CCXXXII.—To Madame de Cany.[216]

Exhortation to a courageous and honest profession of the truth.

This 8th January 1549.

Madame,—I would not have taken the liberty to write to you, if a man, whom I ought to trust among all others, had not emboldened me to do so, by assuring me that my letter would be agreeable to you. That is, Monsieur de Normandie, who, feeling himself obliged to you for the kindness you had shewn him, had a special desire to do you service, so far as he had the means, and besides, has such a care of your salvation as he ought to have who knows that you have loved him, as partaker of a common Christian faith. On this account he has induced me to write to you, thinking that not only you might take pleasure in my letters, but that they might perhaps be profitable for you, as well for your consolation in present extremity, as to exhort you to perseverance so needful in the midst of such manifold temptations. And would to God I might have more ample opportunity of compliance with his request. But seeing that it is his pleasure that we should be separated by so great a distance, which does not permit more frequent communication between us, I beseech you, Madame, to take what I do write as a testimony of the earnest desire which I have to promote your salvation. If, because of the confession you have made of your Christianity, murmurs and threatenings rise up against you, you must bear in mind to what we are called, which is, that notwithstanding all sorts of contradiction on the part of the world, we must render to the Son of God the homage which belongs to him. These indeed should be to you as so many warnings to prepare yourself for greater things, for neither great nor small ought to seek exemption from suffering in the cause of our Sovereign King, in which his honour is as much involved as our salvation. Above all, since himself has begun by shewing us the way, who among us shall dare to refuse to follow him? Where is the greatness, or the elevation, that can bestow greater privilege upon us than on himself? And more than that, if we can appreciate the honour he confers upon us in making use of our service to maintain his so precious truth, we shall hold it to be a peculiar advantage, rather than be annoyed on account of it. True it is, that the human understanding cannot apprehend that; but, seeing that the infallible wisdom of God pronounces, that those who are persecuted for the testimony of the Gospel are most happy, at all hazards we must needs acquiesce in that judgment. And indeed, who are we that we should maintain the cause of God? Where is our sufficiency for it, seeing that we are altogether inclined to falsehood? How should we be witnesses for his truth, unless by his own special gracious permission? On the other hand, seeing that we deserve on account of our sins to suffer all shame of face and ignominy, every sort of misery and torment, yea were it even a hundred thousand deaths, if that were possible, have we aught to complain of, ought we not rather to rejoice, when, forgetting our faults, he wills that we should suffer for his name? Therefore, inasmuch as we are so froward and carnal that we cannot reach such elevation, let us beg of this gracious God that he would please to imprint in our hearts that which naturally we find so strange. Furthermore, let us take to ourselves the example of the Apostles, who counted the reproach of the world as a great honour, and even gloried in it. In short, let us never think that we have fully received the truth, if we do not prefer, above all worldly triumphs, to fight under the banner of our Lord Jesus, that is to say, to bear his cross.

Even so, Madame, consider, I beseech you, if hitherto you have taken pains to serve and honour so good a master, how you can strive more earnestly than ever to arm yourself against opposition, to take courage against all difficulties in order to surmount them; for, since the worldly often manifest invincible constancy in the pursuit of their vanities, patiently enduring so many labours, troubles, and dangers, it would be too shameful were we to grow weary in the midst of the way of salvation; albeit that this is by no means all that is required of us, that we shew ourselves steadfast in the midst of persecutions; for, even if there were no enemies to make open war upon us, we find enough of aversion and indisposedness in ourselves and all around, to hinder us in making our calling sure, which all those who have a true zeal to devote themselves to God, experience more fully than any one could tell them. Inasmuch, then, as I hold you to be of the number, I entreat you to exercise yourself continually in the doctrine of renouncing the world yet more and more, in order to come nearer to our Lord Jesus, who has once for all purchased us to separate us unto himself. I mean the world, such as we carry it within ourselves, before we are made again after his likeness. And seeing that our whole nature, inasmuch as by the corruption of the plague it has been depraved, is enmity against God, the kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ cannot be duly established, until all which is ours has been beaten down; and not only the open vices which are condemned of men, but also even our own reason and wisdom. I am aware that I do not speak to you of any new thing, and that by the grace of God you have long ago begun to follow in the way of the holy heavenly calling. But the study of holiness is one of which we must avail ourselves even to the end. And as I have ample cause to praise God for the graces he has bestowed on you, and whereby he magnifies himself in you, by making his own glory to shine forth therein; in also looking to the frailty which we all feel, I think it no superfluous trouble to exhort you to follow on, as indeed you do. And even as it is becoming in Christians to submit in all humility to receive the admonitions which are addressed to them in the name of God, even that the most learned should gladly submit to be taught, I hope that you will receive the whole with a benign and kindly heart. Believe me, when I hear that God has wrought so powerfully in you, and that he has vouchsafed you such commendable qualities, I am incited all the more to desire that he would increase his work in you, until he has quite finished it; and this it is that has constrained me more freely to declare to you my desire and affection.

In conclusion, Madame, having humbly commended me to your kind favour, I entreat our good Lord to have you in his holy protection, to guide you by his Holy Spirit in all strength and prudence, to vouchsafe you grace to promote his honour, until he gather us all unto himself.

Your servant and humble brother,

Charles D'Espeville.

[Fr. Copy, Library of Geneva. Vol. 107.]