Quirinus Kuhlmann--John Tennhart--Jeremiah Felbinger--Simon
Morin--Liszinski--John Toland--Thomas Woolston--John Biddle--Johann
Lyser--Bernardino Ochino--Samuel Friedrich Willenberg.
The nympholepts of old were curious and unhappy beings who, while
carelessly strolling amidst sylvan shades, caught a hasty glimpse of
some spirit of the woods, and were doomed ever afterwards to spend
their lives in fruitlessly searching after it. The race of Fanatics
are somewhat akin to these restless seekers. There is a wildness and
excessive extravagance in their notions and actions which separates them
from the calm followers of Truth, and leads them into strange courses
and curious beliefs. How far the sacred fire of enthusiasm may be
separated from the fierce heat of fanaticism we need not now inquire,
nor whether a spark of the latter has not shone brilliantly in many
a noble soul and produced brave deeds and acts of piety and
self-sacrifice. Those whose fate is here recorded were far removed from
such noble characters; their fanaticism was akin to madness, and many
of them were fitter for an asylum rather than a gaol, which was usually
their destination.
Foremost among them was Quirinus Kulmanus (Kuhlmann), who has been
called the Prince of Fanatics, and wandered through many lands making
many disciples. He was born at Breslau in Silesia in 1651, and at
an early age saw strange visions, at one time the devils in hell, at
another the Beatific Glory of God. His native country did not appreciate
him, and he left it to wander on from university to university,
publishing his ravings. At Leyden he met with the works of Boehme,
another fanatic, who wrote a strange book, entitled _Aurora_, which
was suppressed by the magistrates. The reading of this author was like
casting oil into the fire. Poor Kuhlmann became wilder still in his
strange fanaticism, and joined himself to a pretended prophet, John
Rothe, whom the authorities at Amsterdam incarcerated, in order that he
might be able to foretell with greater certainty than he had done other
things when and after what manner he should be released. Kuhlmann then
wrote a book, entitled _Prodromus Quinquennii Mirabilis_, and published
at Leyden in 1674, in which he set forth his peculiar views. He stated
that in that same year the Fifth Monarchy or the Christian Kingdom was
about to commence, that he himself would bring forth a son from his own
wife, that this son by many miracles would found the kingdom, and that
he himself was the Son of God. On account of these mad ravings he was
exiled by the Chief of the United Provinces of the Netherlands, and
expelled with infamy from the University of Leyden. But his strange
mission did not cease. He wandered for some time in France and England,
where he printed at his own expense several small books in 1681 and
1682, amongst others one piece addressed to Mahomet IV., _De Conversione
Turcarum_. The following passage occurs in this fantastic production:
"You saw, some months ago, O great Eastern Leader, a comet of unusual
magnitude, a true prognostic of the Kingdom of the Jesuelites, that is,
of the restoration of all people to the one-three God. O well is thee,
that thou hast turned thy mind before God, and by proclaiming a general
fast throughout thy empire, hast begun to fulfil the words of the Lord
to the prophet Drabicius." He declares that if the Christians refuse to
perform his will in destroying the kingdom of Antichrist, the Turks and
Tartars shall do it, to the disgrace of the Christians, which will be a
horror to angels and to men.
He then proceeded to Turkey on his mission, and presented himself to the
Sultan. Although ignorant of the language of the country, he persuaded
himself that he could speak in any tongue; but when they led him into
the presence of the Sultan he waited in vain for the burning words of
eloquence to flow. The Turks dealt with him according to his folly, and
bestowed on him a sound thrashing. Thence he proceeded to Russia, and
when he was about to marry a second wife, his former spouse being left
in England, the Patriarch of the Russian Church condemned him to be
burnt at Moscow in 1689. A follower of Kuhlmann's, named Nordermann,
who also wrote a book on the Second Advent of Christ, shared his
fate. Kuhlmann also wrote a volume of verses, entitled _The Berlin and
Amsterdam "Kuhl-festival" at the Gathering of Lutherans and Calvinists_,
which sufficiently attests his insanity. The following is a specimen of
the lucidity of his works: "The more I continued my doctrines, the more
opposition I received, so that also the higher world of light with which
I am illuminated, in their light I was enlightened, or shadowed, when I
proceeded, and in their light lit I up brighter lights."
