Chapter 5 Chapter 3 Castellio Appears

Chapter 3 Castellio Appears A dictator is feared, but not necessarily loved.Those who propose a reign of terror likely do not justify terror at all.There is no doubt that Calvin was admired by both the free burghers and the local authorities when he first returned to Geneva.It seems that he touched people from all walks of life.Since there is only one sect, and only one is supreme, all are compelled to let the dictator push resolutely towards his goal.Most of the people who called him back to rule over themselves were reeling from the intoxication of unity.Soon, a more serious atmosphere began.Those who recalled Calvin to restore order were secretly encouraged by the hope that once the murderous dictator had accomplished what he wished, his moral zeal would in some measure less brutal.However, the opposite is true. The "canon" is getting stricter every day.Calvin never let go of his grip, never said a word thanking his inhabitants for the great sacrifices they had made in giving up their personal liberties and pleasures.To their great disappointment, Calvin declared that 1,700 or 1,800 Genevan youths would be hanged on the gallows before morality and canon could be established in the corrupt city.The people of Geneva finally realized that they were not calling back, as they had hoped, a man who would restore their minds to life, but a man who had put chains on their freedom, and who had imposed more and more brutal coercive measures. .In the end, he alienated even his most loyal followers.

Dissatisfaction with Calvin resurfaced within a few months.His vaunted, coveted "canons" seemed more seductive than reality.The glamor and romance fade.Those who cheered it yesterday are now complaining.But it takes obvious and understandable reasons to shake a dictator's prestige.Calvin is quick to provide this reason.It was during the Great Plague (which decimated the city between 1542 and 1545) that the people of Geneva began to doubt the infallibility of the Inquisition.It was the missionaries who loudly proclaimed and urged that the sick afflicted with the disease must have a priest present within three days.At that time, a pastor contracted the disease.So the missionaries let go and let the sick in the contagious hospitals die without spiritual comfort.The municipal administration tried in vain to find at least one member of the Inquisition willing to "visit and comfort the unfortunate patients in the plague hospitals".But no one wanted to go except Castellio.Castellio, dean of a madrassa, was not commissioned to keep company with the sick, as he was not a member of the Inquisition.But Calvin signaled his colleagues to declare that Calvin was "needed" and openly asserted that he "could not weaken the whole church in order to help a part."Other missionaries, though not as important as Calvin, were equally careful to avoid danger.In vain the city council turned to these timid priests for help.There was a blunt criticism of the missionaries at the time: "They would rather hang themselves than go to a contagious hospital." On June 5, 1543, all the missionaries of the Reformation in Geneva, headed by Calvin, attended the A meeting of the Executive Council.They shamelessly confessed that not one of them was brave enough to enter a contagious hospital, although they knew that it was a fitting place for them to serve God and the Church on bad or auspicious days.

Nothing stirs people more now than a display of personal courage by leaders.In Marseilles, in Vienna, and many other cities, centuries later, the heroic priests who did their duty during the plague are still fondly remembered.The common people will never forget the heroism of their leaders, still less the cowardice of that decisive moment.The Genevans despised and jeered at the clergy - from the pulpit they were accustomed to demand the utmost sacrifice from multitudes of believers, but now they themselves were neither ready nor willing to make any sacrifice.A vain attempt to allay public discontent ensued, and a shameful drama ensued.The city council ordered the arrest of several impoverished men, and tortured them until they confessed to bringing the plague into the city by anointing the bolts with an ointment made of the devil's excrement.Calvin, far from dismissing this nonsense without scorn, showed complete obstinacy in his wholehearted support of this medieval hoax.He even went so far as to publicly declare that the "plague spreader" had done all the bad things.He told from the pulpit that an atheist was dragged from his bed by the devil in broad daylight and thrown into the Rhone.Calvin noticed that many of his disciples didn't even try to hide their sneers, and for the first time in his experience he had to endure such humiliation.

