Page 8 - 12 The French Reformation

26:5. A devoted Romanist, he burned with

zeal to destroy all who should dare to oppose

the church. “I would gnash my teeth like a

furious wolf,” he afterward said, referring to

this period of his life, “when I heard anyone

speaking against the pope.”—Wylie, b. 13, ch.

2. He had been untiring in his adoration of

the saints, in company with Lefevre making

the round of the churches of Paris,

worshipping at the altars, and adorning with

gifts the holy shrines. But these observances

could not bring peace of soul. Conviction of

sin fastened upon him, which all the acts of

penance that he practiced failed to banish. As

to a voice from heaven he listened to the

Reformer's words: “Salvation is of grace.”

“The Innocent One is condemned, and the

criminal is acquitted.” “It is the cross of Christ

alone that openeth the gates of heaven, and

shutteth the gates of hell.”—Ibid., b. 13, ch. 2.