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| The city of Bale was an important place to the Protestant reformers. The great snow-clad hills of Switzerland were among the first to catch the light of morning, and to announce the rise of reformation. And Bale was one of those points on which the rising day concentrated its rays, and whence they radiated over the country around. Early in the sixteenth century a small council of a municipal character sat at Bale. A civil war was feared; the people passed the night before in arms. In vain did the city authorities try to reconcile papists and reformers by half measures. The reformers denounced the mass, the papists demanded its continuance. Twelve hundred people who sympathized with Lutheranism insisted that there should be no more delay. They met one evening by torch-light, and said to the faltering Senate, “What you have not been able to do in three years, we will do in a single hour.” Then they began their work of breaking down images, and committing other acts of violence. At this, Erasmus cleverly remarked, “I am much surprised that they perform no miracles to save themselves; formerly the saints worked frequent prodigies for much smaller offenses.” Thus, amid a tempest of excitement, the Reformation opened in Switzerland, and Bale became its head-quarters. Being the seat of a university, it was the favorite resort of scholars. It also had many printing offices. Here Zwingli received his early education; here Erasmus published the New Testament which he had translated from the original Greek into Latin; here Frobenius, the celebrated printer, published the writings of Luther, and in a short time spread them in France, Spain, Italy, and England; and here, too, John Foxe spent a portion of his exile in getting some of his books through the press. Poverty and persecution troubled him, and we fancy we see him walking to and fro upon the surrounding heights, sympathizing with earlier exiles, who said, “We sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion,” while here he issued the first installment of the “Book of Martyrs.” { RH October 13, 1885, par. 3 } |
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| “Being the seat of a university, Basel was the favorite resort of scholars. It also had many printing-offices. Here Zwingle received his early education; here Erasmus published the New Testament which he had translated from the original Greek into Latin; here Frobenius, the celebrated printer, published the writings of Luther, and in a short time spread them in France, Spain, Italy, and England; and here, too, John Foxe spent a portion of his exile in getting some of his books through the press.... While here he issued the first installment of the ‘Book of Martyrs.’”— Ibid., 171. { EGWE 53.4} |
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Tyndale had received the gospel from Erasmus’ Greek New Testament. He then began to preach his convictions. { EGWE 130.5} To the papist claim that the church had given the Bible, and the church alone could explain it, Tyndale responded: “Do you know who taught the eagles to find their prey? Well, that same God teaches His hungry children to find their Father in His word. Far from having given us the Scriptures, it is you who have hidden them from us; it is you who burn those who teach them, and if you could, you would burn the Scriptures themselves.”— D’Aubigne, History of the Reformation of the Sixteenth Century, b. 18, ch. 4. { EGWE 131.2}
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“To my mind,” she exclaimed, “a more beautiful location could not have been obtained.” Then her mind turned to the role of the city in religious history, being a place of great importance to the Protestant Reformers. Writing for the readers of the Review, she enumerated principal points, mentioning such names as Erasmus, Zwingli, John Foxe, and Frobenius, who published the writings of Luther. She declared: { 3BIO 295.3 } As we looked upon our press, working off papers containing the light of truth for the present time, we could but think how much greater difficulties than we had met had been encountered in former times by the advocates of Bible truth. Every movement had to be made in secrecy, or their work would be destroyed and their lives imperiled. Now the way seems to be prepared for the truth to go forth as a lamp that burneth. The Bible standard is raised, and the same words that fell from the lips of the early reformers are being repeated. The Bible, and the Bible alone, is the foundation of our faith. { 3BIO 295.4 }
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| Being the seat of a university, Basle was the favorite resort of scholars. It also had many printing-offices. Here Zwingle received his early education; here Erasmus published the New Testament which he had translated from the original Greek into Latin; here Frobenius, the celebrated printer, published the writings of Luther, and in a short time spread them in France, Spain, Italy, and England; and here, too, John Foxe spent a portion of his exile in getting some of his books through the press. Poverty and persecution troubled him, and we fancy we see him walking to and fro upon the surrounding heights, sympathizing with earlier exiles, who said, “We sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion.” While here he issued the first installment of the “Book of Martyrs.” { HS 171.1 } |
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