Chapter 2 introduction

introduction Although he is in danger of life and death, he is brave and tenacious; although his life is on the verge of death, he is loyal to his beliefs and is not discouraged.When he died calmly, he looked at the enemy with contempt and admiration—he was defeated, but not by anyone but by fate; he was killed, but not conquered.The bravest are often the unluckiest.Chengren is more enviable than success. — Montaigne: "On Cannibalism" "The fly shakes the elephant." These are the words Sebastian Castellio added in his own handwriting to the manuscript refuting Calvin's original manuscript in Basel, Switzerland.When we first read this sentence, we can't help being a little disgusted, and we tend to take it as an exaggeration, which is a mistake that humanitarians are prone to make.Yet Castellio's words were neither hyperbole nor irony.The valiant warrior merely wished to make clear to his friend Amerbach his own deep and unfortunate conviction that he was challenging a colossus, and he openly charged Calvin with fanaticism in the Christian Reformation. Instigated by the teachings of the world, kill a man and thereby slaughter freedom of conscience.

Castellio challenges Calvin to a dangerous contest.He wields his pen like a samurai.He realized the futility of a purely spiritual attack on a dictator protected by physical armor, so he was fighting for a lost cause.How could one man, unarmed and single-handed, hope to defeat Calvin, who was supported by thousands and armed with the whole force of the nation?Calvin was a master of the art of organization, able to convert a city and country (whose citizens were hitherto free in large numbers) into machines of strict obedience; dogma.The power of the state is under his sovereign control, the organs of power--city councils and inquisitions, universities and courts, finance and morals, clergy and schools, patrols and prisons, writing and speech, even the most secret whispers , are at his mercy.His dogma has become law, and anyone who dares to doubt will be taught at once—by arguments that suppress discussion, by arguments that are downright tyrannical, by imprisonment, exile, or burning, the lesson that in Geneva there is only one truth that is absolutely true : Calvin is a prophet.

But the evil power of the wicked madman far exceeds the walls of Geneva.The cities of the Swiss Confederation made him their chief political partner: Protestants throughout the Western world appointed this "fierce Christian" as their commander-in-chief; Priest's favor.He had established an ecclesiastical organization in Europe second in power, if any, to that of the Pope.In political circles, nothing could happen without his knowledge, and nothing against his will was rare.Offending the missionary of St. Pierre was as dangerous as offending the Emperor and Pope. How could his opponent, Sebastian Castellio, that narcissistic idealist, refuse allegiance to Calvin, in the name of freedom of thought, as he does to other spiritual tyrannies!It is not an exaggeration to compare the one to a fly and the other to an elephant, measuring the material power available to these two persons.Castellio was a dispensable, insignificant, insignificant figure who had no influence among the public.Furthermore, he is a poor scholar whose income is not enough to support his wife and children by translating books and working as a tutor; he is a refugee in a foreign country without citizenship or even the right of residence; By.In an age when the world is driven mad by blind faith, humanitarians are often isolated by fighting fanatics because of their powerlessness.

For many years this great, humble, and noble scholar lived under the double shadow of persecution and poverty, often in a state of wretched distress.But he is free in spirit, because he is not bound either by religion or by any prevailing form of fanaticism.It wasn't until Calvin wounded his conscience by killing Servetus that he left his quiet job of attacking dictators on behalf of insulted human rights.He stands alone, but that proves that he is worthy of being a hero.His experienced adversary had a long line of loyal followers (or, if unfaithful, bound by strict discipline), while Castellio could not count on the support of any denomination, Protestant or Catholic. .No great man, no emperor or king sheltered him, as they had sheltered Luther and Erasmus.Even if there are a few friends and confidants who admire his bravery, they only dare to say a few words to comfort him in private.

When zealots hunt down heretics and torture and burn dissidents, there is indeed life and physical danger in public defense of a thinker who dares to espouse a persecuted cause.Nor were Castellio's beliefs in isolated cases.He denies those in high positions who are entitled to harm anyone simply because they differ in private opinion.In those times of collective madness (which from time to time afflicted the world) there was a man who dared to free his mind from that fashionable illusion; in the name of greater glory) in its true sense of the term massacre.Humanitarian sentiments compelled him to speak out, "I can no longer be silent," and he uttered a desperate appeal about the cruelty of man to man that shook the heavens.Human cowardice is so entrenched that Castellio, like himself in defiant rebellion against those in high positions, needed to find some adherents, if any.At a critical moment, Sebastian Castellio found no one to support him.All he had was that quality of those who are good fighters, a strong and unyielding conscience in a fearless soul.

