2
September 1415 A.D. Oh ohàBohemian
Noblemen Tells Papist Bishops & Pope “Hell No!”
Graves,
Dan. “Bohemians Nobles Sends Bishops Defiance.” Christianity.com. Jul 2007. http://www.christianity.com/church/church-history/timeline/1201-1500/bohemian-nobles-send-bishops-a-defiance-11629877.html. Accessed 19 May 2014.
A full century before the
Reformation under Martin Luther made Germany a Protestant nation, a similar
movement swept Bohemia. The Bohemian reformation was destined to collapse,
however. Its noble leaders, Jan Hus and Jerome of Prague, were burned at the
stake after unjust trials before the Council of Constance. Their followers,
representing many conflicting interests, could not stick together because of
internal squabbles.
The revolution began when Jerome
of Prague visited Oxford. He returned to Bohemia carrying the teachings of John
Wycliffe. The popular preacher, Jan Hus, picked up these ideas and spread the
gospel according to Wycliffe. Like Wycliffe, he took the Bible for his guide
and rejected certain teachings that could not be found in Scripture.
The serfs of Bohemia responded
with joy, for the Bible seemed to promise a new order of liberty and equality,
symbolized by their participation not just of the bread of communion, but also
in the wine. Persecuted Christians, such as the
Waldenses, embraced Hus' doctrine, for it was as Bible-centered as the
followers of Peter Waldo had tried to be. Nobles saw church reform as a means
to shake off the grip of the German invaders who ruled Bohemia at that time,
and who were still Roman Catholic.
When Hus perished in a pyre of
flame with a hymn on his lips, and love for Christ in his heart, the nobles of
Bohemia responded with fury. On this day, September 2, 1415, an assembly
of Bohemian and Moravian notables sent the Council of Constance a document
signed by 500 of their prominent men, declaring they would fight to the last
drop of their blood to defend what they saw as the true doctrines of Christ.
Fight they did. They butchered
the anti-Hussites that King Wenceslaus packed onto Prague's New Town council.
When Pope Martin V launched a crusade against them, Czechs swarmed into
national armies for the defense of their homeland. Under the brilliant military
leadership of Jan Zizka, they defeated several larger forces. Victorious on the
field of battle, they proceeded to slaughter monks and Germans alike and tried
to impose their religious views by force of arms. Most of Bohemia fell under
their control.
But then the revolution
disintegrated. In about twenty years, conflicting ambitions, unfulfilled
promises, and lawlessness fragmented the alliance. Frightened by the chaos,
much of the upper class returned to the Roman church. Even so, a breakaway
church survived. The Unity of the Brethren (Moravians) held true to their
beliefs amidst the chaos; and, despite fierce persecution, they refused to be
stamped out.
Bibliography:
1. "Bohemia" in Encyclopedia Americana. Chicago:
Americana Corp., 1956.
2. Curtis, A. Kenneth, et al. Dates With Destiny; the 100 most important dates in
church history. Tarrytown, N. Y.: Revell, 1971.
3. Durant, Will and Durant, Ariel. The Story of Civilization: The Reformation.
New York: Simon and Schuster, 1950.
4. Rowe, Henry K. History of the Christian People. New
York: Macmillan, 1931.
5. Spinka, Matthew. Jan Hus and the Czech Reform. Chicago,
Illinois: The University of Chicago press, 1941.
6. Various church histories and internet articles.
Last updated July,
2007
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