Persecution and Martyrdom of John Huss

Persecution and Martyrdom of John Huss: Persecution and martyrdom have characterised the true Church of Christ since its inception on the Day of Pentecost in Jerusalem. Many believers have paid for their faith with their lives. God testifies to their faithfulness of genuine believers in Revelation 12:11, “They have conquered him (satan) by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony; for they loved not their lives unto death.” In this edition, we present one of the martyrs of the 15^th century, John Huss.

Huss was born at Hussenitz, Bohemia, in Czech Republic in 1372. He studied theology at the University of Prague, and was ordained a priest before his appointment as preacher at the Bethlehem chapel in Prague in 1402. In 1409, he was made Rector of the University. He was greatly influenced by the writings of John Wycliffe, a Christian reformer, the first man to translate the whole Bible into English, for which he was persecuted by the Roman Catholic Church.

In particular, Huss aligned with Wycliffe’s argument that no Scripture endorsed claims by Catholics that the pope had supreme authority over the church of Jesus Christ.  Wycliffe insisted that Scriptures were the foremost authority in all church matters.

Furthermore, Wycliffe condemned pervasive corruption in the Catholic Church, as well as rejected its doctrine of transubstantiation, which in essence says that the communion bread and wine become the actual body and blood of the Lord Jesus Christ when the priests prayed over them. At that time, many Christians had no way of discerning such errors since they had no access to the Bible. Only the priests had authority to read and interpret Scriptures as they deemed fit.

Huss not only believed the doctrines of Wycliffe but also began to teach them from his church pulpit and at the University. By so doing, there was no way he could long escape the attention of the pope and his supporters, against whom Huss protested loudly and strongly. In response, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Prague, finding the reformists, as they were called daily increasing, issued a decree to suppress the further spreading of Wycliffe’s writings.

However, this had an opposite effect, as it simulated more interest in the writings, prompting the reformers to spread the message as far as they could. Huss also opposed the Archbishop’s decree personally by speaking against it from the pulpit. In anger, the Archbishop sought and received the pope’s authority to stop anyone from publishing Wycliffe’s doctrines in his province.

On receiving the papal Bull, the Archbishop immediately condemned Wycliffe’s writings and ordered those who had them in their possession to turn them over to him. When four Doctors of Divinity in the province did not, he issued a decree forbidding them from preaching to their congregation. On their part, Huss and four members of the university community protested against the decree and appealed the sentence to the Archbishop. When the pope heard of the development, he commissioned a Cardinal Colonna to summon Huss to Rome to defend himself against accusation that he was preaching heresies.

 Upon Huss’ request, King Winceslaus of Bohemia, his wife and certain of his nobles, as well as some prominent members of the university community, requested that the pope should dispense with Huss’ personal appearance in Rome, and that the pope should not permit anyone in Bohemia to be accused of heresy. In addition, they insisted that all priests in the province should be allowed to freely preach the gospel in their churches.

Three of the nobles subsequently appeared before Cardinal Colonna to explain why Huss should not be summoned to Rome, adding that they were willing to answer any question on his behalf. The Cardinal rejected their representation on grounds that Huss was stubbornly disobedient. He then announced his excommunication, thereby depriving him of further rights to preach in his church. After the nobles appealed to the pope on Huss’ behalf, the latter commissioned four cardinals to review the process. The cardinals not only confirmed the sentence, but also enlarged the excommunication to include Huss’ friends and followers.

 Huss appealed the sentence but it was no use. Since he could no longer preach in the Bethlehem chapel in the Prague, he retired to his home town of Hussenitz, where he continued to teach his new doctrine from the pulpit and in his writings. During this time, he wrote numerous letters and a long discourse in which he insisted that no one had the authority to forbid people from reading books by reformers like Wycliffe. Huss also wrote books against the corrupt vices of the Roman Catholic pope, cardinals, and clergy. His arguments were biblically sound and forceful, thus convincing many people that he was right.

The papal crowd then constituted a Council at Constance, Germany, to address issues raised by the reformers. Huss was invited to appear before the body, and was guaranteed safe conduct by Emperor Sigismund of Constance. Nevertheless, charges of heresy were drawn up against him and presented to the pope. Soon after Huss arrived at Constance, on January 1415, he was arrested and confined to a room at the Emperor’s palace. When some of his friends pointed out to the council that this was a violation of the law and of the Emperor’s vow of safe conduct, the pope replied that he himself had never granted Huss any safe conduct, and that he was not bound by anything the Emperor had said. When an appeal was made to Emperor Sigismund based on his vow of safe conduct, he refused to intervene and protect Huss.