It is for this reason that Sebastian Castellio knew from the very beginning that his battle would be futile, he knew this and precisely because of this, he did not hesitate to follow the dictates of conscience. call.His holy and tenacious spirit made him, an "unknown pawn", engraved his name forever in the great war of human liberation.He had the courage to stand firm against a world-wide reign of terror, and his long struggle against Calvin will forever be remembered.Moreover, at its root, this historic struggle transcends the time and space of the time in which it took place.It was not a dispute over some narrow, definable theological point of view, or about Servetus, or even a dispute between liberal and orthodox Protestant doctrine.In this war there is a much larger and eternal question of life and death.This is driven by our duty.A war has been waged.It goes on and on, in one name or another, in one way or another.Theology is only a subsidiary mask.It was worn because theology was the fashion in Geneva (and elsewhere) in the sixteenth century.Castellio and Calvin were engaged in an invisible but irreconcilable battle.We can call this enduring struggle whatever you want: religious tolerance versus intolerance, autonomy versus guardianship, humanity versus fanaticism, individuality versus mechanical conformity, conscience versus violence.In the final analysis, the above terms signify to us a visceral decision that must be made personally as to what is more important to us: human beings or politics; ethos or rational concepts; individuals or societies.

Every nation, every age, every thinking man has repeatedly had to define the boundaries between liberty and power.For, without power, liberty degenerates into indulgence, and chaos ensues; on the other hand, unless liberty is given, power becomes tyranny.Deep in man's nature is a mystical desire to be absorbed by society, a deep-seated belief that it must be possible to discover a particular religion, state, or social system which will definitely bestow upon mankind. With peace and order.Dostoevsky, in his essay "The Presiding Inquisitor", proves, by ruthless logic, that most people are afraid of natural liberty.In fact, most people, out of inertia in the face of the problems to be solved and the responsibilities that life imposes, long for a definite and generally valid, orderly world institution to spare them the trouble of thinking.This longing for a savior who would solve once and for all the riddle of behavior was the motivating factor in clearing the way of the prophets.When the ideals of a generation have lost their passion, the interest of the prophets, their bright colors, is enough to make some man (or woman) armed with a powerful theory declare with absolute certainty that he, and only he, has discovered The new and true norms, and the vast majority will have faith to accept this savior of the first few generations.A new ideology often creates a new type of idealism, which is undoubtedly metaphysical idealism.Whoever can give men a new illusion of harmony and purity will at once inspire the most sacred energies of man: self-sacrifice and religious fanaticism, millions ready to surrender as if possessed, they allow themselves to be trampled upon , even willing to rape.The more such revelators or prophets ask of them, the more willing they are to give.Freedom, which yesterday seemed to them the greatest good and joy, is now willing to be thrown away for the sake of the Prophet.They are willing to follow this leader without resistance, fulfilling the inspired inspiration "willing to be a slave."Thus, throughout history, people have willingly had a yoke around their necks, and kissed the hand that imposed the yoke, simply in the hope of remaining united.

What, in the history of our ancient, childish, and mechanical world, has time and time again performed such revelatory miracles as a power of thought—a most invisible power?As long as people with brains understand it, they will definitely improve.We tend to succumb to temptation and glorify the charlatans of the world who succeed in manipulating foolish affairs with the power of the mind.The idealists and daydreamers, almost invariably, at once proved to be vile liars once they had won.Power drives them to seize power in the world; victory leads to abuse of victory.These conquerors, not only are not thankful that they have persuaded so many people to accept their particularly disgusting illusions; they are glad that they have gained believers who are willing to live and die for the cause, and they are also greedy for profit and attempt to expand their power.They are eager to impose their dogma on those who are not of their own sect.The sycophants, minions, soul-slaves, adherents of any great movement do not satisfy the dictator.Unless those free men, the only religious independents, also become his flatterers and servants.In order to make his dogma world-wide, he made the government bear in mind that it is a crime not to conform to the old rules.The disaster is the constant strengthening of religious theories, accompanied by political ones.Once a dictatorship is established, it degenerates into tyrannical politics.But when a priest or prophet ceases to believe in the inner strength of what he believes or teaches, and instead invokes the expansion of force by force, he declares war on liberty.No matter what the ruling ideology is, once he uses the reign of terror as a tool to enforce the uniformity of different beliefs, what he implements is no longer idealism but barbarism.Even the purest truth, when forced upon those who disagree, constitutes a sin against the Holy Spirit.

