Page 35 - 05 John Wycliffe

In closing he said: “Let us pray unto our God,

that He will so stir up our Pope Urban VI, as

he began, that he with his clergy may follow

the Lord Jesus Christ in life and manners; and

that they may teach the people effectually,

and that they, likewise, may faithfully follow

them in the same.”—John Foxe, Acts and

Monuments, vol. 3, pp. 49, 50.

Thus Wycliffe presented to the pope and his

cardinals the meekness and humility of

Christ, exhibiting not only to themselves but

to all Christendom the contrast between

them and the Master whose representatives

they professed to be.

Wycliffe fully expected that his life would be

the price of his fidelity. The king, the pope,

and the bishops were united to accomplish

his ruin, and it seemed certain that a few

months at most would bring him to the stake.