T DENSES. HE Waldenses, the Israel of the Alps,the Protestants before the reformation, this is an exceedingly interesting history to every Protestant. They are the connecting link between the early Christian Church of the New Testament and modern Protestantism, doctrinally, if not historically, as was believed some years ago. They were Reformed before the Reformation. Reformed because they tried to reform the Catholic Church of its abuses. And they formally united with the Reformed in the reformation through the efforts of William Farel the reformer. We can join with them in their song: For the strength of the hills we bless thee, our God, our Father's God. Thou hast made thy children mighty, by the touch of the mountains sod; Thou hast fixed our ark of refuge, where the spoilers feet ne'er trod; For the strength of the hills we bless thee, our God, our Father's God. 311 For the stern defiles of battle, bearing record of our dead; For the shadow of thy presence round our camp of rock outspread, For the snows and for the torrents, for the free heart's burial sod; For the strength of the hills we bless thee, our God, our Father's God. We are watchers of the beacon, whose light must never die; We are guardians of an altar, midst the silence of the sky. The rocks yield founts of courage, struck forth as by the rod, For the strength of the hills, we bless thee, our God, our Father's God. -Hemans. The Waldensians were the followers of Peter Waldo, a wealthy merchant of Lyons, France, about 1150 A. D. Suddenly, when one of his friends fell dead at his side, he was stricken by the thought, "What would have become of me, if death had stricken me that moment." On another occasion he heard a ballad singer, surrounded by a crowd in a public square, reciting the story of St. Alexis, who left his wealth and his bride and took the vow of poverty. Deeply impressed he took the singer to his own home. During the night his soul was troubled. The next morning he went to a learned theologian for advice. This theologian had as many roads to heaven as Waldo had to the different markets. He spoke very learnedly, so much so that Waldo, who longed for the simple Gospel, finally cut matters short by asking, "Of all the roads that lead to heaven, which is the surest. I desire the perfect way." "Ah!" the theologian replied, "here is the precept of Christ, If thou wilt be perfect, sell all that thou hast and give to the poor and thou shalt have treasure in heaven and come, take up thy cross and follow me." This answer settled his mind. He would give up all his property to the poor. His friends thought him mad, but he did it. Then seeing that there were so many, who, like himself, were longing for the simple Gospel, he began reading the Bible to the people. Unable to understand Latin in which the Bible was then printed, his heart was greatly fed by a translation into his own tongue (the French) which was so comforting to him that he began reading it to others. He found it was very gladly received and so he trained others to read the Bible to the people. |