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A48069
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The life and death of Monsieur Claude, the famous minister of Charenton in France done out of French by G.P.; Abrégé de la vie de Mr. Claude. English
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Ladevèze, Abel-Rodolphe de.; G. P.
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1688
(1688)
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Wing L149; ESTC R3073
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50,310
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77
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they should Thou shalt keep therefore his Statutes and his Commandments which I command thee this day that it may go well with thee and with thy Children after thee and that thou mayest prolong thy days upon the earth which the Lord thy God giveth thee for ever To wicked men God often threatens sudden and untimely death that they should die sooner than otherwise they should have done The fear of the Lord prolongeth or as we have it in the Margin addeth days but the years of the wicked shall be shortned That is they shall not live so long as otherwise they might have done Thus many men shall not live out half their days not half the ordinary time of a man's life Most observable is the instance of King Hezekiah in the 38. Isa to whom the Prophet positively declares Thus saith the Lord set thine house in order for thou shalt die and not live and yet upon his humble Prayer Fifteen years more were added unto his days which otherwise he should not have had From which it plainly appears that by sin and disobedience men may shorten their days and cut off from their lives and by Piety and Vertue men may procure to themselves a longer life and encrease of days Now the length or shortness of our lives depends often upon our own voluntary actions upon our pleasing or displeasing God which cannot agree with that Doctrine of Fate I before mentioned Nor do we need any such opinion against the fear of death because we allow that our life depends upon God's good will and pleasure that no instruments of death no ill practices can prevail against us without his appointment And this is a sufficient foundation of assurance and confidence notwithstanding the frailty and uncertainty of our condition here that the Watchman of Israel neither slumbereth nor sleepeth that his eye is always upon us for Good that we shall live as long and as well as is really best for us and then who would not be willing to die But Another means our Religion affords us to free us from the fear of death is a deadness to this present world and all the trifling pleasures of it For it is an over fond love and doating upon the things of this world and sensual enjoyments that makes persons so unwilling to die The more our appetites and desires are mortified and subdued the readier we shall be to bid an eternal farewell to all these things below It is no wonder that those who know no other happiness but what is to be found in these lower Regions are loth to be torn from their dear possessions and to venture into a strange Countrey which they have so little knowledge of But by this contempt of the world which our Religion teaches us we forsake it in the love of it even whilst we are living and so our business is better than half done before hand and we are freed from those worldly cloggs and encumbrances that too often hang on our vertue and most raised affections Farther the Consideration of Christ's conquering death for us gives a mighty encouragement against the inordinate fear of death For our blessed Saviour hath tasted death for every man and hath taken away its sting hath quell'd its force and overcome its power insomuch that he is said to have abolished it He hath made a way through death and the grave to his Father's Glory and shall we be afraid like Saint Peter to profess and fellow him wheresoever he goes Our Prince and Redeemer hath voluntarily passed through it and shall it grieve us to follow his steps and to come to him through that passage by which he himself entred into his Kingdom Lastly The hope of salvation is another great means that our Christianity administers to us against this base fear of dying I have read it is an ordinary saying among the Turks that if Christians had a right opinion concerning Heaven they could not be so afraid of death which is the onely way to life And it was reasonably asked by the Philosopher of him that promised that all that were of his Sect should be immediately happy as soon as they were dead why then he did not presently die Do we really believe a future Glory and are we afraid to enter into our Master's joy What are we Christians and yet would we live always here Have we already attain'd all the happiness which we aspire after Can we be contented to know no more of God to enjoy no more of his Glory and to love him no more than we can doe in this imperfect State Are we unwilling to receive that reward which we daily pray for Thou knowest not what thou art capable of what perfection what happiness thy soul shall enjoy freed from this troublesome Tabernacle this luggage of flesh and art thou afraid of being translated into the celestial Kingdom One glimpse of that Glory which our Saviour hath promised to us would make as all long to be with Christ No wonder Saint Paul was so ready to die when he had before hand been rapt up into the third Heaven and had seen and heard things not utterable Did we live in the hopes of the future happiness we shall enjoy we should not value any of the pleasures here below nor fear to undergo any thing that stood in his way between us and those blessed Mansions of happy Souls where dwelleth God and perpetual peace and satisfaction free from all care and disturbance from all fear and anxiety from all pain and danger where onely is to be found perfect contentment eternal joy and immortal happiness If Christians perfectly knew the felicity of the other life they would be impatient of the present they would be hardly able to brook or endure living or any thing that detain'd them from such unspeakable enjoyments Wo unto us therefore that yet dwell in Meshech and are forced to abide in the Tents of Kedar Blessed yea thrice blessed are are all those that have passed this miserable world and are received into the heavenly Mansions for one day there is better than a thousand elsewhere One thing have I desired of the Lord and that will I still seek after that I may live for ever with him and behold his Glory When shall we arrive at that eternal and celestial happiness where we shall have no more of these storms and dangers When shall we pass all fears and cares and grief and troublesome passions Even so saith the Church all true Christians and sincere Believers come Lord Jesus come quickly and deliver us from these crazy bodies and put on us that house that is eternal and in the heavens Is it so pleasant to us to wander to and fro in this wilderness and be tossed up and down upon these troublesome waves And can it be grievous to us to think of arriving at our journey's end How soon would all the grief and pain and uneasiness that accompanies sickness and the very
