Love of War--Schinner--Pension from the Pope--The
Labyrinth--Zuinglius in Italy--Principle of
Reform--Zuinglius and Luther--Zuinglius and
Erasmus--Zuinglius and the Elders--Paris and Glaris.
Zuinglius immediately engaged in the zealous discharge of the work
which his vast parish imposed upon him. Still he was only twenty-two
years of age, and often allowed himself to be carried away by the
dissipation and lax ideas of his age. A priest of Rome he was like the
other priests around him. But even at this period, though the
evangelical doctrine had not changed his heart, Zuinglius did not give
way to those scandals which frequently afflicted the Church.[624] He
always felt the need of subjecting his passions to the holy rule of
the gospel.
[624] Sic reverentia pudoris, imprimis autem officii divini, perpetuo
cavit, (Osw. Myc. Vit. Zw.)
A love of war at this time inflamed the quiet valleys of Glaris where
there were families of heroes--the Tschudis, the Walas, the Æblis,
whose blood had flowed on the field of battle. The youth listened with
eagerness to the old warriors when they told them of the wars of
Burgundy and Suabia, of the battles of St. James and Ragaz. But alas!
it was no longer against the enemies of their liberties that these
warlike shepherds took up arms. They were seen, at the bidding of the
kings of France, of the emperor, the dukes of Milan, or the holy
father himself, descending from the Alps like an avalanche, and
rushing with the noise of thunder against the troops drawn up in the
plain.
[Sidenote: SCHINNER.]
A poor boy named Matthew Schinner, who was at the school of Sion in
the Valais, (it was toward the middle of the latter half of the
fifteenth century,) singing before the houses, as young Martin Luther
shortly after did, heard himself called by an old man, who, being
struck with the frankness with which the child answered his questions,
said to him with that prophetic spirit with which man is said to be
sometimes endowed when on the brink of the grave, "Thou art to be a
bishop and a prince."[625] The expression sunk deep into the young
mendicant, and from that moment boundless ambition took possession of
his heart. At Zurich and Como the progress he made astonished his
masters. Having become curate of a small parish in Valais, he rose
rapidly, and being sent at a later period to ask from the pope the
confirmation of a bishop of Sion, who had just been elected, he
obtained the bishopric for himself, and girt his brow with the
episcopal mitre. This man, ambitious and crafty, but often noble and
generous, always considered any dignity bestowed upon him as only a
step destined to raise him to some still higher dignity. Having
offered his services to Louis XII, and named his price, "It is too
much for one man," said the king. "I will show him," replied the
bishop of Sion, offended, "that I am a man worth several men." In fact
he turned towards pope Julius II, who gladly received him, and
Schinner succeeded in 1510 in linking the whole Swiss confederation to
the policy of this ambitious pontiff. The bishop having been rewarded
with a cardinal's hat smiled when he saw that there was now only one
step between him and the papal throne.
[625] Helvet Kirch Gesch. von Wirz, iii, p. 314.
[Sidenote: ZUINGLIUS' POEM, "THE LABYRINTH."]
Schinner's eye was continually turned to the cantons of Switzerland,
and as soon as he there discerned any man of influence he hastened to
attach him to himself. The pastor of Glaris drew his attention, and
Zuinglius soon received intimation that the pope had granted him an
annual pension of fifty florins, to encourage him in the cultivation
of letters. His poverty did not allow him to purchase books; and the
money during the short time that Ulric received it was devoted to the
purchase of classical or theological works, which he procured from
Bâle.[626] Zuinglius was now connected with the cardinal, and
accordingly joined the Roman party. Schinner and Julius II at last
disclosed the end which they had in view in these intrigues. Eight
thousand Swiss mustered by the eloquence of the cardinal-archbishop,
passed the Alps; but famine, war, and French gold obliged them to
return to their mountains without glory. They brought back the usual
results of these foreign wars,--distrust, licentiousness, party
spirit, all sorts of violence and disorder. Citizens refused to obey
their magistrates, and children their parents; agriculture and the
care of their flocks were neglected; luxury and mendicity kept pace
with each other; the most sacred ties were broken, and the
confederation seemed on the point of being dissolved.
