Calvin and Farel: The dynamics of legitimation in early Calvinism

Journal of Early Modern History

Volumn 2, Issue 1, 1998, Pages 32-60

  Oberman, Heiko A ^a  

^a UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA   (United States)

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[No Author keywords available]

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EID: 67650100346     PISSN: 13853783     EISSN: 15700658     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1163/157006598X00081     Document Type: Review

References (160)

1. "Vale, mi optime et integerrime frater, et quando te Deus superstitem manere vult, vive memor nostrae coniunctionis: quae ut ecclesiae Dei fuit utilis, ita nos eius fructus in coelo manet." Calvin to Farel, Geneva, 2 May 1564.
2. Jean Calvin, Ioannis Calvini opera quae supersunt omnia, ed. W. Baum, E. Cunitz, and E. Reuss, 59 vols. (Brunsvigae, 1863-1900), 20: 302 C, no. 4104 (hereafter cited as CO).
3. For the letters to and from Farel, I follow the numbering of Dominique Quadroni, "Répertoire de la Correspondance," in Actes du Colloque Guillaume Farel, Neuchâtel, 29 septembre-1 octobre, 1980, ed. Pierre Barthel, Rémy Scheurer, and Richard Stauffer, 2 vols. (Geneva, Lausanne, and Neuchâtel, 1983), 2: 13-104 (hereafter cited as Rép.); here no. 1004.
4. The key word used by Calvin, "coniunctio," continues to be rendered in private-romantic terms as "intimacy" under the influence of the Henry Beveridge and Jules Bonnet edition of the Letters of John Calvin (Philadelphia, 1858).
5. See for example, David C. Steinmetz, in his otherwise eminent study of Calvin as biblical expositor, Calvin in Context (Oxford and New York, 1995), 20.
6. Unfortunately, the Beveridge-Bonnet translation of Selected Works of John Calvin, Tracts and Letters was republished in 1983 (Grand Rapids, Mich.) in unrevised form.
7. While "coniunctio" can mean something close to intimacy (see Bucer's definition of marriage in 1550 with reference to canon law in De Regno Christi, ed. François Wendel [Paris, 1955], II: cap. 39, 209; cf. II: cap. 38, 207), the term carries here the connotation of "partnership" and "alliance."
8. Farel forges the superlative "coniunctissimus" to express his delight about the political alliance between Geneva and Bern: "foedus perpetuum inter urbes quas coniunctissimas esse maxime convenit ..." Farel to Calvin, Neuchâtel, 29 January 1558, CO 17: 28 B, no. 2797; Rép. 932;
9. cf. The letter from Calvin to Pierre Viret, Geneva, 27 August 1558, CO 17; 309 B, no. 2943; 308 C, "... coniunctis animis et fraterna benevolentia."
10. The background of this "seamless partnership" is the alliance of Geneva, Neuchâtel, and Lausanne as fashioned by Calvin in the "coniunctio" between Farel, Viret, and himself. Its literary-theological formulation is first presented in the Dedicatio of his Titus Commentary: "Interea sanctae quae inter nos est coniunctionis erit saltem aliquod el huic saeculo et forsan ad posteros testimonium ... Nam et hoc inter coniunctionis nostrae bona numero ...; ... non aliam nos societatem vel amicitiam, colere, quam quae auspiciis Christi consecrata eius ecclesiae hactenus fuit utilis ..." Calvin to Farel and Viret, Geneva, 29 November 1549, CO 13: 477 C-478 A, no. 1319; Rép. 623.
11. e Siècle, vol. 1, Écrits théologiques, littéraires et juridiques 1532-1554 (Geneva, 1991), 337, no. 50/3.
12. Calvin to Farel, Geneva, 27 August 1548, CO 13: 35 C, no. 1066; Rép. 556.
13. For the same arrangement with Pierre Viret, see Calvin to Viret, 1 September 1548, CO 13: 43 B, no. 1071;
14. and Viret's elaborate confirmation, 16 September 1548, CO 13: 53, no. 1077.
15. Farel pointed only indirectly to Lefèvre as the "vessel" of his conversion (early 1521?) "par le moyen d'un pieux frère," but is explicit in describing his pre-conversion mental state: "J'ay esté plongé jusques aux abysmes de toute iniquité, idolatrie, malédiction ..." Guillaume Farel, 1489-1565. Biographie nouvelle écrite d'après les documents originaux par un groupe d'historiens, professeurs et pasteurs de Suisse, de France et d'Italie (Neuchâtel and Paris, 1930), 104-110, 104.
16. Calvin to Bullinger, Geneva, 6. Cal. Iulii 1548 [26 June], CO 12: 730 C, no. 1039.
17. "... tresdocts, treschiers, singuliers amys et freres Iehan Calvin et Guillaume Farel ..." CO 10: 185 C, no. 107.
18. A. L. Herminjard, Correspondance des Réformateurs dans les pays de langue française, 13 vols. (Geneva, 1866-1897), 4: 415, no. 699 (hereafter cited as Herminjard); 2: 13-15; Rép. 214.