In any case, the belief in Calvin's infallibility (a belief that was a required philosophical component of every dictator's maintenance of power) had largely disappeared during the plague.The heartfelt welcome he had received on his return to Geneva was also gone.A spirit of antagonism spread in the widening circle.Fortunately for Calvin, the circle widened, but the hatred did not concentrate.Concentration is often the temporary advantage of dictatorship, which is sufficient to ensure that the dictator's rule lasts until his active supporters become a minority.The militant will of these supporters shows themselves to be an organized unity.In contrast to this, the will, which comes from all sides and is animated by different motives, is seldom a concentrated effective force.In any case, many people are only motivated by the inner spirit of rebellion against the dictatorship. They have hatred, but they do not join a unified movement and carry out a common plan. Their rebellion is useless.Thus, there is usually a long period of time between the first challenge to a dictator's authority and his eventual overthrow.Calvin, his Inquisition, his missionaries, and most of the exiles who made up his supporters, represented a body, a bound will, generally concentrated and directed power.On the other hand, the opponent may recruit personnel from all circles and classes in an unplanned manner.Some of them had been Catholics and were still secretly religious;On the other hand, among those who were disaffected by the regime, there were members of prominent patriotic families who were irritated by the rise of the nouveau riche.After a few months in Geneva, those nouveau riche were able to get the most comfortable and profitable positions.In this way, although the opposition is large in number (composed of the noblest and the humblest elements), as long as those who are dissatisfied with the political status quo have not been able to gather strength to pursue an ideal.They can only complain in vain, and it is always only potential energy that cannot be transformed into kinetic energy.This is a mob against an army; this is an unorganized, disaffected mob against organized terror, so there is no progress.In the first few years, Calvin found it easy to control those scattered groups.They were never united against him so powerfully that Calvin was able to break them individually.

For a theorist already in power, the main danger comes from a figure promoting a hostile theory.Calvin, a clear and alert thinker, was quick to realize this.The only rivals he deeply fears are those who can rival him intellectually and morally.He was especially afraid of Sebastian Castellio.This man, who opposed the spiritual tyranny of the dictator with the zeal of a free spirit, certainly surpassed Calvin intellectually and morally. There is a painting by Castellio that survives, but it is a pity that it is not well painted.It was a serious, thoughtful face, with white eyes beneath a bald forehead.That's all the fortune teller can say.This portrait does not give us insight into the depths of his character, but his most basic characteristics—his self-confidence and stability—are accurately outlined.If we put Calvin's and Castellio's portraits together, we can see how sharp the contrast between these two figures is in the spiritual realm as well as in the physical realm.Calvin's features were marked by extreme nervousness.Expresses a convulsive and morbid energy, eager and unruly looking for outlet.Castellio's face was gentle and calm.The former is furious and irritable, while the latter is peaceful.In both countenances we see impatience and patience, impulsiveness and persistent determination, fanaticism and benevolence.

We know as little about Castellio's youth as we do about his portraits.He was born in 1515, six years later than Calvin, in Dauphine, at the junction of Switzerland, France, and the Duchy of Savoy.His surname was Catelon, Cateron, or Catelon, probably Castellijon or Castellijon, according to the customs of the Duchy of Savoy.His native language was French rather than Italian, although he spoke both languages ​​fluently.Soon his Latin was also impressive, and at the age of twenty he entered the University of Lyon, where he became absolutely fluent in Latin, Greek and Hebrew, and then also German.So eminent was his zeal and use of his power in all learned fields that he was unanimously voted by humanitarians and theologians to be the most learned man of his time.Music attracted him, and it was by teaching music lessons that he began to earn a meager income.Afterwards he wrote a great deal of poetry and prose in Latin.Soon he was again dominated by a passion for solving contemporary problems, which seemed to him more fundamental than a distant classical past.If we take humanism as a historical phenomenon, we find that in the early years of the movement, humanists concentrated most of their attention on the writings of ancient Greece and Rome, and that this phenomenon lasted only in the Renaissance. There was a brief but glorious flowering period in the decades between and the Reformation.In this short time, young people are looking for a revival, a revolution, thinking that a systematic culture will save the world.In a short time it became clear even to the devotees of the classics, and to the leaders of their generation, that they had wasted valuable energy in elaborating on Cicero and Thucydides. The original text came up at a time when the Religious Revolution had affected millions and ravaged Germany like wildfire in the forest.In the universities there were more debates about Protestantism and Protestantism than about Plato and Aristotle, and professors and students studied the Bible instead of the complete books of Roman law.In later days men were drawn to political, national or social movements, so that in the sixteenth century all the young people of Europe had an irresistible desire to think and talk about the religious ideals of the time, to help this A great sport.Castellio was governed by the same passion, and his personal experience set the tone for a man of his human temperament.At Lyons, where he saw heretics being burned for the first time, he was struck in the depths of his soul: the cruelty of the Inquisition on the one hand, and the courage of the victim on the other.Henceforth he resolved to live and fight for the new doctrine which for him must entail extreme liberty.

