The World's Orators

THE LIBRARY OF SANTA BARBARA COLLEGE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESENTED BY Prof. Upton Palmer '^.^d.Â^ '•% WO^ "'"'^RS Huldreich Zwingli. R. Houston. Introducfffl*^ j;mc{fp/i«/ mginved hj> GUY CARI Orators of ti G. P. PU7 NEW YOi ZTbe "Stn' Daniel "Cacbstcr lEMtion THE WORLD'S ORATORS Comprising THE GREAT ORATIONS OF THE WORLD'S HISTORY With Introductory Essays, Biographical Sketches and Critical Notes GUY CARLETON LEE, Ph.D. Editor-in-Chief VOLUME IV. Orators of the Reformation Era G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS NEW YORK AND LONDON Ubc Ikniclêrboclêr press MCM III Copyright, 1900 BY G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS Ube "Rnfcfjccbochet presf, mew Korft UNTV •r.^roRNiA v.: i<.... SAN -t: LIBRARY i~1 PREFACE TO THE ORATORS OF THE REFORMATION ERA volume, as was its predecessor in the THISWorld's Orators Series, is devoted to the oratory of the pulpit. The exclusion of secular oratory results from necessity, for during one thousand years the World's Orators were, with rare exception, ecclesiastics. " " The term Reformation Era is construed in its broadest meaning, and the volume begins with Wyclif and ends with the famous Court Preachers of Louis XIV. This extension of the scope of the volume is justified by the arrangement of the remainder of the series. The Editor-in-Chief acknowledges his indebted- ness to the learning of the Associate-Editor in this volume, Joseph Cullen Ayer, B.D., Ph.D., who has, in addition to valuable general assistance, contributed several important translations. VI Preface The Editors call attention to the portraits accom- panying the text. The illustrations, except those especially noted, are authenticated portraits of the great orators whose names they bear. G. C. L. Historical Department, Johns Hopkins University, 1899. CONTENTS PAGB Preface v introductory Essay The Oratory of the Reformation Era . / John Wyclif Introduction ^^ Sermon on Prayer J5 Girolamo Savonarola Introduction 41 Sermon on the Ascension 4$ Martin Luther Introduction 65 Sermon on the Good Shepherd . 6_9 Huldreich ZwingU Introduction p/ Sermon on Mary, the Pure Mothe 1 of God . g^ Heinrich Bnlliuger Introduction 107 Sermon on Faith log vii viil Contents PAGE John Calvin Introduction 120 Sermon on the Privilege of Being in the Church of God 122 Hugh Latimer Introduction 75/ Second Sermon on the Card . , > ^53 Richard Hooker Introduction i6y Sermon on the Nature ofJustice . i6g John Knox Introduction 18^ Homily on Isaiah XXlÎ., ij-21 . iSî Francis de Sales Introduction ipg Sermon on the Feast of Pentecost . 201 Jacques Benigne Bossttet Introduction 2/7 Funeral Oration on the Prince of Conde . 219 Esprit Flechier Introduction 24^ Funeral Oration on Marshal Turenne . 2^5 Franfois de Saligiiac de Lamothe Fenelon Introduction 265 Sermon on Prayer 26y Louis Bourdaloue Introduction 2^j Sermon on the Passion ofJesus Christ . 28^ Contents ix PACK Jeau Bjptiste Mjssillon Introdiiclion 299 Sermon on the Small Number of the Elect . joi Jacques Saurin Introduction }2j Sermon on the Speech of Paul before Felix and Drusilla J2p Antonio Vicyra Introduction . J53 Sermon on the Great Evil of Sin . ,^55 THE WORLD'S ORATORS THE WORLD'S ORATORS THE ORATORY OF THE REFORMATION ERA FRANCIS DE SALES points out, in one of ST. his sermons on the gift of the Holy Ghost at Pentecost, the significance of the fact that the visi- ble manifestation of the Spirit's presence took the form of fiery tongues. He sees therein an indication of the large part that the tongue would take in the work of the Christian Church. The idea, however far-fetched and fanciful it may appear at first sight, is highly suggestive. The power of the Christian Church has always been that of persua- s/ sion, and its moments of weakness have been those unhappy times when it has been tempted to aban- don the method given at Pentecost and has proved itself unable to resist the temptation. The Church grew and attained its position of authority in the VOL. IV.