LIFE PHILIP MELANCTHON. MiEiLAsrc^rMD j:*r 7)-: 5^> "fiuJ^yoffO. (iTSy/a/: ej THE LIFE OF PHILIP MELANCTHON, COMPRISING AN ACCOUNT OF THE MOST IMPORTANT TRANSACTIONS OP THE REFORMATION. BY F. A. COX, A. M. OF HACKNEY. — In Necestaiiis Ukitas — in Dubiis Libehtas— in Omnibus Caritas. r^^^^r^^*'*^*^*^ LONDON : printed for gale, curtis and fenner, paternoster row; and oliphant, waugh and innes, edinburgh. ]81o. Printed by Stower ^ S»ialljield, Hackney. BR To OLINTHUS GREGORY, LL. D. Of the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, THIS LIFE OF MELANCTHON IS J.VSCRIBED AS A MEMORIAL OF THAT MUTUAL ESTEEM AND AFFECTIONATE FRIENDSHIP AVHICH HAVE LONG SUBSISTED BETWEEN ONE OF THE MOST USEFUL WRITERS OF THE AGE, BOTH IN f?CIENTIFIC AND THEOLOGICAL DEPARTMENTS, AND HIS HIGHLY OBLIGED AND DEVOTED FRIEND, FRANCIS AUGUSTUS COX. 4( PREFACE. Nothing is more gratifying than to invite others to participate our honourable plea- sures, especially those of a mental and moral description. The lives of great and good men if related with impartiality cannot fail of being at once entertaining and in- structive. Invited to watch their progress and observe their character, we may learn the most valuable lessons. We are allowed to detect, in order to shun, their errors; to trace, in order to imitate, their virtues ; — to follow them into their retirements ; — to viii TREFACE. become their associates and friends. From the forum of public debate and of unremitted exertion, we accompany them to the fire- side, and the closet. Divested of the insignia of office, the pomp of authority and the glory of popular applause, we see them in the undress of friendship and private life. We sit with them in the domestic circle, and hear them converse and see them act at home. Human nature is developed ;~Ave gain comprehensive views of men and things. Such a scene must be improving to every well-ordered mind, and if the bio- grapher fail of exciting interest, it can only be in consequence of having performed his task badly, from the defect of necessary documents, or from having chosen an insig- nificant character. PREFACE. ix The execution of this work I submit to the judgment of the public, not doubting that I shall meet with a due degree of justice and candour. The requisite materials I have found by no means scanty, and whenever they were important or difficult to obtain I have spared no pains to procure them. My object has been to render Melancthon more fully known, that his character may be more completely understood and more justty appreciated. For these purposes Sec ken- k>> DORF, DUPIN, MOSHEIM, CaMERARIUS, \ ^ Melchior Adam, Bayle, Brucker, and j / a variety of other writers have been care- ' fully consulted, so that whatever informa- tion is communicated respecting persons or things may be deemed authentic. X PREFACE. Every reader must be aware that it is not an obscure or insignificant character Avhich claims his attention in the following pages. As the intimate friend and distin- guished coadjutor of Martin Luther, his name is already familiar and must be dear to every enlightened Protestant; for who can be uninterested in the lives of those illustrious heroes who first led on to the great conflict, in which the liberties of man- kind, the rights of conscience, the inde- pendence of nations were contested, and by whose struggles they were secured ? In detailing the hfe of the celebrated Melancthon, I am deeply conscious of one disadvantage. Thoroughly to understand a character and to render the narrative of his life complete, who does not perceive the PREFACE. 2d importance of personal knowledge ? It is true, indeed, tlie colouring may be a little too high and glowing, yet the picture is almost sure to be truer to nature Avhen the artist has drawn from Ufe. It is likely to possess a certain character and expression which a mere copy will seldom exhibit. The tout ensemble will be far better pre- served. But in tlie present case, the picture cannot be taken from life ; the great original cannot sit to the artist ! Though necessitated however to be in some degree a cop^ast, this misfortune is in part remedied by the well-drawn portrait of a very intimate friend and a learned man. I refer to the Latin ^ life of Melancthon, by Joachim Camera- rius. I have long cherished a reverence Xii PREFACE. mingled with afTection for the interesting subject of these Memoirs. I have been accustomed to trace his exertions as a scholar and a Reformer with admiration. In both respects it must be admitted he was a light in a dark place; and though it is the province of an impartial biographer in furnishing a detailed view of his life and labom's in connexion with other eminent men of his remarkable age, to notice errors of judgment and imbecilities of mind which are indeed incident to every human character, the reader will be presented with the view of as much excellence, associated with as little defect is to be expected in the present world. No one surely can mistake the purpose of this volume so much as to suppose that PREFACE. xiii the author pledges himself to believe the creed or to vindicate all the opinions of its illustrious subject; it is sufficient for him to have rescued from the concealment of a dead lanffuasre the rich materials which he has incorporated into the following pages, and to raise from the long interment of three Centuries, the character and the glory of one of the brightest ornaments of religion and literature. Hackney, Feb, 27? 1815. CONTENTS. CHAP. I. A. D. 1497 to A. D. 1518. THE Reformation — Luther — Birth of Me- lancthon — His education-— Early proficiency — Re- sidence at Pforzheim, Heidelberg and Tubingen- Takes his degree — Obtains an early and remarkable celebrity — Honoured by Erasmus a?id Bp. Latimer — Edits Nauclerus — Renders assistance to Capnio in his contention with the monks — His public lectures and literary zeal — His removal to a Greek Professorship in the Unitiersity of Wittembcrg — Commencement of his friendship with Luther CHAP. II. A. D. 1518. General Observations— -Sketch of the Life and Doctrines of Aristotle-^Progress of the Peripatetic Xvi. CONTENTS. Philosophy — Its intermixture with the Scholastic Tlieology — Its revival and puriJicatio?i by MelanC' thon — His early labours at Wittemherg, and his increasing influence throughout Germany— Extracts from his Oration " De Corrigendis Adolescentics Studiis 40 CHAP. III. A. D. 1518 to A. D. 1520. The State of Religion — Relics — Indulgences — Tetzel — Progress of the Controversy icith the Court of Rome — Melancthons Narrative of Luther — Public Disputation at Leipsic — Its Effects — Paper war bcticeen Melancthon and Eckius — Concise but satisfactory Pamphlet and admirable Spirit of the former CHAP. IV. A. D. 1520. Melancthon's marriage — His domestic charac- ter — His exemplary virtues — His boundless liberal- ity — Account of his favourite servant John — Epitaph on his tombstone — Candour of Melancthon — His Meekness — Sytnpathy — Interesting Letter written to a friend, who had sustained a painful family bereavement — His Piety — Sincerity — Wit — Memo- 11 — Temperance — Modesty — Humility — Parental eonduct-^His value for T'me^Marriage and Set- CONTENTS. XVll tlement of his two Daughters — Character of his SonS'in-La^o George Sahinus and Caspar Peucer — Notice of Thurzo, Bishop of Breslaw 12G CHAP. V. A. D. 1520, 1521. The Pope's Bull against Luther — His retalia- tion — Diet at Worms — Luther's seizure and im- prisonment at the Castle of Wartenherg — Feelings of Melancthon — Condemnation of Luther by the Sorbonne — Melancthon' s Satirical Rejoinder — His publication under the feigned name of Thomas Placentinus or Rhadin — His declamation on the Study of Paul — Extracts from his Loci CommuneSy or Theological Common Places — Transactions rela- tive to the Abolition of Private Masses 162 CHAP. VI. A. D. 1522. to A. D. 1525. The Anabaptists — Disturbances of Carlostadt — Luther's return to Wittemberg — Account of his German version of the Scriptures, with the assist- ance of Melancthon and others — Luther's conference ivith Stubner — His letter of Apology for stealing b Xviii CONTENTS. Melancthois MS. Copy of his Commentary on the Romans— Extracts from that Commentary — Pro- gress of the Reformation — Rise of the Sacramental Controversy — Death of Muncer — Melajicthons ex- cursion in Germany — Death of Mosellanus — His Epitaph — Melancthons introduction to the Land- grave of Hesse — Death of Nesenus — His Epitaph — Death of Frederic the Wise — Translated extracts from Melancthon's Funeral Oration — His Epitaph • — Luther's Marriage — Controversy icith Erasmus — Melancthon's visits to Nuremberg to found an Aca- demy — Translated extracts of his Oration at the opening of the Institution — Publications 213 CHAR VII. A. D. 1^26 to A. D. 1529. John succeeds his brother Frederic in the Elec- torate — Changes — Diet of Spires — Melancthon's Memorial — The Landgrave of Hesse promotes the Reformation in his dominions — Mela?icthon's " Li- bellus Visitatorius" — Commissioners appointed to inspect the Reformed Churches — Second Diet of Spires — Anecdote of the Landgrave of Hesse — Re- markable Story of Grynccus — Melancthons visit to his Mother — Continuance of the Sacramental Con- troversy—Conference at Marpurg — Melancthon's Commentary on the Epistle to the Colossians 278 CONTENTS. XIX CHAP. VIIL A. D. 1530. Brief Notice of General J fairs — Appoint- ment of the Diet of Augsburg — Translation of the Augsburg Confession — Popish Confutation — Subsequent proceedings — Melancthons Apology — Decree of the Diet — Deliberation of the Re^ formers — Striking Anecdote of Melancthon 303 CHAP. IX. A. D. 1531 to A. D. l036. Smalcald — Unfavourable circumstances an- nounced — The Emperor retracts at Ratisbon and agrees to the suspension of all legal processes against the Protestants — Death of the Elector John-^ Melancthons Funeral Oration — His Epitaph — Succeeded by John Frederic — The Emperor urges on the Pope a general Council — Continuance of the Sacramental Controversy — Melancthon and Bucer confer with the Landgrave — A vain attempt at Leipsic to restore union between contending parties — Francis I. urges Melancthon to REPAIR to France — Their Correspondence — Entreaties of the Langcean family to the same purpose — Bellay goes into Germany and invites XX CONTENTS. Melancthon into France — The Elector interposes to prevent the Journey — Henry VIII. invites Melancthon into England — Their Corres- pondence—The Kins; of England's eagerness in dispatching Messengers to France to prevent Me- I ancthon's continuance there if he were arrived, or otherwise to dissuade him from going — Curious original documerds on the subject — A larger Com- mission sent into Germany — M^lancthoris Com- munication with Archbishop Cranmer — State of his health — Takes a Journey — Injurious reports circulated — Writes agai.ist the Anabaptists — Con- ferences with Bucer and Capita 359 CHAP. X. A. D. 1637 to A. D. Iv545. A General Council proposed — Meeting at Smalcald — Melancthon ivrites on the Papers Su- premacy, and against the manner of appointing the Council — Communications loith Francis I. — Passage jyom the Recess of Smalcald — Melancthon is solicited to visit Augsbtirg respecting the insti- tution of a Public Library — Letter of Cardinal Sadolet — A second Commission from Henry FIIL — Persons sent into England — Melancthon^ s letter to the king — Second Letter against the Anabaptists — Another Deputation from Frankfort — Melancthon s CONTKNtS. XXi third and fourth Letters to the king — Death of George of Saxony-^Progress of the Reformation -^Diet held at Hagueyiaic — Meutncthorb s danger- ous illness on the icaij — Interesting account of Luther's visit to him — Another Diet at Worms — Referred to Ratisbon — Melancthon meets with an Accident on the Road — Conference between Select Persons — Atisrsburo- Decree confirmed — Several Anecdotes of Melancthon — Contentions about the Election of a Bishop at Naumburg—^ -^Account of Melancthon and Bucers co-operation with the Archbishop of Cologne, to introduce the Reformation into his Diocese — Acrimonious Pub- lication of some of the Clergy — Melancthon s sa- tirical Reply — Private AJiictions—Draws up a Plan of Reform for the Elector Palatine — Engages in the Ordination of George Prince of Anhalt — Sketch of his life — Epigram by Melancthon 398 CHAP. XI. A. D. 1546 to A. D. 1550. Persecuting measures — Death of Luther — Melancthon's FuniERAL. Oration for him — Tri- butary lines— Remarks on the friendship of Luther and Melancthon-^Position of public affairs — The Emperor and the Protestants at open icar — Perfidy ' of Maurice- — Captivity of John Frederic and im- XXll CONTENTS. prisonment of the Landgrave — Diet at Augsburg -—The Interim — Meetings of the Wittemherg and Leipsic divines^Melancthon' s puhlicatio?i on - indifferent things — Extracts from his reply to the Interim — Curious preface to an English translation of it — The virulent opposition of Flaccus Illyricus to Melancthon — Reply of the latter 449 CHAP. XII- A. D. 1550, TO A. D. \557. y/Articles prepared for the Council of Trent — Melancthon commeiices his journey thither — but re- turns in consequj^nce of Maurice changing his conduct, and declaring war against the Emperor — Peace of Passau — Plague — Withdraivment of the University of Wittemberg to Torgau — Osiander — Stancarus — Private afflictions — Meeting at Naum- burg respecting the reneival of the ancient Friend- ship subsisting between the Houses of Saxony , Bran- denburg and Hesse — Transactions relative to Ser- vetus — John Frederic's Release and Death — Death of Maurice — Controversies — Persecutions of Flacius and his Adherents — Melancthon's letters on the subject — Death of Jonas 507 CHAP. XIII. A. D. 1557 to A. D. 156G. i \/Last conference of Melancthon icith the Pa- pists at Worms— Visit to Heidelberg— Receives CONTENTS. XXlli intelligence of his wife s death — Her epitaph — The Chronicon and other writings — Loss of friends — Melancthons infirmities — Interesting paper as- sigjiing reasons why it is desirable to leave the loorld — A variety of particulars respecting his last ILLNESS AND DEATH — Epitaph by Sabinus — Another by Camerarius^-Ode~^Conclusion 584 f/r(. //////• /-/ iw/ ///////.' '/■/y'^'//// My/y // 'T)e>irno>'H^ f vAf-yf ••^/Vor >V ^ ' // I I / » ». f I 'hro "" ^o^'ri^ eih>^ r 1 >JJ ttWH IVJX S^^k- lJ«»vTl" »^«^ roA'Ae^fvv". ^ ht^^c9^l^^^<^ <-<^^^ Af-rxiss . >fj^ f^ M § LIFE OF PHILIP MELANCTHON, CHAP. I. A. D. 1497 to A. D. 1518. The Reformation — Luther — Birth of Melancthoii — His education — Early proficiency — Residence at Pforzheim, Heidelberg and Tubingen — Takes his degree — Obtains an early and remarkable celebrity — Honored by Eras~ onus and Bp. Latimer — Edits Nauclerus—Rffnders as- sistance to Capnio in his contention with the monks — His public lectures and literary zeal — His removal ■to a Greek Professorship in the University of IVittem- berg — Commencement of his friendship with Luther. The commencement of the sixteenth cen- tury may be justly regarded as one of the best and brightest periods in the annals of time. It was distinguished by the release of Christianity from those fetters of darkness in which she had been bound for ages, and her triumphant asser- tion of that glorious liberty in which she now walks abroad through the earth. This great event cannot be too highly appre- ciated, especially as we are daily participating 2 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. the blessings which result from it. But un- fortunately, the admiration of mankind is more commonly bestowed upon the splendid atchieve- ments of the Military than the Christian hero. We overlook the miseries he inflicts, and the wide spreading desolation that marks his course. But were it even possible to separate these images of horror from the consideration of his successes, surely it must be admitted that the bloodless victories of truth are nobler in them- selves, and, accomplished by the exertion of mental and moral energies, incalculably more important. On this principle the Reformation from Popery merits particular attention. Whether we consider, on the one hand, the violent and deep-rooted prejudices which were at that period universally prevalent, artfully cherished, and powerfully defended, the great and imme- diate danger resulting from the slightest attempt at religious innovation, and the deplorable errors which reigned by long usurpation and prescrip- tive authority over the minds of men ; — ^or, on the other, the seemingly accidental causes from which the Reformation originated, the incon- siderable source from which it flowed, the slow but irresistible progress it made, and the bene- ficial revolution it effected in the sentiments of mankind, it is impossible not to perceive reasons for astonishment and joy. No one ought to be accused of credulity for calling it a miracle ; a LIFE OF MELANCTHON. moral miracle it undoubtedly was. The miracles which accompanied the first propagation of Chris- tianity and secured its establishment were, it is true, a more direct appeal to the senses, but the same mighty power that established religion in the earth, evidently interposed in this case to rescue it from perishing. Amongst the instruments of this remarkable change the name of Martin Luther stands pre- eminent. He was not indeed the first or the only advocate of this righteous cause, but he was in many respects the greatest. Others had inveighed against Popery, exposed the errors of that pernicious system with ingenuity and bold- ness, and even bled for the sacred cause of God and truth. Waldus, WicklifFe, Huss and Je- rome of Prague, (^a^ are imperishable names ,• but in vain did they struggle against the torrent of corruption that deluged the earth. They could oppose, in their respective times and stations, but a momentary resistance, and were swept away. Their efforts indeed produced some effects, but they were evanescent, for " darkness covered the earth, and gross darkness the people.*Y6^ But when Luther appeared a variety of circum- stances co-operated to produce a result which human skill could neither foresee nor prevent. An attentive observer cannot fail to notice the (a) Vid. Appendix I. fbj Isa. Ix. 2. b2 / 4 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. very gradual manner in which truth was dis- covered to his own mind, by which means he became fitted to act the part he did, wlien it is probable a more full and sudden manifestation would have disqualified him for the early part of his career as a reformer. For a long time his imperfect knowledge of the great principles of Christianity and the rights of conscience operated as a check upon the impetuous ardor of his spirit, which, though afterwards essentially be- neficial to the cause, would probably have im- peded, if not have wholly prevented the great work of Reformation, had it been at first unre- strained by lingering prejudices and superstitions. The schisms which had divided the church about the end of the fourteenth and at the com- mencement of the fifteenth centuries materially diminished the popular veneration for the papal dignity. The proceedings of some of the coun- cils in deposing and electing popes at their plea sure produced a similar effect. Above all the scandalous profligacy and venality of the court of Rome, the voluptuous lives of the ecclesias- tics, their intolerable exactions and the facility which the sale of indulgences afforded to the vilest offenders to obtain a ready pardon, pre- pared the minds of the people in general for those doctrines which the Reformers afterwards promulgated. Luther possessed a vigorous and fearless mind. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 5 He was qualified to take the lead and to head opposition in a servile age. His mind was in- cessantly active ; his ardor in the pursuit of knowledge and in the propagation of what he knew, was inextinguishable. He did not " fight as one that beateth the air'Y^^ in the holy war he undertook. Having buckled on the armour he was impatient for the conflict, and rushed forward to an anticipated victory. He was onc^'^ of the greatest of Christian heroes, and his faults were those of a first rate character. Never scarcely did the hand of God form a fitter instru- ment to do a greater work ! It was, however, happy for Luther that he did not stand alone, but was provided with an associate in his principal labours adapted in a remarkable degree to supply his deficiencies, to correct his errors, and to regulate his impetuosity of character. Independently of the interest which must necessarily be felt in any one who was the intimate friend and coadjutor of Luther, who was with him in all his struggles and helped him through them, Melancthon claims a dis- tinguished notice on his own account. In trac- ing the history of his life it will be obvious that although inferior in courage he equalled Luther in ardent piety, and excelled him both in per- sonal virtues and in literary attainments (c) 1 Cor. ix. 26. 6 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. P H T L I p M E L A N e T H o N was borii i n Saxony, at the small but pleasant town of Bretten, in the lower Palatinate of the Rhine, on the six- teenth day of February, in the year one thou- sand four hundred and ninety-seven. The following inscription in his father's house records the event: Dei Pietate natus est in HAC DOMO DOCTISSIMUS Dn. Philippus Melancthon, D. XVI. Febr. a. m. cccc. xcvii. The house which belonged to his parents, con- taining this inscription and his picture, remained standing in the market place till modern times. During the thirty years war many of the literati and inhabitants of Heidelberg took refuge within the walls of Bretten, but in 1632 it was taken by the Imperialists. In the year 1784 it con- tained, exclusive of the public buildings, two hundred and sixty-two dwelling houses, and up- wards of two thousand inhabitants; but in 1789 it was taken, plundered, and almost exterminated by the French ; and what their desolating rapa- city spared, was at length destroyed under the orders of the Imperial General Ogilvi, by which act of indiscretion, however, he lost the favour of his master. The mother of Melancthon was the daughter of John Renter, a very respectable man, and for LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 7 inany years mayor of the town. Her name was Barbara, and she is represented as a truly esti- mable woman. His father, George Schwartzerd, (for this was the German family name,) was a native of Heidelberg, but settled at Bretten in consequence of his marriage. He filled the office of Engineer or Commissary of the Artil- lery, under the Palatinate princes Philip and Rupert. Distinguished not only by integrity, prudence, fidelity, and many other virtues, but by his remarkable ingenuity in the invention of all kinds of instruments, adapted either for the purposes of war, or for the fashionable tourna- ments of the age, he attracted the attention of Maximilian, son of the Emperor Frederic, and became well known to many of the most power- ful princes. f(/^ He died in the year 1508, in consequence of having swallowed some w^ater from a poisoned well about four years before, when engaged in the service of his country. He is described not only as a man of the strictest morals and of undissembled piety, but so grave in his manners, as scarcely to admit even of a joke in the ordinary intercourse of life. His wife continued in a state of widowhood twelve years, when, upon the marriage of her son Philip, which gave her some offence, she again entered into the conjugal state, with a respectable citizen of Bretten.feJ (dj Vid. Appendix II. (e) Cam. Vit. Mel. ./ 8 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. The early studies of Melancthon were chiefly committed to the mana2:eraent of his maternal grandfather Renter. This is to be attributed to the numerous and public nature of his father's engagements. The choice could not have been better made, for his grandfather was unquestion- ably well qualified for such an important super- intendence, and, at the same time, affectionately solicitous about his youthful charge. It must be understood, that he acted in concert with his mother, and by her advice. Melancthon was at first placed with his younger brother George, at a public school in his native town ; but, in consequence of a loath- some disease, at that time prevalent in Ger- many, having found its way into the school, he was soon removed, and put under private tuition. Although native genius may have frequently surmounted the greatest disadvantages, it has in too many instances, been injured by an impro- per or defective education. Like the body that has been cramped in its growth, but which, not- withstanding, evinces its original strength of constitution by the very deformities into which it shoots, so the vigorous mind, checked or misguided at an early period of life, is prone to neglect the useful and pursue the trifling, to cherish unseemly prejudices and to take an erroneous course. Melancthon remarked of Lu- LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 9 ther, that, " If he had been fortunate enough to have met with suitable teachers, his great capa- city would have enabled him to go through all the sciences. Nor is it improbable that the milder studies of a sound philosophy, and a care- ful habit of elaborate composition, might have been useful in moderating the vehemence of his natural temper. '^i^^' Considering the age in which he lived, and the state of depression which literature in general suffered, Melancthon seems to have fallen into very good hands ; and though his natural capa- city was the basis of all his future eminence, much is doubtless to be attributed to the guides of his early studies. His preceptor in the Latin language was John Hungarus ; a man of great merit, and, at a very advanced period of life, a faithful preacher of the pure word of God at Pforzheim./'g'y' He was charmed with the rapid proficiency of his pupil, who, like other youths of superior talent, was fond of shewing his dex- terity by discussing with boys much older than himself the rules of grammar, or the elements of language which they had been taught. In these little contests he was usually victorious ; but whilst he never failed to impress others with a ffj M. LuTH. Op. Praef. Tom. II. fgj Cam. Vit. Mel. y *0 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. sense of his superiority, his excellent spirit and temper compelled them to mingle esteem with their admiration. At this time he had a stam- mering, or rather, perhaps, A hesitating mode of pronunciation, which, though never very un- pleasant, and probably the effect of modest timidity, and not of any natural impediment in the organs of speech, was so effectually cured by time and care, that afterwards it became scarcely, if at all, perceptible, fhj The Academy at Pforzheim, under the imme- diate superintendence of George Simlerus, was highly celebrated. Simlerus was distinguished by his classical learning. He afterwards became a lawyer of considerable eminence, and a lec- turer on jurisprudence at Tubingen. At Pforz- / heim, Melancthon was introduced to the study of the Greek language, which he prosecuted with great diligence and proportionate success. His brother George and his uncle John were his school-fellows, and they all lodged together at the house of a relation, who was sister to John Reuchlin. This elegant scholar, known / to the learned by the name of Capnio, was a native of Pforzheim, and successively a teacher of languages at Basil and at Orleans. His mind, naturally vigorous and industriously cultivated, became a storehouse of various erudition. He fhJ Cam. Vit. Mel. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 11 was the restorer of letters in Germany, and the author of several treatises on philosophy. /^z^ Reuchlin, or Capnio, took particular notice of the three lads who were inmates at his sister*s and frequently questioned them about their pursuits at school. The genius of Philip could not remain long undetected by so diligent an inquirer and so zealous a friend to literature. His prompt and accurate replies, indicating the rare combination of a studious habit with an extraordinary talent, instantly won his affections, (i) It scarcely deserves the name of philosophy ; perhaps it should rather be called mysticism, compounded as it was of the Platonic, Pythagorean and Cabbalistic doctrines. He wrote treatises entitled, " De Verbo Mirifico,'' and " De Arte Cabbalistica. " Some have supposed him to have been the principal author of " Epistolae Obscurorum Virorum;" a work replete with the most pungent satire against the persecutors of Reuchlin, in the controversy about the restoration of Greek and Hebrew learning. Othei-s have believed the ingenious Ulrich de Hutten, of Franconia, to have been the original writer, but that Reuchlin rendered him essential assistance in the work. In fact, it was the joint production of several literary men, of whom these two were the principal. Hutten was pro- bably the principal writer, Erasmus allows this performance to be witty, but severely condemns it as anonymous and defamatory, and Leo consigned it to the flames J " But after all," says Jortin, " these Epistles of tht Obscure may be considered as a piece of harmless mirth, levelled against men who were not only egregious boobies, but, which was infinitely worse, shameless calumniators and blood- thirsty persecutors." Jortin's Life of Erasmus, Vol. I. p. 93. 4to. Ig LIFE OF MELANCTHON. and led him, in some degree, to prognosticate his future proficiency. To testify his regard and to encourage him in the prosecution of his literary studies, Capnio presented Philip with several books ; amongst the rest, an enlarged Greek Grammar and a Greek and Latin Lexi- con. This was a powerful stimulus to his ardent mind, and, dissatisfied with the mere perform- ance of his ordinary exercises, he began to in- dulge his genius in poetical composition. Although he possessed sufficient inclination, yet he could not command leisure at any sub- sequent period of his life to devote himself much to this fascinating art ; but he wrote several epigrams, epitaphs, prologues, and, occa- sionally, poetical epistles to his friends ; and some very excellent judges, to whom may be added even the fastidious Julius Cassar Scaliger, have commended his verses, (kj Probably the fkj " Ne Melancthon quidem abhorruit ab ea laude quse ex poeticis artibus comparatur. Tametsi nonnulli ejus populares insanis quibusdam praeceptionibuse Christiana republica poetas exigendos exclamarunt ; quorum barbarissimam amentiam noa verbis, neque euim nugis aut clamoribus vinci queunt; sed contrariis affectionibus doctissimus quisque damnavit. Illius igitur ingenium magnum atque ad omnia comparatum intelli- gemus ex iis poematiis quibus solis lunaeque defectiones cecinit. Nam et tempora vari^ describit eadem versibus luculentis; et eodem nitore prsesagia statuit, cujus vestigia sequuti sunt non ignobili ingenio Germani aliquot Stigelius, ^milius, Acon- tius, Volfius, Camerarius. Idem Philippus in epigrammate LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 13 efforts of his premature age to which we have adverted, resembled the frequent productions of the same period, by youths of ability at school. He wrote also at the early age of tjiirieeri, a ^ humourous piece in the form of a comedy, which he dedicated to Capnio, to testify the sense he entertained of his truly parental kind- ness, and engaged his school-fellows to perform it in his presence. It was upon this occasion his patron and friend gave him the name of r/ y% Melancthony a Greek term of similar significa- tion with the German word Schicarlzerd.fi J This method of substituting sonorous Greek ap- pellations for their proper names, was at that period a very common practice amongst the learned. Thus Reuchlin from the German word Reuch, smoak^ was changed by Hermolaus Barbarus into Capnio, a term of similar import. Melancthon appears to have cherished a high regard for his early preceptors, and to have re- tained it through life. His amiable spirit never undervalued the merit of others, or forgot their jucundus atque festivus. Nam aliorum ingenia Germanorum raro quicquam scribunt, quin jocoium aliquid agant : quo fit lit risus e vulgo non admiratio a sapientibus sequatur. Quae tamea verterunt Graeca (iis enim gens ilia dedita est imprimis) non invita Minerva faciunt." Scalig. Foet. Lib. VI. p. 798. {I J The word Melancthon is compounded of M'bXols, black, and %Swv, earth. In German, Schwartz se.un signifies to be i!»ck, and die erde, the earth. 14 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. claims upon his gratitude. In one of his wri- tings, referring either to Hungarus or Simlerus, he says, " My preceptor was an excellent gram- marian, who took pains to make me understand the construction of every sentence, giving me thirty or forty verses at a time to construe. He would not allow me to slur any thing over, avid as often as I blundered, he would correct me, but with a proper degree of moderation. Thus 1 learnt the grammatical part of language. He was one of the best of men. He loved me as a son, and I him as a father ; and we shall soon meet, I trust, in eternal life ! Yes — I was truly attached to him, although he were somewhat severe; yet severity I cannot call it, but rather fatherly correction to stimulate me to dili- gence.'Ymy) After a residence of nearly two years at Pforz- heim, Melancthon was sent by his mother and fmj Melancth. Op. Tom, III. On another occasion he writes thus : "Audivi enim adolescens duos viros praeclaie eru- dites, Georgium SimleretCunradum Helvetium, alumnos Aca. demise Coloniensis, quorum alter Latinos etGrsecos poetasmihi primura interpretatus est, deduxit etiam ad philosophiampuri- orem, saepe conferens Aristotelicam lectionem quae tunc erat in manibus ad Greecos fontes ; alter Cunradus doctissimi et honestissimi viri doctoris Cssarii auditor primum nobis Hey- delburgae elementa doctrinae de motibus Ccelestibus tradidit: quam ob causam et doctori Ccesario peculiarem gratiam et venerationem tanquani prceceptori, debere me profiteer.'' Mel. Declam, Tom I. Responsio ad Scrip, quorund. delect, a Clero Secund. Colon, Agripp. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. IS the relation who superintended his education, to the University of Heidelberg ; formerly the me- tropolis, now the second town, of the lower Palatinate, and the birth-place of his father. He was matriculated on the thirteenth of Octo- ber, in the year 1509, the twelfth of his age.fnj The University was highly celebrated for its various professors in the different branches of learning, who were soon attracted not only by the extraordinary progress and amiable disposi- tion of their young pupil, but by his zealous efforts to. excite his fellow students to the more diligent cultivation of polite literature. Con- scious of his own mental superiority, he felt no envious apprehension of their outstripping him ; or, if they had, his future character renders it evident, that he would have been the first to rejoice in their success. It was impossible that the union of so much application with so much talent should fail of producing great results. He was accordingly soon looked up to as a first- rate youth, and though but a lad was em- ployed to compose most of the public harangues and discourses of eloquence that were delivered in the University, and wrote some things even for the professors themselves. (^o^ He was also fnj Mel, Adam, vitae Germ. Theologorum. Cam. vit. Mel. foj Baillet, des Enfans deven. celeb, par leurs Etudes ou par leurs Ecrits, Traits Historique, p. 130. Mel. Adam. Vitae Philos. p. 186, "Scnpsit jam adolescentulus professoribus in ea schola orationeis, qua public^ recitatae bunt." 16 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. entrusted with the education of the two sons of Count Leonstein. His proficiency in the Greek was so remarkable, that eyen at this early age he composed Rudiments of the language which were afterwards published. ^/)J During his residence at Heidelberg, Melanc- thon, who was so eminently formed for friendship, contracted an intimacy with several persons of me- rit. Among these were Wimphelingus, Sturmius, Gautherus, and Sorbillus. He was an inmate of the well-known Pallas, a man pre-eminently dis- tinguished for his wisdom, virtue and benevo- lence, and for many years the brightest ornament of the academy. Heidelbero; had not the honour of educatins,- Melancthon more than three years. He was naturally of a feeble constitution, and the situa- tion of the place did not appear to agree with him. This circumstance, together with a severe disappointment he suffered in being refused a higher degree in the university than he had hitherto obtained, solely^ as it was alleged, on account of his youth, determined him to remove to Tubingen, a town on the Neckar, in the duchy of Wiirtemberg. The university was daily in- creasing in reputation, and he entered it in the month of September, 151g. It had been founded by Prince Eberhard I. about five and thirty years before, who had been careful to procure the most fpj Bruckeri Hist. Crit. PhilosophiEe, Tom. IV. p. 270. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 17 celebrated men of the time for professors in every branch of literature and theology (^^fy^. At Tubingen our aspiring youth attended all the different professors of classical and polite learning, devoting himself especially to mathe- matics, jurisprudence, logic, medicine and theo- logy. In medicine he studied Galen so tho- roughly, that he could repeat the greatest part of his treatises ; and although theology, as it was then taught, consisted in little else than scho- lastic subtleties, knotty questions, unintelligible y^ jargon, and absurdities compounded of supersti- " tion and profaneness, (^r^l he began to be much devoted to the more sober and rational part of it. Here he first became acquainted with Oeco- lampadius, who was his senior by several years : and as he mentions in one of his letters, they used to read Hesiod together. But, of all the professors, Henry Bebelius, distinguished for his skill in history, John Brassicanus, John Stofflerus in the mathematical department, and Francis Stadianus, the public lecturer on Aristotle, appear to have attracted his highest esteem. He has mentioned the two latter in particular with ap- (i\) Melancth. Declam. Oiat. de Eherh. Due. IVirt. (r) " In theologia D. Lempum qui turn prsecipuus habe- batur; de quo hoc saepe retulit, solitum cum auditoiibus de-. pingere in tabula monstrum illud, quod vocant transubstantia- tionis et insulsitatem hominis turn quoque se miratum." Mel. Adam. Vit. Germ. Theologorum, p. 329. Ig LIFE OF MELANCTHON. plaiise and affection in his writings. Stofflerus had for many years the sole care of calculating and arranging the calendar, a task which Melanc- thon affirms he executed with great labour and with equal skill. " Had it not been," says he, " for his indefatigable application, we should have known nothing of the distinction of times and the chansres of the months — nor of the seasons for ploughing, sowing, planting and other agri- cultural pursuits, nor of a variety of other useful and ingenious arts.'Y^^^* ^^ addresses him in the dedication or preface to his public oration on the Liberal Arts, in these terms : " I am in- debted to your kindness not only for what I know, but for what I am desirous of knowing ; and I am desirous of knowing whatever becomes me. How can I sufficiently testify my regard and admiration for one who, during the many years in which he has diligently investigated the abstruse parts of mathematical science, has been constantly stimulating the studious in ge- neral, and myself in particular, by every mark of kindness, to pursue an honourable renown. 'Y^^ Francis Stadianus he describes in the strongest terms : " He was a man of learning, and lived in such a manner as to deserve the affection of all the learned and the good V f^J (s) Melancth. Declam. Tom. I. Encomium Suevorum. (t) Melancth. Declam. Tom. I. Orat. deArt. Lib. prof, (uj Melancth. Declam. Tom. I. Dc Stud. Corrig. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 19 Melancthon had not yet attained the age of seventeen when he was created Doctor in '^hilo- ^ sophy, or Master of Arts. This took place on the twenty-fifth of January, in the year 1513, (x) when he immediately commenced a course of private tuition ; but not long afterwards he be- came a public lecturer at Tubingen. General admiration was soon excited by the profound knowledo-e and elegrant taste he discovered in the Latin classics. A considerable portion of time was occupied every day in delivering public lectures, which were not exclusively devoted to the learned languages, but embraced an extra- ordinary variety of subjects, as rhetoric, logic, ethics, mathematics and theology. At the same time he particularly directed the attention of his scholars to the classical compositions of Virgil, Terence, Cicero, Livy and the Greek writers. He may be justly regarded as the restorer of Terence^ whose poetical compositions, through the ignorance of his transcribers and publishers, had hitherto appeared only in a prosaic dress, (yj (x) Melchior Adam calls it the seventeenth year of his age; but, according to the above date, which he has given, Melancthon was not quite sixteen. M. Baillet says he took his diploma in 1514; but 1 am not certain whether we are to conclude that Melchior Adam commits a mistake in the year of the world or in the year of his age. ("i/J The British Museum contains a very curious old copy of Terence, as it was published previous to this period at Stras- burg. The title-page is wanting. It is crowded with a variety c 2 20 LIFfi OF MELANCTHON. Melancthon, having reduced them to a proper arrangement, presented them to the pubHc in their present form. In this labour he shewed his discrimination and taste ; for Cicero eulogizes Terence both for the purity of his diction and the beauty of his compositions, representing them as the rule and standard of the language, (z) This bright star in the literary hemisphere, the brighter for the profound darkness which surrounded it, could not fail of attracting the attention of the great men of the age. So early as the year \5\5 the sagacious and learned Eras- mus of Rotterdam, exclaimed in terms of rap- turous admiration, " At Deum immortalem quam non spem de se prtEbtt admodum etiam ado- lescens et pene puer, Philippus ille Melancthon, utraque literatura pene ex aequo suscipiendus ! Quod inventionis acumen! Quae sermonis pu- ritas ! Quanta reconditarum rerum memoria ! Quam variae lectio ! Quam verecunda regiaeque prorsus indolis festivitas !" i. e. " What hopes of marginal notes, and has several manuscript references. It is also ornamented with curious wood cuts, and the last page concludes with the following notification of the time and place where it was published : " Impressum in itnperiali ac libera urbe Argentina per Joaiinem Gruninger. Ad illam furmam uc in- tuenti jocundior atque inttUectu facilior esset per Juatmem Curtum ex Eberspach redactum. Anno ci nativitate Dominiy USP, tertio idus Februarii." (z) The learned reader may feel gratified to peruse some «f his Prologues to Terence, in Appendix III. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 21 may we not conceive of Philip Melancthon, though as yet very young, and almost a boy, but equally to be admired for his proficiency in both languages ! What quickness of invention ! / What purity of diction ! What vastness of me- mory ! What variety of reading ! What a modesty and gracefulness of behaviour ! and what a princely m'mdV'faJ An eulogium so remark- able, and bestowed by such a man, on a stripling of only eighteen, was surely no inconsiderable testimony to his wonderful merit. Nor was this the only occasion on which this accomplished scholar expressed his admira- tion. His works abound with similar encomi- ums : it will be sufficient to select two or three. Writing to Oecolampadius he says, " Of Me- lancthon I have already the highest opinion, and cherish the most magnificent hopes : so much so, that I am persuaded Christ designs this youth to excel us all : lie will totally eclipse Erasmus T' — Mosellanus having interceded with him upon occasion of some injurious reports that had been circulated respecting the remarks of Melancthon upon his paraphrase on the New Testament, and implored him not to suffer him- self to be unfavourably impressed by them — Erasmus replied, " Philip Melancthon is in no need of my patronage or defence." In a letter (aj GRYN.KI Epist. Select. Lib. I. p. 302, gg LIFE OF MELANCTHON. which Erasmus addressed to him, he concludes thus, " Farewell, most learned Melancthon, use all thine energies that the splendid hopes which Germany conceives of thy genius and thy piety may not only be equalled, but exceeded." On another occasion, in a letter to Julius Pflug, the celebrated counsellor of George, duke of Saxony, he gives Melancthon this character : " He not only excels in learning and eloquence, but by a certain fatality is a general favourite. Honest and candid men are fond of him, and even his ad- versaries cannot hate hint!" " Happy,*' ex- claims Dr. Jortin, " is the person whom this description suits ! It is not safe to attack him ; the public will revenge his wrongs and take his part against you"! Seckendorf remarks, that were the various eulogies which literary men, and even religious opponents have pronounced upon Melancthon to be collected together, they would fill a very considerable volume. fbj To a much earlier period, probably, may be referred the oration mentioned in a very curious j^assage of one of Hugh Latimer's sermons, which evinces the astonishing celebrity of this youthful scholar and reformer./^c^ " Heere I have fbj Seckendorf Hist. Lutheranismi, Lib. I. Sect. 16. Add. 1. Erasmi Lit. Lib. V. ep. 38. Lib.VL ep. 1. Jor- tin's Life of Erasmus. fcj One is inevitably tempted to suspect an error here in the chronology of biographers. Hugh Latimer was born in the LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 93 ©ccasion to tell you a story which happened at Cambridge. Master Bilney, (or rather Saint Bilney that suffered death for God's word sake,) the same Bilney was the instrument whereby God called me to knowledge, for I may thanke him, next to God, for that knowledge that I have in the word of God. For I was as obsti- nate a Papist as any was in England, insomuch that when I should be made Batchelor of Divi- nity, my whole oration went against Phillippe Melancthon and against his opinions. Bilney hearde mee at that time and perceived that I was zealous without knowledge : and hee came to me afterward in my study, and desired mee for God's sake to heare his confession : I did so — and to say the very truth, by his confession I learned more than before in many yeares. So from that time forward I begunne to smell the word of God, and forsooke the schoole doctors and such fooleries.'Yrf^' year 1486, and is commonly said to have been converted from Popery to the reformed religion, in which he was extremely zea- lous, at about thirty years of age, that is, in the year 1510 ; consequently, the philippic against Melancthon, to which he refers in the above quotation, must have been pronounced antecedently to this change ; from which we must infer, that Philip Melancthon, a boy not more than thirteen years oldy was characterised and inveighed against as a reformer, in a public oration delivered by a student in a foreign university upon taking his divinity diploma ! (dj Bp. Latimer's. Serm. ed. 1635. fol. 124. 24 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. The same Latimer afterwards said, in a ser- mon preached before Edward VI. who expected him in England, " I hear say Mr. Melancthon, that great clerk, should come hither. I would wish him, and such as he is, two hundred pounds a j^ear. The king should never want it in his coffers at the year's end.*' Melancthon took upon himself the labori- ous task of revising the works published by Thomas Anshelmus, a noted printer at Tubin- gen. The greatest part of his time, not imme- diately devoted to his professional duties or his private studies, was bestowed in editing a pon- derous folio work of Nauclerus, to which a pre- face was prefixed by Capnio. Originally, it was, in fact, nothing but a confused heap of fables, mingled with historical facts ; and Me- lancthon bestowed a labour upon it very dis- proportionate to its intrinsic merit, in arranging, correcting, purifying, and almost re-writing it. In this case we can only praise him for his in- dustry, fe^ During his residence at Tubingen, he had an opportunity of rendering essential service to his early friend and patron Reuchlin, or Capnio, who was involved in a disaoreeable contention "O' (t) The book is entitled, " Memorabilium omnis aetatis et omnium Gentium ChroHici Commentarii a Joanne. Nauclero J. V. Doctore Tubing. Praeposito et Universitatis Cancellario, digesti in annum M. D." LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 25 with certain ecclesiastics. It happened thus, s^^^^ The divines and monks of Cologne, instigated by a Jew of the name of PfefFerkorn, who had ^ professed Christianity, obtained an edict from the emperor to authorise them to burn all the Jewish writings as heretical, excepting the Bible. The Jews instantly implored the emperor to sus- pend his order till these books had been exa- mined by a competent committee of learned men. To this very reasonable petition he con- sented. Capnio, who had prosecuted the study of the Hebrew language under some learned Jews, both at Vienna and at Rome, and who had become conversant with the Cabbalistic writings, was appointed by the Elector of Mentz to be an arbitrator in the controversy. Having given it as his opinion, that no other books should be destroyed but such as were found to y be written expressly against Jesus Christ, the emperor approved the decision, and restored the books to the Jews. At this the monks and inquisitors of Cologne were violently exas- perated, and not only loaded him with invec- tives, but used every means to induce the court of Rome to pursue him with the thunder of excommunication. At this critical juncture, Melancthon was of essential use to his friend, I and frequent conferences took place between | z. them, both at Tubingen and at Stutgard, the ' place where Capnio resided. Neither the ad- 56 LIFE OF MEl.ANCTHON. vice nor the zealous eflPorts of a warm friendship were wanting in his defence, which, co-operat- ing with his high hterary reputation, the result was, the honourable acquittal of Capnio. This celebrated character died very poor at the age of sixty-seven. " On account of his virtue and merit," says Melancthon, " his memory ought to be cherished. He served his country with great diligence and judgment, promoted assi- duously the Hebrew language, so important to the church, lived in a moderate manner, and was bountiful to the necessitous, especially to scholars. His candour was remarkable, and he was devoid of envy and malevolence. For these reasons he was much esteemed by learned men.'Y/; One of the earliest of Melancthon*s produc- tions, now extant, is an Oration on the Liberal Arts, delivered at Tubingen in the year 1517> at twenty years of age. It indicates the elegance of his mind and the variety of his reading. Af- ter a suitable introduction, he relates the classical story of the seven stringed lyre, and the origin of the liberal arts. The oration proceeds with a detail of these arts and a brief recital of their origin and progress. It glows with anima- tion as it approaches the close. " Let the ex- (f) Conap. Melancth. Declam. vit. Reiichl. passim, Brucker. Hist. Crit. Philosophiae. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 27 ample of those illustrious persons who surround me, inspire you. Be animated by the great and glorious expectations of your country, and apply the utmost vigour of your minds to what you know to be of pre-eminent importance, the at- tainment of sound learning and real virtue. Do not be seduced from this noble course by flat- tering pleasures or by evil examples. Let no dishonourable principle influence your minds : and thai I call dishonourable which diverts you from the literary pursuits and from the sacred studies to which you are devoted."' Considering the very important part Me- lancthon was destined to act in the Reforma- tion, it would be pleasing, were it possible, to trace the formation of his religious principles and modes of thinking with as much exactness as. we are able to detail his literary career. The history of piety is even more interesting than the history of genius. To discriminate with accuracy the different states of the mind, to ascertain the changes of feeling at successive periods of early life, to witness at once the pro- gressive establishment of moral character and the developement of intellectual capacity, is, and ever must be, highly instructive. Melancthon was endowed with a soul formed of the finest materials, cast in the gentlest mould, and ever ready to listen with attention to reason and ar- gument ; but in proportion as the original pre- 28 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. judices of education had entrenched themselves in a mind delicate, discerning, and full of sensi- bility like his, the attempt to dispossess princi- ples so dear to him, must have been difficult and hazardous. It is long before one, so consti- tuted, can renounce what has been held sacred ; then, not without obvious and substantial rea- sons. Offence is easily taken at the fii"st and most distant appearances of what is deemed error, and, under favouring circumstances, in an unenlighten- ed age, an extraordinary degree of superstition is the natural result. Melancthon expresses, on one occasion, the pungent sorrow which the recol- lection of his former zeal in the idolatrous ser- vices of the Catholic church occasioned. (^^^ It is easy to believe, therefore, that he must have endured many secret conflicts, many heart-rend- ing struggles, previously to his separation from that communion. The only illustrative fact that has been transmitted to us affords some good evidence that his convictions originated in the best manner, and that his early religious views were derived from the only pure source of in- struction. Capnio having presented him with a small Bible which had been recently printed at Basil by the well-known John Frobenius, or Froben, Melancthon accustomed himself to write fgj " Cohorresco quando cogito quomodo ipse accesserim ad statuas io Papatu." Explic. Exang. P. II. p. 592. LIFE OF MELANCTHOX. 29 down upon the margin such explanatory hints and such useful illustrations of particular pas- sages, as either occurred to his own reflections or could be collected from the different ancient writers wqth whose works he was conversant ; a practice w^hich at least proves the diligent at- tention he began to pay to the sacred volume. This Bible was his constant companion. Where- ever he went he never failed to carry it with him, and during the public service at church he constantly held it in his hand, to direct and enliven his devotions. This practice furnished an occasion to his bigotted and no less malig- nant adversaries, who perceived he made use of a volume of a different size from the prayer-book, to represent him as engaged in reading even in the public church, what was very improper both to the occasion and the place ! No efforts were omitted to render him odious : but Envy and Persecu- tion waged an unequal war and were defeated. fA^ The spirit manifested by these religious barbarians on this occasion, perfectly harmonised with the language of one of the monkish frater- nity, whose preposterous ignorance and bigotry have furnished a standing joke ever since the Reformation. " A new language," says he, " has been invented, which is called Greek; guard care- fully against it, it is the mother of every species fhj Cam. Vit. Mel. so LIFE OF MELANCTHOjr. of heresy. I observe, in the hands of a great many people, a book written in this language, which they call the New Testament; it is a book full of thorns and serpents. With respect to Hebrew, it is certain, my dear brethren, that all who learn it are instantly converted to Ju- daism.'* ! ! fij After a residence of about six years, Me- lancthon removed from Tubingen to the Uni- versity OF WiTTEMBERG, the metropolis of the Circle of Upper Sarony. In this situation he was immediately introduced into a scene of great labour and extensive usefulness. This uni- versity was founded so recently as the year 1502, under the auspices of the Elector Frederic, who spared no pains to advance it to respectability and distinction. The licence of the Emperor Maximilian, and the bull granted by the Pope, for its establishment, are still ext2Lnt.(kJ The celebrity of Melancthon, seconded by the pow- erful recommendation of Capnio, induced the Elector to determine upon giving him employ- ment in the university. Several letters were in- terchanged on the subject, and the result was, the formal appointment of Melancthon to the Greek Professorship. Upon this occasion, Cap- nio applied to him with prophetic accuracy the (ij Conrad de Heresbach, cited by Gernler. (kj Vid. Hist. Acad. Wittebbrcensis, Edit. Gott- FRIDO SUEVO. LIFE OF MELANCTHOX. 31 remarkable language of Jehovah to Abraham :fl) " Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee and I will bless thee, and make thy name great, and thou shalt be a blessing:" adding, "this accords with the pre- sentiment of my mind ; and thus I hope it will be with thee hereafter, my Philip, my care and my comfort !" He went to Wittemberg on the twenty-fifth day of August, in the year 1518, at the age of twenty-one. (mj 11 is name is inserted in the documents of the university with marked distinction.^/*^ flj Gen. xii. 1, 2. (mJ Seckend. Hist. Luth. Lib. I. Sect. IG. Adam. Vit. Germ. Theologorum. fnj The following entrance is extracted from the Cata- logue of Rectors in the Hist. Acad. Witteh. HGottfr. Suevo. Rector JoHANKEs Stub alias Giingelyn de Wangen. Diac. Con- itantiens artium ingenuar. Magister. ... d. 1 Ma«, 1518 Jiiscripti Inter inscriptos reperiuntur Illustris Frinceps Dominus Dn. Barnimus Stetinens. Pomeraniae Cassubiae Sclavoruraque Dux Princeps Rugiae, Comes Gutzkoviae. Johannes Vonder Osther, Canonicus Caminens. Phiuppds Melancthon, Artium Magister Dubingens. de Pretten. Grsecarum literarum Lector primus. Ad latus hujus nominis quidam subsequentiura Rectorum Mli ex comparatione literarum apparet Paulus Eberus heec verba adscripsit : — Vivat omne in avum dccus unicum Academia hujus et 32 ^ LIFE OF MELANCTHON. The general sensation excited at Tubingen on this occasion may be imagined from the lan- guage of Simlerus. " The whole city lamented his departure. No one can conceive or estimate how much the Academy lost of distinction and of emolument when he departed." His journey was performed on horseback, by way of Nurem- berg and Leipsic ; and he availed himself of the opportunity of contracting a friendship with Pi- camerus, Mosellanus, Camicianus and other emi- nent characters. Upon the fourth day after his arrival at Wittemberg he commenced his public duties as a Professor in the customary mode of delivering an oration, which attracted an unusual degree of applause. Luther is lavish in his commendations, and in a letter addressed to Spalatine he says that it was inconceivably learned and elegant, and excited such universal admiration, that every one forgot the comparative meanness of Melancthon's personal appearance, ^o^ In consequence of his EcclesuT ornamentum perpetuum. Sit in recordatione felici et sempiterna heat a anima magni illius Mdancthonis nostri : Amen. (o) " Habuit Philippus orationem quarto die postquam venerat, plan6 eruditissimam et tersissimam, tanta gratia et ad- miratione omnium ut jam non tibi id cogitandum sit : qua ra- tione eum nobis commendes. Abstraximus cito opinionem et visionem staturae et personae et rem ipsam in eo gratulamur et miramur." Luth. Ep. Tom. I. p. 81. b. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 33 settlement at Wittemberg, immense numbers crowded to the university, and his audience sometimes amounted to fifteen hundred per- sons. (^/>y He had the honour of being Luther's instructor in the Greek language Y^'y' It is amusing enough to hear the terms in which M. Baillet mentions the intimacy which from this moment commenced between Melanc- thon and Luther. " Being called to Wittemberg," says he, " in the twenty -second year of his age, Melancthon fell into the hands of Luther^ who abused his easy disposition^ and availed himself of all those fine talents lohich ought to have been devoted to the service of the Catholic church !"(r) In truth, this was an event of the utmost importance, not only in reference to these emi- nent individuals themselves, but on account of the influence of their ardent friendship upon the Reformation in general. The profound learning and cultivated taste of the one, the vigorous zeal, independent spirit, and dauntless heroism of the (p) Teissier Eloges des Homines Savans, Art. Melancthon. It has even been asserted that his hearers sometimes amounted to two thousand five hundred — but I think without sufficient authority — *' Son nom p6n6tra dans toute I'AlIemagne, et il eut quelquefois jusqu'a deux mille cinq cents auditeurs." Chaudon et Delandine Nouveau Diet. Hist. Art. Melanc- thon, fqj LuTH. Com. in c. 5. ep. ad Gal. (t) Baillet Trait. Hist, des Enfans dev. Celebres, &c. p. 133. D 34 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. Other, alike conduced to dissipate the delusions of the age. Both adopted the same general views; and each was equally solicitous of re- moving that veil of Egyptian darkness that over- spread the face of the world : yet they were con- stitutionally different. The one verged to the extreme of boldness, the other to that of caution ; but, like Moses and Aaron among the ancient Israelites, their different talents were admirably suited to promote the general object. Truth would undoubtedly have suffered had the one been less energetic and daring, or the other less moderate, and cultivated. It would not be difficult to speculate on the ill effects likely to have resulted to the interests of true religion, if these eminent men, instead of being united in strict friendship, had cherished hostile sentiments towards each other. This would probabl}' have been the case, had Melanc- thon continued a Papist, or had he promoted the views of those who appeared to " halt be- tween two opinions. 'Y*>^ The impetuous temper and resolute firmness of Luther could neither endure opposition nor neutrality. By the colli- sion of contending parties a third was in reality produced, whose leading maxim was to avoid extremes, and who were ready to make every sacrifice to obtain a delusive peace or to secure (sj 1. Kings xviii. 21. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 35 personal convenience. They would have aban- doned what they even esteemed sacred, in order to terminate this religious war ; and, it is to be feared, would have willingly entered into negociations with the advocates of error and su- perstition, upon the principle of relinquishing the conquests which Truth had already acquired, and which Conscience demanded of them never to cede. At the head of this party the learned, witty, vacillating, avaricious and artful Erasmus is unquestionably to be placed. Too anxious y to obtain a Cardinal's hat to enlist himself under the banners of the Reformation, he aimed to please the partizans of Rome ; and too pene- trating to be ignorant of the abuses of the Catho- lie system or blind to its excessive absurdities, he was aware the Reformers had reason and truth on their side, and was solicitous, especially while the victory was doubtful, of conciliating their esteem without unwarily pledging himself to act a conspicuous part in what he termed the Lutheran tragedy. The consequence was, he dissatisfied both, and failed of acquiring the honours it was in the power of Popes to be- stow, and the more valuable distinction which they could not give, but which the unbought affection of independent minds and holy re- formers would have conferred, f^^ (tj Jortin's Life of Erasmus, passim. D 2 36 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. It is obvious, that the Papists and the co- adjutors of Erasmus would have been equally fflad of Melancthon. His influence in the uni- versity of Wittemberg, and his literary fame, now diffused to the extremities of the empire, and swiftly circulating throughout the whole ci- vilized world, would have invigorated the hosti- lity of the one, or promoted the temporizing po- licy of the other. It would have proved a mighty bulwark of defence, which, in case of the pre- ponderance of either party, would have been strength to the weak, and power even to the strong. Melancthon vi'as scarcely less detested than Luther by the violent Catholics ; and Erasmus, in the course of a long letter addressed to him, alludes to his having exhorted him to abandon the Reformers, though he declares he had not very strenuously urged him to it, know- ing it would be labour lost, but still he could have wished he had applied himself entirely to good literature. His purpose, he says, was to ' promote the good of both parties and dissuade from tumults, and he wished a reformation might be made without strife or contention. The removal of Melancthon, therefore, to Wittemberg, by which he was introduced to the y- immediate and intimate friendship of Luther, -^ ought to be regarded as a most memorable event. Luther freely unbosomed all his feelings to this new and invaluable associate, consulting him on LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 37 all occasions, and anxiously availing himself of his superiority in literary acquirements^Wy^ Whoever is accustomed to observe the move- ments and to admire the wisdom of a superin- tending Providence will mark this occurrence. He will not be disposed to attribute it to a happy casualty, but consider it as the result of a su- perior and wise arrangement. He will connect it with all its circumstances, and trace it to all its consequences. Accustomed to comprehensive views of things, he will not resemble the ignorant rustic that steps across the spring whence a Nile, a Euphrates, a Ganges or a Ohio originates, without any emotion, and without the capacity to realize those images of grandeur and sublimity that present themselves in a similar skuation to the enlightened philosopher ; but he will pause, ponder, compare, and look around him. The Almighty Ruler of the world proceeds in the large system of his operations in a similar man- ner, in some respects, to every intelligent agent acting on a smaller scale. Does the skilful archi- tect prepare his materials for the building which he is about to construct, and fit in each particu- lar stone or ornament to its place with discrimi- nating care ? And is there any improbability in the belief that when the Universal Agent is about to produce an extraordinary work, he prepares, (u) Cam. Vit. Md. p. 31. / 38 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. by a process adapted to the purpose, whatever materials are proper for its execution ? Moral operations require moral instruments, and in the whole machinery of circumstances an intelligent and pious mind will see much to admire. Amidst the rubbish of error which had accumu- lated century after century till the Reformation, \^ God determined to erect the temple of Truth, / and his providence cleared an ample space, chose ^ a variety of workmen, and reared the admirable superstructure. And as in the erection of a building there must be different kinds of la- bourers, all co-operating together and all es- sential to complete the undertaking, so it was requisite, in erecting this great edifice, to pre- pare and to employ persons very differently constituted, but all capable of useful co-ope- ration. In this point of light it becomes us to contemplate the preparatory course of Me- lancthon's education, the important station he filled and the celebrity he obtained at Tubingen, / and particularly his removal thence to the scene of his future labours. He was selected by Pro- ^ vidence for great purposes, and qualified by a suitable process for the part he was destined to act. His literary fame and his vast acquirements were not only of essential service, but were par- ticularly needed at that precise period when they were ready for public use. Short-sighted in- deed or criminally blind must he be, who does LIFE OF MELANCTUON. 39 not perceive the same superintendance here as in the guidance of Joseph to Egypt, or David to the camp of Saul. If the Reformation claimed the steady eflforts of true courage and inextin- guishable zeal, be it remembered also, that it no less required a proportion of nice discernment, elegant taste and literary skill ; — if a superstition which invested a mortal with the prerogative of infallibility were to be attacked and levelled with the dust, the ignorance which, with its charac- teristic blindness, supported that superstition, was at the same time to be dethroned and demolished ; — if old abuses were to be removed, and a new order of things to be introduced and systematized, it was desirable to find not only a nervous arm, but a polished mind, at once to clear away the rubbish of error, and clothe unwelcome novelties with attractive beauty ;— in a word, if existing circumstances called for a Martin Luther, they also demanded a Philip Melancthon ! I ( 40) CHAP. II. A. D. 1518. General Olservations — Sketch of the Life and Doctrines ^ The whole history of the Church, from the eighth to the twelfth century, proves that the scholastics studied and taught philosophy for no other purpose than to afford support to the hierarchy by their quibbles and subtle- ties. Great efforts were indeed made, from time to time, by distinguished individuals, but to little or no purpose. Charlemagne, who be- ^aj MEL4NCIH. Declam. Tom. I. De Corrigendis Ado^ lescentice Studiis. / 54 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. came Emperor of the West in the year 800, was not only a great conqueror and a wise legis- lator, but a zealous patron of learning. The Arabians, in the course of their Asiatic conquests, became acquainted with some of the ancient Greek authors ; and the Caliphs, procur- ing from the Eastern Emperors copies of the an- cient manuscripts, had them translated into Ara- bic, particularly those which treated of mathe- matics, physics, and metaphysics. Charlemagne caused Latin translations to be made from the Arabian, and founded the universities of Bono- nia, Pavia, Osnaburg and Paris. " Long peace," says Malancthon, in speaking of this period, " was the means of promoting letters in Scotland and Ireland. Amongst others, the Venerable Bede was pre-eminently illustrious for his uncommon skill in Latin and Greek, in philosophy and ma- thematics. So profound was he in sacred learn- ing, as to be comparable to the ancients. Italy and France, in the mean time, were in the most degraded state ; while Germany, always better skilled in arms than in letters, was pursuing hos- tile and violent measures in Italy. Such was the state of affairs when Charlemagne was born, who, as soon as he had subdued the Roman empire, devoted himself to the restoration of literature ; and, in addition to his very extensive knowledge of the doctrines of the schools, he was an experimentalist and discoverer. It was LIFE OP MELANCTHON. 65 by his means Alcuin was induced to settle in France, where he became eminently usefal.'Y^>' Lewis the Meek, Charles the Bald, his brother Lothaire, and the English Alfred, with many others, highly distinguished themselves. Johannes Scotus, an Irishman, the intimate friend of Charles, a man of superior genius and well acquainted with Greek and Roman litera- ture, was the first who blended together the mys- tic and scholastic theology. It was, however, the prevalent opinion that philosophy was to be pursued merely in subservience to theological disputation, and to furnish weapons for contro- versy. Nothing but abstruse and subtle ques- tions were proposed, which generated a war of words. It was characteristic of the scholastic philosophy to display all possible ingenuity in reasoning about nothing, or nothing better than the merest trifles. Dialectics were employed not to assist the understanding in the search for truth, which is their only legitimate application, but to perplex what was plain, to distinguish what did not differ, and to entangle the mind in a labyrinth of inexplicable absurdities. The topics of discussion were intention and remission, proportion and degree, infinity, formality, quid- dity, individuality, and others equally ititelligi- hle and edifying ! Aristotle was considered as ^dy MEiANCTH.DecIam. Tom. I. De Corrigendis Adoles. centics Studiis. 56 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. having reached the utmost limit of human knowledge ; a convenient opinion it must be admitted for those vi^ho were desirous of being spared the trouble of thinking or examining for themselves ! — and so preposterous was their at- tachment to this heathen oracle that they blas- phemed the great Teacher of the world by pub- licly reading to the people in sacred assemblies the Ethics of Aristotle, instead of the Gospel of Christ \fe) At the opening of the twelfth century the dialectic philosophy took the lead of every other description of knowledge, and was every where taught in the schools. It was imagined to be utterly impossible to understand the mysteries of sacred wisdom without it, and consequently those who excelled in it were regarded with the highest admiration. The theologians were the only philosophers : the scholastic philosophy, supported by the authority of Aristotle, became completely established by its alliance with theo- logy, and opened the only avenue to ecclesias- tical }>referment. Those who excelled in this jargon — and assuredly it required no ordinary degree of penetration to comprehend it — were dignified with the most splendid titles, and ob- tained the most eminent situations. They were created professors, abbots, bishops, cardinals, and even popes, and were kn(;v/n by the epithets fej Melanctit, Apo! A, C. p. 62. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 57 most profound, angelical, wonderful, most sub- tle, perspici607is, wise doctor, or by some other equally flattering appellation. And what could be a more suitable finish to this colossal glory, than the crown of posthumous canonization ? — Who then will dispute the authority or the wis- dom, for instance, of Pope John XXII. in conferring this distinction upon the angelical Thomas Aquinas, or of Pope Sixtus IV. in saluting the seraphic Bonaventure ? Still if these •decrees had not proceeded from the chair of in- fallibility one would be tempted to submit an inquiry, whether some kind of mistake were not committed, and whether, after public opi- nion had made angels and seraphs of these re- nowned doctors, instead of acquiring additional honour, which, no doubt, was the true intent of the statute of canonization, they did not in fact rather suffer in point of dignity, by being changed into mere saints 1 But tacere est scepe tutum ! — About this period the Greek copies of the writings of Aristotle, which were brought from Constantinople into the West, were diligently studied in Paris, and thence introduced in the time of Abelard into Germany ; but taking alarm at the prevalence of logical diquisitions the Synod of Paris, and the Council of the Lateran under Pope Innocent III. prohibited the use of the physical and metaphysical productions of 58 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. Aristotle in the public schools. These measures however, tended to increase rather than diminish his celebrity, and it was afterwards found neces- sary to admit of their use under certain restric- tions, till they were eventually appointed by express statute in the Parisian University. In Italy and Germany the Emperor Frederic II. a patron of learning, encouraged the study of Aristotle and other ancient writers, by employ- ing persons to translate their works into Latin ; but this task was very imperfectly executed, owing to their general ignorance of the Greek language. From the twelfth to the fourteenth century true philosophy made very little progress. The spirit of disputation originated a variety of sects and parties who were mutually enflamed with the most violent animosities. Ranging under different leaders they were denominated Alber- iists, Thomisls, Scotists, and Occamists. But of all these disputes none were more ve- hement, more lasting, or more nonsensical than that which existed between the Nominalists and Realists. The case was briefly this : Plato taught that ideas were intelligible natures, hav- ing a certain and substantial existence, whose origin and seat is the Divine Mind, and the im- mediate objects of contemplation to the human understanding. Universal essences of this kind Aristotle considered as mere fictions, but yet not LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 59 denying the existence of essential forms or ideas, he affirmed they were eternally united to matter, and that from this union arises existing bodies. Zeno and the Stoics acknowleged primary prin- ciples, but ridiculed those who affirmed the sub- stantial existence of ideas or universals. The Eclectic Philosophers endeavoured to reconcile . these differences of opinion ; and a fine field they afforded to them and to succeeding wise men for subtle distinctions and endless contests. The opinion of Aristotle that universals do not sub- sist prior to individual bodies, nor after them, but within them, and are forms eternally united to matter, prevailed till the eleventh century, when Rosceline adopted and propagated the Stoic opinion that universals have no real existence, but are mere names and terms by which the kinds of individuals are denoted. This was main- tained by Abelard, and produced the sect of No- minalists. Their opponents were denominated Realists, f/; In the thirteenth century, the state of lite- rature and philosophy was somewhat ameliorated both by means of the Italian poets Dante, Alli- ghieri, Petrarca, and Boccaccio, who fixed the standard of their own language ; and of the two Englishmen, Chaucer and Roger Bacon. Pos- sessed of a discriminating judgment and a sublime (fj Bruckebi Hist. Crit. Philosophiae. ^0 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. genius, Bacon observed the defects of the sch«^ lastic philosophy, and recommended the pursuit of Truth by experience and observation. He made numerous discoveries in science, particu- larly in optics, astronomy, and mechanics. The Italian poets promoted the study of philosophy and letters. They were all warm admirers of the ancients, and cultivated the Latin language with considerable success. A critic, however, quoted by Roscoe, says that the Latin writings of Dante were like a pic- ture that has lost its colour, and exhibit little more than an outline. " Happy had it been had this author been enabled to convey his sen- timents in Latin as advantageously as he has done in his native tongue. The numerous works of Petrarca, the offspring of that solitude in which he delighted, are lasting monuments of his in- dustry and his talents. Yet his style is harsh, and scarcely bears the character of Latinity, His M'ritings are indeed full of thought, but de- fective in expression, and display the marks of labour without the polish of elegance ; but as we sometimes take a potion, not for the sake of gratification but of health, so from these writ- ings we must expect to derive utility rather than amusement. Rude as they are, they pos- sess however some secret charm which renders them engaging. The distinguished talents of Boccaccio sunk under the pressure of the general LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 61 malady. Licentious and inaccurate in his dic- tion, he has no idea of selection. All his Latin writings are hasty, crude and uninformed. He labours with thought, and struggles to give it utterance ; but his sentiments find no adequate vehicle, and the lustre of his native talents is obscured by the depraved taste of the times ''fg J About this period many eminent Greeks were induced to quit their native country in consequence of the barbarizing effects of the Turkish conquests in the East, and to settle in the western parts of Europe. The precursor of these eminent refugees was Emanuel Chrysoloras, who, having been sent to solicit the protection of the Christian princes against the Turks, visited Venice, Florence, Rome and other cities, and was at length prevailed upon by the Florentines to fix his residence amongst them. Others, fol- lowing his example, brought with them into Italy a store of Grecian books an(| ancient lite- rature. These were read with great avidity, and translated. Learned men were welcomed at Rome, where many translations, especially of the works of Aristotle, were patronized by Pope Nicholas Y.fhJ (g) CoRTESius, quoted in Roscoe's Life of Lorenzo de' Medici, Vol. II. p. 53, 4to. Comp. Bruckeri Hist. Crit. Philosophise, Tom. IV. Pars I. Lib. I. Cap. L Sect. 8. (h) It is not to be imagined, as most writers have repre- sented, that the Greek language was absolutely unknown in 62 LIFE OF MELANCTHON* The Medicean family also highly distin- guished themselves, by whose means several li- braries were established in different parts of Italy. Cosmo de'Medici founded the library of S. Mar- co : his son Piero pursued the same laudable course, and Lorenzo sent Lascaris into Greece to purchase valuable manuscripts while his great coadjutor Politiano, who had the care and ar- rangement of his collection, made several ex- cursions into Italy to purchase the remains of antiquity. If the ancestors of Lorenzo laid the foundation, he raised the superstructure of the Laurentian library. Corvino, the King of Hun- gary, and Federigo, Duke of Urbino, who were permitted to copy such of the manuscripts of Lorenzo as they wished to possess, proved also distinguished patrons of learmng.fij The thirst after knowledge which such il- lustrious individuals manifested led to the dis- covery of many important remains of Greek and Roman literature. Quintilian and several of Italy previous to the European journey of Chrysoloras and the learned Greeks. Leontius Pilatus of Thessalonica instructed Boccaccio in that language about the year 1350, and gave pub- lic lectures on Homer at Florence. Guarini, also, a Veronese, xised his efforts for the restoration of Greek literature^ and pro- bably other solitary examples might be adduced; but after the death of Boccaccio no progress was made; on the contrary, Greek literature declined till the arrival of Chrysoloras and the Constantinopolitan fugitives. fij Roscoe's Life of Lorenzo de' Medici, Vol. IL 4to» LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 6S Cicero's compositions were recovered. By means of the discovery of the art of printing in the fifteenth century the Latin Classics were easily multiplied, and several learned men published both the Greek and Roman writers with scholia and notes. Amongst the labourers in this vast field the name of Politiano stands pre-eminent. Besides the academy at Pisa, established by Lo- renzo de'Medici, another and still more important institution was formed at Florence, where the Greek language was taught by learned Greeks and Italians, under his auspices, and by his li- berality. Men of rank, and illustrious females also devoted themselves to study ; of the former, Giovanni Pico, of Mirandula, who, at the age of twenty-one, had the reputation of being ac- quainted with twenty-two different languages ; and of the latter, Cassandra Fidehs, were the most remarkable. But it must not be imasrined that this taste was universally diffused ; for though the fragrant flowers of poesy grew in a few places, and some fruit-bearing trees were planted here and there in classic ground ; the general aspect which the world presented to the eye was that of a thorny wilderness or a barren desart. The revival of letters, however, and the re- formation of religion at the beginning of the sixteenth century reciprocally influenced and promoted each other. The reformers were con- 64 LIFE OF MELANCTHOX. vinced that ignorance had been one of the prin- cipal causes of the corruption of doctrine, and hence they were soUcitous of seeing philosophy restored to its purity, and truth to her throne. The boldness with which they attacked religious error and despotism contributed to the advance- ment of literature : the zeal with which some of them cultivated literature by reflecting a beam of light on biblical criticism, contributed to the cause of religion. When the Romish church reigned with unrivalled dominion in the West, she resisted the study of the oriental and other languages. She decreed the faith of others upon i/ the sole authority of her popes, her councils, ' and her charters, and too tractable slaves submit- ted to the imposition. The attack of this system demanded a knowledge of languages, of the prin- ciples of sound criticism, and of sacred and pro- fane antiquities. The New Testament, and the Septuagint Version of the Old, required an ac- curate and extensive acquaintance with Greek, the study of which was particularly promoted by Melancthon. The reforming spirit diffused itself beyond the Reformers themselves, and many even in the bosom of the Catholic church, as Erasmus, Ludovicus Vives, Faber, and Marius Nizolius, censured the scholastic method of philosophizing, inveighed against the corruptions of the ige, and assiduously cul- tivated general literature. Besides, the zeal- LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 65 Oils supporters of the Romish hierarchy finding themselves attacked by hterary weapons so ably wielded were necessitated to have recourse to measures of defence, which must of course con- sist in the cultivation of all possible familiarity with letters, and with ecclesiastical antiquities. But these studies were never pursued to the same extent as amongst Protestants, who gave the first impulse to improvement, and the finish- ing blow to the massive edifice of corruption. In the beginning of the sixteenth century though the scholastic philosophy thus began to fall into contempt, Aristotle retained a consider- able degree of authority. The Platonic system having totally declined, the peripatetic philoso- phy became universally victorious. The Catho- lics zealously promoted it because of its adapta- tion to the defence of their system, and amongst the Protestants many learned men were followers of Aristotle, so far as their superior reverence to evangelical truth would permit. On this point Luther and Melancthon difFer-^d in opinion. The former who had studied the schoolmen, at first attached himself to the Nominalists, but after- wards rejected the whole system with contempt. Melancthon is also to be classed amongst the principal supporters of this party. The controversy which had so long sub- sisted between these parties was marked by every species of polemic, and sometimes even of pu- F / 66 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. gilistic violence. Ludovicus Vives represents himself as having been witness of disputes in which after having vented upon each other every species of abusive language the parties proceeded to blows, and this not only with their fists, but with clubs and swords, so that many have been wounded and even killed ; and Ca- merarius states that similar disorders prevailed in the academy at Tubingen, which Melancthon could scarcely suppress/A:^ Erasmus in his joking manner, alludes to these evils in one of his epistles. *' We are making preparations (he writes) for a war against the Turks (A. D. 1518). With what view soever this be underaken we ought to pray God that it may be profitable not to a few, but to all of us in common. Should we conquer them it is to be supposed (for we shall hardly put them all to the sword) that at- tempts will be made to bring them over to Christianity. Shall we then put into their hands {'kj •' Atque non solum contentiones et jurgia inter dis- sentientes sed dimicationes etiam ac pugnae commissse fuerunt, interdum conceitationibus non tantum pertinacibus verborura sed manuum quoque violentis. Haec dissidia et Tubingensem Academiam invaserant, conlubernio bonarum artium et philo- sophias studiis destinato, in duo quasi castella diviso, ex qui- bus de opinione sua factiones illae acerrime praeliantes iniraici- tias graves exercebant. Philippus qui certam docendi disse- lendique rationem probaiet, et Aristotelica in hoc genere primas tenere intelligeret, magHificas et splendidas et aniplas alteras dispulationts non araabat." Cam. Vit. Mel. p. 22. I LIFE OP MELANCTHON. 