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Francis I. ,, things his Duty, with very little Gravity and 15 7. Decency, had granted the product of thefe

Pope Leo X.

(6)

Difputes

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Extortions out of feveral Provinces of Ger,, many to his Sifter Magdalen, who appointed Bishop Arembaud for her Receiver General; a Man every way fit for that Employment, being particularly noted for his Avarice, to which he gave a full run in the discharge of this Office. The Money thus collected was not for the Pope, or for the publick Treasury, from whence, may be, part of it could have been laid out for fome good use, but to gratify the Avarice of a Woman. Therefore ,, not only this Exaction, and the Minifters of it, but the Pope himself who granted those Indulgences, and his Authority became deteftable to every fober Man (w)."

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That Bull, the pretence of which was the War against Selim Emperor of the Turks, was publifhed in the Council of Latran, 1516. Tezelius a Dominican Friar, having been appointed to preach it in Germany, his fcandalous Behaviour, and his impious Sermons provoked fo much Martin Luther, that he oppofed him ftrenuously by his Sermons, and by XCV Propofitions which he caufed to be affixed to the College Gates at Wirtemberg, in order for a Difputation; he fent Copies of them to Albert of Brandenbourg, Archbishop of Mentz and Magdebourg, and complained in his Letter to him, of that fhameful Trade that was carried on'(x).

But Albert was deaf, and took no notice of thefe Complaints. Leo himself, to whom Luther wrote a very fubmiflive Letter, was not moved by any thing he could fay; nay, he fummoned

him

(zu) Guicciard. Hift. Ital. lib. xiii. p. 489. (x) Sleidani Comment. lib. i. p. 1. &c. Sculteti Annales ad Ann. 1516, 17, 18, &c.

him to appear at Rome, in order to take his Francis I. Tryal; but at the requeft of Frederick Elector 5'7 to of Saxony a jealous Patron of Luther, it was agreed that his Caufe fhould be tried in Germany.

He appeared at Augfbourg before the Cardinal Cajetan the Pope's Legate, who left no Stone unturned to bring Luther to a Recantation. But Luther food on his Ground, and could not be brought to any manner of compliance. He ap pealed from Cajetan to the Pope, and from the Pope to a general Council. At which the Pope being offended, he, by another Bull of the 15th of June 1520, condemned Luther's Doctrine as impious, falfe, and heretical, and ordered his Books to be burnt; he likewife excommunicated Luther himself, unless he would alter his mind in fixty days.

Luther's Anfwer to this Cenfure was very brisk, he reiterated his Appeal to a general Council, and caufed Leo's Bull, and the Decretals of the Popes to be burnt in a publick Place at Wirtemberg.

A little before this, Luther had publifhed his Book intitled, the Babylonian Captivity (y).

Such were the first beginnings of the Reformation in Germany, which fpread itself in a few years, in feveral large Provinces of the Empire, in Sweden, Denmark, Norway, England, Scotland, Switzerland, and was there admitted and became the National Religion of those Countries, though, unhappily, not under the fame Denomination.

1520.

Pope

Leo X.

But though it has never been the happiness of II. France to have the Reformation admitted and The Effeas of those fettled in it in the like manner, as to be the Difputes in tional Religion; nevertheless, all the Malice, Ha- France. tred and Perfecutions of Men hindered not the

C. 3'

G) Sleid. lib. 2. p. 47, 48, 53.

Na

Truth

Francis I. Truth from penetrating into it, and taking root 1520 and in the Hearts of a prodigious number of its Sub 1521 A Pope jects; and it is what I am going to relate in the Leo X. following History.

counte

1

THE Difputes of Germany became the fubject of common Difcourfe in France; the Censure of the Sorbonists paffed against Luther's Book, The Babylonian Captivity, gave occafion to fome learn

ed Men to examine the Matter thereof.

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III. William Briffonnet Bishop of Meaux was of Briffonnet that number, and being moved with Zeal, he Bishop of fpared nothing in his power for promoting the Meaux Knowledge of the found Doctrine in his own nances the Diocefe. He preached himfelf, a thing quite out Reforma of fashion in those days, and invited feveral good and learned Men, graduated and others, to come and affift him. Of that number were' James Fabri above-named, William Farel, at that time Mafter in the College of Cardinal le Moine, at Paris, Martial and Gerard Ruff or Ruffel both Doctors (z). MIL

tion.

1522 IV.

because of

cution.

