French Reformation
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son of pious parents, and educated to accept with implicit faith the
teachings of the church, he might, with the apostle Paul, have declared
concerning himself: “After the most straitest sect of our religion I lived
a Pharisee.”
Acts 26:5
. A devoted Romanist, he burned with zeal to
destroy all who should dare to oppose the church. “I would gnash my
teeth like a furious wolf,” he afterward said, referring to this period
of his life, “when I heard anyone speaking against the pope.”—Wylie,
b. 13, ch. 2. He had been untiring in his adoration of the saints,
in company with Lefevre making the round of the churches of Paris,
worshipping at the altars, and adorning with gifts the holy shrines. But
these observances could not bring peace of soul. Conviction of sin
fastened upon him, which all the acts of penance that he practiced failed
to banish. As to a voice from heaven he listened to the Reformer’s
words: “Salvation is of grace.” “The Innocent One is condemned, and
the criminal is acquitted.” “It is the cross of Christ alone that openeth
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the gates of heaven, and shutteth the gates of hell.”—Ibid., b. 13, ch.
2.
Farel joyfully accepted the truth. By a conversion like that of Paul
he turned from the bondage of tradition to the liberty of the sons of
God. “Instead of the murderous heart of a ravening wolf,” he came
back, he says, “quietly like a meek and harmless lamb, having his
heart entirely withdrawn from the pope, and given to Jesus Christ.”—
D’Aubigne, b. 12, ch. 3.
While Lefevre continued to spread the light among his students,
Farel, as zealous in the cause of Christ as he had been in that of the
pope, went forth to declare the truth in public. A dignitary of the
church, the bishop of Meaux, soon after united with them. Other teach-
ers who ranked high for their ability and learning joined in proclaiming
the gospel, and it won adherents among all classes, from the homes of
artisans and peasants to the palace of the king. The sister of Francis
I, then the reigning monarch, accepted the reformed faith. The king
himself, and the queen mother, appeared for a time to regard it with
favor, and with high hopes the Reformers looked forward to the time
when France should be won to the gospel.
But their hopes were not to be realized. Trial and persecution
awaited the disciples of Christ. This, however, was mercifully veiled
from their eyes. A time of peace intervened, that they might gain
strength to meet the tempest; and the Reformation made rapid progress.