Baptist History, Heritage and Distinctives – Burnt at the Stake for Defying Roman Catholic Superstition – Peter de Bruys – Part Two of two
Roger Fulk posted Burnt at the Stake – Peter de Bruys – Part Two of two.
THOMAS E KRESAL ADMIN · AUGUST 17, 2020
Baptist History, Heritage and Distinctives – Burnt at the Stake for Defying Roman Catholic Superstition – Peter de Bruys – Part Two of two
His sentiments are not fully known, but historians agree that he taught that the “ordinance of baptism was to be administered to adults only; that it was a piece of idle superstition to build and dedicate churches to the service of God, who, in worship, has a peculiar respect to the state of the heart, and who cannot be worshiped in temples made with hands; that the crucifixes are objects of superstition, and ought to be destroyed; that, in the Lord’s supper, the real body and blood of Christ were not partaken of by the communicants, but only represented in the way of symbol or figure; and, lastly, that the oblations, prayers, and good works of the living, can in no way be beneficial to the dead.” – Orchard’s History, pp. 181, 182.At this time the Catholics were expending much labor and money in erecting fine church temples and gorgeously decorating them, supposing such sacrifices of time and means would be rewarded by the gift of paradise. Peter zealously protested against this extravagant folly, contending that God was to be worshiped from a pure heart, and not by mere outward display. The worship of crosses or crucifixes was denounced by him in the most emphatic terms. He taught that they were objects of superstition. So great was the war thus waged, that, at one time, he made a great bonfire of all the crosses he could collect and he cooked meat on “Good Friday,” distributing it to the congregation, in defiance of the Catholic custom to eat no meat on that day. This intrepid reformer finally sealed his testimony with his blood. He was burned to death at St. Giles in France, about the year 1130, “by an enraged populace, instigated by the clergy of the Catholic church.”After a most indefatigable ministry of twenty years, he was burnt at St. Files, a city of Languedoc, in France, in the year 1130 AD. (History of Christian Church by William Jones, pg. 277)Presented by Thomas E. Kresal from: Elder John R. Daily, Primitive Monitor, 1897, pp. 422-425.
Recent Comments