Protestant Revolt in Switzerland and England 133 to hold his own, in spite of the liberals, who nevertheless continued to give him much trouble for many years. He immediately submitted his plan of church govern- ment again, and this time it was adopted. He held that our Lord had established four orders of officers for gov- erning his Church, — namely, pastors, teachers, elders, and deacons. The elders (or presbyters) were laymen appointed to watch over the morals of their fellows, and are so conspicuous in Calvin's plan of organization that they have given their name to the Presbyterian Church. He thus describes them : The office of the elders is to watch over the conduct of 261. The every individual, to admonish lovingly those whom they see dutiesofthe elders or doing wrong or leading an irregular life. When there is presbyters. need, they should lay the matter before the body deputed to inflict paternal discipline [i.e. the consistory], of which they are members. As the Church is organized, it is best that the elders be chosen, two from the small council, four from the council of sixty, and six from the council of two hundred 1 ; they should be men of good life and honest, without reproach and beyond suspicion, above all God-fear- ing and endowed with spiritual prudence. And they should be so chosen that they be -distributed in each quarter of the city, so that they can have an eye on everything. 2 . . . The elders, who have been described, shall assemble once Theconsis- a week with the ministers, namely Thursday morning, to J2J^ see if there be any disorders in the Church and discuss together such remedies as shall be necessary. ... If any one shall in contempt refuse to appear before them, it shall be their duty to inform the council, so that it may supply a remedy. session. 1 This refers to the different bodies which constituted the city government. 2 It is interesting to compare this conception of excommunication and of government by lay elders with the system of the Catholic Church.
