Being hardened in the contempt of Christ by the success they had against Socinus and his followers, with whom they conversed and dis- puted, some of the men before mentioned stayed not with him at the affirming of him to be a mere man, nor yet where they began, building on that supi^osition that he was not to be worshipped, but proceeded yet far- ther, and affirmed that he was indeed a good man and sent of God, but yet he spake not by the s])irit of prophecy, but so as that whatever was
' " Multum ilia tempestate turbarum dederat Transylvanicis ecclesiis Francisci Davi- dis et reliquorum de honore ac potcstatc Cliristi opinio ; cui malo remcdium quoercns Georgius Blandrata Socinum Easilise cvocavit (anno 1578), ut prfccipuum factionis duccm Franciscum Davidem, a tarn turpi ct pei'nicioso errore abstrancret." — Vita Faust. Socin.
32 THE PREFACE TO THE READER.
spoken by him and written by his apostles was to be examined by Moses and the prophets, whereto if it did not agree it was to be rejected : which was the sum of the first and second theses of Franciscus David,^ in oppo- sition to which Socinus gave in his judgment in certain antitheses to Christopher Barthorajus, prince of Transylvania, who had then cast David into prison for his blasphemy.^
To give a little account, by the way, of the end of this man, with his contempt of the Lord Jesus : —
In the year 1579, in the beginning of the month of June, he was cast into prison by the prince of Transylvania, and lived until the end of No- vember.^ That he was cast into prison by the instigation of Socinus him- self and Blandrata, the testimonies are beyond exception ; for this is not onlv recorded by Bellarmine and others of the Papists (to whose asser- tions, concerning any adversary with whom they have to do, I confess much credit is not to be given), but by others also of unquestionable autho- rity.* This, indeed, Socinus denies, and would willingly impose the odium of it upon others ;^ but the truth is, considering the keenness and wrath of the man's spirit, and the thoughts he had of this miserable wretch," it is more than probable that he was instrumental towards his death. The like apology does Smalcius make in his answer to Franzius about the carriage of the Samosatenians in that business of Franciscus David; where they accused one another of craft, treachery, bloody cruelty, treason.^ Being cast into prison, the miserable creature fell into a fre- netical distemper, through the revenging hand of Grod upon him, as So- cinus confesseth himself.® In tliis miserable condition the devils (saith the historian) appeared unto him ; whereupon he cried out, " Behold who ex- pect mo their companion in my journey,"* whether really, or in his vexed, distempered imagination, disordered by his despairing mind, I determine
» " Homo ille Jes. Nazai-cntis qui Christus appellatui", non per spiritum propheticura, sed per Spiritum Sanctum locutus est ; id est, quamvis a Deo legatus fuerit, non tamen qusecunque verba ex ipsius Dei ore provenisse censenda sunt. 2. Hinc tit ut illius et apostolorum ejus verba, ad Mosaicae legis et aliorum proplieticorum oraculorum normarn. expendeuda sint, et siquid contrarium vel diversum ab liis in illis reperitur, aut reperiri videtur. id aut lejiciendum, aut ccrte ita interpretandum sit, ut cum Mosis et propliet- arum doctrina consentiat quss sola morum et divini cultus regula est."
2 " Tlieses quibus Francisci Davidis sententia de Cliristi munere explicatur una cum antithesibus ecclesia; a Socino conscriptis, et illusti'issimo Transylvanite principi Chris- tophero Barthorteo oblatis."
3 " Certum est ilium in ipso initio mensis Junii carceri inclusum fuisse, et vixisse urque ad mensem Novembris, nisi vebementer tailor, quo extinctus est." — Socin. ad Weik. c:ip. ii. p. 4t.
■» " lUud vero notandum, quod procurantibus Georgio Blandrata et Fausto Socino, in Transylvania exulibus, Franciscus David morti traditus fuit."— Adrian. Regen. Hist. Eccles. Slavon. lib. i p. 90.
* " Quod si Weikus intelligit damnandi verbo nostros ministros censuisse ilium aliqua poena atlicicndum, aut vult fallere, aut egregie fallitur : nam certum est, in judicio illo, cum minister quidam Calvinianus Cliristophero Principi, qui toti actioni interfuit, et prfet'uit, satis longa oratione persuasissct, ut talem liominem e medio tolleret, miuitans iram Dei nisi id iecisset, ministros nostros proprius ad ipsimi principem accedentes, revercnter illi supplicasse, ut niiseri hominis misereri vellet, et clementem et benignum se erga ilium prasbere."— Socin. ad Weik. cap. ii. p 47.
' '"Imo plu.'-quatn litereticum cum (ecclesiae nostras) judicaverunt, nam talem homi- nem indignum Ohristiano nomine essedixerunt ; quippe qui Ghristo invocationis cultum prorsus dctrahendo, et cum curam ecclesiae gerere negando, simul reipsa negaret eum esse Christum." — Idem ubi supra.
7 Exempium denique affert nostrorum (thes. 108), quomodo se gesserint in Transyl- vania, in negotio Francisci Davidis : quomodo semctipsos in actu illo inter se reos .agant vafritiae, crudelitatis sanguinarise, p.oditionis," etc. — Smalc. Ret'uta Thes. de Hypo- crit. Disp. ix. p. 298.
8 " De phrenesi ista in quam inciderit, aliquid sane auditum est, non tantum biduo ante mortem sed pluribus diebus."— Socin. ubi supi'a.
• "Eccc qui me comitem itineris expectant." — Flor. Raeraund, lib- iv cap. xii.
THE PREFACE TO THE READER. 33
not ; but most certain it is that in that condition he expired, not in the year 1580, as Bellarmine, Weik, Epcmundus, and some of ours from them, inform us, but one year sooner, as he assures us Avho best knew.^ And the consideration of this man's desperate apostasy and his companions' might be one cause that about this time sundry of the Antitrinitarians wore converted, amongst whom was Daniel Bielenscius, a man afterward of good esteem.^