THE REFORMERS ARE EXPELLED FROM GENEVA.
(OCTOBER 1532.)
[Sidenote: FAREL BEFORE THE EPISCOPAL COUNCIL.]
While the upper house of the clergy was sitting at the vicar-general's,
the lower house had assembled in the streets. The armed curates and
chaplains watched what was going on, and when they saw the premier
syndic with ex-syndic Balard and the bishop's secretary enter the inn,
they guessed that they were about to conduct Farel before the episcopal
council, and had immediately made it known to their followers, to the
women and the common people. When the three reformers, accompanied by
the three Genevans, came out, there was already a little crowd in front
of the Tour Perce. The number increased as they proceeded along the
streets which lead from the banks of the Rhone to the top of the hill;
but the populace and the women were content to threaten and jeer at the
reformers, crying out as loud as they could, 'Look at the dogs, look at
the dogs.'[520] Thanks to the presence of the magistrates, the three
reformers arrived safe and sound in the Rue des Chanoines and entered
the house of the vicar episcopal. As those who were within as well as
those who were without had equally sworn Farel's death, it seemed
impossible for him to escape. The three evangelicals had to wait some
time; in fact the syndics had preceded them, and required of the
episcopal council that no harm should be done the ministers if they
freely explained their doctrines. This engagement having been taken,
Farel, Saunier, and Olivetan were called in, the two magistrates
remaining in the assembly to secure order.
[Sidenote: VEIGY'S INVECTIVES.]
The abbot-vicar of Bonmont presided; on his right and left sat the
canons, the bishop's officers, and the head priests, all in their
sacerdotal robes. The missionary, simply but decently dressed, came
forward followed by his two friends, and all three remained standing
before the assembly. The official, Messire de Veigy, a learned and
eloquent man, was ordered to speak. 'William Farel,' he said, 'tell me
who has sent you, for what reason you come here, and in virtue of what
authority you speak?' In Veigy's opinion it was necessary for the
preacher to be sent by some Romish ecclesiastical authority. Farel
replied with simplicity, 'I am sent by God, and I am come to announce
his word.' 'Poor wretch!' exclaimed the priests, as they shrugged their
shoulders. The official resumed: 'God has sent you, you say; how is
that? Can you show by any manifest sign that you are come in His name?
As Moses before Pharaoh, will you prove to us by miracles that you
really come from God? If you cannot, then show us the licence of our
most reverend prelate the Bishop of Geneva. Preacher never yet preached
in his diocese without his leave.'
Here the official paused; and then disdainfully scanning the reformer
from head to foot, he said: 'You do not wear the dress that is usual for
those who are accustomed to announce the Word of God to us.... You are
dressed like a soldier or a brigand.... How is it you are so bold as to
preach? Is it not forbidden by a decree of holy church for laymen to
preach in public under pain of excommunication? That is contained in the
decretals of our holy mother church.... You are, therefore, a deceiver
and a bad man.'[521] Farel believed that it was his duty to announce the
Word of God, because Jesus Christ had said, _Preach the Gospel to every
creature_. He thought that the true successors of the apostles were
those who conformed to Christ's order, and that (as Calvin says), 'the
pope of Rome and all his tribe had no claim to that apostolical
succession which they alleged, since they no longer cared for the
doctrine of Christ.'[522] The clergy in whose presence he was standing
did not allow him time to speak. At last they had before them the
terrible heretic of whom they had been talking so many years. The
official's words had still further aroused their passions; they could no
longer contain themselves. Pale with anger they shuddered and clattered
with their feet as they sat. At last the mine exploded; they all spoke
at once, pouring insult and abuse on the reformer. Their excitement
carried them away; they rose from their seats, rushed upon him, and
pulling him now this way, now that, exclaimed, 'Come, Farel, you wicked
devil, what business have you to go up and down, disturbing all the
world?... Are you baptized? Where were you born? Where do you come from?
Why did you come here? Tell us by whose authority you preach? Are you
not the man who propagated Luther's heresies at Aigle and Neuchatel, and
threw the whole country into confusion? Who sent you into this city?'