[626] Wellches er an die Bücher verwändet. (Bullinger MS.)
The eyes of the young curate of Glaris were now opened, and his
indignation aroused. He raised his voice aloud to warn them of the
abyss into which they were about to fall. In 1510 he published his
poem entitled "The Labyrinth." Behind the windings of this mysterious
garden, Minos has hidden the Minotaur, that monster, half man half
bull, whom he feeds on the flesh of young Athenians. "The Minotaur,
... in other words," says Zuinglius, "sin, vice, irreligion, and the
foreign service of the Swiss," devour the sons of his countrymen.
Theseus, a man of courage, wishes to deliver his country, but numerous
obstacles arrest him;--first, a lion with one eye; this is Spain and
Arragon;--then a crowned eagle, whose throat is opened to devour it;
this is the empire;--then a cock, with his comb up, and calling for
battle; this is France. The hero surmounts all these obstacles, gets
up to the monster, stabs it, and saves his country.
"So now," exclaims the poet, "men wander in a labyrinth, but having no
thread to guide them they cannot regain the light. No where is there
any imitation of Jesus Christ. A little glory makes us hazard our
life, torment our neighbour, rush into strife, war, and combat.... One
would say that the furies have escaped from the depths of hell."[627]
[627] Dass wir die höllschen wütterinn'n
Mögend denken abbrochen syn.
(Zw. Op. ed. Schüler et Schulthess, ii, part ii. p. 250.)
A Theseus, a Reformer was required. Zuinglius perceived this, and
thenceforth had a presentiment of his mission. Not long after he
composed an allegory with a still clearer application.[628]
[628] Fabelgedicht vom Ochsen und etlichen Thieren, iez loufender
dinge begriffenlich. (Ibid. p. 257.)
[Sidenote: ZUINGLIUS IN ITALY.]
In April, 1512, the confederates rose anew at the bidding of the
cardinal, for the deliverance of the Church. Glaris was in the
foremost rank. The whole population was brought into the field, ranged
round their banner with their landaman and their pastor. Zuinglius
behoved to march. The army passed the Alps, and the cardinal appeared
amidst the confederates with the presents given him by the pope,--a
ducal hat adorned with pearls and gold, and surmounted by the Holy
Spirit, represented under the form of a dove. The Swiss escaladed the
fortresses and towns, swam rivers in the presence of the enemy,
unclothed, and with halberds in their hands; the French were every
where put to flight; bells and trumpets resounded, and the population
flocked from all quarters; the nobles supplied the army with wine and
fruits in abundance; the monks and priests mounted on platforms, and
proclaimed, that the confederates were the people of God taking
vengeance on the enemies of the Lord's spouse; and the pope becoming
prophet, like Caiaphas of old, gave the confederates the title of
"Defenders of the liberty of the Church."[629]
[629] De Gestis inter Gallos et Helvetios, relatio H. Zwinglii
This sojourn of Zuinglius in Italy was not without its effect, in
reference to his vocation of Reformer. On his return from this
campaign, he began to study Greek, "in order," says he, "to be able to
draw the doctrine of Jesus Christ from the very fountain of
truth."[630] Writing to Vadian, 23rd February, 1513, he says, "I have
resolved so to apply myself to the study of Greek, that none will be
able to turn me from it but God. I do it not for fame, but from love
to sacred literature." At a later period, a worthy priest, who had
been his school companion, having come to pay him a visit, said to
him, "Master Ulric, I am assured that you are tainted with the new
heresy, that you are a Lutheran." "I am not a Lutheran," said
Zuinglius, "for I knew Greek before I heard of the name of
Luther."[631] To know Greek, to study the gospel in the original
tongue, was, according to Zuinglius, the basis of the Reformation.
