[413] John Cheke, preceptor of Edward VI., King of England, and
distinguished alike in science and in letters, won the esteem
and confidence of his royal pupil, who raised him to the rank
of knighthood, and who gave him in many ways the most precious
testimonies of his affection.--See Fuller's _Church History_, B.
vii.; sixteenth cent., 19, 20. Though a man of sincere piety, Cheke
was not possessed of a firmness of character equal to the variety
of his knowledge and the greatness of his talents. He survived his
pupil only to make a deplorable manifestation of the infirmity of
his faith under fear of the scaffold and of martyrdom. Arrested in
the Low Countries in 1556, by a secret order of Philip II., he was
conducted to London, imprisoned in the Tower, and escaped death only
by a solemn retractation. He then fell into a profound melancholy,
and soon after died, exhibiting sentiments of sincere repentance,
asking pardon of God and men for the sin of which he had been
guilty. See Strype, _Memoirs_, III., i. 515, and _Zurich Letters_,
first series, _passim_.
Calvin apologizes for silence, and enjoins him to use his
influence with the King for the advancement of the Gospel in
England.
GENEVA, _13th Feb. 1553_.
I have hitherto avoided writing you, most distinguished sir, lest
I should perhaps seem anxious to obtain what my own inclinations
did not prompt. For as the friendships of the world are hollow,
and ambition and deception everywhere prevail, so that those who
cultivate sincerity are exceedingly few, it is absolutely necessary
for us almost to regard all with suspicion whose uprightness of
character we have not thoroughly tested. I have at length, however,
found an exceedingly just motive for writing you, inasmuch as I
have now frequently made bold to write to the King himself, and
have never written a single letter to you, which was not at all
becoming, seeing that it was owing to your influence (under the
grace of God) that myself and the other servants of Christ were
permitted access to him. And as for the past my excuse is easy, for
I was at the first afraid lest those whom I was writing to exhort
might have too little confidence in me, if I employed the service
of others in presenting my letters; and I was again disinclined to
give you any trouble, as no familiarity had passed between us. If
I have in any way offended you in this matter, attribute it rather
to my shyness than to my negligence. Nay, indeed, it is now a long
while ago, that having been led thereto by the fame of your rare
piety and excellent learning, I must have worthily esteemed you.
Moreover, this one reason is sufficient to win for you the favour of
all good men, viz., that England has a king whom you have trained
by your labour, not only possessing very superior talents, but also
a maturity of moral excellence beyond his years, who is extending a
hand to the suffering--I should rather in fact say miserable--Church
of God in these very sad times. Certainly, having deemed you worthy
of this honour, the Lord has not only endeared you to those who
experience the present benefit of it, but to as many as desire to
see the Church of God re-established, or at least to see her remains
gathered together. If then I bear testimony to that affection which
I have so long cherished towards you in silence, I am persuaded
this expression of my regard will not be unpleasant to you. And
again, while you, in that splendid position of yours, do not
require the humble offices of men like me, and I, in turn, content
with my own poor state, am averse to impose any burden on you of
my own account, let us nevertheless cherish towards each other a
mutual goodwill throughout this fleeting life, until we find its
full enjoyment in heaven. Let us meanwhile, with one accord, make
it our study to adorn the kingdom of Christ, and, as far as in us
lies, to extend and watch over it. For we see how numerous are its
open and malicious enemies, whose fury is already kindled, and is
growing greater day by day; and, on the other hand, how few is the
number of those who have lent their name to the Gospel, how few are
conscientiously labouring for the advancement of the glory of God.
We see how much coldness, or rather how much indifference, there is
among many men of influence; in a word, how much deadness there is
throughout the world. And while I believe you will do so of your
own accord, and stand in no need at all of any foreign stimulus,
yet, with your accustomed good nature, I have no doubt but that you
will take in good part what I have laid thus familiarly before you,
and which it becomes every one of us earnestly to call to mind. I
have indeed particularly to request of you, whenever at any time
you think that the most serene King could be cheered forward by my
exhortations, to advise me thereon, and, according to circumstances,
that you will not grudge me your opinion. Adieu, most excellent and
heartily esteemed sir. May the Lord guard you by his protection,
continue to guide you by his Spirit, and bless your sacred labours.