Archeteles : Reply to Bishop’s Admonition 245 ing, the “dignity” or glory of Him to whom alone glory belongs and in whom alone it is lawful to glory, they would claim for themselves that which belongs to God alone. And what greater insult to God can be done ? Now ’ * glorias in the plural number it is not unusual for Peter to use for the dignity or glory of God. For in I. Pet. i., 11, we read “when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory [gloria] that should follow.” For how could it be that Peter, forgetting himself, should now mean by “dignities” those arrogant elders whom he had chided in the earlier epistle? But the words following show the same thing, nay, the whole body of this chapter shows it, as I have said. For Peter is aiming at nothing else than preventing men from arrogating the divine to themselves and selling human wares for divine. How much that helps your side, ye may look to, yourselves.
XXX. It is of little consequence if those who are devoted to the Gospel suffer some hunger for it, so be it that they desire to be filled. For that woman of Samaria who had spoken with Christ at the well did some good unto her fellow-townspeople when, suddenly brought to admiring wonder at him [John iv., 7], she desired that her people also should have a share in the thing, and summoned them from the town for the purpose, that they might themselves hear Christ, who were yet men and eminent for knowledge while she was simple and hungry for the Word. But having received the food of the Word, she was perhaps herself superior, yet she grudged it not to others. How much of the Gospel food ye have in your store-houses is not clear, yet ye wish to seem so full that ye can belch it forth upon others. Indeed, as far as I can see, you have not up to now allowed unto others any knowledge of the Gospel teaching. But you seem to speak of everything rather vaguely, and if you deny this (as you will be right in doing) you cannot then deny that it is I alone you are aiming at.
XXXI. The traditions of the men of old deserve to be regarded with the more reverence, the more they are in
246 The Works of Huldreich Zwingli conformity with the Gospel. But what do you call the traditions of the ancients? Those which the greed of certain individuals has recently devised? You will say, “No.” Why do you not then present distinctly by name the traditions that you are trying so hard to have kept? Thus I, who am so in need of the heavenly food, and those like me, can see plainly which are to be retained and which let go. Please mention them all, whether of early or recent date, that the sore spot may be laid bare to the physician. For here seems to be the point in our ailment where it stings and is especially inflamed.
XXXII. Amen, if only you mean the Church of Christ and the bishops who are really bishops and not [John x., 8] thieves and robbers, but installed according to the rule of Paul to Timothy and Titus.
XXXIII. Here, unless it were now pretty well agreed by all that this whole thing was made at your instigation, you would expose our most kindly bishop to being laughed at in that you represent him as speaking with full confidence because prepared to render an account of his flock, though that I suspect is the lot of none besides him who said, “Father, of those that thou gavest me I have not lost one” [cf. John xvii., 12]. Yet I could wish that, since you have taken so much time to get it up, you had done the whole thing a little more carefully, and did n’t turn about so absurdly now to threats and now to entreaties, now weaving a veil of human tradition over the Gospel, now letting the Gospel go altogether and advocating only human, tradition. You may be laughed at by the crowd as a certain bishop is laughed at all about to-day who eniaKonei [watches] over a flock within the diocese of our most Reverend Lord of Constance. For in his continued but vain struggles against a certain learned and truly pious preacher, he finally went so far in madness as to venture to say before the general crowd, even pouring out crocodile tears the while: “The difference between a real bishop to whom the sheep have been entrusted and him to whom the sheep have not been
Archeteles : Reply to Bishop’s Admonition 247 entrusted is that this fellow can even lead the sheep astray as he will and is not forced to give an account of his leading them astray, because he is not their shepherd, while on the contrary I, who am the lawfully appointed bishop, am compelled to give such an account of your sins, O my sheep, that though ye sin, not ye have to give an account yourselves, but I.” And this view he supported by the words of Ezekiel [iii., 18], though he looked at them somewhat awry, for he left out this part — “The same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.” And when the crowd heard this mistake, they began to laugh and to say, “Bravo, good shepherd, who hast made us safe today!” But these things and things like them are not stumbling blocks of offence and error, and do not savour of heresy and impiety, oh no! Why? Because the servant who smote Christ in the face before Annas did no wrong [John xviii., 22], for he could not sin, being on the side of the high priest.