67 an Occam, a Durandus, a Scotus, a Gabriel, or an Alvarus ? What will they think of us (for after all they are rational creatures) when they hear of our intricate and perplexed subtleties concerning instants, formalities, quiddities and relations ? What, when they observe our quib- bling professors so little of a mind, tliat they dispute together till they turn pale with fury, call names, spit in one another's faces, and even come to blows ? What, when they behold the Jacobins fighting for their Thomas, the Minorites for their most refined and seraphic doctors, and the Nominalists and Realists each defending their own jargon, and attacking that of their adver- saries v'fV When Louis XI. king of France, pub- lished an edict against the Nominalists, in the year 1474, ordering their books to be fas- tened up with iron chains in the libraries, that they might not be read, and requiring the youth of the academies to reject their doctrines, their principal leaders fled into England and Germany, and attached themselves to the Reformers. fm^ Luther, however, perceiving the support which the scholastic philosophy afforded to the errors of the Catholic church, and conceiving that the logical and metaphysical sentiments of Aris- totle incorporated with it, had occasioned all the flj Erasm. Epist. 329. fmj Bruckebi Hist. Cril. l*hilosopHis?. F 2 (J8 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. celebrated disputes and divisions of previous ages, rejected both ; but it is to be remarked that he rather opposed the false doctrines founded on Aristotle, through the ignorance and perversity of mankind, than the principles of philosophizing which he established. " 1 am persuaded," says he, " that neither Thomas, nor all the Thomists together, ever understood a single chapter of Aristotle." At first Melancthon united with Luther in condemning Aristotle, from a conviction that his principles and modes of reasoning were in- / jurious to genuine Christianity, but he very -' soon altered his opinion, and thought he might be employed as a valuable auxiliary in the pro- pagation of truth. This circumstance has occa- sioned his being much misrepresented by certain writers, to whose statements, the system upon which, during his whole future life he conducted the education of youth, is an ample refuta- t'lon. fnj (n j " Pour ne rien dissimuler, il faut que je dise ici que Melancthon suivit au commencement le branle que Luther lui avoitdonne: il parle mal d'Aristote ; mais il changea bientot de langage et il persevera dans la recommendation de la phi- losophic de ce fondateur du Lyc^e On peut confirmer ceci par ces paroles d'Erasme, Epist. ad Fratres Germanice inferiorisy" p. m. 2127. " Noune Melancthon aliquando damnavit scholas publicas ? Nunc hie dicit maneant scholae quae bonae sunt, vitia corrigantur." Bayle Diet. Hist. Art. Melancthon. Note (K). Comp. Bruckeri Hist. Crit. Philoso- phise, Tcm. IV. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 69 Melancthon attempted the revival of the pure peripatetic philosophy, though he agreed with Luther on the subject of the scholastic system. In several passages of his writings he utterly con- demns the latter as generating dissention rather than promoting truth ,• and though he took Aristotle for his guide, be it remembered, this was only in philosophical inquiries, and so far as his prin- ciples might be connected with utility. His devout and penetrating mind always paid a supe- rior deference to the dictates of Revelation. In his oration on Aristotle, he thus expresses him- self, " I will add something concerning philoso- phy, and the reasons for believing that of Aris- ,^^ totle to be the most useful for the Church. It (j/^^ .^ is agreed, I think, by all, that logic is of prime )C ^^^ importance, because it teaches method and order, it defines fitly, divides justly, connects aptly, judges and separates monstrous associations. Those who are ignorant of this art, tear and mangle the subjects of discourse as puppies do rags. I admire the simile of Plato, who highly extols it as resembling the fire which Prometheus brought from heaven, to kindle a light in the minds of men by which they might be able to form correct ideas. But he does not furnish us with the precepts of the art, so that we cannot dispense with the logic of Aristotle. That of the Stoics is not extant, and instead of being a simple method of reasoning fit for the explana- 70 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. tion of profound subjects, it appears to have been a complete labyrinth of intricacies, and in fact a mere coiTuption of the art." (oj Melancthon was considered in the Ger- man schools in the light of a common precep- tor./^/?^ Uniting the study of the Aristotelian philosophy with ancient learning in general, the plan which he adopted was to extract out of Aristotle all that was essentially good, to illus- trate it by the aids of literature and genuine cri- ticism, and to adapt it to the principles of true religion. i^^f^ Nor did he follow Aristotle im- plicitly ; whatever was valuable in the writings or doctrines of the Stoics and Platonics he adopted for his use, and, whatever his own genius sug- gested, incorporated into his system. This plan was pursued in most of the Ger- man academies under the sanction both of the civil and ecclesiastical authorities, and from its first promoter was denominated the Philippic method. In all the Lutheran schools abridge- ments of the various branches of philosophy by Melancthon, composed in a familiar style, were foj Melancth. Declam. Tom. III. Orat. de Aristoteh, (j)J Bruckeri Hist. Crit. Philosophiae. fqj " Eruditam philosophiam require, non illas cavilla- tiones, quibus nullce res subsunt. Ideo dixi unum quoddam philosopbiae genus eligendura esse, quod quam minimum ha- beat sophistices, et justam methodum retiaeat ; talis est Aris- totelis doctrina," Melancth. Declam, de utiM» Fhilos* Tom. I. LIFE OP MELANCTHON. 71 constantly and for a long period taught ; of this nature were his Logic, Ethics, Physics, and his Treatise on the soul. Nor did he confine his attention to a few subjects only, but with the most exemplary zeal and assiduity, reduced almost every art and science into a form and arrangement which inconceivably abbreviated the labour of the student. Vitus Winshemius, a very competent judge, speaks of these publications in the highest terms of commendation, as shortening the Aristotelian road to knowledge /r^l He characterizes their author, with great propriety, as resembling the industrious bee flying through the fields of uni- versal science in all directions, and collecting the choicest and sweetest portions from the prime productions of every writer. So singg the poet — Floriferis ut apes in saltibus omnia libant Omnia nos. Itidem depascimur anrea dicta, Aurea perpetua semper dig;nissiraa vitat As bees in flowers their honied treasure find. So on thy precepts feeds the searching mind, Thy golden precepts — yes, illustrious sage. Golden — and formed to bless the latest age.fsj On various occasions IMelancthon publicly delivered discourses on the method of studying frj WiNSHEM. OratioinFunere Melancthonis. OJ BvssY'a Lucretius, B. 3. 72 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. philosophy, and his opinions were so universally reverenced, that he acquired the highest fame and the most useful influence. The precepts of art and science had been hitherto very imper- fectly taught, and with a great intermixture of truth and error. These he systematized and reduced to order ; rejecting what was erroneous, explaining what was obscure, and arranging what was confused, ftj Several learned men from Italy and Great Britain, who became tutors in the German schools, and assiduously promoted the peripa- tetic philosophy, materially assisted him in these laudable efforts. It is to be lamented in- deed, that the learned of Italy, France, England, and Germany, did not totally discard Aristotle as a guide, and strike out a more independent plan ; but we must not despise the light though it be mingled with some darkness, nor under- value the labours of distinguished men, because they did not undertake what we deem desirable, or accomplish what is now perceived to have been practicable. » In the genuine spirit of a literary Reformer, instead of merely pursuing the course which custom had prescribed or indolence would have dictated, Melancthon applied his active mind to the discovery of the best means of inspiring a tfj Adami Vit. Germ. Theol. p. 331. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 73 taste for literature, and of promoting the great ends of study. When he first arrived at Wit- temberg nothing could exceed the miserable condition of philosophy and letters as well as of religion, so that he found an ample and unoccupied field of important labour. The liberal arts and sciences were sunk into the most wretched state, and were concealed in the profoundest darkness. So completely were ail men plunged into abject barbarism, that though they dare not venture upon open hostility, being restrained by the authority of the prince, yet they secretly despised and disparaged learning, and slandered Melanc- thon ; the printing offices did not possess any copies of the Greek writings, and the students were necessitated to write out passages as they were explained to them for their own use.fuj Melancthon, with a laudable impatience, ^ instantly applied himself to the removal of these evils. The desart w^hich spread its vast and cheerless extent before his eyes overgrown with weeds, he was anxious by assiduous cultiva- tion to convert into a literary paradise. In the first year of his residence at Wittemberg he read lectures to crowded auditories upon Homer, and upon the Greek text of St. Paul's epistle to Titus. Luther speaks of him in various letters fuj WiNSHEM Vit, Mel, Bruckeri Hist. Crit. Phil. Tom. IV. 7*4 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. to his friends in the highest terms of commen- dation, stating that his lectures were so ex- tremely popular, that all the principal theolo- gians attended him, and high and low became inspired with the love of Greek. Amongst other epithets, he calls him the most learned and most truly Grecian Philip Melancihon. fv) " He is a mere boy and a stripling if you consider his age ; but our great man and master, if you reflect on the variety of his knowledge, which extends to almost eveiy book. He is distinguished not only for his acquaintance, but for his critical knowledge of both languages, nor is he unskilled in Hebrew learning/* The excessive ardour of his mind produced a considerable effect upon his constitution, and the Elector Frederic addressed an affectionate letter to him on the subject, wherein he admo- nishes him to be careful of his health, and not to exert himself too much, offering him the best wines his cellar could produce, and reminding him of Paul's language to Timothy, to " use a little wine for his stomach's sake and his often infirmities/YW " This," he stated, " was no less obligatory than any other admonition .'Y-^^ fv) " Philippum Graecissimum, eruditissimum, humanism- simuin, habe commendatissimum." Luth. ad Spalatinum. " Eruditissiraus et Grsecanicissimus Philippus Melancthon apud DOS Graeca profitetur," &c. Ad Langum. (wj 1 Tim. v. 23. (xj Van de Corput Leven end« Dood van Phil. Mel. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 75 Melancthon was scarcely seated in his pro- fessor's chair, when he commenced an attack upon prevailing prejudices, and announced a plan of reform. He determined that youth should study as well as frequent the university, and that they should be put in possession both of motives and means for this purpose. His zeal appears never to have diminished through the course of his long and laborious life. It was the least of all his distinctions to have acquired a great name, for he rendered essential service both to the cause of literature and religion. A iew weeks only had elapsed since his arrival at Wittemberg, when he delivered in the month of October an oration, to which some references have already been made, on reforming the studies of youth, (y) He congratulates them on being placed under the auspices of the illustrious Frederic, and on their numerous ad- vantages for the acquisition of learning ; and while attentive to the various other departments of human knowledge, he particularly urges them to the study of the Greek writers and philosophy ; " but let no one trifle in philosophizing lest he . should at length totally lose sight of common p. 7. Amsterd. 1662. Winshem. Oratio in Fuuere Melanc- thonis. Mel. Adam. Vit. Philosophorum, p. 188. (y) Melancth. Declam. Tom. I. It is entitled " Sermo habitus apud Juveniutem Academic fVittebergaisis de Corrim gendis Adokscentia Studiis.'^ 76 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. sense. Let him rather select the best things from the best authors, for the purposes of im- provement both in the knowledge of nature and in morals. The study of Greek literature is of essential importance; it in fact comprehends universal science, for their writers discuss morals in a most copious and appropriate manner. The treatise of Aristotle on this subject, the laws of Plato, and the best of their poets, may be read with the utmost advantage. Homer amongst the Greeks may be called a fountain of know- ledge ; Horace and Virgil hold a similar pre- eminence amongst the Romans." He speaks in recommendation of history as calculated to direct us in the skilful manage- ment of public and private affairs. *' But," he adds, " the manner in which you apply to sacred studies, is of the greatest importance. These, above all other pursuits, require judgment, experience, and diligence; and remember that the perfume of divine ointments, so to speak, far surpasses the aromatics of hu- man literature. Under the guidance of God, the cultivation of the liberal arts will be rendered subservient to sacred objects, as Synesiiis inti- mates to Herculianus " the noblest employ- ^Z mentoflife, is to use philosophy as a guide to divine knowledge.^* If this should not be quite obvious to any one, let him consider that brass was sent by the King of Tyre for the temple of LIFE OP MELANCTHON. tl Solomon as well as superior metal : so it is in reference to theology which comprehends He- brew and Greek literature, for the Latins drink from these streams and sources, and those foreign languages are requisite to be known, lest we should appear nothing better than ciphers amongst theo- logians, f^;^' But there the accuracies and beau- ties of language will be seen, and the genuine sense of terms and expressions discovered with noontide evidence. Having ascertained the literal meaning of words, we shall be able to pursue the course of argument notwithstanding any frigid glosses, discordant comments, or any other hindrances that may be interposed. Whenever we approach the fountains of truth we shall begin to grow wise in Christ, his commandments will become obvious, and we shall be regaled by the blessed nectar of heavenly wisdom. When we have gathered the clusters amongst " the vineyards of Engedi," the bride- groom will come " leaping upon the mountains, skipping upon the hills,** and with the " kisses of his mouth," and the " savour of his good oint- ments poured forth," will anoint those who are conducted into the palaces of Eden. United to him we shall live and thrive, contemplating Zion and Salem in the secret silence of adoration. |^a^ (ij xui^at Tfcoa-uiTfa literally senseless masks. (a) The allusion is to the language of the Song of Solo. moTiy Ch. i. 14. Ch. ii. 8. et passim. 7B LIFE OF MELANCTHON. Such is the fruit of celestial knowledge, which will always prove worthy of our supreme regard when pure and unimpaired by human subtleties. The great importance then of giving a new impulse and direction to your studies, and the manner in which they are likely to become con- ducive to your mental and moral character is sufficiently obvious. Who can help deploring the state of our immediate predecessors, who, abandoning the light of learning, plunged into Tartarean darkness, and took up with the very dregs of knowledge ? And who is not affected at the lamentable state of our own times de- prived by negligence of our ancient authors, and of all the advantages which would have accrued from their writings had they been preserved? You should understand, therefore, the difficul- ties which attend the acquisition of the most valuable knowledge ; nevertheless, industry will so overcome them, that I trust you will obtain that which is of real importance with far less expense of time and trouble than is generally devoted to what is absolutely useless. Your tutors will undertake the labour of making proper selections for you, and separating the frivolous from the useful in conducting you to the stores of Roman and Grecian literature. Let some of your leisure hours be occupied espe- cially with the latter, and I will use my utmost endeavours to afford you every facility. From LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 79 the very first I shall be careful to alleviate the laborioLisness attending the grammatical part of language, by reading portions of the best writers for illustration. I shall notice, in passing, what- ever may relate to the conduct of life, or the general knowledge of obscure subjects, so that by proper application we shall be able to accom- plish the circle of human learning, and it will devolve on me to stimulate your diligence. Homer is in our hands and the Greek of Paul's Epistle to Titus, and you must pay great atten- tion to ascertain by the stmin of the discourse, the divine truths intended to be revealed. Here it is proper to remark, how much grammatical accuracy in language conduces to the knowledge of sacred mysteries, and what a difference appears between commentators, some of whom are versed in the Greek language, others ignorant of it ; and in various cases what mis- takes are the consequence. If we trifle on this subject, be assured we shall inevitably suffer for it. Enter then, O ye youths, enter upon your course of wholesome instruction with this sen- timent in your constant recollection whoever deterniinately sets about a business has half ac- complished it. Do not be afraid of becoming wise : study the Roman authors, but especially attach yourselves to thoseofGREECE,withoutthe know- ledge of whom the former cannot be properly 80 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. understood, and whose compositions will con- duce to the knowledge of general literature, and more than any others to the formation of the mind to taste and elegance. I cannot help look- ing forward to anticipate the effect of your exam- ple, and I fancy that I can see a few years hence Germany in various parts reviving in literature, the general state of morals ameliorated, and the minds of men, at present barbarously wild and barren as the desart, at length tamed, so to speak, and cultivated ! Henceforth then you will devote yourselves to study, not only for the sake of your own per- sonal advantage and that of posterity, but for the honour of our immortal Elector, who is l)y uni- versal concurrence the best of princes, and has nothing more at heart than the promotion of literature. For myself I am resolved to try my utmost, both to accomplish the desires of the most pious of princes and the success of your studies. And with this design I solemnly de- vote myself, O ye illustrious princes and su- perintendents of this university, to your service: consecrating my youth to solid learning and not to useless or injurious pursuits, and confidently depending upon your kindness and protection. ( 81 ) CHAP. III. A. D. 1518, to 1520. The State of Religion — Relics— Indulgences — Tetzel — Progress of the Controversy luith the Court of Rome— Melancthori! s Narrative of Luther — Public Disputation at Leipsic — Its Effects — Paper war letween MelanC' thou and Eckius — Concise hut satisfactory Pamphlet and admirable Spirit of the former. Turning from the schools of literature to the church of Christ, we find that, in refer- ence to religion as well as science, Melancthon was called to Wittemberg at a most critical junc- ture. That we may duly appreciate his labours and form a correct idea of the posture of eccle- siastical affairs, it will be requisite to glance at a a few preceding events. The state of the Catholic church was at this period quiet and reposing. Though many cir- cumstances had occurred to prepare the public mind for the introduction of a new order of things — though some portentous gatherings of the no distant tempest might have been discern- 82 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. ible to attentive observers, when not only private persons but distinguished princes upbraided the despotism, the fraud, the avarice, the extortion, the licentiousness of the Popish hierarchy, and even demanded a reform of abuses by means of a general council, — yet the right of private judg- ment was not asserted, the supreme authority and infallibility of the Pope in religious affairs was not disputed, and the Roman Pontiff felt the utmost self-consciousness of security. The com- motions which had been excited in some former ages by the Waldenses, Albigenses and Beghards, and more recently by the Bohemians, seemed to be at an end : and as in nature, the storm is fre- quently preceded by a peculiar stillness diffused around, when the winds are hushed into peace — not a leaf of the forest stirs — not a wave ripples on the tranquillized surface of the lake — not a bird flutters through the air to dissolve the uni- versal enchantment ; — so was the atmosphere of Rome at this time hushed into the deepest calm — not a breath of murmur stirred — not a tongue moved — not a voice was heard to excite alarm, and ecclesiastical authority lolled at per- fect ease in the Papal chair. If the low mutter- ings of discontent began to roll, they were too distant to be heard or too contemptible to be feared. If any intimation were given of the ex- istence of rebellious feelings, they were only treated with the smile of ridicule. What mortal LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 83 power could storm the citadel of St. Peter, and overturn the turrets of superstition ? Who dare resist the well established power of Papal domi- nation ? Where was a son of Jesse to be found, who could hope to slay the giant in his strength and glory ? — After the execrable pontificates of Alexander VI. who expired in the year 1503, and of Julius II. whose sanguinary course was arrested by the ^^ arm of death in the year 1512, Leo X. assumed \/ the ecclesiastical sceptre. His character was in many respects different from his predecessors. He was of a disposition more gentle, and of a taste far more refined. Historians have cele- brated him as the patron of arts, sciences, and literature. Learned men resorted to his court, were honoured by his friendship, and were em- ployed to assist in the plans for promoting know- ledge which his elegant mind devised ; but he was a lover of pleasure, an opponent of reform, and a crafty politician. Every means which he considered as conducive to the grandeur of the Roman See he instantly adopted, though at the same time he was dissipating its treasures by a boundless luxury. The state of rehgion was inconceivably de- plorable, and its very foundations were sapped by the substitution of public prayers to the Virgin, and to saints, in the place of those devo- tional sacrifices of the heart which are due ex- G 2 84 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. clusively to the eternal God. (h) The bishops and canons devoted themselves to sensuality, and even used the wealth intended for charitable purposes to support their personal grandeur and extravagance. They were oppressive to their inferiors, and servile, as might be expected, to those from whom they had any reason to antici- pate emolument or patronage. All orders of the clergy, imitating their ecclesiastical superiors, who copied from the luxurious court of Leo, be- came utterly contemptible, and as a necessary consequence of these disorders, dissoluteness was associated with idleness, and every religious office publicly bought and sold. The discourses of those who pretended to preach, consisted of fabulous tales, reports of miracles and prodigies, scholastic subtleties, or grave assertions of the necessity of obedience to the decisions of the holy mother church, the merits of saints, the glory of the Virgin Mary, the virtue of relics, the duty of endowing churches and monasteries, the fhj The Popish churches resounded with such petitions as the following : *' Maria, mater gratiae Tu nos ab hoste protege In hora mortis suscipSy et Sancta Dorothea, cor mundum iu me crea : Sancta Catharina ab astu mundi transfer nos ad amseaa Paradisi : aperijanuas Paradisi." Vid. Melancth. Declam. Tom. VI. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. S5 flame of purgatory, the utility of indulgences and other topics equally edifying ! A monk of the Franciscan order at Basil, assured his audi- ence from the pulpit, that Scotus had rendered greater services to the church than St Paul/ fcj Luther says of the monks, " Their fasting is y more easy to them than our eating is to us. To one fasting day belonged three days of devour- ing. Every friar to his evening collation has two quarts of beer, a quart of wine, spice cakes or bread prepared with spice and salt, the better to relish their drink. Thus went these poovfasling brethren, they grew so pale and wan that they were like the Jieri/ angels."(d) There existed a particular order of friars in Italy, called Fratres Ignorantice^ that is. Brethren ^ of Ignorance. They were obliged to take solemn oaths that they would neither know, learn, nor understand any thing at all, but answer all ques- tions with the word Nescio. Truly, said Lu- ther, all friars are well worthy of that title, for they only read and babble out words, but feel no concern to understand them. Thev say, although we understand not the words, yet the Holy Ghost understands them, and the devil flies away. This was the friars' highest argu- ment who are enemies to all liberal arts and learn- ing, for the Pope and the Cardinals conclude (c) Hotting. Hist. Eccles, Tom IV. p. 383. (A) CoLLOQ. Mensal. p. 413. 86 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. thus: " Should these brethren study and be learned, they would master us, therefore saccum per neccum, i. e. hafig a bag or sack about their necks^ and send them begging through cities, towns, and countries." fej But something worse than ignorance at- tached to the monkish fraternity, of which two notable instances mentioned by Luther, will abundantly satisfy the reader. In the monastery at Isenach, says he, stands an image which I have seen. When a wealthy person came thi- ther to pray to it, (it was Mary with her child), the child turned away his face from the sinner to the mother, as if it refused to give ear to his praying, and was therefore to seek mediation and help of Mary the mother. But if the sinner gave liberally to that monastery, then the child turned to him again ; and if he promised to give more, then the child shewed itself very friendly and loving, and stretched out its arms over him in the form of a cross. But this picture and image was made hollow within, and prepared with locks, lines, and screws ; and behind it stood a knave to move them, and so were the people mocked and deceived, who took it to be a miracle wrought by divine providence ! A Dutchman making his confession to a mass-priest at Rome, promised by an oath to fej CoLLOQ. Mensal. p. 415. LIFE OP MELANCTMON. 87 keep secret whatever the priest should impart to him till he came into Germany, upon which the priest gave him a leg of the ass on ichich Christ rode into Jerusalem^ very neatly bound up in a silken cloth, and said, " This is the holy relic on which the Lord Christ did corporeally sit, and with his sacred legs touched this ass's \e^ !" The Dutch- man was wonderfully pleased, and carried the holy relic with him into Germany, and when he came upon the borders, boasted of his holy pos- session in the presence of four others of his com- rades, at the same time shewing it to them ; but y each of the four having also received a. leg from the priest and promised the same secresy, they inquired with astonishment " whether that ass had Jive legs ?" — By the way, they forgot that the latter would have been much less of a mira- cle than the former. A Dutch schoolmaster in contempt of a shameless friar, who had expressed his dislike of the liberal arts and sciences, gave his school boys this Latin for an exercise, monachus a devil, diaholus a friar. /j^ The subject of sacred relics is inexhaustible, but we will only add a few words. Spalatine, the celebrated secretary of Frederic, Elector of Saxony, drew up a curious catalogue of sacred relics preserved in the principal church at Wit- ffj CoLLOQ. Mens. p. 315 & 326. 8S LIFE OF MELAXCTHON. temberg. It contained the enormous number of nineteen thousand three hundred and seventy -four. Previous to the more correct ideas of religion which he received from Luther, the Elector was a great collector of these rarities. But the relics in the churches of Hall were still more curious, (''jg'y' These precious specimens of su- perstition are of very high antiquity. In the year 359, the Emperor Constantius caused the remains of St. Andrew and St. Luke to be re- moved to the temple of the Twelve Apostles at Constantinople, from which precedent the search for saints and martyrs, whose bodies were sup- posed to possess extraordinary virtues, became general. The wonder seems to be how a suffi- cient number could be procured, to serve even by piecemeal for the purpose of so many ages and churches ; but this apparent difficulty is solved by father John Ferand, who asserts, that " God was pleased to multiply and re-produce them for the devotion of the faithful." Instead of swelling the inventory to thousands, a speci- men of a few may afford the reader some data by which to ascertain whether the probability is that they were multiplied by divine omnipotence, or by human credulity. " The rod of Moses with which he performed his miracles. " " AfeatJier of the angel Gabriel. (g) Seckend. Hist. Luth. Lib. I. p. 221-223. Lib. in. p. 372. y LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 89 " A finger of a cherub . " The slippers of the antediluvian Enoch. " The spoon and pap dish of the Holy Child. " A lock of hair of Mai-?/ Magdalene. *' A tear our Lord shed over Lazarus, preserved hy an angel who gave it in a phial to Mary Magdalene. " One of the coals that broiled St. Laivrence. " The face of a seraph with only part of the nose. " The snout of a seraph, supposed to belong to the defective face. *' Some of the rays of the star that appeared to the magi."' The bishop of Mentz, says Luther, fh) boasted that he had a flame of the bush WHICH Moses beheld burning ! The necessity of some reform of abuses, even the more enlightened CathoHcs themselves have always admitted, and the manner in which it was accomplished, is worthy the most attentive consideration. Man usually employs great means to accomplish insignificant purposes ; but God produces the greatest effects by the smallest apparent effort. Hence there is a characteristic ^^^''^'^^TjL difference between divine and human methods ^t of operation, which perhaps was never more re- ^'^^ markably conspicuous than in the history of the ^s^^^^^^^ Reformation. Never, consequently, did any work exhibit more visible traces of a divine in- terposal. When Leo X. took the Papal chair, he found the revenues of the church exhausted by the vast projects and ambitious enterprizes of his immediate predecessors, and not only was he (hj COLLOQ. Mensal. p. 314. .^ ^ 90 LIFE OF MET.ANCTH0N. naturally disinclined to economize, and liberal in his encouragement of the arts and learned men, but extremely desirous of aggrandizing the Me- dicean family, of maintaining a splendid establish- ment, and of contributing to the exterior magni- ficence of the Catholic church. Julius II. had granted indulgences to all who contributed to the building of the church of St. Peter at Rome, and under the same pretext Leo adopted a similar plan of obtaining money. " Pope Leo X.,*' says Sleidan, " making use of that power which his predecessors had usurped over all Christian churches, sent abroad into all kingdoms his letters and bulls, with ample promises of the full pardon of sins, and of eternal salvation to such as would purchase the same with money !" It is obvious that the multiplication of crimes in a superstitious and dissolute age, would be proportionate to the facility of obtaining par- don. It had been a practice in the different governments of Europe, to allow the payment of a fine to the magistrate, by way of compounding for the punishment due to an offence. The avaricious and unprincipled court of Rome adopted a similar plan in religious concerns, and intent only on the augmentation of revenue it even rejoiced in the degradation of the human mind and character. The officers of the Roman chancery published a book containing the exact sum to be paid for any particular sin. A deacon LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 91 guiltv of murder was absolved for twenty crowns. A bishop or abbot might assassinate for three hundred li\Tes. An ecclesiastic might violate his vows of chastity even with the most aggra- vating circumstances for the third part of that sum. To these and similar items, it is added, " Take notice particularly that such graces and dispensations are not granted to the pooR.fornot having xcherewilh to pay iliey cannot be comjcrt- edrfij The ori2:in of indulgences is to be traced to a time far antecedent to the period now under review. They were resorted to in the twelfth century for the purpose of private emo- lument, the bishops assuming to themselves this dispensing power, whenever they wanted money for their private pleasures, or for the exigencies of the church. They soon became a source of inexhaustible opulence, and the abbots and monks who did not possess the same autho- rity, but quite as much avarice and craft, in- vented the counterpart of this plan by carrying about the relics of saints in solemn procession, and permitting the infatuated multitude to touch and kiss them for certain stipulated prices. The Roman pontiffs soon interposed to fij Taxa Ca>;ceilar. Romans:. This book was first printed at Rome, in 1514, and at Cologne the following year. Consult ScHELHORxii Amaenit. Literar. Franco/. 1725. Vol. II. 369. Batle, Art. Banck and Tuppius^ a' / 92 LIFE OF MELANCTHOlf. share this profitable traffic of indulgences with the bishops, and at length to appropriate it to themselves. And with strange temerity they ventured not only to publish plenary remission for all temporal penalties, but for all the punish- ments predicted for transgressors in a future state of existence. The first pretence to justify this proceeding, was the holy war carried on by Eu- ropean princes against the infidels of Palestine, but this benefit was very soon extended to less important occasions. The monstrous doctrine thus originated was modified and embellished by Saint Thomas in the following century, and contained these pro- positions, " that there existed an immense trea- sure of wienV, composed of the pious deeds and virtuous actions which the saints had performed beyond what was necessary for their oivn salvation, and which were therefore applicable to the bene- fit of others ; that the guardian and dispenser of this precious treasure was the Roman pontiff, and that of consequence he was empowered to assign to such as he thought proper a portion of this inexhaustible source of merit, suitable to their respective guilt, and sufficient to deli- ver them from the punishment due to their crimes. 'Y^y' In the pontificate of Leo X. Albert, Elector of Metz, and archbishop of Magdeburg, who was /'kj MosHEiM. Eccles. Hist. Vol. III. p. 86, 8vo. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 93 soon afterwards made a cardinal, (IJ had the commission for dispensing indulgences in Ger- many, and enjoyed a considerable share of the profits. His agent in Saxony was John Tetzel, a Dominican friar, a profligate in his morals, but a man of popular eloquence, and what was still better for the purpose, of most consummate eflfrontery. He carried on a very extensive traf- fic in indulgences, in consequence of offering them to the ignorant multitude at a very low price. He boasted that " he had saved more souls from hell by his indulgences, than St. Peter had converted to Christianity by his preaching." He affirmed, if any man purchased them, his soul may rest secure respecting its salvation — ■ that the souls purchased, as soon as the money tinkles in the chest, escape and ascend to hea- ven — and that the cross erected by the preachers of indulgences, was as efficacious as the cross of /^ Christ itself. — The usual form of absolution by Tetzel, was as follows, " May our Lord Jesus Christ have mercy upon thee, and absolve thee by the merits of his most holy passion. And I, by his authority, that of his blessed apostles Peter and Paul and of the most holy Pope, granted and committed to me in these parts, do absolve thee, first from all ecclesiastical censures, in whatever manner they have been incurred, and then from all thy sins, transgressions and excesses, how (IJ Dupin's Eccles. Hist. B. II. Ch. I. 94 LIFE OF MELANCTHON". enormous soever they may be, even from such as are reserved for the cognizance of the Holy See ; and as far as the keys of the holy church extend, I remit to you all punishment which you de- serve in purgatory on their account, and I restore you to the holy sacraments of the church, to the unity of the faithful and to that innocence and purity which you possessed at baptism ; so that when you die the gates of punishment shall be shut, and the gates of the paradise of delights shall be opened, and if you shall not die at pre- sent, this grace shall remain in full force when you are at the point of death. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost/' The audacious Tetzel was particularly suc- cessful in his impious traffic in the neighbour- hood of Wittemberg, a circumstance which roused the righteous spirit of Luther to a deter- mined opposition. He declaimed both publicly and privately against the vices of the monks who published indulgences, and pointed out to the people from the pulpit, the danger of relying on any other means of salvation than those which God himself had appointed in his word. Luther was at that time about thirty-four years of age, and a professor of theology and philosophy in the University of Wittemberg. On the thirtieth of September, 1517, he maintained pubhcly at Wittemberg ninety-five propositions against in- LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 95 dulgences, by which he opened the long and glo- rious campaign which eventually secured the rights of conscience, and established the cause of protestantism. These propositions which were affixed to the church adjoining the castle of Wittemberg, were much welcomed, and obtained a wide and rapid circulation in Germany. The Augusti- nians, particularly the prior and sub-prior of the monastery, endeavoured to dissuade Luther from thus exposing himself and his order to danger, but nothing could extinguish or abate his zeal. Tetzel soon afterwards published two theses y . against the Reformer at Frankfort, the former ^^^^^ consisting of a hundred and six propositions, the \/ IjlO*^ latter of fifty, but all deduced from one general principle, as liberal and as enlightened as a Ca- tholic commissioner of indulgences might be ex- pected to assume, namely, the^Pope^ infeljibility. As a further incontestible proof of victory over his opponent, he committed his writings to the flames. The students of the University at Wit- temberg instantly resented the indignity, very much to the dissatisfaction of Luther and totally without the knowledge of the elector, senate, or rector, by treating Tetzel's propositions in a simi- lar manner. The controversy, however, was for a long period entirely of a private nature, and Luther himself relinquished his prejudices in favour of the hierarchy slowly and reluctantly. 96 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. His letters to the Pope and the bishops were ex- pressed in respectful, and even in submissive terms, for no one was less aware than him- / self of the great work he was employed by Pro- " vidence to accomplish. Some of his Augustinian brethren differed from Luther respecting several of his doctrines, which determined him to embrace the favourable opportunity of an annual meeting of the order at Heidelberg, in the summer of 1518, to publish and publicly defend his sentiments on justifica- tion, faith, good works, and other theological topics. The effect produced by this discussion was considerable, especially upon the minds of two persons afterwards distinguished in the annals of the Reformation, Martin Bucer and John Brentius. In the course of the same year three power- ful antagonists arose, Silvester Prierio, mas- ter of the Apostolic palace at Rome, James Hoogstraat, an inquisitor of Louvain, and John Eckius, professor of divinity, and vice-chancel- lor at Ingolstadt. In his controversies with these dignified ecclesiastics, he displayed the most in- trepid firmness of character, and an increasing knowledge of the truth. In reply to Prierio's extravagant representations of the Pope's power and of his superiority to a general council, he exclaims, " If such are the sentiments enter- tained at Rome, happy are they who have se- LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 97 parated from tiie church and are gone out from the midst of that Babylon ! Cursed are they who hold communion with her ! If the Pope and car- dinals do not check this mouth of Satan and compel him to recant, I solemnly declare before them that I dissent from the Roman church, and renounce her with the Pope and cardinals as the abomination of the holy place," Leo X. reclining upon the lap of sensuality and indolence, cheered by the beams of prospe- y fity, and lulled by the echoes of parasitical adula- "" tion into luxurious repose, took no notice of the progress of opinion in Germany. He expected the cpntentions which had arisen would cease of themselves, and like a few bubbles on the surface of a stream produced by some temporary and slight agitation of the waters would gradu- ally, and without any interference, disappear. When Prierio referred to the heresies of Luther, he replied with the utmost indifference, Che fra Murtino avcva iin hellissirno ino-egno^ el die cotesie erano iuvidie frulesche. " Martin is a man of talents, but these are only the squabbles of monks." But from the moment the innumer- able reports he heard of the fatal divisions of (jermany, and especially a letter from the Km- peror Maximilian I, on the subject, convinced him of his mistake, he became infuriated, and acted with a precipitancy no less conducive than his previous indifference to the advantage of H 98 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. the reformed cause. He summoned Luther to appear before him at Rome within sixty days, to answer for his heresy in the presence of select judges, of whom Prierio w^as nominated as one. Frederic, justly surnamed the wise, adopting the only measure that could have successfully averted the impending danger represented to the pontiff, that Luther's cause belonged exclusively to the jurisdiction of a German tribunal, and ought to be decided by the ecclesiastical laws of the empire. This induced the Pope to refer the case to Cardinal Cajetan, a Dominican, and his legate at that time at the diet of Augsburg. In a letter dated the eleventh of October, addressed to Melancthon from this place, which evinces at once the ardour of his friendship and the pecu- liarity of his situation, he thus expresses him- self: " There is nothing, my dear Philip, new or remarkable here, unless it be that the whole city is full of the rumour of my name, and every one is desirous of seeing this new Erostratus, the incendiary. Persevere manfully in what you are doing for the right instruction of youth ; for my part I am ready, if such be the will of God, to suffer any thing for you and for them. I would rather die, and lose for ever, what would indeed be a most painful privation, your most delight- ful society, than recant any part of the truth I have spoken, or furnish those with an occasion of disparaging the most important studies, who LIFE OP MELANCTHON. 99 are both the sijiiest and the bitterest enemies of sound learning. Italy is plunged into the pro- foundest Egyptian darkness, all are ignorant of Christ and the things that are Christ's. Yet these are the lords and masters of our faith and morals ! Thus the anger of God is evinced in the accomplishment of that prediction ; ' I will give children to be their princes, and women shall rule over them.' Farewell, my dear Philip, and pray fervently that the divine displeasure may be averted.'* fmj Luther held three different conferences with the cardinal, in the month of October, but to no purpose: after which, Charles Miltitz, a Saxon knight belonging to the court of Leo, and well qualified for such a commission by prudence and sagacity, was sent to supersede Cajetan. (nj At his first conference in the year 1519, at Alten- burg, he succeeded so far as to persuade Luther to write a submissive letter to Rome, and after two other interviews great expectations were entertained of a speedy and complete reconcilia- fmj LuTH. Op. Tom. I. p. 163. fnj For the double purpose of conciliating the Elector of Saxony, and avoiding the humiliating' appearaoce of sending a messeng-er expressly to treat with Luther, the Pope sent the golden or consecrated Rose to Frederic, by Miltitz, which was an annual present to some distinguished, favourite of the court of Rome. It was received, however, with coldness, and even contempt. H g 100 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. tion. Happily the inconsiderate violence of the Papal advocates defeated these hopes, and stimu- lated Luther and his followers to still greater diligence in the investigation of truth, and to in- creased activity in the propagation of it. The origin and early progress of this extra- ordinary controversy, together with the motives which influenced the great heresiarch of the six- teenth century, are so admirably stated by Me- lancthon in his preface to the second volume of Luther's w^orks, that the substance of it cannot with propriety be omitted in this narrative. "The Reverend Martin Luther gave us reason to hope, that in the preface to this part of his writings, he would furnish a narrative of his own life, and of the occasions of those con- tests in which he was engaged : and he would have done it, if, before this volume was printed, he had not been called from this mortal life to the eternal society of God and the heavenly church. A clear exposition of his private life would have been peculiarly useful, for it abound- ed with profitable examples for the confirmation of the pious, and the admonition of posterity. It would also have refuted the calumnies of those who insinuate, that he was excited by princes or others to undermine the dignity of bishops, or that he was animated through the expectation of private gain to break the bonds of monastic servitude. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 101 " The parents of Martin Luther originally lived in the town of Eisleben, where Martin was born, and afterwards removed to Mansfeldt, in which place his father became a magistrate and obtained the highest reputation for his integrity. His mother was remarkable for every virtue, and especially for the fear of God and a devotional spirit. They were peculiarly diligent in their daily instructions to educate their son in the knowledge and fear of God, and in a proper sense of every duty. Luther was placed under the tuition of a pious tutor at the school of Eisleben, and at the age of fourteen was removed to Mag- deburg, along with John Reineck, who after- wards rose to considerable distinction, and with whom he formed a lasting friendship. In the course of a year he was sent to the school of Eisenach, where he applied to grammatical stu- dies with the utmost dilioence. He far sur- passed his schoolfellows in talent, especially in eloquence and copiousness of language, in pro- saic and poetical composition. Captivated with the love of literature he panted for academical in- struction, and if he had met with suitable teachers, his capacity would have enabled him to go through all the sciences, nor is it impro- bable that the milder studies of a sound philoso- phy and a careful habit of elaborate composition, might have been useful in moderating the vehe- mence of his natural temper. But at Erfurt he 102 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. was introduced to the thorny logic of the age, which his penetrating genius soon completely un- derstood. Eager for knowledge he was not satis- fied with this, but hastened to read Cicero, Vir- gil, Livy, and most of the Roman writers ; whom he studied not as boys do for the sake of the words, but for instruction. He entered into the meaning and spirit of the authors, and as his memory was tenacious, almost every thing he read was ready for use. Thus, even in his early youth he excited the admiration of the whole university. " Having taken the degree of master of arts at the age of twenty, his relations urged him to embrace the profession of the law, thinking that his genius and eloquence might be employed ad- vantageously to the state, but he very soon dis- appointed their wishes by entering the Augusti- nian monastery at Erfurt. There he not only pursued ecclesiastical studies with the closest attention, but submitted to the severest disci- pline, and far surpassed others in the various exercises of reading, disputation, fasting, and prayer. As he was neither little in person nor feeble in constitution, I have been astonished at the small quantities of food he required, for 1 have known him when in perfect health, neither eat nor drink four days successively, and for a considerable length of time subsist on a slight allowance of bread and a herring day after day. /* LIFE OF MELANCTHOX. '' The occasion of liis commencing that course of life, which he considered most suitable to piety and sacred learning, was this, as he related it himself, and as many know. When deeply meditating on the wonderful instances of divine wrath and judgment, he was frequently so alarmed, that he was ready to die with terror. I saw him once wrought up to such a pitch of feel- ing in the course of an argument on some doc- trinal point, that he threw himself on a bed in a neighbour's chamber, and amidst the most fervent supplications, frequently exclaimed, ' he hath concluded all under sin, that he mi^ht have mercy upon all.* " It was not poverty, therefore, but religion which induced him to seek a monastic life, in which though his proficiency in scholastic learn- ing, and his skill in the inextricable labyrinths of disputation were remarkable, yet as he was rather in quest of solid improvement than of fame, he regarded these pursuits as only orna- mental and subordinate. He eagerly resorted to the fountains of heavenly knowledge, that is, the writings of the prophets and apostles ; that he might ascertain the will of God and have his faith established upon the firmest evidence. To this he was the more disposed, in consequence of those anxieties which preyed upon his mind. " He used to relate that an elderly priest in the monastry at Erfurt, to whom he explained 104 LIFE OP MELANCTHON. his feelings, consoled him by discoursing on the nature of faith, and directing his attention to the article in the creed, ' I believe in the remission of sins/ This he interpreted not merely as im- plying a general belief, for such a faith even devils possess, or a conviction that some persons of peculiar excellence as David or Peter arc par- doned, but that it was the divine command that each individual should personally appropriate the doctrine. This interpretation he confirmed by a reference to St. Bernard, and to the lano:uaoe of St. Paul, ' We are justified by faith.' Luther was thus led to pay greater attention to the doc- trine of justification by faith, so much inculcated by Paul, and by the study of the different pas- sages on this subject in the writings of the pro- phets and apostles, accompanied by daily prayer, he acquired increasing light. " At that period he began to read the works of Augustine, where, particularly in his com- mentary on the Psalms and his book concerning the Sj.irit and the Letter, he found many deci- sive passages which confirmed his idea of faith and aflforded him much consolation. Nor did he altogether relinquish the Scntentiarii. He was studious of Occam, Gerson, and others, and some of their writings he could almost repeat by heart, but Augustine was his favourite author. " Staupitz, who was anxious to promote theological studies in the recent academical esta- LIFE OF MELANCTHOX. 105 hlishment at Wittemberg, recommended Luther to a professorship in 1.508, in the twenty-sixth year of his age. His genius was soon noticed in the daily exercises, especial!}^ by Martin Mel- lerstadius, who plainly predicted the mighty change he was likely hereafter to accomplish in the current doctrine of the schools. " Here he expounded the logic and physics of Aristotle, but continued to pursue his theo- logical studies. Some time afterwards he went to Rome to settle a dispute with the monks, and upon his return the degree of Doctor of Divkiity was conferred upon him at the expence of the Elector Frederic, who had heafdTiim preach and admired the force of liis a;enius, his nervous lan- guage, andjlifiiixcelient matter of his discourses. " Afterwards he expounded the Psalms and the epistle to the Romans, and in such a luminous manner, that truth seemed to arise with new splen- dour after a long and cloudy night. He pointed out the distinction between the law and thegospel, he refuted the Pharisaical error at that time in- culcated both in the schools and the pulpit, tliat men may merit the remission of sin by their own works and become righteous before God. Thus he directed the minds of men to Jesus Christ, and like John the Baptist, pointed to the Lamb of God who taketh away the sins of the world. " This revival of important truth procured 106 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. him a ver}^ extensive authority, especially as his conduct corresponded with his instructions, and these proceeded not merely from the lip, but from the heart. This purity of life produced a great effect upon the minds of his hearers, and the old proverb was verified o-;^/£^ov, u^ Enrsiv, xvpioj rx ry Byz\. ttjjjv to ij5of. ' Piety makes the speech persuasive.* Wherefore many worthy men in- fluenced by the excellence of his doctrine and the sanctity of his character, were afterwards in- duced to comply with some of the changes which he introduced in certain established ceremonies. " Not that Luther at that time meditated an innovation upon the customary observances, or broached any alarming opinions, but he was illustrating^ more and more the doctrines so essen- tial to all, of repentance, the remission of sins, faith, and salvation by the cross of Christ. Every pious mind was charmed with these lovely truths, and the learned were pleased to see Christ, the prophets and apostles, brought as it were, out of darkness, mourning and imprisonment, the differences between the law and the gospel, and between philosophy and evangelical doctrine established, nothing of which was to be discerned in Thomas Aquinas, Scotus, and other scholas- tics. Add to this, the study of the Greek and Latin languages was promoted by the writings of Erasmus, and many persons of cultivated minds began to despise the barbarism of the schools. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 107 Luther himself studied Greek and Hebrew, thai he might enjoy access to the fountains of sacred wisdom. " Such was the course which Luther wasdili- gently pursuing at the moment when the impudent Dominican Tetzel published his prostitute indul- gences in these parts ; who was so irritated by Tetzers impious discourses, and so inflamed with the love of pure religion, that he issued those propositions concerning indulgences which are inserted in his works. These he posted up in Wittemberg on the day of the feast of All Saints, in the j^ear 1517. Tetzel, hoping to ingratiate himself into the favour of the Roman pontiff, immediately convoked his monks to assist him in writing against Luther. But this did not sa- tisfy him. He thundered against Luther as -a heretic, and publicly committed his propositions to the flames, threatening a similar fate to their author. This conduct compelled Luther to dis- cuss the subjects of difference at greater length, in support of, the Truth. " In this manner the great controversy com- menced, when Luther did not in the least suspect or dream of the change about to be accomplished, nor indeed of even rooting out indulgences. It is therefore calumnious in those who say that he only made use of this affair as a plausible pretext to subvert the establishment, and to introduce himself and his friends into power. So far from / 108 LIFE OF MKLANCTHON. this, the Elector Frederic in particular beheld these contentions with sorrow, and acted with extreme caution. Frederic was distinguished above all his contemporary princes as a lover of peace, neither stimulating- nor even applauding Luther, and frequently expressing his apprehen- sions of future discords. But he was a wise man, by no means disposed to follow the advice of those who are for crushing every innovation in the bud, but rather regarding the admonitions of heaven, to listen to the gospel, and not resist the truth. He read the word of God for himself, and submitted to its authority. I know, too, that he often asked wise and good men to give their opinion ; and particularly at Cologne, at the time of the coronation of Charles V., he af- fectionately urged Erasmus to speak freely on the subject of Luther and the existing controversies. To which Erasmus replied, ' Luther is right in his sentiments, but he wants more mildness.' Frederic took occasion afterwards to exhort him to moderate the asperity of his style. " Luther promised Cardinal Cajetan to be silent, if silence were also imposed upon his ad- versaries ; from which it is evident that he was at that time solicitous of peace, and not of con- tention : but he was provoked into disputation by illiterate writers, who obliged him to publish on the sacraments, on the distinction between divine and human laws, on vows, and other sub- LIFE OF MELANCTIION. 109 jects. Eckius, for the purpose of rendering him hateful to the hierarchy, moved the question re- specting the supremacy of the Roman see. " Human policy detests changes and innova- tion ; and it must be confessed that, in the pre- sent unhappy state of mankind, there will always be a mixture of good and evil in the very best of causes : but in the church the command of God is paramount to all human authority. ' This,* says the eternal Father, ' is my beloved Son, HEAR YE HIM ;' and he denounces eternal ven- geance against those who impiously endeavour to abolish any part of revealed truth. Luther, therefore, was engaged in a work both of piety and necessity, especially as a teacher in the church of God, when he opposed pernicious errors. If innovation be odious, if the prevalence of discord be unpleasant and we cannot witness it without grief, be it remembered, the blame attaches to the promulgators and abettors of error. " I state this not merely for the sake of de- fending Luther and his adherents, but that pious people now, and in future ages, may perceive what is, and always will be, the ruling principle in the true church of God ; and how God, by the word of the gospel, selects his eternal church from the great and corrupt mass of sin- ners, amongst whom his word shines as a light in a dark place. Thus, in the time of the pre- valence of Pharisaical impiety, Zacharias, Eliza- 110 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. beth, Mary, and many others, preserved the purity of truth ; and previous to that age there were many who saw, with greater or less degrees of clear- ness, the genuine gospel, and worshipped the true God. Such an one was that aged priest 1 have mentioned who encouraged Luther amidst his conscientious convictions and struggles, and was in some respects his teacher in the faith. Let us then join in the fervent supplication of Isaiah for his hearers, ' Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples. Yoy* This statement will tend to show that base supersti- tions cannot last for ever, and will explain the causes of religious innovation. " No private ambition induced Luther to undertake this cause at first ; and though he was naturally ardent and passionate, yet he was always mindful of his peculiar department ; and, discri- minating wisely between the office of a magistrate who wields the sword to govern the multitude, and that of a Christian preacher who is to instruct the church of God, he disclaimed the use of arms or coercive measures. Whenever Satan, who perpetually aims to disgrace the cause and subvert the church of God through the errors of miserable men, excited several seditious charac- ters to tumultuous irregularities, he condemned them in the severest manner, and both adorned (o) IsA. viii. l(j. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. Ill by his example, and strengthened by his elo- quence, the bonds of social order. But when 1 reflect on this subject, and consider how many great men in the church have committed sad mistakes in this point, 1 do affirm that no human care, but a divine principle alone, could have sufficed to keep him so constantly within the limits of duty. *' He constantly exhorted every one to ' ren- der unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's, and to God the things which are God's ;' that is, to worship God in the exercise of genuine repen- tance, in an open avowal of the truth, in prayer and in a conscientious discharge of duty; and in the fear of God to reo^ard all the civil reg:ula- tions of the community. Such w^as Luther. He gave to God the things which are God's, he taught the truth, and prayed aright, and possessed all those virtues which are well-pleasing to God; and, as a citizen, he shunned every thing sedi- tious. Virtues greater than these cannot, I think, be desired in the present life. " But though we extol the excellencies of the man, and the use he made of the gifts of heaven, yet we ought to feel peculiar gratitude to God, who, by his means, restored the true light of the gospel, which we should preserve and dif- fuse. ... It is this doptrine of which the Son of God says, ' If any man love me he will keep my words, and my Father will love him, and we / 11^ LIFE OF MELANCTHOX. will come unto him and make our abode with him/" " The celebrated disputation at Leipsic claims some notice, both on account of its early oc- currence in this great polemical campaign, and of Melancthon's concern with it. It lasted from the twenty-seventh of June to the fifteenth of July. Carolostadius, or Carlostadt, archdeacon of the church of All Saints at Wittemberg, and a zealous reformer, and Eckius of Ingoldstadt, the papal advocate, after some preliminary pam- phleteering, agreed upon settling the contro- versy, after the fashion of the age, by a public y debate. (^George, Duke of Saxony, uncle of the ■^ Elector, ) offered the city of Leipsic for the pur- pose, expecting, no less than Eckius himself, a triumphant issue to the Catholic cause. Thither the combatants repaired on the tvventj'-seventh of June, Luther and Melancthon accompanying their friend. The assembly was splendid. The Duke of Saxony, the Members of his Council, the Magistrates of Leipsic, the Doctors and Ba- chelors of the University, with a number of per- sons of quality, were present; and scribes were appointed to take notes of the debate. It is a curious circumstance that John Agricola, of Eis- leben, who was employed on the Lutheran side, was afterwards an opponent of the Reformation, and John Poliander, who was amanuensis to Eckius, attached himself to Luther at the close LITE OF MELANCTHON. 113 of the disputation, and afterwards became a preacher of the gospel in Prussia.f/^y' The first six days' discussion between Eckius and Carlostadt, on the subject of free-will, was conducted with considerable skill by both parties ; but if it were detailed would appear pre-emi- nently uninteresting. It is sufficient to state that the principal question was, " Whether the human will had any operation in the performance of good works, or whether it was merely passive to the power of divine grace ?'* Eckius main- tained that the will co-operated with the grace of God, and Carlostadt asserted its total ineffi- cacy to perform any meritorious act. Melanc- thon, who was a hearer, says, it first gave him v a practical demonstration of what the ancients understood by sophistry. Eckius undoubtedly acquired the greatest share of popularity, from the superior ease and fluency he discovered to his antagonist. Luther soon afterwards obtained the Duke's permission to take the place of Car- lostadt in the debate, at the particular request of Eckius who was impatient to encounter the leading Reformer. Each was in truth equally ardent, conscious that a mighty cause w^as at stake, which demanded the whole force of their respective energies of mind. On the one side was Eckius, impelled by no small degree of con- (pj Seckend. Hist. Luth. Lib, I. p.d2. 114 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. fidence in himself from previous conflicts, especially the recent one with Carlostadt, sup- ported by the plaudits of the Catholic party, which was the prevalent one in point of num- bers and splendour, and having acquired a very high degree of popularity ; fq) — on the other, Luther, persecuted and defamed, conscious that if he betrayed the least feebleness in argu- ment, or the smallest degree of forgetfalness or hesitation, it would be taken advantage of by his wily adversaries, and thus prove detrimental to the important cause he advocated ; and that even though he should be completely triumphant in argument, it would rather tend to irritate than convince or silence his opponents. Never was a more important crisis — never a greater cause — nevermore determined, more equalized, or more impetuous antagonists : As when two black clouds, With heav'n's artillery fraught, come rattling on Over the Caspian, then stand front to front. Hovering a space, till winds the signal blow To join their dark encounter in mid air — Sofrown'd the mighty combatants — frj Eckius selected thirteen propositions from the works of Luther as the subjects of " long fq) Eckius had already engaged in public disputations in eight different Universities. frJ Milton's Pavad. Lost, B. 11. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 115 debate ;" but the principal one that engaged their attention was the foundation of the supremacy claimed by the Roman Pontiffs After ten days of violent and incessant discussion, in which Eckius was obliged to admit the eminent " at- tainments of his reverend opponent/' and even to apologize for himself, the victory was claimed by both parties. Luther says he must acknow- ledge that he and his friends were overcome — " clamore et gestu,'^ by noise and gesture.f^^^ Hoffman, the rector of the university of Leipsic, refused to give a decision in favour of either; in consequence of which it was referred to the universities of Paris and Erfurt, who neglected, though they did not refuse to do it. The imme- diate effect of this dispute upon Eckius, was that of increasing his animosity against the Reformer, on whom he determined to revenge himself in every possible way. Luther considers it as some good evidence that the duke felt the force of his arguments, because on one of these con- troversial days when they were dining together, he laid his hands on the shoulders of the two combatants and exclaimed, " Whether the Pope exists by divine or by human right, he is, how- ever, the Vo^eV ft) If we may judge by the letter of Eckius himself to his friend Hoogstraat, it will not be fsj Seck. Hist. Luth. Lib. I. p. 73. ft J LuXH. Op. Tom. I. Seckend. Hist. Luth. n. 74. I 2 /, 116 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. difficult to ascertain the victorious party. He complains that the Lutherans had great advan- tages over him, because they brought several / books to which they had recourse, they had their disputation in writing and conferred together about an answer, and they were many against ^ one single man. fuj It is no inconsiderable cir- ^ '^ cumstance also, that a large number of the young ^ students immediately quitted Leipsic and re- paired to the University of Wittemberg. (^i;y Though Melancthon had undoubtedly fa- voured the designs, and aided the efforts of Luther previously to this conference, he was roused by the present occasion to a more particular study of the points of difference, and a more vigorous co-operation with the great champion of religious liberty. He had an opportunity of hearing whatever one of the most zealous, eloquent, and able advocates of Popery could say in defence of his system, of perceiving the influence of that system upon the minds of men in general, and of estimating more correctly perhaps than under any other circumstances he could have done the great importance of the controversy itself. " From the period of this famous public disputation, he applied himself more intensely to the interpreta- tion of the Scriptures and the defence of pure fuj LuTH. Op. Tom. I. p. 303. /'vj Seckend. Hist. Lutb. Lib. I. p. 92. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 117 Christian doctrine, and he is justly esteemed by Protestants to have been under divine Providence, the most powerful coadjutor of the Saxon Re- former. His mild and peaceable temper, his aversion to schismatic contention, his reputation for piety and for knowledge, and above all, his happy art of exposing error and maintaining truth in the most perspicuous language, all these en- dowments concurred to render him eminently serviceable to the revival of the religion of Christ. Little did Eckius imagine that the public dispu- tation in which he had foreseen nothing but vic- tory and exultation, and the downfall of Luthe- ranism would give rise to another theological champion, who should contend for Christian truth and Christian liberty, with the primitive spirit of an apostle. At Wittemberg, Melanc- thon had probably been well acquainted with Luther's lectures on divinity; but it was in the citadel of Leipsic, that he heard the Romish tenets defended by all the arguments that inge- nuity could devise; there his suspicions were strengthened respecting the evils of the existing hierarchy; and there his righteous spirit was roused to imitate, in the grand object of his fu- ture inquiries and exertions, the indefatigable endeavours of his zealous and adventurous friend." (w) (vjj Milner's History of the Church of Christ, Vol. IV. p, 428. lis LIFE OF MELANCTHON. Melancthon represents himself as only a spectator and hearer of this celebrated dispute,/^ a-^ but he took the most lively interest in every part of the proceedings, and several writers/^i/^ have stated that he often went up to Carlostadt and whispered so many useful suggestions, that Eckius was provoked to exclaim : ' Tacetii Phi- lippe, ac tua sludia cura^ nee me perturba,' i. e. ' Hold your tongue Philip, mind your own busi- ness, and do not interfere with me/ His opinion of the different disputants is given in a letter to a friend, and may be relied on for candour and accuracy, fzj " Eckius was much admired for his various and striking ingenuities. You know Carlostadt, he is certainly a man of worth and of extraordinary erudition. As to Luther, whom I have known most intimately, his lively genius, his learning and eloquence I admire, and it is impossible not to be in love with his truly sincere and pure Christian spirit." It is difficult to as- certain how Eckius procured a copy of this let- ter, which also contained a general account of the transactions at Leipsic, but he instantly ^xj " Neque enim qiiidquam mihi cum Eccio lerum un- quam fuit, et Lipsica pugnae ociosus spectator in reliquo vulgo sedi." Defensio P. Mel. contra Eccirim. (ij) Seckend. Hist. Luth. Lib. I. Adam. Vit. Philoso- phorum, p. 189. Winsiiem. Oratio in Fuiiere Melancllionis. (z) Luth. Op. Tom. I. p. 304. LIFE OF MELAJJCTHON. 119 published a most acrimonious reply, calling^ Melancthon a mere grammarian, fa) and with preposterous self-sufficiency affirming, that " al- though he might have some knowledge of Greek and Latin," yet " he w^as not a person with whom a divine could with propriety condescend to enter the lists." Nothing can be inferred from this contemptuous language, excepting the vio- lent malignity of his temper, and the secret con- sciousness he felt of the talents of his opponent. Melancthon replied, in a tract consistino- of only five folio pages, but written with so much mildness, elegance, and acuteness, that it proved extremely serviceable to the Lutheran cause. To railing he opposes argument, to arrogance modesty, to dogmatism, sound sense and genuine piety. He contends without virulence and tri- umphs without parade. Some of the sentiments are so excellent, and the manner in which they are expressed so truly characteristic, that they ought not to be suppressed. After remarking that " in the epistle which had excited so much indignation, he had merely i^itended a slight sketch rather than a full de- scription of the Leipsic disputations ; for to have done otherwise would have required more time than his numerous occupations admitted, he fa J In his rage he even coins an epithet of contempt. " Hie inquam, Graiv.matcUus.^* y 120 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. solemnly disavows ever having intentionally given offence to any one, deeming it both un- christian and inhuman to injure or detract from another's merit. If he had done wrong, he wished it to be imputed either to incaution or accident, and begged to be forgiven, conscious as he was of being totally devoid of any malignity, and forced as he felt himself into this unwelcome arena of contention. He was resolved to be deaf to the calumnies of Eckius, appealing to what he had himself written for his best justifi- cation, and he would now conduct his argument Avithout uttering any petulant or unjustifiable reproach against his antagonist, because he was more solicitous for the glory of Christ than respect- ing the effect which any frivolous calumnies might produce. " Eckius," says he, " is confident of being victorious, by appealing to the authority of the holy fathers of the church. But how does this avail him ? I am, indeed, by no means disposed to depreciate, on the contrary, I highly reverence those illustrious luminaries of the church and de- fenders of Christian doctrine. But I cannot deem it rash, as the fathers differ in their sentiments to receive the scripture, and not the vary- ing opinions of men as the ultimate appeal. As there is always some one simple meaning to the lan- guage of scripture, (for divine truth is most intel- ligibly simple), this sense is to be sought by a LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 121 comparison of passages, and by the general strain of the particular discourse. In this manner we are enjoined to investigate the sacred writings, as we examine the sentiments and decrees of men, by bringing them to the touchstone and trying their consistency. Then it is more satis- factory to consult their judgment on the meaning of scripture, from those places where they pro- fessedly explained it, rather than where they are only indulging their own feelings in rhetorical descriptions. We all experience this fact, that scripture is variously interpreted according to our various dispositions of mind and cast of opi- nion. This or that interpretation pleases, because it seizes our feelings and captivates our passions, and as the polypus imitates the colour of the rock to which it fixes, so we are prone to use our utmost endeavours to conform our sentiments to the prejudices of our own minds. It fre- quently happens that the mind may admit, and for a time be wonderfully charmed with the genuine force and propriety of a sentiment, but afterwards be incapable of reviving such an im- pression; and thus the fathers of the church, wrought up to a pitch of feeling, make use of scripture in a sense not in itself bad, but some- times inapplicable and foreign to the purpose. And though 1 do not totally condemn this, yet I think it cannot be of much avail in controversy. 1^2 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. for according to the Greek adage, xaXws rp'ex^fnv, a'AAa hros ISS ' They run well, but then they do not keep in the course/ I dare affirm, that sometimes the fathers have given interpre- tations of scripture, suggested perhaps to the mind in a state of high rehgious feehng, and which might not be erroneous, but which to us inferior men and in a less glowing state of mind, have not seemed to accord with the literal sense. There is a secret manna and food of the soul, to which Paul alludes, when he spe^iks oi spirit ua lit/ discerning' it, which is more easily felt than de- scribed. But who does not perceive how often the scriptures have been misapplied in the different controversies that have been agitated at vari- ous periods, of which innumerable examples might be adduced, so that it lias frequently hap- pened, especially of late, that their exposition has been at complete variance with the original text. As to the scholastic method of interpretation it- is any thing but simple, a very Proteus, trans- forming the sense of scripture into allegories, tropes, figures, and diverting the truth from its literal, grammatical, or historical meaning, into I know not what wretched and polluted channels. After touching upon the various points of difference, he concludes by saying, " Eckius himself shall be witness if I have not avoided LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 1 $3 those invidious reflections, which had I been so inclined, might have been indulged." In writing to his friends, he uniformly breathes the same admirable spirit. " If," says he, " you perceive /ff^' any thing of an antichristian nature in what I send, let me beg you to perform the duty of a > genuine friend, admonish me instantly, reprove, yea, lash me as you please. He is, believe me, the dearest of all my friends, who is most honest and downright in his remarks, for you know, as it is not my disposition to dissemble, so I always look upon fialtering friends ?ls they deserve. But as genuine Christian affection neither flatters nor admits of flattery, so j'^ou will acquire the cha- racter of a friend with me, by being a faithful adviser. Eckius rages against us in the most coarse and violent manner, either from a natural impetuosity of disposition or because he considers himself aggrieved, and my purpose is not to in- flict, but to compensate for any supposed injury. He is undoubtedly very severe ; but I have re- plied only in a small publication, and with as much moderation as possible, for God is my witness, that I do not cherish the slightest ani- mosity. 1 might have said more, perhaps, with- out transgressing the bounds of propriety, but I chose to refrain in order to write not what my adversary deserved, but what was worthy of our own character and cause. After our departure 124 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. from Leipsic, Eckius certainly reviled Luther in the most outrageous manner/' fh) Such was the temper of this amiable con- troversialist, who so well understood the wide difference between opprobrious epithets and solid arguments, and who it is obvious on every occasion sought truth rather than 'victory. He abhorred the field of strife, and hated Discord as an unnatural and ferocious demon. He valued peace as it ought to be valued, above gold and silver — above honours and empires. He was more anxious to do good than to shine, to carry the olive branch than to wield the sword, to be regarded or — for such was the temper of the times — to be despised as an humble peace maker, than to be blazoned forth as a polemical hero ! Still let it be recollected, and in this sen- timent Melancthon would have concurred, that we ought not so much to lament that con- troversies have arisen, as that they have been conducted in an anti-christian spirit. No- thing, it is readily admitted, can be more detri- mental to the interests of genuine religion than intemperate and ill-humoured debatings, but on the other hand — open, fair, and candid discus- sion is calculated to promote good will, to pacify resentments, to smooth the wrinkled brow of bigotry, to dissipate doubts, to clear up fbj Melancth. Ep. II. ad Joan, Langium. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 125 difficulties, and to elucidate truth. Melancthon may be exhibited as a bright example to all controversial writers of the spirit in which their arguments should be conducted — or rather, let them be induced to imitate a greater than he, who, " When he was reviled, reviled NOT again \" ( 126) CHAP. IV. A. D. 1520. r^-^^« ^^■^^^ Melancthons marriage — His domestic character-^His exemplary virtues — His boundless liberality — Account of his favourite servant John — Epitaph on his tomb- stone — Candour of Mclancthon — His Meekness-'— Sym- pathy — Interesting Letter ivritten to a Friend, who j/ had sustained a painful family bereavement — ifits ■^ Piety — Sincerity — Wit — Memory — Temperance — Modesty — Humility — Parental conduct — His value for Time — Marriage and Settlement of his tico Daughters — Character of his Sons-in-Laic, George Sabinus and Caspar Peucer — Notice of Thurzo, Bishop of Breslaw. As the traveller at " the sweet approach of ev*n," hastens from incessant toils and conflict- ing elements, to the shelter of some hospitable roof, where, amidst the cheerfulness and comfort of the social circle, he forgets past difficulties and is strengthened for future exertion: so we may now be permitted to retire for a season, from the thorny paths and stormy atmosphere of polemical discussion, to the bowers of domestic peace. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 197 Although from the peculiarity of circum- stances which surrounded Melancthon, and the important period in which he lived, we are na- turally anxious to trace his public career, and follow him through the principal scenes of an ac- tive life, yet in order to accomplish the legitimate purposes of biography, it will be proper to turn aside for a moment to visit him in the recesses of privacy, by this means aiming to impart various instruction, as well as to prepare amusement. Few persons can claim to rank amongst dis- tinguished scholars or professors, and fewer still are desti ned by P rovidence to undergo the strug- gles, to encounter the resistance, and to pursue the high and holy course of Reformers ; but every one occupies a place and possesses an influence in the family. One or other of the endearing names of father, husband, parent, child, brother, sister, friend, belongs to every human being ; to these different relations, peculiar and appropriate duties are attached, and from the manner in which they are discharged or neglected, we have an op- portunity both of noticing the developement of individual character, and of ascertaining the prin- ciple upon which the felicity or infelicity of life in a very considerable degree depends. Here we have all the advantage o^ example, arising from the interesting consideration that another is acting in our own circumstances, and moving in a similar sphere ; and if our personal improvement 128 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. be not promoted, whether the example be good or bad, we must be strangely deficient in moral taste and right feeling. The chief actors in seasons of great political change or great moral revolution, are unfavour- ably situated for the cultivation of the milder graces ; by the collision of opposing parties and contradictory opinions, the sparks of intem- perate anger are too apt to be struck out, and dispositions even naturally mild, have sometimes been inflamed. But in cases where it has been deemed necessary or prudent for the sake of the cause, to suppress the rising emotions of resentment, and to check improper violence of language in public, the rage of the heart has burst forth in the circle of unrestrained friend- ship, and disturbed the hour of private intercourse. Here, however, the character of Melancthon is particularly worthy of admiration. A meek and quiet spirit never forsook him. — He always en- gaged reluctantly in disputation, and was never or seldom irritated by it, even in the smallest ^ degree. He harboured no resentments. When he retired from the field of strife, he laid aside his weapons and most willingly renounced the glory of the controversialist, for the peace and comfort of the domestic man. He did not bring y malevolent feelings or angry passions into his family, for in truth he had none to bring. But it would be doing him great injustice to represent LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 129 him as a tame or effeminate character. Passions he had, but they were under the due regulation of reason and piety. Religion had completed the work of nature; he was iiind and gentle upon principle, as well as by constitution. If ^"^^ ^'^*''' the emotions of anger at any time arose in his mind, they were instantly suppressed as a weak- ness unworthy of a man, as a sin unbecoming a Christian. In the year 1 520, he married a very respect- able young lady belonging to one of the principal families in Wittemberg. Her name was Catha- ^ fine Crappin, and her father was a burgomaster"' of the town. She is described by Camerarius, whose intercourse with the family was such as to afford him every means of correct information, as a truly religious person, most assiduously at- tentive to her domestic concerns, extremely hberal to all, and not only benevolent to the poor, and even lavish of her own means of sup- plying them, but urgent with others whom she could at any time influence to minister to their necessities. With eminent piety of spirit she united great purity of manners, and avoided all ^ extravagance in dress and all luxury in food. Nothing could be more congenial to the taste of Melancthon, who was never captivated by the blandishments of pleasure, nor seduced by the charms of sensuality. In a letter to Langius, dated in November, he speaks of her in terms of k; 130 LIFE OF MEl.ANCTHON. high regard, as possessed of a disposition and manners which entirely corresponded with his wishes : and he represents his marriage as the result of serious deliberation, and conformable to the advice of his friends. ^^^y' Seldom have two individuals become more completely one in spirit and character, and seldom has the marriage con- tract been more firmly sealed by mutual attach- ment. Reason, religion, and love, presided over y their happy union, and confirmed their solemn vows. During this year he commenced a course of lectures on the epistle of Paul to the Romans, and so indefatigable was he in the regular dis- charge of this and all his academical duties, that the suspension of the usual course even for the single day of his marriage was so remarkable, as to be publicly intimated in the following curious notice : A studiis hodi^ facit ocia grata Philippus Nee vobis Pauli dogmata sacra leget. Rest from your studies, Philip says you may, He'll read no lectures on St. Paul to day. hiheraliUj was a distinguishing feature in the mind of Melancthon and his excellent wife * (c) " Uxor enim datur mihi Catarina C'rapti, non dico, quam non sperata ant quam frigenti, sed iis puella moribus, ea animi indole qualem a diis immortalibus optare debueram : h'i^i% '&E05 Ts xy.al^oiT'o dextra Deus significet, i. Deus omina fausta finnet. Equidem expendi argumeota, quae in banc rem LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 131 and this was apparent both in the common acts of charity and in the more diffusive spi- lit of universal benevolence. Neither of them were disposed by oppressive exactions or parsi-*^ monious care to enrich themselves. They deeply sympathized with the feelings of the needy and the wretched ; never being deaf to their impor- tunities, but readily and most liberally supplying them with money and sustenance. The neces- sitous might have applied to them the language of St. Paul to the Corinthian church, with the utmost propriety. " To their power, yea, beyond tbeir power. 1 bear record, they were willing of themselves, praying us with much intreaty, that we would receive the gift." fdj The house .was crowded with a constant succession of comers and goers of every age, sex and condition, some pressing in to receive, and others departing well stored from this ample repository of kind- ness and bounty. It formed a part of their incidere possunt, nisi fallor, omnia, ut satis sciam quid pro- bandum fuerit. Verum secutus sum amicorum consilium, qui me ad rem uxoriam hortati sunt propter periculum ex injirmitate carnis ef carnalis libtrtatis improbitatem. Neque enim vere Christiana libertas fuit, qua literas dearaavimus plus ssquo. Et cavendum nobis fuit quod mouet Paulus ne libertatem occa- fiiontm faciamus carni. Ne tu improbes cceptum opto. Majus voto fuerit, si probaveiis. Cordum nostrum admone promissi eVi9«Aaf*^ " Wise men have often inquired with asto- nishment, for what reason the feeble nature of man is oppressed with such a weight of afflic- tions ; but we who can trace the causes to a divine origin, ought to be resigned to the appoint- ments of God, and avail ourselves of those reme- dies for grief which divine goodness has revealed : and while these are your solace, reflect upon this bright example of domestic piety. " If when you are absent for a season from your family, and placed at a distance amongst persons uncongenial to your taste, the hope of returning home alleviates your vexations ; so now you may be stimulated to patience by the consideration that in a little time you will again embrace your son in the delightful assembly of the skies, adorned with a more splendid distinc- tion than any station on earth can command, I mean, with the glory of God, and placed among prophets, apostles, and the shining hosts of heaven, there to live for ever, enjoyinaj the vision of God, and the enrapturing intercourse of Christ (o) Ps. cxix. 137. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 145 liimself, the holy apostles and prophets. Let us constantly look forward to this glorious eternity during the whole of our troublesome pilgrimage as to the goal of our course ; and let us bear with the greater fortitude our present afflic- tions because the race is short, and we are des- tined not to the fugitive enjoyments of this life, but to the possession of that blessed eternity in w hich we shall participate the wisdom and righteousness of God, " But as you, my learned and pious friend, are well acquainted with these truths, I have written the more briefly ; and I pray God to in- vigorate both your body and mind. You re- member it is said, 'In him we live and move and have our being.* fpj — Farewell." The preceding letter renders it almost su- perfluous to state as a matter of fact, what must be at once obvious to every reader, and what every future transaction in Melancthon's life will render increasingly evident, that he was remark- able for Pieti/ ; humble, genuine, undissembled piety. The association of great intellectual capacities with bad moral habits is always to be deeply deplored, and no exterior embellishments of nature or art, no power of mind, no fascination of manners, can render an infidel in principle and a profligate in character otherwise than off^ensive fpj Acts xvii. 28. L 146 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. and contemptible. Vice always degrades even the great, while religion inexpressibly ennobles even the little. In the present instance we have not to weep over talent perverted and abused by vicious associations, but to rejoice in seeing it devoted to the best of purposes, and forming an alliance with true piety, which was in fact the pil- lar of his confidence, the brightest ornament of his» unblemished character, the consolation of his most desponding hours, the stimulating mo- tive of all his public exertions, and the law of his family. Among other interesting fragments of Me- lancthon's composition, a short but expressive GRACE, designed for the table, and probably used by himself, is extant, (qj Benedictio Mens^e. His Epulis donisque tuis benedicite Christe Ut foveant jussu corpora fessa tuo, Non alit in fragili panis modo corpore vitain Sermo taus vitse tempora loDs;a facit. The Table Blessed, To these provisions which enrich our board, The gifts thy liberal Providence bestows. Saviour, thy benediction now aflford. From which alone their power to nourish flows. A few short years material food supplies Corporeal waste, and cheers our fainting hearts ; Rut thy imperishable word imparts, A principle of life that never dies. fqj Melanctu. Epigrammata. Hagan. 1528. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 147 Or, Saviour ! Bless what thy providential care Has for our bodies given ; Bnt thy good word (superior fare !) Sustains the soul for heaven. Melancthon was characterized by Sincerity, and totally devoid of every thing like deceit and dissimulation. There were no reserves about him ; all was transparent, open, and honest, while at the same time, his manners were re- markably captivating. From this temper re- sulted a freeness in common conversation, which led him sometimes to express himself with a degree of inconsideration : and even when his intimate friends have endeavoured to ch^ck his frankness from an apprehension of what indeed not unfrequently happened, that his words would be invidiously misrepresented, such was his consciousness of entire purity of motive, that they could seldom or never succeed in rendering him cautious. He was not only communicative, but his conversation was seasoned with Wit. Disputing one day with a certain Italian on the real presence in the Eucharist, " how is it" said he, " that you Italians will have a God in the sacramental bread — you, who do not believe there is a God in heaven .' M. Baillet, with a zeal natural to one of his faith, is anxious that the church of Rome should be duly honoured as the mother of so illustrious an offspring. " His parents,** says he, " were most excellent Catholics, irreproachable in their manners, exemplary in their conduct, careful to maintain in their family the fear of God and a due observance of his commandments, walking before God with a simplicity, a fidelity, and a zeal like that of primitive Christians. I feel myself constrained to state these particulars, that you may remember to attribute to Melancthon's excellent education all that you read or hear (s) Melancth. Ep. Lib. I. 110. Ep. dt seipso ct de edit, prima iuorum scriptorum. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 1^1 «aid of his sweetness of temper, courtesy, tem- perance, modesty, and others virtues, for which the Protestants have so much extolled him : and that you may consider these qualities as pro- duced or cherished in the bosoin of the Catholic church." (t J Varillas, one of the greatest ene- mies of the Reformation, has nevertheless spoken of him in the following manner : " He possessed jr a sweetness and mildness of temper, that ren- dered him incapable of returning injury for in- jury. In observing the exactest rules of mora- lity, he only followed his inclination, and not- withstanding the meanness of his birth, (u) he practised the utmost generosity his means would allow. No German wrote the Latin language with greater ease or in a more intelligible man- ner, yet he was never so attached to his own productions, or so prejudiced in their favour as to refuse making any corrections suggested by his friends. 'Y^y' (tj Bail LET Trait. Hist, des Enfans devenues celeb. par leurs Etudes ou par leurs Ecrits, p. 130. (uj The Papists were extremely fond of representing- their adversaries as low and baseborn persons, in order as they ima- gined, to render their cause contemptible. (i) Varillas Hist, des Heres. 1. 7. So far indeed was he from any over-valuation of his own productions, that he suf- fered his papei-s, and what was most unjustifiably negligent, even the letters of his most distinguished friends to lie about exposed to any one's inspection. The consequence was, that many of them were lost. " Quinetiam libros scriptaque sua 152 LIFE OF MELANCTHOX, Neither Melancthon's attachment to litera- ture, nor his multifarious engagements in pub- lic seduced him from the cultivation o£ domestic feelings^ ^nd the di^ch-SiX^Qoi parental duties. His wife and children, ever dear to his heart, were not forgotten amidst the deepest abstractions of study, or the greatest perplexity of engagement. The habits of studious men have sometimes been represented as tending to disqualify them for the familiar intercourse of domestic or social life. It is often long before the clouds which profound study gathers over the mind can be entirely chased away, even by the cheering in- fluence of innocent convivialit3^ At the same time a great man never appears greater than in descending from the high station where public opinion or extraordinary genius has enthroned him to an approachable familiarity. It is then his friends will no lonorer censure his abstractions nor his affectionate family deprecate his fame. Melancthon may be appealed to as a pleasing- illustration of this remark. A Frenchman one day, found him holding a book in one hand and rocking his child's cradle with the other. Upon his manifesting considerable surprize, Melanc- thon took occasion from the incident to converse omnia et litteras quae afFerebantur quotidie plurimae a diversis et dissimilibus conditione, loco, fortuua, lelinquere omnium oculis et nianibus expositas, ex quibus subtractum plurimum esse constat." Cam, Vit. Mel. p. 57, 58. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 15$ with his visitor on the duties of parents, and on the regard of heaven for little children in such a pious and affectionate manner, that his astonish- ment was quickly transformed into admiration. The fondness he cherished for his own famih^ / extended to children in general. He possessed, in a very eminent degree, the rare art of makinsj^ himself a captivating and instructive companion to them. He descended with the most happy ease to their level, promoted by his jocularity their little pleasures, and engaged with all his heart in their games and festivities. He would of- ten exercise their ingenuity, by devising fictions and puzzles, and took great delight in relating useful scraps of history or memorable tales, fwj He always estimated Tme as a most precious T'A)P possession. It is said of him, that when he ^ made an appointment, he expected not only that the day or the hour, but that the minute should be fixed, in order that time might not be squandered away in the vacuity or idleness of suspense. In bis youth he was remarkably troubled with sleeplessness, which the regularity of his general habits at length overcame. He usunlly rose at ^ TWELVE o'clock, but whcu he retirc^d to rest we cannot tell, no doubt at an early hour. When letters or papers arrived in the evening he always referred them to the next morning for f-w) Cam. Vit. Mel. / li-i- LIFE OF MELANCTHON. inspection, lest the hours devoted to sleep which he found indispensible to the due preservation of health, should be disturbed. His matrimonial connection was not only a happy, but a very lasting one. Formed for each other, this favoured pair were not destined to suf- fer the pangs of early separation ; but lived, so far y as can be ascertained, in undisturbed harmony for thirty-seven years. They had four childien, » two sons and two daughters. Of the former little y»/*^ or nothing is known. It seems probable they died in early life, for in a letter written tojCame- rwius, his most intimate friend in April 1^24, he intimates their delicacy of constitution which seemed to require some change of air, on which account he meditated their removal for a little time to Leipsic./^^^ Anne his eldest daughter appears to have been the favourite child, for she was not only handsome and accomplished, but of a very lite- rary turn. Luther in one of his letters, calls her " the elegant daughter of Philip. 'Yy>' ^" the sixth of November 1536, she was married to (x) " Pueros meos cogito Lipsiam ad LoUherura aliquan- tisper Tnittere, nam aer noster nescio quid minatur." Me- LANCTH. Ep. Lib. IV. 14. ad Joach. Camerar. He afterwards speaks of one of his sons accompanying him in his visit to Nuremberg in 1526, an account of which will be mentioned in the proper place. Ep. Lib. IV. 29. ryj Ep. II. 92. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 155 George Sabinus^^y' This young man, a native of Brandenburg, being sent to Melancthon with the powerful recommendation of Erasmus to be educated, became an inmate of his family. His thirst after knowledge was so unbounded, that no labour however great, which was deemed re- quisite to attain it, damped his inextinguishable zeal. By day and by night he devoted himself to study, and overlooked or despised every ob- stacle in the path of knowledge. But his taste even surpassed his zeal, particularly in poetic compositions. , Camerarius relates that he had seen him weep abundantly when reading an ex- quisite piece of poetry, and that though he would deeply deplore his own infelicity in composition, no one in reality excelled h'lm. faj His poem entitled, ^^ Res gestcB Ccesarum Germanoriim," pro- cured him not only a very extensive reputation ^ in Germany, but the notice and patronage of the most enlightened princes of the age, and he be- came successively professor of the Belles Lettres at Frankfort on the Oder, rector of the New ^zj Mel. Adam. Vit. Philosophorum, p. 227. faJ " Vidi eg:o hunc Georgium, qui postea Sabini nomine ce- labris fuit valde tenera adhuc ajtate, lacrimas profuHdentem ad lectionem boni et elegantiscai minis. Audivi tristes querelas ejus deplorantis suam infelicitatem in scribendo, cum non solum per aetatem nihil quod perfectum esset ipse elaborare, sed He intelligere quidem rationem perficiendi elaborandique adhuc valeiet." Cam. Vit. Mel. p. 206. 1 56 LIFE OF MELANCTHOiV. Academy of Konigsberg, and counsellor to the I Elector of Brandenburg. It will not appear sur- i' prising that such a youth, and in such favour- able circumstances should have ingratiated him- self into Melancthon's esteem, and attracted the affections of his accomplished daughter. It is related of Sabinus, that on a certain occasion when he was dining in company with Stigelius and Melancthon, the latter engaged them in an extempore poetical contest. Sabinus being the elder of the two was required to begin, which he did in these words : — " Carmina conscribant alii dictante Lyaeo Muita sit in versu cura laborque meo ;'' Some silly scribblers soon their pa^es fill — Let care and labour regulate my quill ! to which Stigelius replied, Carmina componant alii sudante cerebro Nulla sit in versu cura laborque meo. Some toil and sweat to elaborate a rhyme- Let no such care nor labour waste mi/ time. The two poetical gladiators had the satisfaction of being equally extolled by Melancthon, the one for his attack, and the other for his de- fence, fbj Stigelius obtained a considerable poetical notoriety, and Melancthon has expressed a very fbJ Teissier Eloges des Hommes Savans — Art. George Sabiv. 3Iel. Adam. Vit. Philosophorum, p. 231. LIFE OF MELANCTIION. 1.57 high opinion of his merit, (c) He wrote a variety of epitaphs, epigrams, and epithalamia, a metri- cal translation of many of the Psalms of David, with other little compositions, of which the fol- lowing monumental inscription for himself is not the least curious : — Hie ego Stigelius jaceo ; quis curat ? ut omnis Negligat hoc mundus ; scit tamen ipse Deus. Here lies Stigelius ; — but who marks the spot? Well — let the world neglect me ! God will not. But this apparently happy and suitable connection was destined to become a sourse of considerable affliction. Sabinus was very dif- ferent in character from his father-in-law Me- lancthon. The elegant pleasures of literature did not satisfy him ; for he was naturally ambi- tious, and the fame he acquired by his poetic publications, fed the secret flame till it could no longer be suppressed. Melancthon was at- tached to the more humble life of a man of let- ters and a man of piety, nor could he be induced by the most pressing intreaties to pursue any (cj "■ Etsi enim Italia una videtur suavia et venusta ingenia gignere, tamen fere adfirmari potest, nondum itost Ovtdii aetatem eujusquam in Italia venam fuisse dulciorem et elegantiorem Stigeliana. Et in Germania arbitror Micyllum et alios qui carmen felicissim^ scribunt, libenter Stigelio proximum ab Eobano locum tribuere." Melancth. Ep. Lib. I. 49, ad Georg, Prindp, Anhalt. loS LIFE OF MELANCTHON. measures for the promotion of his children to posts of civil distinction and emolument. He employed all his skill to cure the raging fever of Sab^nusj but in vain ; for the poet worshipped fame and wealth. They became therefore dis- contented with each other, and found it best to separate. The lovely spirit of Melancthon how- ever prevented any serious dissention, and they eventually parted with mutual good will and kindness. Sabinus took his wife into Prussia, where to her father's inexpressible grief she died after a residence of four years at Konigsberg. The youn gest daughter of Melancthon was i/ married in the year 1650, to Casper Peucer^ whose name is one of the most celebrated in German literature, as well as in the annals of the Reformation. He was a Physician, and through the favour of the Elector of Saxony, made professor of Medicine in the University of Wittemberg. He was always sent for to Court when any important deliberations of a medical kind were held, and had the most free access to the Elector. His writings are numerous in me- dicine, mathematics, and theology. Above all, / he is to be ranked amongst the illustrious sufferers for the cause of Truth. After the death of Melancthon, Peucer, in conjunction with the divines of Wittemberg and Leipsic, and of several ecclesiastics and persons of distinction in the Court of Saxony, aimed to LIFE OF MELANCTHON. \59 introduce the Calvinistic sentiments respecting the Eucharist, denying most strenuously the Lutheran doctrine of the corporeal presence of Christ. Great commotions being excited, the Elector Augustus, in the year 1571, called a solemn assembly of the Saxon Divines, and of all persons concerned in the administration of ec- clesiastical affairs, at Dresden. Augustus com- manded them to adopt his opinion respecting the Eucharist, which at that time agreed with that of Peucer and the moderate Lutherans ; but he was soon seduced by the insinuations of their adversaries, who represented the church as in danger, to change sides, and in consequence of finding that the Saxon Divines who were the dis- ciples of Melancthon, propagated their senti- ments with the utmost assiduity, he called a new convention at Torgaw in the year 1574, where he assumed the Dictator's chair and wielded the Persecutor's sword. Of those who denied the corporeal presence, some were im- . prisoned, others banished, and others compelled to renounce their sentiments. Peucer had the | honour of suffering amongst the former. He / endured the severities of a cruel imprisonment for ten years, and was only released at last! through the intercession of the Prince of Any h2ih. fdj (d) Adam. Vit. Medicor. Germ. Mosh. Eecles. Hist. Cent. 1(5. y l60 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. Among the rare instances of eminent per- sons attached to the reformed cause in the early period of its progress which is now under review, comprising the year 1520, the name of John Thurzo, Bishop of Breslaw, in Silesia, claims a distino'uished notice. It is true little, too little is known of him; but as the early traveller watches the commencement and the gradual progress of the dawning day, by the first beams that strike successively upon surrounding ob- jects, so the observant reader will unite with the vigilant bioprapher, in hailing each indica- tion of increasing light in a world enveloped in mysterious darkness. The Bishop of Breslaw, therefore, ought to be mentioned for the pleasing singularity of his character, as the decided friend of the infant Reformation. He died in peace in the month of August, meriting this noble eulogium.|^e^ " Who is there," says Melancthon, " that does not love the man, who, so far as I know is the only man in Germany, that by his autho- rity, learning, and piety, has furnished an ex- ample of what a bishop ought to be ? If the (ej This was expressed in a letter addressed to the good bishop, which he did not live long enough to receive. Luther Mrrote to him in language indicative of an equal esteem, and at the same time. Scultet. Annal. Evang. p. 61. VoN der Hardt. Hist. Lit. Reform. P. 5. p. 33. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. l6l Christian world could but produce ten persons of a similar stamp and cast of thinking (tro^a(pjiaJjU,ov£j)> as Homer says, I should not doubt of seeing the kingdom of Christ in some measure re- stored." ( 162 ) CHAP. V. A. D. 1520, 1521 •^^^^^^^•^-^^^-^ The Pope's Bull against Luther — His retaliatioH'^Diet of Worms — Luther's seizure and imprisonment at the Castle of Wartenherg — Feelings of Melancthon — Con- demnation of Luther by the Sorbonne — Melancthon s Satirical Rejoinder — His publication under the feigned name of Thomas Placentinus or Rhadin — His De- clamation on the Study of Paul — Extracts from his Loci Communes, or Theological Common Places — Transactions relative to the Abolition of Private Masses, Returning from the disputations at Leip- sic, Eckius resolved if possible to ruin Luther, and pursued his purpose with inveterate malig- nity and unremitting zeal. He flew to Rome, implored Leo X. to excommunicate this heretic and obtained the vigorous co-operation of the Dominicans then in high favour at court, who were willing to revenge the quarrel of their bro- ther Tetzel. / At length on the fifteenth of June 1.520, the Pope issued a Bull against Luther, in which LIFE OF MELANCTHOX. l63 after calling upon Christ, St. Peter, St. Paul, and all the saints to interpose in behalf of the chuTch ff J fort^LiOJie propositions are extracted from his ' writings, and condemned as pestilential, scan- dalous and offensive to pious minds ; all persons are interdicted from reading them upon pain of excommunication, and unless the heretic should present himself at Rome within sixty days in order to take his trial before the supreme Pontiff, ffj " Leo Episcopus, Servus servorum Dei. Ad perpetuam rei memoriam. Exsurge Domine et judica causatn tuani; memor esto improperiorum tuorum eorum quae ab insipientibus fiunt tola die Exsurge Petre et pro pastoiali cura praefata, ut praefertur, tibi divinitus demandata, intende in causam saiictse Rom, Ecclesia; matiis omnium Ecclesiarum ac fidei magistrse, quam tu, jubente Deo, tuo sanguine, consecrasti Exsurge tu quoque, qusesumus, Paule, qui earn tuadoctrinaac pari raartyrio illuminasti atque illustrasti. Jam euim surgit nuvus Porphyriiis Ex- suRGAT, denique, omni sanctorum ac reliqua univer- salis ecclesia, cujus vera sacrarum literarum interpretatione posthabita, quidam quorum mentem pater mendacii excfecavit, ex veteri hsereticorura instituto, ud semetipsos sapientes, scripturas easdem aliter quam Spiritus Sanctus flagitet, proprio duntaxat sensu, ambitionis, auraeque popularis causa (teste Apostolo) interpretantur, imo vero torqueut et adulterant, ita ut juxta Hieronymum, jam non sit Evangelium Christi, sed hominis, aut quod pejus est, diaboli. Exsurgat, inquam, prasfata sancta ecclesia Dei, et una cum beatissimis apostolis praefatis apud Deum omnipotentem intercedat, ut purgatis ovium suarum erroribus, eliminatisque a fidelium finibus haere- sibus universis ecclesise suze sanctaj pacem et unitafem couser- Tare dignetur.'' Bulla Leon is X. M 2 / 164 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. he is fully EXCOMMUNICATED. But these mena* ces were ineffectual ; in many places the decree was delayed or evaded — even at Leipsic it was violently opposed and at Erfurt it was forci- bly wrested from Eckius, torn in pieces and thrown into the river by a body of academicians. Many of the Roman Catholic writers condemn the imprudence of Leo in this and other hasty proceedings against the Saxon Reformer, but it is more than probable had the effect been dif- ferent, they would have spared the Tiara. Immediately previous to the publication of this celebrated anathema, Luther had been offered an asylum from his persecutors by Sylvester Schaumberg, a Franconian knight, whose son was under the tuition of Melancthon. " I offer you,*' said he, " my own protection, and that of one hundred noblemen in Franconia, with whom you can live in safety until your doctrine has undergone a deliberate investigation." The state of his mind at-this critical juncture may be as- certained from his own language to his friend Spalatine the Elector's secretary, upon trans- mitting to him the generous letter of Schaum- berg. " As for me the die is cast. I equally despise the favour and fury of Rome, I have no longer any wish to be connected with or reconciled to them. Let them condemn me and burn my books, and if 1 do not in return publicly condemn and burn the whole pontifical code, it will only LIFE OF MELANCTIION. 1 65 be from want of fire." In fact, on the tenth of December 1520, in the presence of an immense concourse of people of all ranks, he committed the Bull of Leo, the decretals of the Pontiffs and ^ other similar documents to the flames, in testi- mony of his everlasting separation from the Ro- mish Communion. Nor did he neglect to use the />e;i as well as the torch, by which he ap- pealed from the Pope to a general council, and exposed the pretensions and corruption of the church of Rome in several tracts. x\ second Bull was issued against him in the month of ( January J^591, in which the Pope styles himself | \y " the divinely appointed dispenser of spiritual j and temporal punishments," and which consisted / ©fa recapitulation of the former Bull, and a for-] mal excommunication of Luther. I DurinsT these transactions the Elector Fre- deric acted with a prudence and discretion which proved eminently serviceable to the Reforma- tion. Had he been less the friend of Luther and ©f truth, he would have delivered him up to his enraged adversaries ; had he been more zealous it would have been equally fatal by exposing him- self to the papal anathemas, and the intant cause he secretly and therefore effectually patronized, to almost inevitable destruction. His conduct and character cannot be more accurately depicted than in the words of Melancthon. " This most excellent prince was much concerned to foresee 166 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. the contests and disorders which would ensue, though the first attacks made by Luther were upon very plausible grounds. By his own judg- ment and sagacity, and by long experience in the art of government, he well knew the danger of revolutions. But being a truly religious man and one who feared God, he consulted not the dictates of mere worldly and political wisdom, which might have inclined him to stifle at once all symptoms of innovation. He determined to prefer the glory of God to all otlier considerations, and to listen to the divine command which en- joins obedience to the gospel. He knew that it was a horrible profaneness to resist the truth when plainly seen and known. He had studi- ously examined Luther's works, and accurately weighed his proofs and testimonies ; and he would not suffer doctrines to be oppressed and smothered which he judged to be the word of God, The Holy Spirit confirmed and supported him in these excellent resolutions, so that though the Emperors Maximilian and Charles, and the Roman j^ontiflls urged this prince, and not without menaces, to hinder Luther from writing and pre^^chiiig in his dominions, he was not in the least degree shaken or intimidated. Yet he pre- sumed not to rely entirel}' on his own judgment in a matte: of such great importance, but took the advice of other persons who were venerable • for their rank, learning, and experience." LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 16? After the death of Maximilian I. the unani- mous vote of the electoral College placed Charles y. upon the Imperial Throne, who was publicly ,^ crowned at Aix-la-Chapelle, on the twenty-third of October 1520, the year after his election. (^^J Leo immediately applied to him to inflict an ex- emplary punishment on Luther for disobedience to papal authority, while Frederic exerted his influence, an influence derived from the personal oblig-ations of Charles who had been created Emperor chiefly through his exertions, to obtain a public and fair investigation of his cause in Germany previous to the publication of any con- demnatory edict. The result was that the Em- 1 peror appointed a diet at Worms in January lv521, \ y to which under the protection of a safe conduct Luther repaired in April. His friends recollecting the fate of John Huss were extremely apprehensive, and would have dissuaded him from venturing amongst his enemies. Their fears increased as he approached the city. Every argument was used to prevent hig perseverance and when at Oppenheim he was met by Bucer, (^A^ who had been sent to (g) Robertson's Hist, of Charles V. (h) Martin Bucer was born at Shelestadt in Alsace. He spent several days with Luther at Worms and embraced his opi- nions. He afterwards preached the doctrines of the Reforma- tion at Strasburg and was extremely active in endeavouring to reconcile the Lutherans and Zuiugliaus. In the year 1549 168 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. entreat him to take refuge in a neighbouring castle ; upon which occasion he uttered that heroic and most characteristic declaration which both Protestant and Papist historiais have re- corded. " 1 am lawfully called to appear in the city of Worms, and thither will I go in the name of the Lord though as many devils, as there are tiles on the houses, were there combined against me.'' At this crisis Melancthon thus expresses himself in a letter to one of his friends. " Mar- tin still lives and prospers notwithstanding the indignation and fury of Leo, to whom all things have hitherto been supposed possible. Nobody approves the Bull which Eckius is enforcing, unless it be those who are more concerned for their own ease and indulgence than for the success of the gospel. We are certainly in no danger from it at present though the hierarchy raves and thunders. O that you knew with what trembling hesitation this pontifical mandate is executed, for its abettors are in a complete strait between the general opinion on the one hand and the anger of the Roman Pontiff on the other, while there are many who would rather be openly accused of any crime than appear to be deficient in religious zeal for the Pope. You are doubt- Archbishop Cranraer iavited him to England, and he became a lecturer in Divinity in the University of Cambridge, where he died in 1551, at the age of sixty-one. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 169 less acquainted with the proceedings at Worms, though I may say a word or two on that subject. Charles is constantly urged to prriscribe Luther by an imperial edict, and there are great delibera- tions and debatings about it. If the Papists could prevail in their rage they would destroy us, and they are vexed at the inefficiency of the pontifical decrees. They are in hopes that those which they are using every means, but I trust in vain, to extort from the emperor, will prove availing. Nothing can terrify Martin Luther,^ .' who would willingly purchase the advancement — and glory of the gospel at the price of his BLOOD." fij Private conferences and public examin- ations, violent threats and gentle entreaties, were alternately emploj^ed to cajole or to force him into a recantation of his hert tical opinions and a submission to the Roman Pontiff. It was all in vain. He was neither to be com- pelled nor seduced into compliance. FJe coulb suffer death, but he could not violate the dic- tates of conscience ! 1 he wonder is, that when his enemies were so inveterate and himself so intrepid and resolute, he should have been al- lowed to depart from Worms in peace ; but the members of tiie IJiet rei'ustd to expose them- selves to the reproach of a violation of faith, and the Emperor was unwilling to contend with them ^ij Ep. 5. ad Hessiim. 170 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. from political motives. He was allowed twenty one days to return home, andrequired not to preach to the people in the course of his journey. A few days after he had withdrawn, an edict was issued by the authority of the Diet in the Empe- ror's name, declaring him a member cut off from the church, a schismatic, a notorious and obstinate heretic ; and forbidding all persons* under penalty of high treason, loss of goods, and being putunderthe ban of the Empire, to receive, defend, maintain or protect him, either in word or writing ; and all his adherents, followers, and favourers to suffer the confiscation of their pro- perty, unless they had left his party, and had re- ceived absolution by apostolic authority ! fj J The formidable edict of Worms however was in a great measure superseded by two cir- cumstances, namely, the multiplicity of the Emperor's engagements arising out of commo- tions in Spain, and the wars of Italy and the Low Countries; and a curious, but well con- certed and well timed contrivance of his wary friend the Elector of Saxony. Foreseeing the meditated attack upon Luther, Frederic employ- ed several trusty persons in masks to seize upon him as he was passing a forest in Thuringia, near Altenstein, and convey him to the castle of Wartenberg which was situated on a high moun- fjj DupiN's Eccles. Hist. B, 2. Ch. 10. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. l/l tain in the vicinity of Eisenach, (k) The con- sequence of this sudden disappearance was un- favourable to his adversaries who were suspected of having plotted his destruction, the Imperial Edict missed its aim, and his opinions — or rather, " The word of the Lord grew, and was multiplied/' (I) Luther's confinement in the castle of War- tenberg, placed Melancthon at the head of the reformed cause, who was well aware of the re- sponsibility of his situation. After a consider- able lapse of time he writes to his friend Hess; " I feel the need 1 have of good advice. Our Elijah is still confined at a distance from us, though we are expecting and anticipating his re- turn. AVhat shall I say more ? His absence absolutely torments me." (m) Though there was indeed an alloy of constitutional timidity, which cannot but be considered as some depre- ciation of his sterling value in the peculiar situ- ation of ecclesiastical affairs, no one was so well qualified to maintain the respectability and pro- mote the success of the Lutheran cause. The (li) Seckexd. Hist. I.uth. Lib. I Sect. 44. p. 152. In his retreat he passed for a country gentleman, under the assumed name ot Yonker George. (]) Acts xii. 24. (m) The expression is very strong, and shews the agi- tated state of his mind. " Me desiderium ejus excruciat mistte." F^. 7. ad Eessum. / 172 LIFE OF MELANCTHO.V. areat Reformer well knew his extraordinary me- rit, and requested him to assist in the discharge of some of those clerical duties for which he was incapacitated by absence. In one of his letters he addresses him thus: " For the glory of the word of God and the mutual consolation of myself and others, I would rather be consumed in a blazing fire, than remain here half alive and ^^ utterly useless. If I perish, the gospel of Christ o^\>.i/'will not perish, and you, I hope, like an- other Elisi'a, will succeed Elijah." Again he writes, " The accounts which 1 receive of your abundant success in religion and learning during my absence, rejoice my heart exceedingly and very much diminish the miseries of separation. The circumstance of your going on so prosper- ously while I am absent, is peculiarly delightful to me, because it may serve to convince the wicked one, that however he may rage and foam, their desires shall perish and Christ will finish the work which he has begun." fnj Melancthon was constitutionally hypochon- driacal; and as even trifling circumstances fre- quently disturb the peace of such persons, it was to be expected that the state of things at this momentous crisis would produce a poweful effect upon his mind. His heart was interested in the cause of pure Christianity, his happiness fnJ Vat a. Ep. 235, and 243. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 173 was deeply involved in it, his sensibilities were perpetually wrought upon by surrounding oc- currences, and his spirits ebbed and flowed ac- cording to the success or decline of that cause which was to him the dearest upon earth. In fact the situation of Melancthon and the friends of the Reformation was peculiarly afflictive. The transactions at Worms and the subsequent concealment of Luther, had inspired Frederic with an unusual degree of caution, amounting to timidity, in his proceedings. The writings of Luther were not allowed to be published and the academicians were interdicted the discussion of questions likely to offend persons of distinc- tion, who were attached to Popery. That Lu- ther deeply sympathized with his friend and par- ticipated in his sentiments, is obvious from his own words. " I sit here in my Patmos, reflect- ing all the day on the wretched condition of the church. I bemoan the hardness of my heart, that I am not dissolved in tears on this account. May God have mercy upon us." It would however be flagrantly unjust to impute the strong sensation of either of these exalted charac- ters to pusillanimity. Though much distressed, they fully coincided in the principles recognized in another of Luther's epistles. " The peace and approbation of God is ever to be preferred to the peace and approbation of the world In all circumstances we ought to adhere strictly / l/^ LIFE OF MELANCTHON. to the simple word of God and not merely when that word happens to thrive and be respected amon_2: men. Let those who please take against us. But why are we to be always looking on the dark side of things ? why not indulge hopes of better times ?" At length these bosom friends contrived a mode of alleviating the anxiety that was so into- lerable and of obtaining each other*s mutual as- sistance in the present crisis. This was a secret visit of Luther to Wittemberg, which was has- tened by the prevalence of various evils, especially the conduct of Carlostadt. which will be noticed in a subsequent page. He states the circum- stance to .'^palatine : " I came to Wittemberg and amonust the delightful intercourse enjoyed with my friends, I found this bitter, that my little pamphlets and letters had neither been heard of nor seen, for which you shall judge, whether 1 was not justly displeased. However, on the whole, what 1 have seen and heard has afforded me the greatest satisfaction May the Lord com- fort those who are interested in the cause : but on my way 1 was vexed with the various rumours 1 heard of the imprudences of some of our friends and I propose to publish some suitable exhortation as soon as I return to my asylum. Commend mc to our illustrious prince, from whom I wish tocon-- ceal my journey to Wittemberg, for a reason of which you are aware. Farewell. I am in A ms- LIFE OF MELANCTHON. \75 dorfF's house with my beloved friend Philip Mc- lancthon." foj In England Henry the Eighth published a book against Luther and in defence of the seven, sacraments of the Roman Church, for which he received the title never yet relinquished by his successors, of Defender of the Faith. In France, the Divines of the Sorbonne fpj pub- lished a formal condemnation of the Reformer's writings (dated the 15th of April, 1591), in which they show the danger to which Christians are exposed from his poisonous errors, and charge him with rashness in preferring his own judg- ment to that of the Universities and Holy Fa- thers of the Church, as though God had given him the knowledge of many truths necessary far salvation, lohich the Church had been ignorant of during past ages, being left by Jesus Christ her spouse in the darkness of error, (q) Melancthon immediately took up his pen and gave them a very suitable flagellation in a small piece, entitled " Adversus furiosum Pari- foj LuTH. Ep. 253. fpJ Tfie term applied to the faculty of Theology at Paris. The College of the University in which they assembled was called the house of the Sorbonne, which was first erected and endowed in the year 1250, by a wealthy favourite of St. Lewis, whose name was Robert de Sorbonne. This Theological So- ciety was, at that period, in the highest repute. (if J DupiN's Eccles. Hist. B. 2. ch. 11. xy ^ 176 LIFE or MELANCTHON. siensium Theologastrorum decretum pro Lutheio apologia ;" or, " An Apology for Luther^ in op- / position to the furious decree of the Parisian Theo- logasters" (rj This, we may be certain, was gratifying to his friend Yonker G eorge^ in con- finement at Wartenberg. " I have seen,*' says he, " the Decree of the Parisian Sophists, to- gether with the Apology of Philip, and from my very heart I rejoice: for Christ would not have given them up to such blindness had not he de- termined to promote his own cause, and to put a stop to the despotism of its adversaries " fsj In this satirical pamphlet he begins by Re- marking, that, " during the past year, the So- phists of Cologne and Louvain condemned the Gospel, in a set of naked propositions, unsup- ported by either Reason or Scripture, and that now the Parisian Divines had acted in the same irra- tional manner. By the spirit which pervades the Decree it may be determined whether it is from God, who is not the author of malice, or from another quarter / It appeared almost incredible that such a work should have proceeded from frj A term of ridicule as we speak of a poetaster^ witling, kc. (s) LuTH. Ep, 236, ad Spalat. Lib. 1. Luther is not quite so delicate in his epithets when he is writing familiarly to Me- lancthon on the subject ; for he does not scruple, in conformity to the fashionable language of the age on controversial occa- sions, to call these Parisian doctors, asses and madmciu LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 177 ^uch a University, distinguished as it had been by remarkable men, and especially by the great and pious Gerson. ftj A letter was prefixed to the Decree which he supposed must have been written by some hired declaimer, because it dis- played such womanish violence, that it was too silly for a divine to be sure ! What does it con- tain ? ' Oh ! Luther is a Manichaean ! a Monta- nist! he despises us forsooth! — he is mad ! — he must be brought to his senses by fire and flames!' What feminine, what monkish weakness ! , " Luther is accused of heresj^ not because he differs from Scripture, but from the Holy Fa- thers, Councils, and Universities, whose opinions are received as the first principles of religion ! ! But are Holy Fathers, and Councils, and Univer- sities to decree the articles of Christian faith? — And how can this be the case, when they are so liable to err, Occam himself being judge, if you will not credit me ? Is our faith to depend upon the opinions of men ? — So did not Paul deter- mine when he affirmed, that ' other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ/ (u) (t) John Gerson was Chancellor of the University of Paris in the Fifteenth Century, and the most distinguished person of his age. The Council of Constance regarded him as its oracle, and his publications were eminently calculated to pro- mote the cause of religious liberty and refoim. (u) 1 Cor. iii. 2. N ^/ 178 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. " Luther then does not dissent from Scrip- ture, but from YOUR judgment, and from the sense which the Fathers^ Councils^ and Schools have adopted ; and this I see is the great cause of the controversy, and the great sin he has com- mitted! But what after all is decreed by the Councils, when some things are false and some true, some conformable to Scripture, and some contrary to it ; so that Scripture must be the final appeal^ and if any passages be obscure, they are to be compared with others, and thus Scrip- ture will explain itself. ' If an Angel from Heaven,* says the Apostle, ' preach any other gospel than what I preach let him be ac- cursed.' fv) Surely then Luther may oppose the obvious sentiment of Scripture to Councils, Fathers, and Universities ! What can these Sophists reply ? What sort of logic and what kind of glosses can they use to avoid the inference from these statements ? Either deny that there is any certain sense in Scripture, or acknowledge that Luther is justifiable in placing its dictates in opposition to human opinion. " After all he is not inclined to concede that Luther and the ancient Fathers and Councils disagree. On various points he is completely supported by the sentiments of Augustine, Cy- prian, Hilary, and Chrysostom; though it is (vj Gal. i.x. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 179 true many things are to be found in the writings of Luther on the Sacraments, vows and other subjects, which cannot be discovered in them. No wonder, for that age knew nothing of the ty- rannical laws of Roman Pontiffs, nothing of our Parisiein Masters 2Lnd their articles of faith. That period may, perhaps, be considered as the noon- day of evangelical truth ; ours as the declining evenino- in which darkness covers the minds of sinners as a punishment for their guilt; and that is darkness indeed in which the Sorbonne divinity prevails, a divinity which extols human opinion as paramount to Scriptural Truth! Does not the spirit of God, by his prophets, threaten such a punishment, and does not Paul speak of those who should teach for doctrines the command- ments of men? and to whom can he refer but — to the Sorhomie Divines^ or such as they P " Nay more, whatever criminality may be sup- posed to attach to any persons for opposing the fathers, is to be charged upon these very Parisian disputants themselves, who diametrically contra- dict them. The very best of the Fathers de- nounce whatsver is not from the spirit of Christ, as sinful ; but these not only do not allow of their guilt, but absolutely affirm many of them to be meritorious. The Fathers deny that mere human strength is adequate to fulfil the divine law, these Parisians state the very reverse. N "-2 / 180 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. " It is written, if an offender refuses to hear the church let him be as a heathen man and a publican. I pray now what do you call the church ? No doubt, the French^ or Sorhonne Church. But how can that be the church of Christ which has not the word of Christ, who testifies that his sheep hear his voice ? We de- nominate that his true church which is built upon THE WORD OF GoD, and which is nou- rished, fed and governed by it ; in a word, which derives every thing and judges of every thing, by THE GOSPEL OF Christ, for " he that is of God heareth the words of God." Again, " You, the Sorbonne Church, without appealing to Reason or Scripture, condemn Lu- ther and exclude him from the communion of the pious. But it did not become you to con- demn^ but to accuse. You do not accuse or con- vince by argument, but contrary both to divine and human laws, at once condemn^ and for no other reason than because you are the Sorbonne divines and lords of our faith to be sure! For shame! for shame! ! ! But stay,— I must not treat the Sorbonne so irreverently! — for these lords over our faith say they imitate the example of the Apostles, when they issue decisions with- out Scripture authority. I wish, however, they would verify this statement by some reference. Christ himself quotes the authority of Scripture, Paul does the same ; and what are all the apos- LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 181 tolic discourses but the testimonies derived from the records of the Old Testament concerning Christ. The Sorhonne only is to be believed without Scripture! " He imagines this fraternity must be of Egyptian origin, and the descendants of Jannes and Jambres who resisted Moses. The truth of the Lutheran doctrines, however, he is satisfied will remain immoveable and unshaken, not only by their opposition, but in spite of the rulers of darkness." Soon after the publication of this perform- ance a mock answer appeared in the name of the Parisian Divines, written in a ludicrous style and intended to make them appear ridiculous. Dupin imputes it to Luther, and Seckendorf ex- presses a doubt whether it were written by him or some other friend. Another controversial piece of the present year, under the feigned name of Didymus Faven-J> tinus, against Thomas Placentinus, and on behalf of Luther, is to be attributed to Alelancthon. (w) 'It consists of forty-four folio pages. In this per- formance he details the history of the Lutheran controversy, and refutes the various calumnies of fwj It is published by his son-in-law in the second vo- lume of his works. Placentinus, or iliuidtn, as he likewise called himself was au assumed name, the real writer being Eraser. Comp. Melancth. Ep. 5, 6. ai//e«?/»i. 182 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. the enemies of truth and the reformation. " Lu- ther," says he, " is most iniquitously condemned for havingdelivered his countryfrom the papal im» positions, for daring to root out the errors of so many centuries, and restoring to the hght pure Christianity which had been nearly extinguished by the impious decrees of the Popes, and the vain sophistries of the schoolmen. I am not alone in ascribing this merit to Luther ; the learned uni- versally do the same : and 1 state this lest you should imagine that he is the sole author of the present commotions, w^hich ought rather to be imputed to those who have done nothing else during the past three years than plotting the de- struction of Luther. Do not suppose their object is the peace of the Christian community — no — it is solely that they might be able to ty- ranize completely over it." Emser,in his declamatory publication, banters Luther, telling him that he ought to feel himself / very much obliged to his friend Philip Melancthon, \ for taking the pains to polish up his writings and ^ enable him to cut a hetter figure than he would in his 0W71 barbarous style: and censures him for dis- countenancing liberal studies. " Luther," re- plies Melancthon, is no enemy to Mathematics and Natural Philosophy. He thinks the study of coins, plants, and the habits of animals, con- ducive to the knowledge of the sacred writings, and ought to be encouraged in the Academy. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 183 He approves authors of this class which we use, as Pliny, Athenaeus, and, if you please, Aristotle, Theophrastus, Dioscorides, not to mention the poets." After exposing the errors of the scholastic divinity, both in metaphysics and in morals, " with prodigious force of argument and fluency of language," fxj and discussing a variety of other topics, he proceeds to the subject of grace. " Philosophers imagine that men may obtain the highest pitch of virtue by exercise and habit ; on the contrary the sacred writings teach that all human performances are polluted by sin, and can only be cleansed by the Spirit which Christ procured for men. Philosophers attribute every thing to human power; but the sacred writings represent all moral power as lost by the fall. The Scholastics, in imitation of the Philosophers who ascribed the merit and the goodness to hu- man power, affirmed, that the Spirit was delight- ed to dwell with us after this self-created excel- lence, but not to transform or purify the soul by his agency. Who does not perceive how the truth of Christ is obscured and lost by this state- ment ; this utter rejection of the scriptural re- presentations of the Spirit as the author of sanc- tification and of every thing good in man ; and fxj " Magno ponclere ar^-umentoium^ verborum flu- mine." Seckendokf. ^ 184 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. this shameless, this arrogantassumption of human merit ? Hence have originated those endless dis- putes respecting offerings, re^vards, and cardinal virtues, in which every thing is attributed to human nature, and nothing to Christ. " The terms grace, faith, hope and charity, are so abused, that they have quite a different meaning in the sacred writings from that which is given them in the controversies of scholastic divines, so that we have not only lost the doc- trine, but the very language of Christianity. Grace, denotes the favour of God through Christ — but where does it ever signify, as they assert, a form uf soul ? Whence originated the terms faith infused or acquired, formed., and unformedP What is their authority for teaching that Christian minds must hope for salvation from human merits ? Whence indeed is this profane, im- pious and arrogant word, merit ? " The church, ye Princes, appeals to your faith and piety, that, enslaved as she has hitherto been by vain philosophy and human traditions, you would at length emancipate her from her wretched state, her Bab)' Ionian servitude/' He complains bitterly of the state of the Uni- versities, and entreats the different Princes to use their utmost exertions to procure that reform which was so essentially requisite. •' The youth, the most tender and susceptible part of the com- munity, are perishing in luxury, gluttony and LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 1S5 excess. And what are they likely to do with such masters ? And if they should have a dili- gent tutor, what will it avail if he cannot instruct them, or only in the most sparing manner, in ^^^ , sacred wisdom ? For it is in vain you attempt gS^)y^ to govern the youthful mind unless you arm it, "^hn^*^ by evangelical truth and holy example, against ^ the lusts of the flesh, the influence of the world and the machinations of Satan. " Kvery one of the ancient Republics paid the greatest possible attention to the instruction of their youth ; we, we only, who are denomi- nated Christians, totally disregard and despise this, which is of all others the most important object. O ye Princes, if no other consideration aflect your minds, at least compassionate the situation of our youth, who are ruined by the wickedness of others. I have seen some of them by no means ill disposed, who would however rather continue in ignorance of letters, than purchase knowledge at so dear a rate ; and who carried away nothing from the Universities but a wounded conscience." It is needless to quote any of those passages which are merely controversial, though they are in themselves witty, and were at the time extremely necessary. Poor Emser published a reply in the following year full oi feeling and furnishing ample proof that Melancthon had trod upon a rattlesnake. 1S6 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. Amongst the " Select Declamations," we find one of the present year on a subject which lie was peculiarly qualified to discuss. It is en- titled, " Adhortatio ad Christianae Doctrinse, per Paulum Proditfe, Studium ;" or, An Exhorta- tion to the Study of Chistian Truth, as stated by the apostle Paul. After shewing the superiority of Paul's doctrine, and the institutions of Chris- tianity to human laws, and of Paul's eloquence to that of the most celebrated orators of antiquity, he concludes with the following solemn appeal: " If, O ye youths, you have any concern for your own best interests, devote your minds to the study of Paul. Inform yourselves from him of the genuine principles of the Christian life, the true means of religious consolation, and the es- timale to be formed of all divine and human things. It concerns youth especially to embrace a doctrine of preeminent importance, as con- (Jucive to the felicity of man in his passage through the present life, and in prospect of departure from it. Paul instructs you how to /live holily and to die happily, by warning the / unwary of the snares which their formidable ad- versaries the flesh and the devil, have prepared for their ruin. You may without moral danger neglect other arts and studies, but it is impos- sible to despise the truth of the gospel, without sacrificing the hope of salvation. It becomes bishops to use their utmost endeavours, not only LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 187 to see that those particularly devoted to sacred studies are well instructed, but to promote this knowledsfe throughout the whole Christian com- munity; and it is incumbent on the Academies to inculcate it with the greatest zeal, and substi- tute it for that barbarism and disputation falsely called Philosophy, which our ancestors unhap- pily sanctioned. If it please God the brass shall become gold. " It is with the deepest affliction of mind 1 observe that our public seminaries are nothing but the temples of Tophet, and the gloomy valley of the children of Hinnom. Christianity is banished. Athens had its Areopagus, and Sparta its School, where youth were trained up after the very best models, and were better in- structed by these heathens than they are in our XJniversities at this day. But do you yourselves, ye studious youth, seriously undertake the dili- gent study of St. Paul's writings, where Christ Jesus is evidently set forth, and his Spirit will unquestionably prosper your endeavours. No service is more acceptable to God, and no con- duct can be more pious and praiseworthy than to aim at truth, and to acquire its transforming influence ; and being once attempted, the labour will become so delightful that it will never be relinquished. The knowledge of any truth i* pleasant, but the knowledge of Christian truth i* Tx*»^*^ / 18S LIFE OF MELANCTHON. singularly beneficial, and you will find the wri- tings of Paul both agreeable and useful. " It is said that the Egyptians, a people unex- ampled for superstition, kept an annual festival in honour of Mercury, the reputed author of their laws and literature, on which occasion the multitude were accustomed to offer sacrifices of honey and figs. This rite proves the antiquity of the festival ; for in the golden age, as it is called, almost all public entertainments and feasts were of a sacrificial nature, and honey and figs the most usual offerings to the gods, of which there is ample evidence. In the midst of these public solemnities the voice of melody was heard in a hymn to Mercury, neither rudely composed nor badly recited. It expressed the grateful sense they cherished of his having given them laws and formed a variety of institutions, and cele- brated the praise of truth in general. May I not indulge the hope that the discovery of truth by the study of Paul, will excite similar sensa- tions and strains of festive joy; for what can be more just and proper than that after being in- structed in the best and most important know- ledge, the burden of our song should be as their*s constantly was, yXmv ^' dxr^^trx, " O lovely truth." The " Loci Communes Theologici," or " Theological Common Places," which was first Published at this time, demands, on account of LIFE OP MELANCTHON. IS9 its magnitudeand subsequent celebrity, a particu- lar notice. None of the works of Melancthon, and scarcely any amongst the numerous pro- ductions of his illustrious contemporaries, ex- cited greater attention, or circulated to a wider extent. It was very popular both in France and Italy. At Venice, it was published under the ^Z name of Messer Philippo de Terra JVera, which is the Italian translation of the word Melanc- thon, and was extensively read. Not a syl- lable of disapprobation was expressed, till one Cordelier, who had read the work as it was first \ published, with the author's real name affixed, { gave information to the inquisitors, who, though / A, they approved, or at least did not censure it, as / " the writing of Philippo de Terra Nera, instantly \ suppressed it as the production of Philip Me-\ lancthon ! (y) " He that intends to be a good divine," says Luther, " hath a great advantage ; for, first, he hath the Bible, which I have so plainly translated out of the Hebrew into the High German lan- guage, that every one may read it without diffi- culty. Afterwards he may read the Loci Com- munes of Philip Melancthon ; and let him read with diligence, so that he may have it perfectly in his memory. When he has these two pieces, (y) Hermanni Van Der Hardt Hist. Literar. Rc- formationis. P. IV. p. 30. Dlpin Eccles. Hist. Cent. 17, T. I. p. 220. 190 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. then he is a divine, against whom neither the devil, nor any heretic can be able to take advan- tage, for the whole of divinity lies open to him, so that he may read what and when he will for his edification." Ao-ain. " we find no book where the sum of religion or divinity is more finely com- pacted together than in Melancthon's Loci Com- munes; all the Fathers and Sententiarii are not to be compared to it. It is the best book next to the holy Scriptures." fzj To an edition published in French, at Ge- neva, in the year 1531, the illustrious John Cal- vin has prefixed an advertisement, in which he eulogizes the author in the strongest terms : and of the Common Places in particular he very justly remarks, " it is a summary of those truths which are essential to the christian's guidance in the way of salvation." A very cursory analysis of the sentiments contained in this celebrated per- formance is all the reader can expect or would deem admissible, fa) Of God. "The human mind, originally formed in the image of God, and capable of knowing him, is, however, in consequence of sin, enveloped in darkness, and can scarcely of itself determine whether there be a God or a Providence. Al- fzj CoLLOQ. Mensal, p. 298. faj Vid. Appendix IV. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 191 though nature is ever}^ where marked with traces of the divinity, and with evidences of his in- terference in human affairs, such is the weakness of man, that he is full of doubt and hesitation on the subject. It is, therefore, a proof of divine goodness to enlighten and instruct us by his word, r^ " God is a spiritual essence, possessing eter- /- nity and the attributes of power, wisdom, good-'' ness, justice and mercy, in an infinite degree, which are not separable from himself, or incom- patible in their operations. The unity of God is stated in the following passages : ' Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord." — ' I am the first, and I am the last, and besides me there is no God.' — ' I am the Lord and there is none else, there is no God beside me.' — ' We know that an idol is nothing in the world, and there is none other God but one.'—' One God and Fa- ther of all. Y^^ " The scriptures teach us, however, that the essence of God consists in three persons, infinite and co-eternal, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. " The Son is denominated by John the lo- gos or WORD. In the epistle to the Hebrews he / is called ' the brightness of the Father's glory, and the express image of his person;' and ' all things' are said to have been ' made by him.' In the ^bj Deut. vi. 4. Is. xliv. C. Is. xlv. 5. I Cor. viii. 4. Eph. iv. 6. / 192 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. /! Colossians he is termed ' the image of the invi- I sible God.' fc) "The third person, or Holy Spirit, is re- presented by John as proceeding from the Father and the Son. The Son, at the predestined pe- y riod of time, assumed human nature and was -- bornof the Virgin Mary. He was the Christ, one person consisting in two natures, the divine and the human. Neither the Father nor the Spirit assumed human nature, but the Son. " The doctrine of the Trinity is supported by Scripture In the last chapter of Matthew men- tion is made of ' baptizing in the name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.' Three persons are here distinctly named, and each is assigned an equal power and honour. The appeal or invocation is equally made to each, and so as to imply an equal authority. "Christ must have been possessed of a divine nature, or it would not be proper to adore and in- voke him. And the adoration, as stated in va- rious passages, was not merely external, as we bow before kings and potentates, because omni- potence is attributed to him, and John affirms, ' in the beginning was the word, and the word was with God, and the word was God.' fdj A copious variety of passages is here quoted from the Old and New Testaments, in proof of fcj Heb. i. 3. John i. 3. Col. i. 15. fdJ John i. 1. LIFE OP MELANCTHON. 193 prayer and other acts of worship being presented to Christ, and the opinions of the Arians and So- cinians are opposed by arguments and quotations from the fathers. Inspeakingofthe holy spirit, Melancthon remarks, that " the general signification of the term spirit is motion, either natural, or by means of external impulse ; but it is used in a variety of senses by the prophets and apostles, which must not be absurdly confounded together. Often it means the wind, the life of man, and the various movements of passion good or bad. In the phrase ' God is a spirit,' it signifies a spiritual es- sence, or a pure incorporeal intelligence. It is applied to the Father, but not to him only, and it is requisite to distinguish those places where it refers to the Holy Spirit, whose office is to sanc- tify and animate the soul." The divinity and personality of the Holy Spirit is then maintained in a series of explanatory remarks on his appearance, at the Baptism of Christ, in the form of a dove, and on the day of Pentecost ; and on a variety of passages common- ly recited in the Trinitarian controversy. The Creation. " All creatures are the workmanship of God; aHgels, men, and every other existence and sub- stance. They were created from nothing, for o 194 LIFE OF MELANCTHOH. ' by the word of the Lord were the heavens made, and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth/ (e) " If all things were made by the word of the Lord, they were not formed, as the stoics imagined, from matter antecedently existing. And as God created, so he perpetually sustains all things and all beings. The fertility of the earth year after year, and the perpetuation of human life is to be attributed to what is called his general operations. ' In him we live and move and have our being.' ' Who upholds ail things by the word of his power.* * He giveth life to all flesh.' ' Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing, and not one of them shall fall to the ground without your father. Even the very hairs of your head are all numbered.' ' All wait on thee that thou mayest give them their meat in due season.' ' He covereth the hea- vens with clouds, he prepareth rain for the earth, he maketh grass to grow upon the mountains.' (f) " A variety of special promises have been given to the church, relating to the care of a su- perintending providence, and are to be found in every part of the scriptures. The prayer which our Saviour directs us to present, ' give us this fej Ps. xxxiii. (5. (fj Acts xvii. 28. Heb. i. 3. Mat. x. 29. Ps. civ. 27. Ps. cxlvii. 8. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 19>3 day our daily bread,' intimates our constant de- pendance, so that second causes cannot operate or avail us unless God give them efficiency. " Other proofs of this subject might be ad- duced; as^Jirst, the order of nature, that is to say, .^ a series of effects, shewing an agent and cause..-. The regularity of these operations, as the course of :/vu . i«.9^ the heavenly bodies, the succession of animals, ^ '^ and of the various productions of the earth, and the course of rivers, demonstrate they are not acci- dental coincidences, but resulting from an intelli- gent agent. Secondly^ the nature of the human mind : what is devoid of intelligence cannot pro- duce it, but the human mind possesses intelli- gence, and since each derives his being from another, the original being must be an intelligent one. Thirdly^ the distinction between virtue and vice, and the varieties of knowledge. It is not possible these should exist in the human soul without an adequate cause and by mere accident. Fourthly^ the uniform impression of the truth that there is a God — all acknowledge it. Fifthly^ natural conscience: persons guilty of notorious crimes, suffer great alarms of mind, and yet do not apprehend that any punishment will be in- flicted by man. They have a certain internal conviction of right and of wrong. Siithij/, the constitution of civil society, which could not be organized and maintained in its various relations, but for the wisdom imparted and the regulations o 2 196 LIFE OF MELANCTHOM, maintained by an eternal Providence. Seventhly, the knowledge which is obtained and can be obtained only by the continuance of efficient causes. These are not infinite, we must there- fore recur to a first cause. Eighthly^ the exist- ence of final causes. — All things are destined to some use, but this appointment of a suitable end and purpose could not have been fortuitous nor can it continue by chance. It implies a superintending intelligence. Ninthly^ prophetic signs and intimations of futurity. These are not only such signs as are notorious to the hea- then world, but especially particular predictions to the church — often involving the fate of em- pires, as the predictions of Balaam, Isaiah, Jere- miah and Daniel. A foreseeing mind is neces- sarily pre-supposed. These considerations de- monstrate both the being and the presiding providence of God. The Cause and Consequence of Sin. " This has been a fruitful subject of disputa- tion, and many great men on both sides have involved themselves in inextricable difficulties and absurdities. Let youth be admonished to lay aside contention, and seek only that simple truth which is conducive to genuine religion and sound morality. All wise men agree in one point, that God is not the author of sin, that he neither desires it nor impels the will to commit LIFE OF MELANCTHON. J97 sin, but abhors it ; but it is to be attributed to the influence of the devil and to the will of man. God when he had created the universe pro- nounced all very good, and Christ imputes evil to Satan, when he represents him as ' a liar and the father of lies/ The New Testament every- where states the same sentiment. ' Whosoever committeth sin is of the devil — for the devil sinneth from the beginning,' that is, the devil was the original author of sin. fg) " Such expressions as ' I will harden Pha- roah's heart* do not contradict this representa- ^ tion, because they are mere Hebrew idioms, signifying the permission and not the effectual operation and impulse of the divine mind. " The nature of original sin is hence apparent. It is not the original nature which the Deity / implanted in man, but the corruption arising from disobedience. God then is not the author of sin, but properly speaking, it arose from the temptation of Satan and the will of man which was created free. On the Freedom of the Human Will. " By the term free will, is to be understood a /^ faculty and power in the human will, to choose "^ ^ or reject whatever is presented to it ; which power was far greater before nature was corrupted, 1 but is now impeded by various means to be \ (g) IJoHN iii. 8. 198 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. hereafter stated. The apostles speak of the heart and the mind, that is, the will and the under- standing. " Many disputes have been agitated upon this- subject, and the grand question is, in wliat manner can the will be free, or how can it obey the law of God ? This question can only be re- solved by considering the magnitude of that sin, or inherent infnmity which is contracted by our verv birth, and the requirements of the law of God as extendino not onlv to external obedience, but to that of the whole nature, perpetual and per- fect. If the nature of man were not corrupted J by sin, its knowledge of God would be more clear and certain ; it would be affected with no doubts; but possessing a genuine fear and confi- dence would render a perfect obedience, that is to say, all the feelings of the soul would harmo- nize with the divine law like those of holy angels. In consequence of original sin, how- ever, the nature of man is now full of doubts, darkness and error, destitute of true fear and confidence in God, and polluted with vile affec- tions. Hence the question arises, what kind of power does the human will possess.^ I reply, / that since the understanding of man is corrupted, and the choice of those things which are sub- jected to reason or to sense is perverted, so also is his external and civil obedience. " The gospel teaches us that such is the A LIFE OF MELANCTMON. 199 ' dreadful depravity of nature, that it is totally re- pugnant to the law of God, so that we cannot obey ; and the human will cannot, by any exertion of its own, eradicate this depravity. Such is the blindnessuoi human nature, that we do not even discern this moral infirmity and corruption, for if we did, the reason of our incapacity to satisfy the divine law would be at once apparent. The law requires perfect obedience, but our corrupt nature cannot render it ; and it is of this corrup- tion we speak, not in reference to external acts but internal affections and conformity to God, when discoursing on the freedom of the human will. " To this let it be added, that without the Holy Spirit we cannot exercise spiritual affections as love to God, faith in his mercy, obedience and endurance in afflictions, delight in him and others of a similar nature. Many passages of Scripture confirm this statement, ' As many as are led by the Spirit of God they are the sons of God.' ' If any man have not the Spirit of Christ he is none of his.* (hj These two are sufficiently ob- vious, for they distinctly intimate that we can only obey by the grace of the Holy Spirit. To these may be added a multitude of others, as * the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto him, neither can he know them because they are fh) Rom. viii. 14. Rom. viii. 9. 200 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. spiritually discerned/ — ' Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God/ — ' No man can come to me except the Father which hath sent me draw him/ — ' Without me ye can do nothing/ fij " The question then being proposed respect- ing spiritual actions, this seems to be the truth which it becomes us to maintain, that without the aid of the Holy Spirit the human will can perform none of those spiritual actions which God re- quires, namely, the genuine fear of God, faith in his mercy, perfect love, patience in affliction, persevering constancy even to death, of which holy Stephen, Lawrence and Agnes, with innu- merable others are illustrious examples. On the Gospel. " This term is used in the most ancient of the Greek writers. In Homer it signifies the reward which is bestowed on the messenger of good tidings, and in Aristophanes and Isocrates, it denotes the sacrifice which is offered when any good news is announced. In other authors it is used for the message itself, the news communicated, in which sense the apostles have adopted it. Plutarch in the life of Artaxerxes, plainly speaks of the reward of the gospel or good news, for to (i) ICoR. ii. 14. John iii. 5. John vi. 44. John XV. 5. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 201 this the reference is obvious. In the life of Pom- pey, he says, ' the messengers arrived at Pontus hnnging the gospel,' that is, the good and joyful "^ intellio-ence. Cicero uses it in a similar sense in an epistle to Atticus. " Let Christians then learn in the use of this term the delightful nature of this new doctrine, and consider the distinction between the Law and the Gospel. This is very clearly expressed by John, ' the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ lY^'y' the the distinction is between the commandments and the remission of sins, between gratuitous promises and those of a different description. The law requires perfect obedience to God, by which sins are not gratuitously pardoned, for we are not justified before God, or received into his favour according to its requirements unless we have entirely satisfied its demands. On the contrary, the gospel speaks of repentance and good works, and contains what is indeed its grand and characteristic doctrine, the promise of salvation through Jesus Christ. " In Scripture therefore there are two kinds '|^'^ of promises ; tlie one attaches to the law and in- | eludes the condition of the law. For example ; \ the law proclaims the goodness and mercy of God, but it is to those who are sinless, and human reason inculcates a similar principle. Let every (k) John i. 17. 