[630] Ante decem annos, operam dedi græcis literis, ut ex fontibus
doctrinam Christi haurire possem. (Zw. Op. i, p. 274, in his Explan.
Artic. dated 1523.)
[631] Ich hab græcæ können, ehe ich ni nüt von Luther gehöt hab.
(Salat. Chronik. MS.)
Zuinglius did more than recognise, at this early period, the great
principle of evangelical Christianity--the infallible authority of the
Holy Scriptures. Besides this, he understood how the meaning of the
divine Word ought to be ascertained. "Those," said he, "have a very
grovelling idea of the Scriptures who regard whatever seems to them at
variance with their own reason as frivolous, vain, and unjust.[632]
Men have no right to bind the gospel at pleasure to their own sense,
and their own interpretation."[633] "Zuinglius raised his eye to
heaven," said his dearest friend, "unwilling to have any other
interpreter than the Holy Spirit himself."[634]
[632] Nihil sublimius de evangelio sentiunt, quam quod, quidquid eorum
rationi non est consentaneum, hoc iniquum, vanum et frivolum
existimant. (Zw. Op. i, p. 202.)
[633] Nec posse evangelium ad sensum et interpretationem hominum
redigi. (Ibid., p. 215.)
[634] In cœlum suspexit, doctorem quærens Spiritum. (Osw. Myc. Vit.
Zw.)
[Sidenote: ZUINGLIUS AND LUTHER. ZUINGLIUS AND ERASMUS.]
Such, from the commencement of his career, was the man, whom some have
not scrupled to represent as having wished to subject the Bible to
human reason. "Philosophy and theology," said he, "ceased not to raise
up objections against me. I, at length, arrived at this conclusion,
'We must leave all these things, and seek our knowledge of God only in
his Word.' I began," continues he, "earnestly to supplicate the Lord
to give me his light, and though I read only the text of Scripture,
it became far clearer to me than if I had read a host of
commentators." Comparing the Scriptures with themselves and explaining
passages that were obscure by such as were more clear,[635] he soon
had a thorough knowledge of the Bible, especially the New
Testament.[636] When Zuinglius thus turned toward the Holy Scriptures,
Switzerland took her first step in the Reformation. Accordingly, when
he expounded the Scriptures, every one felt that his lessons came from
God, and not from man.[637] "Work all divine!" here exclaims Oswald
Myconius; "thus was the knowledge of heavenly truth restored to us!"
[635] Scripta contulit et obscura claris elucidavit. (Ibid.)
[636] In summa, er macht im, die H. Schrifft, Insonders dass N. T.
gantz gemein. (Bullinger, MS.)
[637] Ut nemo non videret Spiritum doctorem, non hominem. (Osw. Myc.
Vit. Zw.)
Zuinglius did not, however, despise the expositions of the most
celebrated doctors: at a later period, he studied Origen, Ambrose,
Jerome, Augustine, Chrysostom, but not as authorities. "I study the
doctors," says he, "with the same feelings with which one asks a
friend, 'What do you understand by this?'" The Holy Scripture was,
according to him, the touch-stone by which the most holy of the
doctors were themselves to be tested.[638]
[638] Scriptura canonica, seu Lydio lapide probandos. (Ibid.)
Zuinglius's step was slow, but progressive. He did not come to the
truth like Luther amid those tempests which compel the soul to seek a
speedy shelter. He arrived at it by the peaceful influence of
Scripture, whose power gradually gains upon the heart. Luther reached
the wished-for shore across the billows of the boundless deep;
Zuinglius, by allowing himself to glide along the stream. These are
the two principal ways by which God leads men. Zuinglius was not fully
converted to God and his gospel till the first period of his sojourn
at Zurich; yet, in 1514 or 1515, at the moment when the strong man
began to bend the knee to God, praying for the understanding of his
Word, the rays of that pure light by which he was afterwards
illumined, first began to gleam upon him.