19. Bern's irritation was not a passing mood. In 1549 Johannes Haller (†1575), minister in Bern and no friend of Calvin (he referred to the Genevan church discipline as "illa inquisitio"; Calvin to Bullinger, 24 August 1550, CO 13: 631 B, no. 1400),
20. reported to Bullinger that the city fathers knew Calvin all too well to respect him: "... Calvinus und Farellus bisshar allen minen herrn bekannt, und suspect ..." Haller to Bullinger, 27 June 1549, CO 13: 315 C, no. 1215.
21. For the element of propaganda in Calvin's description of Genevan party politics, see William G. Naphy, Calvin and the Consolidation of the Genevan Reformation: 1541-1557 (Manchester, 1994), 32-41. Less convincing is Naphy's related thesis that Calvin's letters have been overrated and should be read as a tool to manipulate public opinion, indeed as "masterful" propaganda.
22. Naphy, "Calvin's Letters: Reflections on their Usefulness in Studying Genevan History," Archiv für Reformationsgeschichte 86 (1995), 89. Quite apart from the fact that Calvin's letters are not yet available in a critical edition- the first volume is in preparation by the editorial team of Cornelius Augustijn, Christoph Burger and Frans van Stam - Calvin scholars, including Naphy himself, have not yet begun to exploit this precious resource. More importantly, while Naphy is quite right in pointing to Calvin's "slant" in epistles intended for wider circulation, a significant part of his correspondence contains confidential and thus reliable accounts of his perceptions, intentions, and uncensored reactions - a decipherable and therefore useful source for our grasp of the events, the historical record.
23. Naphy's important conclusions, based on his archival analysis of the intramural factions in Geneva, have to be read in the larger context of the tensions between Geneva and Bern, which would delimit Calvin's political strategies until his dying day. See the often mentioned but rarely considered fundamental study by Émile Dunant, Les Relations politiques de Genève avec Berne et les Suisses de 1536 à 1564 (Geneva, 1894), esp. 23-41.
24. In later years, Farel's acknowledgment of Calvin's leadership turned into self-deprecation, which could even take the form of self-effacement: "Sed quid facias mecum nisi ut boni consulas, tam ineptum et tempestivum amicum ferens ..." Farel to Calvin, Neuchâtel, 3 August 1550, CO 13: 618 B, no. 1394; Rép. 652.
25. See the ruthless self-appraisal: "Hoc solum habeo quod mihi nunquam satisfacio, et dolet quod non satis quid scribam, et ad quos, perpendo ... Sed caput meum crassius est, et paene occallui in contrarium, et tamdiu Farellus fui ut sperari nihil minus a me possit quam ut alius sim in scribendo." Farel to Calvin, Neuchâtel, 27 August 1550, CO 13: 632 A, no. 1401; Rép. 655.
26. This visceral self-doubt and deep sense of "falling short" may well have played a role in the events of the fall of 1558 that we are about to describe. Its mention here, however, is the appropriate occasion to register profound dissatisfaction with E. Cunitz and E. Reuss, who use their edition of Farel's letters in CO throughout to belittle Farel disdainfully; here: "pro more contortius quam lucidius" (in summary of letter 1401, CO 13: 631 C). In their constant critique, they display their understandable respect for the impressive conciseness of Calvin's style; all too often, however, they assail Farel's "unclear allusions" out of a lack of appreciation for the need of dissimulation and "secret code" in confidential information, which should not fall into the wrong hands.
27. Strasbourg [c. 13 May 1540], CO 11: 42 A/B, no. 218; Herminjard, 6: 215-25, no. 863; Rép. 277.
28. Martin Bucer, Religionsgespräche (1539-1541). Martin Bucers deutsche Schriften, ed. Cornelius Augustijn (Gütersloh, 1995), 13.
29. Augustijn particularly has in mind the passage in which Calvin reveals to Farel in strict confidentiality ("tibi in aurem insussurrabo") that Duke George, "the Bearded," of Saxony (†1539) had invited Bucer and Melanchthon to a secret consultation in Leipzig which spelled a dramatic turn in the policy of Albertine Saxony, until that time so fiercely anti-Lutheran. Since this was a risky political move on the part of Duke George, Bucer and Melanchthon had to ride to Leipzig in absolute secrecy: "Itaque clanculum eo uterque profectus est." Calvin to Farel, Strasbourg, [after 15 January 1539], CO 10: 315 C, no. 158; Herminjard, 5: 229, no. 767; Rép. 247.
30. For the actual encounter in January 1539 in Leipzig, see Günter Wartenberg, "Die Leipziger Religionsgespräche von 1534 und 1539: ihre Bedeutung für die sächsisch-albertinische Innenpolitik und für das Wirken Georgs von Karlowitz," in Die Religionsgespräche der Reformationszeit, ed. Gerhard Müller (Güttersloh, 1980), 35-41.
31. Cf. Heribert Smolinsky, "Aspekte altgläubiger Theologie im albertinischen Sachsen in der Reformationszeit bis 1542," in Herbergen der Christenheit (1993-94), ed. Günther Wartenberg (Leipzig, 1994), 37.
32. This perspective is not invalid but rather too limited. It is important to note that once in Strasbourg, Calvin wrote to Farel that the (Zwinglian) critics in Bern should realize that Luther, Bucer, and Brenz (the early Brenz!) "principatum hodie in ecclesia tenent." Calvin to Farel, Strasbourg, 21 June 1540, CO 11: 53 C, no. 221; Herminjard, 6: 241, no. 868; Rép. 278.