209 LIFE OF MELANTCHON. one reflect within himself and he will find that naturally he judges of God in the same manner, namely, that he is merciful, but only to the worthy and virtuous, that is, to those who are without sin ; and cannot be persuaded that they can please God when they are unholy and un- worthy. So that as the law and its promises are conditional they leave the Conscience in a state of doubtful anxiety. " Theother description ofpromise is peculiar to the gospel not deriving its condition from the law, that is to say, not given upon the condition v of fulfilling the law, but is gratuitously bestowed for the sake of Christ and includes the forgiveness of sin, reconciliation and justification before God. These blessings are certain, and not de- pendant on the condition of fulfilling the law ; for were we to suppose it necessary, in order to obtain the remission of sins to fulfil the law, we should justly despair. Hence these blessings are freely bestowed, and not as a reward for our worthiness or merit ; not however without a meritorious sacrifice on our behalf, for Christ gave himself for us as a propitiation for our sins, that for his sake we might be accepted of God.. Good Works. " Five questions are proposed: — 1 . What good works ought we to do ? — The reply is, summarily, not only external acts of LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 203 morality, but whatever is commanded by God and comprised within the decalogue. 2. How can we do them ? — By the effectual aid of the Holy Spirit, who can enable us to render an internal and spiritual obedience — a service of the heart to God. 3. In what manner are our good works ac- ceptable to God? — Christians are exceedingly desirous of this, but are at the same time deeply conscious of their imperfections, infirmities, and corruptions, as Paul says, ' the evil that I would not that I do,' (I) After admitting all this in the fullest extent, the reply is, that notwithstand- ing all the imperfection and infirmity of the Chris- tian in the present state, and his incapacity to perform that perfect obedience w^hich the divine Jl iaw requires, he is nevertheless acceptable to God, for the sake of Christ the Mediator, who presents our prayers to the Father as our inter- cessor, and remits the infirmity and unworthiness of our services. Peter maintains this sentiment, ' offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God by Jesus Christ' (mj 4. For what reasons ought we to perform good works ? Many present themselves, arising ^first^ out of the necessity of duty and the com- mand of heaven, that we do not grieve the Holy Spirit and injure our own consciences or incur punishment ; secondly, from a consideration of flj Rom. vii. 19. fmj 1 Pet. ii. 5. 904 LIFE OP MELANCTHON. dignity ; not the dignity or merit of our works, but of our character and persons as servants of God ; the dignity of our vocation of which the apostle speaks, as the magistrate or minister ought to magnify his office, and to be loyal and diligent in the discharge of it ; thirdly, as an y evidence and assurance of our reconciliation with God and the enjoyment of a gratuitous pardon through the love of his Son. Such as obey God have the promise of eternal life ; ' Godliness hath the promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come-Y^j The Scripture abounds with promises to believers, inclusive of temporal, spiritual, and eternal blessings. 5. What difference exists between the nature of different sins, since it is confessed there are remains of depravity in the most holy of Christians ? — Some kinds of sins are sins of infirmity only, sins which the regenerate person resists and abhors ; but others are sins against conscience, grace is forfeited, the Holy Spirit grieved, faith lost, that is, the confidence we ought to cherish in the mercy of God. The Apostle Paul says, ' If ye live after the flesh ye shall die, but if ye through the spirit do mor- tify the deeds of the body ye shall live,* that is, if ye obey wicked affections ye shall be exposed to the divine displeasure and to eternal death. fnj 1 Tim. iv. 8. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 205 It is said in the same chapter, ' As many as are led by the Spirit of God they are the sons of God ,' but such as commit sin against their con- sciences, grieve and drive away the Spirit of God, for they are no longer the children of God. * Be not deceived, neither fornicators, nor ido- laters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate shall inherit the kingdom of God/ John says, ' He that committeth sin is of the devil. ^o^ The Kingdom of Christ. " The gospel plainly teaches us that the kingdom of Christ is spiritual, that is to say, Christ being seated at the right hand of the Fa- ther intercedes for us, pardons the sins of his church, and bestows the Holy Spirit on those who believe in him and approach God in his name ; whom he sanctifies and will raise again at the last day to everlasting life. And that we may obtain these blessings, the ministry of the gospel is appointed by which mankind are called to the knowledge of Jesus Christ. But the true church will always suffer persecution from the wicked to the end of time, and in the church itself the good and the evil will continue blended together. It is necessary therefore to reject the old Jewish error revived by the Anabaptists of this age, that in the last times the church will become a worldly empire in which Christians foj Rom. viii. 13, 14. 1 Cor. vi. 9. Uohn iii. 8. / 206 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. will reign, destroying the wicked by force of arms, and seizing upon all the kingdoms and sovereignties of the earth. Prayer. " There is an essential difference between genuine prayer as offered to God by his real church and the jiraycrs of Pagans, Mahometans and Jews. This difference arises from two sources, the one respects the Essence of God of which they formed no just conceptions, and the other the means of acceqitance with him, namely, by Jesus Christ the Mediator. " This subject may l)e divided into five parts : — 1. In approaching God by prayer, it is re- quisite to consider who and what he is to whom we address ourselves. Let us reflect there is no other God, and that from the very commencement of time he has manifested him- self to his church by the; word of his truth and the Son of his love, Christ our Mediator. 2. Let us remember that praj'er is a com- manded DUTY. We are not to imagine that murder, theft, adultery, are the only sins ; it is one of the greatest of sins, not to render to God that service he demands, not to supplicate his throne, not to depend upon his aid in our neces- sities, and not to express our gratitude for the blessings we receive. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 207 3. It is proper for a Christian to recur to THE PROMISES, that he may know that God hears and ichy he hears us, though we are un- worthy and merit of ourselves the severest punishments. The promises in their proper order include the remission of sins and recon- ciliation with God, the communication of all spiritual and all temporal blessings. Inex- pressible kindness ! Boundless mercy to the church ! He commands us to ask mercies, and then adds an ample promise to encourage us fo pray ! But how surprising is the folly and weakness of the human heart, to draw back instead of approaching God ! Nevertheless the innumerable examples and promises of Scripture excite us to dismiss our doubts, to approach God through his beloved Son, and not to ima- gine that his promises are as the Epicureans suppose, mere idle words. Surely the Divine Being has not given so many indubitable mani- festations of himself for no purpose ; he has not declared his will in vain ; but would have our ignorance and our doubts removed by his word. Taulerus very justly remarks, ' that the mind of man is never so eagerly disposed to pray, but God is still more ready to give.* 4. It is necessary that faith should ac-j^ company supplication ; for it is for the purpose of encreasing our faith that the promises are given. In reference to spiritual blessings which 208 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. God has expressly promised, as the remission of sins, dehverance from the dominion of sin, and from eternal death, the gift of the Holy Spirit and eternal life, no condition is subjoined : those who repent of their sins and believe in Christ may rest assured of divine favour. Faith must also mingle with our request for temporal blessings ; and we must recollect three things — Jirst^ that God is truly the source and dispenser of these favours, that we do not possess them by chance, that we cannot certainly secure them by any personal exertion or diligence, they are absolutely the gifts of God and of him we must solicit life, protection, peace, tranquillity, pros- perity in our different callings and bodily health. Secondly, although it is the will of God that his church and people should be subject to afflictions, yet he will certainly bestow temporal good so far as is requisite for their support and preservation. Thirdly, it is the will of God that when we request temporal blessings, our faith in the great reconciliation should be exercised and encreased. 5. Let us RENEW AND REPEAT OUR RE- QUESTS ; for it is honourable to the character of God to trust in him continually amidst our di- versified afflictions, and to rely upon his hearing those who supplicate his throne." LIF£ of MfiLASrCTflON. 209 The transactions relatinsr to the abolition of o private Masses, constitute a very important part of the proceedings of this extraordinary year. It afforded the highest satisfaction to Luther in his retirement to find that the Augustinian Friars at Wittemberg had ventured upon an attempt to abolish the popish" mode of celebrating private Masses ; but the Elector felt some alarm, and deputed Pontanus, one of his counsellors, to re- monstrate with the church and university upon their proceedings. Melancthon was chosen, with five others, Justus Jonas, John Doltz, Andrew Carlostadt,(^/>y' Jerome SchurfF, and Ni- cholas AmsdorfF, to investigate the business ; and in their report, they not only expressed their ap- probation of this zeal, but urged the Elector ** to put an end to the popish Masses throughout /'p/ He had three names, Andrew Bodensfein Carloitadt; and in allusion to his initials A, B, C, Melancthon frequently desig- nated him by the term Alphabtt, " Hie nihil est novi quae de al- phabeto scribis, nonnihil commoverunt. Vereor enim ne vir ille privatamcontumeliam, quam putat ulturus novoscandalo causam evangelicam ooeret." Ep. ad Cam, " Tuas literas lon^iorcs Ttio) T« a, (3, accepi." Ep. p. 2. It was no uncommon prac- tice with Melancthon to amuse himself by punning' upon names in his familiar letters : e. g-. " Dux Georgius dicitur afFuturus intra triduum adducens secum Cochlceum, qui paucis Uteris mutatis fiet avis xoKoiog, de quo genere nobis scripsisti quani suaviter in tua ricinia rhetoriceotur. Et ut intelligas neuti-: quam vanum esse Eckius qui geitiinatus reddit vocem monedtK* larum Ekekehel magnum acervum conclusionum congessit." Ep. ad Luth. Lib. I. 3. P 210 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. his whole territory, and not to be deterred by the reproaches of those who would brand him with the name of Heretic^ or Hussite: this Christ required of the Elector, whose mind he had en- lightened with the knowledge of the Truth above all other Princes/' The Elector directed Pro- fessor Bayer to return an answer, importing, that he was desirous of acting like a Chris- tian Prince, for the glory of God and the establishment of his gospel, but that he thought y nothing ought to be done with precipitation; that the truth would be discovered by others, and he might then undertake the change ; and that as many churches and monasteries had been founded for the purpose of saying Masses, it should be considered whether upon their aboli- tion their revenues might not be withheld — but that he was only a layman, he desired them to consult with the rulers of the church and uni- versity, that every thing might be peaceably settled." To this they replied in a manner worthy of themselves and of the noble cause in which they were engaged, stating that " they adhered to ^' their former opinion given against private Mass- es, that they could be abolished as they believed without tumult or scandal ; but if not they were instructed by Christ to let them alone^ for they are blind leaders of the blitid ; and by the apos- tles to obeij God rather than men. From the be- 1 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 211 ginning of the world it had always been found that a small proportion of mankind acknowledged the truth, and according to the testimony of Christ himself, the gospel was to be preached to the weak, the few, the despised, and the un- learned ; so that it was not surprising that Priests and the wise of this world apprehensive of losing their power, dignity, and other advantages, should rrot admit the preaching of the truth, or consent to wise and pious changes, unless they were likely to become sources of emolument to them- selves. The ancient colleges and monasteries were founded not for the purpose of saying Masses, but for the instruction of youth and the support of the poor: and that even to the time of Augustine and Bernard. These institutions were only appropriated to Masses within these three or four hundred years, and for the Dead scarcely two hundred. Still they ought to be abolished as errors, even though they could boast of great antiquity. Besides, the very principle on which Masses are celebrated is sinful, name- ly, that they are good works, or sacrifices, or sa- tisfactions for sin. It appeared that even to the time of Cyprian it was the custom of receiving the Sacrament in both kinds, and that this prac- tice prevails even to the present day in Greece and the Eastern churches. It was not therefore their fault if tumult should arise ; but thet/ were to be censured, who, to keep up their dignity, p 2 2i2 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. their income, and their luxury, continue to obstruct the light of truth, and cruelly wage waf against the altars of God. Christ predicted and his apostles experienced that the gospel was a stotie of stumblings and a rock of offence. The Christian rule was neither to regard the mad- ness of the enemy, nor the greatness of the danger. Christ was not silent, though he fore- saw the preaching of the gospel would be attend- ed with discord, seditions, and the revolution of kingdoms ; nor were his apostles less strenuous ia instructing the people, because the wise men of the world detested the very name of the gospel^ looking upon it as the firebrand of those disturb* ances, schisms, and tumults, which raged amongst the Jews at Jerusalem.*' The result of these communications was, that though the timid Elector refused to give them a public sanction* he connived at these innovations, (qj The life of Leo X. terminated with the closing year. fqj Seckend. Hist. Luth. Lib. I. p. 216. ( 213 ) CHAP. VI. A. D. 1522 TO A. D. 1325. ^^.^^.^sff./'.tfsr^^ The Anabaptists — Disturbances of Carlostadt — Luther's return to Wittemberg — Account of his German version of the Scriptures, with the assistance of Melancthon and others — Luther's conference with Stubner — His letter of Apology for stealing Mela?icthon*s MS. Copy of his Commentary on the Romans — Extracts from that Commentary — Progress of the Reformation — Rise of the Sacramental Controversy — Death of Muncer — Melancthon^ s excursion in Germany — Death of Mosellanus — His Epitaph — Melancthons intro- duction to the Landgrave of Hesse — Death of Ne- genus — His Epitaph — Death of Frederic the Wise — Translated extracts from Melancthon s Funeral Ora- tion — His Epitaph — Luther s Marriage — Controversy with Erasmus — Melancthon's visits to Nuremberg to found an Academy — Translated extracts of his Ora- tion at the opening of the Institution — Publications, Fanaticism soon made her unwelcome appearance in this season of religious commotion. In the spring of 1522, Nicholas Storck, Martin Cellarius, and Mark Stubner, who had been for some time engaged with the notorious Mun- 214 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. cer ill propagating the wildest sentiments at Zwickau, in Misnia, came to Wittemberg. The former was a baker, and a zealous leader of this enthusiastic band. They had harangued the po- pulace in the church of St. Catharine, and pre- tending to enjoy visions and inspirations from heaven, acquired a very considerable ascendancy over the minds of an ignorant populace. Storck imagined he had seen an angel in a vision, who amongst other things, said he would be elevated to Gabriel's seat, from which Storck sup- posed that he was to become the head of a new empire, (r) These persons have been usually designated by the term Anabaptists, on account of their denying the validity of infant baptism ; a name sufficiently vague and inappropriate, as this sentiment, even if it were acknowledged to be erroneous, cannot with any candour be classed amongst their fanatical opinions. This epithet is deduced from their representing the office of magistracy as subversive of their spiritual liberty, affirming that civil distinctions, such as rank birth and opulence confer, ought to be abolish- ed, that Christians may enjoy all things in com- mon ; and maintaining that they were favoured with visions and revelations from heaven. They ^ry Melanc. Ep. Lib. IV. 17. ad Joack. Carrier at; Van de Corput Leven ende Dood Phil. Mel. p, 15. LIFE OP MELANCTHON. 215 branched out into various subdivisions, and some of them approached very nearly to the sen- timents of modern Sandemanians. (s) Although it was one of their principles to explode human science, Mark Stubner was a man of some learning, having been a student at the University of Wittemberg. (tj Melanc- thon, with his characteristic goodness, received and treated him with the utmost hospitality, patiently investigated his pretensions, and scru- pulously avoided any precipitancy in his de- cisions. The state of his mind is obvious from a letter which at this critical juncture he ad- dressed to the Elector. " Your Highness is aware of the great and dangerous dissentions about religion which have distracted your city of Zwickau. Some have been imprisoned for their innovations, and three of the leaders have fled hither, two of them ignorant weavers, the third a man of learning. I have heard their statements ; and it is astonishing what they re- latei of themselves as commissioned from heaven / to teach ; as having a familiar intercourse with God, aad able to foresee future events; in a word, as having the authority of prophets and (sj Comp. HooRNBEECK Summa Controversiarum Reli- gionis Art. De Anabaptismo. ft J Cam. Vit. Mel. Dr. Robertson follows Dupin in as- serting that some of these pretenders had been disciples of Lu- tker, but of this there is no evidence. ^\§ LIFE OF MELASCTHON. fipostles. JIow much I am struck with this language it is not easy for me to say ; but cer* tainly I see great reason not to despise them, for they have many arguments to adduce, and some- thing of an extraordinary spirit about them, but no one can judge so well upon the subject as Martin Luther. For the peace and glory of the church, therefore, he should have an oppor- tunity of examining these men, especially as they appeal to him.** The Elector immediately had recourse to his most confidential counsellors, who, being unable to come to a decision, Melancthon con- tinued to urge the necessity of obtaining Lu- ther's sentiments, stating that Storck and his associates had raised disputes concerning the baptism of infants, and had appealed to divine revelations ; and that for his own part he could not positively pronounce upon the merit of the case.. The Elector alleged, that were he to recal Luther it would endanger his life, and ad-r vised Melancthon to avoid disputes with those fanatics; but in the mean time if he knew what justice required, he was ready to discharge his duty. Spalatine, who was present in the cguh- cil, has recorded these memorable words which the Elector pronounced in a manner that pro- duced the deepest impression upon the whole assembly of ministers and counsellors, and which, he remarks, were expressive of his viewi LIFE OP MELANCTHON. 217 to the very last day of his life. — " This is a most weighty and difficult affair, which I as a layman do not profess to understand. God has given to me and my brother considerable wealth ; but if I could obtain a right understanding of the mat- ter, I declare I would rather take my staff in my hand and quit every thing I possess, than know- ingly resist the will of God/' Luther, in a / letter to Melancthon, expresses himself in a ^ very judicious manner. It was written on the seventeenth of January. "In regard to these prophets I cannot approve of your timidity, though you are my superior both in capacity and erudition. In the first place, when they bear record of themselves they ought not to be implicitly believed, but their spirits should be tried, as John admonishes. You know Ga- maliel's advice, but I have heard of nothing said or done by them which Satan himself could not imitate. I would have you examine whether they can produce a proof of their commission, for God never sent any one, not even his own Son, who was not either properly called to the office, or authorized by miracles. The ancient prophets were legally appointed; and their mere assertion of being called by a divine revelation is not a sufficient warrant for receiving them, since God did not even speak to Samuel but with the authority of Eli. So much for their public cha- racter. You should also examine their private / 218 LIFE OF MELANCTHOW. spirit, whether they have experienced spiritual distresses and conflicts with death and hell, and the power of regeneration. If you hear smooth, tranquil, and what they call devout and religious raptures^ though they speak of being caught up into'the third heavens, do not regard them, while the sign of the Son of Man is wanting, the CROSS, the only touchstone of Christians, and the sure discerner of spirits." In addition to the affair of Storck and his associates, Melancthon was exceedingly afflicted byauother untoward circumstance. At thevery moment when union amongst themselves, and a vigilant discretion in all their proceedings was of the greatest importance, Carlostadt was guilty of excesses, which were not only disapproved by the other Reformers, but highly prejudicial to their cause. He was heard to say, that '* he wished to be as great a man and as much thought of as Luther;" for which he was properly re- proved by Melancthon, who reminded him, " that such language could only proceed from a spirit of emulation, envy and pride." (uj So long as he steadily pursued the great object of reforming the church from Popery by sound argument, and firm but Christian conduct, the other Reformers united to assist his efforts; but when motives of vanity, concurring fuj Seckend. Hist. Luth. Lib. I. p. 199. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 919 with violence of temper, occasioned his zeal to degenerate into wild-fire and extravagance, they were compelled to discountenance him. But instead of being induced to correct his errors, he instantly aspired to become the leader of a turbulent mobility, whose minds he enflamed by popular harangues, and whom he encouraged to enter the great church of All Saints at Wittem- berg, to break the crucifixes and images in pieces, and throw down the altars. Misled by a strange spirit of infatuation, he began to de- spise human learning, and to encourage the youths of the University to quit their studies. Yet with all this perversion of mind and impe- tuosity of conduct, which no remonstrances could check, it must be admitted that he held some important truths, particularly the real doctrine of the Sacrament, which the Lutherans misunderstood, and which afterwards occasioned violent controversies. And yet, even in main- taining acknowledged truth, his manner of doing it was equally disapproved by the gentle Me- lancthon and the impetuous Luther. The for- mer, who was never addicted to exaggeration, represents him m a most unamiable light, as " a man of savage disposition of no genius and learning, or even common sense ; as having plotted against the reputation of Luther out of revenge for his opposing his fanatical prac- tises ; but at the same time as possessing a very 220 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. insinuating and plausible exterior, though un- able to disguise his violent ambition, passion, and envy, for any long period." (xj The state of Luther's mind during these transactions can be more easily imagined than expressed. Every day increased his anxieties, every occurrence excited fresh alarm. The foundations of that noble structure he had been so actively engaged in erecting seemed to be endangered. What could be done ? — Was he to remain at a distance from the scene of action at a period when his skill and heroism appeared peculiarly requisite ; or, could he venture upon incurring the Elector's displeasure by a clandes- tine and unauthorized return ? — Restless with increasing impatience he determined to hazard every thing, and at length on the third of March 1522, hastened to Wittemberg. An apology for this proceeding was written to the Elector, pleading the urgent necessity of the case arising out of the existing irregularities ; but in two other communications, the one a letter addressed to Melancthon and the other to Amsdorff, he assigns an additional reason for his return, namely, the assistance he wished to obtain from them and others in the translation of the Scriptures into the German language, fy) For the purpose of engaging in this import- fxj Ep- ad Fred. Mycon. in HospiN. fv) Adam. Vit. Germ. Theologorum, p. 123. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 921 ant labour, Luther had devoted the previous summer to the study of Greek and Hebrew. His skill in German is universally admitted. Versions of a very inferior kind had been pub- lished at Nuremberg in the years 1477, 1483, 1490 and at Augsburg in 1518, vi^hich were not only ill calculated to attract public notice, but interdicted from being read. The gospels of Matthew and Mark were first published by Luther, then the Epistle to the Romans and the other books in succession, till the whole New Testament was circulated by the month of September. In a letter which Melancthon addressed to the celebrated physician George Sturciad, dated the fifth of May 1522, he speaks of the whole version being in the hands of the printers. The essential assistance he rendered in completing the work is likewise apparent, for he states that he had paid particular attention to the different kinds of money mentioned in the New Testament, and had consulted with many learned men that the version might ex- press them with the utmost accuracy. He begs his correspondent to give his opinion, and to consult Mutianus as being profoundly skilled in the knowledge of Roman antiquities. He entreats him to attend to his application from a regard to the general good, and to do it imme- diately because the work was in the press and printing with great expedition. ♦' I wait your 222 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. reply," he adds, " with the utmost anxiety, and I beseech you for faith, love and kindness' sake, and every other urgent consideration not to disap- point us." (z) The difficulties of the undertaking particu- larly pressed upon Luther when he proceeded to the translation of the Old Testament, but he persevered with indefatigable zeal. It appears that Melancthon was deeply engaged in revising this important work for his friend two months previous to his return, (a) The utmost pains were taken to ensure the accuracy of the translation, for a select party of learned men at Wittemberg assembled every day with Luther to revise every sentence ; and they have been known to return fourteen successive daj/s, to the reconsideration of a single line or even a word. Each had an appropriate part as- signed him according to his peculiar qualifica- tion. Luther collated the ancient Latin versions and the Hebrew, Melancthon the Greek original, Cruciger the Chaldee, and other professors the Rabbinical writings. At the request of Luther, Spalatine afforded them every assistance, by sending them specimens from the Elector's col- fz) Melancth. Ep. I. ad Geo. Stiirciadem Erphordiw. faj " Vetus Testamentum cuditur, in quo recognoscendo inodo nonnihil negotii nobis fit." Melancth. Ep, Lib. IV, 1. ad Joach, Camerar. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 223 kction of gemsY^''>' The Pentateuch went to press in December, and a second edition of the New Testament appeared at the same time. A Version of the Prophets was published in the year 1527, and the other books in succession till the whole laborious task was completed in 1530. He states how much he was indebted to his particular friend in writing to Spalatinus. " I translated not only the gospel of John, but the whole New Testament in my Patmos, but Me- lancthon and I have begun to revise the whole, and by the blessing of God it will prove a noble labour, but your assistance is sometimes requi- site to suggest apt words and turns of expression. We wish it to be distinguished for simplicity of style." The whole was republished in a new edition in lo34, which was followed by others in 1541 and 1545. The names of Luther's prin- cipal coadjutors in this great undertaking ought to be had in everlasting remembrance — Philip Melancthon, Caspar Cruciger, Justus Jonas, Johx Bugenhagius or Pomeranus, and Matthew Aurogallus: the corrector of the press was George Rorarius. (cJ After completing this translation of the (bj Seckend. Hist. Luth. Lib. I. p. 204. Adam. Vit. Germ. Theologorura, p. 100. " Saepe ut ip.semet fassus cum P/iilippo, Aurogallo, aliis totos quatuordecim dies in interpre- tatione unius voculae aut lineolae haesit." ^cj Seckend. Hist. Luth. Lib. I. p. 204. y 224- LIFE OP MELANCTHON. Scriptures into the German language, Bugen- hagius annually kept the return of the day on which it was finished, by inviting a select party of friends to his house in order to celebrate so important an achievement. This social meeting was usually designated the Festival of the Translation op the Scriptures. (^^y' To the fastidious we must leave it to cen- sure the desire which may probably glow, at least for a moment, in many a bosom, to have been contemporary with these benevolent spirits, to have shared their noble labour, and to have annually participated in their pious conviviali- ties. Never was a festive board more nobly surrounded or more religiously devoted — never did a more splendid occasion of holy triumph present itself. Germany had already hailed het Reformers, heard their discourses and witnessed their progress with mingled emotions of fear and satisfaction ; — already was she deeply indebted to them for a scries of disinterested efforts to deliver her from the abject slavery in which su- perstition and tyranny had combined to chain her down during past ages ; but a new obligation of far greater extent was incurred by their furnish- ing to every man the means of the most direct acquaintance with divine communications- through his vernacular language. Nor was- CdJ Adam. Vit. Germ. Theologorum, p. 318. in Vit. Joan. Bugeriiiagii. LIFE OP MELANCTHON. 225 the mere accomplishment of this difficult under- taking the only subject of generous exultation to these eminent men, every year and almost every day exhibited great and good effects re- sulting from their labour. " The different parts of this translation," observes a learned historian, " beingsuccessively and gradually spread abroad among the people, produced sudden and almost incredible effects, and extirpated root and branch, the erroneous principles and super- stitious doctrines of the church of Rome, from the minds of a prodigious number of per- sons/' (e) Let us pause for a moment to reflect on the wonderful concatenation of a few past events by the invisible but efficacious agency of a superintending Providence. Leo X. had issued a Bull against Luther which totally failed of its object ; the Pope exasperated at witnessing his own impotency, appealed to :/ Charles V. newly promoted to the empire upon the death of Maximilian L to inflict exem- • plary vengeance upon his heretical subject ; Charles being under personal obligations to Frederic Elector of Saxony, who had materially assisted his advancement in opposition to his | rival Francis L King of France, was disposed / to concede to his wishes by refraining from the (t) Mosheim's Eccles. Hist. Vol. IV. p. 60, 8vo. Q !226 LIFE OP MELANCTHON. publication of a condemnatory edict, but, not to offend the Pope, he resolved to summon Luther to the diet of Worms as a previous and pru- dential measure : at Worms he appeared, where he breathed the spirit of an apostle and exhi- bited the heroism of a martyr ; but he was declared an enemy to the holy Roman empire and became instantly exposed to its vengeance. At this crisis Frederic screened him from the storm, by a friendly seizure and imprisonment at the Castle of Wartenberg, by which meanSy while his sudden disappearance operated to the benefit of the reformed cause, by exasperating the minds of men against the Roman See for a supposed violation of its promise of security, his confinement furnished him with leisure which even had his life been spared, he could not otherwise have enjoyed at such a turbulent moment, for prosecuting the study of original languages, and preparing for the translation of the holy Scriptures into the vernacular language of Germany. While his enemies and country- men thought him dead and his particular friends lamented his absence, trembled for his safety, and mourned over the calamitous cir- cumstances in which they became involved, the Providence of God had unexpectedly and at the fittest moment set him about a work in the forests of Thuringia, which was hereafter LIFE OF MELANCTttON. 997" to gladden the hearts of Germany and more than any other circumstance to promote the Refor- mation. Amidst a universal pause of wonder and apprehension, God was mysteriously and secretly operating his oWn great purposes ! It was to be expected that the Catholics should endeavour to disparage the version of Luther, and yet Maimbourg confesses it was elegant and very generally read, although Jerome Emser one of the counsellors of Duke George of persecuting notoriety, and Cochlaeus, attacked it in terms of bitter reproach. The former under the patronage of his master, published what he called a correct translation of the New Testament in opposition to it, and which as it consisted of little else than a republication of Luther's very version almost verbatim, but with a Preface of his oion, was in reality the highest compliment he could have paid to his antago- nist and the most effectual condemnation of himself. The result however of this animosity was most gratifying to every pious mind, Lu- ther's version was read even in the pages of his adversary ; and he expresses himself upon the occasion in language which strikingly illustrates his character, " There is a just juxlge who will See to this. The best revenge which I can wish for is that though Luther's nAxME is suppressed, and that of his adversary put in its place, yet Q 2 228 LIFE OP MELANCTHON* Luther s book is read, and thus the design of his labours is promoted by his very enemies. "(^^ This German translation of the Scriptures was proscribed by an Edict of Ferdinand, Arch- duke of Austria, the Emperor's brother, forbid- J ding the subjects of his Imperial Majesty to have any copy of it in their possession. The same interdiction extended to all his writings. Several princes issued similar prohibitions, among whom we can feel no surprize at discovering Duke George, but with what kind of effect — such as are acquainted with the history of persecution may easily conjecture, (gj (f) Thf learned reader may fiad a complete vindication of Luther's Version, against the caVilling criticisms of Coch- lasus and Eraser in Seckend. Hist. Luth. Lib. L Sect. 127 and add. 1. (g) The particularity of detail into which it has been deemed proper to digress upon this subject, will be more than justified by the reader from a consideration of the interesting nature of these facts in themselves, the great importance of the work achieved and the extensive exertions of Christias bene- volence in a similar way at this moment by the British nation. The circulation of the Holy Scriptures is justly deemed an ob- ject worthy the utmost efforts of the most expansive philan- thropy and the most assiduous zeal, and while competent men are stationed in different parts of the -world to translate the inspired volume into the respective dialects of vaiious tribes and nations whose very name was scarcely heard of before, princes and peasants, rich and poor, young and aged are concuriing to LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 229 Soon after his return from the Castle of Wartenberg, Luther consented to hold a con- ference in the presence of Melancthon with some of the chief fanatical pretenders to prophetic in- spiration before mentioned. Mark Stubner, Cellarius and another, met the Reformer and his friend on this occasion. Stubner related his visions and inspirations to very patient hearers, and when he had finished Luther coolly replied, ^^ " that nothing he had said was supported by the '^-^^^o/^^^ authority of Scripture, but seemed to result from y/ a deluded imagination, or the suggestions of ^ some evil spirit." This enraged Cellarius, who with the voice and gesticulations of a madman, stamping the ground and beating the table, ex- claimed against the audacity of Luther for in- sinuating such things against so dioine a person • Stubner, however, was more composed, possibly fancying himself in a tranquil and devout rap- suppoit by their voluntary liberalities the necessary expendi- ture. I cannot dismiss this subject without informing the reader that, besides a valuable collection of other literary and classical remains, James Edwards, Esq. of Manor H'luse, Harrow. on- the- Hill, has in his possession Luther's own copy of his ovm German Version of the Scriptures. To this s-entleman I ■beg to express my public acknowledgements not only for point- ing out this invaluable curiosity, but allowing me to transcribe some of the original writing of Luther, BugenhagiuSy and Me- lancthon, by whose autographs in the blank pages it is fully authenticated. One page is also occupied by George Major. Vide Appendix V. $30 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. ture.(h) " Luther," says he, " I will give you a proof that I am influenced by the Spirit of God, by revealing your own thoughts. You are at this viometit inclining to believe in the truth of my doctrine.'* The prophet however was mistaken, for Luther afterwards affirmed he was thinking of that sentence, " the Lord rebuke thee, Satan ;" and he very soon dismissed them with these words, " The God whom I love and serve will confound your impotent pretensions." They retired full of self-sufficiency, pouring out exe- crations upon Luther and promissing what mighty things they M'ould do to demonstrate the reality of their commission. They left Wittem- berg the same day. (i) A genuine fanatic is one of the most pitiable objects in creation; a compound of ignorance and enthusaism. Enflamed with self- importance he mistakes the conceits of his own disordered imagination for the dictates of inspi- ration, and fancies his intercourse with the Deity to be of a sublimer nature than that of his inferior fellow mortals. He believes himself gifted above others, destined to move in a higher sphere, to walk in the precincts of heaven, to hold an immediate connexion with the Divine Spirit, which elevates him above the laws and ordinances, the instructions and the guidance of r^J Vide p. 118. fij Cam. Vit. Mel. p. 51, 52. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 231 Scripture. But surely nothing can be more de- grading to reason than such absurdities, nothing more disparaging to religion. The mischief such a person is calculated to do results from this cir- cumstance, that he denominates passion by the sacred name of religion ; a passion which, heat- ed to intemperance and kindling into the ardours of rapture, spurns at reason, and substitutes a man's own fancy and good opinion of himself for the true foundation of piety. When such sentiments as these prevail, it is impossible to calculate or to conjecture the monstrous ex- cesses into which they may precipitate the ig- norant classes of mankind, who are soon attract- ed by plausible however ridiculous novelties. But genuine religion and wild fanaticism are perfect antipodes ; and intelligent persons, of an observing cast of mind, will always look upon the latter as a beacon to warn them away from the dangers attending any deviation from the plain course of scriptural instruction. Should any be disposed to censure the con- duct of Melancthon for that extreme leniency xa^^s which he manifested to Storck and his asso- ^^ ciates from Zwickau, be it recollected, that iv^^^j^^ though Luther's zeal charged him with undue y timiditif, a word which both he and histo- ^ rians after him have applied with great in- caution, several extenuating circumstances must not be overlooked. Stubner being a man of 232 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. learning, and probably of some address, and knowing the importance of obtaining if possible the influence of Melancthon, probably resorted to every insinuating method to gain his sup- port, disclosing his sentiments only in a very gradual manner. The real goodness and amiable temper for which Melancthon was so remark- y able, predisposed him to judge favourably of " others, especially if they were professedly in pursuit of Truth. He was himself a diligent and patient inquirer. It was a period of reli- gious discovery, and he daily felt he had much to learn. The very extravagancies of these prophets were not more abhorrent to the present views of the Reformers, than the tenets of Lutheranism were to the mind of Luther himself at a former and not very remote period of his life. Every impartial person must perceive what many transactions hereafter to be recorded will fully prove, that the hesitation of Melancthon in de- ciding upon new subjects or in difficult cases, / which seemed to require a promptitude of ac- Z.\ tion, resulted not so much from timidity^ as from conscientious scruples of mind. It w^as not that he feared temporal, but moral conse- quences ; and though Luther may be excused in a period when the mind was habitually kept warm and irascible by controversy, for using such an epithet; those who are solicitous of forming a correct idea of him will rather deem it I LIFE OF MELAXCTHON. 235 slanderous than descriptive to call him the timid Meiancthon. If, after all, his fust treatment of Stoick and his associates be considered as an unwarrantable excess of candour, his language became more decided as his convictions of their delusion and misconduct increased: /^/c^/ and if this be a shade in his character, it is otherwise so bright that the admitted imperfection will not materially obscure it ; and the biographer can feel no very powerful temptation where such a splendour of excellence is discernible, to become the labored apologist, flj Luther, besides many useful tracts of hi^ own, having secretly taken from Meiancthon a manuscript Commentary on the Epistle of Paul to the Romans, printed it without his know- . ledge. It was afterwards published in the year —^ 1540, with a dedication to Philip, landgrave of Hesse. Luther's apology for this proceeding is curious and characteristic. It is prefixed to the Commentary of his friend. " Martin Luther to Philip Meiancthon, grace and peace in Christ. " ' Be angry and sin not : commune with your own heart upon 3'^our bed and be still.' — I fhj Vid. Melancth. EpistolfE, passim. (I) Whoever wishes for further information respecting the enthusiasts above referred to, may consult IIoornbeeck Summa Controversiarum Religionis.— Spanhemii Orig. Prog. Sect. &c Norn. Anabaptistarum.— Bayle Diet. Hist. & Crit. Art.- Anahaj)tistts—^o\.^% (C) and (K), in which most of the principal works written on the subject are mentioned. 234 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. am the person who dares to pubhsh your Anno- tations, and I send you your own work, fmj If you are not pleased with it, it may be all very well, it is sufficient that you please us. If I have done wrong, t/ou are to blame ; why did not you publish it yourself? why did you suffer me so often to ask, to insist, to importune you to publish it, and all in vain ? — So much for my apology against you ; for you see I am willing to turn thief, and am not afraid of your future accusations or complaints. As to those whom you suspect of being disposed to sneer, I have this to say to them — ' Do better /' — What the impious Thom'ists faiselj/ arrogate to their lead- / er, namely, that no one has written better upon St. Paul, I trull/ aifnm of you. Satan himself influences them to boast in this manner con- ? cerning their Thomas Aquinas, and to spread , > his doctrines and his poison far and wide. I ^ know in what sort of spirit and with what *^ correctness of judgment I pronounce this of you. If these famous and mighty men should choose to sneer at my opinion, the consequence belongs to me, not you. But I wish to vex these scorners more and more; and I say that the Commentaries of Jerome and Origen are mere trifles and follies compared to 3-our Annotations. But what, you will say, is the purpose of aim- ^mj The Latin expresses it in a stronger manner, and with more of pun than our idiom will quite allow: " teipsumad te mitto." LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 255 ing to provoke these great men against me? Well — you may be humble if you please, but let me boast for you. Who has ever prohibited persons of great capacity from publishing some- thing better if they can — and thus demonstrating the rashness of my judgment For my part, I wish we could fmd out those who could and would publish something better. I threaten you, further, to steal and publish your remarks upon Genesis and the Gospels of Matthew and John, unless you supersede me by bringing them forward. You say. Scripture ought to be read alone and without a commentary; this is right enough if you speak in reference to Jerome, Origen, Thomas Aquinas, and others of the same class, for their commentaries are the mere vehicles of their own notions, rather than the sentiments of Paul, and the doctrine of Chris- tianity ; but no one can properly call yours a commentary ; it is rather an introduction to the study of scripture in general, and a guide to the knowledge of Christ : in which it surpasses all the Commentaries hitherto published. As to what you plead, that your Annotations arc not in all respects satisfactory to yourself, it is difficult enough to believe you. But behold I do believe — you are not fully satisfied with yourself, nor is this asked or desired of you : we would have Paul maintain his preeminence, lest any one should insinuate that Philip is superior or 236 LITE OF MELANCTHOX. equal to Paul. It is sufficient you are only second to Paul ; but we shall not dislike any body for coming still nearer to this great ori- ginal. We know very well that you are nothing ; and we know also that Christ is all and in all, who if he pleases can speak as he did to Balaam by an ass ; why then should he not speak by a man ? Art thou not a man ? Art thou not a servant of Christ? Has not he endowed thee with capacity ? If thou shouldest choose to improve and enlarge this volume by elegant and learned additions, it will be a grateful service ; but in the mean time we are determined to be gratified in spite of you, by possessing ourselves of the sentiments of Paul by your means. If I have offended you by this proceeding, I do not ask pardon ; but lay aside your displeasure, by Avhich you will rather give offence to tis, and ijou will have to ask forgiveness. God preserve and prosper you for evermore. Wittemherg^ July 29, 1^22." If Luther did not ask pardon for publishing Melancthon's Annotations on the Epistle of Paul to the Romans without his consent, the reader will not demand an apology for inserting some extracts from this valuable performance. "Chap. I. v. 1. — '-Paul separated unto the gospel of God* Here the apostle states the business he was commanded to execute, namely, to preach the gospel. The reader LIFE OF MELAXCTHON. 237' should remember that there is a material differ- ence between the law and the gospel, to which we have already adverted, and of which more will be said in remarking upon the third chap- ter. The description which he gives of the gospel is, that it is a divine promise communi- cated in the sacred writings, concerning Jesus Christ the Son of God, of the seed of David ac- cording to the flesh, declared to be the Son of God with power, through sanctification of the Spirit, and resurrection from the dead : that he is the Messiah or King, by whom deliverance from sin and eternal life are dispensed. " This description will be more obvious by noticing the contradistinction between law and gospel. The Law represents what we are, and what we are required to do. It demands perfect obedience, without providing for the forgiveness of sin, or liberating us from the power of sin and death ; but rather arming sin against us, by accusing transgressors, and alarming them with the terrors of death. But the Gospel freely promises the remission of sin and deliver- ance from death, by Jesus the Son of God, who was descended from David according to the pro- phetic declarations. Paul states this at the outset of his discourse, that we might know his meaning, and distinguish properly between the law and the gospel ; as though he had said. 238 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. ' Paul divinely called to teach the gospel of Christ ; not to teach the law or to teach philo- sophy/ " V, 3, 4. — ' Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, 6cc'' In this phrase he opposes the vulgar notions of the Jews, who expected a Messiah that would be — not the Son of God by his own nature, but only a man like the other prophets, though surpassing them in wisdom, virtue, and capacity to obtain and govern the whole world. But the patriarchs and prophets knew their Messiah to be the Son of God, who was at that period their governor and their guide. Jacob said, ' The Angel who delivered me out of all evil bless the lads,* speaking of the deli- verer whom he knew to be promised, and whose proper office is to deliver out of all evil. Jacob, Moses, Daniel saw him by faith, and John testifies that the Messiah was the Son of God, and constantly present with the patriarchs. ' In the beginning,* says he, ' was the Word, ... .all things were made by him,* — referring to those illustrious victories over the devil which this glorious leader and captain enabled Noah, Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Samuel, David, Isai- ah, and Jeremiah to obtain. *' The termofio-dg/rof, which the Greeks explain by another, ditohiyyivros, is singularly emphatical, and it refers to the manifestation of the Son of LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 239 God, as having risen from the dead, and as pos- sessed of inconceiveable power, evinced by nu- merous miracles. " The verb l^i^scr^ai, signifies to be certainly proclaimed ; in opposition to the opinions of the Jews, who expected a Messiah to be an extra- ordinary man indeed, but only a man, distin- guished by heroic achievements, and who should bestow riches, but not a new nature and eternal life. But Paul says this Messiah would be pow- erful, and would give that holy Spirit by which new light, justification and eternal life would be dispensed, and the devil vanquished. This he calls a real deliverance, which our forefathers both understood and experienced in the various trials of their faith, their dangers, and their con- flicts with Satan and with death. And how much greater is this deliverance than that which some anticipate in the appearance of a Messiah, who like Alexander is to divide kingdoms and provinces amongst his soldiers. *' V. 7. — ' Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.' He unites God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ for three reasons ; namely, to intimate, that grace and other divine blessings are dispensed by God through his Son the Mediator — that if we enjoy these mercies, it must be by praying for them through the Son — and that Christ is by his na- ture God, equal in power with the Father, andca- 24-0 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. pable of affording us every requisite assistance by his own divine energy. " V, 17. — ' The jmt shall live hij faith* . You will observe that two important benefits are attributed to faith — that we are justified^ and that we live by it. God sent his own Son into the world to be our propitiation, lest we should perish, as he says with an oath, ' As I live saith the Lord, I have no pleasure in the death of a sinner, but rather that he should be con- verted and live.' To the terrified conscience he proclaims the forgiveness of sin by faith, that its fears may be removed, and genuine consolation imparted, which is the very commencement of eternal life ; for ' this,* said Christ, * is eternal life, to know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent/ We know there- fore that the gift of the Holy Spirit is joined with the remission of sins, and reconciliation with God ; we know that the dominion of Christ in the church is not indolent, but his presence is constantly with us to destroy the works of the devil, to fight our battles, and to assist our pro- gress ; these ideas are included when the pro- phet promises life^ that is, joy, victory, and ever- lasting salvation to all believers. " Chap. V. ?;. 2. — ' We rejoice iji hope of the glory of God* It may be asked, what is the value of this justification and deliverance from sin and death, when sin still adheres to us, and LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 241 we continue obnoxious to death, and all the various afflictions incident to human life? In what respects are Christians happier than others? for Christians are often derided for speaking ab^ut deliverance from sin and death, when they are equally with other men exposed to cala- mities. Saints themselves are often ready to acknowledge their infirmities, and are agitated with doubts whether if God really delighted in them, they should be the subjects of such in- firmity ; and this is no trifling temptation, be- cause when faith realizes, according to the Scrip- tures, that God is propitious through Jesus Christ, our weakness expects to see this kind- ness in some manner visibly displayed. So the Anabaptists despise the doctrine of faith, and affirm that we are to seek for celestial visions ; and there are others who dream they have al- ready perfectly obeyed, and are acceptable to God, as having satisfied the claims of his law, and being without sin. " Paul therefore opposes each of these. He administers consolation to those who acknow. ledge their infirmities, and commands them to rejoice, but with hope ; and to consider that they shall enjoy the glory of eternal life, which though not at present revealed, shall certainly be bestowed. On which account it became them to acquiesce, and not to doubt or despair, though they were at present exposed to infirmities. R 242 LIFE, OF MELANCTHON. He directs them to rejoice m hope^ that Is, they are not to supjDose that this perfection of nature and enjoyment is now to be attained, nor are they to expect any new manifestations from heaven, but to stand fast in the truth of Scrip- ture, and aim to please God by faith in Christ, considering that a present perfection in this sin- ful state is not to be expected. " The sentiment therefore is, that although the world, and even our own reason, may deter- mine that we do not yet possess glory, or com- plete emancipation from sin and death, yet we rejoice, that is, we indulge the hope of that glory with which God will eventually distinguish us. We cleave to this hope, for it is not fala- cious. *' V. 3. — ' And not only so, hut we glory in Irihulation also,' c\t. He as it were corrects the former statement. We have not only a glory in expectation, but in present possession ; and what is it? Afflict'ton. He is opposing the opinions and reasonings of the world. " In the view of tlie world we are afflicted: we seem abandoned and rejected by God ; and this reproach upon the gospel deters the gene- rality of mankind from embracing it. This mode of reasoning indeed seems legitimate enough — afflictions are curses, that is, evils : and therefore signs of God's displeasure. But Paul on the contrary assures us that they are not curses, but- LIFE OP MELANCTHON. 243 are proper occasions of glorying; for they are not signs of the divine displeasure, but inti- mations of the love of God. " We have then a double glory — the one which is the greatest is in expectation, consist- ing in the renovation of oar nature, and the en- joyment of eternal life ; but this glory we pos- sess in hope : the other glory is in present pos- session, and it consists in affliction : for al- though the world judges that affliction is an evidence of divine anger, yet we know it to be an indication of his love ; and obedience to his afflictive dispensations to be a new and accept- able kind of worship. " Four things, therefore, ought to be well impressed upon our minds respecting afflic- "^ tions : " 1. They are appointed. We do not suf- fer affliction by chance, but by the determinate counsel and permission of God. " 2. By means of affliction God punishes his people, not that he may destroy them, but to recal them to repentance, and the exercise of faith: for afflictions are not indication^ of dis- pleasure, but of kindness — ' He willeth not the death of a sinner/ "3. God requires our submission to his af- flictive dispensations, and that we should expend our indignation and impatience upon our own sins : and as God determines to afflict hischurch R 2 244- LIFE OF MELANCTHON. in the present state, submission tends to glorify his name. " 4. Resignation however is not all; he requires faith and prayer, that we may both seek and expect . divine assistance. Thus he ad- monishes us, ' Call upon me in the day of trouble, I will answer thee, and thou shalt glo- rify me.' " These four precepts are applicable to all our afflictions, and are calculated if properly regarded to produce that truly Christian patience which essentially differs from mere philosophical en- durance. " Chap. VI II. ik 3. — ' God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful Jiesh for sin condemned sin in thejlesh' It is elsewhere stated, he was ' Made sin for its.' These words are peculiarly emphatical — Christ is represented as being inade sin or a sacrifice for sin : it is a Hebrew form of expression, corresponding with the Latin term piacidnm and the Greek xaSaou-a. A similar idea is conveyed in the use of the word curse or ana- thema and which signifies any thing devoted to punishment in order to propitiate the offended Deity. In this manner Isaiah speaks of Christ, ' thou didst make his soul a sin,' that is, an offering or sacrifice for sin : and Paul frequently inculcates the same sentiment in his second epistle and fifth chapter of the Corinthians, 'lie who knew no sin was made sin for us,* that is, LIFE OP MELANCTHON. 945 «« offering or victim who sustained the punish- ment of sin and satisfied the demands of justice for us. In writing to the Gahitians he suggests a similar sentiment, ' Christ was made a curse,' that is, piaculum^ a sacrijicc^ sustaining the curse and displeasure of God against sin. " V. 22. — ' We know that the whole Creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together imtil 710W.' This is an argument from the example of the Creation. All things are subject to corrup- tion and to the abuse of the wicked till the period of deliverance, which therefore we expect. " In this place Paul contemplates with great emotion of mind the dreadful confusion and corruption of human affairs, war, blood- shed, devastation and other evils prevalent in the world. He contemplates the mighty power of sin and the tyranny of Satan, and how degrading- it is that universal nature should be subjected to the devil and to death in consequence of human transgression. " Here then in the first place is to be con- sidered the feelings of Christians amidst their afflictions. Delay is tormenting to the mind and we are incapable of foreseeing the method of deliverance. Troubles are daily increasing and the truly pious are deeply afflicted to witness the great dangers which surround the church of Christ, and while its distresses multiply, its de- liverance appears to be delayed. / 546 LIFE OF MELANCTHON« " Whatever therefore may be the source of our grief, whether pubhc or private, the apostle endeavours to impart consolation by re- ferring us to the heavens and the earth, to the creation at large as subjected to the abuse of the wicked. Tyrants possess the dominion of em- pires — the impious enjoy the riches of the world, but the church of Christ for which ail things were created, suffers martyrdom and is deprived of life, light and every other advantage. But these things were formed that they might be in subserviency to the saints for the glory of God, and as they are at present subjected to abuse and the power of corruption through the transgres- sion of Adam, the creatures themselves wait for the promised deliverance." The Popish writers agree in lamenting the increase of Lutheranism during the years 1322 and lo23; its opponents, however, amongst whom George Duke of Saxon}^ Henry Duke of Brunswick, and Ferdinand Archduke of Aus- tria may be considered the principal ones, were by no means asleep. The former, the most vio- lent bigot of the day and the most inveterate enemy of Luther and the Reformation^ used every means to influence Frederic and his bro- ther John to adopt hostile measures : but their prudence frustrated his views in Saxony. The light spread rapidly in Europe, and Caspar Hedio, LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 24/ Martin Bucer, and John Oecolampadius were diffusing it in Alsace and Switzerland. Frederic however felt himself in a most cri- tical situation. The Pope, Adrian YI. who had succeeded Leo X. had sent his legate Francis Cheregato to the Imperial Diet of Nuremberg, to demand the immediate execution of the sen- tence pronounced against Luther at the Diet of Worms. The Emperor concurred in his views and the Popish princes were evidently concert- ing measures to crush the Reformation. Li this situation the Elector applied to Luther, Me- lancthon and Bugenhagius for their opinion on this question, " Is it lawful for your prince if his subjects should be attacked on account of religion by the Emperor, or any other ruler to protect them by arms }" To this they replied, *' it was not lawful, chiefly because the princes were not yet convinced in their consciences of the truth of the reformed doctrine, neither had their subjects implored protection against vio- lence, nor had the states of the provinces deli- berated on the subject of war : above all, those who took up arms for their defence ought to be well satisfied of the justice of their cs.use"fmj Clement VII. being elevated to the Papal Chair upon the decease of Adrian, selected Car- dinal Campeggio a skilful negociator for his (mj HoRTLED, Hist. T. 1. Lib. II. f48 LIFE OF MELANCTHOJr. legate to the Imperial Diet at Nuremberg, where he arrived in the early part of the year 1524, He was commissioned to insist upon the princes uniting to execute the decree of Worms against Luther ; and the Emperor gave similar instruc- tions to his minister. After some debate it was resolved by the Diet that the Pope, with the consent of the Emperor, should at an early period summon a free council in Germany to deliberate upon the Lutheran affaire, and that in the mean- time a Diet should be held at Spires to delibe- rate on the mode of proceeding. This of course did not satisfy Campeggio, and retiring to Ra- tisbon he held a private assembly with some of the princes and bishops of the empire, whom he engaged to resolve upon executing the decree of Worms. This unwarrantable procedure induced those who differed from Campeggio to pursue a measure of self-defence, by holding a similar Convention at Spires to confirm the decrees of Nuremberg. At this period what has been called the Sacramental controversy originated. ^Carlostadt y resolutely denied what Luther no less resolutely maintained the doctrine of Consubstajitiation, or that the real body and blood of Christ were received together with the bread and the wine though ;they were not absolutely transubstan- tiated. This controversy divided the early friends of the Reformation, and long threatened y LIFE OF MELANCTHON. :?49 the most serious consequences. The Reformers of Switzerland and many in Germany dissented from Luther and Melancthon, maintaining: that the Lord*s Supper was to be observed only as a commemoration of the death of Christ. It must be owned that Consubstantiation and Transuh- stantiation are as similar in nature as in name, and it would require good spectacles to dis- cern any very essential difference between these two species of nonsense. Carlostadt found it necessary to retire to Orlamund, and became the Pastor of the village in defiance of the right of appointment vested in the Elector and the University, where he not only railed against Luther's view of the Eucharist, but appears to have been hurried on by his violence of temper to very enthusiastical pretensions. He j was at length expelled by the prince and his brother from their dominions, but afterwards, recalled by the Elector John. Carlostadt by raising mobs, pulling down images and railing against learning gave the final impulse to the fanaticism of Muncer, Storck and their associates. " It may be true," says Luther, " and candour may require me to believe that , Carlostadt does notintendto promote sedition and - murder, yet so long as he persists in raising head- strong mobs and exciting them to demolish statues with unauthorized violence, he possesses the same seditious sanguinary spirit that has 950 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. shewn itself at Alsted. How often has Melanc- ihon in vain admonished him not to raise tumults respecting ceremonies, and yet he has continued to defend the breakers of the peace to the last." fnj These irregularities like a large tributary stream, swelled the torrent of insurrection that was at this moment rushing through the pro- vinces of Germany. What has been termed the Rustic war or war of the Peasants arose indeed from the dissatisfaction of the lower classes with the civil restraints and oppressions of their chiefs which they affirmed to be no longer tolerable, but it received an accession of strength and a cha- racter of fanaticism from the union of the Ana- baptists, who hastened to wage war against their lawful governors and the rights of civil society. Muncer placed himself at their head, 'and was at last taken and put to death after being defeated by the confederate princes of Germany in a pitched battle at Mulhausen in Thuringia. This terminated the rebellion. From public it is necessary to turn to more private transactions. By the advice of his friends who perceived it necessary to recruit his health and spirits, Melancthon devoted part of the year 1524, to a journey on horseback to different places in Germany. He was accompanied by Nesenus and Camerarius, two intimate asso- ciates, the former distinguished for prudence, OiJ LuTH. cont. Proph. LIFE OF HELANCTHOX. 251 knowledge and amiableness of disposition, the latter who was afterwards his biographer for veiy eminent literary attainments. Two youths, Bur- cardiis and Silberbornerus, both of whom after- wards acquired a considerable reputation, attend- ed them. The travellers arrived at Leipsic the first place of notoriety in their route, on the very day when Peter Mosellanus, the Greek professor, breathed his last. Melancthon and Camerarius had just time to visit him, and mingle their tears over his dying bed ; the former deplored a friend and the latter a tutor. Mosellanus was a man of erudition. He is praised by Erasmus as a wit and a scholar ; and at his decease, which took place at the early age of thirty-one, Melancthon composed the following tribute to his memory. Kefraj -ruh rd^iv itB^iog Tforxy^oio [j.O(r£XXa icvvoy^ sx-'^v. fijrwp os itors r^oi; erf/ Avr) Ss acr^ss'ov [j.Oi'^ OCTfsSw/iS kXso; Has '5'e M'/v^d^iog yicx.) rsi^sa-'ioc Tf'sXsr at'ccv K^sItovos ovv iw§a yrj^^S a«,£(4'£ Qso;. Beneath this tomb that meets the stranger's eye The dear remains of Mosellanus lie; In vain might friends protracted life implore. The lovely rhetorician speaks no more ; But in the records of eternal fame Ages to come shall find inscrib'd his name, While from this transient life of tears and sighs God has removed him to yon fairer skies. 242 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. Melancthon and his friends proceeded from Leipsic across Upper Saxony to Fulda, where they heard of the death of the celebrated Uhic Hutten, an ingenious and learned man, but of a most waspish temper which was abundantly dis- played in a book against Erasmus. Melancthon and Luther both disapproved his ferocious hos- tility. Though descended from a noble family of which he was sufficiently vain, he died in extreme poverty at Zurich. After visiting Frankfort they remained some time with Melancthon's mother, who had married a second husband at Bretten. Parting at length most reluctantly from endeared relatives they reached Heidelberg, where the University re- ceived their former student with every mark of distinction and regard. Upon their return not far from Frankfort they unexpectedly met Philip, the Langrave of Hesse on his way to Heidelberg. The Land- grave rode up to him intimating that he under- stood his name was Philip Melancthon ; to which he replied in the affirmative, and alight- ing from his horse in token of respect to the illustrious stranger, he was requested to remount and turn back to spend the night with him. The prince assured him his intentions were not hos- tile, but simply to converse upon some parti- cular topics. Melancthon replied in a suitable LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 953 manner and signified he entertained no appre- hensions from the Landgrave. " But," said he, smiling, " if I should deliver you into the hands of Campeggio, I fancy he would think me doing him a very grateful piece of service." On their way, for Melancthon had turned back in com- plaisance, the prince put a number of ques- tions of a casual nature, which he answered briefly and without entering into much explanation, both on account of the unfitness of the time and place and because the prince appeared to have- his thoughts occupied with other concerns. At length he requested the prince's permission to return and prosecute his journey which he granted, stipulating that upon his arrival at Wittemberg he should send him in writing his deliberate opinion upon the subjects he had referred to in his conversation. He also gave him a safe conduct through his dominions. This inquisitive disposition of the Landgrave terminated in the happiest consequences, for he soon became the decided supporter of the Re- formation. His allusion to Campeggio was sufficiently significant, for previous to this in- terview that subtle legate had sent to sound Me- lancthon upon the subject of coming over to the Papal party, but was dismissed with the follow- ing spirited reply — that, " what he maintained to be true and knew to be so, he did not embrace ^54> LIFE OF MELANCTHON. or avow to gain the respect and favour of any living mortal, or from the hope of emolument or from any ambitious motives, nor would he cease to esteem and aid those who promoted it. In those exertions he had hitherto made for the knowledge and advancement of truth, he was determined in a spirit of meekness to persevere. Let all who are truly desirous of the general peace and safety of the community confer and co-operate to heal the wounds which cannot possibly be any longer concealed, and to restrain the fury of those who will not desist from tear- ing and fretting with their malicious nails the existing sores. If this be not done and the violent bigots still pursue their course, they may expect to be the first to suffer." Soon after returning to Wittemberg Me- lancthon was plunged into the deepest affliction in consequence of the tragical death of Nesenus. He was lying at his ease in a fishing boat which he had hired as he frequently did for the purpose of recreation on the river Elbe, and which he had fastened to the trunk of a tree. The boat suddenly heaved about and whirled him into the water where he perished. The great men of the day were deeply aifected by this fatal accident. Luther exclaimed in the transports of grief, " O that I had power to raise the dead !" — Micyllus by no means, says Seckendorf, a contemptible LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 255 poet of the day, honoured his memory with an elegant epitaph. We insert a similar tribute from the pen of Melancthon. fig TO ^^otd}'/ ysvog er av'ejW,coA The Diet of Spires assembled in June. Se- veral of the Lutheran divines were heard in ex- planation of their doctrines, and the deputies pre- sented their memorial on the abolition of abuses. The result was favourable to the Reformation, a decree being obtained after much debate recog- nizing the necessity of a general council, appeal- ing to the emperor for that purpose, and claiming LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 983 on behalf of the German Princes in the mean time the liberty of acting independently in reli- gion till such an appointment, (b) The Landgrave of Hesse, upon his return from the Diet, devoted himself with his charac- teristic ardour to the great and good work of pro- moting the Reformation in his own dominions. He wrote letters to Melancthon soliciting his advice; who in reply urged the l^andgrave to proceed in a gradual and cautious manner, con- niving for a time at certain non-essentials, the sudden abolition of which might 1)€ preju- dicial to the cause he was desirous of pro- moting. He laments the contentions which subsisted amongst the Reformers themseh^es, frequently about trifles, Avhich should by every means be avoided. The preachers of the gospel ought, he said, to inculcate not only the doctrines of faith, but the practices of piety, the fear of God, love to man, and obedience to magistrates. He besought his Highness to ab- stain from every attempt to extend the Reform- ation by military force ; for the late occurrences of the rustic war would evince that they who delight in war should certainly be scattered, (cj fhj Sleidan 149, 150. fi:J The impetuosity of this enterprising' Prince coukl scarcely be restrained within proper liniifs. He was for the use of arms, but was checked by Melancthon, and by the Elector John, who acted with tlie advice of l.uther. The latter de- ^S6 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. " The Romish Ecclesiastics instisrate to war, why do not the rest exhort men to gain a know- ledge of the subject, and to preserve peace ? Your Highness I am convinced might do a great deal with the Princes, if you would exhort them to take pains to understand the points in dispute, and endeavour to terminate these con- tentions." fcj During the two years of peace to the re- formed churches which succeeded the Diet of i/ Spires, the Elector of Saxony employed himself "^ in the very important work of regulating eccle- siastical affairs. Preparatory to a general visit- ation by persons suitably authorized and accom- plished for the undertaking, Melancthon com- posed a directory for the use of the churches, which was published under the immediate sanc- tion of the Elector. It is divided into eighteen sections, comprehending the doctrine of Forgive- ness and Justification by faith in Christ — the / Law — Prayer — the Endurance of Tribulation — Baptism — the Lord's Supper — Repentance — Confession — the Atonement — Public Worship — Marriage — Freedom of the Will — Christian Liberty — the Turkish War — the modeof Preach- clared, " If the Landgrave were determined to have recourse to arms, it would be belter for the Elector to dissolve alliance wilh him: but if force were to be first used by their adversaries, they then had a right to repel it." fcj Melaxcth. Ep. Lib. III. 16. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 2&7 ing — Excommunication — the Office of Supci- intendants or Bishops — Public Schools of Lite- rature. The arrangement of these divisions might perhaps be criticised, but the whole ap- pears to have been written with the author's characteristic skill and perspicuity. A preface at the Elector's request was prefixed by Luther. This publication, called Libellus Visitaior- ius, involved some unpleasant' consequences to Melancthon. The Papists professed to discover in it a defection from many of the sentiments of Luther, and hailed the imaginary difference with a prodigious but premature exultation. It cannot be doubted that such a circumstance was eagerly desired, and it must be confessed would have been worthy their mutual congratu- lations. Luther despised the charge — " Let our adversaries,'* says he, " glory in their lies, as they always do, for they take no pleasure in truth." And again, " Their glorying is a miser- able one, and will be of no long continuance; but let them solace themselves with their vain hopes and joys, as they often do, and let them swell and bluster, I am very well pleased." fdj At the same time Melancthon discloses a secret in a letter to his confidential friend Camerarius. " I am applied to from Bohemia to desert the Reformed Cause, and promised any remuneration fdJ LuTH. Ep. Lib. II. ad Spal. p. 345, 351. 288 LIFE OF MELANCTHOX. from king Ferdinand. Indeed my defection is publicly reported as a fact, because in the little book written for the reformed churches I have shewn an increased degree of moderation, and yet you perceive I have really inserted nothing different from what Luther constantly maintains. But because I have employed no asperity of language, these very acute men judge that I necessarily differ from Luther." (e) Cochlaeus docs not scruple to charge Melancthon with a crafty moderation^ and Luther with a change of sentiment; (f) but as Seckendorf observes, " Nothing better than such malignant insinua- tions was to be expected from him.'* But thetauntings and misrepresentations of avowed adversaries were far less vexatious than the conduct of a friend and fellow-labourer. In the first article of the Libellus Visitatorius, the pastors of churches were admonished to instruct the people in the nature of true repentance, and to be careful not to separate repentance from the doctrine of faith, the former of which was stated to originate in the fear of divine judgments, and a just impression of the terrors of the Law, lest the vulgar should imagine that the remission of sins was attainable without the exercise of a penitent and contrite spirit. They were to press (t) Melamcth. Ep. Lib. III. 72. ad Cam. (f) CocH. fol. 80. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 989 the consciences of men on this subject, and urge to repentance, to prevent their placing depend- ence on any personal merit, for salvation. John Agricola, Chaplain to Count Mansfield, and his attendant at the Diet of Spires, loudly exclaimed against this advice, affirming that it was im- proper to make these statements and appeals to the common people, and that instead of attempt- ing to work upon their fears, and terrify their consciences, they should be exhorted to faith in God as the commencement and essence of real religion. Instead of candidly representing his objections to Melancthon himself, he vociferated his complaints to the Papists, and it seems highly probable, from his whole conduct, that his intentions were to purchase a great name by obtruding himself forward as the head of a new party. In this he succeeded, for he became founder of the sect of the Antinomians, and after- wards a preacher at the court of Berlin. Melancthon fully expresses his sentiments on the subject in his letters, one of which ad- dressed to Justus Jonas, and not to be found amongst the published volumes of his corres- pondence, deserves to be noticed, fgj He be- gins by expressing his wish that Agricola had shewn a more friendly spirit, and that instead of circulating his censures throughout Germany, fgJ It is preserved in Bihlioth. Paulin. TJpsicmi, U 2^0 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. even in Leipsic, and in the very court of Duke George, he had first informed him pri- vately of any thing which he conceived ob- jectionable in his writings. He then alludes to certain transactions relative to this docu- ment and the visitation, in the presence of the Elector, Luther, Pomeranus and others. Agri- cola referred to Luther as having stated that re- pentance originated in the love of righteousness; quoted the story of the heathen mariners in Job, and said that Christ commanded repentance to be preached in his name, and not in the name of (^ Moses. To this Melancthon replies, that terrors of conscience must exist previous to justifica- '>A'^ tion, and these terrors seem to originate more in the fear of punishment than the love of righte- ousness. Agricola answers, that contrition arises from faith in the divine threatenings — but what, says Melancthon, is faith in the divine threatenings but the fear of them ? Nothing, he says, offends his opponent more than that in the second article it is ordered that the ten com- mandments be taught ; because we are free from the law, and ought to study rather the writings of Paul; to which it is answered, that Paul en- forces the law, and Christ himself taught it and explained its obligatory nature. Agricola laugh- ably enough, objects that Christ only spoke to the Jews. This war of words was sufficiently disagreeable to the amiable Melancthon, and he LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 291 informs Jonas, that he had thrice solicited Agri- cola to bury what had passed in oblivion, and to renew their former friendship ; but that he treat- ed his overture with contemptuous silence. This disagreement however assumed so serious an aspect in the opinion of the Elector, that he immediately interposed; and summoning Me- lancthon, Agricola, and Luther to Torgau, stop- ped the further progress of the dispute for the present by an amicable adjustment, (hj The commissioners appointed for the great purpose of inspecting the state of the reformed churches, were twenty eight in number, con- sisting of laymen and ecclesiastics. They were distributed into parties according to the different provinces. Melancthon, with five others, name- ly, John a Planitz, a knight, Jerome Schurff, Erasmus, (not of Rotterdam) Frederic Myconius, and Justus Menius, a clergyman of Eisenach, inspected Thuringia; Luther, Justus Jonas, Pomeranus, Spalatine, and other persons of eminence, were appointed in the general com- mission. All of them diligently laboured to fix suitable pastors in the respective parishes, to abolish ancient superstitions, to regulate the public seminaries ; in a word, to promote gene- ral good order and religious improvement. The second Diet of Spires was convened in (hJ SpcKEND. Hist. Luth. Lib. II. Sect. 12. p. 90. U 2 :s,jf^ 292 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. the year 1529. A pleasant anecdote is related of the Landgrave of Hesse on this occasion. Faber, Bishop of Vienna, intending to ridicule the re- formers, seeing the letters V. D. M. I. M.. upon the sleeves of some of the courtiers of the Landgrave, chose to interpret them " Ver- bum Dei Manet Im Ermel;" i. e. The word of God remains in the sleeves : to which the Landgrave immediately replied, " No, this is not the meaning, but Verbum Diaboli Manet In Episcopis;" i. e. The word of the devil re- mains in the Bishops. The real signification of the letters however was, Verbum Dei Manet In ^ternam; i. e. The word of God remains for ever, (i) A curious circumstance occurred at this convocation, which Melancthon relates in his Commentary on the angelic appearance men- tioned in the tenth chapter of Daniel, and which he affirms was but one out of many of a similar nature, which he could fully authenticate. The case was briefly this. Simon Grynaeus, a very intimate friend of his, and at this period Greek Professor in the University of Heidelberg, who combined profound erudition with zealous piety, came over unexpectedly to see him at Spires. He ventured to encounter Faber, and to urge him closely on some of the topics in discussion be- fij Van de Corput, Levcnende DoodP. Mel. p. 155. