
faith of the Genevese, a course which had been deemed satisfactory in
other places. He demanded that each individual should accept it. He
did not believe that the state was in this case responsible for the
people. Every Genevese was responsible before God. He did not want
religion in the mass. Does not Christ say, _Whosoever shall confess me
before men_? Whosoever--that is, each individual. This is perfectly
true; but the mistake is to suppose that, in order to confess Christ,
it is necessary to sign a theological confession. ‘If thou believest
in thy heart, thou shalt be saved,’ says Paul. We are reminded of a
poor woman who desired participation at the supper, and whose pastor
subjected her to an examination on the three offices of Christ, as
prophet, priest, and king. ‘Ah, sir,’ she replied, ‘I know nothing
of those things, but I am ready to die for him.’ ‘That will do,’
said the minister, with some sense of shame. Theology is necessary
to theologians; it must not be demanded of simple folk. The three
leading ministers, Farel, Calvin, and Courault, the latter blind and
old, being of the same mind on the subject, appeared before the Two
Hundred, presented their formula, and earnestly pressed the council to
give glory to God by confessing His truth. ‘It is right,’ said Calvin,
‘that in so sacred a duty you, who are bound to set an example of all
virtue, should go before the people.’ But that was not enough for him.
‘Then,’ he added, ‘assemble the country by tithings, and let every man
swear to this confession.’[468] The council adopted the views of the
reformer, which Saunier himself had embraced. All the tithing men were
summoned to give first their own adhesion; and the council charged them
to exhort those over whom they were set to follow the commandments of
God, and to bring their men (_leurs gens_) to St. Peter’s, tithing
by tithing (there were twenty-eight of them), to adhere to the
confession. The adhesion was given through the medium of the tithing
men, successively, and not simultaneously. A principle, from which
there was no deviation, excluded women from the general council. But in
this instance the assembly was of a religious rather than a political
character. It was well known how great the influence of woman is in
the family as regards religion. It is therefore possible that both men
and women were summoned together to St. Peter’s, distributed in groups
by their tithing men. The decree which we have just cited directs them
to bring their _gens_, a word which may include both sexes. However,
we have found no positive evidence on this point. One single fact
appears to indicate that women were present. On September 28, 1537, the
council dealt with the case of _Jeanne la Gibescière_, who would not
swear to the new reformation, and banished her on that account. But
more than a month earlier, on August 21, this same Jeanne, belonging
to a particular sect (_the Spirituals_), on its being proposed to
her to swear to the new reformation, had refused to do so, and had
consequently been placed under arrest. That case, therefore, cannot be
alleged as an absolute proof that women also swore to the confession at
St. Peter’s.
[Sidenote: CONVOCATION OF THE PEOPLE.]
Accordingly, on Sunday, July 29, the council assembled in the
cathedral, and the tithings passed in successively. Young people who
had attained their majority, and old men with white hair, perhaps women
as well as men, came forward. Rozet, secretary to the council, read the
confession of faith. Next came the oath of fidelity and obedience,
which each in his turn took by lifting up his hand.[469] ‘The people,’
says Calvin, ‘show no less alacrity in taking the oath than the senate
had shown diligence in publishing it.’[470] A large number of the
Genevese professed with all their heart the evangelical doctrines.
Nevertheless, the opinion of Saunier might be supported by weighty
reasons. If he was opposed to the imposition of a personal engagement,
it was because he knew that the confession was not the exact expression
of the faith of each individual; that some of those who would swear to
it did not understand it either wholly or in part; and that others,
while understanding it better, had only an intellectual belief, which
might fail when assailed by captious objections. Individuality did
not appear to be at that time adequately respected. But the public
profession of faith of July 29 had been so solemn a proceeding that
many rejoiced at it. There were however many people who abstained from
joining in it, because they were still attached to Roman Catholicism.
There were also a certain number who were unwilling to submit to moral
discipline. George Lesclefs and his servant said that they could not
bring their minds to swear to keep the ten commandments, because they
were so difficult.[471] Others refused to take the oath from a spirit
of political independence.
Nevertheless, we may assert in a general way that the people gave
their adhesion to the confession; and that was a glorious day for the
Reformation on which those hands were lifted up for the Gospel in the
old cathedral of St. Peter. The sky, indeed, was afterwards clouded,
but that day was clear and serene.
[Sidenote: THE OATH REFUSED BY MANY.]
Calvin might well rejoice in having obtained results so large in so
short a time; and his colleagues rejoiced with him. The aged Courault,
persecuted in France, had been compelled to take refuge in Basel; and
Calvin, knowing that although deprived of sight, ‘he was clear-sighted
with the eyes of the mind,’ had called him to Geneva. Courault was
happy to find himself a witness in that city of the triumph of the
Reformation, which had been so rudely assailed in his native country.
Farel, on his part, saw that God was crowning the work that had cost
him so much labor. He displayed at all times unwearied zeal and heroic
courage; and his continual prayers in behalf of the Reformation were
so fervent, that those who heard them felt themselves lifted up to
heaven, says Beza. Farel had cast the seed into the ground, and had
seen the stalk spring up. Now, to the time of sowing succeeded the time
of harvest. The ear had appeared, the grain was formed in the ear, and
another laborer, a robust harvestman, had come to cut the wheat and
bind the sheaves. But this excited no envy in him. On the contrary,
his Christian soul acknowledged with thanksgiving the precious gifts
bestowed on Calvin. The superiority of his intellect, the extent of
his acquirements, the accuracy of his judgment, and his faculty for
organization, filled the old pioneer with admiration and respect. He
was delighted to see a constantly increasing auditory thronging into
the cathedral to hear Calvin expound the Holy Scriptures. Thenceforth
the old man sat almost a disciple at the feet of the young doctor.