33. William J. Bouwsma, John Calvin. A Sixteenth-Century Portrait (New York, 1988), 4. Notwithstanding the risks Bouwsma is taking in his psychological soundings of the Commentaries (Calvin's correspondence plays only a marginal role), he is one of the "godfathers" of the new quest for the historical Calvin.
34. Cf. my review article, "The New Quest for the Historical Calvin," Harvard Divinity Bulletin 24 (1995), 25-26.
35. Written in Orléans, a revised version of the Psychopannychia was printed in Strasbourg, 1542; 1545.
36. For the strikingly "mature" introduction to Olivétan's New Testament, see Irena Backus and Claire Chimelli, "L'Épitre à tous amateurs," in "La Vraie Piété." Divers traités de Jean Calvin et Confession de foi de Guillaume Farel (Geneva, 1986), 17-38.
37. Thomas A. Brady, Protestant Politics: Jacob Sturm (1489-1553) and the German Reformation (Atlantic Highlands, N.J., 1995), 378.
38. In German, Zwischen Gott und Mammon. Protestantische Politik und die deutsche Reformation (Berlin, 1996).
39. "At religione in Germania profligata [ms: commota] verendum ut et alibi affligatur." The Strasbourg ministers to the Genevan Council, [23 October] 1540, CO 11: 98 A, no. 247.
40. Heiko A. Oberman, "Europa afflicta: The Reformation of the Refugees," Archiv für Reformationsgeschichte 83 (1992): 91-111.
41. "... clam magnis quum pollicitationibus tum minis nos oppugnant [legati Pontificis]. Caesarem [Charles V] parati sunt adiuvare grandi pecunia, si ad arma volet prorumpere ..." Calvin made an exception for Contarini who wanted to achieve victory without the use of force. Calvin to Farel, Regensburg, 29 March 1541, CO 11: 179 A, no. 290; Herminjard, 7: 62, no. 957; Rép. 310.
42. Elisabeth Gleason's reconstruction of Contarini's role during the actual proceedings at Regensburg (28 April-22 May) provides the acute insight that Contarini's special position can best be understood when realizing that "he belonged to the last generation whose intellectual and theological formation had occurred before the Reformation." Gleason's observation is of equal importance in grasping Calvin's generation gap with Luther: Calvin already presupposed two separate forms of western Christianity, the "Roman" and the "Christian" church. Gleason, Gasparo Contarini. Venice, Rome, and Reform (Berkeley, 1993), 224.
43. For Melanchthon's sense of the Turkish threat as part of this wider view of the future of the Reformation in Europe, see his letter to Calvin from Bonn, 11 May 1543, CO 11: 541 B, no. 467;
44. Melanchthons Briefwechsel, ed. Heinz Scheible, bearbeitet von Richard Wetzel (Stuttgart-Bad Canstatt, 1995), 3: 394, no. 3245.
45. At the express and urgent request of Melanchthon, the Strasbourg city council instructed Calvin to attach himself to Bucer in attendance at the Colloquy of Regensburg. Calvin to Farel, Strasbourg, 31 January 1541, CO 11: 146 C-147 A, no. 273; Herminjard, 7: 11, no. 938; Rép. 302.
46. "Quid igitur necesse fuit tanto impetu in me ferri [sic], ut amicitiam propemodum renunciares? ... Rogo igitur ut huic tantae vehementiae modum moderationemque adhibeas." Calvin to Farel, Ulm, 1 March 1541, CO 11: 170 A/B; Herminjard, 7: 42, no. 950; Rép. 308.
47. "... cogita esse alios qui indigne sibi impietatem et perniciem ecclesiae impingi ferant." Calvin to Farel, Regensburg, 29 March 1541, CO 11: 180 A, no. 290; Herminjard, 7: 63, no. 957; Rép. 310.
48. Ten years later, Farel was more explicit about Bucer's "impiety": Bucer glorified "the Great Luther" for his understanding of Christ, while defending such obvious errors of Luther as "the images are the books of the lay folk." Farel to Calvin, Neuchâtel, 14 February 1551, CO 14: 50 B, no. 1449; Rép. 669.
49. The explosive, highly sensitive issue of the bigamy of Philip of Hesse was disguised in Greek and alluded to with a play on words that we can only try to approximate. Calvin to Farel, Regensburg, 29 March 1541, CO 11: 179 B/C, no. 290; Herminjard, 7: 62, no. 957; Rép. 310.
50. After the defeat of the Schmalkaldic League, Calvin was more explicit: Philip got what he deserved, "un payement digne de sa lachete." Calvin to De Falais, [Geneva], 14 July 1547, CO 12: 552 A, no. 924.
51. "... centum potius aliae mortes quam illa crux ..." Calvin to Farel, [Strasbourg], 29 March 1540, CO 11: 30 C, no. 214; Herminjard, 6: 199, no. 857; Rép. 273.
52. Calvin to Farel, Strasbourg, [c. 13 May 1540], CO 11: 38 A/B, no. 218; Herminjard, 6: 217, no. 863; Rép. 277.
53. While Calvin hopes that Bucer will come to Geneva, Farel suggested that not "just" Bucer should come but also a respectable politician. Calvin to Farel, Strasbourg, [24 October 1540], CO 11: 100 A, no. 248; Herminjard, 6: 339, no. 903; Rép. 289.