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 993 tween the Catholics and the Reformers. The "Bishop, who was plausible, but shallow, fearful of engaging in argument, but cruelly ready to use the sword, pretended that private business with the king required his attention at that moment, but that he felt extremely desirous of the friend- ship of Grynaeus, and of another opportunity of discussing the controverted points. No dis- sembler himself, Grynaeus returned to his friends without the leastsuspicionof the wily courtier*s intentions ; nor could any of them have known it, but for what Melancthon deemed a super- natural interference. They were just sitting down to supper, and Grynaeus had related part of the conversation between himself and the Bishop, when Melancthon was suddenly called out of the room to an old man whom he had never seen or heard of, or could hereafter disco- ver, characterized by a most observable peculi- arity of manner and dress, and who said, that persons by the king's authority would soon arrive to seize Grynaeus, and put him in prison, Faber having influenced him to this persecuting measure. He enjoined that instant means should be adopted to secure the departure of Grynaeus to a place of safety, and urged that there should not be a moment's delay. Up )n communicating this information he immediately withdrew. Melancthon and his friends instantly l)estirred themselves, and saw him safe across the 294 LIFE OF MELANCTHON.. Rhine. It afterwards appeared that the king's messengers were in the house almost as soon as they had left it, but Grynaeus was out of the reach of danger; a danger, as Melancthon re- marks, easily imagined by those who were ac- quainted with Faber's cruelty. He says they were all of opinion that this was a divine inter- position, so singular was the appearance of the old man, and so rapid the movements of the in- strument of vengeance, from whose power Gry- naeus scarcely escaped, (k) Such is the narrative which the reader is put in possession of without note or comment. Some will think it supernatural, others will ex- claim, Credat Judceus Apella^ and many per- haps will consider it, though remarkable, capa- ble of explanation without allowing it to have been miraculous. The use Melancthon makes of the statement must be admitted to be worthy of his exalted piety; " Let us," says he, *' be grateful to God who sends his angels to be our protectors, and let us with increased tranquillity of mind fulfil the duties assigned us." At this Diet the former decree, which al- lowed every Prince to manage his own eccle- siastical affairs as he thought proper till the appointment of a general council was revoked ; fk) Melangth. Op. Tom. 2. in Comment ad Cap. X. Danielis. Cam. Vit. Mel. Mel. Adam. Vit. Germ- Phi- losophorum in vit, Sim. Gryn. LIFE OF MELANCTMON. $95 all farther innovation in religion was interdicted, the celebration of mass was no where to be dis- allowed, and the Anabaptists were made subject to capital punishment. (I J The resolutions of the first Diet had been caviied unanimousli/, they were revoked, merely by a majority of Catholic votes procured by imperial influence. The arguments and remonstrances of the Reformers were useless, and the only measure left them to adopt was to enter a solemn protest against this decree which they did on the nineteeth of April; whence they acquired the name of Protes- tants. The first who thus obtained this glori- ous distinction were John, Elector of Sax- ony, George, Elector of Brandenburg, Ernest and Francis, Dukes of Lunen- burg, Philip, Landgrave of Hesse, and Wolfgang, prince of Anhalt. Theywer* seconded by thirteen or fourteen imperial cities. The ambassadors commissioned by these noble Dissenters to communicate their proceed- ings to the Emperor in Spain, were immediately arrested upon their arrival. This unwarrantable violence only tended to strengthen their union and they held various meetings at Roth, Nurem- berg and Smalcald, to concert measures for mu- tual defence. The Elector of Saxony howevei instructed by Luther and Melancthon, shewed (I) Sleid. 171. Goldast III. 495. 296 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. a disinclination to form a military association and nothing decisive resulted at present from these deliberations. The anxiety of Melancthon, who had ac- companied the Elector to the Diet was extreme. During all these transactions he and Luther with whom a perpetual communication was main- tained, were constantly consulted. In every struggle and difficulty they largely participated, for on them it depended in a great measure to pilot the new-launched vessel through the tem- pestuous seas. Melancthon was sometimes en- treated by his friends who witnessed his extreme agitation, to suppress these anxieties and dis- miss trouble from his mind. To which he would piously reply, " if I had no anxieties I should lose a powerful incentive to prayer ; but when the cares of life impel to devotion, the best means of consolation, a religious mind cannot do with- out them. Thus trouble compels me to pray, and prayer drives away trouble." fm) Availing himself of a favourable opportu- nity, he went from Spires to pay a short visit to his mother. In the course of conversation she mentioned to her son the manner in which she was accustomed to attend to her devotions, and the form she generally used which was free from the prevailing superstitions. " But what," said {mj Cam. Vit. Mel. LIFE OP MELANCTHON. 997 she, " am I to believe amidst so many different opinions of th ^ present day ?" — " Go on," re- plied Melancthon, " believe and pray as you do and have done before — and do not disturb your- self about the disputes and controversies of the times." (nj The Sacramental controversy between the divines of Saxony and Switzerland continued to rage with unabated violence, neither party being disposed to retract in the smallest degree. Oe- colampadius strongly solicited Melancthon to declare in favour of Zuinglius and the Sacramen- tarians, to which he ingenuously replied, " that after due examination he could not approve of their opinion, not finding sufficient reason in the literal sense of the words — that if he were to act in a politic manner he should speak other- wise, knowing there were many learned men among the Sacramentarians whose friendship would be advantageous to him, so that if he could have concurred in their opinion about the Lord's Supper he would have spoken freely. The Zuinglians supposed, he said, the body of Christ to be absent and only represented m the Sacrament, as persons are represented in a theatre, but he considered that Jesus Christ had promised to be with us even to the end of the world — that it is not necessary to separate the fn) Adam. Vit. Germ. Theolog-orum, p. 333. / 29S LIFE OF MELANCTHON. divinity from the humanity — he was persuaded therefore the Sacrament was a pledge of the real presence and that the body of Christ was truly received in the Lord's Supper — that the proper import of the words ' this is my body/ was not contrary to any article of faith, but agreed with other passages in Scripture where the pre- sence of Christ was mentioned — and that it was unbecoming a Christian to believe that Jesus Christ is as it were imprisoned in heaven — that Oecolampadius had only alluded to some absur- dities and the opinion of some of the fathers against it, neither of which ought to influence those who know that the mysteries of religion are to be judged by the word of God and not by mathematical principles, and that the writings of the ancients abound in contradictions ; but, he said the greatest number of the expressions in the most eminent writers, proves the doctrine of the real presence to be the general sense of the church. He desires Oecolampadius to consider the importance of the question in dispute and the ill consequences of maintaining his opinion with so much warmth of temper, and adds, it would be very proper for some good men to confer together on the subject." To the latter proposition Oecolampadius in his reply most cordially assents, (o) (o) Mel. Declam. T. II. Oecolamp. Ep. p. 602. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 299 Some years previous to this period Melanc- thoii had thus expressed himself in a letter to Camerarius ; " I commit the affair to Christ that his divine wisdom may best consult his own glory. I have hitherto always entertained the hope that he would by some means make it plain what is the true doctrine of the Sacra- ment." It is deplorable that such men as Luther and Melancthon should have wandered so long in darkness ; yet be it remembered, though they erred it was from a most anxious solicitude of mind to adhere rigidly to scriptural statements. They urged the very ttwrds of Christ as their authority, but unhappily misinterpreted them. The excellent Landgrave of Hesse, with a view to the adjustment of the differences which had so long subsisted amongst the principal reformers respecting the sacrament, procured a friendly conference at Marpurg a city in his do- minions. It took place in October. The lea- ders on both sides first held a private conference, Luther with Oecolampadius and Melancthon with Zuinglius. The prince, his courtiers and chief counsellors were present at the public dis- putation, which was conducted on-the one side by Zuinglius, Oecolampadius, Bucer, Hedio, Jacob Sturm, a senator of Strasburg, Ulrich Funch, a senator of Zurich, and Rudolphus Frey of Basil ; on the other by Luther, Melancthon, 300 LIFE OP MELANCTHON. Eberhard, Thane of Eisenach, Justus Jonas, Casper Cruciger, and others. Jonas describes Zuinglius as rude and forward, Oecolampadius as remarkably mild, Hedio no less liberal and good, and Bucer keen and cunning as a fox. It appears that the Swiss and Saxon re- formers discussed a variety of other topics, in which they either did or supposed themselves to differ, and though both parties afterwards claimed the victory there is every reason to rely on the statement of Melancthon. " Zuinglius," he says, " readily gave up several things which he had advanced in his writings, particularly bis notion of original sin and came over to the Wittemberg divines in all points, the single ar- ticle of the Lord's Supper excepted. 'Y/>>^ No doubt can be entertained that each of the Protestant parties retired from this confer- ence with too much self-satisfaction, and the Papists ridiculed the Landgrave for his pious zeal, fqj If however the great purpose of per- fect agreement were not obtained, it is much to CpJ Mel. in ScuU. 198. in Hosp. 80-82. Lit. Jonjc ad Gulielm. ReifFenstein ap. Seck. Lib. IL p. 139. /"q/ " De conventu hoc Marpurgensi ab omnium partinm scriptoribus agitur: Pontificiis, qui, ut noster hie, conatura Landgravii inutilem irrident ; Zuinglio cum suis, qui argu- mentandi acumine potiores sibi fuisse visi sunt : Nosiris qui Lutheio constantiag et firmitatis laudem asserunt." Seck. Hist. Luth. Lib. II. Sect. xvii. p. 137. LIFE OP MELANCTHON. 301 their honour that all parties signed the following statement in reference to the excepted article in Melancthon's report. " We all agree in be- lieving that the Lord's Supper is to be adminis- tered in both kinds conformably to its original institution, but that the mass ought not to be practised to procure mercy for the quick or the dead — that the Sacrament is truly a Sacrament of the body and blood of Jesus Christ, and that to eat of his body and blood in a spiritual sense is absolutely necessary for every Christian. We agree also respecting the utility of the Sacrament that like his holy word it is administered, and appointed by God to promote the faith and joy of his feeble and dependant people through the agency of the Holy Spirit. But though we y ARE NOT YET AGREED WHETHER THE BODY AND BLOOD OF LHRIST IS CORPOREALLY \j,^^»JaJ»^ PRESENT IN THE BREAD AND WINE, YET AS FAR AS CONSCIENCE PERMITS, EACH PARTY SHALL MANIFEST A CHRISTIAN AFFECTION TO EACH OTHER, AND BOTH SHALL EAR- NESTLY IMPLORE Almighty God that he WOULD BY HIS SpiRIT LEAD AND ESTABLISH us IN WHATEVER IS THE TRUTH !'* In the present year Luther wrote a preface to the second edition of Melancthon's Commen- tary on the Epistle to the Colossians, He speaks of it as a book small in size, but great in point of matter and useful tendency, and affirms 302 LIFE OF MELANCTMON. with extraordinary frankness that he preferred y' the writings of Melancthon to his own, and was much more desirous that they should be pub- Hshed and read. " I," says he, " am born to be for ever fighting with opponents and with the devil himself, which gives a controversial and warlike cast to all my works. I clear the ground of stumps and trees, root up thorns and briars, fill up ditches, raise causeways and smooth the roads through the wood : but to Philip Melanc- thon it belongs by the grace of God to perform a ^ milder and more grateful' labour — to build, to plant, to sow, to water, to please by elegance and taste. O happy circumstance and shame to their ingratitude who are not sensible of it! Had such a publication as this appeared twenty years ago what an invaluable treasure would it have been esteemed ! But now, we resemble the Israelites who loathed the manna and sighed for the garlic and the onions of Egypt. A time will come when the loss of such advantae^es will be deplored in vain." So strong and so inviolable was the mutual friendship of these noble-minded Reformers. No root of bitterness grew in either bosom — no jea- lousy or envy divided them. Their only ambi- tion seemed to be to promote each others repu- tation and strengthen by their zealous co-opera- tion the common cause. ( SOS ) CHAP. VIII. A. D. 1530. Brief notice of General Affairs — Appointment of the Diet of Augsburg — Translation of the Augsburg Confession — Popish Confutation — Subsequent pro~ ceedings — Melancihon's Apology — Decree of the Diet — Deliberation of the Reformers — Striking Anecdote of Melancthon. Scrupulously avoiding the minute and intricate transactions of general history, except- ing so far as they may be requisite to connect the parts of this narrative together, it will not be expected that the progress of the Turkish war, or the contentions of the Emperor, the Pope, and the king of France, should be detailed. Suffice it simply to allude to these circumstan- ces, that the wonderful movements of provi- dence at this period may be duly remarked. The Pope and the Emperor were both sufficiently disposed to exert their respective authority as the heads of civil and ecclesiastical affairs, to extinguish the still increasing light of the Re- formation. They were anxious to enforce the 304- LIFE OF MELANCTHON. intolerant edict of Worms, and to concert mea- sures for the more effectual annihilation by force of the Lutheran heresy. But at the very time when it is probable their efforts would have been most alarming, and when urged by the papal party to exert their formidable power, they were prevented from executing their purpose by per- sonal contentions, as well as by the hostility of a foreign enemy. During some years France, Spain and Italy had been in a state of commotion, and after the battle of Pavia, in which Francis v/as defeated, the Roman Pontiff becoming uneasy at the growing power of the Emperor, entered into a league a2;ainst him, which so exasperated Charles, that in the year 1527 he rushed into Italy, laid siege to Rome, and blockaded Clement in the castle of St. Angelo. Their differences how- ever being at length adjusted, they were mu- tually pledged to the extirpation of Protes- tantism. y The appointment of a Diet at Augsburg to deliberate on the Turkish war, and on the exist- ing disputes in religion, forms a new era in the history of the Reformation. Charles JV\ was personally present. He arrived on the thirteenth, and the first session was held on the twentieth of June, (^/yl The Elector of Saxony selected fr) DupiN's Eccles. Hist. B. II. Ch. 22. p. 115. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 305 his most eminent divines to accompany him. Luther, who could not with safety or propriety have appeared at Augsburg after being pro- scribed by the edict of Worms, was left at Coburg in Franconia, at a convenient distance for consultation, so that the principal labour and responsibility devolved upon Melancthon. It had been deemed adviseable to prepare a statement of all the principal articles of the ' Protestant faith, in order to put the Emperor in full possession of the subject of dispute pend- ing between the Papal and Reformed parties, [/ and to facilitate the dispatch of ecclesiastical "^ affairs. Luther and his friends had already sent a concise paper to the Elector of Saxony at his own request while at Torgau, on his road to the Diet. It consisted of seventeen articles, which , had been already discussed in the conferences at ' Sultzbach and Smalcald. (^5^ The Princes however solicited the pen of Melancthon to draw up a more extended and ^ accurate statement. It was an important un- dertaking, and a critical moment. He naturally felt anxious for his own reputation, and while it was his desire to avoid unnecessary offence, he felt as a man of piety the paramount duty he owed to God and to his conscience. Often did he weep over the page — often did he complain (s) Comm. de Luth. XLII. 4. &XLVI1I. & Add. ^ 306 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. with sentiments of genuine humility of his own incompetency, ftj At length the celebrated Confession of Augsburg was completed. Luther's advice had been constantly sought, and there is no reason to doubt, while the mildness of the language scarcely comported with the vehemence of his temper, the skill displaj^ed, and the sentiments stated met his entire approbation, ('w^ It was translated into almost all the languages of Eu- rope, and read in the courts of kings and prin- ces, fvj Melancthon was desirous that it should be signed by the Theologians only of the reformed party, alleging as a reason, that the Princes would then be more at liberty to use their in- fluence in promoting their mutual wishes, but he could not succeed, fwj After the dispatch of other business the Protestant princes requested the Emperor to allow their confession to be publicly read. This ftJ Cam. Vit. Mel. fuj Dupiu says, that after revising and CQixecting it several times, he could hardly please Luther at last. Maimbourg on the contrary represents it as being highly gratifying to him. Seckendorf favours the statement of Maimbourg, by saying Luther was glad of this occasion to let the world see what he and his frieuds believed. fvJ Seck. {■vj Cam. Vit. Mel. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 307 he would not permit in a full Diet, but com- manding them to intrust it to him promised it should be read the next day in his palace ; they however petitioned to reserve it. The next day in a special assembly of princes and other mem- bers of the empire, it was presented to his Im- perial Majesty in Latin and German, with the offer to explain any thing which might appear obscure and an assurance they would refer the points of difference in religion to a general coun- cil, (x) The reader shall now have an opportunity of inspecting this far-famed performance, (y) It will be found to contain many sentiments which to most Christians will appear strange and which we should be very far from defending, but (x) Du pin's Eccles. Hist. B. II. p. IIG. (y) Coelestine in his history of the Diet of Augsburg', has inserted a summary of the Protestant faith in seventeen articles said to have been previously sent to Charles \ . and which he imputes to Melancthon. He represents it as written at the request of Alphonsus Valdesius, Spanish Secretary to the Em. peror, who said his Imperial Majesty had intimated his wish for such a statement. But Seckendorf assis:ns several satis- factory reasons for not believing it to be the production of Me- lancthon. It is written with considerable acrimony ; and would have exposed him to great personal danger ; it is not probable Jie would have done it without consulting Luther; such a pro- ceeding would have bf en inconsistent with his natural timidity of disposition, and his learned biographer Camorarius mentions nothing of such a composition. Cgelestin. Hist. Comit. August. Tom. I. Secke.nd. Hist. Liith. Lib. II. p. 105--167. ^ 2 308 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. we have nevertheless thought it our duty faith- fully to represent them. Let the reader bear in mind that the Reformers are to be honoured chiefly for the grand principles of Christian li- berty which they so strenuously asserted and maintained in the face of the most powerful opponents ; the detail of doctrine and practice will always occasion difference of opinion. That they were too tenacious of their particular creed and in many cases inconsistent with themselves cannot be denied — but this period was only the dawn of religious discovery, and it is not to be wondered at that many objects appeared to them at first in a very indistinct manner. Many alter- ations were made in future editions of this very document. They were perpetually, with the zeal of reformers and the genuine humility of Christians, correcting their own errors. THE AUGSBURG CONFESSION As presented to Charles V. June 25, 1^5Q. Art. I. " Our churches are perfectly agreed that the Nicene decree respecting the unity of the divine essence and the three persons of the godhead is true and worthy of the fullest belief; namely, that there is one divine essence which is called and which is God, eternal, incorporeal, indivisi- ble, infinite in power, wisdom and goodness,, the LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 309 Creator and preserver of all things visible and invisible ; and yet there are three persons co- equal in power and essence, and co-eternal, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The term person is used in the same sense as ecclesiastical writers have employed it, to denote a proper subsistence in distinction from a part or quality. Hence our churches condemn every heresy upon this subject that has arisen, as that of the Mani- chaeans who assert two principles, the good and the evil, the Valentinians, Arians, Eunomians, Mahometans and all others of a similar descrip- tion. They condemn also the Samosatenes both ancient and modern, who contend that there is only one person and speak of the word and the Holy Spirit in a very wily and wicked maimer, affirming that there are no distinct persons, but that the Word signifies a mere voice, and the Spirit an influence or motion created in things. Art. H. " They teach also that since the fall of Adam all men are naturally born in sin, destitute of the fear of God and faith in him, and full of concupiscence ; and this disease or original de- pravity is sinful, ev^en now condemning and ex- posing to eternal death all who are not born again by baptism and the Holy Spirit. " They condemn the Pelagians and others who deny the sinful nature of this original de- 310 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. pravity, disparaging the benefits which Christ dispenses to the exaltation of human merit, and contending that a man is justified before God by his own powers of reason. Art. III. " They also teach that the word, or Son of God assumed human nature in the Virgin's womb, in such a manner that the two natures the divine and the human were inseparably united in the one person of Christ, truly God and truly man born of the Virgin Mary, who really suffered, was crucified, dead and buried, that he might reconcile the Father to us, by his expiatory sacrifice for both original and actual sin. He descended to the dead (ad inferos), and really rising again on the third day ascended into heaven to sit at the Father's right hand, to reign for ever over all creation and to sanctify all who believe in him, by sending his Spirit into their hearts to rule, console and quicken them, that they may be able to resist the devil and the power of sin. Also Christ will return to judge the quick and the dead, &c. accoixling to the Apostles' Creed. Art. IV. " They teach also that men cannot be justi- fied before God by their own efforts, merits or works, but are justified freely through Christ by LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 311 faitli, and are received into favour and enjoy the remission of sins through Christ, who by his death gave a satisfaction for sin. " God imputes this faith for justification be- fore him. RoM. iii. and iv. Art. V. " The ministry of the gospel and the ad- ministration of Sacraments was instituted that we might obtain this faith, for the word and the Sacraments are used as instruments by the Holy Spirit for the communication of faith, and where and wherever it is seen in those who hear the gospel ; that is, God justifies not for our merits but for Christ's sake. " They condemn the Anabaptists and others, who suppose that the Holy Spirit comes to men through their own works and prepara- tions without the external word. Art. VI. " They teach also that faith ought to be visible in its fruits, and that though good works are to be done as commanded and conformable to. the will of God, we are not to confide in them as meritorious for justification before God. For remission of sin and justification is apprehended by faith, as Christ testifies : ' Having done all these things say we are unprofitable servants.* The ancient writers of the church teach the 312 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. same doctrine. Ambrose says, ' This is the ap- pointment of God, that whosoever believes in Christ shall be saved without works, by faith only receiving the remission of sins.' Art. VII. " They teach also that the one holy church will continue for ever; but that this church / consists of a congregation of holy persons in which the gospel is rightly taught and the Sa- craments rightly administered ; and as to true unity in the church, it is sufficient to agree con- cerning the doctrine of the gospel and the admi- nistration of Sacraments. Nor is it universally necessary that human traditions, rites, or cere- monies instituted by men be the same in all places ; so Paul says, ' One Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, &c/ Art. vim. " Although the church is properly a con- gregation of holy persons and genuine believers, yet as there is a great mixture of characters in / this world, hypocrites and wicked persons, it is lawful to use the Sacraments although adminis- tered by the wicked according to the language C)f Christ ; ' The Scribes and Pharisees sit in Vioses's seat,' &c. so that the Sacraments and he word of God become efficacious through the LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 3\3 ?ippointment and command of Christ, even though dispensed by wicked persons. " They condemn the Donatists and such persons who deny the lawfulness of making use of the ministry of the wicked in the church, considering such a ministry useless and in- efficacious. Art. IX. " They teach concerning baptism that it is necessary to Salvation, because by baptism the grace of God is offered. Infants are to be bap- tized, who being brought to God by baptism are received into his favour. They condemn the Ana- baptists who disallow the baptism of infants and affinn that they may be saved without it. Art. X. " They teach respecting the Lord's Supper that the body and blood of Christ are truly pre- sent, and are distributed to the recipients, and disapprove of those who teach otherwise. Art. XI. " Concerning confession they teach that private absolution may be retained in the churches, although in making confession it is not necessary that every particular delinquency be enumerated. This indeed is impossibly ac- / 314 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. cording to the language of the Psalmist, ' Who can understand his errors ?' Art. XII. " Concerning penitence they teach that the remission of sins may be obtained by such as fall after baptism whenever they repent ; and that the church bestow absolution upon such returning penitents. But repentance may be divided into two parts, the one is contrition or the terrors which agitate the conscience under a sense of guilt ; the other is, the faith derived from the gospel, or from absolution and which believes that sin is pardoned for the sake of Christ, the conscience pacified and released from its alarms. Upon this good works ought to fol- low as the fruit of repentance. " They condemn the Anabaptists who deny that once being justified it is possible to \l lose the Holy Spirit, as well as those who con- tend that a sinless perfection is attainable in the present life. They condemn also the Novatians who refuse to absolve such as have fallen after baptism even upon their return to repentance ; and they are rejected who assert that the remis-^ sion of sins is not connected with faith, but is obtained by our charity and good works. They also are rejected who teach that Canonical satis- factions are necessary to make amends for eternal punishment or the pains of purgatory. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 315 Art. XIII. " Concerning- the use of Sacraments, they teach that the Sacraments are instituted not only as the signs to men of our religious profession, but rather as the signs and evidences of the will of God to us to quicken and confirm the faith of those who observe them. The Sacraments are to be used therefore, that faith may be increased through believing the promises particularly ex- hibited and impressed by Sacraments. They condemn therefore those who teach that the Sacraments can justify as works of merit, deny- ing that faith is requisite in the reception of them. Art. XIV. " Concerning church order, they teach that no one ought to teach publicly or to administer the Sacraments unless he be lawfully called. Art. XV. " Concerning riteg in the church, they teach that those rites are to be observed which can be observed without sin and which conduce to the peace and good order of the church ; such as certain holidays and feasts. But in reference to these things men are to be admonished lest their consciences should be burdened with the idea that such worship is essential to Salvation. They must also be admonished that human traditions / / 916 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. instituted with a view of pleasing God, pur- chasing his favour and atoning for sin are con- trary to the gospel and the doctrine of faith. Hence vows, traditions respecting meats and drinks, &c. instituted to purchase divine favour and satisfy for sins are useless and contrary to the gospel. Art. XVI. " Concerning civil matters they teach that lawful civil appointments are good in the sight of God and that Christians may exercise the office of a magistrate, may judge according to imperial and other existing laws, inflict legal punish- ments, declare war, take up the military pro- fession, make lawful contracts, hold property, take en oath upon the requisition of a magistrate, marry and trade. " They condemn the Anabaptists who for- bid the exercise of these civil offices by Chris- tians, and they condemn those who do not place evangelical perfection in the fear of God and in faith, but in abandoning civil offices because the gospel recommends the righteousness of the heart ; but it does not abrogate political institu- tions, but requires the preservation of them as ordinances of God and in such ordinances to ex- ercise charity. It becomes Christians therefore to obey their own magistrates and laws, except- ing when they command them to do evil, in LIFE OP MELAXCTHON. 317 which case we must obey God rather than men. Acts V. Act. XVIL *' They teach that Christ will appear in judgment at the end of the world, that he will raise the dead and bestow eternal life and ever- lasting felicity on his holy and elect people ; but he will condemn wicked men and devils to end- less torment. They condemn the Anabaptists ' who imagine there will be a termination to the punishment of wicked men and devils ; and also others who are dispersing the Jewish notions that previous to the resurrection of the dead the righteous will occupy a worldly kingdom and oppress the wicked. Art. XVIII. " Concerning free will they teach that the human will is in a certain sense and in reference to civil concerns and the exercise of reason free ; but it has no efficiency in spiritual concerns without the Holy Spirit, because the natural man does not perceive the things of the Spirit ; tliey are impressed upon the heart by means of the word through the agency of the Holy Spirit. Augustine delivers the same doctrine in his Hy- pognosticon, Lib. III. — We admit that the will is free in all men who can judge according to reason, not indeed in divine things to begin or 318 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. go forward independaiitly of God, but only in what pertains to the present life both good and evil. I say good referring to those things which arise out of our natural w elfare, as the cultiva- tion of the soil, eating and drinking, friendship, clothing, preparing a residence, marrying, tend- ing cattle, acquiring the knowledge of various arts and whatever pertains to the welfare of the present life ; all which things subsisting alone are conducted without a divine direction. By the term evil I referred to the worship of idols, mur- der, &c. " They condemn the Pelagians and others who teach that we are able to please God su- premely without the Holy Spirit and by the power of nature alone ; and substantially to obey his precepts. For though nature can in some respects perform external works, as abstaining from theft and murder, it cannot command in- ternal affections as the fear of God, faith in him, purity, patience, &c. Art. XIX. " Concerning the cause of sin they teach that though God is the Creator and preserver of our nature, Sin originates entirely in the will / of evil beings, namely, devils and wicked men, which apart from divine influence turns them aside from God ; Christ says of the devil, ' When he speaketh a lie he speaketh of his own.' John viii. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 319 Art. XX. " Our ch;:rches are falsely accused of pro- hibiting good works, for their writings now ex- / tant concerning the Ten Commandments and '- others testify that they have given salutary in- structions respecting every duty of life ; what kind of life and what works in every different situation please God. Formerly public instructors taught little of these things, but urged the prac- tice of puerile and needless observances as cer- tain feasts, fasts, fraternizations, peregrina- tions, worship of saints, rosaries, (^2:^ and the like. Our adversaries have now learned to do without these useless things and not to preach them up so much as formerly. They moreover begin to speak of faith respecting which they were before wonderfully silent, although they still obscure the real doctrine of faith by disre- garding trembling consciences and commanding the observance of good works in order to merit the forgiveness of sin. " As therefore the doctrine of faith which ought to be regarded as of prime importance in the church, was so long spoken of in an ignorant manner however it was admitted to be necessary by all, the most profound silence reigning in public discourses respecting- justification by (z) A rosary is a mass with the prayers to the Virg^ia Mary. 320 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. faith though the doctrine of works was continu- ally canvassed, it was deemed proper to admo- nish the churches on the subject of faith. " In the first place our works cannot reconr cile us to God or merit the remission of sins, the favour of God, grace and justification, for this can only follow from faith, believing that we are received into favour through Christ the only Mediator and atoning sacrifice by whom the Father is reconciled. Consequently whoever trusts in his own works as meritorious despises the merit and the grace of Christ, and seeks a way to God without Christ, by human strength, although Christ avers, ' I am the way, the truth and the life.' Paul every where teaches this doctrine concerning faith. — Thus, Eph. ii. ' By grace ye are saved through faith and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works,' &c. And lest a caviller should arise, sajnng that we have devised a new interpretation for the lan- guage of Paul, we appeal to the testimony of the Fathers. Augustine in many of his writings defends orace and the riohteousness of faith in opposition to the merit of works. Ambrose does the same in his call of the Gentiles and else- where ; for thus be speaks, ' The redemption of Christ would be of little value and the mercy of God must yield to the merit of human perform- ances if justification were due to antecedent merits, so as to be the reward of works and not of free bounty.' LtFE OF MELANCTHON. 321 " Although the ignorant despise this doc- trine, pious and trembling consciences derive from it much consolation because works cannot restore peace to the mind but faith only, by which they become assured of pleasing God through Christ. So speaks Paul, Rom. v. ' Being justified by faith we have peace with God.' The whole of his statement refers to the internal warfare of an alarmed conscience and cannot be understood unless this warfare is ex- perienced. Ignorant and profane persons there- fore judge most erroneously upon this subject, who dream that there is no such thing as Chris- tian justification but only a philosophical and civil one. " The consciences of men in former times who did not listen to the gospel were much tor- mented respecting the doctrine of works, some were driven into deserts and monasteries, hoping to merit grace by a monastic life ; others devised other works to purchase favour and make satis- faction for sin. The greatest necessity therefore existed to give a clear statement of the doctrine of faith in Christ, that the trembling conscience should not seek consolation in vain and should be instructed how by faith in Christ, favour, pardon and justification were to be obtained. " Men are instructed that this term faith does not signify merely historical knowledge such as wicked men and devils possess, but it Y / 323 LIFE OF MILANCTHON. includes not only a credit of the historical feet but of the effect resulting, namely, the remis- sion of sins, that is, that through Christ we enjoy mercy, justification and forgiveness. Whoever knows that through Christ he has a merciful Father truly knows God, knows that he is under his care, loves him and calls upon his name ; not living without God like the hea- then. Devils and wicked men cannot believe in the doctrine of remission, consequently they hate God as an enemy, neither calling upon him nor expecting any good at his hands. Augus- tine delivers the same doctrine respecting faith, Stating that this term is used in Scripture not for such knowledge as the wicked possess, but for that confidence which consoles and inspirits trembling minds. " Our churches moreover teach that good works are necessary ; not as meritorious in pro- curing divine mercy, but such is the will of God, for remission of sins and peace of conscience can only be obtained by faith ; and the Holy Spirit is received by faith and the heart being renewed new affections are imparted that good works may be produced. Independently of the Holy spirit, human nature is fullof vile affections and totally incapable of doing any thing good in the divine sight, but, under diabolical influence men are impelled to various sins, impious sentiments and open immorality. Thus we see philosophers LIFE OP MELANCTHON. 323 aiming to live in a moral manner, but they were unable to do so, and fell into open vice. Such is human imbecility when under the guidance of bis own power, without faith and destitute of the Holy Spirit. " Hence it is apparent that our doctrine cannot be accused of prohibiting good works, but ^ is worthy of commendation as shewing in what manner they can be performed. For without faith human nature cannot fulfil the first or se- cond precepts of the law ; without faith it can- not call upon God, or expect any thing from him, it cannot bear the cross, but seeks human sup- port and confides in them. When faith and confidence in God are wanting vain desires and carnal principles reign in the heart. Hence Christ says, ' Without me ye can do nothing,' John XV. And the church says, ' Without thy Spirit there is nothing in man, nothing good.* Art. XXL " Concerning the worship of saints they teach that their memory may be exhibited, that we may imitate their faith and good works, in the same manner as the Emperor could imitate the example of David in waging war to expel the Turks from the empire, both being kings ; • but Scripture never instructs us to invoke saints ^ or to implore assistance from them^ because it presents Christ to us as the only Mediator, Sa- Y 2 5^4 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. crifice, Priest and Intercessor. To him we are to apply who promises to hear our supplications and who approves our worship, that is, that we resort to his aid in all our afflictions. 1 John ii. ' If any man sin we have an advocate with the Father Jesus Christ the righteous.' " Such is nearly a summary of our doctrine which it may be seen does not disagree with Scrij)ture nor with the universal church, nor with the Romish church so far as may be ascer- tained from its writers, so that we are injuriously treated by those who denounce us as heretics. But the dissension between us refers to certain abuses which have in an unauthorized manner crept into the churches, in respect to which dif- ference it becomes the bishops to exercise lenity and to tolerate us on account of this our confes- sion, because the canons themselves are not so severe as to require the same rites in all places, nor were the same rites ever exactly the same in all the churches. However, for the most part, the ancient rites are observed amongst us. It is therefore calumnious to represent all ceremonies and all the ancient institutions as abolished in our churches. But it has been the public com- plaint that abuses have adhered to the practice of the usual rites, and these, since pious sin- cere consciences could not approve them are in some measure corrected." life op melancthon. 395 Articles In which the particular abuses that have been changed are recited. " Since we do not differ from the Catholic church in articles of faith, but only omit some few abuses which are both novel and are received contrary to the canons through the corruption of the times, we implore your Imperial JSIajesty to give us a gracious hearing respecting these changes and the reasons for them, that the people may not be compelled against their consciences to observe such abuses. Let not your Imperial Majesty listen to those who stir up hatred and distribute monstrous calumnies against us ; by which means the minds of good men being irri- tated against us, an occasion of disagreement and disord is furnished. For your Imperial Majesty will doubtless perceive that our system both of doctrine and ceremonies is superior to what it is represented by the wicked and malevolent. Be- sides the truth is not to be collected from the report of the multitude or the railings of adver- saries, and it is easy to perceive that nothing conduces so much to preserve the true dignity of worship and the piety of the people, as the proper administration of the public services of the church. CaJ (a) In giving the remaining part of the Confession it has act been deemed requisite to adhere so closely to the words of ^ 326 life of melancthon. The Sacrament in both Kinds. " The Sacrament is administered to the laity in both kinds and not to the ministers only, because it is commanded by Jesus Christ — ' Drink ye all of this.' Whence it is apparent that all were to partake of the cup ; and lest there should be any dispute whether this injunc- tion were applicable to the people, Paul testifies in the Epistle to the C or i nthians that the whole church commonly received the Supper in both kinds. This was a long continued practice and it is un- certain who first introduced a different custom. Cyprian and Jerome relate that this was the usual practice and the decrees of several popes command it. We do not admit the division of the Sacrament, as such a practice would not com- port with the original institution. The Marriage of Priests. *' Upon occasion of a public complaint that some of the priests had violated their vow of celibacy, Pope Pius is reported to have said that the writer, but rather to furnish a correct abstract of the state- ment, because the doctrinal is the most important part and furnishes a view of the sentiments of the Reformers, which Protestants will naturally feel anxious exactly to know ; and because it would be tedious and useless to detail all that at the time of the Diet of Augsburg, it was thought necessary to state respecting those abuses of which but one opinion now prevails amongst Protestants. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 327 there were several reasons why the priesthood should be forbid to marry, but many more and weightier why they should return to the practice of it. Our priests wishing to avoid all occasion of scandal, marry and plead its legality, Jirsty from the language of Paul, ' Let every one of you have his own wife,' and ' it is better to marry than to burn/ Secondly^ from the words of Christ, ' All cannot receive this saying, for some are eunuchs/ " It is in vain to fight against the laws of y^ nature and the appointment of God. Paul also expressly requires of a bishop that he be married. In Germany about four hundred years ago priests were compelled to marry, for they were so op- posed to it that the Archbishop of Mentz, who was going to publish a decree of the Roman Pontiff on the subject, was borne down by a tumult raised by the incensed priests, so that not only was marriage forbidden in future but contrary to all divine and human laws, those which had been contracted were dissolved. " God himself has pronounced marriage to be honourable and even in every well consti- tuted heathen state it was equally sanctioned by the laws, and yet now the priests are to suffer capital punishments for it ! Paul expressly as- serts that forbidding to marry is a doctrine of devils. — 1 Tim. iv. And be it remembered, that 328 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. as no human law so no human vow can annul the command of God. The ISIass. " Our churches explode the general opinion of the merit and application of the mass, as false and impious ; the state of the controversy may be ascertained from the following abridgment of our arguments. 1 . " The remission of sins as before stated, (Art. iv.) is enjoyed through faith in Christ, con- sequently it is impossible to obtain this remission through any other means or without the exercise of fi^ith. 2. " The sufferings of Christ were expia- tory ; and designed as an oblation not only for original guilt but for all kinds of transgression. ' We are sanctified,' says the apostle, ' by the sacrifice of Christ once for all.' — ' By the one offering of himself he hath for ever perfected them that are sanctified.' The whole epistle to the Hebrews is occupied in establishing this doctrine, that the sacrifice of Christ is the only and exclusive means of pardon and reconcilia- tion wnth God. 3. " In the institution of the Lord's Supper Christ does not commanil the priests to offer any sacrifice either for the living or the dead. By what authority therefore is this service appointed LIFE OF MELANCTIION. 329 as an offering for sin ? The mass is absurdly applied to the release of souls from purgatory, whereas it was instituted for the purpose of remembering Christ, and thus confirming the faith and comforting the minds of his people. This misapplication therefore contrary to the authority of Scripture is censurable as a novel and impious service. 4. " A ceremony without faith is of no avail either to those who perform it or to others, for Christ affirms they are the true worshippers who worship the Father in spirit and in truth ; ajid the apostle states that hy faith Abel offered a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, and ' with- out faith it is impossible to please God.' 6. ". The proper application of the blessings procured by Jesus Christ is through faith, as Paul testifies in the third chapter of the Romans. ' Whom God hath set forth a propitiation through faith in his blood.' Consequently this application cannot be through or by the merit of any other work. 6. " The institution of the Sacrament is diametrically opposed to this abuse of it, for while there is no command respecting any of- fering for the sins of the living or the dead, we are enjoined to partake of the body and blood of Christ and for the express purpose of remember- ing him. The great design of the institution is to exercise and excite our faith in receiving this 330 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. pledge of love. Besides the communion of saints was intended, that the ministers of the church might impart the body and blood of Christ to others. That this was the primitive purpose of the institution we learn from Paul, ' the wine, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ, and the bread is it not tjie communion of the body of Christ?' Confession. *' This practice is not abolished amongst us, but the people are instructed, that a parti- V cular enumeration of all their delinquencies is not necessary, for in fact it is impossible. ' Who,* says David, ' can understand his errors ?* ' The heart of man,* says Jeremiah, ' is deceitful and desperately wicked.* But if no sins could be remitted unless they were distinctly mentioned, a tender conscience could never be at rest, be- cause the greatest number of our sins are perhaps neither observed nor can they be remembered. The fathers also sanction this omission. We do not therefore burden the conscience, but this we teach, that men must bring forth the fruits of genuine repentance, obedience, the fear of God, faith, holy joy, purity and a universal ' newness of mind.* We retain and enforce contrition, faith, remission and forgiveness of sin, reforma- tion of life 5ind mitigation of present punish- ments. life of melancthon. 331 The distinction of Meats and other Traditions. "It has been commonly believed by eccles siastics as well as the vulgar, that a regard to the distinction of meats and drinks and other human traditions may conduce to the remission of sins. Hence an innumerable multitude of ceremonies, fasts and observances have been appointed. Many evils have resulted from this idea of tradi- tions : as 1. " Such an opinion obscures the doctrine of grace and justification by faith, which is an essential part of the gospel and ought to be clearly stated in all the public assemblies of the church. The merit of Christ alone, as the cause of justi- fication, is stated by Paul, but this reliance on human traditions annuls it. 2. " It operates further to abrogate the divine precepts, because tradition is more con- sulted than the authority of God and the whole of Christianity is represented as consisting in the observance of certain days, rites, fasts and cloth- ing. These observances are dignified by the name of a spiritual and perfect way, but the commands of God to attend to our duties, the education of our children, and to obey our rulers are deemed worldly and imperfect, and far infe- rior to these other splendid services. 3. " Tender consciences have been exceed- ingly disturbed by this doctrine of human tradi- 332 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. tions, from the conviction that they could not keep them all, though they have been repre- sented as necessary to acceptable worship. Gerson mentions many who have fallen into ab- solute despair and some who have even com- mitted suicide, because they found it utterly impossible to observe the traditions, and could not be consoled by the doctrine of grace and ju8- 1'ification by faith. " We teach that none can obtain the for- giveness of sin or merit justification by keeping the traditions of men, consequently they cannot be essential to the proper worship of God. The evidence of this is to be deduced from the Scrip- tures. Christ excuses the apostles from regard- ing the customary traditions, ' Do not ye under- stand that whatsoever entereth in at the mouth,' &c. (Mat. XV. 17—20.) ' The kingdom of God is not meat and drink,' &c. (Rom. xiv. 17.) 'Let no man judge you in meat or in drink, or in respect of a holy day,' &c. (Col.ii. 16.) Again, ' if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world are ye subject to ordinances,' &c. (Col. ii. 20.) ' Why,' says Peter, ' tempt ye God to put a yoke on the neck of the disciples which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear ?' (Acts xv. 10.) ' The spirit speaketh expressly that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils , LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 333 commanding to abstain from meats,' &c. (1 Tim. iv. 1—3.) " To this our adversaries object that we prohibit discipline and the mortification of th» flesh, but this is incorrect, for we always teach that Christians ought to bear afflictions ; and to be exercised with various afflictions and to be crucified with Christ is true and not pretended mortification. " At the same time we do observe some traditions, but the people are admonished against trusting in them for justification before God, or supposing they commit sin by an omission of them. ■/ Monastic Vows. " Our opinions on this subject will be best understood by considering that such was formerly the state of the monasteries, that every day many things were done in violation of canonical au- thority. In the time of Augustine, their col- leges were free colleges, and after discipline be- came lax vows were every where made that it should be restored, and with these vows for the restoration of good order were connected many new observances, which were imposed contrary to the canon upon many at an improper age. Multitudes of both sexes were allured into these establishments and subjected to the severest dis- cipline. / 334 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. " To these evils others were added, espe- cially such a persuasion of the efficacy of vows that they were even represented as meriting the remission of sins and justification before God> and a monastic life was not only extolled above every secular duty and every religious office, but made to supersede the precepts of the gospel itself. " Formerly there were schools attached to the monasteries for the purpose of communicating instruction in sacred and secular literature ; very important they were and serviceable in supply- ing the church with pastors and bishops. How different the case is now it is needless to state. Instead of being appropriated to learning, now a monastic life is pretended to be a life of perfec- tion, conducive to justification and far preferable to any other vocation, to which even God him- self has appointed men by his providence. " These are not exaggerated statements for the purpose of rendering the monks odious, but simple facts adduced to illustrate the nature of our doctrines. First, in reference to matrimony ; we admit all to marry who are not disposed to celibacy, because vows cannot annul the divine appointment and command. ' Let every one have his own wife.* It was declared at the creation of the human race, ' it is not good for man to be alone.' What can be said in reply to this ? Let the obligation of a vow be asserted as LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 335 ftrmly as you please, it cannot be maintained that it discharges a man from his duty to obey God. The canons expressly teach that in every vow the command of a superior is to be obeyed, how much more then is the authority of God to be regarded ! If no reasons can exist for chang- ing the obligation of vows, the Roman Pontiff himself cannot supersede them, for surely it is not lawful for a man to rescind an obligation which is purely divine. But the popes very wisely judge, that the claims of equity are to be observed in enforcing this obligation, and conse- quently we often read of their exercising a dis- pensing power in reference to vows. Many of the canons rescind vows v/hich have been made previous to the age of fifteen and one of them states eighteen, because it is presumed that at so early a period ayouthis incapable of forming a pro- per judgment on a subject which is to influence the whole of his future life: hence a great number are furnished with an excuse to desert the mo- nasteries, because they made their vow previous to the required age. After all, were it conceded that the violation of a vow is represensible, it does not follow that marriage ought to be dis- solved, which as Augustine observes, is a serious obligation whatever some may after contracting it suppose. " We plead also another reason to prove that vows are not obligatory, namely, that all 336 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. religions services which are merely of liumani appointment, having no authority from God and represented as essential to forgiveness and justification are impious, because ' in vain/ says Christ, ' do they w^orship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men :' and Paul plainly states that remission and justification are obtained by the propitiatory sacrifice of Christ and through faith in his name. The monks teach that these blessings are procurable by those observances which are of human inven- tion, and what is this but detracting from the honour of Christ, obscuring his glory and deny- ing the Scripture doctrine of justification by faith. Vows are therefore both impious and vain ; opposed to the gospel and a shameful sub- stitution of a man*s own works for the propitia- tion of Christ. ' Whoever of you,' says Paul, ' are justified by works are fallen from grace.* " Moreover the monks represent their mode of hfe as the state of perfection, because they obey V both the precepts of the gospel and the appoint- ments of councils. This is a most awful error ; for they boast of the meritorious works of super- erogation and conceive they not only obey the precepts themselves, but possess a superabundant righteousness to satisfy for the sins of others. " When the people are assured that the monkish is the only perfect life, the precepts and the whole service of God is undervalued, LtFE OF MELANCTHON. 337 because Christian perfection is to live in the habitual fear of God, to confide in his favour through faith in Christ, to seek and to depend on his help in all the various duties which de- volve upon us in our respective situations ; to be holy in our conduct and to be devoted to our proper callings. Christian perfection consists not in celibacy, nor in mendicity and mean attire. " The examples are sufficiently numerous of persons who deserting their families and offices in civil life have withdrawn into monasteries ; and this they call flying from the world and pur- suing a kind of life more acceptable to God ; but surely to keep his commandments and not the traditions of men, is alone deserving the name of at good and perfect kind of life. Ecclesiastical Power. " This subject has proved a fertile source of the most violent contentions, while the eccle- siastical and civil power has been united in the same ruler. The Roman Pontiffs relying on their influence and authority, have not only op- pressed the consciences of men with violent ex- communications and appointed new modes of worship, but have even aimed to seize and ap- propriate imperial sceptres and gain the domi- nion of the world. This conduct has been long and often condemned by learned and pious men z 338 LIFE OP MELANCTHOX. in our churches, and we have endeavoured to console afflicted consciences by pointing out the distinction between the power of the church and the power of the sword, and shewing how each ought to be revered as appointed by God for the welfare of mankind. *' The power of bishops we apprehend to be a power or authority from God to preach the gospel, to remit and retain sins, and to admi- nister the ordinances. The commission of Christ to his disciples is thus expressed, ' As the Fa^ ther hath sent me even so send I you. — Receive the Holy Ghost — whosesoever sins ye remit they shall be remitted, and whosesoever sins ye retain they shall be retained.* — ' Go and preach my gospel to every creature,* &c. " This power is to be exercised only in teaching and preaching the gospel, and in ad- ministering the ordinances or services of their pro- per calling, because they are not entrusted with the temporal but spiritual concerns of men and whatever relates to an eternal life. These things belong to the ministry, and the gospel is ' the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth.* Ecclesiastical power therefore is to be exercised in the preaching of the gospel and in reference to eternal things, but not to impede or controul the political administration of em- pires. Nor is it the business of the magistrate to legislate for the conscience, but for the tern- I LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 539 poral interests of men to protect them from inju- ries, to coerce them by the sword, to inflict cor- poral punishments, to administer civil justice and to maintain social order and peace. The ecclesiastical must not therefore be confounded with the civil power. The former is to teach and to administer the ordinances but ought not to interfere with another office, to aim at secular dominion, to abrogate the law of the civil magis- trate, to prevent due subordination, or to obstruct the course of ordinary justice. ' My kingdom,* exclaimed the Saviour, ' is not of this world/ Again, ' who constituted me a judge or a divider amongst you ?' And the apostle intimates, that ' the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds and casting down every imagination that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God.' " If bishops possess the power of the sword, it is given them not by the authority of Scripture, but by the command of kings and princes. " Considerable disputes have been agitated, whether bishops or pastors possess an authority to institute ceremonies in the church and to pre- scribe feasts, fasts and other observances. They who assign this right to bishops, allege this sentence, ' I have many things to say to you but ye cannot bear it now, but when he the z 2 340 LIFE OF MELANGTHON. Spirit of truth shall come he will lead you into all truth :' and they plead the example of apos- tolic injunctions which prohibited the use of blood and things strangled — which changed the day of the Sabbath contrary as it appears to the original appointment of the law. But we reply, that the bishops have no authority to introduce another gospel. Besides, to establish traditions is con- trary to the Scripture, and the glory of Christ is tarnished when we expect by such observances to merit remission of sins and justification before God. This vain hope has occasioned an almost infinite number of traditions to creep into the church. '' If the bishops are endowed with autho- rity to load the churches with endless traditions and thus to ensnare tender consciences, why does Scripture so frequently prohibit the multiplica- tion of traditionary service ? Why does it deno- minate them doctrines of devils ? " It may be inquired, what then is to be- come of our dominical days and similar institu- tions ? The reply is, that bishops or pastors may make appointments for the ordinary regula- tion of the churches, but not represent these services as necessary to the remission of sins, or in anv degree so obligatory on the consciences of men as that they are to imagine themselves guilty of any crime in omitting them. Such appoint- ments conduce to the preservation of love and LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 341 peace, that all things may be done decently and in order, but are not to be oppressive to the con- science or represented as essential to salvation. " Such are the principal articles of our faith. We have omitted to notice many other abuses and subjects of violent contention in order to avoid prolixity. We are firmly persuaded that these our sentiments are conformable to the prophetic and apostolic w^ritings, and the general opinion of the true universal church of Christ. We are ready to furnish any additional informa- tion or explanation whenever it shall be deemed necessary ; in the mean time we beseech the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, that he would preserve, purify and increase his own church which is redeemed by the blood of his Son. " Your Imperial Majesty *s, " Faithful and submissive Servants : '• John, Duke Elector of Saxony. George, Marquis of Brandenburg. Ernest, Duke of Lunenburg. Philip, Landgrave of Hesse. John Frederic, Duke of Saxony. Francis, Duke of Lunenburg. Wolfgang, Prince of Anhalt. Senate and Magistrates of Nuremberg- Senate of Reutlingen.^' The preceding confession was read in the German language by Christian Beyer, Chan- .34:2 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. cellor of Saxony. A copy was also presented at the same time in Latin^ by Pontanus. Coeles- tine relates that when he gave it to one of the Etnperor's secretaries, he had the boldness to exclaim, " By the grace and through the help of God, this confession will prevail against the gates of hell." This however was more proba* bly said at some other less public moment, fb) It is reported of William, Duke of Bavaria, who vehemently opposed the doctrine of the gospel, that as soon as the confession was read, he asked Eckius whether they might overthrow this doctrine out of the Holy Scriptures ; " No," replied Eckius, " by the Holy Scripture we can- not overthrow it, but we may by the fathers.'* Upon which Cardinal Albert, Archbishop of Mentz, said to the Duke of Bavaria, " Behold how finely our divines support us ! The Pro- testants prove what they say out of the Holy Scriptures, but we have our doctrine without Scripture." fcj The Emperor immediately dismissed the assembly, and entered into a serious consultation with the Popish fraternity respecting the proper line of conduct to be adopted. Some were for enforcing the edict of Worms and compelling the consciences of their opponents to submit to im- perial and ecclesiastical authority, others were fb) Secksndorf. (cJ Colloq. Mensal. p. 152. LIFE OP MELANCTHOX. 343 desirous of selecting a certain number of learned men to consult and advise the Emperor. But the prevailing opinion which Melancthon had anticipated, fdj was to procure a confutation of v^ the Protestant articles from the Popish divines, which should be read in a full Diet. Faber, Eckius, Conrad de Wimpina, Conrad Collinus, John Cochlaeus and other select associates un- dertook and speedily completed the work. It was reviewed by the Emperor and the Catholic princes, who advised the omission of all expres- sions calculated to promote irritation. On the third of August the Diet was convened to hear it ; and on the sixth Melancthon thus expresses his opinion in a letter to Luther. " At length we have heard the confutation and at the same time the Emperor^s sentiments which were suf- ficiently bitter. Before this document was read, he declared that he was resolved to abide by the opinions he had caused to be there stated, and desired that our princes would adopt the same ; but if they refused, he as the defender of the church would no longer tolerate the German Schism. This was the sum of his oration, which infamous as it was, the Catholics wel- comed with prodigious applause. The same may be said of their puerile confutation, for ab^ solutely it is more foolish than any thing which fdJ Melanctii. Ep. Lib. I. 12. ad Luthi 344 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. even Faber has published." (e) In another letter to Luther two days afterwards, he intimates " that their adversaries had used threatening lan- guage to terrify the princes from their adherence to the doctrines of the Reformation/' and it appears that they had distinctly assured the Elector John, that " unless he would abjure the Lutheran doctrines which he had embraced, the Emperor would raise an armed force to oblige him and that he should be deprived of his dignities, his possessions and even his life with all who pro- fessed the same faith, their wives and children." It was some time before the Elector could re- cover from the agitation which such a violent philippic had produced, but the effect was tem- porary, (f) Though many articles of the confession were approved ; others, especially the fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, twentieth and twenty-first were totally rejected. The second respecting original sin they admitted, excepting the definition which appeared to them more descriptive of actual than original sin ; the eleventh was only objected to in reference to what was said of confession ; and the several anti-catholic intimations in the twelfth and fifteenth were of course the subjects of animadversion. They affirm in contradiction to the second part of the Augsburg Confession, that fej Mei.ancth. Ep. Lib. I. ep. 12. OJ CcELE&TiN. Hist. Tom. III. 26. LIFE OP MELANCTMON. 3^5 Communion in one kind, the Celibacy of Priests, the Mass, Monastic Vows and the other subjects of objection introduced by the Protestants are not abuses, but religious and holy usages com- manded by Scripture and confirmed by tradition. At the same time they admit that some degree of Reformation in the practice of them was re- quisite, to which the Emperor would pay due attention. They finished by expressing a hope that the Protestants would return to the com- munion of the church. To the concluding intimation, the Elector of Saxony who spoke in the name of the Pro- testants replied, that they were ready to do any thing which conscience would allow for the sake of promoting union in religion, that if the Ca- tholics could prove from Scripture that they had advanced any error, it should be recanted and were ready to furnish any explanation that might be demanded, and they wished to have a copy of the refutation of their articles. This request the Emperor refused, but two days after- wards offered it upon condition of its not being published. This was not agreed to, but seven- teen persons were nominated by the Catholics to discuss religious differences, whose confer- ences were however of no avail. The Elector of Brandenburg pressed the necessity of satisfying the Emperor, by uniting in matters of faith with the princes and members of the empire, other- 346 LIFE OF MELANCtHON. wise they might incur the reproach of involving Germany in vi^ar and tumult. After due deli- beration, they communicated their answer by their deputy George Brucke to this purpose, " that they took it ill to be threatened, the Em- peror would not give them a sufficient hearing, and that they were not allowed but upon a se- vere condition, a copy of the refutation of their articles. It was expected they should assent to it without examination, which their consciences disallowed, and notwithstanding the promise of a general council in the last Diet at Spires, it had not been convened." To this the Roman deputies replied in a defensive and explanatory paper, and finally it was agreed at the sugges- tion of the Protestants, that a smaller number should be appointed for the determination of the present controversy. Two princes, two lawyers and three divines were selected on each side con- formably with this resolution. The Catholics were the Bishop of Augsburg, Henry, Duke of Brunswick, the Chancellor of the Archbishop of Cologne, and the Chancellor of the Marquis of Baden, John Eckius, Conrad Wimpina and John Cochlaeus : the Protestants were, John Fre- deric, son of the Elector of Saxony, George, Marquis of Brandenburg ; the lawyers, Gregory Pontanus and Heller ; and the divines, Me- lancthon, Brentius and Schnepfius. After conferring together they managed a LIFE OF MELANCTHOK. ^47 mode of expression, in which fifteen articles of the Augsburg Confession were mutually subscribed and only six remained ; of these three were only in part disputed and the rest remitted to the second division of the confes- sion, upon which they still continued and were likely to remain disunited. The state of the question being reported to the Diet, it was resolved that a smaller com- mittee consisting of three only on each side, two lawyers and one divine would be more available. Melancthon was nominated for the Protestants, and Eckius for the Catholics. The principal points of debate were the Mass, Vows and the Celibacy of Priests. The Catholics agreed that- the Priests who were married might live with' their wives, but they would make no conces- sions respecting the Mass and Vows. The Emperor was extremely anxious to reconcile contending parties, and endeavoured to win over the Protestant princes by the most attentive behaviour and the most alluring promises. In particular he urged the Elec- tor of Saxony and the Landgrave of Hesse ; but to their immortal honour be it recorded, they were neither to be allured nor alarmed into a dereliction of the noble but too often persecuted cause of Christian liberty, (g) (g) Sleid. 132. ScuLTET. Annal. 158. 1/ 348 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. All hopes of an accommodation were now at an end and the Avorst was anticipated. " We ex- i/ pect," says Melancthon, " violent measures, for no moderation can satisfy the Popish faction. They, in fact, seek our destruction. Pray that God may preserve us." (hj " An APOLOGY for the Augsburg Confes- sion," drawn up by Melancthon, was on the twenty-second of September presented by the Protestant princes to the Emperor, who declined receiving it. Though not published till the fol- lowing year, the insertion of a few short extracts , in this place seems appropriate and will be ac- ceptable. ' ' *' To represent justification as by faith onli/ has been considered objectionable, though Paul concludes that a ' man is justified by faith with- out the deeds of the law ;* (ij that we are ' jus- tified freely by his ^X2ice,' (kj and that ' it is the gift of God not of works lest any man should ho'SiSi' fl) If the use of the exclusive term only is deemed inadmissible, let them expunge from the writings of the apostle the exclusive phrases by grace, not of leorks, the gift of God and others of similar import. We exclude all notions of human merit, but not as our adver- saries calumniously insinuate the use of Sacra- ^hj Ep. 12. ad Hess. /"iJ Rom. iii. 28. /'kj Rom. iii. 24. flj Eph. ii. 8,9. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 349 xneiits and means. It has been already stated that faith cometh by hearing, and we most highly estimate the ministry of the word. Love and obedience must be connected with faith, so that they are only excluded as the meritorious source of justification. " We state that love is essentially con- nected with faith,'' for according to Paul, ' In Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but faith which worketh by love.' But we do not admit that the remission of sins and reconciliation with God, are obtained for the sake of love as a me- ritous act, or for any other kind of work, but by faith only or faith properly so called, because the promise of forgiveness respects the exercise of faith. It is faith which assents to the pro- mise and is every where referred to in Scrip- ture. " In our churches the members are in- structed into the true design of the Sacrament as a sign and testimony of the free forgiveness of sin, a doctrine highly consolatory to trembling- spirits and in which they ought to be admonished to place their confidence. The preaching of the gospel and the legitimate use of the Sacraments is with us a perpetual sacrifice, and the resort to our services is far more numerous than to those of our adversaries, because they are more useful and intelligible. But their doctrines neither the 350 LIFE OF MELANCTHOM. learned nor the ignorant can comprehend. Truth, holy doctrine, the proper use of Sacraments, affectionate discourses, constitute the proper or- naments of churches, but wax tapers, golden vases and other things of a similar nature though ornamental in themselves do not constitute the glory of the Christian church : and if our ad- versaries mistake these for worship, instead of the preaching of the gospel and the exercises of faith, they must be numbered amongst those whom Daniel describes, as ' honouring their own God with gold and silver, and with precious stones and pleasant things.' (rnj " We are not fond of invidious comparisons, but as our adversaries are perpetually urging them we cannot omit mentioning some of their evil practices. What mischief is done by the profa- nation of the Mass ! What evils result from their law of celibacy ! What a manifest piece of idolatry is the worship of saints ! Then will it be affirmed there is nothing reprehensible in the ambition of their Pontiffs, who for upwards of four hundred years have waged an incessant war with our Emperors in Italy, and sometimes even in Germany itself, arming sons and fathers, relatives and citizens against each other ? And if the records of history be searched to ascertain the true causes of such hostilities, I use the (mj DAN.xi. 38. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 251 most moderate terms when I say no cause, worthy of the station and character of these dignita- ries can be found. What mischief ensues from the delegation of unfit persons to the sacerdotal office and from trafficking in benefices ! And is there no fault in the dangerous disputes that are prevalent, which indeed might be pardoned if the purity of doctrine were preserved in the churches ? But, what impious opinions and tradi- tions are introduced and practised, let the writ- ings of canonists and divines testify which abound in discussions some useless and some opposed to the gospel of Christ. Then, in in- terpreting Scripture they trifle and take the most unwarrantable liberties." W On the subject of ecclesiastical jurisdiction and the power of bishops, Melancthon had conceded in his conferences with the Papist ' committee more than many of his own party thoroughly approved, and yet Luther himself in \ his admonition to the princes of the empire, allowed that the bishops might retain their au- thority both civil and ecclesiastical, if they would employ it to the glory of God and not support the Pope*s supremacy. The fact was, that Me- lancthon entertained hopes of an essential refor- mation in the spirit and conduct of the bishops, while Luther despaired of the possibility of effecting it, and was therefore extremely cauti- 552* LIFE OF MELANCTHOK. J ious of any concession to their authority, foj In , Jill doctrinal points Melancthon proved himself a firm, enlightened, inflexible Protestant. The testimony of a good conscience supported him amidst the perpetual calumnies which his zeal- ous, disinterested and pious labours incurred ; and if as many suspected, the Catholics selected him and Eckius finally to adjust the points of difference from an expectation that his charac- teristic Grentleness and dislike of contention would induce him to sacrifice truth to peace, they were completely disappointed. It is agreed he went as far as possible, and further probably than his stern friend Luther could have been induced to do ; but it would be difficult to prove that impetuosity and violence are conducive to conviction, or in any respect auxiliary to truth. Inflexibility is a virtue, but not the more estimable for assuming a military dress or a me- A celebrated ecclesiastical historian (pj has judiciously remarked, " it was in these confer- ences (at Augsburg) that the spirit and character of Melancthon appeared in their true and genuine colours ; and it was here that the votaries of Rome exhausted their efforts to gain over to their party this pillar of the Reformation, whose abi- foj Seckknd. Hist. Luth. Lib. IL p. 159. (pJ MosH. Eccles. Hist. Vol. IV. p. 96. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 353 lities and virtues added such a lustre to the Pro- testant cause. This humane and gentle spirit was apt to sink into a kind of yielding softness, under the influence of mild and generous treat- ment. And accordingly while his adversaries soothed him with fair words and flattering pro- mises, he seemed to melt as they spoke and in some measure to comply with their demands; but when they so far forgot themselves as to make use of imperious language and menacing terms, then did Melancthon appear in a very different point of light ; then a spirit of in- trepidity, ardour and independance animated all his words and actions, and he looked down with contempt on the threats of power, the frowns of fortune and the fear of death. The truth is, that in this great and good man, a soft and yielding temper was joined with the most inviolable fidel- ity and the most invincible attachment to the truth.'* In the midst of these multifarious transac- tions a correspondence was maintained between Melancthon and many distinguished characters. Scarcely a day passed in which there was not some kind of communication with Luther, who suggested various consolatory sentiments to his friend and not unfrequently rallied hmi with some severity respecting his apprehensive state of mind. The following illustrative anecdote how- ' ever ought by no means to be omitted, because 2 A / 354 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. it evinces the sterling integrity of his principle, notwithstanding the imputations of hist©rians, amidst his constitutional infirmities. After the Protestant confession had been presented to the council, Cardinal Campegius and his party in- quired of Melancthon if he still persisted in his opinion. Upon which he replied, that " neither he nor his associates could abandon the known truth, and he besought him not to denounce their sentiments, but to allow them to avow what they never could deny w^ith a good consci- ence." Campegius answered, " I cannot allow it, for the successor of Peter is infallible." " Well then," rejoined Melancthon, '' we commend ourselves and our concerns to God. If he be for us who can be against us ? — We shall await with patience whatever may happen to us. In our provinces we have upwards of forty thousand persons including poor ministers, their families and parishioners whose spiritual interest we can- not abandon, but will do whatever we are able for them praying for the help of Jesus Christ whose cause we espouse ; and in our calling we are prepared to labour with patience and endure all difficulties. If it be necessary we would, if such be the will of God, rather fight and die than betray so many souls." fq) The decree of the Diet was at length pub- (qj Van de Corput Levcn ende Dood van Phil. MeK p. 179. LIFE OF MELANCTHOX. 355 lished on the nineteenth of November. It as- ^^ If sumed a tone of high authority, asserting the ^, »'^ CathoHc doctrines and condemning the tenets of Protestantism. The people were exhorted to! hear mass, to pray to the Virgin and to saints, to \ observe holy days ; images and statues were or- dered to be replaced where they had been re- moved, and all alterations or innovations in reli- gion were strictly prohibited. This decree was 1 to be put in execution whatever opposition or appeals might be made against it, and all who refused to obey it subjected themselves to be put under the ban of the empire, and were de- clared incapable of being admitted to the Impe- rial Chamber. The princes, states and cities which had rejected the Papal authority, were required under pain of exemplary punishment to return to their allegiance to Rome. The only consolatory circumstance amidst this imperial thunder, was a faint whisper that an application should be made to the Pope respecting the ap- pointment of a general council within six months to decide religious controversies, frj The Protestants in general and the anxious mind of Melancthon in particular could not but (/ feel deeply affected with this termination of the conferences at Augsburg. The disposition of frJ Sleid. Hist. 139. 2 A 9 ^9 3-56 LIFE OF MELANCTHON'. their adversaries was sufficiently obvious, for in addition to this persecuting decree the Emperor had pledged himself to unite with the confede- rated forces of the Popish princes, to compel the execution of it and maintain the established religion, fsj The Protestant princes retired from the Diet with the strongest feelings of dissatisfaction and disappointment. Instead of despairing how- ever, they re-assembled at Smalcald, and the result of this conference was, the adoption of defensive measures for the preservation of their religious liberties, (tj Soon after these transactions Melancthon with Luther and other divines, met together for the purpose of consulting respecting the proper measures to be adopted in the present exigency, and after having spent some time in prayer to heaven, whence only they could expect adequate assistance, Melancthon was suddenly called out of the room from which he retired under great depression of spirits. He saw during his ab- sence some of the elders of the reformed churches with their parishioners and families. Several children were also brought hanging at the breast, while others a little older were en- gaged in prayer. This reminded him of the pro- fs) Sleid. 