A fitting companion to Kuhlmann was John Tennhart, a barber of
Nuremberg, born in 1662, who used to speak continually of the visions,
dreams, and colloquies which he had with God, and boasted that
the office of a scribe was entrusted to him by the Divine Will. He
endeavoured to persuade all men that the words he wrote were verily and
indeed the words of God. The world was not disposed to interfere with
the poor barber who imagined himself inspired, but in an evil hour
he published a book against the priests, entitled _Worte Gottes, oder
Tractätlein an den so genannten geistlichen Stand_, which caused its
author great calamities. He was cast into prison by order of the senate
of the Nuremberg State. On his release he again published his former
work, with others which he also believed to be inspired, and again in
1714 was imprisoned at Nuremberg. His incarceration did not, however,
last long, and Tennhart died while he was journeying from the city
which so little appreciated his ravings to find in Cassel a more secure
resting-place.
Amongst the fanatics of the seventeenth century may be classed Jeremiah
Felbinger, a native of Brega, a town in the Prussian State of Silesia,
who was an early advocate of the heresy of the Unitarians. For some
years he was a soldier, and then became a schoolmaster. He wrote
_Prodromus demonstrationis_, published in 1654, in which he attempted
to prove his Unitarian ideas. Shortly before this, in 1653, he
wrote _Demonstrationes Christianae_, and finally his _Epistola ad
Christianos_, published at Amsterdam in 1672. His strange views and
perverted opinions first caused his dismissal from the army, and his
works upon the Unitarian doctrines necessitated his removal from
the office of teacher. He then journeyed to Helmstadt, but there the
wanderer found no rest; for when he tried to circulate his obnoxious
books, he was ordered to leave the city before sunset. Finally he
settled in Amsterdam, the home of free-thinkers, where men were allowed
a large amount of religious liberty; there printers produced without
let or hindrance books which were condemned elsewhere and could only be
printed in secret presses and obscure corners of cities governed by more
orthodox rulers. Here Felbinger passed the rest of his miserable life
in great poverty, earning a scanty pittance by instructing youths and
correcting typographical errors. He died in 1689, aged seventy-three
years.
The seventeenth century was fruitful in fanatics, and not the least mad
was Simon Morin, who was burnt at Paris in 1663. His fatal book was his
_Pensées de Simon Morin_ (Paris, 1647, in-8), which contains a curious
mixture of visions and nonsense, including the principal errors of the
Quietists and adding many of his own. Amongst other mad ravings, he
declared that there would be very shortly a general reformation of the
Church, and that all nations should be converted to the true faith, and
that this reformation was to be accomplished by the Second Advent of our
Lord in His state of glory, incorporated in Morin himself; and that
for the execution of the things to which he was destined, he was to be
attended by a great number of perfect souls, and such as participated
in the glorious state of Jesus Christ, whom he therefore called the
champions of God. He was condemned by the Parliament of Paris, and after
having done penance, dressed in his shirt, with a rope round his neck
and a torch in his hand, before the entrance of Notre Dame, he was burnt
with his book and writings, his ashes being subsequently cast into the
air. Morin had several followers who shared his fantastic views, and
these poor "champions of God" were condemned to witness the execution
of their leader, to be publicly whipped and branded with the mark of
fleur-de-lys, and to spend the rest of their lives as galley-slaves.
Poland witnessed the burning of Cazimir Liszinski in 1689, whose ashes
were placed in a cannon and shot into the air. This Polish gentleman was
accused of atheism by the Bishop of Potsdam. His condemnation was based
upon certain atheistical manuscripts found in his possession, containing
several novel doctrines, such as "God is not the creator of man; but man
is the creator of a God gathered together from nothing." His writings
contain many other extravagant notions of the same kind.