54. For Farel's reply, see Farel to Calvin, Neuchâtel, 31 October 1540, CO 11: 101 B/C, no. 249; Herminjard, 6: 345-47, no. 907; Rép. 290.
55. see Naphy, Calvin and the Consolidation of the Genevan Reformation, esp. 52-83.
56. Feeling deserted by the Strasbourg brethren (above all by Bucer) in their strategy of reconciliation with Pierre Caroli, Calvin confided to Farel that he had "gravely sinned" (graviter peccavi) by completely losing his self-control in a furious reaction, climaxing in a "paroxismus" of uncontrollable sobbing. Calvin to Farel, Strasbourg, 8 October 1539, CO 10: 398 B, no. 188; Herminjard, 6:54, no. 823; Rép. 263.
57. Cf. Calvin's emotional outburst when first confronted with the question of whether or not to go back to Geneva. Calvin to Farel, Worms, 13 November 1540, CO 11: 114 B/C, no. 254; Herminjard, 6: 366, no. 912; Rép. 291.
58. Cf. Calvin to Farel, 27 February 1540, CO 11: 24 B/C, no. 211; Herminjard, 6: 191, no. 854; Rép.: omitted.
59. "... vestro sanctissimo ternione ..." Bucer to Calvin, Lambeth Palace, 14 August 1549, CO 13: 356 B, no. 1240.
60. This "myth" is not, as often assumed, a later invention. In rudimentary form it was already adumbrated in Farel's characterization of "Calvin's Geneva" as Europe's Christian sanctuary: "... non male laudata quod asylum quoddam sit ecclesiae et hospitium quam undique Dominus colligit." Farel to Calvin, Neuchâtel, 11 June 1554, CO 15: 153 B, no. 1964; Rép. 790.
61. Calvin's critique of Farel's overlong sermons too tedious for his listeners - should be noted but is still part of a series of critical but fraternal reprimands. Calvin to Farel, Geneva, 16 September 1541, CO 11: 282 A, no. 355; Herminjard, 7: 249-50, no. 1039; Rép. 339.
62. Calvin to the ministers of the Church of Neuchâtel, Geneva, 26 September 1558, CO 17: 352 A, no. 2966; Rép. 953. The two-volume Actes du Colloque Guillaume Farel passes over the marriage of Farel in silence.
63. See, however, the contribution of Louis Aubert, "Mariage de Farel et Nouveau Voyage," in Guillaume Farel, 1489-1565. Biographie nouvelle (see note 6), 673-78.
64. Whereas Aubert presented the facts and discussed Marie's age without the apologetic tendency of earlier Protestant scholarship to present her as a woman of "mature years," he failed to see its far-reaching consequences: "L'impression conduite par son mariage ne tarda pas à passer, comme toutes les choses de ce monde ..." Aubert, "Mariage de Farel," 678.
65. For a discussion of church discipline (censura morum) as a means of such protection, see my De erfenis van Calvijn. Grootheid en grenzen (Kampen, 1988), 31f.
66. "... tam monachi quam eorum lenones et meretrices suburbia inhabitantes fere totum ipsum prioratum destruxerunt et mobilia eius disperserunt et asportarunt...." Registres du Conseil de Genève, Tome XIII, 3 juillet 1534 au 23 mai 1536 (Geneva, 1940), 41 (XXVII, 107).
67. Cf. Bernd Moeller, "Kleriker als Bürger," in Festschrift für Hermann Hampel zum 70 (Göttingen, 1972), 2: 195-224.
68. See Melanchthon to Camerarius, [Wittenberg], 16 June [1525]; Melanchthons Briefwechsel, 1: 196, no. 408.
69. Cf. The revealing passage in Camerarius' biography of Melanchthon (1566), quoted in Melanchthon Studien Ausgabe 7/1, ed. Hans Volz, (Gütersloh, 1971), 240, n. 3.
70. See Oberman, Luther. Man Between God and the Devil, 3d ed. (London, 1994), 272-89.
71. Deeply rooted reservations on the part of lay folk over the new phenomenon of a married priest are well documented for Strasbourg by Thomas A. Brady, Jr. in "'You Hate us Priests.' Anticlericalism, Communalism and the Control of Women at Strasbourg in the Age of the Reformation," in Anticlericalism in Late Medieval and Early Modern Europe, eds. Peter A. Dykema and Heiko A. Oberman, 2d ed. (Leiden, 1994), 167-208.
72. Cf. in the same volume Katherine G. Brady and Thomas A. Brady, Jr., "Documents on Communalism and the Control of Women at Strasbourg in the Age of the Reformation," 209-28.
73. Bucer's latin formulation of his basic theme - the Lord does not want the bond of marriage (vinculum) to legitimize the shackles of torture - could be applied to any victim of a violent marriage, be it husband or wife. But the French translation of 1558 renders his intention well: the Lord is intent on the care of women, "... pourvoir aux povres femmes innocentes." De Regno Christi, II: cap. 27, 179;
74. Du Royaume de Jésus-Christ, Martini Buceri Opera Latina, XV bis, ed. François Wendel (Gütersloh, 1954), 176, line 10.