It goes without saying that from this moment, that is, when Castellio, at the age of twenty-four, decided to support the cause of the Reformation, his life was in danger.When a country or a system uses violence to suppress freedom of thought, there are only three paths before those who cannot bear the victory of violence over conscience.They could stand up as martyrs to the politics of terror, the courageous path chosen by Louis de Beauquin and Etine Dolet, which led them to the stake.Or, hoping to preserve their lives while maintaining their inner freedom.Those who are dissatisfied with the political status quo can submit outwardly, but their private opinions are concealed or disguised. That is the method of Erasmus and Rabelais.They made outward peace with church and state, put on jester's coats and fool's hats, deftly dodged the weapons of their adversaries, while firing poisoned arrows from an ambush, did not deceive the cruel with cunning like the Odyssey. the beast.The third strategy is to become an exile, trying to take the inner freedom he enjoys out of the country (where it is crippled and despised) to a foreign land where it can flourish unhindered.Castellio's upright but submissive nature led him to choose the path of peace.In the spring of 1540, after seeing several early Protestant martyrs burned, he left Lyon to become a missionary, teaching Protestantism.

His first journey to Strasbourg, like most religious exiles, was "for Calvin".Because Calvin boldly challenged Francis I in the preface of his "Principles", demanding religious tolerance and allowing freedom of belief.Although the author was a very young man, he was regarded by the inspired French youth as a herald and standard-bearer of evangelical teachings.The exiles, persecuted like Calvin, hoped to learn from Calvin how to better express their demands; how to more clearly order their paths, how to accomplish their life's work.A believer, and a fervent one at that (Castellio's own zeal for liberty led him to regard Calvin as an advocate of spiritual liberty), Castellio hurried to visit Strasbourg. Calvin, spent a week in the guest house which the latter's wife had built in town for future Protestant missions.The expected intimacy did not begin immediately, however, as Calvin was soon called to the town council of Worms and Hagenau.In this way, neither party benefits from the first meeting.But it soon became clear that Castellio had made a considerable impression on Calvin.Shortly after the latter's recall to Geneva, on the recommendation of Farrier, and doubtless with the full consent of Calvin, the young French or Savoy scholar was employed as a teacher at the Geneva Academy.Castellio was given the position of dean, two assistant teachers were directly supervised by him, and he was also entrusted with preaching in the Wenduohua Church on the outskirts of Geneva.

Castellio proved to be trustworthy, and his teaching was a remarkable success.In order to facilitate the study of Latin and make it more attractive, Castellio translated and rewrote the most vivid passages of the Old and New Testaments in Latin and French.Soon a booklet, "Introduction to Problem Solving" originally compiled for young people in Geneva, became a very famous book in the world. " can be compared. Over the past few centuries, the pamphlet has been reprinted one after another, and at least forty-six editions have been printed.Through this book, many students have learned elements of classical Latin.Although the pamphlet was no more than a by-product, an accidental product, of Castellio's humanitarian endeavors, it is thanks to this book that Castellio became a well-known figure.

