him not thus to trifle with the meeting and with his own reputation, he proceeded to mention his scriptural proofs. They were the following: the words of the Virgin herself, "All generations shall call me blessed:" the address of Elizabeth to her, "Whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?" and the exclamation of the woman, "Blessed is the womb that bare thee, and the paps that thou hast sucked." Zwingle here interposed the remark, "We called for testimonies, not to the sanctity and dignity of Mary, but to the intercession and invocation of the saints:" and Faber, finding his authorities only provoke a smile, said, "If what I say is esteemed empty and foolish, I have only to sit down in silence: which he accordingly did. A. D. 1523. Hoffman Another member of the bishop's deputation Concluding then spoke, and Zwingle answered him: addresses of after which Hoffman ventured to exhort the council manfully to support the preaching of the evangelical or reformed doctrine, since it appeared that no one present had any thing of weight to urge against it. This gave much offence to Faber.-Meyer 2 then rose and ex- and Meyer. pressed himself to the following effect: "I cannot but ardently commend your wisdom, venerable lords, in that you have thought proper, by your public edicts, to countenance the preaching of the gospel in your territories: and I praise Almighty God who has inclined your hearts so to do. I also implore of him, that he would never suffer you to draw back from your pious and holy purpose; but that he would rather confirm your minds with such CHAP. Decree of the Council. consolation, strength, and resolution, that no earthly powers, whether popes or emperors, may ever overawe you; and that, at this present time, you may come to such a conclusion as shall advance the true worship of God, and conduce to your own eternal honour. Never be moved by the consideration that, compared with many surrounding nations, you are but a feeble state; but rather reflect that God commonly chooses the weak and feeble, by whom to communicate to the world the knowledge of his truth and will, while he hides it from the wise and prudent. Fear not them, therefore, who can kill the body, but cannot hurt the soul. Neither let it disturb you, that the whole host of popes, prelates, and sophisters fiercely oppose the truth: for it is the will and purpose of God to expose the folly of the wise in this world, and to promulgate his gospel by means of those who are esteemed foolish. Hold fast then the word of God: and it shall be my part earnestly to commend your zeal to the imitation of the church at Berne." Nothing else of importance passed and the burgomaster, having renewed the invitation to all persons to speak, who had any thing to offer relating to the present inquiry, and no one presenting himself, dismissed the assembly, with the exception of the members of the council. These remained, and deliberated on the resolution to which they should come; which, having been agreed upon, was communicated to the whole company, assembled again in the afternoon for the purpose, in a decree to the following effect: " That, whereas it had been arranged a year ago with the representatives of the bishop 1 Fo. 618 (b). of Constance, that he should convene the clergy of his diocese to consider of some settlement of the controversies which had arisen on the subject of religion, and to point out the course which might be most safely adopted, but nothing had yet been done in that behalf-while in the mean time the controversies only increased; this being the case, the burgomaster, council, and people of Zuric had determined to hold the present meeting, which was attended by the deputies of the bishop, and the clergy of this and the neighbouring districts, for the purpose of hearing what those had to allege, who mutually charged each other with error and heresy : That since no one had come forward to substantiate any accusation against their preacher and antistes, Ulric Zwingle-though numbers had previously reproached him as a heretic, and though he had submitted his doctrine to examination in propositions or articles duly published, and had challenged any one to convict him of error-therefore the said burgomaster, council, and people of Zuric decreed and confirmed, that the said Ulric Zwingle should go on to declare and preach the holy doctrine of the gospel, and the oracles of the word of God, as he had heretofore done; and that all persons should abstain from criminating one another as heretics and offenders, on pain of such penalties as should shew the sense which the government of the country entertained of their misconduct. Dated at Zuric, 29 January, 1523." A. D. 1523. the Decree. On hearing the decree Zwingle rose, and in Zwingle on an act of devotion said, "We give thanks to thee, O Lord, who willest that thy most holy word should reign alike in heaven and in earth." CHAP. XVI. Faber, and Zwingle, on a judge of contro versies. Then, addressing himself to the council: "And on you, venerable lords, the same Lord of all will bestow that strength and determination of mind, which will be necessary for supporting and advancing the doctrines of the divine word throughout your territories: and doubt not that the Lord God will abundantly reward this your present act. Amen." Faber made no direct remark on the decree: but he pledged himself to prove to the most learned universities, that many things had passed that day contrary to the ancient and approved rules of the church, the constitutions and decrees of the holy pontiffs and fathers, and the practice of the whole Christian world: and having, he said, since the meeting in the forenoon, read, for the first time, the Articles of Zwingle, he engaged to demonstrate the same things concerning them. Zwingle welcomed the pledge, as "what he had been longing to hear given.' A public conversation of some length then followed between Faber and Zwingle, in which the former, now when the business was terminated, began to quote scripture in proof of his tenets; and, speaking on the favourite doctrine of the Romish church, the necessity of a judge authoritatively to decide in matters of controversy, he addressed to Zwingle the question, intended no doubt to be embarrassing, considering in what place, and in whose presence it was put, "Would he agree to refer the points in dispute to the council of Zuric as judges?" Zwingle, who was not to be taken by surprise, replied, "In external things, the affairs of this world, I readily admit the necessity of a judge, whose decision shall be final, and there is none that I would prefer to the lords of Zuric: but, in questions which concern the wisdom and truth of God, I can admit none to decide but the word of God himself, and the Spirit speaking by that word." He evidently implied, that each man, having the testimonies of God's word brought before him, must follow the convictions of his own conscience as to the result of those testimonies and no further decision than this was allowed in the present, or in any of the discussions that followed.-A parish priest here asked, "What was to be done by a clergyman, whose benefice was so small as not to admit of his purchasing a New Testament?"—avowing that this was his own case. Such a question, so proposed, must be understood to imply, what was the undoubted fact, that many of the clergy were destitute of the scriptures even of the New Testament. At the close, Faber shocked the meeting, and incurred the marked rebuke of Zwingle, by asking, with indecent levity, "How it could be proved from the scriptures alone, that a man might not marry his own daughter?" and observing that, "had the scriptures never been given, we yet might have lived together on peaceable and friendly terms!" 2 A. D. 1523. The adherents of Rome, I presume, would Justificapretend, that this whole affair of the disputation tion of Zwingle. was nothing more than an artful contrivance of Zwingle's to draw attention and give popularity to his cause, and, perhaps it will be added, to entrap and insult the representatives of his diocesan. But that it should have this result 1 Zwingle very properly replied, that, marriage in more remote degrees of consanguinity being prohibited, much more was it in the very first degree. 2 Acta, ubi supra. J. H. Hott. vii. 628-632. Ru. i. 157-173. Gerd. i. 278–280. Du Pin, vi. 84–87. |