The noise and tumult would not permit either Farel or the grand vicar to
speak; the weapons were heard to rattle which some of the priests
carried under their frocks. Farel remained still and silent in the midst
of this raging sea. At last Messire de Bonmont succeeded in interposing
his authority, made his colleagues resume their seats, and silence was
restored.[523] Then the reformer, nobly lifting up his head, said with
great simplicity, 'My lords, I am not a devil. I was baptized in the
name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, and if I journey to and fro, it
is that I may preach Jesus Christ—Jesus Christ crucified, dead for our
sins, and risen again for our justification, so that whosoever believeth
in Him shall have everlasting life. As an ambassador of Jesus Christ I
am compelled to teach Him to all who are willing to hear me. I have,
however, no other right to speak than that which the commandment of God
gives to me His servant. My only aim is so to discharge my duty that all
the world may receive salvation, and it is for this cause and for no
other that I am come into this city. Having been brought before you to
give an account of my faith, I am ready to do so, not only at this
moment, but as many times as you please to hear me peaceably. What I
have preached and still preach is the pure truth and not a heresy, and I
will maintain it even unto death. As for what you say about my
disturbing the land and this city in particular, I will answer as Elijah
did to Ahab, _I have not troubled Israel, but thou and thy father's
house_. Yes, it is you and yours who trouble the world by your
traditions, your human inventions, and your dissolute lives.'[524]
[Sidenote: THREATS AGAINST FAREL.]
The priests, astonished at the calm, simple, free and spirited language
of the reformer, had listened to him in silence so far, but the moment
they heard him speak of their human inventions and irregular lives, his
words were like daggers and disturbed their wicked consciences. It might
have been said that the infernal deities (it is the expression of a
reformer) were hovering about them and left them no repose. 'They fixed
their burning eyes on Farel; they gnashed their teeth,' says a
manuscript; and one of them starting up in a passion said:
'Blasphematur, non amplius indigemus testibus. Reus est mortis.'[525]
This was the signal for a scene more savage than the former. All rose
again, some impelled by violence and pride, others believing they were
supporting the cause of religion, and exclaimed: 'To the Rhone, to the
Rhone! kill him, kill him! It is better for this rascally Lutheran to
die than permit him to trouble all the people.'[526] These words,
without being those which the high-priest uttered against Christ were
very like them. Farel was struck by the resemblance. 'Speak the words of
God and not of Caiaphas,' he exclaimed. At these words the exasperated
priests could contain themselves no longer. They all started up together
and shouted out: 'Kill him, kill the Lutheran hound!' Dom Bergeri,
proctor to the chapter, still more excited than the others, urged them
on, exclaiming in his Savoyard dialect: _Tapa, tapa!_ (which, adds
Froment, means 'Strike, strike!') The sentence was immediately carried
into execution; they surrounded the three reformers; some caught hold of
Farel, others of Saunier, and others of Olivetan. They abused them, beat
them, spat in their faces, and uttered all sorts of cries, so that it
was like a pandemonium. In the midst of all this uproar Farel and his
companions 'preserved their patience and moderation.' The abbot of
Bonmont, syndics Hugues and Balard, and even a few priests, ashamed of
such a scene, tried to put an end to it. 'It is not well done,' said the
abbot, 'have we not pledged our word and honour to them?' Syndic Hugues,
a just, quick, and energetic man, disgusted with the behaviour of the
ecclesiastics, broke out at last. 'You are wicked men,' he said; 'we
brought you these men on your promise that no harm should be done them,
and you want to beat and kill them before our faces.... I will go and
set the great bell ringing to convoke the general council. The assembled
people shall decide.' Hugues was leaving the room to go and put his
threat into execution, when Balard, the other magistrate, desiring to
prevent anything that might compromise the cause of Rome, endeavoured to
calm him. However the syndic's threat had produced its effect; the
priests alarmed at the thought of a general assembly of the citizens,
and fearing lest it should decree their expulsion from Geneva, returned
to their seats rather ashamed of themselves. The abbot, taking advantage
of this new lull, desired Farel and his friends to withdraw, in order
that the episcopal council might deliberate. Farel left the room covered
with spittle and severely bruised.[527]
[Sidenote: FAREL ASSAULTED.]
While the superior clergy were behaving in this way, the inferior clergy
were assembling, and about eighty priests had collected before the house
of the vicar-episcopal, 'all well armed with clubs to defend the holy
catholic faith and prepared to die for it.' This mode of defending
religion, so different from that of the first fathers of the church, has
been made known to us through the reverend Sister Jeanne de Jussie. The
priests were stout, resolute men; they had formed a plot and were there
to carry it into execution. 'They wished,' adds Sister Jeanne, 'to put
that wretch and his accomplices to a bitter death.'[528] Such was the
exploit they contemplated, and for its accomplishment they carefully
surrounded the grand-vicar's house. They filled the narrow area of the
Puits St. Pierre and the Rue des Chanoines, and had even penetrated into
M. de Bonmont's courtyard and garden, so that it was impossible for
Farel to escape. The fanatical and agitated crowd, which had been there
for some time, was beginning to grow impatient that the episcopal
council sat so long. Farel and his two friends, when they had turned
into a long gallery, could hear the raised voices of some of the members
of the council, and the increasing noise of the crowd that filled the
courtyard. But another danger threatened them.
