vetio simplicity than scriptural correctness, "I am not prepared to defend this conduct, which perhaps was too hard; but yet this severity of the last generation presented less obstacles to learning and morals than the useless prodigality of the parents of our day, which renders the youth unruly, luxurious, and idle.'

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Having attained the age of fifteen, Bullinger was sent to the college at Cologne, then in high estimation. His good sense volted at the prevailing mode of studying the Aristotelian logic; and the vain and crabbed disputations to which it led were offensive to his ingenuous disposition. He even wrote two Latin dialogues against the school divines, besides two more in defence of the venerable Capnio against Pfeffercorn, the baptized Jew, whom the bigots. stirred up to oppose that learned man in his endeavours to preserve some Hebrew writings from destruction under the sweeping charge of heresy. Theological controversy becoming very general, he applied to his preceptors for advice, who recommended him to study the works of Dr. Peter Lombard, commonly called "Master of the Sentences." Gaining, however, Gaining, however, but little information from these writings, he obtained access to a library belonging to the preaching friars, by means of George Diener, a friendly monk, and read with avidity the homilies of Chrysostom, some tracts of Augustine, Origen, and Ambrose, and Luther's works on Babylonish captivity, &c. He took the writings of the Saxon Reformer home, and studied them privately; but though his surprise was excited at their contents, he was not fully convinced by their reasonings. He saw, however, that Luther came nearer the divinity of the ancients than the school divines; and he observed, that while the latter appealed to the fathers, the fathers

themselves appealed to the Scriptures; and thence he gathered, that it was expedient to have immediate recourse to the word of God as to a fountain-head, from which the others were streams more or less polluted. He read with particular attention the New Testament, referring to the ancient commentators as he proceeded; and meeting at the same time with the "Common Places" of Erasmus, he became so far enlightened as to perceive that much was wrong in the Popish doctrine, and to lay aside all idea of joining the Carthusian order.

In 1522, he took his master's degree, and passed a short time afterward under the paternal roof at Bremgarten, where he was invited by the Abbot of Cappel, a Cistertian monastery at a short distance, to teach in his school. He discharged his duty faithfully in this situation till 1527; when, being sent to Zurich by the Abbot, he attended for five months the lectures of Zuinglius, and pursued the study of Greek and Hebrew. Cultivating the acquaintance of the leading reforming divines, he became more and more grounded in evangelical doctrine, and composed a number of Essays replete with Protestant truth, which were much valued by his friends, besides a Commentary on the New Testament, which was afterwards published. He was a powerful assistant to Zuinglius and Ecolampadius in the abolition of imageworship, &c. in 1524; and particularly exerted himself in working a reformation at Cappel, where he had at length the satisfaction of witnessing the celebration of the Lord's Supper, by the abbot and monks, after the purer and more scriptural manner. He also succeeded in persuading such of the brotherhood as were not adapted for the ministry to engage in handicraft employments. In effecting these changes, he had a

difficult part to sustain. An insurrection of the peasantry occurred in 1525; when the rustics would have seized on Cappel, but for the timely intervention of the Senate of Zurich; and in consequence of a report, raised by some Romanists, that the Carthusian convent at Hedingen had been set on fire by the reforming party, retaliation was threatened on Cappel, to the great consternation of the inhabitants. Bullinger was marked for peculiar vengeance; but it pleased God to preserve him from their malice, while he undauntedly continued by writing and speaking to inculcate divine truth, and saw the work of the Lord prosper in his hand. By order of the whole Synod, he preached in the different churches bordering on the monastery; and, in 1528, was commanded by the magistracy to accompany Zuinglius to the celebrated conference held in that city.

He was called, in 1529, to a wider scene of exertion in his native place and its vicinity. Preaching at Bremgarten on Whit-Sunday to a large concourse, whom his fame had collected, he pleaded with such effect the cause of pure religion, that an order was issued on the following day to remove images and altars from the

churches, attended with a strict decree for the preservation of public morals. He was requested by the magistracy to stay and labour amongst them; to whom he replied, that he was so bound to the Senate of Zürich, and the Abbot of Cappel, that he could not act without their consent. An agent was accordingly dispatched, who obtained the sanction of his removal both from one and the other, and he commenced his regular ministration, with Gervase, a pious colleague, preaching every Sunday in the afternoon and the three next mornings, besides a daily exposition at the hour in which it had been customary to chaunt vespers.

As soon as he was quietly settled in his church he married Anne Adlischwiler, a respectable lady of Zurich, by whom he had eleven children.

