History of the Reformation of the Sixteenth Century, Volume 3Merle d'Aubigné, J. H. (Jean Henri)
History
History of the Reformation of the Sixteenth Century, Volume 3
Merle d'Aubigné, J. H. (Jean Henri)
Reformation
On the 11th of April 1525, the three pastors of Zurich, accompanied by
Megander and Oswald Myconius, appeared before the Great Council, and
demanded the re-establishment of the Lord's Supper. Their language was
solemn;[524] all minds were absorbed in meditation; every man felt the
importance of the resolution which the council was called upon to
take. The mass, that mystery which for more than three centuries had
been the very soul of the religious service of the Latin Church, was
to be abolished, the corporeal presence of Christ to be declared an
illusion, and the illusion itself removed from the minds of the
people. Courage was needed to arrive at such a resolution, and there
were men in the council who shuddered at this daring thought. Joachim
Am-Grütt, under-secretary of state, alarmed at the bold demand of the
pastors, opposed it with all his might. "These words, _This is my
body_," said he, "unquestionably prove that the bread is the body of
Christ himself." Zwingle observed that εστἱ (is) is the
proper word in the Greek language to express _signifies_, and he
quoted several instances in which this word is employed in a
figurative sense. The Great Council were convinced and did not
hesitate; the Gospel doctrines had penetrated their hearts; besides,
as they were separating from the Church of Rome, there was a certain
satisfaction in making that separation as complete as possible, and in
digging a gulf between it and the Reformation. The council, therefore,
ordered the mass to be suppressed, and decreed that on the next day,
Holy Thursday, the Lord's Supper should be celebrated in conformity
with the apostolical usages.
[524] Und vermantend die ernstlich. Bull. Chron. p. 263.
[Sidenote: ZWINGLE'S DREAM.]
Zwingle was seriously engrossed by these thoughts, and when he closed
his eyes at night, was still seeking for arguments with which to
oppose his adversaries. The subjects that had so strongly occupied his
mind during the day presented themselves before him in a dream. He
fancied that he was disputing with Am-Grütt, and that he could not
reply to his principal objection. Suddenly a figure stood before him
and said: "Why do you not quote the 11th verse of the 12th chapter of
Exodus: _Ye shall eat it_ (the lamb) _in haste_: _it is the Lord's
passover_?" Zwingle awoke, sprung out of bed, took up the Septuagint
translation, and there found the same word εστἱ (is), which
all are agreed is synonymous with _signifies_ in this passage.
Here then, in the institution of the paschal feast under the old
covenant, is the very meaning that Zwingle defends. How can he avoid
concluding that the two passages are parallel?
On the following day Zwingle preached a sermon on this text, and spoke
so forcibly that he removed every doubt.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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