The Waldenses have a treatise (given in Leger, Hist, chs Eglises Vaudoises) concerning Antichrist of the 12th century (Gieseler, Maitland, and others, dis- pute the date, but the best authorities now agree to it). It treats of Antichrist as the whole anti-Chris- tian principle concealing itself under the guise of Christianity, and calls it a " system of falsehood adorn- ing itself with a show of beauty and piety, yet (as by the names and offices of the Scriptures, and the sacra- ments, and various other things may appear) very un- suitable to the Church of Christ. The system of ini- quity thus completed, with its ministers, great and small, supported by those who are induced to follow it with an evil heart, and blindfold — this is the congre- gation which, taken together, comprises what is called Antichrist or Babylon, the fourth beast, the whore, the man of sin, the son of perdition." It originated, indeed, "in the times of the apostles, but, by gaining power and worldly influence, it had reached its climax in the corruption of the Papal Church.
"Christ never had an enemy like this; so able to pervert the way of truth into falsehood, insomuch that the true church, with her children, is trodden under foot. The worship that belongs alone to God he trans- fers to Antichrist himself— to the creature, male and female, deceased — to images, carcasses, and relics. The sacrament of the Eucharist is converted into an object of adoration, and the worshipping of God alone is prohibited. lie robs the Saviour of his merits, and the sufficiency of his grace in justification, regenera- tion, remission of sins, sanctification, establishment in the faith, and spiritual nourishment; ascribing all these things to his own authority, to a form of words, to his own works, to the intercession of saints, and to the lire of purgatory. He seduces fhe people from Christ, drawing off their minds from seeking those blessings in him, by a lively faith in God, in Jesus Christ, and in the I Icily Spirit, and teaching his fol- lowers to expect them by the will, and pleasure, and works of Antichrist.
"He teaches to baptize children into the faith, and attributes to this the work of regeneration; thus con- founding the work of the Holy Spirit in regeneration with the external rite of baptism, and (in this founda- tion bestows orders, and, indeed, grounds all his Chris- tianity. He places all religion and holiness in going to mass, and has mingled together all descriptions of
ceremonies, Jewish, heathen, and Christian — and by means thereof, the people are deprived of spiritual food, seduced from the true religion and the com- mandments of God, and established in vain and pre- sumptuous hopes. All his works are done to be seen of men, that he may glut himself with insatiable av- arice, and hence every thing is set to sale. He allows of open sins without ecclesiastical censure, and even the impenitent are not excommunicated" (Neander, Church History, iv, 605 sq.).
The Hussites followed the Waldenses in this theory of Antichrist, applying it to the papal system. So did Wicklift'e and his followers : Wickliffe, Trialogus (cited by Schrockh, xxxiv, 509); Janow, Liber de An- tichristo (Hist, at Monum. J. Huss, vol. i). Lord Cob- ham (Sir John Oldcastle), executed as a Wickliffite, 1417, dechu-ed to King Henry V that, "as sure as God's word is true, the pope is the great Antichrist foretold in Holy Writ" (Neio Gen. Diet. s. v. Oldcastle).
4. From the Reformation downward. — One of the oldest German works in print, the first mentioned by Panzer in the Annalen der alteren deutschen Literatur, is Das Bitch vom Entkrist (The Book of Antichrist), or, also, " Bilchlin von des Endte Christs Leben und Regie- rung (lurch verhengniss Gottes, vie er die Welt tilth ver- keren mit seiner falschen Lere und Rat des Teufls," etc. — " Little Book concerning Antichrist's Life and Rule through God's Providence, how he doth pervert the World with his false Doctrine and Counsel of the Dev- il," etc. (reprinted at Erfurdt, 1516). As early as 1520 Luther began to doubt whether the pope were not Anti- christ. In a letter to Spalatin, Feb. 23, 1520, he says, " Ego sic angor ut prope non dubitem papam- esse pro? prie Antichristum." In the same year, when he heard of Eck's success in obtaining the bull against him from the pope, Luther exclaimed, "At length the mystery of Antichrist must be unveiled" (Ranke, Hist, of Ref- ormation, bk. ii, eh. iii). In the Reformation era the opinion that the papal system is Antichrist was gen- erally adopted ; and it is the prevalent opinion among Protestants to this day, although, as will appear be- low, some writers make Rome only one form of Anti- christ. The various classes of opinion, and the writers who maintain them, are given by Smith, s. v., as fol- lows: Bullinger (1504), Chytrseus (1571), Aretins (1573), Foxe (1586), Napier (1593), Mede (1632), Ju- rieu (1685), Bp. Newton (1750), Cunninghaine (1813s), Faber (1814), Woodhouse (1828), Habershon (1843), identify the False Prophet, or Second Apocalyptic Beast, with Antichrist and with the papacy ; Marlorat (1574), King James I (1603), Daubuz (1720), Galloway (1802), the First Apocalyptic Beast ; Brightman (1600), Pareus (1615), Vitringa (1705), Gill (1776), Bachmair (1778), Fraser (1795), Croly (1828), Fysh (1837), El- liott (1844), both the Beasts. That the pope and his system are Antichrist was taught by Luther, Calvin, Zwingli, Melancthon, Bucer, Beza, Calixtus, Bengel, Michaelis, and by almost all Protestant writers on the Continent. Nor was there any hesitation on the part of English theologians to seize the same weapon of offence. Bishop Bale (1491), like Luther, Bucer, and Melancthon, pronounces the pope in Europe and Mo- hammed in Africa to be Antichrist. The pope is An- tichrist, say Cranmer (Works, ii, 46, Camb. 1844), Latimer (Works, i, 149, Camb. 1814), Ridley (Works, p. 53. Camb. 1841), Hooper (Works, ii, 44, Camb. 1852), Hutchinson (Works, p. 301, Camb., 1842), Tyn- dale (Works, i, 147, Camb. 1818), Sandvs (Works, p. 11, Camb. 1841), Philpot (Works, p. 152, Camb. 1842), Jewell (Works, i, 109, Camb. 1845), Rogers (Works, p. 182, Camb. 1851), Fulke (Works, ii, 269, Camb. 1848), Bradford ( Works, p. 435, Camb. 1848). Nor is the opinion confined to these 16th century divines, who may be supposed to have been specially incensed against popery. King James held it (Apol. pro Juram. Fidel. Lond. 1609) as strongly as Queen Elizabeth (see Jewell, Letter to Bulling. May 22, 1559, Zurich Letters,