A few years later the religious world of both England and Ireland was
excited and disturbed by the famous book of John Toland, a sceptical
Irishman, entitled _Christianity not Mysterious_ (London, 1696). Its
author was born in Londonderry in 1670, and was endowed with much
natural ability, but this did not avail to avert the calamities which
pursue indiscreet and reckless writers. He wrote his book at the early
age of twenty-five years, for the purpose of defending Holy Scripture
from the attacks of infidels and atheists; he essayed to prove that
there was nothing in religion contrary to sound reason, and to show
that the mysteries of religion were not opposed to reason. But his work
aroused much opposition both in England and Ireland, as there were
many statements in the book which were capable of a rationalistic
interpretation. A second edition was published in London with an apology
by Toland in 1702. In Dublin he raised against himself a storm of
opposition, not only on account of his book, but also by his vain and
foolish manner of propagating his views. He began openly to deride
Christianity, to scoff at the clergy, to despise the worship of God, and
so passed his life that whoever associated with him was judged to be
an impious and infamous person. He proposed to form a society which he
called Socratia; the hymns to be sung by the members were the Odes
of Horace, and the prayers were blasphemous productions, composed by
Toland, in derision of those used in the Roman Church. The Council
of Religion of the Irish House of Parliament condemned his book to be
burnt, and some of the members wished to imprison its author, who after
enduring many privations wisely sought safety in flight. A host of
writers arrayed themselves in opposition to Toland and refuted his book,
amongst whom were John Norris, Stillingfleet, Payne, Beverley, Clarke,
Leibnitz, and others. Toland wrote also _The Life of Milton_ (London,
1698), which was directed against the authenticity of the New Testament;
_The Nazarene, or Christianity, Judaic, Pagan, and Mahometan_ (1718);
and _Pantheisticon_ (1720). The outcry raised by the orthodox party
against the "poor gentleman" who had "to beg for half-crowns," and "ran
into debt for his wigs, clothes, and lodging," together with his own
vanity and conceit, changed him from being a somewhat free-thinking
Christian into an infidel and atheist or Pantheist. He died in extreme
poverty at Putney in 1722.
A fitting companion to Toland was Thomas Woolston, who lived about the
same time; he was born at Northampton in 1669, and died at London in
1733. He was a free-thinker, and a man of many attainments, whose works
became widely known and furnished weapons for the use of Voltaire and
other atheistical writers. In 1705 he wrote a book entitled _The Old
Apology_, in which he endeavoured to show that in the interpretation of
the Holy Scriptures the literal meaning ought to be abandoned, and that
the events recorded therein were merely allegories. In his book
_Free Gifts to the Clergy_ he denounced all who favoured the literal
interpretation as apostates and ministers of Antichrist. Finally, in his
_Discourses on the Miracles_ (1726) he denied entirely the authenticity
of miracles, and stated that they were merely stories and allegories.
He thought that the literal account of the miracles is improbable and
untrustworthy, that they were parables and prophetical recitations.
These and many other such-like doctrines are found in his works.
Woolston held at that time the post of tutor at Sidney Sussex College at
Cambridge; but on account of his works he was expelled from the College
and cast into prison. According to one account of his life, he died in
prison in 1731. Another record states that he was released on paying a
fine of £100 after enduring one year's incarceration, and that he bore
his troubles bravely, passing an honest life and enduring reproaches
with an equal mind. Not a few able theologians set themselves the
task of refuting the errors of Woolston, amongst whom were John Ray,
Stebbins, Bishop of St. Davids, and Sherlock, whose book was translated
into French. A _Life of Woolston_ has been written anonymously by some
one who somewhat favoured his views and supported his tenets. He may
certainly be classed among the leaders of Free Thought in the eighteenth
century.
John Biddle was a vehement advocate of Socinian and Unitarian opinions,
attacking the belief in the Trinity and in the Divinity of our Lord. The
Holy Spirit was accounted by him as the first of the angels. His fatal
book was entitled _The Faith of one God, who is only the Father, and of
one Mediator between God and man, who is only the man Christ Jesus; and
of one Holy Spirit, the gift, and sent of God, asserted and defended in
several tracts contained in this volume_ (London, 1691, in-4). This
work was publicly burnt and its author imprisoned. Biddle was born at
Wotton-under-Edge in 1615; he went to Oxford, and became a teacher at a
grammar-school at Gloucester. He underwent several terms of imprisonment
on account of the opinions expressed in his writings, and died in gaol
in 1662.