This phantom, this god, is a mystical element.Like air, it cannot be touched or seen, but it seems to enter all ideas and norms invincibly.It misleads the tyrannical into fantasies that they can keep this phantom docile in the bottle at will.But each compression action produces a dynamic reaction due to the corresponding back pressure, and when very large pressure is applied, it often causes an explosion.As a result, repressive measures often lead to resistance.The consolation is that the moral independence of human beings cannot be destroyed in the end.It is impossible, and never will be possible, for a dictatorship to promote one religion or one philosophy throughout the world.For this specter often emerges from slavery, refusing to think in a predetermined way; refusing to be superficial and peaceful under command;Attempts to degrade the divinely diverse states of existence to a common denominator, to divide humanity arbitrarily into black and white, good and bad, sheep (meaning tamers) and goats (meaning rambunctious ones), true Believers and heretics, loyalists and traitors, what foolishness and futility it is - all based on a "principle" and backed only by the use of force.Every now and then there will arise independent men, who will defiantly resist any such restriction of human liberty, and become so-called "denialists of one kind or another" (for religious reasons). No age has ever been so barbaric: no Ministry of Tyranny has Systematized in this way. But the people are determined and able to circumvent the coercive rule that brings the majority to its knees, and to defend their right to establish their own beliefs and truths against the "unique truth" proclaimed by power fanatics.

In the sixteenth century, although then, as now, fanaticism in the field of ideology was rampant, there was still a free and uncorrupted spirit of the times.The excruciating suffering caused by the harassment of militarists appears to be evident from the writings left by the humanitarians of those days.We were deeply moved by their abhorrence of "dogma mongers."The peddlers peddled in the marketplace: "What we teach is true; what we don't teach is false." As enlightened cosmopolitans, humanists were horrified by the inhumanity of the "reformers."In the Western world, the gallop of free thought has fostered a belief in good things.And now, like Savonarola, Calvin, and John Knox, want to kill the good and turn the globe into a moral seminary.They proclaim their extreme orthodox scriptures with great eloquence.Humanists, with prophetic insight, had long seen in the foreground that such a stubborn, self-satisfied man would bring disaster to Europe.Amid the clamor, the clang of weapons can already be heard, and a bold prediction can be made: a catastrophic war is approaching quietly.But humanists, although they know the truth, dare not fight for it.Almost everyone in the world is not all-rounder, therefore, a person with vision is not necessarily a person of action; and a person of action is not necessarily a person of vision.These sympathetic humanitarians exchanged sentimental and admirable letters, and shut their study doors to complain.But none of them openly confronted the enemies of Christianity.From time to time Erasmus ventured a few cold arrows; Rabelais put on a jester's hat and a mottled coat, and flogged with frantic jeers; Montaigne, a brilliant and wise philosopher, In his essays, discuss current events with eloquent writing.But none of them attempted to stop the dishonorable persecutions and executions with one blow.They are wary of sophistication, and they say a sage can find a better pastime than taming a mad dog.It is the duty of the wise man, they say, to shut himself up, or he himself will be a victim.