— I. 2 The World's Orators Roman world solely by the power of the spoken word. It was the greatest triumph of oratory that the world has ever seen, however far that oratory may have departed in form from the oratory of the schools. The Protestant Reformation is the second great triumph of the spoken word in the history of the • Christian religion, and this can be said without ref- erence to the truth or falsity of the multitude of conflicting doctrines that were preached by the various parties of the Reformation. Men will always differ as to the justification for the schism from the ancient Church, as to the abuses which have been alleged as the caus2 of the movement, and as to the validity of the claim made of restoring a purer and more evangelical form of Christianity. In the history of oratory, nevertheless, the Refor- ^ mation remains the greatest event since the days of the Fathers. In studying the preachers of the Reformation period, it is impossible either to understand their work or to recognize their comparative merits without viewing them in connection with the people among whom they worked and the great movement in which they took part. For the preacher and the people are bound up together most inti- mately, so that there is no more accurate test of the depth of the religious life of a community or an era than the sermons that are delivered in The Oratory of the Reformation Era 3 public worship. The preacher may indeed be the prophet, but he is still more. There is a certain priestly function which he is called upon to exer- ' cise : he represents the people in their worship. He is an indication of the depth of the religious / culture of the people who assemble week after week to listen to him, not merely because in many cases he is the only religious instructor they have, but also because his message is to a very marked degree influenced and shaped by the influences that affect his auditors. That which they feel imper- ^ fectly, he feels in fuller force. He may be at times a leader he be able to mould the minds of ; may his hearers; but he is rarely able to rise far above those to whom he ministers. These considerations hold good in respect to the great preachers of the Reformation. Some of them have been able to take a position of leadership so pronounced that the movements with which their names have been associated have seemed to be their own creation, and the power whereby they produced their great effects to be their unaided eloquence. There have been at all times men of commanding genius who have been associated with the revolutions in the history of the world. There has been at the same time, however, a long preparation, not clearly seen, that not only produced those men but also formed those circum- stances that made their work possible. In the 4 The World's Orators story of great discoverers Columbus enjoys a well deserved preeminence. But the discovery of America was by no means dependent upon the happy inspiration of his genius. In the great con- vulsions of religious thought that filled the six- teenth century the names of Luther and Calvin stand forth as leaders and even as originators. But a more careful examination of the history of the times shows a large number of men, inde- pendent of one another yet all bent on much the same task. Everywhere forces were at work pro- ducing approximately the same results. These considerations must be borne in mind in estimating the preachers of the Reformation period. They have attained in the popular imagination a promi- nence that disguises their real position and does injustice to their work. For they were great y preachers, not so much in that they were orators or disciples of Chrysostom or Gregory, but in that were able to to the ^ they give expression thought that lay in men's breasts, and to arouse to consciousness the spirit that was as yet dormant. In studying the eloquence of the Reformation it is necessary first of all to note those causes which produced that great revolution in thought. There were in general three causes which gave oppor- tunity to the orator to appeal to deep feeling. : of the These were the consciousness nationality ; moral revulsion from the unsettled and degraded The Oratory of the Reformation lira 5 state of the Church a ; and quickened religious feeling. These causes were not confined to any one part of Europe, they did not of necessity lead to any schism in the Church, still less did they tend to bring about a revision of the theological systems. These results were dependent upon cir- cumstances which were for the most part local, and were particularly influenced by the difficulty under which men of all parties labored, whether in dealing with opposition to an established order or with criticism of official acts. And here it is well to add that men are not for long successful in inculcating the principles of religion and virtue when they themselves are not sincere. The advocate may for a while conceal his sentiments in a case, but he cannot do so for a life- time. Men may have their personal failings and act from mixed motives and often fall before temptation ; but the first qualification for continuous success in ' pulpit oratory is^probity of character^) Then again it is not natural for men to listen to appeals to the deepest sentiments of religion for any great length of time unless there is some response in their -^ hearts.

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