One of the grand-vicar's servants, Francis Olard, surnamed Ginin, a
violent man, stood at the end of the gallery, having been posted there
arquebus in hand, as a sentinel. He had listened to the tumult from
within; the shouting from without excited and inflamed him. Was not this
Farel the enemy of his masters—a heretic whom everybody wished dead? His
weapon was ready: he levelled it at Farel and prepared to fire. Had the
priests stationed Olard there for this purpose, as the chronicles say,
or did he act of his own accord, being more fanatical than his masters,
as the servants of political or ecclesiastical corporations often are?
Be it as it may, the arquebusier pulled the trigger, the priming
flashed ... but the gun did not go off. Farel turning to him said coldly:
'I am not to be shaken by a popgun; your toy does not alarm
me.'—'Verily,' said his friends, 'God of His mercy turned aside
the blow, in order to preserve Farel for struggles still more
formidable.'[529]
[Sidenote: DANGER OF FAREL AND HIS FRIENDS.]
Meanwhile the council were still deliberating, and many wished Farel to
be put to death. Heresy in that age, as is but too well known, was
punished capitally; but the magistrates pointed to the danger of using
violence towards the preacher of the lords of Berne. Their opinion
prevailed, and the reformers having been brought into the room again,
the grand-vicar said: 'William Farel, leave my presence and this house,
and within six hours get you gone from the city with your two
companions, under pain of the stake. And know that if the sentence is
not more severe, you must ascribe it to our kindness and to our respect
for my lords of Berne.'—'You condemn us unheard,' said Farel. 'I demand
a certificate to show at Berne that I have done my duty.'—'You shall not
have one,' the abbot hastily replied; 'leave the room all of you,
without a word more.'[530]
The priests and people collected in front of the house, learning that
Farel was about to appear, crowded one upon another, uttering angry
cries. It would seem that the reformer heard them and stopped an
instant, knowing full well what was in reserve for him. It was in truth
a solemn moment, perhaps his last. 'The caitiff dared not come out,'
said Sister Jeanne, afterwards Abbess of Annecy, 'for he had heard the
noise made by the church people before the door, and feared they would
put him to death.' Seeing that Farel hesitated, two of the senior canons
addressed him coarsely: 'As you will not go out willingly, and in God's
name,' they said, 'go out in the name of all the devils, whose minister
and servant you are.' Thus spoke a few fanatical priests. Their God was
the church, and there was no salvation for the sinner except in the
sacrifice of the mass: in them imagination took the place of
understanding, and passion of judgment. They had no idea of the living
faith which animated the hearts of Farel and his friends, and looked
upon them as impious. Putting aside the holy authority and wise precepts
of scripture, they had no other rule than strong attachment to their
church and the excess of zeal which carried them away. Inflamed by
violent passion they did not confine themselves to abuse. The sister of
St. Claire is far from wishing to conceal their exploits: 'One of them,'
she says, 'gave him a hard kick, the other struck him heavily on the
head and face; and in great confusion they put him out with his two
companions.'[531]
[Sidenote: ATTEMPT TO STAB FAREL.]
Farel, Saunier, and Olivetan quitted the house, and thus escaped the
ill-treatment of those reverend gentlemen. But turned out of doors by
the canons, they fell from Scylla into Charybdis: they had to experience
still more culpable excesses of religious fanaticism. The priests,
chaplains, sacristans, and the furious populace assembled in the street,
hooted, hissed, groaned, and howled; some threateningly flourished their
weapons. It was like an impetuous hurricane that seemed as if it would
sweep everything before it. It was a human tempest more terrible perhaps
than that of the winds:
Venti, velut agmine facto,
Qua data porta ruunt, et terras turbine perflant;
Insequitur clamorque virum stridorque rudentum.[532]
On a sudden there was a movement in the crowd, those who were on the
outside falling back in alarm upon their comrades: there was a body of
armed men approaching. At this time up came the syndics and all the
watch with their halberds. 'Pray, sir priests,' said they, 'do nothing
rash.' The mob gave way. 'We are come to execute justice,' added the
magistrates. Upon this they took 'the caitiff,' placed him and his
companions in the midst of the guard, and all marched off in the
direction of the Tour Perce, the crowd parting right and left to make
way for the escort. The priests, fourscore in number, kept together,
forming a dark and agitated group, and so stationed themselves that the
three ministers must necessarily pass before them on their road to the
inn. They had heard that Farel and his friends were to be expelled from
the city; 'but the worthy men could not be satisfied with this,' says
Sister Jeanne. Considering that the syndics and even the episcopal
council refused to do justice to them, they were resolved to take the
matter into their own hands. Just as the three preachers were passing in
front of them, one of them rushed forward sword in hand upon Farel 'to
run him through.'[533] One of the syndics who was at the reformer's side
saw him, caught the assassin by the arm, and stopped him. This act of
the magistrate seriously grieved the devout. Laymen who prevented the
clergy from killing their adversaries were looked upon as impious. 'Many
were chagrined,' says the good nun innocently, 'because the blow
failed.' The halberdiers closed their ranks, thrust the priests and
their creatures aside, and the reformers continued on their way. The
mob, finding they could not touch the Lutherans, compensated themselves
with hooting. In every street through which they passed, men and women
cried out that they ought to be flung into the Rhone. At length the
procession reached the Tour Perce; the reformers entered, and the
syndics left a guard.