Castellio's ambitions were higher than writing a suitable and practical pamphlet for schoolchildren.He did not waste his energies and learning on such trifles as to forsake the humanitarianism with which he was acquainted.The young idealist had a lofty aim, to repeat and exceed the noble cause of Erasmus and Luther.He decided to at least translate the entire Bible into Latin and then into French.His own people, the people of France, will receive the whole truth, just as the humanists and German society received it through the will created by Erasmus and Luther.Castellio approached this gigantic task with characteristic tenacity and a composed confidence.Night after night, he worked late into the night, although during the day he toiled for the meager pay to support his family.In this way he worked to carry out his plan, for which he was willing to sacrifice his life.

But at the outset, Castellio met a decisive confrontation.A Geneva bookseller had promised to print the first part of his Latin translation of the Bible, but Calvin was both the dictator of psychology and spiritual affairs in Geneva, and the supreme dictator of Geneva, without him within the limits of the city walls. The "Permission to Publish" does not allow the book to be printed.Censorship is necessarily the sister of dictatorship. Castellio visited Calvin.This is one theologian knocking on another theologian's door for the permission of his colleagues.But people of an authoritarian character always see only their will to power as an object of irony for this or that independent-minded person.Calvin's gut reaction was to be unhappy, and it took him a lot of effort not to look sullen.Calvin had written a preface to a French translation of the Bible by a relative, acknowledging that it was somewhat like the King James Bible, the Protestant Bible in vernacular officially sanctioned.How "presumptuous" is this man now to admit that the translation approved by and co-authored by Calvin is the only authoritative French translation.Castellio actually put it aside and proposed a new translation of his own.Calvin, in a letter to Fleet, was very irritated by the insolence of the junior: "Just heard Sebastian's ridiculous plan, which made me amused and angry. He came to see me three days ago and asked Let his translation of the New Testament be published." The grim tone indicated that Calvin was bitter about Castellio's rivalry.In fact, Calvin refused to give Castellio "licence to publish" unconditionally.He made a precondition that he should read the translation first and grant permission only after making changes to what he believed to be for his own benefit. Castellio has no pretensions of character.He never declared, as Calvin so often did, that his own opinion was the only true one, that his view of the matter was unflawed and indisputable.Castellio's later preface to this translation is an example of science and common sense.He frankly admits that he does not know all the passages of the Bible, and thus cautions readers not to place too much faith in his (Castellio's) translation. The Bible is an obscure book, full of contradictions.All that the author of this new translation can offer is an explanation rather than an unmistakable fact. But while Castellio can contemplate his own work with humility, he sees personal independence as invaluable.He knew that as a Hebrew linguist, as a Greek linguist, as a man of learning, he was not inferior to Calvin, so he must process this mysterious system of censorship and according to the requirements of dictatorship to "enhance "Think of it as a departure.In a free republic, scholar to scholar, theologian to theologian, he did not want to be subservient as a student to Calvin, or to allow his writings to be censored with blue pencils as a schoolteacher corrects an exercise book.He hoped to find a way out of the