this Town which had so highly signaliz'd it self in those late Wars being still cover'd if I might dare to say it with the sweat and bloud of its Enemies imagin'd that for the fulness of its glory it ought to get this Buckler of the Reformation into its bosom there to cause Sciences and Religion to flourish This calling was directed to Monsieur Claude in all the forms and with all the inducements he could desire but it was a difficult matter in this case to surprise the vigilance and affection of his Church which too well knew the need it had of its Pastor It earnestly intreated him not to abandon it at a time especially when his presence was so necessary to all the Protestants of the Kingdom he was willing to make it the Sacrifice of his temporal interest and repose after which he most humbly thank't the Magistrates of Groninguen for the honour they had done him and prepared himself to undergo the utmost fury of that Tempest which had so long been lowring over our heads In the mean while the Calamities of the Protestants did daily hasten on apace the Church that met at Charenton saw the Storm coming and the privilege of being enlightned by the eyes of the Court which it had made its support for above an age was no longer a means to justifie its Conduct it was wholly taken up in warding off the blows made at it by its Enemies it was watchfull for the other Flocks and the greatest weight of this heavy burthen lay upon Monsieur Claude's head He shewed himself indefatigable he answered the Writers of the Roman Communion who ever seem to single out him in their works he preach't as often as any one of his Collegues was watchfull for the inward safety so to disappoint it rooted it out of others and was carefull of the present nay and out of a providential Spirit extended his thoughts and cares over the sadest futurity This is the true scite of Monsieur Claude's heart and mind till that fatal day when he perceiv'd that all the solicitudes of humane prudence were absolutely inavailable and that he must of necessity see the dispersion of all the reformed Churches in France by the bare revocation of the Edict of Nants under whose Faith we and our Fathers had liv'd This Edict was published under the Seal on Thursday the 18th of December 1685 the Gentlemen of the Consistory had notice of it they thereby apprehended that they had no longer the liberty of Preaching because the Exercise at Charenton was no longer perform'd but by virtue of a decree of the Council which was revokt by the bare publication that had been newly made nevertheless it was not perceiv'd that the Ecclesiasticks made any step to rob them of that small consolation which they seem'd to have left of having the liberty of meeting once again in their Temple This favour which would not have been considerable in the bottom seem'd too great to the Ministers and to some of the Ancients that they open'd their Eyes to know the motives of it and after a prety exact application they perceiv'd it to be one of those presents which were to be distrusted as coming from a suspected hand they nevertheless liv'd in a kind of uncertainty till Saturday at ten a Clock in the Morning the Ministers appointed to Preach were ready when that they were fully inform'd of the design that was laid of coming into the assembly to speak to the people during or after the action The most prudent understood the consequences of that day Monsieur Claude especially knowing by long experience how far the zeal of Religion does hurry those that are strongly possess'd with it was the first that deem'd it fitting not to Preach He backt his opinion with several reasons which brought the rest to be of his mind It was expedient to hinder the people from repairing to Charenton the next day Monsieur Claude took care of this important matter he saw plainer than the rest the peril he exposed himself to but he imagin'd that he was likewise thereunto called by the duty of his Office. That a good Soul ought not to be much concern'd for the dangerous consequences of a good Counsell He gave all the necessary orders the thing succeeded according to his project there was no Preaching at Charenton and the event justified that his foresight was well grounded that his fears were Just and that this turn he gave to the Rudder of a great Ship that was going to be wrack't departed from the head of a most able Pilot who contriv'd to save the people whom God had committed to his charge when he cou'd no longer hinder the wreck of his Vessel This Cessation of exercise which had seem'd too hasty to some past for a Masterly stroke in the opinion of others The Ecclesiasticks knew it immediately to be Monsieur Claude that had broke their measures and to prevent the over officious cares he might have rendered to his dispersed Flock they wou'd said they spare him the pains of that sad spectacle He had fifteen days time given him as well as the other Ministers to depart the Kingdom they found means to abridge that time for on Monday the 22 of December 1685 which was the day on which the revocative Edict of that of Nants was Registred in the Parliament of Paris Monsieur Claude received order at ten a Clock in the Morning to be gone within four and twenty hours He obey'd with a profound respect and went away attended by one of the King's-Footmen who was to conduct him to the Fronteers of France and who faithfully perform'd his Commission and yet did nevertheless carry himself very handsomly towards Monsieur Claude so true it is that great merit has an ascendant over those very hearts that do not love our Religion PART III. MOnsieur Claude was not at a loss what foreign Countrey to chuse for his retreat his Son being Minister of the Walloon Church at the Hague byast him above all other prospects that offer'd themselves to his mind At Paris he took Coach for Brussels his fame leading the way occasion'd several persons to visit him in his Journey he past through Cambray where he lay was there presented with what was in season by the Jesuits the Father Rector did him the honour to come and see him he made due returns to his Civility and the diversity of Religion did not interrupt that commerce of Compliments and instances of a mutual esteem At last he arriv'd at the Hague and the satisfaction he had to be in the bosom of his Family whom the affairs of the time had separated made him for some moments forget the peril he had been in and the remains of a great fit of sickness In a few days after he had the honour to pay his respects to his Highness the Prince of Orange he found that his merit had spoken in his behalf he met with a gracious reception and however