Translation and editing note: The following debate is a brief excerpt and an edition of Melchior Kirchhofer’s work, “The Life of Guilherme Farel, the Swiss Reformer”, modernized and made available in English by the excellent William H. Gross, editor-in-chief of the beautiful OnTheWing. org. The review was necessary to make reading more enjoyable and complete for Portuguese-speaking readers. To access this full job, click here.
In mid-1533, the entire city of Geneva was divided into religious and political parties. The enemies of the Reformation claimed that their doctrines were new and destructive of the old building that so many scholars, religious orders, and universities had erected. “Doctrines have been announced “, they said” (without any evidence that their stations are sent by God), war, plague, hunger, discord, hatred, and animosity have prevailed; peace and prosperity were appreciated, and all that could be desired. Are the preachers, not us, the false prophets who brought us such misfortunes?
- The priests made the superstitious believe that Guilherme Farel and Pierre Viret.
- His companion.
- Fed demons in the form of black cats; that hell clung to Farel’s beard; that he did not have the whites of his eyes; and other equally terrifying things.
- They tried to support their cause by preaching.
- And for that they brought Guy Fuerbity.
- Dominican and Sorbone doctor.
- Once he was commissioned to preach.
- Not in the church of his own order.
- As usual.
- But in the cathedral.
- Where he was led with great pomp and armed escort.
- He chose as his theme the soldiers who shared our Lord’s robes among themselves.
- Which he applied to the ancient and modern heretics that divided the church: Aryans.
- Sabellians.
- Vaudois.
- Lutherans.
- And Germans.
- His audience was large.
- Mostly women.
- He attacked fast-day violators.
- Those who read Holy Scripture.
- The scornful of the Pope and his protectors.
- With great vehemence.
- And called them “mad dogs.
- Heretics.
- Jews.
- Muslims.
- Etc.
- ” He elevated himself and his brother priests above the Virgin Mary.
- Because.
- As he claimed.
- They could bring Christ from heaven and transform an army into God.
In the church were two retired preachers, Antoine Froment and Alexandre Camus (known as Montin), who once the sermon had finished they offered to prove the error of what was said in the Holy Scriptures, which provoked a great cry and a general. He raised his cry: “Take them to the fire!” Du Montin was arrested and sentenced to life in prison. Froment hid and was unnecessarily searched from house to house.
Such information quickly reached the ears of the Senate, which was offended by the characteristics that the Force had applied in its sermon to the reformers, sent two of its most respectable members, Hans Francis Nageli and Ausburger, to request the arrest of the monk, and that he must respond to the envoys of what he said. Entrusted to the protection of Members, Farel, Viret and Froment reappeared in Geneva. Farel arrived the Saturday before Christmas Day.
When the council was composed, Fuerbity found himself without support, immediately submitted and expressed his readiness to respond to the proposals before him in the best possible way. Some of them denied them positively; to others, objected for not being accurately informed, or justified himself using the usual way of preaching in France; Hans Francis Nageli and Ausburger insisted that he had committed a great injustice to them and again asked him to justify his claims. the scriptures, Farel immediately said, “I thank God for putting this resolution in your heart; and I ask him to debate with us with all kindness and love, that we may have only the glory of God and the construction of our neighbour. “The most glorious victory,” he added, “is the one obtained with the truth, and I would gladly sacrifice my life to ensure its universal acceptance. “
The dispute began on Thursday, January 29 and unfolded with the participation of numerous authorities and several doctors. First, Fuerbity proposed that church prelates and pastors should have the right to enact laws and ordinances other than those contained in the scriptures, and should not be violated without mortal sin. He tried to prove it in Deuteronomy 17: 8-12; But Farel took this and other passages, and showed that Moses had forbidden additions to his laws. From this he deduced that it would be even more sinful to take such freedom with the gospel, which is the final revelation of divine truth.
Fuerbity claimed that the Levitical priesthood was a type of the Pope. Farel referred to Jesus, the great High Priest who, by his own offering, had abolished all sacrificial and priestly services, and called everyone to come to the Father through him. This does not satisfy the monk. He argued that the church must have a supreme head, since even Christ himself commanded the people to obey the scribes and Pharisees who were seated in the chair of Moses; and Paul recommended obedience to the teachers and that the traditions of the elders be maintained. He soon concluded that the Pope’s decrees were binding. Farel admitted that the church had a head? not the Pope, but Jesus? the Lord and Supreme Head, from whom all salvation flows from the Church; and he observed that Jesus commanded the people to follow the scribes only when they were teaching what Moses commanded; otherwise they would occupy the place incorrectly. Likewise, only those who preach the pure doctrine of Jesus should be listened to later; the teaching of all others should be avoided as much as the leaven of the Pharisees. The decrees of the apostles in Jerusalem did not come from themselves, but from Jesus, according to their instructions and the direction of his Spirit.
Forces then asked where in the gospel it was said that Jesus had forbidden to eat bottle or blood strangled or what had been offered to idols?These, he said, were fatherly ordinances, maintained under the authority of Peter, whom Jesus had declared to be the head of the church, and then established by the authority of the Pope and councils. Farel responded that these prohibitions were made according to Jesus’ commandment, so that we would not offend our brother; Peter himself had spoken out against the imposition of new and unbearable burdens on Christians, and he also explained what Jesus meant by the keys of the kingdom of heaven, that is, the Gospel or word of God, that all who preach the word God have in their purity, therefore nothing in favor of the supremacy of the Pope is found in the scriptures; no man, however holy, should be heard, except when he preaches what is according to divine truth. Imagination, like false prophets, should not be heard by anyone, because it is not sent by God.
To sustain the authority of tradition, Fuerbity gave an example of saturday’s change that moved to Sunday to celebrate the Resurrection, to which Farel replied that the feasts were also a divine mandate, even though every day was holy and should be considered. as such; and it would be contrary to the law of love for an individual to separate from others and celebrate another day.
Most of the day he devoted himself to this dispute
Suite in Part 2.