embarrassment without offending Calvin, whom he greatly respected.He was willing to read the manuscripts to Calvin at any time he thought fit, and declared that he was prepared to benefit in every possible way from Calvin's counsel and advice.But, as I have already said, Calvin was against negotiation or compromise.He doesn't make suggestions, just orders.He flatly rejected Castellio's proposal. "I told him that even if I promised me a hundred crowns, I was never going to guarantee a time for a discussion with him, which would take two hours to argue over just one word. So he left humiliated. " The first confrontation began.Calvin recognized that Castellio would not yield without a word of spiritual and religious fact.Behind the affectation of decorum, he realized that this independent-minded man was the inexhaustible rival of all dictatorships.From this moment, Calvin decided to seize the first opportunity to drive out the man who only serves his own conscience and does not obey the orders of others.Castellio must be expelled from Geneva if possible. If you want to add a crime, there is nothing to worry about.Calvin didn't have to wait long.Castellio's family was heavily burdened, and the meager salary paid by the college was always insufficient for expenses. He longed for a suitable and higher-paid position as a "Preacher of God's Will".From the day he fled Lyon, his main object was to be a servant and apologist for the teachings of the Bible.During the months of preaching at the Vancouver church, the eminent theologian was not criticized.No one in Geneva could have made a more justifiable proposition than the appointment of Castellio as a member of the Protestant missionary order.In fact, the appointment of Castellio was supported by the city authorities.On December 15, 1543, they passed a unanimous resolution to the effect: "As Sebastian was a man of learning, and well suited to be a servant of the Church, we hereby expressly hire .” But the city authorities did not take Calvin into account.isn't it?Wouldn't Calvin be in trouble if they had the audacity to appoint such an independent-minded man as Castellio without taking the matter to the highest missionaries?All the more so in view of the appointment at this time of a missionary to the Inquisition.Calvin immediately objected, and in a letter to Farrier he justified his action in insidious terms: "There are important reasons against this appointment. To the City Council I have only hinted at these reasons, not openly Explain. In the meantime, to prevent misunderstandings, I am careful not to attack his reputation and wish to protect him." When we read these insidious and mysterious words, doubts arise in our minds.How could we not think otherwise: Castellio must have had some kind of privacy; the man had made some mistakes to be worthy of a noble missionary; Calvin must have known of some of his blemishes, but in order to "protect" Castelli Oh, what about crimes that one wishes to conceal under the veil of Christian benevolence?Was he bribed when he crossed the border?He lived with a slut, and what privacy was there behind a hitherto unblemished reputation, and Calvin evidently forced Castellio to surrender by spreading an air of ambiguity and suspicion.Nothing is worse for a man's reputation than to use such an equivocal word as "protection." Sebastian Castellio, however, does not wish to be "protected".His conscience was spotless.When he learned that his efforts to secure the appointment had failed, he shook things off.He insisted that Calvin must publicly announce before the municipal council the reasons for his refusal to appoint him (Castellio) as missionary.Now Calvin is forced to show his cards, and he must declare Castellio's mysterious crime.Now, this crime Calvin had so skillfully kept secret.This is a big mistake, and in Castellio's translation of the