75. See Rudolf Pfister, "Ambrosius Blarer in der Schweiz 1548-1564," in Der Konstanzer Reformator Ambrosius Blarer 1492-1564. Gedenkschrift zu seinem 400. Todestag, ed. Bernd Moeller (Konstanz, 1964), 212.
76. Blarer to Calvin, Bienne, 16 August 1558, CO 17: 289 C/290 A, no. 2933.
77. For the early history of the matrimonial tribunals in Neuchâtel see Jeffrey R. Watt, The Making of Modern Marriage. Matrimonial Control and the Rise of Sentiment in Neuchâtel, 1550-1800 (Ithaca, 1992), 53-56. The case of Farel's marriage is not mentioned; Farel himself appears only once, and then as "consummate zealot" (35).
78. "Novus sum in istis et solus." Farel to Calvin, Neuchâtel, 27 April 1551, CO 14: 113 A, no. 1487; Rép. 709 dates this letter a year later.
79. Calvin and Viret to Farel, Geneva, 23 May 1552, CO 14: 321-322, no. 1624;
80. Rép. 715; Viret to Farel, Lausanne, 25 May 1552; cf. CO 14: 323 B/C, no. 1625; Rép. 716.
81. "Videndum esset ut in istis magis conveniret." Farel to Calvin, Neuchâtel, 30 May 1552, CO 14: 327 B, no. 1627; Rép. 717.
82. The variance and distance between Bucer's and Calvin's views of divorce can be measured with the help of the well-documented presentation by Robert M. Kingdon of five divorce cases brought before the Genevan Consistory. Kingdon, Adultery and Divorce in Calvin's Geneva (Cambridge, Mass., 1995), 31-165.
83. For the Geneva divorce laws at this time, see Cornelia Seeger, Nullité de mariage, divorce, et séparation de corps à Genève au temps de Calvin (Lausanne, 1989).
84. For the earlier phase in Constance see Wolfgang Dobras, Ratsregiment, Sittenpolizei und Kirchenzucht in der Reichsstadt Konstanz, 1531-1548 (Heidelberg, 1993).
85. For the later phase in Constance, see Thomas Max Safley, Let No Man Put Asunder: The Control of Marriage in the German Southwest. A Comparative Study, 1550-1600 (Kirksville, Mo., 1984).
86. CO 17: 352 A/B (as in note 38).
87. Though we have no direct account of Calvin's immediate reaction to the original invitation, personally conveyed by Farel, Calvin reminded Farel of the first two points after Farel reiterated his invitation in writing (the third point is reported by Farel; see note 54): "Quum tibi coram dixissem me ad nuptias vel sponsalia non venturum, quia neque fieri poterat neque expedire ducebam, miratus sum quid sibi vellet nova invitatio." Calvin to Farel, Geneva, [12 September 1558], CO 17: 335 A/B, no. 2958; Rép. 952.
88. "Utinam potius sequutus esses quod probaveras, ut statim a reditu accelerasses sponsalia ... Scito igitur multos, qui apud te dissimulant, clam susurrare." CO 17: 336 A (as in note 52).
89. "Serviet id [diplomatic mission to the Palz to appeal for aid for the persecuted Protestant party in Metz] tuo consilio, quod mihi dedisti: nam hic non possum commode esse, dum fient, que praeire oportet. Alterum enim domo abesse oportet ... hic velim te adesse." Farel to Calvin, Neuchâtel, 4 September 1558, CO 17: 323 C-324 A, no. 2952; Rép. 950.
90. Aubert, "Marriage de Farel," 675, n. 4.
91. "Farelli levitas moerorem nobis adferet, cachinnum plerisque movebit." Maccarius to Calvin, Paris, 15 October 1558, CO 17: 356 B, no. 2969.
92. The always soft-spoken, farsighted, Protestant statesman Nicolas Zurkinden, town-clerk of Bern - a civic power broker to be mentioned in the same breath as Lazarus Spengler (†1535) of Nürnberg and Jacob Sturm (†1554) of Strasbourg wrote Farel that it is better to be celibate than married in the present times of turmoil; he did not question the marriage because of Marie's age but because of the travail of his own "day and age": "Probarem si non fecisses ... facilius et expeditius caelibi quam coniugato in his afflictionibus volutari." Zurkinden to Farel, Bern, 12 February 1559, CO 17: 435 C-436 A, no. 3008; Rép. 959.
93. See Émile Dunant, Les Relations Politiques de Genève, 10f.;
94. cf. William C. Innes, Social Concern in Calvin's Geneva (Allison Park, Pa., 1983), 73f.
95. For a critical assessment of the early agitation and confrontation in Farel's strategy to gain a foothold in Geneva, Karl Ludwig von Haller is especially helpful because of his cool appraisal of Farel (cf. Viret and Froment) as irresponsible (frech), revolutionary "innovators." Geschichte der kirchlichen Revolution oder protestantischen Reform des Kantons Bern und umliegender Gegenden (Lucerne, 1836), 145-61.
96. For a more "civil" pro-Farel treatment, see Henri Naef, Les Origines de la Réforme à Genève, vol. 2: L'Ère de la Triple Combourgeoisie, l'épée ducale et l'épée de Farel (Geneva, 1968), 534-42.