140. ft J Sleid. Hist. 142. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 367 prophetic language, " out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength because of thine enemies, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger." fvj Animated by this interesting scene he returned to his friends with a disencumbered mind and a cheerful countenance. Luther astonished at this sudden change said, " What now ! what has happened to you, Philip, that you are become so cheerful ?'* " O sirs," replied Melancthon, " let us not be discouraged, for I have seen our noble protectors, and such as I will venture to say will prove invincible against every foe !" — " And pray^" returned Luther, thrilling with surprize and pleasure, ^ " Who and where are these powerful heroes ?'* — " Oh !" said Melancthon, " thej/ are the wives of y our parishioners and their little children whose prayers I have just witnessed — prayers which I am satisfied our God will hear : for as our heavenly Father and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ has never despised or rejected our supplications, we have reason to trust that he will not in the present alarming crisis.'* (uj It is said that during the Imperial Diet at Augsburg, Albert, Archbishop of Mentz, had by some means obtained a bible and read it attentively for four hours, when one of his fvj Ps. viii. 2. (uJ Van de Corput Leven ende Dood van Phil» MeL p. 224, 225^ 358 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. council suddenly entering his chamber, asked with much astonishment what his Highness was doing with that book ? To which he replied, " / know not what this hook is, but sure I am, all that is written therein is quite against vs." (w) (•W) COLLOQ. MeNSAL. p. 11. \ ( 3<59 ) CHAP. IX. A. D. 1531, TO A. D. 1536. ^•^•^^^^^^ Smalcald — Unfavourable circumstances announced — The Emperor retracts at Ratisbon and agrees to the sus- p€7isio)i of all legal processes against the Protestants — Death of the Elector John — Melancthons Funeral Oration—His Epitaph — Succeeded by John Frederic — The Emperor urges on the Pope a general Council — Continuance of the Sacramental Controversy — Me- 1 lancthon and Bucer confer with the Landgrave — A vain nttempt at Leipsic to restore union between contending parties — Francis I. urges Melancthon to re- pair TO France — Their Correspondence'— Entrea- ties of the Lnngaan family to the same purpose — Bel- lay goes into Germany and invites Melancthon into France— The Elector interposes to prevent the Journey^ Henry VIII. invites Melancthon into Eng- land — TheirCorrespondence — TheKing of England' s eagerness in dispatching Messengers to France to pre- vent Melancthon^ s contifiuance there if he were arrived^ or otherwise to dissuade him froin going — Curious ori- ginal documents on the subject — A larger Commission sent into Germany — Melancthon' s Communication with Archbishop Cranmer^-^State of his health — Takes a Journey — Injurious reports circulated — Writes against the Anabaptists-^Conferences icith Bucer and Capita. Two unfavourable events were announced to the Protestant princes, when they were as- S60 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. sembled a second time in the early part of the year 1531, at Smalcald ; the one the Election of Ferdinand to be king of the Romans, which was considered as an artful proceeding of his brother the Emperor for the purpose of rendering the imperial crown hereditary in his family, and consequently subversive of the liberties of the empire — the other the commencement of prose- cutions against some of their number on account of their religious principles. It was deemed immediately necessary to renew their defensive league, and by means of their ambassadors to implore the protection and support of the Kings of England, France and Denmark. Providence again interposed to rescue the oppressed. It was not long before the Emperor perceived that it was essential to his political interests, rather to retrace his hasty steps than by pressing on,in his persecuting career to involve Germany in a civil war. He found that his peace with France and his friendship with the Pope were both precarious, and that the Turkish army was advancing upon Austria with recruited forces. The malcontent princes were therefore to be conciliated and not coerced, and it was stipulated at Nuremberg and finally agreed upon at the Diet of Ratisbon in August 1532, that upon condition of their rendering the requisite y ^ assistance in the war with the Turks, the Em- peror would suspend all legal processes against LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 361 the Protestants on account of religion, use his Jjf utmost endeavours to procure the appointment of a general council within six months, to meet within twelve ; and that no person should at pre- sent be molested for his religion. At this juncture the Elector John was ^.. removed from his useful labours and exalted sta- * ' tion by an apoplexy. The event occurred on the " ^ ' sixteenth of August 1532, and though Melanc- thon and Luther were immediately sent for they only arrived in time to see him expire, (x) The former delivered a Latin oration at his funeral, in which he thus admirably pourtrays the cha- racter of his prince. " I shall not speak of his noble birth for which indeed the Dukes of Saxony are suffici- ently distinguished, nor of his youthful pursuits though he might be highly eulogized for modesty and temperance, but confine myself principally to the delineation of his character during the period of his public life since the decease of his illustrious brother Frederic. Amidst a thousand difficulties, the genuine piety of the Elector John, his firmness, moderation, peace- ful intentions and every other virtue which can constitute a good prince were conspicuous. It is a glorious trophy characteristic of his reign and demands our gratitude, that in a most tur- bulent period, these realms by the interposing (x) Spalat. Hist. MS. ap. Seek. 362 LIFE OP MELANCTHON. mercy of Providence have been preserved in tranquillity though many endeavoured to stir up war. The preservation of peace was doubtless also a duty incumbent on a prince so favoured of heaven, and his authority, moderation and zeal eminently conduced to it by frequently and forcibly disappointing the designs of ambitious men. It is easy to judge of the extent of the benefit derived from these exertions, when it is recollected that the cause in which he was en- gaged did not respect a single province or state only but the whole of Germany. If war had been once kindled it would have raged throughout the empire, so that by preserving domestic peace he was instrumental in securing the tranquillity of many other states. Nor were his enemies alone restrained by his authority and moderate coun- sels, but his violent confederates were checked by perpetual efforts on his part which it would not be proper on this occasion to particularize. We have seen them taking up arms and in a si- tuation to command victory, yet induced by the prince's justice though contrary to their inclina- tions to adjust their respective claims withoXit bloodshed, in which he displayed an extraordi- nary heroism. When he could have gained the most decisive advantages over his most inve- terate enemies who were at the very moment plotting his ruin, he spared them. How often has he shewn a mind impregnable to sentiments LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 363 of private cupidity, for after composing strife he never cherished the spirit of revenge, but was satisfied with maintaining public tranquillity. This, this is truly worthy of a great and wise man, to conquer anger and to prefer the welfare of his country to the gratification of his private feelings. It must indeed be acknowledged that war is sometimes necessary, the enemy must be opposed and states must be roused to hostile preparations, but it is no less so that the turbu- lent emotions of the mind should be repressed and restored to reason, and that contention should be prevented by mild and judicious counsels. " What, shall I say of his domestic adminis- tration which was replete with clemency and humanity ? Homer represents Ulysses as ruling the Thracians like a good father, and Xenophon who proposes Cyrus as a perfect pattern for a prince, says that a good prince resembles a good father : and who ever had it in his power to say any thing worse of our departed prince who was incapable of acting with cruelty or pride } To me^ he appeared to cherish the most paternal feelings for all his subjects, and I have often noticed the most striking indications of it both in private discourse and in public transactions. " His private life was most unostentatious^ free from all disgraceful excess and dissipa- tion, and all the leisure hours he could com- 364: LIFE OF MELANCTHON. mand at intervals of business were devoted t© sacred literature and especially to the study of the Christian religion. To this he gave his principal attention in the latter period of his life, and as I know from indubitable authority he abounded in the exercises of devotion. No one is ignorant of the dangers he incurred through his attachment to evangelical truth ; and God eminently honoured his exalted virtue, by pro- tecting him through so many years, and libe- rating him from so many dangers, as he did Hezekiah when blockaded by the Assyrian army in Jerusalem. Now in a period of public tran- quillity he is taken away, but happily not un- prepared for the change, from miseries which may yet await us and from the agonies of a pain- ful disorder. We may be permitted to grieve for the loss of a prince endowed with such various excellencies, so studious of general peace, and so devotedly kind to his people that he may be denominated their Father as well as their Prince. " In what dangers and misfortunes the state may hereafter be involved I will not pretend to predict, but most humbly implore the supreme Jehovah,while our departed Elector rests in peace, to look upon the family of his subjects, to bestow his mercies on his son and successor, that he may prove our protector amidst impending dan- gers ; and give peace to the state for the ad- vancement of his truth and the glory of Jesui LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 365 Christ. We acknowledge that God is the only sufficient preserver of the state — to him we fly, from him we implore assistance who has promised to hear the supplications of the afflicted. " Let me exhort all present earnestly to unite in this prayer to God, to bless the prince under whose protection we are now placed that he may preserve the peace of the church, main- tain the doctrines of the gospel and promote every description of useful learning." Some tributary lines by Melancthon further honour the memory of a name, brighter and more durable than the brass on which it is recorded. Tu quoque, Saxonice, Joannes, inclyte Princeps Non virtute minor cognite fratre tuo; Eximia Christum pietate fideque colebas Vita piae mentis testis eratque tuse. Vindelicis coram tua Caesare nuper in oris Asseruit Christi lingua professa fidem. Notior nt fieret divini gloria verbi Temporibus fulsit quae rediviva tuis. Utque Evangelii studium deponere velles Flectere uon nllae te potuere mince. Ista tui incendit constantia pectoris hostes Attulit et passim multa pericla tibi Sed te difficili protexit tempore Christus Et gratam pacem pro pietate dedit. Ac tua saepe tamen moderatio profuit ingens Impia ne quisquam sumeret arma manu ; Hac Iong6 superas aliorum laude trinmphos Hoec virtus magno Principe digna fuit. Ergo tuum a nullo nomen delebitur gevo Nee meriti lans est interitura tui. 366 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. Hie taa dum Christus meliori corpora soite Restituet justis, molliter ossa cubent. Spiritus at vivat, caelique fiuatur honoie Interea Chiisti conditus in gremio. •^-r**-*^ x^*^^ Virtuous as Frederic, thou, illustrious John I Our weeping hearts reluctantly resign'd ; Whose I'uith and love to Christ conspicuous shone, Whose every action mark'd a pious mind. Thou didst the faith of Christ with zeal maintain Nor dread imperial dictates and decrees ; Through all our coasts the truth of heaven proclaim, Whose glory brightens even times like these. No threats could move thee and no fears alarm, Though foes and dangers closely round thee press'd ; Christ for thy zeal protected thee from harm, And with tranquillity thy country bless'd. Thy moderation check'd enkindling strife, A tiiumph — and the noblest man can gain! A praise, surpassing far the hero's life, And worthy such a prince, so born to reign ! In Time's vast record a distinguish'd page, Thou shalt illustrious John ! for ever grace ; Thy name shall live through every future age. Nor change nor death th' eternal lines erase. Here in soft slumbers shall thy aahes lie. Till Christ returns his matchless power to prove ; While thy immortal spirit mounts the sky T' enjoy the heaven of her Redeemer's love. It may be regarded as a favourable circum- stance in the history of the Reformation that the LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 367 venerable Elector now deceased was succeeded by his son John Frederic, who was zealously attached to the Protestant cause, and exerted all the energy of his mind and the vigour of his youth to promote it. After the retreat of the Turkish army, to which it had been compelled by the menacing appearance of the Imperial forces, Charles hastened to Italy, for the purpose of procuring a personal interview with the Pope to press the appointment of a general Council. Urged by an importunity which he could not resist, he adopted the plausible measure of deputing his Nuncio, Hugo Rangonus Bishop of Reggio, to accompany the Emperor's Ambassador to the new Elector of Saxony, as head of the Pro- testants, to confer on the subject of a Council which he proposed should be convened at Man- tua, Bologna or Placentia. The Elector im- mediately summoned his principal divines.. Melancthon delivered it as his decided convic- tion " that the Roman Pontiff was practising a piece of dissimulation to cajole them into con- ditions to which they must not submit — that he made extraordinary concessions to induce them to agree to the decisions of a general con- vention of his arrangement, to which for his part he could not agree, because it ought to be a free assembly in which opinions on both sides might be discussed fairly and without restraint -^r^ / S68 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. — tliat a deceptive purpose was obvious, and it would be preposterous to consent to a Council before they knew what forms of pro- ceeding were to be adopted, or who were to be implicated in its decrees — that the Emperor could not, and the Pope would not actually convene it." In this they all concurred, inti- mating to the Nuncio, that as the controversy had arisen and was principally conducted in Germany, there the Council ought to be assem- bled. Nothing was effected by this negocia- tion, excepting the Roman Pontiff's purpose of creating delay. (^y^ Although Zuinglius and CEcolampadius were now dead, the Sacramental controversy did not expire : unquestionably the conciliating spirit of Melancthon, so happily attempering his conscientious integrity, would have recon- ciled contending parties, had not Luther per- sisted in the most unwarrantable violence, which is the more to be deplored as he was obviously mistaken. In the latter end of the year 1534, Melancthon was commissioned to go and confer upon the subject with Bucer at Cassel, in the presence of the Landgrave. Bu- cer, who acted in the name of the Ministers of Upper Germany, and who exerted himself with /"vy Paul Hist. 61. Seck. Hist, Luth. Lib. 3. Cam. - Vit. Mel. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 369 indefatig^able zeal to effect an union between the Lutherans and Zuinglians, proposed as the basis of an agreement, that " we received truly and substantially the body and blood of Jesus Christ when we receive the Sacrament — that the bread and wine are exhibiting signs, and by receiving them the body and blood of Jesu.s Christ are given to us and received by us — • that the bread and body of Jesus Christ are united, not by a mixture of substance, but as being given with the sacrament." On the report of this statement to Luther, his hostility was somewhat abated though not eradicated, which was the only ascertainable advantage that resulted from the interview. An attempt was made during the same year by Ferdinand, Duke George and the Elector of Saxony, to allay religious animosities, and to promote concord. The meeting of persons ap- pointed on each side to confer took place at Leipsic. Vehus, and Christopher Turcus his Chancellor, were the deputies of Ferdinand ; Julius Fhlug and George Carlovitch appeared on the part of Duke George ; the disinterested piety, indefatigable perseverance and excellent spirit of Melancthon naturally induced the Elector to associate him with Pontanus in this new and lovely labour. An account of the conference is still extant in the German lan- 2 B 370 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. guage, written by Melancthon, which is distin- guished by the total absence of all asperity, and the clear undisguised statement of every trans- action. It appears that the attempt to unite was in vain — the papists adhered to their opin- / ions, and the Saxon deputies would not relin- quish truth. Vehus presented a form of concord, but it distinctly mentioned the errors which were most objectionable to the Protestants, espe- cially the doctrine of the meritorious power of the Mass to obtain the remission of sins, fzj No- thing is more illustrative of the true character of Melancthon than these transactions. He was willing to approximate as far as possible, by con- ceding every point of difference which did not regard what he deemed essential truth; but then he became inflexible. Possessed of the most benignant temper he*was formed to pacify the world, and inherited the blessedness of the peace-maker, (a) Presenting to our view a rare combination of excellences, a singular and pleasing union of the Christian and the Hero,, we behold him firm but not violent, modest but not servile, conscientious but not punctilious. Wherever Lutheranism was known, or literature admired, the name of Philip Melanc- (z) Seckend. Hist. Luth. Lib. III. p. 90. (a) Math, v, p. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 3/1 tlion was familiar. Francis I. earnestly en- \ J treated him to repair to France. Maimbourgre- ' lates that Margaret Queen of Navarre and sister to the king, united with other illustrious fe- males attached to the court who cherished sen- timents favourable to the Reformation, in re- questing that he might be sent for to be consulted on the existing religious conten- tions. The Queen frequently spoke of him to her brother as a man of exalted piety, pro- found learning and singular eloquence. Francis, whose active zeal for the revival of literature in France, had acquired him the title of the Father of Letters, listened with pleasure to these re- presentations, and immediately adopted mea- sures to procure a visit. Vorseus Fossa was dispatched with a letter from the king, and a command to urge him in his name to repair to his court. The letter is preserved. *' Francis, hy the Grace of God King of ^ France^ to our Beloved Philip Melancthon, greeting : "By means of William Bellaius Langev, our Chamberlain and Counsellor, to whom the management of Ecclesiastical affairs is princi- pally confided, I have for some time known it to be your peculiar study to appease the present disputes in religion ; and now I find both from i .375 LIFE OP MELANCTHON. your letters to him, and from the report of Bar* nabas Voraeus Fossa, who is just returned, that this is a very gratifying labour to you. I wish you to come the very first opportunity, and fully confer with some of our most eminent Doctors on the reconciliation of opinions, and of other things susceptible of improvement in the go- vernment of the church, for which I feel the greatest solicitude and anxiety. However, I will send Voraeus Fossa to you immediate- ly with these letters for a safe conduct, imploring you not to be dissuaded by any one from this pious and holy undertaking. Your visit will be most grateful to me, and you are at perfect liberty to come either in a private or public character, and be assured you will find me, as indeed I always have been, most desirous of promoting your glory, reputation and comfort both at home and abroad. " From the town of Guise, the twenty-eighth day of June^ one thousand Jive hundred and thirty Jive. '^ MELANCTHON'S REPLY. " Most Christian and most Potent Kino\f " Although the far-famed kingdom of France greatly surpasses every other in the known world in many other honourable dis- tinctions, this may be noticed with peculiar ap- LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 373 probation that it has always excelled the rest of the nations in purity of doctrine and perpetual zeal in defence of the Christian religion. It has therefore deservedly obtained the appellation of most happy and most Christian, a title the most glorious, the most magnificent that can be con- ferred. I congratulate your Majesty that at this juncture you have undertaken the care of preserving the church, not by the application of violent remedies, but by rational means, w^orthy the name of the Most Christian King ; and that in the midst of the present dissensions you have so studied to moderate the violence of opposing parties, that the genuine unadulterated doctrines of Christianity, the glory of Christ, the true dignity of the ecclesiastical constitution, and the tranquillity of the state may be promoted. Nothing can be imagined more becoming a king than this disposition of mind and these proceedings. I beseech your Majesty to per- severe in this care and concern for your king- dom : for although public dissension has in some instances furnished occasion of mischief to violent and evil-minded Ecclesiastics, yet good men have brought forward in the church many things which are essentially conducive to its welfare. Although therefore a mis- chievous disposition of mind ought to be re- strained, yet I entreat your Majesty not to be 374- LIFE OF MELANCTHON. influenced by the bitter sentiments or writings of the calumnious, to suffer good and useful re- gulations to be abandoned in the churches. For my own part I have never been pleased with those intemperate counsels which have degraded the best and most holy order of the church, and which ought ever to be held in peculiar ve- neration : and I am well persuaded that all good men in your nation, who value the truth as I do, cherish this feeling. When I received your royal invitation, God is my witness how much I have laboured immediately to comply with it; for nothing would gratify me so much as to be of some service to the church ac- cording to my feeble capacity, and I indulge the most pleasing anticipations from my knowledge of the piety, the moderation, and the constant aim to promote the glory of Christ displayed by your Majesty. But Voraeus can detail the nu- merous difficulties which have delayed my visit, and which, though they should prevent this journey, cannot detach my mind from a steady purpose of checking by my advice and exertions the existing controversies. Voraeus however will fully state my views. " Finally, I commit myself to your royal favour, promising constantly to contribute my judgment with that of the pious and learned men of the church for the general good. May LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 375 Christ preserve your Majesty in prosperity and safety, that your government may promote the general happiness of the world and the glory of God. Your Majesty's Most devoted Servant, Philip Melancthon. " From Saxony^ the Jifth day of September^ one thousand Jive hundred and thirty five,** In addition to these very curious docu- ments, a further illustration of the dispositions prevalent at this period in the French Court, at least amongst some of its most enlightened or- ^ naments, is afforded by a letter addressed to Melancthon by Cardinal Bellaius, dated the twenty-seventh of June, fc) After applauding the benevolent wishes which he knew from Voraeus that he entertained for the general cause of Christianity, the Cardinal proceeds, " I desire nothing more ardently than that the dissensions which have so long agitated the Christian church may be appeased. Apply the utmost of your power, my dear Melancthon, by the help of God, to promote this general paci- fication, and you will have the concurrent ap- {9j Seckend. Hist. Luth. Lib. III. p. 109. 376 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. probation of all good men, especially of Francis, who, while possessing the supreme authority, is not only the Most Christian King in name and title^ but in truths as I have long had occasion to witness. I hope every thing from your meeting, and the matured advice you will give.' The warm attachment of the Cardinal may be imagined from his subscribing himself, " Yours, from my very heart, Bellaius.'' In another letter written by William Langey, and dated the sixteenth of July, Me- lancthon is urged by a variety of arguments to visit France. " I have explained/' says he, " to my friends who are interested in the com- mon cause all circumstances, and have given them your letters, and those of Bucer, to peruse. I feel myself somewhat implicated in this affair, and should be sorry for any thing to occur dis- honourable to you, or injurious to the cause of truth and the glory of Christ. The Cardinal Langey was shewn the letters you have received from me previous to their being sent, lest any thing should have been written which he might disapprove or deem contrary to the views of the king." He afterwards alludes to the controversy respecting the place of holding the proposed Council, represents the good inclinations of the king, and alludes to a private consultation with Melancthon upon the best and safest means of reforming the state of ecclesias^cal affairs. LIFE OP MELANCTHON. ^"17 Langey apologizes for the severities which had been inflicted upon some persons for their reli- gious opinions, alleging what however is not very admissible, that they were only a set of enthusiasts of notorious character, whom Me- lancthon himself would have been inclined to punish. After urging various other considera- tions to induce his compliance with the King's request, who he says was not only prepossessed in his favour, but naturally acute, prudent and willing to listen to sound argument ; he con- cludes thus, " I exhort you, I conjure you for Christ's sake not to neglect the present occasion of accomplishing a business of all others the most glorious in which mortals can be engaged." The Sorhonne divines probably would not have / very readily united in these pressing solicitations, for how could they forget or forgive the satirical pen of Melancthon ; and there is reason to sus- pect that a temporizing policy more than a spirit of sincere inquiry after truth dictated their prince's invitation. Francis had seized the op-1 portunity afforded him by the full employment^ of the emperor's confederate forces against the ' Turks to renew his claims in Italy, and used every effort to excite in the different princes of\ Europe a jealousy of his rival's power. But his measures mere disconcerted, and from the opera- tion of different causes he was generally unsuc- cessful. The invitation he received from the / ^ 578 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. // associated Protestant princes at Smalcald Was ^ therefore at this crisis peculiarly welcome, and j^ he was naturally led to use every endeavour to ^ '^ promote his own views by securing their con- fidence. For this purpose he negociated and flattered, accommodating himself to their reli- gious prejudices, affecting a wonderful modera- tion and even a spirit of pious inquiry in matters of coiltroversy. A very curious affair had been transacted at Paris, to which the preceding letter of Langey refers. With an indiscretion which no one can defend, some of the Parisians who had imbibed the principles of Protestantism fdj posted up hand bills in several of the public places and on the gates of the Louvre, contain- ing reflections on the doctrines, rites and clergy of the church of Rome. The king being highly incensed at these proceedings, issued a general order against heretics and appointed a solemn procession. The holy host was carried through the city, the king walked with his feet bare and his head uncovered, attended by the queen, the princes of the blood and all his courtiers. Six Lutherans were publicly condemned by the parliament to be burnt, a decree which was executed with the most shocking barbarity be- fdj Mezeray in relating this transaction, says they were Sacramentarians. Abregc ChroHol. de I'Hist, de France. Tom. II. p. 898. LIFE OP MELANCTHON. 379 fore the procession was finished ; and others were sought after with the most eager dih- gence. (e) For the purpose of explaining these cir- cumstances and securing the Protestant alliance, Bellay was sent- to the German princes. He was instructed to assure them " that the persons proscribed and punished were guilty of sediti- ous practices, that the king wished for an ac- commodation on the subject of religion by a meeting of the Parisian and German divines, and that he was particularly desirous of a visit from Philip Melancthon/' Cardinal Tournon however, remonstrated violently against this in- vitation given to a heretic^ (f) and the princes of Germany soon saw reason to question the sin- cerity of Francis. In fact, it is difficult to re- concile his inconsistencies. He protected or persecuted the Reformation as interest or policy dictated. He allowed the Duke of Orleans his second son, to offer the free exercise of their reli- gion to the Protestants in the dukedom of Lux- emburg, and his sister the queen of Navarre to promote the reformed cause in her country of Beam. He courted the Reformers yet opposed the Reformation — panegyrized them at Smal- (e) SirEiD. Hist. 175. Dupin 181. Belcar. Com. Rer. Gal. 646. (f) Maimbourg. Dupin, / 380 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. cald, yet persecuted them at Paris — almost a Lutheran in Germany, and quite a Catholic in France, fg) Some of Melancthon's friends urged him to accept the King of France's invitation, be- lieving that it might prove a most favourable occasion for promoting the reformed religion in that country, and for checking the progress of the Catholic persecutions : but others were ap- prehensive that his visit would be attended with considerable personal danger and advised him to remain in Saxony. Melancthon himself was by no means indisposed to comply with the king's re- quest, supposing that his presence in France was not unlikely to be attended with some advantage to the Reformation. Luther was very urgent with the Elector to allow his friend to go for similar reasons, and alleged that the very expec- tation of seeing Melancthon had already put a stop to the persecutions in France, (hj The Elector could not however be prevailed upon to give his consent. He felt apprehensive of offending the Emperor and conceived no hopes fg) Francis even permitted BelUy to explain his senti- ments to the German princes, on some of the most important subjects of difference, in terms not very different from those used by the Protestants. Sleid. Hist. 178 — 180. Seckend. Hist. Lib. HI. 103. fhj LuTH. Op. Tom. VI. 491. Seckend. Hist. Luth. Lib. HL p. 107. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 381 of promoting any real good to the Reformation by such a permission. Policy of course dictated a different excuse to Francis, to whom he wrote in a courteous manner, assuring him of his in- clination to gratify his wishes, but pleading " the peculiar and distressing aspect of the times and the unpleasant reflections he should be likely to incur. The Wittemberg Academy he said being dispersed by a pestilential disorder and obliged to retire to Jena, he could not possibly at present part with Melancthon. If however his services should hereafter be deemed neces- sary, and the pressure of present difficulties be somewhat alleviated, he would send a more de- cisive answer to his Majesty's letters and give him permission to visit France. In the mean time he offered his most ready services in pro- moting the gospel of Christ, together with the temporal and eternal welfare of the king, his go- vernment, and the churches of France.'* Melancthon was extremely chagrined at the j Elector's interdiction and it may be justly re- gretted ; for who can doubt that his amiable de- portment, elegant taste, nice discrimination and exemplary candour might have produced a very favourable impression upon a prince, who if he were after all a religious bigot, was much ad- dicted to literature and misht have been mode-^ ratect, if not changed by mildness. The Lan- gean family would have been gratified and con- ^l, 382 LIFE OP MELAXCTHON. firmed in their good inclinations — the queen of Navarre would have hailed his visit, and a thou- sand secret machines might have been set in motion by his influence. But he was obliged to content himself with sending a small treatise into France, containing his opinion and advice on the best means of settling religious contro- versies, and which though never published is inserted in the collections of Pezelius. Early in the spring of this year, Doctor Robert Barnes was sent by Henry VIII. King of England, to consult with the Saxon Theolo- gians on the subject of the intended divorce of his queen. Upon his arrival most of the profes- sors and scholars were removed in consequence of the plague which raged in Wittemberg, to Jena in Tliuringia. Luther, Jonas, Cruciger and Melancthon gave him recommendatory let- ters to the Elector. He brought letters of invi- tation to Melancthon, who was urged by the King to pay a visit to England. Henry offered him ample security from all molestation, and even hostages if he required it. (i) Luther Wvas extremely anxious that he should be al- lowed to go, for " who knows," says he, " what God may intend to accomplish, his wisdom is greater than ours and his will superior." He wished Melancthon's feelings to be consulted who was deeply disappointed at the Elector's. (i) " Egregiam Caufionem itno et obsides.'* LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 383 previous refusal of his invitation into France. In his first letter to the King written in March, he compliments Henry in a very elegant style upon his literary inclinations, and after deplor- ing the wretched state of letters in Germany through the intemperate violence of religious controversy, (k) he implores him to use every effort to promote them and to take the perse- cuted Muses under his protection. (I) By means of Alexander Aless, a Scotchman who went into England, Melancthon took the opportunity of presenting a copy of his Com- mentary on the Romans to the King, who with a munificence worthy of a distinguished Sovereign, immediately presented him with two hundred crowns and wrote him a letter in which he expresses his high approbation of his extra- ordinary zeal in defending the Christian religion, and his disposition to assist and promote his good intentions by every means in his power. To this communication Melancthon returned an answer in the following month of December. He compliments the King upon his professed attachment to religious truth, and assures him that these sentiments had afforded himself and others to whom he had read his letters the great- est satisfaction, (m) In addition to Dr. Barnes's (kj Valent. Bavar. Compil. Vol. I. p. 252. flj Melancth. Ep. Lib. I, 26. ad Henric. oct. Reg. Ang. (m) Mblancth, Ep. Lib. L 27. 384 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. commission, Haynes and Mount had been dis- patched secretly to Sir John Wallop, ambassador in Paris, for the purpose of dissuading Melanc- thon from continuing in France if he had under- taken the journey, and to allure him to England. Sir John Wallop was soon able to appease the anxiety of the King of England, by assuring him in a dispatch dated the seventeenth of August, that there was reason to believe Melancthon would not visit France. Henry however hast- ened Mount to him into Germany, with the view of superseding the French ambassador's applica- tion. So solicitous were two of the most dis- tinguished Monarchs of Europe to cultivate the friendship and to obtain the advice of Philip Melancthon. fnj The original documents are not a little cu- rious, and shall be quoted for the amusement of the reader, (oj " Master Secretary^ (p) after our most hearty commendations, ye shal understand that having received the letters sent unto you from Sir John Wallop and shewed the same unto the King's Majesty, his plesure thereupon was, that we should dispatch these our letters incontinentely (n) Strype's Eccles. Memoiials, Vol. I. Herbert's Life of Henry VHI. (o) British Museum. Cott. MSS. Cleop. E. C. {'pj T. Cromwell. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 385 unto you concerning the accomplishment and doing of these things ensueing. " First, his Grace's plesureis, that you shal immediately upon the receit hereof dispatch Barnes in post with Deryk in his company into Germany : commanding him to use such dili- gence in his journey, that he may and it be pos- sible, meet with Melancthon before his arrival in / France. And in case he shal so meet with him, not only dissuade his going thither ; declaring ^'' how extremely the French King doth persecute those that wil not grant unto the Bishop of Romes usurped power and jurisdiction ; using in this part al persuasions, reasons and means that he can devise to impeach and let his said journey thither ; laying unto him how much it should be to his shame and reproch to vary and go now from that true opinion wherein he hath so long continued : But also on the other side to persuade him also that he may (be willing) to convert his said journey hither; shewing him as wel the conformity of his opinion and doctrine here, as the nobility and vertues of the King's Majesty, with the good entertainment which undoubtedly he shal have here at his Grace's hands. " And if percase the said Barnes shal not meet with him before his arrival in France, then the said Barnes, proceeding himself further in his journey toward the princes of Germany shal 2 c 386 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. with al diligence return in post to the K. H. the said Diryk, of the certainty of the said Me- lancthon's coming into France and such other occurrents as he shal then know. And if the said Diryk be not now ready to go with him, the King's plesure is ye shal in his sted appoint and send such one other with the said Barnes as yc shal think meet for that purpose. *' Furthermore, the King's plesure is yet shal upon the receit hereof immediatly cause Mr. Haines and Christopher Mount, in post to repair into France, to Sir John Wallop in as se- cret a manner as they can, and coming like his friends to visit him and not as sent by the King. And in case they shal by him or otherwise learn and know, that Melancthon is there arrived, then his Grace wol, that the said Haines and Mount, shal, in such sort, as they be not much noted, resort unto him and for the dissuading of his continuance there, or the alteration of his opinion and the alluring of him hither ; to use such reasons and persuasions as be before writ- ten, with such other as they can further devise for that purpose. To the which Haines and Mount, the King's plesure is, ye shal deliver like copies of the same Dean's Book fqj and the Bishops Sermons to be shewed unto the said ^qj Richard Sampson Dean of the Chapel. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 38? Melancthon, or otherwise used, as may be most expedient for thachyevement of the King's pur- pose in that behalf. " And to make an end, his Grace wol in no wise that Barnes and Haynes shal tary for any further instruction of the Bishop of Canterbury or any other. Having his Grace determined to send the same after by Mr. Almoner and Hethe; but that he Mr. Haynes and Mount shal with al possible diligence depart immediatly in post without any lenger tarying than for this their depeche shal be necessary. So as their abode impeach not the King's purpose, touching the said Melancthon. And thus fare you most heartily wel, from Langley, in much hast, this Monday at 4 of the clock at afternoon. " Your loving friends, " T. Norfolk, " Geo. Rochford." The next letter is from the Secretary Crom- well to Sir John Wallop the King's ambassador in France, from which such parts only are ex- tracted as illustrate the present subject, (r) " To my right loving frynd Sir John Wal- lop, Knyght, the Kinges ambassadour resident in the Corte of Fraunce. (rj Ex. MSS. D. G. H. Esq. 2 C S 388 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. " After my most harty recommeiidacions ; these shal be to advertise you that the xviith day of this monthe I receyvid from you a packet of letters ; which indelayedly I dely vered unto the Kinges Highnes and conferred with his Grace thetfects both of your letters and al others within the sayd packet beying directed as wel to his H. as to me. And after his H. had with me perused the hoole contents thoroughly of your sayd letters ; percey vyng not only the likli- hod of the not repayr into Fraunce of Philip Melancthon, but also your communications had with the Frenche Kinges Highnes upon your demaunde made of the Kynges Majesties pen- sions, with also your discrete answers and repli- cations made in that behalfe, for the which his Majestic givethe unto you condigne thanks " And touchyng Melancthon — consideryng there is no lykelihod of his repaire into Fraunce as I have wel percey ved by your letters, the K. li. therefore hath appoynted Christofer Mount indelayedly to take his journey where Melanc- thon is, and if he can to prevent Mounsr. de Lan- gye in such wise as the sayd Melancthon his repaire into Fraunce may be stayed and diverted into England. Not doubting but the same shal take effect accordyngly. And as to Maister ?[aynes, the Kyng's plesure is that he shal go to aris there to lerne and dissiphre the opynyons LIFE OF MELANCTHOX. 389 of the lerned men and their inclynations and affections, as wel towards the K. H. procedyngs as to the Busshop of Rome his usurped power and aucthorite, after such sort as the Kyng*s sayd Highnes hath now writen unto hym by his Grace's letters addressed both unto hym and the sayd Christofer Mount: directyng theym what they shal do yn al thynges commyttyd to theyr charge at this tyme ; as I doubt not but they wil put thereto theyr devoires for the ac- complishement of the Kynges plesure as apper- teynethe At Thornebery the xxiiith day of August. " Your assuryd freend, " Thomas Crumwell." A larger commission was afterwards sent by Henry VIII. to the Protestant princes of Ger- , many, now assembled at Smalcald, consisting of i Edward Fox, Bishop of Hereford, Nicholas Hethe Archdeacon, and Dr. Barnes. The opin- ion which Melancthon formed of them is thus expressed in a confidential letter to his friend Camerarius. " One only of our present guests Nicholas Hethe, the Archdeacon, excels in ami- ableness of disposition and sound learning ; as for the others they have no relish for our philo- sophy and mode of discourse, (yxuxurryro;) so that I shun their society as much as possible/ Y^^ (n) MEt ANCTH. Ep. Lib. IV. 133. y / 390 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. In the course of these conferences, Fox re- presented that the King had abrogated the Po- / pish abuses and had abolished indulgences. He designated the Papal domination by the term Babylonian Tyranny, and the Pope he called Antichrist. A variety of articles were drawn up by Melancthon, and some dissertations which the ambassadors brought on their return to Eng- land on the Marriage of Priests, on Monastic Vows, and on the Mass. It is intimated in the con- clusion that the Protestants feel surprized at the English decree against abuses, when no amend- ment was proposed and especially as there was a total omission of the more flagrant abuses of which they complained. In a copy of this de- cree of Henry VIII. still extant in the German Archives, Melancthon has written in several places in the margin aiiv lyUs* not at all sound. The great purpose however which Henry really had in view by these negociations, was to obtain ultimately the sanction of the Wittem- , berg divines to his divorce ; but their opinion Vy^tiWas unfavourable to his proceedings. They drew up a paper disapproving of the divorce which was transmitted by the ambassadors, ftj and Melancthon fully concurred with Luther upon the subject. ^tj A German copy of this document in the hand writing of Caspar Cruciger, sent from Wittemberg to the Elector, is preserved in the Archives of Smakald. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 391 In this same year (1535) Melancthon's ac- quaintance with the celebrated Archbishop Cranmer commenced. It seems to have origi- nated in the visit which Alexander Aless, who had been long and intimately acquainted with Melancthon in Germany, paid to England in the month of August. Knowing the Arch- bishop's generous disposition, Melancthon took the liberty of giving him a recommendatory let- ter as a learned foreigner, and availed himself of the opportunity of conveying a present to the Archbishop of one of his own books. This was probably his Commentary on the Romans, (u) Another copy was presented as we have related to the King. This Alexander Aless was the same person whom Cromwell took with him to the Convocation in the year 1536, for the pur- pose of delivering his opinion about the Sacra- ments, of which he insisted only two, baptism and the Lord's Supper, were of Christ's original appointment. He wrote also a useful treatise on the subject of Schism, with which the dis- senters from the Catholic church were charged ; fuj Strype says, " he should have supposed it to have been his ' Common Places,' but that they came out a year after." This is an evident mistake, for though a new edition might have been published in the following year, we have already seen that this ch«f d'wuvre of MelancihoQ first ap- peared in the year 1&21. ./ 392 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. but he was furnished with both matter and argument by Melancthon. Aless originally fled with other learned men from Scotland, in consequence of the persecu- tions of 1534 and was received into Cromwell's family. Henry VIII. is said to have been con- siderably attached to him, and to have bestowed upon him the distinguishing epithet ofhisshoiar. He was afterwards made a professor in the Uni- versity of Leipsic. The recommendatory letters of Melancthon insured his Scotch protegee a most hospitable reception at the palace of Lambeth, and the Archbishop could not but feel honoured by the sincere praises of his learned and pious corres- pondent who sought his friendship, and who in his letter said " if the church had but some more such bishops, it would be no difficult matter to to have it healed and the world restored to peace." fvj Several circumstances concurred at this period, to excite that hypochondriacal depres- sion of mind which so much embittered some of the years of Melancthon's life. He had a narrow escape from lightening which produced consi- derable damage in his immediate neighbourhood, and he suflfered severely in his back from a fall, frj Strype's Mem. of Archbp. Cranmer, B. 111. Ch. 23, 24. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 393 but happily it occasioned no permanent in- jury, (it) J The removal of the Academy to Jena, in consequence of a raging infectious dis- order alluded to in the Elector's letter cited above, exceedingly discomposed and incon- venienced him — but the students and professors returned in the beginning of the year 1536 to Wittemberg. Health required an excursion amongst his friends. He was accompanied by Jacob Mi- lichius, a physician, to whom he was particularly attached on account of his professional skill, devoted friendship, and literary taste. He was a native of Friburg, and for a series of years led a useful and eminent course of public life at Wittemberg. At the age of fifty nine he died, much and generally lamented, (xj Camerarius alludes with evident pleasure to the few days passed in the companionable society of Me- lancthon at Tubingen, and notices the useful advice he gave respecting the management of the University, and the general regulation both of religious and literary concerns. A violent con- tention had arisen on the subject of giving letters of recommendation and conferring honorary titles upon the students. Many learned men were applied to for their opinion, amongst the f-wj Adam. Vit Germ. Theol. Cam. Vit. Mel. (xJ Cam. Vit. Mel. y 394- LIFE OP MELANCTHON. rest Melaiicthon, who sent in a written state- ment of his views, and the reasons which in- fluenced his decision. He conceived that they had been attended with advantages, especially as such testimonies, publicly and solemnly bestowed upon meritorious students, tended to secure the avenues to clerical office against the intrusion of ignorance and incapacity. He addressed a long letter to Brentius on the subject of the Academy at Tubingen, which is dated from the palace of the Dukeof Wirtem- burg. It is not to be wondered at that he felt a peculiar interest in this early scene of his studies and labours. He mentions his satisfaction in some of the professors, but intimates the great deficiency that existed in reference to the The- ological departments, and urges his correspond- ent, by desire of the Duke, to spend one year at Tubingen, till some suitable person could be pro- cured to occupy that important situation. He deplores the general state of literature through- out the whole of Upper Germany, and expresses great anxiety to ameliorate the state of the Academy, (x) He was doomed to incur in consequence of this journey what he so often experienced, the attacks of malevolence. A variety of vexatious reports were put in circulation, and instantly (xj Melanctil Ep. IX. ad Joun. Brentium. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 395 credited by the weak and the wicked propagators of mischief. Some asserted that he had sepa- rated from the Reformers, and quarrelled with Luther, to whom his philosophical notions were disagreeable — that he would not return to Wit- temberg, or if he did no further cordiality was likely to subsist between them. The sowers of dissension however were disappointed of the produce they anxiously expected. His methods of conveying instruction, and especially his uni- form and zealous efforts to purify the logic of the schools, and terminate the endless disputa- tions of former times by introducing juster prin- ciples of reasoning, were exceedingly grateful, instead of being, as his adversaries calumniously misrepresented, disgusting to Martin Luther. That eminent Reformer always sought his ad- vice, and with his characteristic ingenuousness acknowledged his superiority. An anecdote which is related of them is confirmatory of this statement. Luther was writing the following words, " Res et verba Philippus ; verba sine rebus Erasmus ; res sine verbis Lutherus ; nee res, nee verba Carolostad- ius.^' " Philip Melancthon is both substance and words — Erasmus ivords without substance — Luther substance without words — Carlostadt neither sub- stance nor words" — when Melancthon came in unexpectedly, and overlooking him said with a smile, " As to Erasmus and Carlostadt it is well y 396 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. judged and censured, but too much is attributed to me, and good words as well as matter ought to be ascribed to Luther, for he speaks exceed- ing well." (y) Amongst a variety of other important la- bours, Melancthon was very much occupied at this time with the furious zealots who had cre- ated so much disturbance in Germany under the name of Anabaptists. During the temporary removal of the Academy to Jena, he and Cruci- ger were indefatigable in their efforts to reclaim them, and it must be owned were in some de- gree successful. Melancthon wrote an excel- lent treatise against them in the German lan- guage, (z) Soon after his return from Jena, he was also engaged in a conference with Bucer and Capito on the sacramental controversy. Pur- suing with unabated ardour the great purpose of forming a general re-union among the Reform- ers, Bucer and Capito had repaired, in the month of January, to an assembly of the minis- ters and magistrates of the Reformed Cantons of Switzerland, at Basil. They urged a union with the Lutherans, which they deemed more than ever probable from their decreased ani- mosity. A meeting was afterwards convened in May at Eisenach, to which the Swiss diviness (y) CoLLOQ. Mensal. p. 510. (i) Sbckend. Hist. Lutb. Lib. III. p. 115. II LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 397 sent their confession of faith ; but as Luther could not personally attend, Bucer and Capito proceeded to Wittemberg, where, after several conferences with him and his associates, Me- lancthon was appointed to draw up a formula on the sacrament, which, it is remarkable, the inflexible Lutherans, the moderate Reformers, and the whole Synod composed of the ministers of Upper Germany, concurred in signing. Thus the purpose of unanimity was obtained to a very considerable extent, and was celebrated on the occasion with great mutual congratulations ; (a) though it may be questioned, from a perusal of this document, whether Bucer and his mode- rating associate did not manifest too much of a servile and temporizing flexibility. fa) Myconius says, " Prorupenmt lacrymae CapUoni et Bucero et utrinque cancellatis manibus et gestibus piis Deo gratias egimus." ( 398 ) CHAP. X. A. D. 1537 to A. D. 1545. A General Council proposed — Meeting at Smalcald~^ Melancthon writes on the Pope's Supremacy, and against the manner of appointing the Council — Com- munications with Francis I.— ^Passage from the Recess of Smalcald — Melancthon is solicited to visit Augsburg respecting the institution of a Public Li- brary — Letter of Cardinal Sadolet~—A second Com- mission from Henry VI IL — Persons sent into Eng- land — Melancthon s letter to the king — Second Letter against the Anabaptists — Another Deputation from Frankfort — Melancthon s third and fourth Letters to the king — Death of George of Saxony — Progress of the Reformation — Diet held at Haguenaw — MelanC' thons dangerous illness on the way — Interesting ac- count of Luther s visit to him — Another Diet at Worms — Referred to Ratisbon — Melancthon meets with an Accident on the Road — Conference between Select Persons — Augsburg Decree confirmed — Several Anecdotes of Melancthon — Contentions about the Election of a Bishop at Naumburg — Account of Melancthon and Bucers co-operation vnth the Arch- bishop of Cologne, to introduce the Reformation into his Diocese — Acrimonious Publication of some of the Clergy — Melancthon s satirical Reply — Private Af- fiictions — Draws up a Pla?i of Reform for the Elec- tor Palatine — Engages in the Ordination of George Prince of Anhalt — Sketch of his life — Epigram by Melancthon, LIFE OF MELANCTHON. :399 Paul III. who had succeeded to the Popedom in the year 1534, appeared more dis- posed than his predecessor to convene a general Council, and sent circular letters throughout th' states under his jurisdiction, appointing a tin and place, namely, the twentij-seventh of May, 15375- at Mantua. The confederate Protestant Princes re-assembled together at Smalcald, and in the February preceding the proposed Council, Vorstius, the Papal Nuncio, and Heldus, Vice- Chancellor to the Emperor, came to announce it, and exhort them to attend. This occasioned long and close deliberations. The Wittemberg Theologians were sum- moned to the meeting at Smalcald, and as Luther was incapable of attending in conse- / quencc of a severe illness, the chief trouble, accompanied as usual with no inconsiderable odium, devolved upon Melancthon. They were required to make an accurate comparison of the different sentiments which prevailed among themselves, in order to terminate the existing disputes, and devise some common form of doc- trine for the Protestant churches ; then to deter- mine upon tiiosc articles of faith which from their radical importance were to be retained and avowed at all hazards, in order finally to ascer- tain what might be conceded to the Catholics for the sake of restoring peace and harmony, fa) fa) Melancth. Ep. Lib. IV. ep. 19G ad Catfieraiium. Pezel. L. 1. p. 2G9. 400 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. Whether from the flattering caresses of others, or from the deliberate judgment and af- fectionate disposition of his own mind, Melanc- thon could not be induced to renounce the hope of promoting concord, not only between those who were perpetually contending on the Subject of the Sacramental controversy, but between the Reformers and Catholics. With respect to the first question, relative to an examination of the points of difference which divided the Reform- ers themselves, he complains that a calm and impartial investigation could not be obtained, owing to the rigidity of some, and the appre- hension of others lest instead of promoting har- mony, the discussion of these differences should inflame resentment. With respect to the se- cond, he was deputed to compose a piece on the power and primacy of the Roman Pontiff, and on the jurisdiction of bishops. This performance proved of signal use, and was noticed with mark- ed approbation in the Recess or Decree of the Convention, (b) It exceedingly confirmed the minds of all, and removed the suspicions which fbj " Postqiam Theologros noslros primarius et Sacrae Scripturae peritos hie cougregavimus, illi de omnibus articulis confessionis & apologise quam Augustae exhibuimus, Christ- ianum habuerunt colloquium et per Dei graliam unanimiter in omnibus inter se consenserunt ; articulum vero de primatu Pontificis Romani latius & melius conceperunt, ut scriptum ostendit." LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 40! his calumniators had excited even in the Elector himself, who did not sufficiently distinguish be- tween a bias to Popery and that strong desire for peace Melancthon laboured to effect, and which he cherished the hope of obtaining without the sa- crifice of principle. He thought it proper to con- tend only about essentials ; here he was firm — in other respects he aimed with incessant, but useless toil, to produce reconciliation. In fact the standard of his piety was superior to the age in which he lived, and unlikely to be duly appreciated or sufficiently influential in the boisterous hour of religious innovation. The performance referred to was written with no less zeal against the excessive do- mination of Rome and her ecclesiastics than Luther himself would have displayed, though with milder words ; and it affirmed that little or no hope could be entertained of the results of a Council so constituted as that to which the Pope had summoned the Princes of Christen- dom. Similar sentiments are expressed in the correspondence which was carried on between the confederate Princes and the king of France. In the preceding year Francis had written letters to the assembly which intimated some offence. He perceived, he said, from the report of his ambassador, that they did not cherish exactly the sentiments he had expected, but he was disposed to overlook any contempt they had 2 D 402 LIFE OF ME1.ANCTH0N. manifested from his ardent desire to promote a general union in Christendom, especially be- tween Germany and France. He was desirous they should send a deputation to him. They replied in letters written in their name by Me- lancthon, who may perhaps not inaptly be termed the pen of the Reformation,, " That they certainly had ni tended no contempt, and fully concurred in his views respecting mutual union. They excused themselves from sending deputies as he desired, not feeling themselves warranted to do so; and with respect to a Council, if it were not free, but ordered by the Pope merely for the purpose of condemning them, it would confirm instead of remove abuses, and inflame greater discord. They allege the Bull itself, in which their sentiments are condemned already, as a proof that the Council would not be a free one." The King replied in a courteous manner, declaring that on this subject they were com- pletely agreed. It is due to the Princes assembled at Smal- eald to introduce the following passage from their Recess, fcj " As it has hitherto been the case, and still is, that some who pretend to holy orders adhere to the Popish doctrines and cere- monies, and cannot agree with our faith nor conform to our worship, whence monasteries (c) SfiCKKNB. Hist. Loth. Lib. III. p. 157. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 403 and other ecclesiastical property have or will hereafter come into our hands, the Reverend and Spiritual Christian Teachers, Preachers and Pastors have advised and requested us that some of this property should be devoted to the honour of God and the advantage of the Christian cause, as our pious will may direct ; we there- fore unanimously agree, that the parochial churches in our several districts and jurisdic- tions, shall be provided with learned, pious and honourable Teachers, Preachers and Pastors; and that in their different situations they may be maintained in a decent and respectable way with their wives and families. Also we appoint Superintendants to watch over the said Pastors and Ministers, that they keep sound doctrine and live and walk as becometh Christians. And we order the provision of suitable Funds for Schools of Education, adapted to the local circumstances of each tlistrict, that youth may be trained up therein in good morals and sound learning, so that our churches may not in future be unsupplied with suitable Pastors and Minis- ters. We further order proper Funds to be ap" propriated to the use of those who shall devote themselves principally/ to the study of the sacred Scriptures. Moreover we order the erection and endowment of Hospitals for the reception of the poor of both sexes ; and in fine, that every one in every place shall exert himself to cause such 2 d2 iOi> LIFE OF MELANCTHON. institutions to be erected, provided and sup* ported, wherever the necessity exists, and what- ever else the duty of Christian Princes and Ma- gistrates may require." Melancthon was solicited by the Senate of the city of Augsburg- to pay them a visit, but many and weighty reasons induced him to de- cline their invitation. They were about esta- blishing a public library, and even applied to the Elector to permit this visit ; but he replied that he could not possibly spare him, both on ac- count of the discussions upon the subject of a general Council, and of the great resort of stu- dents to Wittemberg. fdj In fact Melancthon could not command a moment's leisure, and in addition to his exer- tions in the public cause, he was incessantly pestered with the reproaches of the malevolent, who misinterpreted all his actions, and with the unjust censures of many with whom he was connected who disliked his conciliating spirit. It was reported that in consequence of considerable differences of opinion which occa- sioned some discussion at Smalcald, he was alienated from his own party, and several Princes Studiously endeavoured to induce him to relin- quish his existing engagements, and become a professor in their Universities ; but he never fJJ Gassar. Annal. MSS. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 405 sought private emolument or honour to the neglect of pubhc duty, and therefore he could not be gained. But as his friend and biographer Camerarius remarks, no integrity or innocence of character can escape suspicion and slander. He could not even receive a letter from the learned Sadolet, because it came from Italy^ j without being exposed to suspicion and charged ' with the crime of being connected with Catho- lics. This letter is produced by Camerarius as a specimen of that elegant latinity for which the writer was distinguished ; we may be allowed to translate it as being no less honourable to the spirit and character of him who wrote than of him who received it. *' James Sadolet, Cardinal of Carpentras, sends his most affectionate salutations to Philip Melancthon. " During my residence at Carpentras, where I had imagined myself fixed for life, but whence I am suddenly recalled to Rome by the mandate of the Pope, I was perpetually con- versant with your writings, which I read both on account of the ability they discovered and the general elegance of the composition. Often in the midst of this pleasurable employment, I became gradually enflamed with affection, and cherished a great anxiety to commence a friendship with you. For although some 406 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. difference of opinion exist between us, this need not cause dissension amongst well edu- cated men. " At the moment I was deliberating about writing to you to open, so to speak, the doors of friendship, suddenly I was sent for to Rome, on account of an approaching Council, and a con- sultation respecting various atfairs, on which it would become necessary soon to deliberate. I had superintended my spiritual charge for the period of ten ^^ears, when thus summoned by the secret appointment of the best and wisest of Pontiffs, to be invested, ignorant and unskilled as I was, with the dignified office of Cardinal. This occasioned delay in transmitting as I wished a letter to you : for it is impossible to express how many anxieties, cares and troubles this translation from my former peaceful and happy life into this tumultuous and bustling one, has occasioned me. This indeed was sure to happen, for my judgment avoided this and followed my former course of life. Both, how- ever, fell out contrary to my original inclinations, so that I cannot rejoice in what I was unwilling to possess, and not be unaffected with grief in losing what I wished to enjoy. But thus ap- pointed by the providence of God, I shall en- deavour by his aid properly and fully to dis- charge this honourable office. "As my mind begins to emerge from the LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 40? crowd of difficulties which beset me, I hav« resolved no longer to defer writing, and thus give you a pledge, my dear Philip, of my affection and of your attraction. My esteem arises from your exemplary virtues, and may I not hope that you will equally reciprocate it from your native kindness? You will, I doubt not, accede to my request and eager desire of friendly intercourse. I am not one of those who instantly cherish a violent hatred because an- other differs in opinion, an arrogance and a vanity to which my nature is totally repugnant. I honour intellect, virtue and literature, which, as you possess them in no common degree, excite a proportionate regard for you. I doubt not your sentiments are similar to my own : for a person so accomplished in elegant literature cannot be otherwise than kind and courteous, and I indulge the greatest confidence that my letters will not be unacceptable, because how- ever disjoined by distance of place, we may be united in spirit and affection. The object of my greatest anxiety and desire therefore is, to per- suade you to admit me into a principal share of that regard you feel for those, and I know they must be very numerous, who have been induced from the celebrity of your name to solicit your friendship. Nothing would afford me greater pleasure than to have an opportunity of ex- pressing and proving my attachment to you, and 408 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. if you will furnish me with any such occasion, I shall esteem it as a high obligation. I am ready with the greatest zeal to do whatever I know may be gratifying to you; no one shall exceed me. Attachment to you and the nature of my office, require a constant concern for literary men. Farewell, most learned Melanc- thon, and let me share your best affections. Rome, Jw/y 15, 1537." The justice of Luther's remark upon the preceding letter may be left to the reader's own determination. " Sadolet," says he, " who had been the Pope's Secretary fifteen years, a very witty and learned man, wrote in a most courteous manner to Philip Melancthon, but exceeding craftily, according to the Italian cus- tom, in order that, through a Cardmalate, they might have bought him on their side, which was done by the Pope's directions ; for the good gentleman, Mr. Pope, is much perplexed, not knowing how to fall upon us." fej Application w as again made from the Court of Great Britain for a deputation of the Saxon divines and Reformers to take a journey, for the purpose of conferring M'ith learned men of that kingdom about ecclesiastical and other impor- tant affairs. William Paget and Christopher f'ej CoLLOQ. Mensal. p. 409. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 409 Mount were employed on this mission. They were instructed to go through France and act in concurrence with the King, and Gardiner the English ambassador at the French Court : but the main purpose of Henry VIII. was to induce the German princes to disregard both the Emperor and the Pope, and to refer all the points of dif- ference to himself and the King of France, (f) A visit from Melancthon in particular was ex- ceedingly urged, but year after year slipt away and other concerns occupying his attention the journey was never accomplished. A legation however was sent consisting of Francis Burkhard or Burgart, Vice-Chancellor of the Elector of Saxony, George a Boneyburg, a Nobleman, a Doctor of Laws, and Frederic My- conius superintendant of Saxe-Gotha. The former was charged with a letter from Melanc- thon to the King, in which he expresses his affectionate friendship for the Vice-Chancellor, who would be able to explain his high regard for his Majesty and his disposition to devote him- self to the public good by the illustration of Christian truth. " Private men," says he, " very much need the aid of distinguished princes and states, and your Majesty has excited the greatest hopes in every country that you would promote the wishes of the pious (f) Herbert's Life of Henry VHI. p. 425. 410 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. for the Reformation of the churches. What else does the Papal faction aim at than the total ex- tinction of divine truth and the infliction of the most barbarous cruelties upon Kings, Princes and nations, and the support of the Catholic abuses by a system of boundless tyranny in the church? Such being the dangerous situation of her affairs, I will not cease to exhort and im- plore your Majesty to pay attention to the cir- cumstances of the Christian church now a sup- pliant at your feet, to promote some firm and durable union, and todissuade other princes from connecting themselves with Popish counsels. This is an affair of the greatest importance, and therefore worthy the attention of a King so su- perior to others in learning and wisdom." (g) The ambassadors were received in the most courteous manner, and the King of England fre- J quently expressed his anxious desire to see Me- lancthon. (^Aj But nothing of any consequence was effected by this journey, and the com- missioners were at length dismissed with strong protestations of royal friendship and an invitation to return during the ensuing year. The King sent letters to the Elector of Saxony full of the strongest professions of kindness to himself and (gj The original letter is preserved in the British Mw- «EUM, Cott. MSS. Cleop. E. 6. rhj Seckbns. Hist, Lib. III. p. 180. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 411 the Reformed cause, and expressive of the greatest anxiety to enjoy a visit from Melanc- thon, " from whose distinguished erudition and sound judgment all good men," says he, " form the highest expectations." The princes having discovered by means of some intercepted letters a secret correspondence between the German and English Anabaptists, wrote a long and elegant epistle to Henry VIII. containing a statement of the pernicious doctrines these persons so eagerly disseminated, and warning y him of the danger likely to result from their fa- ^ natical proceedings unless prevented by a bold and timely interference. This epistle was com- posed by Melancthon. (i) A Protestant conference was held at Frank- fort in the beginning of the year 1539, to which place Melancthon accompanied his prince. Vio- lent proceedings being apprehended he was de- puted to write a piece on the subject of lawful defence, which he executed with great care and success. From this assembly a deputation was sent into England, which carried another of his letters to Henry VIII. for, being affected by the testimony of his friends respecting the royal benignity, and desirous of promoting in the king every good inclination, he thought it proper to cherish this correspondence. His (i) Seckbnd. Hist Lib. Ill, p. 180. 41S LIFE OF MELANCTHON. letter dated Frankfort, March 26, 1539, was calculated to produce a good effect. After ex pressing his grateful sense of his Majesty's re- gard for him, which was manifested afresh in his discourses with the commissioners, he proceeds, " I commend the cause of the Christian religion to your Majesty's attention, for your Majesty knows that the most important duty of great princes is to regard and promote heavenl}^ truth, on which account God associates them with himself in the office of ruling. I am desirous as I have written before, that a union upon the basis of doctrinal agreement should be effected amongst those churches which reject the domination of Rome. This would tend to promote the glory of God and conduce to general tranquillity. Your Majesty has happily begun the removal of some superstitious practices, I entreat you to proceed to others. The intention of our adver- saries is apparent, but they can never suppress our doctrine ; God himself will be the keeper of our states and princes. They are always most anxious for public peace and tranquillity, but if our enemies resort to arms the princes will not be deficient in their duty. I frequently call to mind the inscription upon one of King Edward's coins, " Jesus auteni transiehat per medium eorum,;" Jesus passed through the midst of them^ by which that wise monarch doubtless intended to intimate that the governors of king- LIFE OP MELANCTHON. 413 doms are divinely protected whilst they defend righteous causes ; and, indeed, that it is truly heroic to bear arms in defence of the church against tyrants. It is said that Ajax asked Achilles what were the greatest and most diffi- cult of all labours ? To which he replied, " those which are undertaken for friends." Ajax in- quired again, " What then were the most plea- sant and easy ?" He answered, " the same.** The hero intimated by this reply, that nothing could be more delightful than to perform even the severest duties for the public good, and that he could cheerfully sustain the heaviest cares for this purpose. Such was their greatness of mind who were ignorant of the true God ; how much more does it become Christian princes to endure labour and danger for the church of Christ, when they know that they are divinely appointed to this office and are promised celestial rewards for their services. I will not cease therefore to exhort your Majesty to persevere in promoting the cause of the Christian church, and in resisting the ty- ranny and violence of its adversaries.** (k) Melancthon addressed letters also to Crom- well and Cranmer, and afterwards being denied J a journey to England by the Elector, who acted "" with the concurrent advice of Luther, from an (k) The original letter is ia the British Museum^ Cott, MSS. Cleop. E. 5. 414 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. opinion that nothing could be done with the in- y fatuatcd monarcli ; he again, at the instigation ^ of the Landgrave of Hesse, wrote him a long epistle in a most magnanimous spirit, many parts of which merit quotation. (I) " Many pious and learned men in Germany have indulged the hope that your Majesty's authority would have pro- duced a considerable alteration in the conduct of other Kings, and that the German princes in particular might have been influenced to relin- quish the unworthy cruelty of their proceedings and deliberate on the correction of abuses. You ^( were hailed as the promoter and leader of this J most holy and illustrious design. Now, alas ! your prejudices have wounded our minds most deeply : the animosity of other princes is con- firmed, the vexatious obstinacy of the impious is increased and the ancient errors are strength- ened. The bishops no doubt contend that they do not maintain errors, but true doctrines and a divine right ; and though by no means ignorant that they are in fact opposed to the divine authority and the apostolical constitution of the church, yet men will find out very fine interpretations, (to(^cl fx§iJi,xKx artful poisons as Euripides calls them when policy requires it, ^IJ Melanctii. Ep. Lib. I. 28. It is dated 1529 by mistake, instead of 1539. Corap. Pezel. Consil. Th«ol. P. I. p. 343. Melancth. Op. Tom.IV. X LIFE OP MELANCTHON. 415 ill order to furnish a specious pretext for their errors. Sophisms of this description may not be so much admired in England for their wisdom, but they are very much in repute at Rome, where the Cardinals Contaranus, Sadolet and Pole are applying a new paint and varnish to old abuses. In Germany these sophisms have de- praved the minds of many persons of distinction, and I am not surprized that multitudes are de- luded by these fallacies ; and though you are nei- thei' deficient in erudition nor in judgment, yet even wise men are sometimes diverted from the truth by specious arguments. " It cannot be denied that the church of Christ was for a long period veiled in tremend- ous darkness. Human traditions, the torment of pious minds, were most shamefully introduced to the utter corruption of divine worship. Vows, gifts, vestments, meats and drinks, a vain repeti- tion of prayers, indulgencies, and the worship of images with every species of manifest idolatry being substituted for the true service of God, ex- hibited a striking resemblance between the reli- gion of heathens and of Rome. The real doc- trines of repentance and forgiveness of sin through faith in Jesus Christ, justification by faith, the distinction of Law and Gospel and the use of the Sacraments were unknown. The keys of authority were given into the hands of the Pope to support his tyranny both in civil and eccle- 416 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. siastical affairs. The law of celibacy produced licentiousness of manners, but God has in some measure dispersed the darkness by the reformed doctrine, for this light of truth which now shines in the churches must be attributed to him, be- cause no human skill could have removed the prevailing errors. The Spirit of God has pre- dicted that in the last times a violent contention would arise between the Saints and Antichrist, and that Antichrist supported by bishops, de- ceivers and princes, would oppose the truth and slay the pious. These very things are at this moment transacted. The tyranny of the Romish hierarchy has partly introduced and partly con- firmed the existing abuses, and as Daniel pre- dicted, ' his look is more stout than his fel- lows.' ftn J We rejoiced in the separation of your Majesty and hoped that the English church would flourish again, but alas your bishops still / adhere to Antichrist in all his idolatries and errors. The articles they have published are most craftily selected and support every human tradition, especially vows, celibacy and confes- sion. In retaining the doctrine of private masses they not only confirm priestly domination, but every dangerous error of Popery, artfully avoiding improvement that their dignity and wealth may be secure. That this is the work (m) Dan. vii. 20. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 41? of the bishops is obvious ; it speaks for it- self. " I implore you by our Lord Jesus Christ to mitigate and amend this episcopal decree, by doing which you will both consult the glory of Christ and the welfare of all your churches. May you regard the ardent desires of the pious throughout the world that Kings would use their influence to eifect a Reformation of the church, to remove unauthorized services and to propagate evangelical truth. May you consider those holy persons who are in bonds for the gospel and are the true members of Christ, for if this decree be not cancelled the bishops will practise their severities to an incalculable ex- tent. Satan himself can alone inspire this op- position to Christ ; they minister to his rage ; he impels them to these cruel massacres. All good men entreat and implore you not to listen to the impious, the cruel sentiments, and so- phistical cavils in circulation against us, but to regard our just and well-founded petition. In doing this, you will secure no doubt a great and a divine reward, as well as the highest degree of celebrity amongst all Christians. Jesus Christ himself will judge of the conduct of men to his church, and while human language exists these transactions will be transmitted to all future ages. If our churches be indeed the churches of Chtist and we seek his glory, the cause will 2 E J/ 418 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. never want patrons and protectors, who will be* stow due praises on the deserving, and merited contempt on the persecutor. Hungry, thirsty, naked, bound, Christ himself complains of the fury of the Roman hierarchy and the iniquitous severities practised by many Kings and Princes : he entreats for the wounded members of his body, that his true church may be defended and the gospel honoured ; — to acknowledge, to enter- tain, to minister to him, is the duty of a pious Kin? and a most s^rateful service to God." New cares and labours awaited Melancthon upon his return from Frankfort, but they were pleasureable ones. George, Duke of Saxony, Sovereign of Misnia and Thuringia, the invete- rate enemy of the Reformation was dead, and his brother Henry who succeeded to his dominions espoused it with the utmost zeal. Melancthon and Luther were immediately employed to regu- late the affairs of the University at Leipsic and to investigate the state of the churches, (n) The Reformed cause now rapidly spread in every direction, and other princes especially Joachim n. the Elector of Brandenburg and son-in-law to Sigismund the King of Poland embraced it. Raynald quotes some letters written by Coch- loeus in which he imputes the blame, as he call* it, of, this change to Melancthon and Vicelius, fhj Cam. y\\. 5Iel, LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 419 and Seckendorf has preserved a pleasing letter on the subject composed by the former, addressed in the name of the Elector of Brandenburg to the Polish Sovereign, foj The Protestants having solicited the Em- peror to appoint a general conference between them and the Catholics, in conformity with the resolutions which had been adopted for this pur- pose at Frankfort, he directed them previously to deliberate on the concessions they were pre- pared to make to their adversaries. They met at Smalcald in the year 1540, and replied by the pen of MelancthoR, that they should adhere to their Confession at Augsburg and the subsequent Apology. fj)J Amidst a multiplicity of other public engagements he found time also to write a long and admirable vindication of the Re- formers, addressed in the name of the Elector of Saxony and the confederate princes to Charles y^ V. ; and another piece against Sebastian Franks Caspar Schwenckfeld and others, who main- tained fanatical opinions and pretended to ex- traordinary revelations. {oj Seckend. Hist. Luth. Lib. III. p. 234 and 241. (pj Melancthon in a letter to Camerarius says, " all the Theologians agreed that the bishops should enjoy their juris- diction, if they would embrace evangelical truth and remove abuses out of the church.'' Nothing of this kind however is inserted in the decree of the convention. Mel. Ep. Lib. IV. ep. 222. Seckend. Hist. Lib. IlL p. 258. 