'O Rome, Rome! how many good people thou corruptest who otherwise were not ill-born? How many among those already corrupted whom thou makest worse daily? How many of those whom thou hast debauched, whom thou plungest into eternal perdition?[805]
'O my dear Roussel, come out of that slough as soon as possible, for fear lest while lingering in it you should sink deeper and deeper into the mire.[806]
'You will say, I know: "What then will become of us poor wretches? Must we, who live at our ease, go into foreign lands, like needy vagabonds? Must we, who always have our pantry and cellar full, without any toil, live upon coarse fare procured by the sweat of our brows and the labor of our hands?"[807]
'If you find such a life strange, you are not a true Christian. It is very hard, I confess, to leave one's birthplace to be a wanderer and a stranger. And yet the Lord, who is a marvellous worker, contrives that this poverty, so bitter in the opinion of men, is made pleasing to them, and that, tempered with a heavenly sweetness, it procures them especial pleasure.'
Thus the young man of twenty-seven was already a teacher abounding in energy and good sense. These two letters, which (according to the most trustworthy evidence) were written at Ferrara, would of themselves be sufficient to mark his residence in that city with a special character. It was then he began to appear, to speak, and to lead with the authority of a reformer. In him God gave His church a teacher gifted with that indomitable firmness which, notwithstanding all obstacles and all seductions, is able to break with error and to uphold the truth. At the same time He gave a man whose activity was not to be limited to the place where he lived, but whose wide spirit would embrace all Christendom, and who would be able to send into France, the Low Countries, England, Poland, and wherever it became necessary, the words of wisdom and of faith.
Calvin taught not only by his words but by his example. He might have been able, by softening down some expressions in the Gospel, to remain in the palace of the dukes of Este, and to enjoy the favor of princes. But if he required fidelity and renunciation in Roussel, he first possessed them himself. He made the sacrifices to which he invited others, and was ready to exchange the pleasures and brilliancy of a court for the horrors of a prison, or of a flight environed with danger. Calvin remained firm, as 'seeing Him who is invisible,' and preferred to be afflicted with the people of God rather than have a part in the joys of the great ones of the earth. This spirit of self-denial characterized him to the last. The friend of princes, the councillor of kings, he lived humbly, having scarcely the means of supplying the ordinary wants of life.
=CALVIN'S INFLUENCE IN ITALY.=
It is said that Calvin visited Padua, Venice, and even Rome; but it does not appear that history can accept this tradition. It is probable that all the time he spent beyond the Alps was passed near the Duchess Renée. His influence, however, extended beyond the palaces and the principality of the dukes of Este. One of the men who may be considered the best judges, one of the literary historians of the peninsula, the jesuit Tiraboschi, declares that Calvin's sojourn at the court of Ferrara was more injurious to Italy than all the soldiers, active disciples of Luther, who propagated his doctrines there.[808] And yet Calvin scarcely quitted Ferrara. Just when the star of Ariosto, which had shone over that city, had set, and when that of Tasso was about to appear, the star of Calvin shone there with a purer light than that of the bard of Orlando or of Godfrey. But the faithful Christian could not long remain in the bosom of worldliness and popery without suffering from their violent attacks. Calvin's sojourn was about to end in a tragic and unexpected manner.
[763] See Vol. IV. bk. vii. ch. 18.
[764] 'Sic versari in studiis nostris, ut excellat. . . . Sed ob magnitudinem ingenii et studium sanctitatis quæ in ista semper veluti divinum aliquid eluxit, retulit se ad cœlestes artes et ad disciplinas theologicas.'—Paleario, Epp. iv. 4.