On all subjects he desired Calvin’s opinion, and he looked on him as
the man chosen of God to complete the Reformation. Calvin on his part
gave to Farel the honor which was due to him. ‘After you had begun to
build up this Church of Geneva, with great labor and danger,’ he said,
‘I came in unexpectedly in the first instance as _conductor_, and
afterwards I remained as your successor, to carry on the work which
you had well and happily begun.’ This cordial relation between Calvin
and Farel, in spite of the difference of their ages, is among the
most beautiful instances of the kind in history. Calvin subsequently
extolled what he called _their sacred friendship and union_, and said
affectionately, ‘You and I are one.’[472] There was between them, says
Calvin on another occasion, a good understanding and a friendship
which, consecrated by the name of Christ, was profitable to his Church.
The school, placed under the direction of Saunier, likewise flourished.
Lessons began at five o’clock in the morning.[473] The pupils were
instructed ‘in the three most excellent languages, Greek, Hebrew,
and Latin, in addition to the French, which, in the opinion of the
learned, is by no means to be despised.’ Mathurin Cordier, formerly
Calvin’s teacher, soon devoted himself to this task. Numerous scholars,
attracted to Geneva by the great work which was being achieved there,
came from Basel, Berne, Bienne, Zurich, and other places, to study
there. These messmates lived at the College, with Saunier, whose house
was ordered in a Christian manner. ‘Daily, before they sat down to
meat, one of them read aloud a chapter of the Bible and all the rest
listened. While seated at the table, they each repeated a sentence
of Holy Scripture.’[474] Thus were fashioned the strong men of the
sixteenth century. The system which excludes from the school the Bible
and even religion, that is to say, the regenerative and training
element, will never form the like.
[Sidenote: DISCIPLINE.]
The reformers, whose intercourse with each other was pleasant and
refreshing, enjoyed in addition the approval of the majority of
the people, and particularly of the magistrates. Receiving so much
encouragement in their ministry, they were brave, active, and
unwearied in their calling. Far from being weighed down with their
great task, they appeared rather to grow stronger under the burden;
and this is a distinctive mark of great men. If any difficulty arose,
if any village were in need of a preacher, Farel and Calvin applied
with confidence to the council, which usually acceded to their request,
and acted even with generosity.[475] When a good citizen pointed out,
February 13, that Calvin had not yet received anything, the council
decreed to present him with _six écus_.[476] The next day, Farel, with
his brother and Saunier, applied for the grant of citizenship; it was
resolved that they should receive it free of charge. Calvin did not
become a citizen of Geneva till a later period. Nor was he the only
one who deferred that matter. Other celebrated Frenchmen declined the
citizenship of Geneva, their city of refuge, on the ground that they
could not renounce France. That love for the old country was probably
one of the motives which led Calvin to put off for three-and-twenty
years becoming a citizen of the city of which he was the very soul. On
February 27 they presented to Saunier thirty measures of wheat; and, on
June 6, _six écus_ to Courault. The gifts were not large, but every age
has its own measure.
The council, which concerned itself about the wants of the ministers,
watched likewise, in conformity with the constitution, over the wants
of the Church and the purity of morals. Letters were written, February
7, at the request of Farel, to Besançon and to Neuchâtel, respecting
Olivétan’s Bible.[477] The lay magistrates were severe. On the 23d of
the same month, a player and sharper, who was cheating the people
out of their money, was sentenced to be exposed for an hour, with his
fraudulent cards hung round his neck. The ‘_grand Francois_,’ guilty of
impurity, had to give as a fine a halter, eighteen feet long, such as
is used for tying up cattle. A man and woman guilty of adultery, were
banished, June 1, for a year. On March 13 the council, intruding even
into the spiritual domain, determined to make arrangements about the
Lord’s Supper and other things.[478]
Thus Geneva took an important place both as a Church and a school.
Foreigners resorted to it, or sent their children there. The beauty of
its situation formed also a powerful attraction. Of all descriptions
of Geneva, the following is doubtless one of the most ancient. ‘Do
not imagine,’ said Saunier, ‘that Geneva is some frightful, almost
uninhabitable town, in the midst of barren and solitary rocks. The
streets, with a few exceptions, are broad and in good condition, and
there are several large public places. Encircled by a continuous chain
of mountains, it has nevertheless on all sides a tract of level country
extending round it in the form of a great theatre. As for the lake, it
is difficult to say in what respect it is of most value to the city,
whether for profit, for defence (_parement_), or for beauty. The water
is not at all muddy or turbid, but to the very bottom is clear as fine
glass, so that people take a wonderful pleasure in looking at it. To
sum up, the said town is situated on the frontiers of three great
countries, to wit, Gaul, Germany, and Italy, as it were a place marked
out (_députée_) for gatherings of merchants.’[479] Geneva was going to
be marked out for other gatherings. ‘Already Mathurin Cordier,’ says a
contemporary, ‘a man more skilful in training schools in the French
tongue than any man of our time has been, brought with him a large
number of learned men.’[480] We have already spoken elsewhere of the
arrival of young Englishmen at the foot of the Alps, for the sake of
enjoying intercourse with Calvin. Saunier’s description shows that the
reformers were not unobservant of the beauties of nature. They loved
them, and contemplated them at Geneva in the height and perfection of
their majesty.