2 E 2 4:20 LIFE or MELANCTHON. The Diet which the Emperor had appointed y to be held at Spires, was in consequence of the plague removed to Haguenaw. On his way thither Melancthon became dangerously ill, arising chiefly from the morbid melancholy inci- dent to his constitution. The immediate cause of his present extreme dejection of mind is to be traced to the misconduct of the Landgrave of Hesse, who was forming an illicit connexion which Melancthon foresaw would prove detri- mental to the Reformation, by furnishing an occasion of reproach to its virulent adversaries. Varillas and Bossuet are by no means backward to avail themselves of the circumstance, (^^r^ Be- ing in consequence of this indisposition detained at Vinaria, he experienced the kindest atten- tions from the Elector and his friends, who im- mediately sent for George Sturciad, a physician of Erfurt, to whom he was peculiarly attached. Luther also hastened to his friend whose cheer- ing presence contributed not a little to aid the powers of medicine in producing his conva- lescence. As he had previously felt a deep per- suasion that he should die, he had written his Vill and deposited it with Cruciger ; (rj and on fqj Melancth. ep. ad Bucard. Mythol. ap. Pezel. Cons. p. 394. Seckend. Hist. Lib. III. p. 277. Bossuet Hist, des Variations. frj Vid. Appendix VI. / LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 491 his way while crossing the Elbe, he suddenly uttered what happily proved an unfounded pre- diction, *' Viximus ia Synoclis et jam morieraur in illis." In councils we have lived, in councils now shall die. (s) The interesting account written by Solomon Glass and preserved amongst the original manu- scripts of the German princes, shall be presented to the English reader. *' When Luther arrived he found Melancthon apparently dying. His eyes were dim, his understanding almost gone, his tongue faultering, his hearing imperfect, his coun- tenance fallen, incapable of distinguishing any one and indisposed to all nourishment. At such a^ sight Luther was in the most terrible consterna- tion, and turnmg to those who had accompanied him in his journey, exclaimed, ' Alas, that the devil should have thus unstrung so fine an in- strument'/ — Then in a supplicating posture hede- voutly prayed, ' We implore thee O Lord our God, we cast all our burdens on thee and will cry TILL THOU HEAREST US, pleading all the pro- mises which can be found in the Holy Scriptures respecting thy hearing prayer, so that thou MUST INDEED HEAR US to prcservc at all future periods our entire confidence in thine (s) ApAM. Vit. Germ. Tbeologor«m. Cam. Vit. Mel. 42S LIFE OP MELANCTHON. own promises.' ft) After this he seized hold of M«lancthon's hand, and well knowing the ex- treme anxiety of his mind and the troubled state of his conscience, said, ' Be of good cou- rage, Philip, YOU SHALL NOT DIE: al- though God has always a sufficient reason for removing us hence, he willeth not the death of a sinner but rather that he should be converted and live,' — ' it is his delight to impart life, not to inflict death. God has received into his fa- vour the greatest sinners that ever existed in the world, namely Adam and Eve, much more will he not cast thee off my dear Philip, or permit thee to perish in grief and guilt. Do not therefore give way to this miserable dejection and destroy thyself, but trust in the Lord who can remove ft J This petition is translated immediately from the ori- ginal German. " Allda mustemir unser Htrr Gott herhalten denn ich war^ ihm dcnn sack filr die thiir und riebe ihm die ohrtnmit alien promissionibus exaudiexdarum precum die ich aus der heiligcn schrift zu erzehlen waste dass er mich miiste erfioren, wo ich andent seinen ter/ieissungen trautn solteJ''' Seckendorf remarks this language is so pecu- liar and forcible as scarcely to admit of being properly rendered into Latin, and the same may be said of English. His words and version are as follow : " Parrhesia haec vix exprimi Latin^ potest, sensus est, He cum Deo magna cum confidentiu egisse, ornnesque ei ohjecisse et veluti inculcasse, quce ex Scrip- turis allegari poterant, promissiunes de audiendis precihus, itaqne cogebatur (ait) me exaudire, ii Jiduciam meam in promis- siones suas coaservare vellety Seckend. Hist. Lib. HI. p. 314. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 42S it and impart new life.' While he thus spake, Melancthon began visibly to revive as though his spirit came again and was shortly restored to his usual health." After his illness Melancthon wrote thus to Camerarius, " I cannot express the pain I have / suffered during my illness, some returns of which I often feel. I witnessed at that period the deep sympathy of Luther, but he restrained his anx- ieties that he might not increase mine, endea- vouring to raise me from my desponding state of mind, not only by administering kind consola- tion but salutary reproof. If he had not come to me I should certainly have died." To Bur- cardus Mythobius he wrote, " In the summer I received two letters from you, the one at Smal- cald, the other in Thuringia, at a time when I was confined by extreme illness occasioned only by overwhelmning anxiety of mind on account of some affairs relative to others, of which you also complain. I must have died if Luther had not recalled me from the gates of death." The Elector of Saxony and the Landgrave of Hesse not being present at Haguenaw, no conclusive measures were adopted, but another Diet was appointed to meet at Worms in Oc- tober. Thither the Emperor dispatched his Commissioner, Nicholas Granville, and the Pope his Nuncio, Campegius, Bishop of Filtri. 424 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. Vergerius also appeared in the name of the king of France. It was long before the preliminary arrangements could be adjusted. On the twen- ty-eighth of November Melancthon thus ad- dresses his friend Jerome Baumgartner. " The church of God does not often engage the serious attention of Kings, Pontiffs and Princes, for their minds are devoted to ambitious pro- jects, and other occupations. Truth is more generally esteemed and the church upheld by private persons and families ; it was not one of the kings of Phoenicia or Syria that cherished Elijah ; but a poor widow, in whose house the true religion was maintained. Jonah is said to have been the son of a widow. Abraham, Isaac and Jacob were not only private individuals, but exiles ; and therefore I trust that God will still preserve his church amidst the present troubles. I exhort you to pursue your pious labours and cares with increased alacrity and renewed hope. The history of our convention may soon be told : nothing is done except deli- berating about the plan of conducting the dis- putations. You remember the saying of Aris- totle, ' It would be a happy thing for the world if cr. of Worms in the year 1545 used every effort to persuade all parties to acquiesce in that appoint- ment. It was in vain ; and the pen of Melanc- thon was again employed to prepare a publica- tion in the name of the Reformers, containing 2g 450 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. the chief reasons which induced them to dissent from the Papal decree. It is entitled, " Caiisa, quare et amplexce sint, et retinendam ducant doc- trinam^ quam profitentur Ecclesi(JO^ qua: Confes- sionem, Augusts exliibitarn Imperatori sequuntur et quare iniquis judicibus collectis in Synodo Tri- dentina ut vacant^ non sit assentiendum ;" and " on accouiii of the excellence of its matter, the weight of argument and a certain original beauty of style cannot fail of profiting every reader." (a J It is inserted in the fourth volume of his works. The Emperor being exasperated at the con- tinual objections raised against the council, de- parted at last from his usual course of conduct and determined to settle all religious disputes by force of arms. The Elector of Saxony and the Landgrave of Hesse immediately adopted proper meaeures for their own defence. At Worms the clergy of Cologne had presented a petition to the Emperor, against the proceedings of their Arch- bishop in establishing the reformed religion, and he instantly took them into his protection, not only interdicting by his imperial letters any molestation of the Catholics in the electorate, but summoning the Elector to appear before him within thirty days. The Pope issued a similar summons for sixty days to the Arch- bishop, Dean and five Canons of Cologne, who faj 8ECKEKD. Hist. Lib. III. p. 602. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 451 had espoused his cause. In the succeeding January, 1646, the Protestant princes assembled at Frankfort, made common cause with the per- secuted Archbishop, and united to defend them- selves against the violent designs of the Em- peror, fbj If ever the presiding genius of Martin Lu- ther were requisite to direct the intricate con- cerns of the Reformation, the present crisis seemed particularly to demand his talents. The gathering tempest frowned with a portentous aspect upon all Germany; the new launched vessel in which many of their princes had em- barked with a noble and adventurous spirit, and which had hitherto been driven about by so many raging winds, became at this time exposed to a storm of unusual violence, and every voic^ was lifted up to demand the pilotage of the first and in many respects the greatest of the Re- formers. It is not easy therefore to express or imagine the consternation with which the princes / and Reformers in general, and his most intimate iriend Melancthon in particular saw him expire at this alarming period. In consequence of re- peated attacks of the stone his constitution had , been declining for many months, and in the early morning of the eighteenth of February 1546, he fbJ Sleid. Hist. p. 310, 340, 351, 355. Seckend. Hist. Lib. III. p. 566, 570, 613. 9 g9 458 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. died at Eisleben his native place, whither he had gone a second time to settle some existing dif- ferences between the Counts of Mansfeld. A few hours afterwards Jonas communicated the melancholy tidings to the Elector of Saxony, and requested his Highness to inform his wife, Me- lancthon, Pomeranus and Cruciger. In the first journey to Eisleben a short time before, Melanc- thon had accompanied him and must have deeply regretted his absence on the last painful occasion. When he first received the intelli- gence of his death, he exclaimed, " My Father ! my Father ! the chariot of Israel and the horse- men thereof!" foj He was interred at Wittem- berg. Pomeranus preached a funeral sermon, and Melancthon pronounced the following ORATION. " Although amidst this general mourning my voice is so obstructed by deep affliction and tears, yet something I would attempt to say ; not to eulogize the dead as the heathen do, but to admonish the living in this vast assembly, and especially to impress just sentiments upon the junior part of the auditory respecting the govern- ment of the church and its dangers, that they may learn what to desire and by what examples to regulate their lives. Wicked and infidel men * represent every thing in the present apparent (cj 2 Kings ii. 12. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 4.53 confusion of human affairs as the result of mere chance, but confiding in the numerous and ex- plicit declarations of God himself, we distinguish the church from the promiscuous multitude of mankind, and affirm it is under divine superin- tendence and protection. To this we constantly look, obeying our lawful governors and cherish- ing a pious reverence for those guides and in- structors whom we choose. " It will be necessary to advert to these considerations as often as the name of the Re- verend Doctor Martin Luther, our most be- loved father and teacher is introduced, whom we love and honour, detestable as he appears in the eyes of many wicked men, and whom we know to have been raised up by heaven as a mi- nister of the true gospel, by evidences which notwithstanding the charges of our opponents, prove that his doctrines were neither seditious nor dispersed abroad with a blind and impetuous zeal. '* In this place and on these occasions, many things are usually said in a panegyrical strain respecting the personal endowments of the deceased ; I propose however, to omit these and advert chiefly to his ecclesiastical function. Intelligent and pious persons will admit, if he were the means of promoting useful and neces- sary truth in the church, we ought to be grateful to the Providence of God for raising up such a -to-i LIFE OF MELANCTHOtf. light, while his labours, faith, perseverance and other virtues ought to be duly acknowledged and his memory tenderly cherished by all wor- thy men. " The Apostle Paul represents Christ as ' having ascended on high to give gifts unto men,' that is, the preaching of the gospel and the Holy Spirit; for the purpose of communicating which, ' he gave some apostles, and some prophets, and sonde evangelists, and some pastors and teachers ;' fdj selecting them from amongst those who read, study and delight in the sacred writings. Nor are they only called into the Christian service who occupy the more ordinary stations, but others are frequently introduced tinder the direction of learned men into this holy warfare, and it is both pleasing and profit- able to witness the care of God to his church throughout all ages, in sending a continued suc- cession of useful men, that as some fall in the glo- rious field, others may instantly rush forward to take their places. The first of our race who nobly occupied the foremost ranks were Adam, Seth, Enoch, Methuselah, Noah and Shem. The latter being yet alive and dwelling in the neigh- bourhood of Sodom, when the inhabitants of the earth forgetting the instructions of Noah and Shem, became addicted to idolatry ; God raisetl (d) Eph. iv. 8. 11. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 4.55 up a coadjutor of Shem in the person of Abra- ham, to co-operate in the great work of propa- gating divine truth. To him succeeded Isaac, Jacob and Joseph, who kindled the light of true religion in Egypt, at that period the most flou- rishing empire in the world ; and to them Moses, Joshua, Samuel, David, Elijah and Elisha, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel and Zachariah. After them arose Esdras, Onias and the Maccabees ; then Simeon, Zacharias, John the Baptist, Christ and his Apostles. I am delighted to contemplate this unbroken succession, which affords conspicuous evidence of the presence of God in his church. The apostles were suc- ceeded by a troop, so to speak, of inferior warriors, but nevertheless distinguished of heaven. Poly- carp, Irenaeus, Gregory of Neoceesarea, Basil, Augustin, Prosper, Maximus, Hugo, Bernard, Taulerus and others. And although the latter ages present a more barren prospect, God has always preserved a proportion of his servants upon the earth, and now through Martin Luther a more splendid period of light and truth has appeared. " To this enumeration of the most eminent amongst the sons of men who gathered and re- formed the church of God, may be added others who may be regarded as the flower of mankind. Solon, Themistocles, Scipio, Augustus and others, who either established or ruled over 456 LIFE OP MELANCTHON. mighty empires were indeed truly great men, but far, far inferior to our illustrious leaders Isaiah, John the Baptisti> Paul, Augustin and Luther, and it becomes us to study this dis- tinction. What then are those great and im- portant things which Luther has disclosed to our view, and which render his life so remark- able ; for many are exclaiming against him as a disturber of the church and a promoter of in- explicable controversies ? I answer, that when the Holy Spirit in his regulation of the church reproves the world for sin, dissensions arise out of the pertinacity of wicked men, and they alone are culpable who refuse to listen to the procla- mation of the eternal Father concerning his Son, ' This is my beloved Son, hear him/ Luther explained the true and important doctrine of penitence which was involved in the profoundest darkness. He shewed in what it consists and where refuge and consolation could be obtained under a sense of divine displeasure. He illus- trated the statements of Paul respecting justifi- cation by faith and shewed the distinction be- tween the law and the gospel, civil and spiritual justification. He pointed out the true princi- ple of prayer and exterminated that heathenish absurdity from the church, that God was not to be invoked if the mind entertained the least doubt upon an academic question. He admo- nished men to pray in the exercise of faith and LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 457 a good conscience to the only Mediator and Son of God, who is seated at the right hand of the Father making intercession for us, and not to images or deceased saints according to the shock- ing practice of the ignorant multitude. He also pointed out other services acceptable to God. was singularly exemplary himself in all the duties of life, and separated the puerilities of human rites and ceremonies which prevent instead of promoting genuine worship, from those services which are essential to obedience. In order that heavenly truth might be transmitted to poste- rity, he translated the prophetic and apostolic writings into the German language with so much accuracy, that his version of itself places Scrips ture in a more perspicuous light than most com- mentaries. But he published also various ex- positions upon the sacred writings which in the judgment of Erasmus by far excelled all others ; and as it is recorded respecting those who rebuilt Jerusalem, ' with one hand they laid the stones and with the other they held the sword,' so while he composed annotations on Scripture replete with heavenly instruction and consoled afflicted consciences by his pious counsels, he was neces- sitated at the same time to wage incessant war with the adversaries of evangelical truth. When it is recollected that this truth, especially the doctrine of faith and the remission of sins, is not discoverable by the merely human eye, it 4^8 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. must be acknowledged he was taught of God, and many of us have witnessed his anxious so- licitude to impress the great principle of accept- ance by faith. Multitudes of the saints will therefore praise God to all eternity, for the bene- fits which have accrued to the church by the labours of Luther. To God their gratitude is primarily due, and then they will own them- selves much indebted to his labours, although infidels who ridicule the church in general will consider these noble performances as no better than empty trifling or absolute insanity. The true church does not as some falsely affirm pro- mote intricate disputations, throw out the apple of contention and propose the enigmas of the fabled Sphinx ; for to those who j udge seriously and without prejudice it is easy from a comparison of opposite opinions to perceive what are con- sonant to the statements of heavenly truth and what are otherwise. Christians are no longer in a state of hesitation on the subject of existing controversies, for when God determined to re- veal his will and display his character in the sacred writings, it is not to be imagined that such a communication would be ambiguous like the leaves of the ancient Sibyl. " Some, by no means evil-minded persons however, express a suspicion that Luther mani- fested too much asperity. I will not affirm the reverse, but only quote the language of Eras- mus, ' God has sent in this latter age a violent i LIFE OF MELANCTHON. i59 physician on account of the magnitude of the existing disorders,' fulfilling by such a dispen- sation the divine message to Jeremiah, ' Be- hold I have put my words in thy mouth. See I have this day set thee over the nations, and over the kingdoms, to root out and pull down, and to destroy and to throw down, to build and to plant/ fej Nor does God govern his church according to the counsels of men, nor choose to employ instruments like theirs to promote his purposes. But it is usual for inferior minds to dislike those of a more ardent character. When Aristides observed the mighty affairs which Themistocles by the impulse of a superior geniusj undertook and happily accomplished, although he congratulated the state on the advantage it possessed in such a man, he studied every means to divert his zealous mind from its pursuits. I do not deny that ardent spirits are sometimes betrayed into undue impetuosity, for no one is totally exempt from the weaknesses incident to human nature, but they often merit the praise assigned by the ancient proverb to Hercules, Cimon and other illustrious characters, axoix-rpof /xfv, aXAa ra jaiy TWENTY-EIGHT YEARS with Philip Melauc--/ thon. To judge of the survivor's feelings re- quires either a mind of remarkable sensibility, or the experience of a similar loss. This depri- vation of Luther's valuable counsels, and friend- ly reproofs, of his consoling sympathy amidst the trials of life, and of his directing wis- dom amidst the peculiar difficulties incident to the circumstances of the age in which they lived must have inflicted a deep and lasting pang. Their attachment was founded on principle, and so completely mutual that they were become almost necessary to each other. The agony of separation therefore must have been exquisite ; — ** O the soft commerce ! the tender ties, Close-twisted with the fibres of the heart ! Which, broken, break them; and drain off the soul Of human joy ; and make it pain to live— S H 466" LIFE OF MELANCTHON. And is it then to live ? Wlien such friends part, 'Tis the suriivor dies " /"/ij I said it was the eartldy termination of their intimacy, for religious friendship can never, never end. If the soul of man be immortal, and if, as seems more than probable, it will carry with it into another world those principles of action, those modes of thinking, those cha- racteristic qualities, which constituted each one's individuality and very being upon earth' then the connexions of time will be perpetuated amidst the raptures of eternity. For though distances and separations are incident to the condition of the present life, it neither comports with our ideas of the benevolence of the Deity, nor with the representations of Scripture, nor indeed with our most ennobling desires and hopes, to suppose these imperfections of our temporal destiny will attach to our future exist- ence. ' And not only will the recollection of past friendship endear our future intercourse, but the superiority of our celestial character, acquired by a nearer and more constant approach to the source of light and holiness, will in- finitely purify it. Friendship founded on just principles arises from the perception of fh) Young's Night Tlioughts, 5. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 467 moral excellence, associated with an y other striking or attractive qualities, besides a con- sciousness of some natural similarity of taste or character ; it must be allowed therefore that the increase of what constitutes the principle of mutual attraction, will necessarily produce a proportionate increase of attachment. If moral excellence be now esteemed in its present im- perfect degree and degraded state, associated as it is with glaring defects, dwarfish in its growth, irregular in its shape and full of in- firmity, unquestionably it will prove hereafter in its maturity and glory, a stronger bond of union. And because every principle and fa- culty is capable of continual improvement, and will hereafter, under happier circumstances, ad- mit of more rapid increase, and more extensive augmentation than at present, the friendship of another world may be considered as everlastingly progressive, and, from the constitution of celes- tial spirits, indissoluble. The conduct of Melancthon and Luther to each other, affords an admirable illustration of the true basis of religious friendship. They were not_perfectly agreed^ but they were per- fectly united. Mutual forbearance admitted the free exercise of an independent mind, and se- cured the rights of conscience and the purity of principle. Societies have been distracted, fa- milies divided, and even empires convulsed, from 2h 2 4t58 LIFE OF MELANCTHOIf. the existence of differences in religious senti- ment or practice, far less considerable than those which subsisted between these eminent friends. They knew each other, and did not allow the whirlwinds of a teniporars^ passion to dissipate feelings founded on the best principles, and che- rished by an unreserved intercourse. There were many who at different times endeavoured to divide them by fomenting discord, in order to gain their respective influence and authority to some other party or interest: but they were too confident in each other, and too well persuaded of the magnitude of the cause which claimed their mutual co-operation and incessant efforts, to be cajoled into disagreement. If, therefore, our friendships were formed upon more solid principles of union than they frequently are, it is obvious they would prove more satisfactory, more beneficiial and more permanent. In all our religious intercourse, it would be wise to aim rather at securing the essentials of Chris- tianity, than to be solicitous of accomplishing what is notoriously impossible, a perfect agree- ment in points of inferior consideration. The pious Baxter has admirably remarked, " Were we all bound together by a confession or sub- scription of the true fundamentals, and those other points that are next to fundamentals only, and there took up our Christanity and unity, yielding to each other a freedom of differing in LIFE OF MELANCTHOX. 469 smaller or more difficult points, or in expressing ourselves in different terms, and so did live peaceably and lovingly together, notwithstand- ing such differences, as men that all knew the mysteriousness of divinity and the imperfection of their own understandings, and that here we know but in part, and therefore shall most cer. tainly err and differ in part, what a world of mischief might this course prevent? I oft think on the examples of Luther and Melanc- thon. It was not a few things that they differed in, nor such as would now be accounted small , besides the imperious harshness of Luther*s dis-/^ position (as Carolostadius could witness) and yet how sweetly and peaceably and lovingly did they live together, without any breach or dis- agreement considerable. As Mel. Adamus says of them, ' Etsi tempora fuerunt ad distractiones proclivia hominumque levitas dissidiorum cu- pida tamen cum alter alterius vitia nosset, nun- quam inter eos simultas extitit ex qua animorum alienatio subsecuta sit ;' — so that their agree- ment arose not hence, that either was free from faults or error, but knowing each other*s faults, they did more easily bear them. Certainly if every difference in judgment in matters of re- ligion should seem intolerable or make a breach in affection, then no two men on earth must live together, or tolerate each other, but every man must resolve to live by himself, for no two on 470 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. earth but differ in one thing or other, except such as take all their faith upon trust, and ex- plicitly believe nothing at all. God hath not made our judgments all of a complexion no more than our faces, nor our knowledge all of a size any more than our bodies; and methinks they that be not resolved to be any thing in religion, should be afraid of making the articles of their faith so numerous, lest they should shortly become heretics themselves, by disagreeing from themselves ; and they should be afraid of making too strict laws for those that differ in judgment in controvertible points, lest they should shortly ■ change their judgments, and so make a rod for their own backs; for how know they, in diffi- cult disputable cases, but within this twelve- months themselves may be of another mind, except they are resolved never to change for fear of incurring the reproach of novelty and mutability ; and then they were best resolve to study no more, nor ever to be wiser. I would we knew at what age a man must receive this principle against changing his judgment. I am afraid lest at last they should teach it their chil- dren, and lest many divines did learn it too young : and if any besides Christ and his apostles must be standard and foundation of our faith, I would we could certainly tell who they are, for I have heard yet of none but the Pope or his ge- neral Council expressly lay claim to the preroga- LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 471 live of infallibility, and I think there is few that have appeared more fallible. 'Y^V The principal points of difference between Melancthon and Luther were three: 1. Me- "^ lancthon thought that the ancient form of ec- clesiastical government might be retained, on condition of not annulling the authority of Scrip- tural truth ; to which Luther could not assent. 2. Melancthon conceived that Luther carried v^ his doctrine respecting justification by faith only to such an extent as to nullify the importance and obligation of good works, so that his state- ments required explanation. 3. Melancthon appears to have differed from Luther in his opinion respecting the sacrament, particularly in the latter period of his life. He did not believe that the opinions of the Zuinglians ought to oc- casion a disunion among the Reformers ; but vjf Luther was decided upon this point to his dying day. Dr. Maclaine very unnecessarily corrects Dr. Mosheim in his statement of this subject, (k) It is obvious that at firsts as Dr. Mosheim represents, " Melancthon adopted the sentiments of Luther in relation to the Eu- charist," but in consequence of serious examin- ation, his mind became enlightened, so that he (i) Baxter's Saints' Everlasting Rest, p. 559- 4to. 2 Ed. (\) Mosheim Eccles. Hist. Vol. IV. p. 325. JVo^c (r) 8to. Ed. 473 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. admitted the scriptural idea by degrees, and towards the close of his life, in his letters to Calvin, intimates his persuasion of the erro- neous and idolatrous nature of the doctrine of consubstantiation. The character of Melanc- thon has been misunderstood on this as on other occasions. It has been intimated that an un- warrantable timidity prevented his avowing ex- plicitly his opinions respecting the Sacrament. It is true it did arise from his apprehension lest such an avowal should enflame discord, and injure the great and general cause of the Re- formation. But whether this apprehension were well-founded or not, or whether such a policy were justifiable or not (and we are not prepared by any means to defend it) such was Melanc- thon*s xe^iX principle of action, and not any mean timidity or fear of personal danger or suffer- ing. If this concealment for the sake of peace had really involved him in personal suffering instead of shielding him from it, it is due to the greatness of his character and the conscientious scrupulousness of his mind, to believe he would nevertheless have adhered to it. It was not from personal considerations only that Melancthon felt the bitterness of his be- reavement in the death of Luther ; he was sen- sible of the public loss, and of the great and daily increasing difficulties of his own situation. Political affairs had never yet assumed so alarm- LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 473 ing an appearance, and they became almost identified with ecclesiastical ones, owing to the conspicuous part which was acted by the most distinguished of the German princes. Though during the past ten years he had been called to take the lead in most of the public trans- actions relative to religion, having been em- ployed to write every thing that was to be writ- ten, and to do almost every thing that was to be done, yet he had constantly profited by his un- reserved familiarity with Luther, with whom he consulted and corresponded on every occasion. Now he was required to act in a great measure alone, and in consequence of his rare merit as a divine and a scholar, which had acquired him a high reputation in every country of Europe, he became at once elevated to an undisputed pre- eminence amongst the leading Reformers of the age. The zealous efforts of Bucer to unite the Swiss and German churches by an agreement on the subject of the Sacrament having been de- feated by Luther's determined hostility, his death seemed to furnish a favourable opportunity for the accomplishment of this long-projected re- conciliation. Melancthon and his followers were known to be extremely solicitous of this union, and were disposed to go to the utmost length which their consciences would permit to 474 LIFE Of MELANCTHON. extinguish the flame of discord. The high mutual esteem subsisting between Bucer and John Cal- vin, the celebrated Pastor and Professor of Divi- nity at Geneva, appeared to facilitate this design. Anxious to promote Bucer and Melancthon's views, Calvin proposed a mode of explaining the subject, which, while it denied the corporeal presence, allowed a divine virtue and efficacy communicated by Christ with the bread and wine of the Sacrament to those who partook of it with a lively faith and integrity of heart: but he has been generally censured by Protestants for making unwarrantable concessions for the sake of peace. The fair prospect however soon became obscured, in consequence of the occu- pation of Melancthon in other violent contro- versies to be mentioned hereafter, which left him no leisure for that co-operation with Calvin which probably might have produced the hap- piest results; and still more on account of the intemperate zeal of Joachim Westphal, pastor of the church at Hamburg, who both adopted the sentiments and manifested the too-unchari- table spirit of Luther, flj The Pope and the Emperor were now re- solved to accomplish the ruin of the Protestants. /'/y'LoscH, Hist. Motuum P. 2. Lib. III. cap. 8. Grevii Mem. Joarh. Westph, LIFE OF MELANCTfiON. 47>5 The Council of Trent decreed, that the Apoc- ryphal writings should be received as of equal / authority with the books which the Jews and V primitive Christians admitted into the sacred canon, that the traditions of the church should be equally regarded with the doctrines and pre- cepts of the inspired apostles, that the Vulgate translation should be read in the churches, and deemed authentic and canonical : and that all who disputed these truths were anathematized in the name of the Holy Ghost, (m) By this means they aimed a deadly blow at the very root and principle of Protestantism ; and the Pope soon afterwards exhibited a striking proof of his disposition to exterminate it root and branch. Availing himself of the appeal of the canons of Cologne against their Archbishop, he convicted him of heresy, and issued a bull by which he Avas deprived of his ecclesiastical dignity, and his subjects absolved from their oath of allegiance to him as their prince. There was no reason to doubt the concurrence of the Emperor in this sentence, who was maturing the most deep-laid schemes for the subversion of the Protestant faith, under an impenetrable veil of the pro- foundest dissimulation. In the month of March he contrived to have an interview with the ^w; F, Paul, 141. Pallav,206. 476 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. Landgrave of Hesse, who was more suspicious of his design than any of the other confederates, and made such professions of attachment to the interests of Germany, and of hisdishke to violent measures, stoutly denying that he was engaged in any military preparations, that the Landgrave, cajoled by his plausibility, dismissed his own apprehensions, and quieted the fears of the Smalcaldian confederacy. At length public aflfairs were brought to such a crisis, that the Emperor and the Pro- testants were at open war. No decisive su- periority was acquired on either side during the autumn of 16A6 ; but Maurice Duke of Saxony, and uncle to John Frederic, by an act of perfidy as strange and unnatural as almost any trans- action recorded in the annals of history, for the purpose of gratifying a mean and most detestable ambition, invaded the Electoral dominions under the Imperial promises that he should possess them, in consequence of which the Elector was necessi- tated to retreat homewards. He was eagerly pur- sued by the Emperor, and eventually defeated and taken prisoner, on the twenty-fourth of Aprib 1547, at Muhlberg on the Elbe. The Land- grave of Hesse was induced by the infamous Mauxice to throw himself upon the clemency of the Emperor, under an express stipulation for his liberty, which availed nothing when self- LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 477 interest and policy dictated another act of im- perial treacliery. (nj During the progress of this war the Univer- sity of Wittemberg suffered a temporary disso- lution. In the month of November 1546, the students were dismissed, and Melancthon with his wife and family retired to Zerbst, in the principality of Anhalt and the residence of the princes of Anhalt-Zerbst. He was afterwards invited to the offices of Theological and Philoso- phical professor at Jena, whither some of the princes attempted to collect again the scattered members of the University; but nothing could detach his mind from the beloved scene of his early labours and most endeared associations, and he returned to Wittemberg. His name was a sufficient attraction and recalled the greater part of the fugitives. The lectures recommenced in October, and he successively directed the attention of his students to the Epistle of Paul to the Colossians and to the Proverbs of Solo- mon, fo) The new-made Elector who had so unworthily usurped his present dignities and possessions, requested him to repair to Leipsic in fnj See a full and interesting detail of all these transae.^ tions, in Robertson's Hist, of Charles V. Vol. III. B, 8^ and 9* 8vo. ed. (oj CHYTRiEi Saxonia, p. 422. ^ 478 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 1,547, to deliberate upon the constitution of an Academy and the regulation of ecclesiastical afl'airs, but on many accounts he chose to de- cline the honour of this invitation. Maurice as a matter of course, fully concurred in the Em- peror's proposal at a Diet held at Augsburg, soon after the captivity of John Frederic and the imprisonment of the Landgrave of Hesse, to re- fer the decision of all religious disputes to the long projected council of Trent. It was also easy for his Imperial Majesty w^ith a formidable army at hand to overawe the majority of the assembly into a similar concurrence. Swords are very powerful arguments, and a man may legislate as he pleases when they are drawn in his defence. The purpose however was not answered. The plague was said to infest the /, city, the consequence of which was the removal of the Council to Bologna, and which proved in effect its dissolution. Anxious to devise some method to preserve a religious tranquillity, the politic Charles commanded Julius Pflug, bishop of Naumburg, Michael Sidonius and John Agri- cola, of Eisleben, to draw up a temporary rule of faith and worship for the use of both parties. This / was called the Interim, because it was profes- sedly appointed only for the period of time which might elapse previous to the assembling of a general council. It contained all the essential doctrines of the church of Rome, though veiled LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 479 under artful and ambiguous modes of expres- sion, (p) It was promulgated at Augsburg with the greatest solemnity, and afterwards enforced by the Imperial sword. The deplorable consequences resulting from this attempt of Charles to legislate for the faith V> of those whose consciences were proof against the attacks of imperial power, and who resolved like some of the earliest heroes in the same field to obey God rather than men, are thus repre- sented by Melancthon : " Upwards of four hun- dred pastors in Suevia and the circles of the Rhine are driven from their stations. There is but a single officiating minister at this moment at Tubingen who conforms to the book pub- lished at Augsburg ; it has had the effect of ^ driving away all the preachers and pastors. It is truly astonishing therefore that Agricola should (f) Among; a variety of other articles, the Interim affirms *' that works of supererogation are to be commanded ; that the church hath the power of interpreting Scripture; that the Pope is head of the church by virtue of the prerogative granted to Peter J that by confirmation and chrism the Holy Ghost is received ; that extreme unction is to be administered ; that the Sacrament is a sacrifice, and that in it we are to celebrate the memory of saints that they may intercede with God the Father with us and help ws by their merits ; that we must pray to God for the dead ; tliat in every town and every church two masses a day at least be said, but in country parishes and villages one., especially on holidays; that on Easter Eve and Whitsunday Eve the water in the font be consecrated*" Sleid. Hist, 480 LIFE OF MEliANCTHON. persist in promising in consequence of this pub- lication another golden age, when it evidently ruins such a multitude of churches, and so many pious and learned men with their families are gone into voluntary exile." (q) Agricola was liberally rewarded by the Em- peror and by Ferdinand ; and Sidonius obtained the bishopric of Mersburg in Saxony. This furnished occasion for a common joke being passed upon them, " that they only defended the Popish Chrism and Oil as being necessary to Salvation, that they might come off the bet- ter greased themselves." (rj The new and perfidious Elector, notwith- standing his obligations to his e(|ually perfidious patron, hesitated in dubious neutrality respect- ing the adoption of the Interim until the year 1548, when he assembled the Saxon nobility and clergy at Leipsic to assist him in forming a proper determination. Melancthon attended no fewer than SEVEN conferences upon this subject, and wrote all the pieces that were presented as well as the censure which was passed distinct!}^ upon the different divisions of that imperial creed, fsj This was a very critical period in his life. It will be necessary toexamine it with attention, and to dwell upon it with some minuteness of fqj Pezel. Consil. Theol. p. S7. frj Sleidaw. (sJ Adam, Vit. Germ. Tlieol. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 48} detail, in order to afford the reader ample mate- riajs for the due appreciation of his character. Not only was Melancthon perpetually exposed to the vilest calumny, but all his conduct and words were misrepresented to the Emperor and plots were laid against his life. The fury of / party was raging to cut him off at a stroke, but "^ he was preserved amidst the danger and sur- vived the tempest. The Emperor even sent to summon him into his immediate presence, but Maurice himself became his advocate and pro- tector, (t) The divines of Wittemberg and Leipsic assembled upon the subject of the Interim suc- cessively at Begy, Zell and Juterbock, whither Agricola was sent by the Elector of Brandenburg to meet them. The result of these deliberations was the publication of a book written by Me* lancthon, and of a decree founded upon it re- specting the observance of things of an indifferent nature. The Emperor beino- anxious to enforce his own creed, and Maurice though a Protestant, not to displease him to whom he had been so highly indebted, consulted the Protestant leaders especially Melancthon, respecting the extent to which concessions might be made with a safe conscience, in order to avoid the extremes of servility and violent opposition. In reviewing (t) Cam. Vit. Mel. Adam. Vit. Germ. Theologorum. 2 I 482 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. the Interim it was thought this conciliating me- dium might be discovered in the omission of some practices and opinions while the essentials of Christianity were retained. The volume re- ferred to, contained a particular statement of such articles. / As this publication and the Adiaphoristic / Coiitroversy fuj result i ng from i t became a fru i tful sourse of the most envenomed disputes, in which Melancthon was represented as having aban- doned the truth through excessive timidity or servile compliance, and as ecclesiastical writers have by their statements perpetuated this un- favourable impression to the present hour, it is incumbent on a faithful biographer either can- didly to avow the fatal blemish, or by an im- partial examination of authentic documents to remove these false impressions, if the aspersed character be indeed capable of vindication. The reader will admit that the first and most direct means of ascertaining the fact, is an appeal toMe- lancthon's own reply to the Interim, which shall be done by extracting its statements on those topics in particular which occasioned the remom- strances and clamours of his most violent adver- saries. ^ij From the Greek word d^ixfo^o;, which signifies in- difftrcnf. Hence Melancthon and his follpwers were called Adiayhorists. I LIFE OF MELANCTIION, 483 *' If we deny and persecute acknowledged truth we blaspheme God, an unpardonable sin, from which we pray that he would graciously defend us. And although threatened with war and destruction, we must still adhere to the word of God and not deny acknowledged truth. As to the clanger incurred by the defence of what is preached in our churches and we know to be truth, we will entrust the affair to God. " As the articles in the Interim are various, some right and some wrong, some in which all pious persons concur and some otherwise, we will plainly avow our co?ivictions, not rejecting what is true out of caprice or violence, nor allow- ing what is obviously erroneous. " The first three articles respecting the Crea- tion and fall of man, original sin and the redemp- tion of the world through Jesus Christ we fully admit; but to the fourth on justification we\ object : because it states that a man is justified U^ or made righteous by the exercise of love as a ! work, a sentiment which is afterv/ards repeated, for a man is righteous before God and pleases him for the sake of Christ and through faith in his name. And though the Emperor's publication states in some places that a man becomes righ- teous through faith ; the meaning evidently is, that faith is a preparation of the heart before- Ihand, and that afterwards a man is rendered r righteous by the vi^ork of love. It asserts als© Si 2 484 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. the obnoxious principle that there may be true faith although a man live with an evil consci- ence and have no love, and that love constitutes a meritorious title to eternal life. So that ac- cording to these representations a man is justi- fied and pleases God by his own works, a doc- trine long ago taught by monks and friars. The truth is, although we must possess love and a good conscience, yet we are justified before God or please him through our Saviour and Redeemer Jesus Christ, for ii is sake alone and through faith in him, but by no means on account of our own merit or virtue. " At the same time we diligently teach the necessity of deep repentance, sincere lov^ and a 1/ ffood conscience, because ' he that lovcch not abideth in death.' But we must cleave to Jesus the Mediator and seek the communication of every grace through him, for ' in thy sight,' to adopt the language of the Psalmist, ' can no man living be justified ;' and again, ' for thy wa?rte'* sake O Lord pardon min? iniquities.' When in our necessities we supplicate the Throne of Grace, it becomes us to be humbled under a sense of our misery and our guilt, and to implore consolation through him who is our Great Peace- maker. ' Being justified by faith we have ^ eace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.' " To prove that this is the original id immutable principle in the church of Go*' i.i all LIFE OF MELANCTHOX. 485 ages St. Paul refers to the example of Abraham, declaring that * Abraham believed God and it was counted unto him for righteousness ;' that isj although Abraham was distinguished for his great and eminent virtues, yet his righteousness before God whom he pleased, consisted in his faith in the promises which were graciously vouchsafed to him. " There are many points relative to the order and power of the bishops which we cannot but oppose — ^but as these remarks are general and the language is often ambiguous, we advise our most gracious prince not to animadvert much upon this article. The church is a congregation or assembly of persons who possess real faith in ^ C hrist, and no man ought to separate himself from the true church : but the question is who com- pose it ? — Separation from the church is charged upon us as a crime of the greatest magnitude ; but if the adversaries of truth continue obsti- nate and thus occasion discord and debate, surely they are guilty before God and not the poor and pious souls who receive or preach it. ' If,' says Paul, ' an angel from heaven preach any other gospel let him be accursed,' — but there exis,*j .»t the present moment many grievous errors and abuses under the authority of the Roman P^/^ntiff, which even the book of the Interim itself has.^lej^ouneed, but which the councils of Trent 486 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. and Bonony have advocated. If the bishops would induce us to obey them it must be upon this condition, that they do not persecute the truth nor re-establish impious ceremonies. God has graciously explained his mind and will in his Scriptures: these we must hear and re- ceive and not as in worldly kingdoms be made to submit to the expositions of some one man who is empowered to give them at his own pleasure. / "Our churches practise those ceremonies which conduce to good order, and if any person imagine there is any thing in ouch indifferent things which with the good advice of those who regulate the church appears calculated to promote uniformity or order we will readily assist, for on this subject we will not contend. We are indifferent whether men eat flesh or fish. As to prayers and hymns addressed to departed saints, I have before said they are inadmissible ; the same may be said of processions of the Sacra- ment. It is also well known to our adversaries that private masses, invocation of saints and the procession with other practices, if they might admit of some excuse or extenuation, are how- ever both needless and dangerous, and the re-esta- blishment of them in our churches will strengthen the monstrous errors and abuses of our adversa- ries ; and they know also that that offence will deeply grieve many pious men and occa- LIFE OP MELANCTHON. 487 sion much persecution, proscription, imprison" ment and perhaps the murder of priests and others. " Let the potentates and rulers consider amidst the alarms of war now prevalent, what they will and what they ought to do in this affair for the defence of the church. As for MYSELF, I AM READY BY THE GrACE OF GoD TO DEPART HENCE, AND IF NEED BE, TO SUFFER. " We have been lately written to and admo- nished not to preach, teach or write against this Interim, but necessity compels us to say thus much with all humility of mind, that we will 1 not alter in what we have hitherto taught in our / churches; for no creature possesses power f / OR AUTHORITY TO CHANGE THE WORD OF/ God, and it is at every one's peril to deny or' forsake the known truth. As therefore this In- terim is opposed in many of its articles to the truth we have advocated, we feel it necessary to publish in a Christian spirit an explicit answer ; the danger incurred hy this measure we cheerfully face^ committing all to the eternal God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. And as of his infinite goodness he has gathered to himself a church in these realms, by means which surpass the wisdom and thoughts of all men, we earnestly pray that he will always uphold, preserve and place it under a good and righteous superintendency." / 488 LIFE OF MELANCTHOX. This performance was translated into Eng- lish as soon as it issued from the German press by one John Rogers, and as it is a curious piece of antiquity we insert the translator's preface entire. It is not only amusing, but elucidatory of the present subject. " To the Reader, fvj " Because I with great griefe have nowe often heard (most dere Reader) that the highly learned and no lesse godly, jentle and loving man Phillip Melancthon is highlye belyed, in that a great sorte openlye saye that he hath denyed the trueth or {that I maye use their owne wordes) recanted ; (whiche thyng they saye onelye to hyndre the furtheraunce of God*s trueth) , I coulde do no lesse but turne into our Englyshe speache and also put out this litle treatise of his : not so muche for the defence of his moste named and knowen fames sake, (which he hath yet hitherto kepte undefiled, so that even the greatest enemyes of thegospell neither coulde nor have saiedother- ^vj The original edition of this book is in the British Museum. It is entitled, *' A unyuig and considering of the Interim, by the honour-wort hi/ and highly learmd Philip Melancthon — translated into Englyshe hy John Rogers, 1548.^* This worthy advocate of Melancthon is considered by Mr. Lewis, in his History of the Translations of the Bible into Eng- lish, as probably the translator as well as publisher of that edition of the Bible which was issued under the name of Thomas Mat- thews in 1537 with the King:'s licence. Rogers was afterwards \?urnt for printing that Bible ia the reign of Queen Mary. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 489 wise of hym) as for the confortyng of many godly and Christen hertes, whiche have bene not alytell dismayed and discouraged thorow suche lyes. And verely not without a cause, for his denying would do more harme to the trueth in these last and most perelouse tymes than any tongue or penne can expresse. And God of his goodnesse, bountefull mercye and great power, graunt that that never chaunce. At this tyme also thankes be to God therfore, he hath not onely not denyed the trueth but also after his olde accustomed Christen manier, plainelye confessed and ac- knowledged it : whiche thyng this his answere to the Interim, ynough witnesseth. " And although this his writing be shorte and answere not to al the poyntes of the Inte- rim, (for that would aske great labour and long tyme) yet it playnely answereth to the greetest misuses, and to the very senowes of the Rome- bushops moste tyrannouse kyngdome contaj^ned in that boke. " He also sheweth tokens ynoughe in the booke that he will at leasure and largelier write upon manye poyntes thereof. I received also a letter with this treatise from a nother godly and learned man, wherein is writen that other and divers learned men in Dutchlande be in hand to shewe their meaning in writing as touchy ng the same, so that we may be of muche better com- forte then our Papistes would gladly se, yea then 490 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. manye of the good and faithfull be, that that Interim will be wstanded and not so sone and easely receaved as the Papistes hope and many Christen feare. This I saie chiefelye caused me to putte out this litle boke at this time. " But for that there be haply many that know not what that Interim meaneth, for some have not seen and some have not harde of it, ye and the moste understande not the worde, as they that understand no Latine, or not very well, neede dry veth me to shewe bothc what it is and also the meanyng of the worde. Interim is a booke whiche was at the Emperowres Maiesties commandement prynted and put forth about the begynnyng of June, in this yere of our Saviours birthe 1548, wherein is commanded that al the cities in Dutchlande that have receaved the worde of God, and made a chaunge of cere* monys accordyng to the word shal reforme their churches agayne, and turne to the olde Popishe ordinaunces as a dog dothe to that he hathe spued out, or a washcn swyne to the myre. " Thus have ye harde what it is. Now heare what the word signifyeth or betokeneth. *' Interim is as muche to saye, as in the meane season or in the meane while. And ther- fore have they christened the childe and geven him this name because they wyll that we kepe all the thynges commanded and contayned in that booke, in the meane while from this highedutche LIFE OP MELANCTHON. 491 parlament holden at Augsburg till there be a ge- iierall councell holden. There they thyiike (but God sitteth above in heaven and thynketh haplv otherwyse) to make that matter worsse. For because it had been an hastye worcke to have chaunged all thynges at once, they of theit great (I had almost sayed) grevouse and mercilesse mercy have borne with us in two thynges, that is to saye, in the Maryage of Priestes and receiv- ing of the communion in both the kindes. But how long forsoth ? — Interim^ that is in the meane while till the generall councell come. And thynke then to beare no longer with us, no nor with Christe himselfe, for then they thynke to be so strong, that neyther Christe himselfe nor all that wyll abyde by hym shall be able to with- stande them. This is the meanyng of the worde in Englyshe. " Unto this Interim and meanins: thereof hathe thabove named Phil. Melancthon an- \j swered and written this present treatise, and sheweth to what thinges a Christen man maye agre and which thynges may be chaunged and whiche not ; in whiche treatise the reader shal well perceave that he nether hath denied the trueth that he hath thus longe taught and ac- knowledged, nor yet thinketh to do : whiche vertu and high gyfte of God, the Almighti Father of our Lord Jesus Christ increase in him and all the Christen to the honour and glory of his holy 492 LIFE OP MELANCTHON. name, increase of his knowledge and saving of many soules. — Amen. At London^ in Edward Whitchurch House^ by John Rogers^ 1. Au' gusti, 1548." The affair of the Interim occupied the atten- tion of several conventions in the year 1549, and Melancthon devoted a considerable share of his time, not only in these attendances, but in writing letters of advice respecting indifferent things to the pastors of the different churches in Hamburg, Frankfort, Mansfield, and the various districts of Upper and Lower Saxony. These in- teresting documents uniformly breathe the same pious and pacific spirit,mingled with their author's characteristic prudence. To the former of these churches heverydistinctly states his sentiments re- specting what are denominated indifferent things. *' We do not call magical consecrations, wor- shipping of images, the procession of the host and other similar services openly condemned both in our discourses and writings, nor other absurdities, as nocturnal visits to the tombs of saints, indifferent things: but they are shockingly multiplied either for the purpose of provoking us, or with a crafty design to im- pose heavier burdens upon the pastors, and they do us an injury while they humour their own passions. There are many things appointed bythemost ancient of churches, and conducive to the beauty of orderly worship and the instruction LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 493 of the lower classes, as the order of festivals and of lessons, public assemblings, examination and absolution previous to the reception of the sa- crament, certain rites in public penitence, ex- amination in confirming, public ordination to the ministry of the gospel, public betrothing to marriage, the form of prayers used in nuptial ceremonies, and funeral orations over the dead." fwj One of the first and most virulent of all the opponents of Melancthon at this period was Matthias Flacius, or Flaccus Illyricus. He was a native of Albona in Istria, and in the year 1541 he went to Wittemberg, where he became a disciple of Luther and Melancthon, and after- wards taught Greek and Hebrew for a subsistence. He was treated with the utmost kindness and liberality by Melancthon, and in 1544, through his and Luther's influence, he obtained a public employment in the University. During the period of dispersion which the scholars suffered in consequence of the war, he resided at Bruns- wick, and delivered lectures which acquired him considerable reputation, but afterwards returned to Wittemberg in 1547. When the controver- fwj Melancth. Ep. Lib. I. 79. Comp. ep. 80, 81, 82. ad Past. Eccles. in Marchid, in Coviitatu Mansfeldcnsi, in urb, Francof, (id ripas Meni. kJ 494- LIFE OF MELANCTHON. sies arose respecting the Interim, he retired to Magdeburg, which was at that time put under the ban of the Empire. He is represented as a man of excellent talents, great wit and extensive learning, but turbulent, furious, and of a most contentious disposition, fxj Flacius at first ventured only upon the pri- vate circulation of some sarcastic misrepresenta- tions of the meetings of the divines of Wittem- burg; but afterwards he openly slandered them, althousrh he had no certain information of the subjects of their conferences. Mclancthon was blamably negligent of his private papers, and would often confess it to his friends, particularly Camerarius, who remonstrated with him upon the subject. Flacius by this means surrep- ticiously obtained possession of copies of several of his letters and other writings, and considering himself sujfficiently armed for a more public at- tack, he first united himself with some of Me- lancthon*s bitterest enemies, Gallus, AmsdorfF, Wigand, Judex, Faber and others: then pub- lished at Magdeburg a variety of slanders against him and all his party, advising every one to avoid them as the very pests of the church. He had the audacity to proclaim him- fxj Bayle Diet. Hist. Cam. Vit. INIel. Adam. Vit. 6erra Theolosorura. LIFE OF MELANCtHON. 494 self as " the only true prophet, teacher and de- fender of the religious interests of the Christian community, and admonished everyone toobserve the evil consequences resulting from their secret assemblies and conferences — that now there was an end to all pure religion — that gospel liberty was betrayed — that they were returned to the once rejected yoke of Papal domination — and that the poor flock of Christ were recommended again to the mitred bishops," To prove these charges he published a copy of the decree of Leipsic, and other minor writings which had been proposed to the states, and compared these with the book of the Interim, lie distorted ever}^ sentence, and by artful misrepresentations endeavoured to persuade every one that the different articles of the decree contained the most deadly poison. In addition to this he declared, ^' that the forms of the church ought to be con- stantly maintained inviolate, without allowing the smallest alteration according to the appoint- ments of the Interim, and that if the Emperor ot the Papists should molest any one, it would be proper to resort to arms for defence." After some time Melancthon, having pa- tiently borne every reproach, wrote a reply to //iSi^^ >, these statements, which merits insertion, not /^^r^'/jJ only on account of the excellent spirit which iV*''^ pervades it, but because it effectually refutes ^ the misrepresentations of Mosheim and his learn- X ^ ^ 496 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. ed commentator. It is dignified, pious, and solid. " As it ought to be every one's principal concern to know and worship God aright, and as he has revealed himself in his church, in- viting all to hear his voice and to fly to the standard of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is re- presented by Isaiah as " set up for a standard to the people,'* (yj — it is of the utmost importance amidst this general confusion of mankind, wisely to consider and to inquire what constitutes the true church, and where it is to be found ; that wherever we are we may form a part of it by adopting the principles of the true faith, and con- necting ourselves with the people of God. This church is dispersed throughout the world, but is distinguishable from the impious part ofmankind by infallible signs ; for such as maintain the truth of the gospel, and the proper use of the sacra- ments, to the rejection of idolatrous services, constitute, wherever situated,, the true church of God, and may be satisfactorily distinguished ./ from others by their reception of the Scrip- tures. " Amidst the wreck of empires and the dis- persion of their subjects, good men possess this consolation, that wherever they hear the incor- ruptible word of truth, and witness the legitimate use of sacraments, the rejection of idolatry, and fyj Is. xlix. 22. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 49/ of those errors which oppose the commands of Jesus Christ, there they feel confident of having discovered the true church, there is the family of God, there he is present by the ministry of the gospel, there the supplications of faith are heard, there the genuine worship of God is conducted, and there the Son of God gathers an eternal in- heritance. ' Where two or three,' said he, * are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them/ (zj *' In periods of public dissension we have need of these consoling sentiments, and I have introduced them here, because our churches, which know the importance of these consider- 'ations, are at this moment exceedingly disturbed by numerous clamours. The same doctrine is taught in them as is proclaimed in our writings : the Sacraments continue unaltered: errors in faith and images in worship, as our books suffi- ciently testify, are discarded. " But Flacius Illyricus exclaims that our doctrine is changed, and that we have restored certain ceremonies which had been abolished. Let us examine these charges; ?i\id Jirst, con- i:^ cerning Doctrine. The instructions of all the public teachers in our churches and seminaries at once refute this claumny, and to avoid any prolix statement let me refer to what I have fij Mat. xviii. 20. 2 K 498 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. written in the volume entitled, ' Loci Com- munes Theologici/ which is in many hands, and V in which I did not aim to establish a new faith, but accurately to represent that which was com- mon to all our churches, as exhibited in the Confession of Augsburg, presented in 1530 to the Emperor, which I consider the invariable sentiments of the true universal church of Christ; a statement I wish to be understood as having written without sophism, and without any calumnious intention. I am conscious of having compiled that epitome of doctrine, not for the purpose of seeking to differ from others, not from the mere love of novelty, not from a desire of controversy, nor from any other base or unworthy motive: but circumstances re- quired it. When in the first inspection of the churches we had to encounter a variety of re- proaches from ignorant persons, I published in a compressed form a summary of Doctrine which Luther had delivered in volumes of discourses and expositions, and studied a mode of express- ion which might conduce to accuracy of views m those who were taught, and to general unani- mity; always submitting what was written to the judgment of our churches, and of Luther himself, whose opinions on many points I parti- cularly inquired, and copies of whose' writings are in the possession of many. I now call God to witness my profession of this doctrine, which, LIFE OP MELANCTHON. 499 as I have already stated, I am satisfied perfectly coincides with that of the universal church of V our Lord Jesus Christ, and by his assistance I ^ resolve to bring this confession into general use in the church. This I mention lest any one should reproach me for hindering the faith of others by my own doubts. " In the next place it is requisite to offer a few words of reply to the charge respecting ^ Ceremonies. I certainly could have wished, especially in the present afflictive circumstances, that the churches should not have been disturbed by any change, but if such be the case it does not originate with me. But I confess that I have persuaded the people of Franconia and others not to abandon their churches on account of any service with which they could comply without impiety. For although Flacius cries out vehe, mently that the churches had better be deserted, y. and the Princes alarmed by the fear of sedition, ^ I should not choose to be the author of such wretched advice. It is plain that we must en- Kdure much greater burdens in the cause of litera- I ture and religion than mere dress — as the hatred of the great, the insolent contempt of the popu- lace, the malevolence of hypocritical friends, the dissensions of the priesthood, poverty, perse- cution, and other evils which accompany even a quiet government: but these turbulent times produce many greater miseries. 2 k2 500 LIFE OF MELANCTHOJf. " But as we must not desert our posts on this account, we may sustain lighter servitude if it can be done with a good conscience. The distressing situation of the present times, in which there are such divisions in sentiment and affection, seem to me to require that these op- pressed churches should be comforted and strengthened by all the aids that piety can af- ford, and that we should take care that the most important doctrines should be faithfully ex- plained and transmitted to posterity, and that the Universities be supported as the depositories of oeneral literature. o " The representation of Flacius respecting somebody (who I know not) having reported, l/ that I have declared we ought not to with- draw from the churches although the ancient abuses should be re-instated, is absolutely false. " Now mark this crafty man ; in order to excite suspicion and inflame hatred, he produces many sentences dropped in familiar discourse, which he calumniously misinterprets, and also attributes sayings to others of his own invention, that he might appear not only to have witnesses, but agents at his command. Nor have I ever thought or said what he falsely imputes to me, that we ought to remain in those churches in. which old errors are restored, mass services, in-, vocation of saints, and other impious services J which we have condemned in our publications. X ^ LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 601 I do openly declare that such idolatrous rites should neither be practised nor endured: and that students may be the better instructed in every particular, I have explained the occasions and origin of controversy with great care and labour. " Here if I we^e inclined to indulge my grief I might justly complain of Flacius, who circulates such falsehoods to my detriment, and might detail the origin of those distresses which overwhelm the whole church, explaining those circumstances which tend to strengthen the boldness and confirm the power of our adversa- ries against the truth. But I am unwilling to open these wounds, and I beseech these advo- cates of liberty to allow me and others at least to endure our afflictions in peace, and not excite more cruel dissensions. " He boasts that he will be the advocate ofl lA the pristine state of things. If by this express- ion he refers to particular empires and govern- ments, and confines the church only to its own walls, his idea is very incorrect ; for the church is scattered abroad in various kingdoms, publish- ing the incorruptible word of the gospel, and serving God by the tears and groans of genuine worship. But as he states he was once so fa- miliarly acquainted with me, he could testify my pains and sorrows and zealous care. We lament the disturbed state of pubhc affairs and 502 LIFE OF MELANCTHOF. of kingdoms, nor do we ask for garrisons and ramparts of defence, but in our churches we pubhsh the gospel of truth, serving God in the knowledge and faith of his Son, and aiming to the best of our feeble efforts to promote the literary pursuits of our youth and the preservation of discipline. If this advocate of the primitive state of things can restore this golden age to our churches, let him triumph as much as he will, " Why he should particularly attack me who have never offended him as Marius did Anto- nius, I know not, for he is aware that I have been always opposed to the corruptions of religion and have censured the prevailing errors. Now he says I have encouraged them, because it has been my advice not to quit the churches on ac- count of a surplice or any thing of that kind. If dissension arises on these subjects, the com- mandments respecting charity should not be forgotten, especially as he knows our great afflictions, and that we neither seek dominion nor wealth. We should not imitate the exam- ple of worldly disputants whose impetuosity is often such as to exemplify tiie proverb, ' One serpent eats another lest it should become a dra- gon.' He now not only threatens to write against me, but to do something worse. T could wish that we rather co-operated to illustrate essential truth, for there are sourses enow of contention ; so that we should renounce our hostility and LIFE OF MELANCTHON. .503 labour, a mode of proceeding more conducive to our personal advantage and that of the whole church : lest it should happen as Paul says, ' take heed that ye do not devour one another.' I shall frame my answers with a view to utility, and hope, that both by my writings and by the opinion of the pious I am sufficiently defended against calumny. Many good and learned men in different places are greatly grieved that the churches are so unjustly censured. But I re- commend Flacius and others to consider, what will be the consequence if mutual animosities revive the quarrels of thirty years. How de- plorable would this be ! " Whenever he reports his idle stories and things professedly spoken in familiar conversa- tions, he shews what kind of regard he has for the confidence of friendship and the rights of social intercourse. We naturally unbosom our- selves with more freedom amongst our friends, and often I have myself in maintaining a discussion strongly opposed an opinion which I really em- braced, not in joke, but for the purpose of ob- taining information from the views of others. " Many are acquainted with my natural turn of mind, and that I am prone rather to in- dulge injocoseness even in the midst of afflic- tions than to any thing like sternness. To catch and circulate my words on these occasions as he has done is mean and unkind, to say no worse. I 7 304 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. But if, as in some parts of his letter he threatens me with the sword, any evil should occur, and destruction should befall this miserable head, I will commend myself to Jesus Christ the Son of God, our Lord, who was crucified for us and raised again, who is the searcher of hearts and knows that I have inquired after truth with a careful simplicity of mind, not wishing either to gain factions and influence, or to indulge an unbridled curiosity. Nor has it been without great and diligent attention to the whole of Christian antiquit}^ that I have endeavoured to unravel a variety of intricate questions and to direct the studies of youth to important learn- ing. " But I will not speak of myself. In all civil dissensions I am aware that calamities are to be expected, the minds of men become in- flamed, and I perceive Flacius prepared with his firebrands ; but to God I commit my life and his own true church here and in other places, respecting which I feel far more solicitous than of my own life. This however is my consola- tion, that God has promised his perpetual pre- sence in the church, and his Son declares, ' Lo! I am with you always even to the end of the world.* He will preserve the people that main- tain the doctrines of the gospel and that truly call upon his name ; and 1 pray with the utmost fervour and importunity of soul that he would preserve his church in these regions. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 505 " This brief reply to the clamours of Flacius, I have written, not so much on my own account as for the sake of our churches in general, among whom many pious minds are deeply wounded by his writings. Let them be consoled by this assurance, that fundamental principles are faithfully retained in our churches, namely, the incorruptible ministry of the gospel, all the arti- cles of faith and the use of Christian Sacraments without alteration. The Son of God it is most certain is present with such a ministry, and as I v have already said, hears the supplications of such an assembly. Adieu, candid reader. Oc- tober, 1;549." It will be proper to subjoin to this defence the emphatic language he uses in an epistle to his friend Matthesius — " I trust you will not be influenced by the sycophantic writings of Flacius Illyricus, who invents absolute falsehoods. I have never said, I have never written, I have never thought what he declares I have said, re- specting the phrase '■ toe are justified by faith "^ only; namely, that it is absurd and a kind of subtle trifling about words — 1 have indeed spoken and written many things respecting the manner in which the exclusive term is to be understood as well as many others ; and have been at great pains to correct the misinterpreta- tions of many put upon the word only ; but I 1/ 606 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. purpose replying to these virulent crimina- tions/* faj If, in corresponding with his friends Me- lancthon spoke of Flacius in very decided terms as a calumniator, we cannot feel much sur- prized ; but that the flagrant misrepresenta- tions of this adversar}^ should have so deep- ly tinctured as it has done, the accounts of distinguished historians, is truly deplorable. Even Mosheim and his learned commentator have obviously leaned to the unfavouraljle side of the subject, and rather perpetuated disho- nourable impressions than carefully guarded his fame. The language of this great Reformer which has been copiously quoted in the present work, is in itself sufficient to evince the nature of those principles by which he was actuated, and the extreme absurdity of charging him with tergiversation. The Adiaphoristic Controversy occasioned many other disputes, but we shall neither per- plex our readers nor mispend our time by wan- dering into the briery wilderness of polemical / divinity. To some of these debates, however, it will be proper briefly to allude in relating the events of the time in which they were particu- larly agitated. {») Melakcth. Ep. Lib. II. 42. ad Johan. Matth. ( ^07 ) CHAP. XII. .r^^i#sr .#%#■ JN* #> A. D. 1550, TO A. D. 1557. Articles prepared for the Council of Trent — Melancthon commences his journey thither — but returns in con- sequence of Maurice changing his conduct, and de- claring tear against the Emperor — Feace of Passau — Plague — Withdraioment of the University of Wit- temberg to Torgau — Osiander — Stancarus — Private afflictions — Meeting at Nauynburg respecting the re- newal of the ancient Friendship subsisting between the Houses of Saxony , Brandenburg and Hesse — Trans- actions relative to Servetus — John Frederic's Release and Death — Death of Maurice — Controversies- Persecutions of Flacius and his Adherents — Melanc- thon s letters on the subject — Death of Jonas. In the year 1550, in consequence of the importunate entreaties of the Emperor, Pope Julius III. who had succeeded the departed Paul III. appointed a Council to be held at Trent ; and in the Diet of Augsburg all the German Princes, overawed by the military atti- tude and resolute spirit of his Imperial Majesty, 50S LIFE OF MELANCTHON. consented to this convention. The Elector Maurice was the least servile of any in this com- pliance, insisting upon these conditions, which however the Archbishop of Mentz refused to enter into the registers, that doctrinal points should be re-examined and discussed — that this examination should be conducted in presence of the Protestant divines — that they should have the liberty of voting as well as deliberating — and that the Pope should not preside in the proposed council either in person or by his legates. Deeming it requisite to be fully prepared for the great occasion, Maurice commanded Me- lancthon to draw up an explicit statement of the principal articles of the Protestant faith, to be presented if required to the proposed council, A similar paper was written by Brentius in the name of the Wurtemburghers. When the for- mer document was ready, the prince assembled all his Theologians at Leipsic on the eighth of July \55\, to hear it read and to deliberate upon its contents. It was unanimously approved and published under the title of *' Repetitus Confessionis Augustanae." In the month of January of the succeeding year Melancthon began his journey to Trent. " Yesterday,"says he, writing to George, Prince of Anhalt, " I received letters from the Court containins: the commands of our illustrious Elector, to George Major and myself to proceed LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 609 to Nuremberg, where we are to wait further orders respecting our journey to the general council, the Duke of Wurtemberg and the city of Strasburg having already sent their deputies. But as no particular instructions are given, I purpose proceeding direct to Dresden whence I will write to your Highness. I sincerely wish the Court would not disregard the advice which is approved by so many, that a general commis- sion be sent by common consent to the council from the principal churches in the neighbouring cities and districts. But I commend our cause to God." They were, however, directed to pro- ceed only as far as Augsburg, till they receiv- ed further instructions from Prince Maurice for their future guidance. With this design they travelled to Nuremberg, where in conse- quence of the high esteem in which Melancthon was held, they were received with the most marked distinction. They were lodged in a public building of the city and every attention paid them, which the most affectionate and so- licitous benevolence could dictate. " The day after our arrival at Nuremberg," sa^^s Melanc- thon, " which was on the twenty-second of January, I received a packet of letters sent by Doctor Padornus, from the city of Trent, in which it was intimated that the answer to the application, for a (Papal) safe conduct was still delayed. I wrote immediately that we were 510 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. come to Nuremberg, and requested to be in- formed whether and when we were to proceed to Trent. I have also notified our journey to our own Court. At present I have received no reply from either. We have been already de- layed ten days at Nuremberg, in total uncer- tainty respecting our future progress, whether or when we are to go forward. In the mean time many in this place distinguish us by the most officious kindness and attention. Sarcerius preaches publicly to great concourses of people and I have delivered several lectures." During this delay public affairs assumed such a posture as not only to stop the progress of Melancthon and his associates, but to place Germany in a new and interesting situation. The time was at length arrived when the secret motives which influenced the new-created Elector of Saxony to a mysteriousness of con- duct which had often perplexed and astonished the Protestants, were at length fully developed. From the intimacy to which the Emperor had admitted him, he soon perceived his design of becoming the absolute dictator of Germany, and every act convinced Maurice that he was secretly rivetting on the chains of servitude, which his ambition had forged for his degraded country. He had frequently petitioned for the release of the Landgrave of Hesse from imprisonment ; to petitions he added remonstrances, but nothing? LIFE or MELANCTHON. oil could induce Charles to fulfil his engage- ments. Maurice was aware at the same time, that he was elevated to a commanding ascend- ancy amongst the Protestant princes, and the fairest prospects presented themselves for the gratification of his own eagerness for power and distinction. With the most consummate address he succeeded in retaining the fatal confidence of the Emperor while he deceived him, and in not losing entirely that of the Protestants, while he was necessitated in public to pursue a course which they must have often considered danger- ous to their religion, if not subversive of their liberties. He at length prepared to strike the blow, by soliciting the protection of Henry IT. King of France, who agreed to declare war against the Emperor, professedly for the sole purpose of emancipating the Landgrave of Hesse, as a Catholic prince could not unite with a Pro- testant association upon a religious account. Application was also made to the King of Eng- land, but the cabals incident to a Court during a minority (it was the reign of Edward VI.) pre- vented that attention to foreign and especially to religious affairs, which might otherwise have been expected. A last application for the li- berty of the captive Landgrave was made in vain, Maurice still cajoled the Emperor, affected to be more than ever anxious to remove the difficul- ties which had arisen respecting a safe conduct ilf LIFE OP MELANCTHON. to the Protestant divines, and as we have seen, even commanded Alelancthon to proceed on his journey to the council of Trent. He further intimated his intention of meeting his Imperial Majesty in person at Inspruck. Many rumours were beginning to circulate, but the Emperor and his confidential adviser Granvelle, Bishop of Arras, totally disregarded them ; the sagacious minister and his Imperial Master being both lulled into a fatal security. At length Maurice took up arms and pub- lished a manifesto, in which he represented that the defence of the Protestant religion, the liber- ties of Germany and the release of the Land- grave of Hesse from unjust imprisonment, were the principal motives of his conduct. The council of Trent was instantly prorogued for two years, but circumstances prevented its actually re-assembling for the space of ten. It is impos- sible not to perceive in the infatuation of Charles V. and his advisers, and the political mancEuvres resulting from the ambitious views and private resentments of the Elector Maurice, that super- intending Providence, which, though it permitted a sea of troubles to flow in upon the Protestant cause, and almost to inundate the territories of religious Reformation for a time, appointed the happy moment when the tide should ebb and Germany be free. Melancthon in this extraordinary crisis wil- LIFE OF MELANCTHOX. 