Baron von Reck, who had accompanied them as Commissary of the Trustees,
stayed with them until they had made a good beginning, and then returned
to Europe, leaving Ebenezer about the middle of May.
Unitas Fratrum.
But while the Salzburgers received so much sympathy and kindness in Germany
on account of their distress, other exiled Protestants, whose story was
no less touching, were being treated with scant courtesy and consideration.
On the 6th of July, 1415, the Bohemian Reformer, John Hus, was burned
at the stake. But those who had silenced him could not unsay his message,
and at last there drew together a little body of earnest men,
who agreed to accept the Bible as their only standard of faith and practice,
and established a strict discipline which should keep their lives
in the simplicity, purity, and brotherly love of the early Apostolic Church.
This was in 1457, and the movement quickly interested the thoughtful people
in all classes of society, many of whom joined their ranks. The formal
organization of the Unitas Fratrum (the Unity of Brethren) followed,
and its preaching, theological publications, and educational work
soon raised it to great influence in Bohemia, Moravia, and Poland,
friendly intercourse being established with Luther, Calvin,
and other Reformers as they became prominent.
Pages:
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35