97. "Le Dimanche de Quasimodo ce chetif Farel commença à espouser homme et femme ensemble, selon leur forme et tradition, et n'y font aucune solennité, ni deuotion: mais seulement leur commandent de soy conjoindre, et de multiplier le monde, et dit quelques dissoluës paroles que ie n'escris point: car au coeur chaste est horreur [printed text reads honneur] de les penser." Le Levain du Calvinisme, ou Commencement de l'Heresie de Geneve faict par Reverende Soeur Ieanne de Iussie, ed. Ad.-C. Grivel (Geneva, 1865), 91.
98. For the uncorrected version see Henri Naef, Les Origines de la Réforme à Genève, vol. 2, 556.
99. Naef, Origines de la Réforme, vol. 2, 558.
100. Calvin argued that such a divorce would aggravate the situation because it would amount to granting a minister what was not permitted for the laity. Calvin could appeal to local custom to insist that breaking the vows of betrothal was to be regarded as divorce. As Jeffrey Watt has established: "In Reformation Neuchâtel justices were actually less liberal in canceling betrothals than some late medieval Catholic courts had been when clandestine marriages were still considered valid ... The evidence from Neuchâtel certainly refutes the notion that the Reformation brought about the decline of betrothal as a legal category ..." Watt, Modern Marriage, 73.
101. See De Captivitate Babylonica (1520), D. Martin Luthers Werke (Weimar, 1888), 6: 556, 31 (hereafter cited as WA).
102. In the case of preexisting impotence, it is better to allow "a secret second marriage" than to tolerate a divorce. Contrary to the general assumption, this solution was not advanced by Luther just for the sake of Philip of Hesse. See further Gerhard Ebeling, Luthers Seelsorge. Theologie in der Vielfalt der lebenssituationen an seinen Briefen dargestellt (Tübingen, 1997), 79-103; 113f.
103. CO 17: 351 A; Geneva, 26 September 1558, CO 17: 352 A, no. 2966; Rép. 953.
104. CO 17: 352 B.
105. CO 17: 352 C.
106. Aubert, "Marriage de Farel," 678.
107. The two Calvin letters to Farel recorded for the year 1561 (29 October, no. 3591, Rép. 978; and 28 December, no. 3670, Rép. 988; cf. note 5 above) confirm the breakdown in mutual communication. The first states explicitly that Calvin was not informed about Farel's situation ("rerum vestrarum ignarus vel dubius," CO 19: 85 B): Calvin had to rely on rumors.
108. The second letter was first an extended excuse for silence and then proceeded to urge Farel to "moderation," warning against non-authorized occupation of churches: "Templa occupari, ut odiosum est Regis Consilio ita mihi nunquam placuit, donec publice aliquid statueretur quod brevi fore confido." CO 19: 209 B.
109. CO 20: 302 C (as in note 1).
110. Colladon, Vie de Calvin (1564); CO 21: 103 C-104 A.
111. According to Colladon, they even chatted and shared a meal together: "deviserent et souperent ensemble en souvenance de la continuation de leur amitié et union en l'oeuvre du Seigneur." In his translation of the last letter to Farel, Colladon rendered "coniunctio" precisely as "union." CO 21: 103 B/C.
112. In his Ioannis Calvini Vita (3d enlarged edition, 1575 [1564]), Theodore Beza reproduced the final letter in Latin and then simply noted: "Venit tamen Genevam bonus ille senex, et quum una inter se locuti essent postridie Neocomum rediit." CO 21: 167 C.
113. Farel to Christophe Fabri, Neuchâtel, 6 June 1564, CO 20: 313 B/C, no. 4113; Rép. 1005.
114. CO 20: 315 B (as in note 70).
115. See "Die Veralltäglichung des Charisma," ch. 3, and "Die charismatische Herrschaft und ihre Umbildung," ch. 9, in Max Weber, Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft. Grundriss der verstehenden Soziologie, 5th rev. ed. (Tübingen, 1972), 142-48, 654-87.
116. For the early agitation of Farel in Geneva in July 1532, assisted by Viret upon his return on 20 December 1533, see the literature cited in note 57 and Guy Bedouelle, "Guillaume Farel et le dominicain Guy Furbity ou une dispute de prêcheurs," in Actes du Colloque Guillaume Farel, 1: 89-98. After the disputation "de Rive" (April/May 1535), a wave of iconoclasm was unleashed and the mass abolished.
117. The most helpful treatment is still Émile Dunant's Les Relations Politiques de Genève, esp. 109-83.
118. Cf. Calvin to Bullinger, 7 May 1549, CO 13: 266 C, no. 1187; 268 C; Haller to Bullinger, 2 June 1549, 290 B/C, no. 1198; Calvin to Viret, 29 August 1549, 385 A/B, no. 1261; Haller to Calvin, 12 September 1549, 387 C, no. 1262; Calvin to Farel, [July 1550], 605 B/C, no. 1388; Rép. 648.
119. Even his plea for Viret's help in securing his letter "de gallico foedere" was cautiously formulated: "Nam certas ob causas periise doleo!" Calvin to Viret, Geneva, 23 June 1551, CO 14: 138 A/B, no. 1502.