613 iingly returned to Wittemberg, to resume his various duties both of a private and pubhc na- ture. The city which had so welcomed his arrival, rendered him every honour upon his de- parture. "It would have been a very proper pro- cedure," says he writing to the Prince of Anhalt *' to have sent a general deputation from various churches to the council as your Highness thought from the very first, but our advice on this sub- ject, as your Highness knows, was afterwards disregarded. When therefore none of the princes or cities sent deputies, and no commands were given us except by the Elector of Saxony, I felt I confess, the strongest disinclination to the journey ; and when we could not proceed any further, I returned most willingly under the guidance of Providence to Wittemberg, although I was very much persuaded to remain in the country. Aware, indeed, there were many un- wise and evil-minded persons at Trent, I would nevertheless have gone had Germany continued in a state of tranquillity. Now distress forces me to return, or rather I judge it a very un- seasonable period to be disputing concerning Pontifical authority in a council amidst the alarms of civil war." fbj The unprepared state of Charles and the vigorous activity of Maurice, combined with a fbJ Melancth. Ep. Lib. II. p. 247. 2l 514 LITE OF MELANCTHON. variety of more private reasons which influenced tjie different powers of Germany, to produce the peace conchided in the month of August at Passau ; in which, amongst other articles, it was stipulated that a Diet should be held within six months to deliberate concerning the most effectual method of preventing in future all disputes in religion ; that in the mean time neither the Emperor nor any other prince should upon any pretext whatever offer injury or violence to such as adhered to the Confes- sion of Augsburg, but allow them the free and undisturbed exercise of their religion ; that the formulary of faith called the Interim should be considered null and void ; and that if the proposed Diet should not be able to terminate religious disputes, the present stipulations in behalf of the Protestants shall continue in full force and vigour, (c) Amidst the desolations of war, Germany was destined also to suffer the ravages of the plague, in consequence of which the Universi- ties of Wittemberg and Leipsic were dispersed ; but the former re-assembled under the auspices of Melancthon at Torgau, about twenty-two miles distant. He there engaged in delivering lectures on Justin Martyr, prepared a treatise " de unione personali," which does not appear to have been ever committed to the press, and (cj ReC£UIL DES TttAITES, II. 2C1. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 6] 5 published a refutation of Osiander in the Ger- man language. He used to say that " he was not afraid of the plague which had driven them to Torgau, but he was really apprehensive on account of plagues of another kind, which in- fested the country and seemed to threaten its utter ruin/' Osiander was another of those virulent ad- versaries of Melancthon, which the conferences and publications on the subject of the Interim had produced. He was pastor of the church at Nuremberg, but retired on that occasion to a divinity professorship at Konigsberg. His cha- racter and his opinions were marked by eccen- tricity. He zealously propagated sentiments respecting repentance and justification, which differed essentially from the Lutheran doctrines, and which consisted in subtle distinctions it is needless to detail. Suffice it to remark, that Stancarus, professor of Hebrew at Konigs- berg undertook to refute his statements, but was hurried by his impetuosity into opposite ex- tremes of doctrine. Osiander maintained that the man Christ, as a moral agent was obliged to obey for himself the divine law, and therefore could not by the imputation of his obedience obtain righteousness or justification for others. Hence he inferred that the Saviour of the world was empowered by his nature as God, to make expiation for our sins and reconcile us to the 2l 2 516 LITE or MELANCTHOK. offended Deity. But Stancarus totally excluded Christ's divine nature from all concern in the satisfaction he made and in the redemption he procured, affirming that the office of Mediator between God and man belonged to Jesus in his human nature alone. Osiander was patronized by persons of considerable rank and influence, but his opinions did not long survive him. fdj These discussions engaged the attention of the most eminent of the Lutheran divines and moved the powerful pen of Melancthon. In the year 1553, he says in a letter to his friend Came- rarius, " I have written on the controversy of Stancarus in a manner by far interior and more con- cise than the magnitude of the subject requires, but I was not willing to irritate an angry and choleric man." To Matthesius he writes, " About eight days ago the Elector of Brandenburg sent for Pomeranus and myself to examine into the con- troversy of Stancarus, who contends that Christ is Mediator only in his human nature. But im- mediately afterwards, information arrived that the Elector's son was dead and his father ill ; and thus at present our journey and the exa- mination is postponed. Nevertheless I have written my solemn declaration, that Jesus Christ is to be viewed as Mediator, as he is our High ^JJ SciiLussELB. Cat. Haeret. Lib. VI. Bayle Diet. Art. Osiander^ Sfancarus. Mosii. Eccles. Hist. Vol. IV. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 517 Priest in his united natures, divine and human. St. Ambrose maintains the same sentiment. The principal arguments for this truth I purpose sending at a future time. I beg you to notice for me any evidences on this subject which you may discover in reading the ancient fathers.*' His reply to Stancarus exhibits a mind in search of truth, and maintaining that dignified and unruffled tranquillity which a consciousness of possessing it ought ever to inspire. He begins in the most pious and conciliatory manner, de- precating all animosity in religious parties, and stating that as great contentions frequently ori- ginate in small beginnings, it was his anxious desire to remove rather than to enflame conten- tion. He appeals most convincingly to every part of the New Testament, in proof of the im- possibility of separating the two natures of Christ in the Mediatorial transactions, because the Son of God in his entire nature became Me_ diator, Redeemer, Saviour, King and Priest of the church. He appeals also to the concurrent opinion of Chrysostom, Irenaeus, Ambrose, Je- rome and the fathers generally, upon the same subjects, fej Melancthon was at this period occupied with the care of the churches and academical establishments in Misnia. To him as the most fej Melancth. Op. Tom. I. 518 LIFE OF MELANCTllON. competent director in every concern of this description, applications were usually made ; and the very counsellors of princes were the first to seek his valuable advice : and his plans were in this and most other cases generally adopted, (f) His affectionate spirit was deeply grieved by the loss of several friends during the course of the year, and by trials in his family. " Do- mestic afflictions," says he, (g) " are superadded to others. My servant John, remarkable for his fidelity and virtue, is called from the present life to the heavenly church ; and now my wife is so extremely ill that nature seems overpowered by disease. But I pray the Son of God to grant us his presence and preserve us with his whole church, as I have often expressed it in the fol- lowing verse : — ** Te maneat semper servante Ecclesia Christe Insertosque ipsi nos tua dextra tegat ; Tres velutin flamma testes Babylonide serras Rex ubi praesentem te videt esse Deum." O Saviour may thy church unhurt remain, And all within thy kind protection share! Like Israel's sons amidst Chaldean flame — The king confessing that a God was there ! — (j) Cam. Vit. Mel. (g) Melancth. Ep. Lib. IL 77. ai Jok, Maithea. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 519 A conference being appointed in the month of March 1554, at Naumburg, in Thuringia, for the purpose of consolidating a union and renew- ing the ancient friendship that subsisted between the houses of Saxony, Brandenburg and Hesse ; the different Theologians with Melancthon at the head of them were summoned to attend. John Foster, a skilful Hebraist, accompanied him from Wittemberg ; Alexander Aless, to whom he was peculiarly attached on account of his excellent spirit, polemical knowledge and accurate discernment, was deputed to join them from the University Qf Leipsic ; Adam Craft, from Hesse, and John Sleidan, celebrated for his history of ecclesiastical affairs, from Strasburg. From this convention he writes to Camerarius, " Like the ancient Argonauts who stuck fast upon a quicksand, so I seem to be fixed amongst the numerous perplexities of this trou- blesome affair. When we arrived at the Court we were directed to give our opinion upon three things, the inspection of the churches and the preparation of a formulary, as they call it, of instruction — the constitution of councils — and finally concerning the affairs of the Academy in Misnia. Afterwards when no one had prepared a copy of such instructions as were required, I received orders to compose it, which though done upon the spur of the occasion, was read in the assembly the next day and approved. The 520 LIFE OF MELANCTHON, pastor commented upon some things respecting your council; of the new Academy 1 have given no advice. The pastor made some observations in a very free, ingenuous manner. The third day was consumed in contention with the Dean ofFriburg, who attacked in the severest terms the good old pastor respecting the Adiaphoristic Controversy. I have written a reply which is incorporated in the letters of the prince to the Duke of Prussia, who is aiming to prevent the circulation of every book that contains any thing upon the subject of the Baltic Controversy.'* The purpose of this meeting was at length accomplished, in the renewal of that ancient treaty which subsisted between the two Electors of Saxony and Brandenburg, and the Landgrave of Hesse; and the insertion of another article which the peculiar circumstances of the times suggested, by which the respective parties agreed to adhere to the Confession of Augsburg, and to maintain it in their dominions, (hj Impartiality here demands a statement of the opinion of Melancthon upon those transac- tions at Geneva respecting the unhappy Ser- VETus, which have occasioned so many violent controversies. Were we to enter into a deli- berate and dispassionate investigation of this affair, it would probably appear that an eager- fhj Chytr. Saxon. 480. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 531 ness to criminate on the one hand, and to defend on the other, has hurried each party into ex- tremes ; the one, whose opinions have coincided with those of Servetus, have not been sufficiently disposed to make allowances for the peculiar circumstances in which the Reformers were placed, and for the strength of those conscientious however erroneous — deplorablt/ erroneous princi- ples they blended with many valuable dis- coveries; — the other party cherishing opposite religious sentiments, have been too anxious to extenuate a crime committed as^ainst the rigrhts of conscience which no considerations can ex- cuse; absurdly imagining that Calvin and truth were identical, and that to defend the reputation the former was essential to the vindication and glory of the latter. The case was this. Michael Servetus, a Spaniard and a native of Villaneuva, in Arragon, embraced the reformed religion at an early pe- riod of his life, in consequence of searching the Scriptures ; but departed from the general sen- timents of the Reformers on the subject of the Trinity. His zeal was considerable, and going into Germany to propagate his opinions, he pub- lished a book in lo31, entitled " de Trinitatis Erroribus," which in the ensuing year was fol- lowed by two other treatises. These writings occasioning great dissatisfaction, he removed from place to place till he settled in Paris, 622 LIFE OF MBLANCTHON. where he devoted himself to the study of medi- cine, but at the same time became involved in disputes of a theological nature with the phy- sicians, till at length chagrined at the sup- pression by act of parliament of a book he had published, he withdrew to Lyons and was introduced to the Archbishop of Vienna, in whose house he long resided. During several years he corresponded with Calvin the Re- former of Geneva, but the contemptuous man- ner in which he treated his theological antago- nist, produced at length an open rupture and a mortal antipathy. When Servetus was arrested and committed to prison at Vienna for his pub- lications, together with his printer, Calvin, at the desire however of the magistrates of that city, sent his letters and writings — but he was condemned for his published errors, and not as it appears in consequence of any interference of the Genevan Reformer. But having escaped from prison he fled to Geneva with the design of retiring to Naples. Here he was arrested ; and as it cannot with probability be denied at the instigation of Calvin, who had long before inti- mated '' if that heretic came to Geneva, he would take care that he should be capitally pu- nished." When tried for heresy the principal accusa- tions against Servetus were, his having asserted that the land of Canaan was fertile, though it LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 595 was unfruitful and barren — his having corrupted the Latin Bible which he was employed to cor- rect at Lyons, by introducing trifling and impi- ous notes of his own — and having in the person of Calvin defamed the doctrine that is preached, uttering all imaginable injurious and blaspheme ous words against it. Before sentence was, passed, the ministers of Basle, Zurich, Bern and SchafFhausen were consulted, who unanimous- ly determined that he ought to be condemned to death for blasphemy and heresy. The fol- lowing verdict was accordingly pronounced— " You Michael Servetus are condemned to be bound and led to Champel, and there fastened to a stake and burned alive with your book writ- ten with your hand and printed, until your body shall be reduced to ashes and your days thus finished as an example to others who might commit the same things ; and we com- mand you our lieutenant to put this our sen- tence into execution." Thus he perished in great agonies on the twenty-seventh of October 1653. The reader must naturally feel curious to know the opinion of the amiable Melancthon on this odious transaction, and it is with the utmost pain we produce it, as expressed in a letter to Bullinger. " I have read your statement re- specting the blasphemy of Servetus, and praise 324 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. your piety and judgment, and am persuaded that the Council of Geneva has done right in putting to death this obstinate man, who would never have ceased his blasphemies. I am asto- nished that any one can be found to disapprove of this proceeding ; but I have transmitted you a few papers which will sufficiently explain our sentiments." On more than one occasion he had refuted his statements by an appeal to Scrip- tural evidence, fij and had he confined his hos- tility to the principle, and not by his concurrence have punished the man, we should have enjoyed the delightful opportunity of presenting to the reader, what the whole course of Melanc- thon*s life and the general character of his mind seemed to render probable, a noble exception to the general spirit of the times. But at that period. Christians of every class and party believed that gross religious errors were punishahlehy the civil magistrate, a popish doc- trine which they had not yet renounced, and which, it is to be feared, is not even to this day, and in the most enlightened part of the world, totally exterminated from the breasts of all Pro- testants. Be it remembered however, that by cherishing such a principle in any degree they betray the best of causes — furnish occasion of fiJ Melancth. Ep. Lib. I. 3. Lib. IV. 140, kc. LIFE OF MELANCTHOX. 523 the most injurious representations of Christian- ity, and instead of learning of their master, who was "'meek and lowly of heart,'* imitate the misguided disciples who were for calling down fire from heaven. Can any thing be more ob- vious than this, that it is the birthright of every human being to think for himself, that he is amenable alone to conscience and to God for his religious sentiments, and that whatever per- son or system attempts to legislate for the free- born soul, and coerce the faith of another, is perpetrating one of the most detestable of crimes, robbing man of his liberty and God of his au- thority? In such a case submission to max is treason against heaven. Is it not truly asto- nishing that while the Reformers in their sepa- ration from the church of Rome asserted this noble principle, and were daily contending and even bleeding for it, they should so far forget themselves, even the very best of them, as to act in diametrical opposition to their own claims — to impose and to dissent from the same prin- ciple at the same time — to discard human au- thority in matters of religion in contending against the Roman hierarchy, and to vindicate it in establishing their own church ? — So inconsist- ent is human nature! — But let Protestants aim to purify themselves from this deep stain upon their characters, which can only be removed by 596 LIFK OF MELANCTIION. eternally disclaiming all dominion over another's faith and conscience ! John Frederic survived to the present year the release from *' durance vile" which the peace of Passau had given him. He had however only been permitted to take possession of a part of his territories, and although he had laid claim to his electoral dominions upon the death of Maurice, who was shot in battle in the preceding year, that usurper's brother, Augustus, a Prince of considerable talents and great ur- banity of manners, was chosen by the ungrateful states of Saxony to that elevated station. The death of John Frederic excited the tears of Me- lanctVion, who ceased not to admire the virtues which not only flourished in the beams of pros- perity, but which did not appear in the least degree to wither in the most adverse season of his life. He possessed an inflexible integrity of character that no changes could possibly alter, and a far distant posterity will venerate his name. The contentions excited by the intemperate real of Osiander and Flacius now raged in every direction, and with such excessive violence at Nuremberg in particular, that the whole city was in a state of commotion. A most urgent application therefore was made to the Elector x\ugustus, to permit Melancthon, whose advice LIFE OP MELANCTHON. 627 had been often sought, to repair immediately with his principal associates Aless, Camerarius, and Pomeranus, to alford every requisite assist- ance on the spot. The most disgraceful scenes were transacted, (kj but the presence and judg- ment of these eminent commissioners after some time restored tranquillity. Melancthon drew up a short but comprehensive statement of truth, in which he displayed the most exquisite skill, combined with the most Christian spirit. He maintained truth and refuted error without indulging in the least asperity of language against his adversaries. This affair however, was not adjusted till the commencement of another year; but upon his return home he was infested with crowds of persons inoculated with the wildfire of Flacius, who absolutely persecuted him for several months and years. Unhappily several persons of distinction espoused his cause, and encouraged the ignorant hostility of the vulgar. They cherished a disputative pertinacity of spirit, made a man an offender for a word, perpetually stood in the attitude of defiance, filled all the shops with the most abusive publications, and denounced with unmerciful scurrility the ami- fkj " Exarseruntque passim certarniaadeillis rebus planA gladiatoria. Quae tanta extiterunt Norimbergee ut ferri in civitate pacata diutjiis nou possent." Cam. Vit. Md. p. 341. 528 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. able and most insulted Melancthon. Flacius himself was the prime mover of these proceed- ings, and exerted a never-ceasing activity in the circulation of calumnious misrepresent- ations. In a letter to Matthesius, Melancthon very justly characterizes him as '' a viper whose venom every wise man would avoid ;" but the calumniator himself he addressed in the mildest terms. " Homer, in describing the contest be- tween Ajax and Hector, represents the former as being satisfied when the latter yields and con- fesses that he is vanquished; but there is no end to your criminations. Who ever acts in this manner ? Who strikes a foe when he gives up the contest and throws away his weapons? Claim the victory, I yield, I contend no longer about these rites; I am chiefly solicitous that the churches live in concord and peace. I confess indeed that I have committed sin in this affair, and implore forgiveness of God that I did not wholly fly from these subtle disputations: but I feel myself obliged to refute the mistateraents of yourself and G-dlius." flj On another occasion he expresses himself in the following manner ; " I am not in despair on account of the cruel clamour of my enemies, who threaten not to leave me afoot of ground to stand upon in Germany ; but I commit myself rO Fez EL. Cons. Theol. Tom. II. pp. 255, 257. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 5^9 to the Son of God. If I am driven away alone, / have determined to go into Palestine, and in those lurking places where Jerome retired, by maintaining intercourse with the Son of God, to write clear statements of divine truth, and in death to recommend my soul to God/* Again he says, " I am eagerly and with tranquil- lity of mind expecting to be banished, as I have told the princes. My adversaries declare they are resolved to accomplish their purpose, and that I shall not have a footing in Germany. I sincerely wish they would do it quickly, as the Son of God said to Judas. If I die, there will be a footing for me in heaven ; or if I continue in the body, I shall still be associated with pious and learned men either in Germany or else- where. I am astonished at the folly of my enemies, who imagine they possess a ruling in- fluence in Germany, and can terrify me with their threats." On Melancthon in a great measure de- volved " the care of all the churches;'* but will any one credit the representations of his open enemies, or more injurious friends who have carelessly propagated the notion of his abandon- ing the truth, after perusing the following pious and affectionate portion of a letter addressed to the pastors of the churches in the provinces of Bohemia and Lusatia? — or, indeed, will it be believed that if he had been guilty of tergiver- 2 M 630 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. sation they would have continued to seek his advice, to value his sympathies, to confide in his wisdom, and to allow him to maintain the emi- nence to which public esteem and personal me- rit had exalted him? " Whether," he observes, " divine wisdom has appointed still greater trou- bles than ever existed before in this feeble and superannuated age of the world, may be doubt- ful; but amidst the desolation of Empires, the Son of God will continue to gather an eternal church, solely by the preaching of his gospel, till the period when he will recal the dead to life. These predictions are given to encourage us to endure the sufferings allotted us, and to persevere in the labour of extending the truth in the world, which will not be in vain. It is with much grief we have heard that pure doc- trine is so despised, that the pastors have been driven from their churches, and that at this moment many pious and upright men, with their wives and dear little children, are in a state of exile. We sympathize most deeply with them, with you and with your bereaved churches, and implore the Son of God, who has said, ' I will not leave you comfortless,* to alleviate these sufferings, and to afford you all necessary assist- ance. You so well know the true sources of reli- gious consolation, that we will not enlarge, but only admonish you under present circumstances to set your churches an example of stedfastness LIFE OP MILANCTHON. 531 in tribulation, lest they should be tempted to unbelief. Nothing will be more efficacious for this purpose than a thorough knowledge of the truth, and an opposition to mere human opin- ions. The Papists support the most flagrant idolatry, the invocation of departed saints, and numerous absurdities originating from that mon- strous sentiment : they turn the Lord's Supper into a gainful traffic, and contrary to the design of this institution, carry about the bread in public procession to be adored. Disparaging the true doctrine of repentance, they invent a multiplicity of foolish rites, to the absolute tor- ment of pious persons, taking away the con- solation to be derived from the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, and zealously contending for numerous observances of their own invention. The people then will surely not suppose our determined opposi- tion to these practices unnecessary. Let the principal points of doctrine be frequently in- culcated, with these solemn admonitions ; ' Keep yourselves from idols.' — ' Though we or an angel from heaven preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.' — ' Whosoever blasphemeth against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be for- given him.'" This letter is dated February, 1555, (m) (m) Melancth. Ep. Lib. 1. 78. 9 M 2 53*2 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. The death of Justus Jonas proved an ad- ditional source of affliction at this p- nod. He had been particularly intimate both with Luther and Melancthon, and had co-operated with the latter in several important public transactions. Jonas was a native of Northausen in Thuringia. He was profoundly skilled both in law and the- ology. For some years he held a pastoral charge at Wittemberg, and was a Professor and Rector of the University. Afterwards re- moving to Halle, he became extensively use- ful in promoting the Reformation. For a con- siderable time after the death of Luther he con- tinued in the Duke of Saxony's court, and was a sympathizing companion to the sons of John Frederic in their afflictions. At last he was placed over the church in Eisfield, where he ex- pired in peace on the ninth of October, 1565^ at the age of sixty-two. Maximilian king of Bohemia exacted a new tax upon the celebrity of Melancthon, by pro- posing to him a number of questions respecting the principal subjects that occasioned the con- troversies of the age ; to all of which he felt him- self obliged to return a circumstantial reply. This was in the year 1.5^6, and the whole me- morial was published at Leipsic, by Nicholas Selneccer, about ten years after the author's de- cease. It is impossible for those who are not simi- LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 5.33 larly situated fully to realize the perplexity and toil which Melancthon and his coadjutors sus tained at this period. As the head of all the principal literary and ecclesiastical transactions of the age, consulted by princes, despatched upon every urgent occasion on different journies, summoned to private conferences and public councils, necessitated to maintain a most exten- sive correspondence, opposed, and even insulted by a violent faction, and watched as a heretic by the partizans of the Roman hierarchy ; it is not surprising that he should represent himself as tormented upon the rack of incessant engage- ment, and absolutely distracted with writing dis- putations, rules and regulations, prefaces and letters, fiij (n) " Non po«ticas carnificinae apud inferos pares sunt meae carnificinae, qua excrucior scribendis disputationibus, legibus, pr£Efationibus, epistolis. Nunc vespondeo optimo in- veni rw e-xpy'^i ovofjiM Oia ^era IS (TKiitl'Mvos, et volumen mitto. Heri in Pomeraniam Controversias Stetinensis disjudicationem misimus.** ad Joach. Camerariiim, 844. ( 534 ) CHAP. XIII. A. D. 15x57 to A. D. 1560. Last conference of Melancthon tcith the Papists at Worms — Visit to Heidelberg — Receives intelligence of his wife^s death — Her epitaph — The Chronicon and other writings — Loss of friends — Melancthon's in- firmities — Interesting paper assigning reasons why it is desirable to leave the world — A variety of particulars respecting his last illness and death — Epitaph by Sabinus — Another by Camerarius-^Ode. The time was now approaching when Pro- vidence determined to remove this distinguished combatant from the field of holy and honourable warfare in which he had so long " fought a good fight ;" to share the honours of an eternal tri- umph. In the year 1557, he met his Popish adversaries for the last time in a conference at Worms. The chief subject of dispute was a most important one, meriting all the zeal and firmness with which the Reformers maintained their principles. It respected the rule of judg^ LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 53.5 inent in religious concerns. This the Papists strenuously affirmed to be the universal consent or custom of the church ; and with no less ardour Melancthon and his coadjutors insisted the only legitimate and authorative rule was the sacred Scripture. Let it never be forgotten by a grateful posterity, that however they might dif- fer in some other points among themselves., and however widely present or future generations may differ from them in topics, either maintained by some of them individually or perhaps all of them collectively, they are to be applauded and venerated for holding with the most tenaci- ous grasp of mind and asserting with the utmost resolution of spirit in defiance of a persecuting world, this noble principle — this anchora sacra of the Reformation, that the only authority to which human reason ought impli- citly to submit in religious concerns is the infallible word of the living God ! From the conference at Worms during a temporary suspension pf the business, the Elec- tor Palatine sent for Melancthon to Heidelberg, for the purpose of adjusting some literary ar- rangements — the Augustine convent having been converted into an academy. In this affair he was assisted by Micyllus and other eminent scholars. The pleasure he felt in meeting his brother George at Heidelberg, and in the affec- 536 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. tionate attentions of his celebrated son-in-law Caspar Peucer, was painfully interrupted by the intelligence of his wife's death. His friend Joachim Camerarius was charged to convey the melancholy tidings. Knowing the strength of his affections, he chose to defer the melanchol}'^ duty till the day after his arrival when they walked together in the prince's garden, but instead of manifesting any extraordinary emotion, he spoke like a man who was weaned in a great degree from the world, uttering a kind of tender fare- well to his beloved Catharine, and adding " that he expected very soon to follow her." He pursued a solemn and pious strain of conversa- tion, expressing his prophetic anticipations of the future troubles that awaited Saxony. So firmly convinced was he of the reality of his ap- prehensions, and so deeply affected at the dark prospect of future calamitous years, that his domestic misfortune seemed utterly absorbed in the greater importance of public affairs, foj The last act of conjugal tenderness which closed the long union of thirty-seven years, was the composition of the few following lines to adorn her tombstone : — Proxiraus hie tumulus Cathariuae contegit ossa Que Crappo quondam consule nata fuit CoJ Cam. Vit. Mel. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 537 Conjugio casto fuerat quae nupta Philippo Ex scriptis cujus nomina nota manent. Virtutes habuit donatas numine Christi Matronae Paulus quas docet esse decus. Hie absente viro sepelivit filia corpus Vivit, conspectu mens fruiturque Dei. Deposited beneath this hallow'd earth Lies Catharine's dust, of CRAppiN'shousebyi?V^A; To Philip joia'd by wedluck's sacred name- Philip — whose writings will prolong their fame. Virtues which Christ bestow'd, adorn'd her life And such as Paul affirms become a wife ! While, Philip absent, mourn'd the chast'ning rod— By filial tenderness beneath this clod ( Her body's plac'd ; — her soul is fled to God ! J Melancthon only survived his beloved partner about two years and six months, a period which he occupied in an unremitting attention to the duties of his academical station, and in the com- position of useful works. His opponents would not allow him to retire from controversial writing, and in \55S he replied to the accusations of Staphylus and Avius, two of the zealots of Rome. In the same year he issued the first part of his Chronicon, which is published complete in the fifth volume of his works by Peucer. It consists of more than seventy pages in folio, con- taining the great events of general history from 63S LIFE OF MELANCTHON. the creation of the world to the period of the Reformation. Like all his other compositions it displays a great extent of reading, a remarkable capacity for judicious selection, and a disposition to use up the rich materials with which his mind was stored, in the erection of a structure, adapted both to gratify and to benefit posterity. The Chronicon was written principally as its author states for the youth in the Universities ; " I wish," says he, modestly, " I possessed more time and capacity to finish up these historical narratives, but I hope that others will be sti- mulated by this example to execute other more copious and better compositions." Many writers have erroneously attributed to Melancthon a Greek Version of the Augsburg Confession, transmitted in the course of the fol- lowing year, under the name of PaulDolsciuS, to the patriarch of Constantinople. His own words in a letter to Bordingus sufficiently evince the mistake of this statement, while they authenti- cate and approve the Version. " I send you a Greek Version of the Augsburg Confession, which was published without my advice. How- ever 1 approve the style and have sent it to Constantinople by a man of learning, a dean of that city, who has been our guest during the whole summer. He relates that there were heretofore many churches in Asia, in Thrace and the neighbouring countries, but they have been LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 559 gradually diminished by oppression and bondage." During the same year he composed his reply to a Decree of the Abbot of Wirtemberg, and to some papistical scurrilities of which he griev^ ously complains ; (^/>^ he wrote also his judgment upon the controversy respecting the Lord's Sup- per to Frederic III. Elector Palatine, which was afterwards published, and also finished some other minor compositions. During these transactions his earthly ties were gradually dissolving. Year after year robbed him of his dearest friends, thus rendering the world less desirable, and heaven more attrac- tive. On these occasions he usually expressed himself in a most pious and elevated strain. For instance, " Let us congratulate Vitus, now removed to the delightful society of the heavenly church ; and be stimulated by his example to be prepared for the same journey." In addition to his domestic and other bereavements he lost Micyllus, Justus Menius and John Bugenha- gen Pomeranus. The latter was one of the most remarkable men of the age, and may be justly ranked with Luther and Melancthon, with whom he cherished a long and close friendship and to whom he was in many respects little inferior. Originally he was a schoolmaster at Treptow, in Pomerania, and when he first saw the " Babylo- rpj MiELABTcTH. Ep. Tom. II. p. 379. ad Cracovhm, 540 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. nish Captivity** by Luther exclaimed, " the au- thor of this book is the most pestilent heretic that ever infested the church of Christ ;*' but after examining it more seriously and with an inquisitive mind, it wrought so entire a change of sentiment, that he said " the whole world is blind and this man alone sees the truth/' When he was chosen to be minister of the great church at Wittemberg, he not only did not aim at this elevation, but was almost dragged by force out of his obscurity to possess it, and assiduously devoted himself to the duties of this eminent station during thirty-six years. He expired in peace on the twentieth of April 1568, at the ad- vanced age of seventy-three. It is some satisfaction to find that such a man as Philip Melancthon was not destined to spend the latter years of his life in a state of inanimate decrepitude and half-conscious being. The flame of his genius and piety burnt with a bright and steady lustre to the last ; the noon of fame seemed to shed its undeparted glories upon the evening of his earthly existence ! How many have lived only to be pitied or despised, the wreck of their former selves, alike incapable of re- ceiving or imparting either pleasure or benefit ! Decays of body and infirmities of mind have worm-eaten a fabric built of the finest materials, and once presenting to the gratified observer a happy combination of elegance and utility. But LIFE OF MELANCTHON. i4l in the present instance every thing excites sur- prize and veneration. A perfect maturity of the faculties and a singular capability of exertion are apparent to the very end of his days. Pulchro- rum etiam autumnus pulcher est. It is impossible to read some of his last letters vi^ithout emotion. They breathe an exalted piety, a spirit of sym- pathy with the sorrows of others, and a state of preparation for that mighty change he was soon to experience. Such is his letter to Everard Roggius. fqj *' Dearest Brother, " I am a father and not insensible or desti- tute of natural affection, but deeply sympathize in the calamities which befal sons and daughters. I cannot therefore but believe that you are pain- fully affected with yours ; for the strongest mu- tual affection is implanted in the human breast between parents and children. I pray that our Lord Jesus Christ may assuage your griefs, alle- viate your adversities, and preserve both you and your family. Resort to those divine sourses of knowledge which are bestowed upon us, to ad- minister consolation in trouble. God designs indeed that his church should suffer the cross, but he would not have us be overwhelmed with grief, but rather stimulated by afflictions, to call ^qj Melancth. Ep. p. 307, 8, Lugd. Batav. 1647. 542 LIFE OP MELANCTHON. upon his name, to acquiesce, to rejoice in his dispensations. You remember the language of the Prophet Isaiah, whose words are expres- sively rendered in the Septuagint 'Ev hS4fci (/.ix^^ ^ Konhlx ^s vessels of mercy, *' From your brother, now an old man and not far from his climacteric year 63, " Philip Melancthon." The last letter, chiefly because it is the last he wrote, we have thought proper to trans- late. It is addressed to John Aurifaber.^r^ frj Melancth. Epist. p. 430. Ludg. Batav. 1C47. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 543 " Reverend Sir and dearest Brother, " Although I heard that you were in the principahty of Breslau, where I indulge the hope of enjoying some intercourse with those learned and pious men Crato, Adam, Peter Vincentius and Moreburgius, yet I write these few lines though I am in excruciating pain from an in- termitting fever, originating in a catarrh which has troubled me for upwards of three years. You will pardon therefore the brevity of my letter. Feeling myself dying, I have commended your doctrine to the illustrious prince, and have written concerning the genuine and holy union of the prin- cipal churches. I commend also this doctrine to you and implore you to receive David Voyt with kindness. I trust he will not disagree with you in opinion. Let me entreat you, if I live, to write me soon. Farewell, I return you my thanks for every kind office, and in particular for your assistance in the case of Sickius and Daucis. " Philip Melancthon will soon be no more !" About the same time he wrote down in two columns, on a piece of paper, the reasons why he should not be sorry to leave the world. One of these columns contained the blessings which death would procure ; namely, firsts that you will come to the light—^ecowrf/y, that you will see God — thirdly^ that you will con- template the Son of Go^-^fourthly^ that you 5 44 LIFE OF MELANCTHON will understand those admirable mysteries which you could not comprehend in the present life — -fifthly^ that we shall know why we are created such as we arc — sixthly^ that we shall comprehend the union of the two natures in Jesus Christ. The second column assigned two reasons why we should not regret departure from the world — -firsts because you will sin no more — secondly^ because you will no longer be ex- posed to the vexations of controversy, and the rage of Theologians. The following is an exact copy, fsj A Sinistris. Discedes d peccatis Liberaberis ab aerumuis et a rabie Theolofforum. A Dextris. Venies in lucein Videbis Deum Intueberis filium Dei Disces ilia mira arcaua quae in hdc vita intelligere non potuisti : Cur sic sinius conditi Qualis sit copulatio duarum uuturarum in Christo. It appears from the testimony of the pro- fessors at Wittemberg, in their narrative of his fsJ Mel. Adam. Vit. Philosophorura. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 545 de-dth, ftj that Melancthon frequently intimated his conviction that he should not survive his sixty-third year; and a few months previous to his decease he wrote the following distich in anticipation of the approaching event : Sic ego qnotidie de Jecto surgo precando Ut mens ad mortem sit duce laeta Deo. The last journey he performed was to Leip- sic, on the sixth of Aprils for the purpose of at- tending the annual examination of the Students of Divinity, who were supported by the muni- ficence of the Elector ; from which service he returned on the ninth. Although the season was inclement, he appeared to feel no inconvenience on his way thither, but while there he was sud- denly seized during dinner with the windy cho- lic and diarrhoea, but the symptoms quickly dis- appeared. Upon his return he complained of the severity of the north wind, and the cold humidity of the atmosphere, which, he said, he had not felt so much during the whole winter; ft J The interestins: little volume referred to was published in the name of all the professors, and is entitled, " Breves Narratio exponens quo fine vitamin terris suara clauseritRev. Vir D. PhiHppus Melancthon, una cum prsecedentium proxime dierum et totius morbi quo confectuy est brevi descriptione, couscripta a professoribus Academics Witteeergensis, qui omnibus quae exponuntur interfuerunt. Express. Wit. ^.1560. 2 X 546 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. and the motion of the carriage had made him painfully sensible of the calculus which had been forming in his kidneys during several years. The night of the seventh of April was the first in which his last fatal disorder mani- fested itself. He was restless from want of sleep, and became afflicted by a considerable and general debility. His cough was extremely troublesome, and the fever which eventually terminated his days began to attack him. About six o'clock in the morning his son- in-law. Dr. Peucer came to see him, and imme- diately intimated the great alarm he felt at the situation of his father. It was determined instantly to send the melancholy information of his danger to the friend of his heart Joachim Ca- merarius, with whom he had lived in the closest friendship for upwards of forty years. After this he wrote several letters, and used the medical remedies which his son-in-law ap- plied. Having been some time silent lie at length exclaimed, " If such be the will of God, I can willingly die, and I beseech him to grant me a joyful dismission ;" alluding to the song of Sime- on, '• Now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, for mine eyes have seen thy salvation." He dwelt upon the word peace, and prayed for such a removal. At iiitie, the usual hour for the commence- ment of his public duties in the Academy, he LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 547 rose from his seat, and began to prepare for going down to deliver a Lecture on Logic, which exercise he thought he could endure for half an hour, if he afterwards used the bath; and he felt unwilling to desist from his public labours. When he was going to set his foot upon a little stool which he was accustomed to make use of when he washed his hands, his weakness was such that he almost fell by the effort upon his knees, which occasioning some bustle — " Ah,'* said he, " my lamp is almost out." Some of his friends thought it would be expedient to prevent the attendance of the students by issu- ing private orders to them not to fill up their places, in order that when Melancthon went to lecture, he might be induced to return, and re- linquish the idea of persevering ; but he appear- ed so anxious that it was believed this pro- ceeding would be likely to produce a worse effect, by agitating his mind, than the exertion itself ; he was therefore allowed on this and some following days to attend in his place. The lecture which he delivered was upon a sentence of Gregory Nazianzen, si^ rl ayioy Tixx^- ^vtpov hu }ioCls(r;^ovlos ; and upou a passage of Isaiah, xxtsx^t v.a.tB'/o^z^t*. y.ev yxp VTfo h *ovi;/58, &c. but his weakness rendered it impossible for him to occupy more than a quarter of an hour. Upon his return home he went into the warm bath, 9 N 2 ^4^ LIFE OF MELANCTHON. and after taking his dinner he slept very soundly for three hours, and was so revived that a hope was entertained of his recovery. He employed himself before supper in writing, but his debility afterwards returning, annihilated the pleasing hopes that had been cherished. He did not yet desist from any of his usual emplo3^ments, and after this period continued to dictate in the second part of his Chronicon. On the tenth of April he appeared to be totally free from his former disease, but was attacked by a semi tertian fever or ague. , A quantity of bile being soon expelled from his stomach by the use of medicine, he seemed relieved. Though it was of consider- able importance he should be kept quiet, vet such was his ardour that, having discovered that the Senate of the University was convened at the hour of twelve, he could not be dissuaded from attending what he believed to be his public duty. As several disputes arose, he spoke with great zeal on the subject for the purpose of pro- moting peace and reconciliation. Although extremely debilitated, yet on the morninsT of the elevenlh of the month he rose early, and at six, as usual on festival days, de- livered a lecture on the last prayer of the Sa- viour, recorded in the seventeenth chapter of the Gospel of John. He divided the prayer of Christ into three parts, as embracing so many LIFE OF IVIELANCTHON. 549 distinct objects: namely, I. That a Church might exist in the world. II. That it might be distinguished by its unity and concord. III. That his people might be heirs of that salvation and eternal life which belongs to the heavenly church. A few days previous to this he had entreated his hearers to remember after his de- cease some passage or passages to which he par- ticularly directed their attention in this last prayer; and after repeating the above division, he said impressively, " I am a dying man, and these are the three subjects for intercession with God which I leave to my children and their little ones — that they may form a part of his church and worship him aright — that they may be one in him, and live in harmony with each other — and that they may be fellow-heirs of eternal life !" On the twelfth of April, 1560, he delivered his final lecture on the words of the prophet Isaiah, " Who hath believed our report, and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed ?'' (^m;^/ On the same day he wrote the following lines, which are obviously but the commence- ment of a hymn which his weakness rendered him incapable of finishing, ^terno genitore nate Christe Orator patris ex sinu verendi (wj IsA. liii. 1. 550 LIFE OF MELANCTJION. Vocem Evangelii ferens suavein Qua cvedentibus exhibes potenter Vitam justiciaraque sempiteniam Et qui sanguine nos tuo redeniptos Exaudis, reputas facisque jnstos Ostendisque piis tuum parentem Ts^ostras Christe semper doceto mantes Ac in pectora gratiae arrabonem Nostra effundito Spiritum moventera Casta incendia et invocationera : Fac pars agminis lit tui per omne ^vum siraus, alacriterque semper iEterni Patris et tuas soneraus Laudes The worthy Professors of Wittemberg relate with great seriousness, that between nine and ten the same night several persons of credibi- lity affirmed, that they saw some remarkable appearances in the air of rods and scourges ; upon which Melancthon, who is known to have been addicted to superstitious apprehensions, and to have been deeply impressed with the expectation of approaching calamities to his country, re- marked, " That they were evidently ominous of impending punishments ; but as it was rods, such as those with which parents correct their chil- dren, and not swords they saw, they might ex- pect paternal chastisements, and not those de- structive ones which were inflicted upon ene- mies." fxj (x) BrevisNabratio a Professor. Acad. Witteb. p. 16. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 531 During the night he enjoyed a comfortable repose, and was heard to chaunt in his sleep in the manner in which the same words were usually re- peated in public, " With desire have I desired to eat this passover with you before. I suffer." {'?/J He rose at three in the morning, and applied himself to complete his Chronicon. But from this period he rapidly declined : still anxious however to persevere to the last in the assiduous discharge of his Academical duties, two days afterwards, on the fourteenth of the same month, he would have attempted to deliver another pub- lic lecture, had he not been prevented by the urgent persuasions of his friend Camerarius, who came from Leipsic to pay him all the at- tention which affectionate friendship could dic- tate. He even put on his Professor's gown, and would have crept to the lecture-room to have delivered a discourse which he meditated on some portion of the Evangelical history, but after being informed by his son-in-law that the students were not assembled, he desisted from his purpose. The fact was, they were dispersed after having crowded to hear him by a procla- mation which his friends, unknown to himself, had affixed to the door, stating his incapacity to attend. fifj Luke xxii. 15. 55^2 LIFE OF MELA.NCTHON. His mind was in a very chearful state, and he often betrayed his characteristic humour, (z) He spoke of death with composure, and of his friend Pomeranus, who had died about two years before. He said that he dreaded nothing so much as becoming a useless cumberer of the ground, and prayed that if his Hfe were protracted, he might be serviceable to the youth under his care, and to the church of Jesus Christ. On the Jifteenth he conversed much with Camerarius on the language of Paul, which he appropriated ; *' I have a desire to depart, and to be with Christ." He criticised upon the Greek terms, which, he said, ought to be rendered, *' Having a desire to remove, pass on, or set about proceeding in the journey:" that is, to go from this life of toil and wretchedness to the blessed rest of heaven. When Camerarius thought of taking a final leave of him on the sixteenth, he said, " My dear Doctor Jouchim, we have been joined in ^sj Afferebalur etiam ei viniim rubrum Renanum quod •fOlgo iL similitudine colons, quam habet cum pede anserino cognoniinaturet Dominiis PhilipjjuKdupUcalo verbo Graeco per jocurn )(r^yQTruie(. appellare sol. bat, hoc turn suavius ulebatnr et sibi sfipere dicebat atqae laudabat etiam adinoduni. Etsi autem hilartm se exhibebat et cum amicis pissentibus collo- quia habebat suavia, languor tamen mag'iius erat vel imbecil- litas potius aon parva, qua; pen^ in momenta augescebat. Brevia Narratio. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 45S the bond of friendship forty years, a friendship mutually sincere and affectionate. We have been helpers of each other with disinterested kindness in our respective stations and employ- ments as teachers of youth, and I trust our la- bours have been useful ; and though it be the will of God that I die, our friendship shall be perpe- tuated and cultivated in another world." Camerarius however determined to remain a little longer with his departing friend, and ac- cordingly disregarded, during this interesting interval, the claims both of his public and pri- vate affairs. Melancthon continued to manifest great chearfulness, but if it were at any time dis- turbed, his distress appeared to arise rather from the sympathy he felt with the suffering church, whenever its trials were reported to him, than from even the acute paroxysms of his disease. His friends had conversed with him on this subject during the evening repast, but he afterwards en- joyed a calm night. In his sleep he said he had dreamt of the words of Paul, which were forcibly impressed upon his mind, and afforded him much consolation, " If God be for us who can be against us?" Early in the morning of the seventeenth Camerarius took his final leave. Melancthon had finished some letters to the Duke of Prussia and to several friends, which he had been preparing during the whole of his illness. 5o4 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. and expressed his intention of writing more but for the interdiction of his Physician. When Camerarius bid him farewell — with a last and affectionate benediction, he replied, " Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who sitteth at the right hand of the Father, and giveth gifts to men, preserve you and yours and all of us !" Soon afterwards, having received inform- ation that the Roman Pontift" was meditating a general Council, he said he would rather die than attend it, for it was easy to foresee both the dissensions it would occasion, and the inutility of its meeting. Feeling the pressure of increas- ing pain and infirmity, he said, " O Lord make an end." On the eighteenth his bed was removed, by his own desire, into the library, which he had continually frequented during his illness, upon which occasion he said with great chearfulness, as he was placed upon it, " This may be called, 1 think, my travelling conch — if (alluding to the criticism before mentioned) I should remove in it/* While several friends were standing about his bed, he said, " By the blessing of God I have now no particular domestic anxieties, for with respecttomygrandchildren, whom I tenderly love and who are now before my eyes, I am comforted to think they are in the hands of pious and be- loved parents, who will be solicitous for their welfare, as much as I could ever be : but I feel LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 555 for the state of public affairs, especially for the church of Christ in this cavilling and wicked age. Through the goodness of God however our doctrine is made public." A little after- wards he addressed some present, " God bestows talents on our youth ; do you see that they use them aright." In the course of the same day, seeing one of his grandchildren near him, " Dear child," said he, " I have loved you most affectionately : see that you reverence your parents, and always endeavour to please them^ and fear God, Avho will never forsake you. I pray you may share his constant regard and be- nediction." He spoke in similar terms of ten- derness and piety to all the younger branches of his family, who were deeply sensible of his ap- proaching departure. On the same day, after discoursing with his son-in-law upon all his private affairs, and hav- ing in vain searched for the will he had formerly written, containing an explanation of some of the principal articles of his faith, which he was desirous of transmitting to posterity, he attempted to compose another, which increasing weakness would not allow him to finish. It began thus: " In the year 1560, on the eighteenth day of April, I write this Will briefly, according to the best of those remaining abilities which God vouchsafes me in my present illness, I have twice before 536 LIFE OF MELANCTMON. written the confession of my faith, and gratitude to God and our Lord Jesus Christ, but these papers are missing ; nevertheless I wish my con- fession to be considered an answer to what- ever relates to the Bavarian articles, in oppo- sition to the errors of the Papists, the Ana- baptists, the followers of Flacius and others." After this he conferred with his son-in-law upon a diversity of subjects relative to the in- terests of the University, and expressed his wish that Peucer might be his successor in that insti- tution. Letters having been transmitted to him from Frankfort relative to the persecutions which at this period raged in France, he declared " that his bodily disease was not comparable to the grief of his mind, on account of the miseries which the church of Christ suffered.** The nineteenth of April was the last day of his mortal existence. After the usual medical inquiries of the morning, he adverted again to the calamitous state of the church of Christ, but intimated his hope that the genuine doctrine of the gospel would ultimately prevail, exclaiming, " If God be for us who can be against us." After this he presented fervent supplications to heaven, mingled with groanings, for the welfare of the church. In the intervals of sleep he con- versed principally upon this subject with several LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 557 of his visiting friends, amongst whom were the Pastor and other officers of the church, and the Professors of the University. Soon after eight in the morning, awaking from a tranquil sleep, he distinctly, though with a feeble voice, repeated a form of prayer which he had written for his own daily use, and which was as follows : " Almighty, omnipotent, ever-living and true God, Creator of heaven and earth and men, together with thy co-eternal Son our Lord Jesus Christ, who was crucified for us and rose again, and thy Holy, true, living and pure Spirit; who art wise, good, faithful, merciful, just, the dispen- ser of life and of truth, independent, holy — and our Redeemer ; w^ho hast said thou wiliest not the death of a sinner, but rather that he should re- turn unto thee and live — and hast promised, ' Call upon me in the day of trouble, and I will hear thee/ I confess myself before thy footstool a most miserable sinner and offender against thee in a great variety of respects, on which account I mourn with my very heart, and implore thy mercy for the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord, who was crucified and rose again, seeking the remission of all my sins and justification before thee by and through thy son Jesus Christ, thy eternal word, and image, wonderful and in- expressible in counsel, infinite in wisdom and goodness ; and that thou wouldst sanctify me by 66S LIFE OF MELANCTHON. thy true, living, pure, and Holy Spirit. May I truly acknowledge and firmly believe in thee^ obey thee, give thanks to thee, fear thee, invoke thee, serve thee, and through grace be admitted to thy presence in eternity, the almighty and only true God, Creator of heaven and earth and men, the everlasting Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the presence of Jesus Christ thy Son, thy eternal word and image, and the Holy, true, liv- ing and pure Spirit, the Comforter. In thee have I hoped, O Lord: let me never be confounded: in thy righteousness deliver me. Make me righ- teous, and bring me unto life eternal: thou hast redeemed n;e, O Lord God of truth. Keep and overrule our churches, our government, and this Academy, and bestow upon us a salutary peace and government. Rule and protect our princes. Cherish thy church, gather and pre- serve it in these provinces, sanctify and unite thy people by thy Holy Spirit, that we maybe one in thee, in the true knowledge and Avorship of thy Son Jesus Christ, by and through him thy eter- nal Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, who was cruci- fied for us and raised again. Amen. " Almighty and eternal Lord Jesus Christ, the son of God, who art the eternal word and Image of the eternal Father, our Mediator and Intercessor, crucified for us and raised again, I give thee most hearty thanks that thou didst as- sume humanity, and art become my Redeemer, LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 569 and having suffered and risen again in human na- ture, dost intercede on my behalf. I beseech thee regard and have mercy on me, for lam poor and defenceless. By thy Holy Spirit increase the light of faith in me, and, weak as I am, sustain, rule, protect and save me. In thee, O Lord, have I hoped, let me never be con- founded. " Almighty and Holy Spirit, the Comforter, pure, living, true — illuminate, govern, sanctify me, and confirm my heart and mind in the faith, and in all genuine consolation; preserve and rule over me, that dwelling in the house of the Lord all the daj^s of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, I may be and remain for ever in the temple of God, and praise him with a joyful spirit, and in union with all the heavenly church. Amen/* An interval of tranquil repose having elapsed after repeating this prayer, he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and turning to his son-in-law he said, " I have been in the power of death, but the Lord has graciously delivered me/' This was supposed to refer to some deep conflicts of mind, as he repeated the expression to others. When some of the bystanders said, " There is now no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus,'* he soon added, " Christ is made to us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption." *' Let him that glorieth glory in the Lord ;" and 360 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. often repeated, " Lord have mercy upon me." After this he took a httle refreshment for the last time, and though he attempted to proceed with the testamentary paper he had begun the preceding day, he soon found it impossible to support such an effort, but signified his ac- quiescence in the divine disposal. The coldness of death was now creeping over him, but his mental faculties continued un- impaired to the very last breath of mortal exist- ence, (a) Having expressed a wish to hear some passages from the Old and New Testa- ments, his ministerial attendants read the twenty- fourth, twenty-fifth and twenty-sixth Psalms, the fifty-third chapter of Isaiah, the seventh chapter of John, the fifth of the Romans and many other passages. The saying of John re- specting the Son of God, he said was perpetually in his mind, " the world knew him not but as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God even to them that believe on his name." Besides the passages of Scripture already mentioned, he frequently solaced himself with the following, " God so loved the world that he sent his only begotten Son into the world, that whosoever believeth on him might not pe- (o) " Mens autem constabat iutegerriraa et sincerissima usque etl extremvm vitae halitum.'' Dnvis Narratio. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 56l rish but have everlasting life ;" " Whoso seeth the Son and believeth on him hath eternal life ;** " Being justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ ;" and ex- pressed the great consolation they afforded his mind. He earnestly exhorted his son-in-law to the study of peace, and whenever the prevailing religious contentions were mentioned, he would continually reply in the language of the son of Jesse, " Let them curse, but bless thou," and " my soul hath dwelt with him that hateth peace. I am for peace, but when I speak they are for war." — In the afternoon a paper was written to the students by the professors, excusing their non- attendance to the usual duties of the day on ac- count of Melancthon's dangerous situation with which they deeply sympathized, and entreating their united prayers during the usual hours of study on his behalf ; for theyconsidered it impossi- ble he should be able long to struggle with his dis- ease unless nature were divinely assisted and sup- ported, fbj It may easily be believed that this ^bj " Forma sciipti haec est— Charissimi auditores iu qua solicitudine maeiore, et metu verseniur propter segritudinem Reverendi Praeceptoris et Patris nostri Domini Philippi non ig-noratis et Iiaud dubic iiobiscum serio adficimini. Patienter etiam feretis, operas lectionum hoc pomeridian > tempore a nobis omitti. Significare autem nobis boc ideo voluimus ut sciretis morbum ita intendi ut nisi Deus sua potentia naturam 2o 66^ LIFE OF MELANCTriON. intimation made a powerful impression through- out the University, and that all the passages leading to the house of this beloved tutor became crowded with anxious inquirers. Upon being asked by his son-in-law if he would have any thing else, he replied in these emphatic words, " aliud nihil — nisi cce- LUM." i. e. Nothing elsk — but heaven! and requested that he might not be any further interrupted. Soon afterwards he made a similar request, begging those around him who were endeavouring with officious kindness to adjust his clothes, " not to disturb his delightful re- pose." After some time his friends united with the minister present in solemn prayer, and se- veral passages of Scripture in which he was known always to have expressed peculiar plea- sure were read, such as " Let not your heart be troubled, ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions." *' My sheep hear my voice and I know them, and they follow me ;" particularly the fifth of juverit ct sustentaverit, dominuin Piaeceptorem vim morbi tolerare din non valitiiruin. Hortamur autem vos ut nobiscnin Deum ardenter invocetis ut niiseiam ecclcsiam cl in ea juven- tutemclenienter respiciat etneingratitudinem nostram hocniodo puniat, ut hunc fidelera studiorura gubernatorem nobis adhuc quidem eiipiat. His precibus hoc vacuum tempus obsecro tii- buite potius quam aliis studiis et vos, EccJesiam-et ValitudinerA _praiceptoiis nostii Deo diligenter commendate." f! LIFE OF MELANCTHON. 663 the Romans and the triumphant close of the eighth chapter, commencing " If God be for us who can be against us." Many other parts of Scrip- ture were recited, and the last word he uttered was the German particle of affirmation, la in reply to Vitus Winshemius, who had inquired if he understood him while reading. The last motion which his friends who surrounded him to the number of at least twenty, fcj could discern, was a slight motion of the countenance which was peculiar to him when deeply affected with religious joy ! — " Mark the perfect man and be- hold the upright, for the end of that man is peace!" At length, " in the midst of solemn vows and supplications," at a quarter of an hour be- fore seven o'clock in the evening, of the nine- teenth of April, one thousand Jive hundred andsixUj^ at the age oi sixty-three years two months and three days, he gently breathed his last, (dj No dis- tractions of mind, no foreboding terrors of con- science agitated this attractive scene. His chamber was " privileged beyond the common walks of virtuous life — quite in the verge of heaven" — and he expired like a wave scarcely fcJ " Item autem hoc flaj expresse ct disei!^ enuncia- bat lit exaudiietur a circumstantibus omnibus qui fueiunt numero atl minimum viginti." Bievis Narratio. (d) Mel. Adam. Vit. Germ. Theologoriira, Art. Me- lancfhon. Bre.vis Narratio. 2 o 2 664< LIFE OF MELANCTHON. curling to the evening zephyr of an unclouded summer sky, and gcnt]y rippling to the shore. It was a " departure" — a " sleep" — " the earthly house of this tabernacle was dis- solved y fej Surely then, ". such, a pious and tranquil removal from a toilsome and afflictive life ought to be a subject of joy rather than of lamentation, and each of us should entreat God that in the possession of a similar peace of conscience, firm faith and acknowledgment of the truth and ardent devotion of mind, he would conduct us from our present imprisonment to his eternal pre- sence." ffj Information of this event was immediately transmitted to the Elector, and means were adopted to bury him with suitable circumstances of respect. To gratify the anxious crowds vyho were desirous of seeing the body of this venera- ble character, the public were permitted for a day and a half after his decease to inspect his mortal remains ; and of the hundreds who availed themselves of the opportunity, none could resist bestowing an abundant tribute of tears upon his beloved memory. Strangers who had never seen fej I Cor. v. 1. f/J ScRiPTUM public^ propos. in Acad. Wit. quo scho- lastici coiivocati sunt ad deduc, funus Doni, PLil. Mtlancthoni>;, 21 Aprilis: Cto. Majore J'icc Reef. II LIFE OF MELANCTIIOX. .565 him while living pressed to take a view of the yet undeparted symmetry of his amiable counte- nance, and al Iwho came were desirous of obtain- ing a pen, a piece of paper however small on which he had written, or in short any thing he had used however insignificant in itself, which was scattered on the floor of the library, (g) His remains were placed in a leaden coffin and deposited close to the body of Martin Lu- ther — " lovely and pleasant in their lives, and in their death they were not divided/' A long- Latin inscription was wTitten on the coffin, con- taining a chronological notice of the principal circumstances of his life. Some of the professors in the University attended in funereal robes to convey the body to the parochial church, where it was placed before the altar, and after the usual ceremonies and psalms, Doctor Paul Eberus, pastor of the church of Wittemberg delivered a funeral discourse ; after which the body being removed into the centre of the church. Doctor Vitus Winshemius pronounced an oration in Latin. The crowd of students, citizens, strangers and persons of every class attracted together to witness these solemnities, was never exceeded on any occasion within the memory of the spec- tators. Among the rest w^ere several of the pro- fessors from the University of Leipsic, and many (^) Brevis Narratio. 666 LIFE OF MELANCTHON. of the nobility, pastors of churches and others, from a large vicinity, fhj From a considerable collection of Greek and Latin elogies and epitaphs, with which he used to predict that the poets would honour his memory, fij the follow ingj by Theodore Beza is selected as a sufficient and very beautiful speci- men : — Et tu igitur tandem tumuli sub mole lepostus Die 6 Philippe, nunc jaces. Et quam invidisti vivus tibi lute quietem, Cunctis quietem dum paias, Ipsa tibi cura et sancti peperere labores, Caium 6 bonis cunctis caput ! At tu funde rosas, funde isli lilia tellus, Ut lilia inter et rosas, Quo nil candidius fuil et nil siiavius unquam, Recubet Melancthon molliter. Et gravis huit ut sis, caveas juvenisve senexve, Qui nemini vixit gravis. Here then Melancthon lies thy honour'd head Low in the grave amonj»st the mould'ring dead ! ^hj Brevis Narratio ct S< RIP. pub. propos. in Acad. Wit. quo. Schol. convocat. ad deducend. funus Melancthonis. ^ij " Quemadmodum autem ipse vivens saepe dixerat, se mortiium laborem relictunim puetis, aivicis autem dyma. i'irird(^iov, ita et factum." Mel. Adam. Vit. Germ. Theolo- gorum, p. 354. LIFE OF MELANCTHON. .S67 In life 'twas thine to make all others blest ]^ut to thyself denying peace and rest; Thine was the holy toil, the anxious tear. Dear Philip— to the ^ood for ever dear!— - O earth ! let lilies here profusely spring-. And roses all around their odours fling ! For rose and lily each their glories blend, The sweet, the fair, in our departed friend ! Soft let him sleep and none disturb his rest, None he disturb'd while living — none opprest ! Some appropriate lines have been kindly communicated by a poetical friend. ODE On the Death of Philip Melancthon. Oh ! who would envy those who die Victims on ambition's shrine ! Though idiot man may rank them high, And to the slain in victory. Pay honours half divine ; To feel this heaving, fluttering breath, Still'd by the lightest touch of death, The happier lot be mine : I would not, that the murdering brand, Were the last weapon in my hand. He, of whom these pages tell. He, a soldier too— of truth j He, a Hero from his youth ; How delightfully he fell ! Not in the crash, and din, and flood. Of execrations, groans, and blood, Rivetting fetters on the good i — But happily and well. ! 66^ LIFE OF MELANCTUON. No song of triumph sounds his fall. No march of death salutes his t>ier. But tribute sweeter far than all, The sainted sigh, the orphan tear ! Yet mourn i^ot, ye who stand around. Bid not time less swiftly roll. What though shade the prospect bound ; He a brighter world has found, Death is the birth- day of the soul. Witness ! (for ye saw him die) Heard you complaint, or groan, or sigh ?— Or if one sigh breath'd o'er his breast, — As gentle airs when days of summer close. Breathe, over wearied nature still repose, And lull a lovely evening to rest: It whisper'd, — '* All within is peace. The storm is o'er, and troubles cease.*' His sun went down in cloudless skies, Assur'd upon the morn to rise, In lovelier array. But not like earth s declining light To vanish back again to night : The zenith where he now shall glow No bound, no sitting beam can know. Without, or cloud or shade of woe. Is that eternal day. History will not write his name, Upon the crimson roll of fame ; But Religion, meeker maid, Mark him in her tablet fair ; And, when million names shall fade. He will stand recorded there J LIFE OP MELANCTHON. 569 Here our labours are nearly closed. The reader it is hoped will accept of this volume as a faithful portrait of Melancthon's character ; but before it is parted with, it seems due to the distinguished individual whose likeness we have endeavoured to impress upon these pages, to relate two circumstances as a finish to the pic- ture : the one is illustrative of his fame, the other of his piety. When Sabinus his son-in-law visited Italy, he carried a letter of introduction from Melanc- thon to the celebrated Cardinal Bembo ; the con- sequence of which was an invitation to dinner. Among a variety of questions, the three follow- ing are particularly mentioned. The Cardinal inquired " what was Melancthon's salary — what the number of his hearers — and what his opinion respecting the resurrection and a future state ?" — To the first question Sabinus replied, that " his salary was about three hundred florins," upon which the Cardinal exclaimed, " Ungrateful Germany ! to estimate at no higher a price so many and such labours of so great a man V His reply to the second question was, " that he had usually fifteen hundred hearers." To this the Cardinal answered, " I cannot believe it, because I do not know a University in Europe excepting that of Paris in which one professor has so many scholars." To the third question Sabinus re- plied, " that Melancthon's works were a suffi- cient proof of his belief in both those articles.'^ 570 LIFE OF MELANCTHON^. The Cardinal said, " I should think him a wiser man if he did not believe ihein.*' fhj. One is tempted by the other circumstance about to be noticed, to suspect that the judg- ment which this great man pronounced upon the case of Servetus as before stated, must have been in some measure at least, the result of misinfor- mation. When in consequence of the tyranny of Queen Mary thousands of Puritans fled from England into Germany, Switzerland and France, the Lutherans reproached them as the Devil's Martyrs. Melancthon contended strenuously against these calumniators, and expressed his abhorrence at such language being applied to a class of men like Latimer and others with whom he was well acquainted, fij It is painful to reflect that an event which usually checks the hostile feelings of the most determined enemies, did not however subdue the animosity of those of Melancthon. A per- secuting demon seemed to have taken an entire possession of them, for even after his decease they shot the envenomed arrows of malignity at his character and borrowed the vociferous tongue of calumny to blast his fame : but in vain to /lim — he had reached that peaceful asylum so long anticipated, where " the wicked cease from troubling and the weary are at rest !" fhj Mel. Adam. Vit. Gomi. Theologoium. rU Melancth. Ep. Lib. IV. p. 959. Lib. IL p. 387. APPENDIX. No. I. ( Page 3. ) Biographical Notices of Peter Waldus or Waldo, John Wickliffe, John Huss and Jerome of Praa-ue. Peter Waldus or Waldo, of Lyons, was the founder of the sect of the Waldenses, who inhabited the valleys of Piedmont. His own convictions of the truth originated from his having employed a priest, Stephanus de Evisa, about the year 1160, to translate the four Gospels from Latin into French, with other books of Scripture, and the most remarkable sentences of the ancient Doctors. He soon perceived the essen- tial difference between the religion of the Romish church and the principles of the gospel. Abandoning his mercantile profession, and uniting with other pious men who adopted his sentimen.s, he became a public preacher in the year 1180. The Archbishop and other 57S APPENDIX. ecclesiastics vigorously, but unsuccessfully, opposed him in the exercise of his ministry. The purity of his faith, and that of his followers, the unambitious prin- ciple that evidently actuated them, and the innocence of their vi^hole character, excited a very general attention, and religious assemblies were at length formed in France, Lombardy, and diflerent parts of Europe; and ^ though pursued by fire and sword, they could never be exterminated. John Wickliffe, the morning star of the Reformation, was born near Richmond in Yorkshire, in the year 13'24. He was educated at Oxford, and having been disgusted with the enormities of the see of Rome in general, and its conduct to himself in particular, he at length gave public Lectures, in which he exposed the abuses of the Mendicant orders. He published a defence of Edward III. against the Pope, which introduced him to Court. In 1377 Papal bulls were issued, requiring the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Bishop of London to secure and imprison him as a heretic, and the king and the University of Oxford to deliver him up. Wickliffe however, protected by the government, and by the citizens of London, eluded the persecution. He pub- lifthed a book on the *' Truth of the Scriptures," and what he teraied " Sixteen Conclusions," directed against the Papacy. But his principal work was a literal translation of the Bible from the Latin Vul- i| gate. This great Enghsb Reformer died in December, 1384. John Huss, an illustrious martyr to the eaufte of truth, was born in Bohemia ia the year 1376, and was educated at Prague, where he became Professor of Divinity in the University, and ordinary Pastor in the APPENDIX, ^73 church of that city. He exclaimed with vehemence against the vices of the clergy, and from the year 1408 exerted his utmost endeavours to withdraw the Uni- versity of Prague from the jurisdiction of Gregory XII. He recommended in the most public manner the writings of WicklifJe, which produced an accusation against him in the year 1410, before tlie tribunal of John XXIII. by whom he was expelled from the com- munion of the church. He was burnt alive for his heresy by a decree of the Council of Constance, the 6th of July, 1415, in violation of a safe-conduct which had been granted him by the Emperor Sigismund ; *' which dread- ful punishment," says Mosheim, " he endured with un- paralleled magnanimity and resignation, expressing in his last moments the noblest feelings of love to God, and the most triumphant hope of the accomplishment of those transporting promises with which the gospel arms the true Christian at the approach of eternity." Jerome of Prague was the intimate friend of Huss, and accompanied him to the Council of Con- stance, with the design of advocatiug his cause. The fear of a cruel death at first seemed to shake his con- stancy, but he finally adhered to his principles in the flames, to which he was consigned on the thirtkth <4" May, 14 U). No. II. ( Page 7. ) This curious circumstance is related by Camera- rius in the following words: — " Harum igitur artium 574 APPENDIX. ille peritus et iis viitutious quas commemoravimus ornatus, in noticiam pervenit maximorum et potentis- siniorum Priocipum, iisque cams fuit ; inquibusno- minasse satis sit et Regem opLimum et bellatorem Invictissiinum Divum INIaximilianum Imperatoris Fie- derichi filium. Quern Georgius aliquando cum glorioso piovocatore Italo, cui nomen Claudio Bataro, certa- mine singulari congress urum ita instruxit et sic arma ipsiiis machinando paravit, ut fortissimo Viro Maxi- miliano victoria certa facile etiam et celeriter contin- geret. Claudius enim non diu repugnans, cum, quanto omnibus rebus esset inferior sentieus ad pedes Maxi- milian! se adjecisset, itain potestatemejus se tradidit." Cam. Vit. Mel. p. 3. No. III. ( Page 20. ) Prologus in Andriam Teremii. Vestr.e periclum fccimus patientiac Cum nuperin sccna exhibuimus militem, Animosque nobis addidit vester favor Ut non patiamur scenam consilescere Sed ne mirere, Quid pompiD Thcologicae Cum comicis jocis, mcne sunt fabulae In pulpitis quas agebant hodie Theologi Et chirothecae et annuli sunt fabulae Nomen Magistri Nostri planae fabulae Postremo qui condixit operam hujus gregis Theologusest suoque jussit fabulam APPENDIX. 575 Prolixior ut risus foret praescripto agi Ut ut placebimus imputari vult sibi AtFertur hue Terentiana fabula Cui author ipse iiomen fecit Andriam Favete bellus in medium prodit senex. Alius in Eandem. Comica debetur merito tibi palma Terenti Tanta etiam parvis gratia rebus inest. Prologus in Eunuchum. Salvere jubeo spectatores optimos Qui scenae ornandae confluxere gratia Favore nostra studia ut excitent suo Artesque honestas et benigne proveiiant Authoritateque ut tueantur hunc gregeni Qui scenicos ludos industria sua Instruxit hac in mbe primus, ut jocis ; Salibusque personent heec pulpita atticis Et barbaros plorare jussit, fabulas Efferre qui vetabant in proscenium Quae cultiores juvenum mores redderent Terentianum agemus Eunuchum modo Quae fabulas latinas vincit caeteras Sermonis elegantia et facetiis Vel ipse quas Monius mireturac probet Illoque sentiat tinctas sale, quo satam Amorum et illecebrarum matrem omnium Venerem ferunt. Sed corrugare tetricos Quosdam videtis nares, immodestiae Hi nos accusant in theatrum quod jocos Proferre liberiores pauloausi sumus. Moresque criminautur viciari bonos .576 APPENDIX. Parum severis dictis atque lusibus; Sed 6 censores asperos et pei'graves Qui quod reprehendunt in theatre ludunt dumi Et curios simulant vivunt bacchanalia Ludunt poetaB, at lusus illi seria Ducunt, simulque niorum tradunt optima Vitae praecepta, ut nihil melius Solon Aut sanctius tabulis inscripserit aeneis Sed asperam tamen virtutem condiunt Jucundioiibus illecebris, ut solent Medici daturi pueris tetra absynthia Cum melle dulci et saccaro irritant gulani Facessant ergo iniquijud ices hinc procul Ut aequioribus spectandi dent locum Nos publici nostrique causa commodi Terentianam agemus Eunuchum modo Qua barbaram Thrasonis arrogantiam Fastumqne inanem irridet, hie est cernere Perinde ut in speculo ardelionaum imaginem Qui caudices fungiquc cum meri sient Primas tamen sibi rerum ubique vendicant Proventus hujus generis est uberrimus Hoc seculo, cum se titulo sapientiae Musarum, ubique venditant, hostes feri Prophana divinaqne miscent omnia Vos ergo favete spectatores optimi Adfertur utilis etjucunda fabula. 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