Bible, there are two passages that are somewhat different from Calvin's.The first is that Castellio once declared that Solomon's song is not a holy but an unholy poem, and that the Shulamite hymn is part of a secular love poem: her two breasts are "like a pair of fawns that are born with breast milk." , which is not at all a metaphor for glorifying religion.The second deviation is also trivial: Castellio's interpretation of Jesus' descent into hell differs from Calvin's. It seems so insignificant that the crime of Castellio, who was "magnanimously concealed," for which Castellio was denied missionary appointment.But this is the really important thing, because for a man like Calvin, there is nothing extraneous in the realm of doctrine.In view of the rigidity of his temperament, a seemingly insignificant deviation was no less dangerous than a serious error, since the supreme unity in the Church had been established by him alone.In the edifice of logic that Calvin built with consistent lines, every stone, every little fragment, must be neatly placed in its place.Just as in political life, as in customary law and law, as in religious circles, Calvin was in principle opposed to any kind of liberty.If his church is to survive, it must remain a dictatorship from the grassroots up to the highest leadership.No one will be allowed in his autonomous city to deny his supreme leadership, or to aspire to liberty. It was therefore in vain that the council ordered Castellio and Calvin to hold a public debate and to present their opinions at the meeting, as evidenced by the documents.I cannot keep repeating that Calvin only wished to educate others, and never wanted to have a meeting for others to educate him.He refused to discuss matters with anyone, he only gave orders.In his first speech on the matter, he asked Castellio to "return to our train of thought", warning him not to "trust his own judgment" against the fundamental reality of the Church.Castellio was as faithful to the faith as Calvin.For Castellio, freedom of conscience is the supreme spiritual good of mankind.He was ready to pay any earthly price for this liberty, knowing that if he could outwit Calvin on these two insignificant points, he would have a great advantage in the Inquisition. Castellio replied, with indomitable independence, that nothing could induce him to make a promise he could not keep, because such a promise would lead him to act in defiance of conscience.Therefore, a public debate between Castellio and Calvin would solve nothing.At an extraordinary moment, these two figures who demanded complete freedom in religious matters found that the liberal and orthodox reformations they represented were about to collide.Calvin defended himself in an essay after a deaf-dialogue-style argument with Castellio: "From our conversation, I can judge that he was so prejudiced against me. So deep that I find it hard to believe that we can understand each other." What prejudice did Castellio have against Calvin?Calvin discloses, "Sebastian always thought I wanted to rule." Truthfully, nothing could be more succinct or clearer than it actually is.For two years Castellio knew only what others already knew, that is to say, because of Calvin's tyrannical impulses, there was room for only one man's opinion in Geneva, his own; that is, No one but a follower like Betsy could have lived in the circle of his spiritual influence and was prepared to let Calvin lead in every aspect of the doctrine.Now Castellio could no longer breathe such suffocating air, and could not bear such mental high-pressure rule.He fled from France to hide from the Catholic Inquisition, not to submit himself to the control and supervision of a new Christianity; he did not abandon the old dogma to become the slave of a new one.Calvin regarded the Gospels as a rigid, systematic legal code, while for Castellio