120. For an analysis of the dynamics of leadership in the conflict between loyalty and legitimation, there is to date little support to be found in secondary literature. The psycho-historical perspective advocated by Marvin Zouis and Daniel Offer is useful to illuminate the tensions in the Palestinian "camp," but internalizes the problem of legitimation too rigorously to be of assistance in our quest. See "Leaders and the Arab-Israeli Conflict. A Psychoanalytic Interpretation," in The Leader. Psychohistorical Essays, ed. Charles B. Strozier and Daniel Offer (New York, 1985), 265-98.
121. More helpful is James MacGregor Burns. Though not sufficiently impressed by the advances achieved by Weber, he too feels that we have to look for new paradigms. Burns' point of departure is that he is not convinced of the usefulness of Weber's "charisma": "The word has been so overburdened as to collapse under close analysis ... It is impossible to restore the word to analytic duty." Burns, Leadership (New York, 1978), 244. Burns' own proposal of "heroic leadership" as a "type of relationship between leader and led" proves to be especially suggestive in understanding the forms of attachment to an emerging leader in modern times, but fails to provide analytical tools for the transfer of leadership and power in pre-democratic societies. His test case of Joan of Arc (†1431) ends inconclusively: "... she remains more a hero of history than a maker of
122. Before the "temporary" closing of the Academy of Lausanne (1558), its students formed the vanguard of the Reformed missionaries. Jean Crespin's preface reminds us of the impact of the Lausanne " subversion": the very idea of his martyrology was born "des cinq escoleirs, sortis de l'escole de Lausanne, bruslez en la ville de Lyon ..." [1553]. In Actes des Martyrs (Geneva, 1564).
123. Those sent out went "cum certo discrimine mortis," as Beza put it in a letter to Farel. Beza to Farel, Lausanne, 29 April 1558, CO 17: 150 B, no. 2859; Rép. 942.
124. Correspondance de Théodore de Bèze, ed. Hippolyte Aubert (Geneva, 1960), 2: 187, no. 137.
125. For the Genevan "Mission to France" ten years later, in the decade 1563-1572, see the lucid analysis of Robert M. Kingdon, Geneva and the Consolidation of the French Protestant Movement 1564-1572. A Contribution to the History of Congregationalism, Presbyterianism, and Calvinist Resistance Theory (Geneva, 1967), 30-36;
126. cf. Appendix I, 203-208. For this period of eight years, thirty-one missionaries are documented in the Registers as sent from Geneva (twenty-eight to France), versus some ninety-eight for the preceding seven years (eighty-eight to France); cf. Kingdon, Geneva and the Coming Wars of Religion in France 1555-1563 (Geneva, 1956), Appendix I.
127. Kingdon convincingly observes that Geneva's missionary campaign "collapsed" soon after 1566, but then explains this development as caused by the civil war in France: "The years of Geneva missionary activity, therefore, coincide almost exactly with the years of peace within France." Geneva and the Consolidation, 31f.
128. Calvin to Coligny, [16 April 1561], CO 18: 428 A/B, no. 3374.
129. See the excellent edition, and introduction, by Olivier Fatio, Jean Calvin, des Scandales (Geneva, 1984).
130. Especially since we have only scanty information about Calvin's part in the French translations of his works, it is important to note that in this case we know that he at least checked the French version: "Aliquid etiam temporis in gallica versione libelli de Scandalis consumptum est." Calvin to Farel, Geneva, 10 November 1550, CO 13: 656 A (No. 1415); Rép. 658.
131. Pierre Viret, "Avertissement aus lecteurs," in Guillaume Farel, Du vrai usage de la croix de Jésus-Christ; quoted by Beat Hodler, Das "Argernis" der Reformation. Begriffsgeschichtlicher Zugang zu einer biblisch legitimierten politischen Ethik (Mainz, 1995), 133, n. 72. Hodler's brief discussion of Calvin's understanding of "scandalum" (133-43) is unassuming in its treatment of primary sources and secondary literature. De Scandalis, here quoted by him in translation, deserves a new analysis.
132. It is difficult to reconcile Viret's overt identification with Farel with the interpretation of George Bavaud. Bavaud does not consider Viret's Preface to Farel's Du vray usage but points to a series of writings (the Épistres aux fidèles, 1559) to present Viret's view of the legitimacy of revolt in a manner hardly distinguishable from Calvin. Le Réformateur Pierre Viret (1511-1571). Sa théologie (Geneva, 1986), 339f. As Francis M. Higman kindly pointed out to me, the Épistres of 1559 actually is a reprint of four pamphlets first published in 1543-47, in which Viret pleaded for the legitimacy of resistance, though not of revolt.
133. Calvin to the church in Valence, Geneva, 22 April 1560, CO 18: 63 B, no. 3185.
134. "Interea nostros in sublime rapit nimia fiducia. Nam, quod semper vetuimus, templa occupant vel in locis publicis concionantur. Excusant fratres a nobis missi se trahi invitos, vel necessitate cogi ..." Calvin to Bullinger, Geneva, 6 September 1560, CO 18: 176 B/C, no. 3242.
