Adieu, my dear brother; may the Lord preserve you, and bring you speedily hither in safety. Salute all the brethren and your family in my own name and in that of my wife.—Yours,
John Calvin.
[Lat. orig. autogr.—Library of Geneva. Vol. 111.]
XCVII.—To Viret.
The plague at Geneva—conduct of the ministers in these circumstances—Italian refugees—the question of the ecclesiastical property examined.
[Geneva, October 1542.]
Your letter, in which you requested that I would write somewhat about the ecclesiastical property, was delivered to me on Monday, while I was engaged upon the relics of the wedding. Although that by no means had prevented me from writing, yet since that time I have not had a single moment of leisure.
The pestilence also begins to rage here with greater violence, and few who are at all affected by it escape its ravages.[381] One of our colleagues was to be set apart for attendance upon the sick. Because Peter offered himself, all readily acquiesced.[382] If anything happens to him, I fear that I must take the risk upon myself, for as you observe, because we are debtors to one another, we must not be wanting to those who, more than any others, stand in need of our ministry.[383] And yet it is not my opinion, that while we wish to provide for one portion we are at liberty to neglect the body of the Church itself. But so long as we are in this ministry, I do not see that any pretext will avail us, if, through fear of infection, we are found wanting in the discharge of our duty when there is most need of our assistance. In what concerns yourselves I have already told you what occurred to me.[384] Now, since that colleague has been removed, you must seek for some one else to be put in his place. If no such person can be found, you must devise some plan, but with the common advice of the brethren.
Our friend Bernardino[385] has been assailed by strange manœuvres to induce him to leave us. He remains constant, however; and in a great measure, he has so broken with Antichrist, that they need not think of troubling him for the future. He has written a volume of sermons, at the end of which he professes that he entirely, and, without any exception whatever, goes along with us—thinks as we do. Many of the Italians visit him; and we have already two other preachers. Those who have known him, consider that the kingdom of Christ has got no small addition in that single individual. In the meantime, as you may conceive, I need to have all my wits about me. The more attentively I observe him, the more highly do I esteem him. He acknowledges, however, that he has been greatly helped and relieved by me, so as to be less easily shaken. The Senate has already granted allowance for his preaching as often as he thinks proper.[386] We have here at present Julio Camillo,[387] whose manifold tergiversations are somewhat suspicious; for although he talks boastingly of the Gospel, yet, because he has something of a secret purpose, which, even although unknown to us, we do not like, we have reason to be upon our guard with him. It is well, however, that Bernardino is on his guard, and dreads him as an enemy.