Amongst the fanatics whose works were fatal to them must be enrolled
the famous advocates of polygamy, Johann Lyser, Bernardino Ochino, and
Samuel Friedrich Willenberg. Lyser was born at Leipsic in 1631,
and although he ever remained a bachelor and abhorred womankind,
nevertheless tried to demonstrate that not only was polygamy lawful, but
that it was a blessed estate commanded by God. He first brought out a
dialogue written in the vernacular entitled _Sinceri Wahrenbergs kurzes
Gespraech von der Polygamie_; and this little work was followed by a
second book, _Das Koenigliche Marck aller Laender_ (Freyburg, 1676,
in-4). Then he produced another work, entitled _Theophili Aletaei
discursus politicus de Polygamia_. A second edition of this work
followed, which bore the title _Polygamia triumphatrix, id est,
discursus politicus de Polygamia, auctore Theoph. Aletoeo, cum notis
Athanasii Vincentii, omnibus Anti-polygamis, ubique locorum, terrarum,
insularum, pagorum, urbium modeste et pie opposita (Londini Scanorum_,
1682, in-4). On account of the strange views expressed in this work
he was deprived of his office of Inspector, and was obliged to seek
protection from a powerful Count, by whose advice it is said that Lyser
first undertook the advocacy of polygamy. On the death of his friend
Lyser was compelled frequently to change his abode, and wandered through
most of the provinces of Germany. He was imprisoned by the Count of
Hanover, and then expelled. In Denmark his book was burned by the public
executioner. At another place he was imprisoned and beaten and his books
burned. At length, travelling from Italy to Holland, he endured every
kind of calamity, and after all his misfortunes he died miserably in
a garret at Amsterdam, in 1684. It is curious that Lyser, who never
married nor desired wedlock, should have advocated polygamy; but it is
said that he was led on by a desire for providing for the public safety
by increasing the population of the country, though probably the love of
notoriety, which has added many authors' names to the category of fools,
contributed much to his madness.
Infected with the same notions was Bernardino Ochino, a Franciscan, and
afterwards a Capuchin, whose dialogue _De Polygamiâ_ was fatal to him.
Although he was an old man, the authorities at Basle ordered him to
leave the city in the depth of a severe winter. He wandered into Poland,
but through the opposition of the Papal Nuncio, Commendone, he was
again obliged to fly. He had to mourn over the death of two sons and a
daughter, who died of the plague in Poland, and finally Ochino ended his
woes in Moravia. Such was the miserable fate of Ochino, who was at one
time the most famous preacher in the whole of Italy. He had a wonderful
eloquence, which seized upon the minds of his hearers and carried them
whither he would. No church was large enough to contain the multitudes
which flocked to hear him. Ochino was a skilled linguist, and, after
leaving the Roman Church, he wrote a book against the Papacy in English,
which was printed in London, and also a sermon on predestination. He
visited England in company with Peter Martyr, but on the death of Edward
VI., on account of the changes introduced in Mary's reign these two
doctors again crossed the seas, and retired to a safer retreat. His
brilliant career was entirely ruined by his fatal frenzy and foolish
fanaticism for polygamy.
The third of this strange triumvirate was Samuel Friedrich Willenberg,
a doctor of law of the famous University of Cracow, who wrote a book
_De finibus polygamiae licitae_ and aroused the hatred of the Poles. In
1715, by command of the High Court of the King of Poland, his book was
condemned to be burnt, and its author nearly shared the same fate.
He escaped, however, this terrible penalty, and was fined one hundred
thousand gold pieces.
With these unhappy advocates of a system which violates the sacredness
of marriage, we must close our list of fanatics whose works have proved
fatal to them. Many of them deserve our pity rather than our scorn; for
they suffered from that species of insanity which, according to Holmes,
is often the logic of an accurate mind overtasked. At any rate, they
furnish an example of that
"Faith, fanatic faith, which, wedded fast
To some dear falsehood, hugs it to the last."