But the promising work so auspiciously begun in this town and district was disturbed by the fac tious spirit of the Anabaptists, with whom he publicly disputed; and, by confuting their errors, reclaimed many of his people who inclined to their suggestions. He also wrote four books in common dialect against their tenets, and in particular defended the cause of tithes and church revenues, which they maintained ought to be abolished under the Gospel dispensation. Observing their spread throughout the lower part of the empire, he served the common interest of Protestantism, as he believed, by sending out an enlarged edition of these writings in German. About the same period he composed an Explanation of Daniel's Seventy Weeks-A Swiss Chronicle-Three Decades on thirty Psalms-and a Commentary on the four Gospels.

The progress of Evangelical doctrines in the free bailiwicks on the Reuss, and the canton of Zurich, raised such alarm, not only of a religious but political nature, in the five Cantons of Schwitz, Uri, Underwalden, Lucern, and Zug, that they entered into a covenant among themselves, and with the Valais, to defend their respective territories, and strengthened themselves by alliances with the Pope and the King of Spain. The Berners, who favoured the Reformation, were offended with the Underwalders. for encouraging the people of Hasli to rise against their lawful sovereign in support of their ancient creed, and testified their displeasure by refusing admission to the bailiff whom Underwalden had in its turn appointed to the city of Baden, in which refusal they were upheld by the Zurichers. The Ro

mish party preparing to enforce the appointment, Zurich dismissed a body of soldiers to the free bailiwicks and Bremgarten, taking possession of the abbey of Muri. All lovers of peace were apprehensive of an open rupture from the irritated state of the public mind. Zuinglius and Bullinger, knowing the martial spirit of their countrymen, exhorted them to maintain the infant Reformation by the more appropriate methods of negotiation and conference. Hostile passions, however, continued to ferment. Berne provided for its own security, and raised forces to resist Zurich, which at length took up a military position near the convent of Cappel.

The regret which cannot but arise at the notice of the warlike measures which stain the earlier records of the Reformation, is alleviated by the marked difference which an increase of religious knowledge produced in the habits of Protestant soldiers. As the men who formed this camp were citizens as well as warriors, an order prevailed which was truly exemplary; the word of God was preached by Zuinglius, the Abbot of Cappel, and other divines; no oath was heard, no gambling promoted, no licentious practices tolerated; and prayer was offered both before and after each meal. The forces of the five cantons were in the neighbourhood, and a conflict was expected, which was prevented by the interference of some neutral governments.

It was

agreed, that toleration should be cultivated, that the quintuple alliance should be discontinued, and that Underwalden should indemnify Berne.

This respite, however short, proved nevertheless greatly conducive to the advancement of the Reformation. Numbers of the inhabitants of Thurgau, the Rheinthal, and even of Wettingen, Rheinau, and other abbeys, declared in

its favour; and in the canton of Soleure no less than thirty-four communities adopted its spreading doctrines. In the city of this canton, the proselytes were few in number; and these having met in a remote house, either for worship or deliberation, a multitude of bigoted Catholics assembled, seized a field-piece, and pointed it against the dwelling. The Avoyer, Wengi, arrived in time to prevent the intended havoc. He forced his way through the crowd, placed himself before the mouth of the cannon, and called out, If you are determined to shed the blood of your fellow-citizens, you shall begin with mine.' Abashed and struck with admiration, the zealots withdrew; and through provident interference of this generous magistrate, the animosity between the two parties was for a time happily suspended *."

the

Evil spirits, however, were at work to produce a rupture, and they were permitted to harass some of the more excellent of those who were labouring to promote the joint cause of peace and true religion. Zuinglius had not ceased to recommend forbearance to the reformed, both from the pulpit and the bench; but the majority proving the more violent, it was resolved to break off all communication with the five cantons; which, after remonstrating against the measure, published a hostile declaration against Zurich. Owing to a want of decision in the latter, she had collected but a small body, when her enemy had assembled upwards of eight thousand. An obstinate engagement ensued near Cappel, in which the Romanists prevailed, and, after pursuing the Protestants to a distance, returned to the scene of contest, knelt down, thanked the Virgin and all the saints for their success, and concluded their devotions with a Paternoster and

* Planta's Helv. Conf. v, 2. p. 146.

Ave-Mary: they then sacked the camp of the Zurichers, and with horrid imprecations put to death the wounded who had been left behind. The excellent friend of Bullinger, Zuinglius, was among this number. The brutal victors caused his body to be quartered by the hangman of Lucerne, and burned; and lest his ashes should receive any mark of respect, they mixed pieces of hog's flesh with his mangled limbs. Fifteen more reforming clergymen fell in that disastrous field.

The consternation of the inhabitants of Bremgarten was great on hearing of the defeat of their friends. Bullinger, with his father, brother, and colleague, were threatened with death if they remained in the town; and capital punishment, or imprisonment, was denounced against those who should defend or harbour them. They set out therefore in the night, and, escaping the ambushes of the enemy, arrived at Zurich. This flight occurred on the 21st of November, 1531; and three days after he preached in the cathedral, by request of the pastor Leo Judæ and his colleagues, to a congregation oppressed with grief at the dispensation with which it had pleased God to visit the Protestant communion. He was immediately admitted to the privileges of citizenship, together with his friend Werner Steiner, another refugee for the sake of religion.