Castellio, however, acquired a reputation as an immortal humanitarian, for he faced the calamity before him without fear; he gave his life in heroic support of the cause of his persecuted companions.Though he was constantly threatened by fanatics, he hoisted his faith like a banner with calm, unbiased composure, and with Tolstoyan composure.He firmly believed that no one should submit to force simply because they held one or another opinion about the nature of the universe.No earthly power, he declared, has the right to exercise authority over a man's conscience.Because he did not publish these arguments in the name of a sect, but a manifestation of the immortal spirit of mankind.So his thoughts, like many of his words, are immortal.The universal and eternal thoughts of mankind, once shaped by an artist, can always remain fresh and sharp.A statement that helps promote world unity will outlast divisive, aggressive and dogmatic rhetoric.The extraordinary courage of this forgotten luminary will serve as a model for future generations, especially in moral circles.Castellio, defying theologians by naming Calvin's victim Servetus as "a murdered innocent," thundered when refuting Calvin's sophistry: "Put To burn a man alive is not to defend a dogma but to kill a man".In his "Declaration for Religious Tolerance" (long before Locke, Hume, and Voltaire, and more brilliant than them), he declared once and for all the right of freedom of thought-he knew that he was for the sake of faith. At the risk of their lives, the reader must not think that Castellio's protests against the trial of the murder of Miguel Servetes can be compared with the more famous events of Voltet's protests against Joan Callas and Zola's protests against Trivers.Such comparisons do not, of course, in the slightest detract from Castellio's moral and moral sublimity.But the era in which Voltaire defended Callas was more humane.And, as a famous writer, he could count on the protection of kings and princes.Likewise, Zola had an invisible army at his back—the admiration of all Europe and the world.Voltaire and Zola undoubtedly risked their reputations and comforts, but neither of them risked their lives.But that's what Castellio dared to do.He knew that in his struggle for humanity his unfortunate mind was preoccupied with all the inhumanity of the cruel century in which he lived. Sebastian Castellio had to pay the full price, the price of his energy, for his heroism.This apologist for nonviolence wishing to use only spiritual weapons was stifled by savage force.Here we see many times a man who has no power but moral integrity, fighting alone against a well-knit organization: that has little hope of success.Once a dogma takes hold of the state apparatus, the state becomes an instrument of repression and quickly establishes a reign of terror.Any speech, as long as it challenges the unlimited power, must be suppressed, and the neck of the speaker and author who holds dissent must be strangled.Calvin never wanted to answer Castellio's challenge seriously, and he suppressed the latter's criticism of him.Castellio's writings were censored, banned from publication, and destroyed as soon as they were discovered.Due to political influence, Switzerland's neighboring countries banned Castellio's freedom of expression within their borders.In this way, once the power of Castellio's protest and criticism was undermined, he could not even report on the measures taken against him.Calvin's servants slandered him and attacked him.This is not a fight of equal strength between opposing sides, but a disarmed man brutally persecuted by a gang of hooligans.Calvin controlled printing, publishing, pulpits, professorial lectures, and synods.Castellio was followed; eavesdroppers overheard his every word; his letters were intercepted.Such an organization like a hundred-handed giant can easily defeat the lonely humanitarian.Nothing but Castellio's untimely death saved him from exile or the stake.Are we still wondering about these?The triumphant Doctrineist and his successors also unscrupulously vented their wrath on the dead body of their opponents.Jealousy and vile invective spread after death, and ashes were cast upon his name as quicklime was used to burn a corpse.The solitary man, who not only rebelled against Calvin's tyranny, but also attacked the basic principles of the dictatorship of spiritual affairs, has disappeared from memory forever, as the zealots hoped. This last resort of forceful and drastic measures almost succeeded.Not only was Castellio disarmed, restrained, and imprisoned during his lifetime, but the great humanitarian was systematically persecuted, rendering him virtually obsolete many years after his death.Today, a scholar need not be ashamed if he has never heard the name of Sebastian Castellio.Censorship of his writings continued for decades and centuries, how would scholars know about him?In Calvin's sphere of influence, no active printer dared to publish Castellio's book.When those books finally appeared, it was too late to rely on them to establish his reputation as a pioneer.At that time, others had already adopted his ideas.The battle he started and fell for has been carried on by other standard-bearers who have followed.Many people, such as the hillbilly Hamptons and the obscure dumb Miltons, are destined to live and die in the dark.Those who followed in Castellio's footsteps reaped and developed his reputation.In textbooks, we still read the mistakes that Locke and Hume were advocates of religious toleration.This mistake occurs again and again and goes unnoticed, as if Castellio had never written and published "On Heresy".The author's moral heroism is forgotten; his battle for Servetus is forgotten; his war against Calvin ("The Fly Shakes the Elephant") is forgotten; his writings are forgotten—they are only The stars are scattered throughout the anthology in the Dutch translation.The few manuscripts we found in Swiss and Dutch libraries, and what some grateful students thought of Castellio—that's all the "relics" of such a man.He is almost unanimously recognized in contemporary times as the most learned man of that century, and at the same time the most noble man.There is still a great gratitude for this forgotten battle, and a demand that the injustice be righted. History has no time for notarization.As a disinterested chronicler, its task is to record successful people, but rarely to identify their moral worth.The eyes of history are only on the victors and ignore the conquered.There is no cross or garland to record the futile sacrifice of these "unknown men" in a sea of ​​oblivion.But in fact, the efforts of pure-hearted people will not be considered ineffective or fruitless, nor will any energy spent morally disappear in the vast space without leaving an impact.Those who were born unborn, although defeated, have foreseen its significance in realizing an eternal ideal.For an ideal is a concept that no one can see, and it can only be realized in the real world by people who conceive it, who work hard, and who are prepared to march for it on the dusty road that leads to death .Analyzed spiritually, the words "victory" and "defeat" acquire new meanings.Henceforth, we must never stop reminding the whole world that it sees only the monuments of the victors, and that the true heroes of our race are not those who achieve ephemeral dominance through butchered corpses, but those who have no strength to resist , Men who are overwhelmed by the violence of the superiors--as Castellio was overwhelmed by Calvin in his struggle for spiritual freedom, for the establishment of a human kingdom at last on earth.