Jesus, the most human of mankind, is a model of ethics, and every Christian believer should act according to his own method, and humbly elucidated it with the light of reason, it by no means implies that some new interpretation, proposed by someone, is the exclusive possession of the truth.Castellio could only note with indignation that the missionaries in Geneva translated the will of God with the haughty confidence that it was the only language they knew.Castellio was irritated by the assertion that those men were so opinionated, so arrogant, and continued to insist that their calling was sacrosanct, while all others were poor sinners.In a public meeting he commented on their opinion: "Sanctioned himself God's agent in all things, and never tired of doing it." Castellio stood up and asked the "messenger of God" to observe this The result of a review, do not interrogate, punish, murder those who disagree with them.Unfortunately, we can only guess at Castellio's words from a collection of commentaries edited by Calvin, who did not hesitate to alter the words if it would give him an advantage over his opponents. He did not even borrow to tamper with the Holy Book.But even from Calvin's biased description, we can still infer that Castellio publicly stated that everyone, including himself, is bound to err: "Paul was a servant of God." , and we serve only ourselves. Paul was patient, and we were terribly impatient. Others tortured Paul unfairly, while we persecuted the innocent." Calvin, who was present at the meeting, appears to have been taken aback by Castellio's ferocity.If he was a polemical man as excited and confident as Luther, he would respond quickly and violently; while a humanist as Erasmus was likely to engage in academic debates, of course not. would be too excited.But Calvin was a realist through and through: a man of strategy and practicality: a man who knew how to restrain himself.He could note how strongly Castellio's speech had impressed those present, and realized that it would have been inappropriate at the time to strike back.So he didn't refute, just closed his thin lips tighter. "I was calm," he said, while quipping at his surprising self-restraint. "I was just trying to avoid starting a heated discussion in front of a lot of outsiders." What did he say later in closer circles?Would he describe his differences with Castellio humbly, person to person, point of view?Would he send Castellio before the Inquisition, and challenge his adversary to a full indictment with documents bearing names and facts?Not at all.In political matters Calvin was never willing to go straight.For him, every attempt at hostile criticism represented something larger than a theological disagreement.This is a crime against the state and constitutes a crime.Crime must now be met with worldly force.Castellio was not brought before the Inquisition, but before the secular authorities.A moral dispute becomes a disciplinary procedure.In an indictment submitted to the Geneva City Council, Calvin wrote: "Castellio undermines the prestige of the priest." The City Council is reluctant to consider the issue.The missionaries were not quarrelsome, and we cannot but think that the secular authorities were disturbed by the usurpation of the Inquisition.Commissioners stalled on a resolution for some time, and the final verdict was ambiguous.Castellio was reprimanded but not punished or removed.But the campaign to nominate him as a Vancouver missionary has been put on hold until further notice. Such a lukewarm chastisement might have been thought enough to satisfy Castellio.But he had other ideas.This incident only reinforced his previous idea that there could be no free spirit in Geneva under the dictatorship of a tyrant like Calvin.He therefore petitioned the City Council to relieve him of his duties.He had learned enough from his first