to restore this text (I John, v. 7). That Erasmus did possess the courage of his convictions was evidenced by the character of the notes appended to the volume. I have space for but a single instance. In commenting upon the famous text, Matt. xvi. 18, “Upon this rock will I build my church,” he takes occasion to deny altogether the primacy of Peter, and to express his surprise that words undoubtedly meant to apply to all Christians should have been interpreted as applying exclusively to the Roman Pontiff; and this is said, it should be remembered, in a volume dedicated to the Pope.[110] In 1524, Erasmus completed his _Paraphrase of the New Testament_, which was also printed by Froben. Drummond speaks of this book as of no great intrinsic importance, but says further, that no other of his productions gave such universal satisfaction, or so entirely escaped criticism. An English version was printed in London under the authority of the author, and the work was so highly appreciated in England that a copy was ordered to be placed in every parish church beside the Bible.[111] It had been the hope of Erasmus that the reformation of the Church, the necessity for which he so fully recognised, was to be brought about by the advancement of sound learning and the diffusion of the Scriptures. By this means, as he believed, the superstitions of the monks and their followers would be dissipated, the corruptions of the Church would be purged, and the unity of christendom be preserved. To the production of literature planned to further this great purpose, Erasmus had devoted a lifetime of arduous and scholarly toil, and to his books he added the influence of an enormous and far-reaching correspondence. It was also to the initiation and inspiration of Erasmus that must be credited not a few of the great undertakings of his earnest friend Froben, “the publisher of high ideals,” undertakings which, with hardly an exception, had for their purpose the enlightenment and development of a perplexed world. The final work of the Reformation was to be done under other leaders than Erasmus, and the results were to be brought about by other means than the publication of correct texts, scholarly commentaries, or even of satires upon monkish abuses. But the wit, learning, and intellectual force of Erasmus, brought to bear, in part through his correspondence, and in part through the Presses of Froben, Badius, and Aldus, exerted a wider influence and played a much greater part in the long contest against the rule of monkish superstition than was understood at the time, or than has, in fact, been fully recognised until a comparatively recent period.