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But a Perfecution having been excited against them, at the inftance of the Francifcan He recants Friars at Meaux, Martial inftead of encouraging the Perfe- the Bifhop, difheartened him fo much, that he proceeded no further. Martial recanted publickly, and was made á Canon and Penitentiary of Paris; Fabri went to Blois, and from thence to Nerac in the Dutchy of Albret, where he was kindly received by Margaret Sifter of Francis I. and afterwards Queen of Navarre, a Princess of very exquifite Parts, whom God had raised to oppofe the Cruelty and bloody Designs of Antony Du Prat above-mentioned, and of fome others who exasperated the King against the pretended Hereticks. Farel ftayed at Paris as long as he could with fafety, then he went to Switzerland,

(z) Beze Hift. Eccl. vol. i. liv. 1. p. 5.

land, where he was very useful; he was the first Francis I. Reformer, of Geneva, and of several other neighPope bouring Places. Ruffi, alias Ruffel, efcaped Hadrian through the Queen of Navarr's favour, and VI. though he did not join himself openly with the Reformed Churches, yet he was a great Promoter of the Reformation in Bearn; he was made Bishop of Oleron (a).,

t

Though the greatest part of those who followed, the new Doctrine at Meaux were People of mean Condition, fuch as Cloath-makers, Carders, and fuch others; yet they were an excellent Pattern of Conftancy, and Stedfaftness in the Faith, and they may boast themselves of having Pope been, the first who fuffered in France for the Re- VII. formed Religion's fake. John Le Clerc a Carder 1523.

Clement

was taken Prifoner at Meaux in 1523, and con- V. demned to be whipt for three different Days, and John Le to be branded with a Flower de Luce on the Clerc firft Martyr in Forehead, which, was executed with the utmoft France. rigour. From Meaux, he went to Rozay in Brie, and from thence to Metz in Lorrain, where he was the firft Founder of the Reformed Church in that Place, and fealed the Truth with his Blood, being burnt alive, the next year.

James Pavanes of the Country of Bologn, a learned though a young Man, who had been inticed into Meaux by the Bishop, being arrested, was so much terrified by Martial, that he recanted, and made Amende honourable (b). But being recovered of his fright, and not able to abide with the remorfes of his Confcience, he

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(a) All this is extracted out of Mr. de Beze Hift. Eccl. ibid. p. 6, and 7. (6) It is a moft ignominious Punishment inflicted upon a great Offender, or one who is thought to be fuch, who must go through the Streets bare-foot, and bareheaded, often a rope to his neck, with a burning Link in his hand, unto the Seat of Juftice, or other publick Place, and there confefs his Offence and afk pardon.

1524.

Francis I. abjured anew the Errors of the Church of Rome,

1525. for which he was condemned and burnt at Paris Pope Clement in the year, 1525. Many others underwent the fame Fate with a Chriftian-like Conftancy.

VII.

Francis I's

Proceed

Francis who had been made Prifoner at PaVI. via and brought to Madrid in 15255 was released thirteen Months after, and came back into his ingsagainst own Kingdom; where he was no fooner arrived, the Re-but hearings of the Progress of Lutheranism in formid. France, and being told, that this Herefy, as they tailed it, had occafioned thofe heavy Judgments of God on him and his People, he followed the Chancellor Du Prat's Advice, and ordered, that for the future, the Cognizance of the Crimes of Herefy fhould belong to the Civil Magiftrates. Thenceforward the Parliaments, particularly that of Paris, were fet at work against thofe poor People, and many cruel Executions were made of them all over the Kingdom (c)

VII.

Their Doc

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But thefe barbarous ufages hindered not the trine re- Propagation of the Reformation, the Martyr's ceived by blood proved a fruitful Seed to the Church; it feveral at was received by many rimtOrleans, Bourges, Orleans, Thouloufe, and fpread itfelf from thefe three

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VIII.

4 fort de

count of Calvin,

&c.

large Cities, all over the Kingdom. At Orleans the number of the Reformed increafed apáce after Calvin's Arrival win that City, where he came to ftudy the Law. ¡

He was born at Noyon in Picardy, the oth of July 1509; his Father Gerard Chauvin, in Latin Calvinus, was Secretary to the Bishop of that Place, he came to Orleans in 1532, being about 23 years old; he imployed the best part of his time in the reading of the Scriptures and the study of Divinity, wherein he was a great proficient. Andrew Alciat the most renowned Civili. n of that time for Learning and Eloquence,

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was

(c) Maimbourg Hit. du Calvinisme lib. i. p. 52. Dutch Edit.

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