History of Bible-Believing Christianity VI

Bible Study at Gospel Light Christian Church, Singapore
by Pastor Dr Paul Choo
Mid-Week Teaching Service

John Huss of Bohemia

Introduction: Wycliffe's influence remained in England as Lollardism, and spread to Bohemia (modern-day, Czech Republic) half a century later as Hussitism. In England, Wycliffe's influence produced a nation of martyrs, but in Bohemia it produced a nation of heroes. The stakes on which the martyrs died in England were much more effective spiritual weapons than the swords of the Hussites. The stakes produced disciples but the swords merely extinguished its enemies. Though the blood of the English martyrs took over a hundred years before it bore fruit - the fruit were more abundant and lasted much longer.

The Bohemians: The Bohemians were Eastern Orthodox Christians but were under the rule of Rome. However, in the 12th Century, persecuted Waldensians and Albigensians fled into Bohemia and made their headquarters in Prague. Since they were zealous evangelists and far away from Rome, the Gospel spread with little hindrance.

John Huss: In the 14th Century, Rome began persecution and men were burned at the stake. It was at this time that John Huss began to read the writings of John Wycliffe. He became a preacher and later the rector (chancellor) at the University of Prague. Though he taught that the authority of God's Word superceded that of the Pope, he did not leave the Roman Church immediately.
Rome heard of his teachings at the University of Prague and banned the reading of Wycliffe's books. Two hundred beautiful hand-written volumes of Wycliffe's books were confiscated and burned. Huss was summoned to appear at Rome but was protected by his king. He was condemned in his absence. To spare Prague from being destroyed by the Roman forces, he left for his birthplace and preached in its surroundings. As a result of his preaching, the people began to stand up against papal abuses.

At this time, God provided a helper, Jerome of Prague, as his co-laborer. Huss was the theologian and Jerome the preacher. Huss wrote "The Six Errors" (against the Mass, the confessional, etc.) and posted it on the door of his church. He was summoned to Rome with a promise of safe conduct but was arrested on arrival and confined in a filthy dungeon (where he nearly died of fever). During his trial, a total eclipse of the sun occurred. He refused to recant on his two life-principles: the authority of the Bible and the limitation of papal power. When told to recant, he replied: "With what face then should I behold the heavens? How shall I look on the multitudes of men to whom I have preached the pure Gospel? No, I esteem their salvation more than this poor body."

Seven bishops then stripped him of his robes one at a time, each pronouncing a curse as he did so. At the site of the stake, he knelt and recited the penitential psalms and prayed fervently. The firewood was piled until his chin, and as he burned he sang: "Jesus, thou Son of David have mercy on me," until he expired. His ashes were thrown in the River Rhine. Someone remarked that he had prepared for the stake as one would for a marriage-feast.

Huss said at the stake: "It is thus that you silence the goose, but a hundred years hence there will arise a swan whose singing you shall not be able to silence." His name "Huss" meant "goose." Indeed Huss' prophecy came to pass a hundred years later when Martin Luther arose to bring in the German Reformation.

Jerome at his trial at first condemned Huss under duress but later retracted his condemnation and was burned at the stake. He sang all the way to the stake, and when the wood was piled around him he sang; "Hail, happy day." While has was being burned, his lips were seen to move as he prayed until he expired.

The deaths of Huss and Jerome outraged the Bohemians, and the seeds of the Gospel that they had sown began to bear fruit. Within four years of Huss' death, the majority of Bohemians were Hussites (including many nobles).

Huss' followers compromise: After Huss' death, the Hussites split into two parties - the Taborites who separated completely from the Roman Church, and the Calixtines who chose not to separate from the Roman Church. The differences between them widened with time until they eventually became enemies. (The spirit of compromise always leads one further and further away from the truth, back to error.)

Romanist forces (from numerous European countries) attacked Bohemia committing unimaginable atrocities. The war lasted eighteen years as the outgunned and outnumbered Bohemians valiantly fought off the Romanist forces. Many of their battles are ranked among history's most brilliant and heroic battles. However, as their spiritual and moral lives deteriorated through the war years, so did their physical strength. (We can only be as strong as our spiritual state.)

Finally, Rome offered her terms of peace - conceding them the right of free preaching and the right of the laity to the communion-cup of the Mass, but retaining the sole right to interpret the true sense of this agreement. Needless to say, the right of interpretation is more important than the words of the agreement. The Calixtines accepted the Roman conditions but the Taborites rejected them. Soon Bohemians were fighting Bohemians.

The Taborites were severely persecuted by the Romans and the Calixtines - and fled to the forests where they continued their worship. When the Reformation came one hundred years later, there were two hundred godly United Brethren Churches in Bohemia and Moravia.

Conclusion: Though Huss matched Wycliffe for zeal, he lacked Wycliffe's understanding of Scriptures. Huss (and Jerome, and even Luther) were unable to completely renounce the doctrine of transubstantiation. Had the Bohemian Reformation succeeded, it is doubtful if they would have regenerated Christianity because their struggle was more against Rome's oppression and corruption than against her doctrines. As such, they would probably have merely reformed Romanism. This is probably the reason why God did not permit the Bohemian Reformation to succeed. Instead God used it to prepare the way for Protestant Reformation of Luther.
When the Gospel was widely preached in Bohemia, she prospered and developed - so much so that even the common man and woman could read and write tracts! But after its return to Rome, Bohemia became just another backward Romanist province - until the present!