attempts at using power and studying his opponent's tactics.He knows that political parties treat truth with tyranny, and they want to make truth serve their policy.Castellio clearly foresaw that his frank and decisive refusal of high office would only lead his enemies to spread gossip that Castellio's loss of office was due to some misconduct.Therefore, before leaving Geneva, Castellio requested a written report on the events, which Calvin had no choice but to sign.The report is still in the National Document Archives of the Library of Basel.There we read that the refusal to appoint Castellio as a missionary was based on only two insignificant theological differences.The final part of the report reads as follows: "No one can speculate on the reasons for Sebastian Castellio's departure, we all announce that he has voluntarily resigned from the post of President of the Academy. Until the end, he was so successful He has fulfilled his duties so well that we consider him worthy of being one of our missionaries. Even if the final arrangement is not the case, it is not because we have found any wrongdoing by Castellio, but simply for the reasons stated above. " Calvin was victorious, of course--removing from Geneva the only person who could stand against him.But there is no doubt that this victory was obtained at a great price.Castellio was so popular that many regarded his departure as a great loss to the city.According to public opinion, "Calvin has done a great wrong to Monsieur Castellio."It was generally held throughout the humanitarian world that Calvin tolerated no one in Geneva except those who agreed to all his opinions.二百年以后，服尔泰把对卡斯特利奥的镇压作为证明加尔文内心思想态度的决定性的证据：“我们能够根据卡斯特利奥揭露加尔文迫害的实例中衡量这专制暴君的恶毒——虽然卡斯特利奥是远比加尔文伟大的学者。是加尔文的妒忌把他逐出了日内瓦。” 加尔文的本性对批评过份敏感。他很快就认识到民意是反对他的，普遍认为他应对卡斯特利奥的下台负责。他刚达到了他的目的，成功地把那唯一具独立思想的人直接逐出了日内瓦，就意识到自己得为卡斯特利奥目前的贫困和苦难负责，他因此感到不安。实际上，卡斯特利奥的离职决定是在走投无路的情况下作出的。作为加尔文（从政治上说起来，此人是瑞士最强有力的新教徒）的对手，卡斯特利奥不可能指望很快就接到改革教会的另行任命。他鲁莽的离职决定，使他处于赤贫状态。这一曾任日内瓦宗教改革学院院长的人被迫为乞讨口粮挨户奔走。加尔文是够聪明的，他意识到当一个被击败的对手明显地处于贫困状态时就会铤而走险。现在卡斯特利奥已不再在他旁边使他恼火了，因此，加尔文想为那被追猎的人留一条退路。在这个时候，他想必花了很多的时间，一封信接一封信地为自己开脱。他称为了替卡斯特利奥那个穷小子谋一个合适的职位，他找了许许多多的麻烦。（卡斯特利奥为什么穷苦，那还不是加尔文的过错？）“我希望能从什么地方借到一笔足够的贷款，我将尽一切力量助成此事。”但卡斯特利奥不象加尔文所希望的那样保持沉默。他告诉所有的人，由于加尔文的专横跋扈，他被迫离开了日内瓦。这就触到了加尔文的痛处。因为加尔文从来不公开承认他自己是一个独裁者，他总是形容他自己是一个谦卑恭顺地完成人们分派给他困难工作的人。 加尔文写信给他朋友们时的口气很快就变了，他不复同情卡斯特利奥了。“如果你知道这情况就好了，”他写信给人说：“这杂种狗（我指的是塞巴斯蒂安.卡斯特利奥）冲着我狂吠乱叫。他称他是被我的专制暴虐逐出公职的，他称我希望做一个至高无上的统治者。”在几个月之内，就是这样一个被加尔文形容为够得上担任上帝仆人神圣职务的人，成了一只“野兽”，一条“杂种狗”——这只不过因为卡斯特利奥宁愿受极端的贫穷，也不愿出卖自己，不愿因为赠予牧师的傣禄而缄口。 这一英勇地受穷、自愿受难的行为，在卡斯特利奥同时代的人中间引起了敬佩。蒙田说过，象卡斯特利奥这样做过那么多好事的人，会落在那万恶的时代里，实是可叹。那法国随笔作家接着说，有很多人如果及时知道卡斯特利奥匮乏的话，毫无问题，他们会乐于帮助他的。蒙田太自信了。没有人对卡斯特利奥最低限度的需求，帮过一点忙。年复一年，这一被逐出职位的人，得不到与他的卓越的学涧道德相配的位置。有很长一段时间，没有一所大学光顾过他，没有向他提供过一个传教士的职位。因为，在政治上瑞士各城市对加尔文的依赖已如此之大，以致于没有一个人敢冒风险而向日内瓦独裁者的对手假以援手。无论如何，这个被追猎的人仍可在巴塞尔的奥伯林印刷所当一个低级校对员以挣得菲薄的收入，可是这职业并不是正式的，不足以养活妻子和孩子们，也不足以养活他自己。为了扶养一群赡养者（数目是六或八人），卡斯特利奥加班当私人教师。多年的匮乏使他心力交瘁。他不得不忍受着这一切，直到最后，巴塞尔大学给予这一有百科全书之称的人一个希腊文读经人的位置。但这一读经的位置，荣誉性质大于挣钱，远远不能使卡斯特利奥从无休止的苦役中解放出来。年复一年，生命延续着，这伟大的学者（很多人视他为当时最伟大的学者）得做雇工的活，他在巴塞尔郊区用手铲土。因为他的日常工作，不足以糊口。卡斯特利奥终夜兀坐校样：为别人的文章润色，翻译多种外文资料。我们计算了一下，他为巴塞尔印书商从希腊文、希伯莱文、拉丁文、意大利文和德文翻译过数千页的资料，这一切仅仅是为了挣得每天的面包。 由于这些年的去职，他衰弱的、过分敏感的身体被搞坏了。但他独立的和不屈不挠的精神，从来没有被削弱过。因为在艰苦的劳动中，卡斯特利奥从来没有忘记他真正的任务。他不屈不挠地继续他终身的事业：把《圣经》翻译成拉丁文和法文。一有空暇，他就组织争辩，写评论文章，交换意见。他没有一天、没有一夜不坚持艰苦的工作。他从来不知道旅游的欢乐、消遣的欢欣，甚至不知道名誉、财富等世俗的报酬。他宁愿接受无休止贫困的苦味，宁愿丧失睡眠的机会，也不愿对他的良心不忠实。这样，他为我们提供了一个精神英雄的灿烂的典范。这个人，虽然没有被世界看到，虽然在黑暗中被遗忘，但仍然为了他视作神圣而又神圣的享业——言论的不可侵犯，意志的不可破坏而斗争。 卡斯特利奥和加尔文之间的决斗还没有开始。但两个人、两种思想已互相对峙着。每一方都认为对方是不妥协的敌手。他们不能在同一城市、同一精神领域共同生活一天。虽然实际上他们是分开的，一在巴塞尔，一在日内瓦，但他们彼此密切地注意着：卡斯特利奥没有忘记加尔文，加尔文也没有忘记卡斯特利奥。他们彼此缄口不言，但那只是暂时的等待，等待说出那决定性的话。这样的对立，要比仅仅意见不同更进一步。那是一种哲学同另一种哲学的根本结仇，永远不能达成协议；在独裁统治的阴影之下，是永远不可能有自由自在的精神自主的，而对一个独裁统治来说，只要在它势力范围内有一种独立思想，它就永远不能无忧无虑和充满自信。当然从潜在的紧张到激化，还需要一些特殊的原因。直到加尔文燃起火把，烧死了塞维特斯。卡斯特利奥现在是骨鲠在喉一吐为快了。只有当加尔文向每一个精神是自由的人宣战时，卡斯特利奥才以良心自由的名义，宣布对加尔文作生死的搏斗。