Thursday, December 18, 2008

Chapter 4 Part 3

The Life of James Arminius
Chapter 4, Part 3 of 3.


This biography of James Arminius was written in Latin by Caspar Brandt, published by Gerard Brandt in 1724, and translated to English by John Guthrie in 1854.
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In these same critical times, moreover, when, among the troublesome points about to be started at the following Synod, this, too, was proposed by the brethren from Haarlem — 'Whether it would not be advisable that the ministers of the churches should annually renew their subscription of the Confession and Catechism, seeing individuals might be found who, though they had subscribed on being installed into office, nevertheless, at a subsequent period, gave manifest evidence of having changed their mind.' Against this counsel and deed Arminius complained, in express terms as follows [Ex Epist. Arm. ad Uitenb. 26 Mail 1600 Script.]:— 'I am amazed at the short-sighted minds of men, who do not see that by such a step they at once cast suspicion on the good faith of all ministers, as a class of men that must be compelled to constancy in the faith by dint of annual subscriptions, and that they also scatter the seeds of daily strife. Just as if it could not happen that he who had no scruple on entering upon office, and thus subscribed with a good conscience, should begin, in process of time, to be in doubt as to any article, from which he shall not be able to disentangle himself before the recurrence of the time for the renewed subscription. Besides, this is an affair of equal concernment to all churches. Moreover, what prudent man ever deemed it to be the wont either of the State or the Church to institute a search after crimes which have not betrayed an existence, yea, and to drag into open contentions those who are meditating no evil? Do not these things appear to be the foundations of a new Spanish or Tridentine Inquisition? I write thus, not because I shrink from subscription, but as what the occasion demands.' Nay more, in the same epistle in which these statements occur, he thus animadverts on the attempt of certain of the churches: — 'It appears to me that many, as if apprehensive of being thought indifferent about ecclesiastical affairs, are meditating night and day whether they, too, might not be able to propose something to be discussed in the Synods. Such men need to be recalled to the saying of the apostle: Give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine.'

How very little, indeed, he himself came short in this last-named duty, is manifest from the fact, that during the course of a period of thirteen years he expounded, in addition to Malachi, of which we have previously made mention, almost the whole of Mark, Jonah, and the Epistle of Paul to the Galatians; and he brought to a close his exposition of Paul's Epistle to the Romans on the last day of September in the following year, 1601 [Ex Calendario Arm.]. Having despatched this work, he proceeded, in the commencement of the year 1602 [11th January.], to expound in public the Epistles to the seven Asiatic churches, which are contained in the second and third chapters of the book of Revelation.

To what extent he distinguished himself during this year, as a pious and devoted pastor and watchman of the Church, the following narrative will satisfactorily show: — A pestilential heat, which spared no class in society, raged at this time through all the country, and throughout the city of Amsterdam, the capital of Holland, and the emporium of the whole world. And yet at this crisis, as if by a miracle, and by what he could not but regard as a most manifest proof of the special providence of God, while this plague was rioting through the whole town, it did not, during this year, seize on one of the chief magistrates, judges, treasurers, superintendents of orphans, ministers of religion, elders, deacons, almoners, school-rectors, or teachers. When first the deadly scourge began its ravages, and the aggregate of funerals came to be frightfully on the increase, his mind was agitated not a little by the thought of his wife and children, and of the scanty inheritance which he had it in his power to leave them. But still, after more careful meditation on the subject, and incessant prayers to God, by his kindness, he was enabled so happily to master this temptation and anxiety of mind, that at a subsequent period he informs his bosom-friend, Uitenbogaert, in the following words, that his mind had got altogether rid of such cares as these, and steeled against the fear of death:— 'Thus far have I committed myself and my life to the divine mercy, waiting daily till he require it of me, and repay a better with usury; and this I do (I say it fearlessly, that you may rejoice,) with a quiet, tranquil, and unperturbed mind. I pray — and I earnestly entreat, yea, command you, to pray along with me, as I on my part will be ready to do the like for you — that the God of all consolation may preserve this mind with me to the last.' [Ex Epist. Arm. ad Uitenb 17 August et 1 Octob. Script.].