Since there were no papal inquisitors to try Huss, the council itself assumed that role. In its foolishness, it first condemned John Wycliffe, who had died in 1384, and ordered that his corpse should be exhumed and burned to ashes; and the ashes thrown into the Rhine River. When Huss appeared before the body on July 6, 1415, members read forty articles against him, most of them taken from his writings.

However, some of these were perverted to prove their accusations. To the accusations, Huss replied, “I appealed to the pope, who died before my appeal was determined, so I then appealed to his successor, John XXIII. But since I was not allowed to defend my cause for over two years, I appealed to the high judge Jesus Christ.” When Huss finished speaking, his inquisitors demanded to know whether he had received absolution from the pope or not and he answered no.

 The council then asked if it was lawful for him to appeal to Christ or not. To which he answered, “Truthfully I say before you all that there is no more just and effective appeal than an appeal that is made to Christ. For the law says that to appeal is to ask a higher judge to right the wrong done to you by a lesser judge.

I ask you, who is a higher judge than Christ? Who can judge the matter more justly, or be more impartial and fair? There is no deceit in Christ, and He cannot be deceived, so who can help the miserable and oppressed better than He can? While Huss was speaking, he was laughed at and mocked by all the council members, who then became enraged at his words and condemned him to be burned.

          Thereafter, seven bishops came forward and commanded Huss to put on the garments of a priest, which he did. They then began to degrade and mock him as they removed the priest’s garments from him one at a time. At one point they debated how they should remove the shaven crown of his head. Huss commented, “I am amazed that since you are all of one cruel mind, you cannot agree on the manner of performing this cruelty.”

The bishops decided that they should cut off the crown of his head with a pair of shears, which they proceeded to do. Then on his bloodied head they put a paper bishop’s hat that had demons painted on it and the words, “A ringleader of heretics.” When Huss saw it, he said, “For my sake, my Lord Jesus Christ wore a crown of thorns, so for His sake why should I not wear this light crown, even though it is a shameful thing.”

 When the bishops put the paper miter on Huss’ head, they said, “Now we commit your soul to hell.” In response, Huss lifted his eyes toward heaven and said, “But I commend into Your hands, O Lord Jesus Christ, my spirit that you have redeemed.”

 Huss was then led past a fire where they were burning his books and was bound to a stake with a chain. As the executioner wrapped the chain around him, Huss smiled and said, “My Lord Jesus Christ was bound with a harder chain than this one for my sake, so why should I be ashamed of this rusty chain.”

 As the bundles of sticks were piled up to his neck, the Duke of Bavaria tried to get him to recant his teachings. Huss replied, “No, I never preached any doctrine that was evil, and what I taught with my lips I will now seal with my blood.” When the faggots were lit and the flames engulfed him, Huss sang a hymn so loud and cheerful that he could be heard above the crackling of the burning sticks and the noise of the crowd watching him burn. Soon, his voice stopped as the flames reached his throat and face, and he slumped forward against the chains.

With continued foolishness, as with Wycliffe, the bishops carefully gathered Huss’ ashes and cast them into the Rhine River so that his remains would no longer be on the earth. They could not, however, by torment, fire, or water, erase his memory or teachings from the minds of his supporters. Through them, his teachings would continue to be honoured and spread far and near. In death, Huss was more of a threat to the papacy than in life.

            Out of his death, was born the Hussites, Czech religious reformers that followed his teachings. They formed the nucleus of the national movement in Bohemia and Moravia after his death. Huss’s condemnation for heresy and his execution, despite the guarantee of safe conduct given by Emperor Sigismund, were regarded by the Czech people as a national affront. This led to the Hussites Wars, also known as the Bohemian Wars or Hussites Revolution. These were a series of civil wars fought between supporters of Huss and the combined Catholic forces of Emperor Sigismund, the papacy, and European monarchs loyal to the Catholic Church. The wars lasted from 1419 to 1434.

          I am lost for words at the depravity and bestiality exhibited by the Catholic Bishops in the trial of Huss. By abrogating itself supremacy over Holy Scriptures, the Catholic institution is destined for the worst kind of judgement that would be executed by the Lord Jesus Christ. Revelation 17:5-6 assure us that the judgement against the harlot that is filled with the  blood of the saints of God will be swift and devastating.

 ***** Materials culled from The New Foxes Book of Martyrs by John Foxe, Bridge Logos Publishers, New Kensington, Pennsylvania, United States of America.