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156
From Here to Forever
“When the news of the massacre reached Rome, the exultation
among the clergy knew no bounds. The cardinal of Lorraine re-
warded the messenger with a thousand crowns; the cannon of St.
Angelo thundered forth a joyous salute; and bells rang out from
every steeple; bonfires turned night into day; and Gregory XIII,
attended by the cardinals and other ecclesiastical dignitaries, went
in long procession to the church of St. Louis, where the cardinal of
Lorraine chanted a Te Deum. ... A medal was struck to commemo-
rate the massacre. ... A French priest ... spoke of ‘that day so full of
happiness and joy, when the most holy father received the news, and
went in solemn state to render thanks to God and St. Louis.’
The same master spirit that urged on the St. Bartholomew Mas-
sacre led in the scenes of the Revolution. Jesus Christ was declared
an impostor, and the cry of the French infidels was “Crush the
Wretch,” meaning Christ. Blasphemy and wickedness went hand
[171]
in hand. In all this, homage was paid to Satan, while Christ, in His
characteristics of truth, purity, and unselfish love, was “crucified.”
“The beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make
war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them.”
Rev-
elation 11:7
. The atheistic power that ruled in France during the
Revolution and the Reign of Terror did wage such war against God
and His Word. The worship of the Deity was abolished by the Na-
tional Assembly. Bibles were collected and publicly burned. The
institutions of the Bible were abolished. The weekly rest day was set
aside, and in its stead every tenth day was devoted to reveling. Bap-
tism and the Communion were prohibited. Announcements posted
over burial places declared death to be an eternal sleep.
All religious worship was prohibited, except that of “liberty” and
the country. The “constitutional bishop of Paris was brought forward
... to declare to the Convention that the religion which he had taught
so many years was, in every respect, a piece of priestcraft, which
had no foundation either in history or sacred truth. He disowned,
in solemn and explicit terms, the existence of the Deity to whose
worship he had been consecrated.
4
Henry White, The Massacre of St. Bartholomew, ch. 14, par. 34.
5
Scott, vol. 1, ch. 17.