1889 Watch Tower - A2Z.org

various superstitions and errors of the dark ages, back to the oldlandmarks of primitive simplicity and purity whichcharacterized the apostolic church, both in life and doctrines.Luther, Knox, Melanchthon, Zwingli, Calvin, and others of theirtime, though still befogged by the errors of Antichrist, which forso many centuries held the world as under a mesmeric power,made remarkable progress out of the darkness toward the full,clear light. When all the circumstances of their time are realized,it cannot be denied that they were remarkable men, and that theynot only took a courageous step, but a long one in the rightdirection. The trouble is that those who since have followedthese leaders, have taken their names as sects, without havingtheir spirit of reform. So far from continuing the reformmovement, each party or sect set itself against all light, truth,and reformation in advance of what its leader had seen andadvocated. Hence reform almost ceased with the reformers ofthe sixteenth century. What progress has since been made, hasbeen in opposition, not only to Papacy, but to professedProtestants as well.But the course of the reformers was not a whollyuncompromising one. They soon saw that the masses of thepeople were so steeped in ignorance that they could notappreciate the Scriptural teaching that God is no respecter ofpersons; and that in his sight all men are free, and that king,peasant and slave are on a common footing before God. So longhad people been taught that the pope and church dignitariesrepresented God, and must be obeyed as God; so long had theybeen taught that kings and princes, when crowned andcommissioned by the pope, were God's appointed rulers,reigning by God's authority in matters civil, as the "clergy" bythe same authority reigned as princes in matters religious; solong had they been taught that to deny or oppose such popesanctionedauthority, was to deny and oppose God and hiskingdom, that (under this ignorance and superstition) to havedeclared the whole truth, would have involved all Europe inanarchy and lawlessness. Stepping out of such deep slavery ofmind and body, into full liberty, the masses were far fromprepared to use it wisely.This, indeed, was the basis of the conflict between the earlyreformers. Zwingli in Switzerland, was a representative of somewho took their stand for full liberty; he not only denied theauthority of the pope to rule the church, but denied also hisauthority to appoint civil rulers in the name of God. He claimedfor the people the right to elect their rulers, as we do in this greatRepublic. Here, Luther wavered for a time as to what course topursue, when he saw that the reform, fully carried out, wouldnot only take away the authority of the pope, but also theauthority of all the princes and kings of earth appointed by him.While retired for ten months in Wartburg Castle under the