At this period, a poem of Erasmus, in which Jesus Christ was
introduced addressing man as perishing by his own fault, made a
powerful impression on Zuinglius. When alone in his study, he repeated
the passage in which Jesus complains that all grace is not sought from
him, though he is the source of all that is good. "ALL!" said
Zuinglius, "ALL!" And this word was incessantly present to his mind.
"Are there then creatures, saints, from whom we ought to ask
assistance? No! Christ is our only treasure."[639]
[639] Dass Christus unser armen seelen ein einziger Schatz sey. (Zw.
Op. i, p. 398.) Zuinglius says in 1522 that he had read the poem of
Erasmus eight or nine years before.
Zuinglius did not confine his reading to Christian writings. One of
the distinguishing characteristics of the sixteenth century is the
profound study of the Greek and Roman authors. The poetry of Hesiod,
Homer, Pindar, enraptured him, and he has left us commentaries, or
characteristics, on the two last poets. It seemed to him that Pindar
spoke of his gods in such sublime strains that he must have had some
presentiment of the true God. He studied Cicero and Demosthenes
thoroughly, and learned from them both the art of the orator and the
duties of the citizen. He called Seneca a holy man. The Swiss
mountaineer loved also to initiate himself in the mysteries of nature,
through the writings of Pliny. Thucydides, Sallust, Livy, Cæsar,
Suetonius, Plutarch, and Tacitus, taught him to know the world. He has
been censured for his enthusiastic admiration of the great men of
antiquity, and it is true that some of his observations on this
subject cannot be defended. But if he honoured them so much, it was
because he thought he saw in them not human virtues, but the influence
of the Holy Spirit. The agency of God, far from confining itself to
ancient times within the limits of Palestine, extended, according to
him, to the whole world.[640] "Plato," said he, "has also drunk at the
Divine source. And if the two Catos, if Camillus, if Scipio had not
been truly religious, would they have been so magnanimous?"[641]
[640] Spiritus ille cœlestis non solam Palestinam vel creaverat vel
fovebat, sed mundum universum...... (Œcol. et Zw. Ep. p. 9.) That
celestial Spirit had created and continued to cherish not only
Palestine, but the whole world.
[641] Nisi religiosi nunquam fuissent magnanimi. (Ibid.)
[Sidenote: ZUINGLIUS IN REGARD TO ERASMUS.]
Zuinglius diffused around him a love of letters. Several choice youths
were trained in his school. "You offered me not only books, but also
yourself," wrote Valentine Tschudi, son of one of the heroes of the
wars of Burgundy; and this young man, who at that time had already
studied at Vienna and Bâle, under the most celebrated teachers, adds,
"I have never met with any one who explained the classics with so much
precision and profundity as yourself."[642] Tschudi repaired to Paris,
and was able to compare the spirit which prevailed in that university,
with that which he had found in the narrow Alpine valley, over which
impend the gigantic peaks and eternal snows of the Dodi, the
Glarnisch, the Viggis, and the Freyberg. "How frivolously," says he,
"the French youth are educated! No poison is so bad as the sophistical
art in which they are trained--an art which stupifies the senses,
destroys the judgment, brutifies the whole man. Man is thenceforth,
like the echo, an empty sound. Ten women could not keep pace with one
of these rhetoricians.[643] In their prayers even they present their
sophisms to God, (I know the fact,) and pretend, by their syllogisms,
to constrain the Holy Spirit to hear them." Such, then, were Paris and
Glaris; the intellectual metropolis of Christendom, and a village of
Alpine shepherds. A ray of the Divine Word gives more light than all
human wisdom.
[642] Nam qui sit acrioris in enodandis autoribus judicii, vidi
neminem. (Zw. Ep. p. 13.) For I have never seen any one so acute and
judicious in unravelling authors.
[643] Ut nec decem mulierculæ .... uni sophistæ adæquari queant (Zw.
Ep., p. 13.)