Ecolampadius, the pastor of Basle, expiring under the shock which his weak frame had sustained, at intelligence of the death of Zuinglius, the leading townsmen sent a messenger to our Reformer, entreating him to supply the place of their departed minister. A similar invitation was forwarded from Berne. The Senate of Zurich forbade him to leave the city; and early in December he was chosen both by the magistracy and ecclesiastical college, successor to Zuinglius. The clergy and

citizens were unanimous in this choice, not only from personal esteem of Bullinger, but also from respect to the recommendation of Zuinglius, who, on leaving the city to join the army, had declared, that if he fell in battle, he trusted that they would nominate this distinguished man to their vacant charge.

He was now indefatigable in healing the wounded spirits of those families who had lost relatives in the late engagement, and in strengthening the interests of the reformed both by his voice and pen. The exulting Romanists published many indecent and scandalous libels against the conquered party; and especially Faber sent out a work exaggerating the loss of the Zurichers, and boasting that God had evidently shown on which side truth lay, by the success which he had granted to the Catholic forces. Bullinger replied, that the loss of the Protestants amounted to five hundred and twelve; but, whether it were more or less, the result was unconnected with the question of a true or false religion. He pursued and improved the plans of his predecessor-regulated ecclesiastical abuses

appointed synods twice a yearprovided for the maintenance of the clergy, and academic instruction-established a public library, with the aid of Pellican, the learned Hebrew Professor, purchasing the private collection of books left by Zuinglius-and, obtaining the able and pious Bibliander for a colleague, gave himself wholly to the work of the ministry, preaching every day, corresponding with many public characters, and engaging in theological composition, particularly a set of Commentaries on the Acts and the Epistles. He drew up moreover, in 1534, by desire of the ministers of Zurich, a Confession of Faith, which was sent to Bucer at Constance, who was endeavouring with some Swabian clergy to effect concord be

tween the Lutherans and Zuinglians. In this formulary he was careful not to sacrifice what he be lieved to be the truth for the sake of tranquillity, while he had the satisfaction of hearing that it met the approbation of the assembled divines. He wrote at the same period two tracts on important subjects; the first, proving against some objectors that the Old Testa-ment agreed with the New in setting forth the covenant of God; the second, asserting the twofold nature in Christ, against Claude, a -Savoyard emissary of Servetus, who was disseminating Anti-trinitarian principles. He also opposed Jasper Schwenkfeld, a Silesian nobleman who had been a friend to the Helvetic Reformers, on an erroneous opinion which he broached concerning the body of our Sa--viour, arising out of some speculations curious rather than profitable. This hypothesis was of a specious character, and was too hastily entertained by many religionists. It was in substance," that after the ascension of Christ, and his exaltation to the right hand of the Father, the humanity was absorbed in the Deity." Unwilling to depend implicitly on his own conclusions, he advised with Vadianus, the learned Reformer of St. Gallen, on the subject, with whose -answer he was much pleased, and communicated it to others; and, that the sense of the ancient church might be known, he appended to the Epistle of Vadianus, the argument of Vigilius the martyr against the Eutychian heresy in the fifth century

In 1542, Leo Judæ finishing his version of the Bible, the printer sent a handsome copy to Luther, who returned it in a very ungracious manner, desiring him to send him no more of the publications of Zurich ministers; for he considered them as supporting damnable errors in impugning the doctrine of consubstantiation, and and was resolved to have no intercourse with them. Some time after the Saxon Reformer sent out his own Annotations on Genesis, in which he inveighed bitterly against the Sacramentarians, This was followed by his Brief Confession on the Lord's Supper, which was edited contrary to the remonstrances of the milder and more judicious Melancthon, on account of the intemperate language contained in it against the Zuinglians. Melancthon then wrote to Bullinger in these terms: “ Probably ere you receive this, you will have seen that very scandalous work of Luther, in which he wages war on the subject of the Lord's Supper. Never has he betrayed so much violence. I quite despair of ecclesiastical concord. Our enemies, who defend the idols of the monks, will exalt their crests, and our churches will be more distracted than ever; a reflection which causes me great uneasiness. For I am not so much affected at my own private troubles, heavy as they are, as by the divisions in our churches and academies." Some good and learned men, among whom was Bucer, exhorted the ministers of Zurich to take these charges patiently, considering that Luther was in the decline of life, had deserved well of the church of Christ, and was probably instigated by others to this unseasonable invective; to which considerations might orthodox ancients. It is as man, though ineffably glorified, that Christ sympathizes with us, intercedes for us, and will come to be our Judge; and the idea of his humanity must not be confounded with that of his divinity.