135. Cf. Calvin's letter to the church in Paris of 26 February 1561, CO 18: 378 B, no. 3346.
136. "Car jamais Dieu n'a commandé d'abattre les idoles sinon à chacun en sa maison, et en public à ceux qu'il arme d'autorite." Calvin to the Consistory of Sauve, [early July] 1561, CO 18: 581 A, no. 3461.
137. The horribly bloody clash during the Fair of Guibray (Calvados) in August (September?) 1561 was initiated by the anti-papist pamphlets of Farel. The anonymous eyewitness reported to Calvin: I believe that Farel is the author, "Le stile le montre." CO 18: 664 A, no. 3504.
138. For the use of this term, see my article, "The New Quest for the Historical Calvin," (see note 18). Of the three Reformers, Luther, Zwingli, and Calvin, the latter was the most successful in "absorbing" the challenge of what we nowadays call the "Radical Reformation." In the second half of the sixteenth century Calvinism took on many of its characteristics, particularly its emphasis on manifest sanctification. This applies not only to France but also later to the Low Countries. As Andrew Pettegree has pointed out, "by the mid-seventeenth century the challenge from the sects had much receded; Anabaptism had become a passive and much diminished force." Pettegree, "Coming to terms with victory: the upbuilding of a Calvinist church in Holland 1572-1590," in Calvinism in Europe 1540-1620, ed. A. Pettegree, A. Duke, and G. Lewis (Cambridge, 1994), 176.
139. "... obeissance vaut mieux que tous sacrifices ..." CO 18: 581 B (as in note 84);
140. see Ecclesiastes 4:17: "Multo enim melior est obedientia quam stultorum victimae ...";
141. cf. I Samuel 15:22.
142. Melanchthons Briefwechsel, 2: 174, no. 341; 135-37. This characterization of Farel is based on Erasmus' debate with him in Basel (1524).
143. See Cornelis Augustijn, "Erasmus und Farel in Konflikt," in Actes du Colloque Guillaume Farel, 1: 1-8.
144. Jean-Pierre Massaut ("Les Relations d'Erasme et de Farel," Actes, 1: 11-30) could already make good use of the discovery by Francis Higman of Farel's commentary on the Pater Noster (Basel: A. Cratander, 1524), now available in the critical edition by Higman (Geneva, 1982). While both Augustijn and Massaut show why Erasmus must have been shocked by Farel into the awareness that "la Réforme des Réformateurs ... ne pouvait plus être la sienne" (Massaut, 30), a contemporary witness to the encounter remembered the event quite differently.
145. Cf. Erasmus' later attack in Epistola ad fratres Inferioris Germaniae (1530), in Opera Omnia Desiderii Erasmi, ed. C. Augustijn, 9 vols. (Amsterdam, 1982), 1: 392-94; 2: 391-420.
146. "Didici puer quod numquam obliviscar: 'non minor est virtus quam quaerere parta tueri'" (Ovid, Ars amandi, II, 15).
147. Calvin to Farel, Geneva, 22 April 1558, CO 17: 146 A, no. 2856; Rép. 940. I am indebted to the Ovid scholar Richard Jensen for helping me to render this "adagium" into modern English and to epitomize its context: in Book I, Ovid taught how to win a girl, in Book II, how to keep her.
148. CO 17: 301 A/B, no. 2940.
149. For a proper understanding of the formation of the reformed churches in France, we need a fresh study of Viret's ongoing active ministry in Nîmes, Montpellier, and finally Lyon (1561-1571), of the ten action-packed years; see the precise and sensitive description by Émile Doumergue, Jean Calvin. Les hommes et les choses de son temps, vol. 7: Le Triomphe (Lausanne, 1927; reprint, Geneva, 1969), 400-12.
150. Doumergue, Jean Calvin, vol. 7, 401.
151. Cf. Nicolas Zurkinden in Bern: "mutandi aeris gratia." Zerkintes (Zurkinden) to Farel, Bern, 5 June 1561, CO 18: 503 C, no. 3411; Rép. 969.
152. Viret to Calvin, Lausanne, 24 August [1558], CO 17: 300 C-302 A, no. 2940.
153. Calvin to Viret, Geneva, 27 August 1558, CO 17: 308 B/C, no. 2943.
154. "Durum certamen, sed necessarium." Calvin to Viret, Geneva, 16 March 1558, CO 17: 93 A, no. 2831.
155. We should note that the inversion of the usual constellation during the early years of the city-reformation now obtains in Lausanne. Viret expects to find support in the small council, opposition in the large council: "Nos in minore Lausannensi senatu aliquid eramus impetraturi: sed major multos habet homines ab omni sanctiore disciplina valde alienos," Viret to Calvin, Lausanne, 19 March 1558, CO 17: 105 A/B, no. 2836.
156. This negative interpretation has been promulgated by the two most eminent biographers of Beza. See Auguste Bernus, Théodore de Bèze à Lausanne (Lausanne, 1900), 103-108;
157. Paul-F. Geisendorf, Théodore de Bèze (Genève, 1967), 98-103. Viret's side has yet to be heard.
158. "... Bezam libenter eorum judicio subscribere quos sentit magis sibi esse propitius." CO 17: 308 C (as in note 93).
159. See Louis Latourette, "Les dernières Années de Pierre Viret (1567-1571)," Revue de Théologie et de Philosophie 26 (1938), 60-68.
160. CO 18: 426 B (as in note 79).