[Sidenote: FAREL'S DEPARTURE.]
They must go—of that there could be no doubt. Farel and his friends
might have been overwhelmed with sorrow, and have fainted in the midst
of their work; but their Heavenly Master had said, _When they persecute
you in this city, flee ye into another_. (Matth. x. 23.) What grieved
them was the thought of the generous men who had listened to them; these
Farel was determined not to abandon. If the tempest obliged him to
depart, he would take advantage of the first moment of calm weather to
introduce into Geneva that Gospel which many huguenots desired with all
their heart. The next day (4th October) a few citizens, friends of the
reformer, rose early, got ready a boat near the Molard, and went to the
Tour Perce to fetch the missionaries, hoping that if the latter set off
betimes they would not be observed. But the priest-party was quite as
matutinal as they were: some of them were already before the door, and
it is probable they had been there all night for fear the huguenots
should take advantage of the darkness to get the ministers away. Claude
Bernard, Ami Perrin, John Goulaz, and Peter Verne—all stanch
huguenots—came up; they gave the signal, a door was opened, and they
entered the inn. A few moments elapsed during which a number of priests
and citizens assembled in that part of the Rue du Rhone which lies
between the Tour Perce and the Molard. Presently the inn door opened
again, and the four huguenots came out with Farel and Saunier. When they
saw them the crowd became agitated. 'The devils are going,' shouted the
priests, as the two evangelists and their friends passed along. Farel,
seeing the numbers around him, wished to exhort them, 'as he walked
along;' but Perrin would not permit it, representing to him that it was
necessary to push on quickly for fear the priests should block the way.
When the reformers reached the water's edge, they got into the boat with
their defenders. The boatmen immediately began to row, and the crowd
that lined the shore could do nothing but hoot. Perrin, fearing
violence, would not land at any of the towns or hamlets of Vaud, but
steered the boat to an unfrequented place between Morges and Lausanne.
Here they all got on shore and embraced each other; after which the
huguenots returned to Geneva, and the reformers made their way to Orbe
and thence to Grandson.
[520] 'Ce sont des cagnes, ce qui veut dire (adds Froment) ce sont des
chiens.'
[521] La Sœur de Jussie, _le Levain du Calvinisme_, p. 47.
[522] Calvin, _Harmonie évangelique_, 1. p. 757.
[523] Froment, _Gestes_, p. 5. Choupard MS.
[524] Froment, _Gestes_, p. 6. Choupard MS. Choupard gives some
features that are not found in Froment.
[525] He hath spoken blasphemy; what further need have we of witnesses?
He is guilty of death.—Matth. xxvi. 65, 66.
[526] Froment, _Gestes_, p. 7. 'In Rhodanum, in Rhodanum! unum hunc
Lutherum necari præstat.'—Turretin MS. in the Berne library.
[527] 'Sputis madidatus et pugnis contritus.'—Spanheim, _Geneva
restituta_. Froment, _Gestes_, pp. 5-7. Choupard and Roset, MSS.
&c.
[528] _Le Levain du Calvinisme_, p. 17.
[529] 'Ictus tamen divina bonitate aversus, Deo servum suum certo
periculo eripiente.'—Spanheim, _Geneva restituta_, p. 43. Froment,
_Gestes de Genève_, p. 3. Roset MS. liv. iii. ch. 1.
[530] La Sœur J. de Jussie, _Le Levain du Calvinisme_ p. 48.
[531] La sœur J. de Jussie, _Le Levain_, &c., pp. 47, 48.
[532]
The raging winds rush through the hollow wound,
And dance aloft in air, and skim along the ground;
The cables crack, the sailors' fearful cries
Ascend.
DRYDEN.
[533] "Pour le transpercer au travers du corps."—La Sœur de Jussie, p.
48.