SIXTEENTH CENTURY.
363
in his fonrteentli year, lus gnarduuu compelled him to enter a monastery ; and at the ag^ of serenteen he assumed the monastic habit. The bishop of Cambray delivered him from this constiainL In 1492 he travelled to Paris, to perfect himself in theology and polite literature. He there became the instructor of several rich Englishmen, from one of whom he received a pension for Ufe. He accompanied them to this country in 1497, where he was graciously received by the king. He returned soon after to Paris, and then travelled into Italy to increase his stock of knowledge. In Balospati, where he receiTcd the degree of doctor of theology, he was one day mistaken, on account of his white scapnlaxy, for one of the physicians who attended those nek of the plague ; and not keeping out ef the -way of the people, as such persons were lequired to do, he was stoned, and narrowly escaped with his life. This accident was the ot^asion of his asking a dispensation from^ the TOWS of his order, which the pope granted him.
He -risited Venice, Padua, and Rome ; but, hrilHant as were the offers here made him, he pieCmed the invitation of his friends in Eng- hutd, where the favour in which he stood witn Henry VIII. promised him still gfreater advan- tages. When he visited the lord chancellor, sir Thomas More, without making himself known U> him, the chancellor was so delighted with his conrersation that he exclaimed, " You are either Erasmus or the devil." He was offered a bene- fice, but w as unwilling to fetter himself by an office of this kind. He was. for a short time professor of Greek at Oxford. He afterwards tntTeiled through Germany and the Nether- land, and went to Basil, where he had his works printed by Froben, and in whose house he for a long time resided.
The bold and satirical manner in which Eras- mas attacked the corruptions of the Romish drarch and clergy, not only in his biblical works, hut in his numerous other writings, exposed him to the hatred, and malicious machinations of a host of enemies, who regarded him as one of the most dangerous and powerful opponents of the Roman cadiolic hierarchy ana doctrines, that the monks, used to say that " Erasmus laid the egg that Martin Lutner hatched." His works were exclaimed against as disseminating here- tical opinions, and placed in the Indicts Exjmr- gatorii,* as dangerous to be read ; and narrowly escaped becoming a martvr through the fiery zmJ of his adversaries. About the year 1536, the Parisian divines published their eeiuurae upon various passages of the paraphrases of his
- vnien the insortioD* In tbe Index were fbimd of no
ciOfter use than to bring the peccant volumes under the eyes of thecnrioos, ti^ey employed the secular arm In burning them in pnbllc pla<^. The history o( tliese UbeiBry conflagrations has often been traced by writers of u y iioal t e iMTties, for the truth is, that both used them ; rralfftn seem all fbrmed of one material, whatever be their party. They had yet to learn, that burning was not con- ratbag, and that these public Ares were an advertisement liy psodamation. The publisher nf Erasmus's Cottoquiet tBt^giied to ptocon the burning of his book, which raised tlse sale to twenty-four thoosaad copies.
New Tettament and other parti of his works. He states, that amongst other dreadful charges of heterodoxy, they had accused him of main- taining the Arian heresy, on account of a typo- graphical error which had crept into a second edition of his paraphrase before mentioned. The liberality of^ Francis I. was indeed happily, for some time a counterpoise to the precipitate and anathemising zeal of these bigotted divines ; for a considerable period elapsed Before the uni- versity dared to publish their censure of his works.
Whatever imperfections may be discovered in some particular parts in the character of Erasmus, he must be considered as one of the greatest men that ever adorned the commonwealth of learning, and his memory must be revered by every friend of ^ius, learning, and moderation. Liveliness of imagination, depth and variety of erudition, together with great sagacity of judgment, were in him eminently united.
Erasmus and Luther asserted, that to bum heretics was contrarv to the spirit of the gospel ; the condemnation of which proposition was con- stantly repeated in all the doctrinal decisions of the Sorbonne. P. Courayer considers this cen- ture of theirs more scandalous, than all the propositions of Luther. Such cruel measures were revolting to the natural feelings of Francis. His first movement was aversion ; and he began by rescuing some of the victims of intolerance.
1636, Sept. 33. WiUiam Tyndale or Tindall, otherwise named Hitcbins, one of the fint
Eublishers of the Holif Scriplum in English : umt at the stake. He was bora at Hunt's court, about the year 1477. Studied at Oxford. His ancestors were the barons de Tynedale, who for several centuries were settled on the banks of the Tyne, and whdke seat was Langley Castle, a small but strong fortress. His benaviour at college was such as gained him a high reputa- tion both for morals and learning, so uiat he was admitted a canon of cardinal Wolsey's new college, now Christ church. But making his opinions too public he was ejected, and retired to Cambridge, where he pursued his studies and took a degree. Embracing every opportunity to propagate the new opinions, he was placed in imminent danger both in Gloucestershire, at Bristol, and at London. His thoughts were bent, about 1534-5, upon translating the Nev Testament into English ; but being sensible he could not do it with safely in England, he went abroad, receiving very liberal pecuniary assist- ance from his irienas, who were favourers of Luther's opinions. He first went to Saxony, where he held Conferences with Luther, and his learned friends, then came back into the Nether- lands, and setded at Antwerp, where there was a very considerable factory of English mer- chants, many of whom were zealous adherents to Luther's doctrine. Here he immediately began his translation of the New Tettament, in which he had the assistance of John Fiyth, and William Roye, the former of whom was burnt at Smithfield for heresy, July, 1533, and the
VjOOQ IC