Fortified by this hope and confidence (although his ardour in the investigation of truth, formerly most intense, was now rapidly cooling down), he ceased not to pour out fervent supplications to God for the safety of the community, to exhort the people to prayer and sincere emendation of life, to build up the hearts of the pious by consolatory addresses, both in public and private; and whatever time he might redeem to himself from his ordinary and extraordinary duties, to devote it all, not so much to the acquisition of knowledge, as to the imbuing of his own spirit with solid piety. Nay more, this vast field of pastoral fidelity and piety having presented itself to his view, so strenuously did he discharge the duties devolving upon him, that his name deserves a place among those who are entitled to be held up as examples for the imitation of all ministers of the Christian Church. To the highest and the lowest equally did he render the offices of humanity; nor did he ever allow himself to be deterred by the perils of contagion from acting his part as an indefatigable shepherd of souls [Ex Amicorum relatu.].

It chanced about that time, as he passed along one of the poorer districts of the city, that he heard a certain lowly dwelling resound with the voice of wailing. Immediately on perceiving that the whole of that household had been seized with the plague, and were in torment arising from the most burning thirst, he not only gave money to the neighbours, who were standing by, with which to purchase a draught, but further, when not one of them dared to enter that infected abode of poverty, he himself, heedless of every danger to which by this step he exposed himself and those dear to him, intrepidly walked in, and imparted refreshment, at once for the body and the soul, to every single member of this afflicted family [Ex Epist. Arm. ad Uitenbogaert. 1 Octob. 1602 Script.].

The great aptitude, moreover, by which he succeeded in consoling the minds, and imparting satisfaction to the troubled consciences of the sick, may be exemplified by the following occurrence, which also happened in those days, and appears to us to be not unworthy of record. He was called, first by a woman, and then by a man, both labouring under a severe attack of the pestilence, both professing the Reformed doctrine, and both Christians of blameless and unsullied reputation. She possessed a penetrating judgment, and a knowledge of divine things above the average of her sex. He was skilled in the same to such a degree, as to be judged competent to act the part even of a comforter to others. Neither was known to the other. Both began to be vehemently distressed in spirit because they did not distinctly feel the certainty of the remission of their sins, and the comforting testimony (alloquium) of the Holy Spirit in their own hearts, at that time particularly, at which they deemed all this to be indispensable in the highest degree. She broke out into floods of tears; he inwardly cherished his grief; and both declared 'that they had truly endeavoured, by devout meditation of the sacred page, to stir up these best of gifts if perchance they lay buried, but hitherto without effect.' Arminius, on hearing these things, with a truly sorrowful heart, and touched with a deep commiseration of both, immediately asked, 'what was the reason why they were so grievously distressed on that account.' They replied (so exactly did the views of each correspond), 'that they thought that the certainty of the remission of sins, and the witness (testimonium) of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of believers, constituted that very faith by which a believing man is justified; and consequently that they, being at this time destitute of that certainty and that witness, must also be destitute of faith.'

Here Arminius put the question, 'if they did not believe that Jesus of Nazareth was the Christ, sent into the world by the Father, the true and only Saviour of the world; if they did not know for certain that God the Father had by him alone reconciled the world unto himself, not imputing to them their trespasses; and that this same Jesus had received power from the Father to remit sins, however aggravated, and to give the Spirit of adoption to those who believe on him — which power, too, he is in every respect ready to put forth, yea, and has solemnly promised to put forth, for the salvation of those that believe.'

On their replying that they firmly believed all this, Arminius rejoined, that 'that was the faith which is counted for righteousness; but that the remission of sins is the fruit of that faith, and that it is necessarily followed (if not in time, at least in the order of nature) by a sense of this remission in the hearts of believers, according to the saying of the Apostle, JUSTIFIED BY FAITH, WE HAVE PEACE WITH GOD, and that we are to judge in the same way respecting the gift of the Holy Spirit, who is imparted to believers, and, wherever imparted, begins to operate in such ways as the Spirit himself knows to be best for the salvation of those to whom he is given.' He then proved, by a multitude of passages, which he produced from the Holy Scriptures, that justifying faith, the remission of sins, and the sense of this remission, are things distinguished in Scripture, and stand connected with each other by the relation of sequence; explaining, moreover, the grounds and reasons why that certainty and comforting testimony (alloquium) of the Spirit, are not always felt by believers in an equal degree. To this the sick persons listened with deep interest; till at length both, sustained by patience, and the most enlarged hope of Divine aid, in tranquillity of soul awaited death — which the man met, two days after, with the utmost fortitude.

From this circumstance, Arminius felt himself in the strongest degree confirmed in his original opinion as to the necessity of accurately distinguishing between things that are most intimately related to each other, lest the confounding of these things should occasion, to some consciences, a measure of anxiety and alarm which can be dispelled in no other way than by a distinction in harmony with the exact nature of things.

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