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PRINCETON,  N.  J. 


BX  4827  .V5  L36  1890 
Lane,  Laura  M. 
The  life  and  writings  of 
Alexander  Vinet 


J 


THE    LIFE    AND    WRITINGS 


OF 


ALEXANDER    VINET. 


TO    MY    LOVED    AND   HONOURED    FRIEND 

PROFESSOR  J.    F.    ASTIE, 

AUTHOR    OF 

"l'esprit  DE  VINET," 
"LE    VI.NET    DE    LA    LEOENDE    ET    CELUI    DE    L'HISTOIRE, 

3  2>eJ>icate 

THIS    LIKE    OF   THE   TEACHER 
WHOM    HE    HAS    HELPED    ME   TO    UNDERSTAND. 


THE   LIFE   AND   WRITINGS 


<1V 


ALEXANDER     VINET. 


BY 

LAURA    M.    LANE. 


"  The  decisive  events  of  the  world  take  place  in  the  intellect." 

"  All  great  men  are  providential." 

I.o  voir,  c'dtait  dcja  une  lumicre  et  un  appel.     L'avoir  connu  est 
uue  Wnddiction  dout  on  doit  reconnaissance  a  Dieu."—  E.  Bcbbrbr. 


ffiHttf)  an  Entrolniction 


BY 


The  Venerable  F.  W.  FARRAR,  D.D., 

ARCHDEACON    OF    WESTMINSTER. 


EDINBU RGH : 

T.    Si    T.    CLARK,    38    GEORGE    STREET. 

1890. 


PRINTED   BY   MORRISON    AND   GIBB, 
FOR 

T     &    T.    CLARK,    EDINBURGH. 

LONDON, HAMILTON,   ADAMS,  AND  CO. 

DUBLIN, GEORGE  HERBERT. 

NEW  YORK, SCRIBNER  AND  WELFORD. 


INTRODUCTION. 


I  have  been  asked  to  preface  the  following  pages  by  a 
few  words  of  introduction.  They  need  no  introduction 
from  me  ;  but  I  may  say  without  hesitation  that  readers 
will  here  find  a  deeply  interesting  account  of  a  sincere 
and  brilliant  thinker,  who  played  a  difficult  part  in  a 
time  of  struggle,  of  which  the  issues  still  remain  un- 
decided. Alexander  Vinet  has  many  claims  on  our 
admiration.  He  was  a  critic,  a  man  of  letters,  a  graceful 
and  eloquent  writer,  a  profound  theologian.  In  his  life- 
time the  charm  of  his  manner  and  the  force  of  his  genius 
won  him  the  friendship  of  all  among  whom  his  lot  was 
cast,  and  the  power  of  his  intellect  made  itself  felt  in 
circles  widely  separate  from  his  own.  A  man  who  has 
received  the  homage  of  writers  so  different  from  each 
other  in  all  their  sympathies  as  De  Wette,  Victor  Hugo, 
Chateaubriand,  and  Amiel,  could  have  been  no  common 
man.  But  Vinet  was  also  "  a  living  example  of  spiritual 
Christianity,"  and  it  was  this  which  gained  him  the 
special  honour  of  one  of  the  finest  critics  of  this  age,  who 
has  given  him  a  place  among  his  Portraits  Contemporains. 
"  To  be  of  the  school  of  Christ ;  "  says  Sainte-Beuve,  "  I 
learnt  to  know,  from  the  neighbourhood  of  Mons.  Vinet, 
what  is  meant  by  those  words,  and  the  noble  meaning 


vi  INTRODUCTION. 

which  they  convey."  Vinet  was  also  the  beloved  friend 
of  one  of  the  most  attractive  and  large-hearted  thinkers 
of  the  last  generation— Thomas  Erskine  of  Linlathen  ; 
and  he  sympathized  to  a  great  extent  in  that  "  larger 
hope  "  which  it  was  the  holy  passion  of  Erskine's  life  to 
promulgate  and  to  defend. 

The  reader  will  be  presented  with  a  succinct  but 
faithful  view,  derived  chiefly  from  his  own  letters  and 
writings,  of  Vinet's  share  in  the  great  movements  of  his 
day  in  the  direction  of  liberating  the  free  conscience  of 
mankind  from  the  bondage  of  political  tyranny.  He  will 
also  watch  the  struggles  of  a  courageous  intellect  and  the 
misgivings  of  a  tender  conscience,  in  the  course  of  its 
Divine  awakenment  from  a  religion  of  forms  and  shibbo- 
leths to  that  vital  Christianity  which  is  always  presented 
in  the  New  Testament  as  deriving  its  source  from  oneness 
with  Christ,  and  evincing  its  reality  by  love  and  good 
works. 

The  publication  of  this  book  will  be  a  pure  gain  if  it 
calls  the  attention  of  fresh  students  to  the  writings  of  a 
theologian  so  independent  as  Vinet  was,  yet  so  supreme 
in  his  allegiance  to  the  majesty  of  truth.  Amid  the 
agitations  of  his  career,  he  abandoned  many  traditional 
tenets  which  failed  to  stand  the  test  of  deepening  experi- 
ence and  widening  knowledge,  but  lie  held  fast  to  those 
catholic  verities  which  are  among  the  things  which  cannot 
be  shaken,  and  shall  remain.  Those  ultimate  truths  of 
Christianity  have  found  few  defenders  in  modern  days 
more  eloquent  and  more  profound. 

F.  W.  FARRAE. 


PREFATORY  NOTE. 


I  offer  the  Life  and  Writings  of  Alexander  Vinet  to 
the  English-reading  public,  in  the  belief  that  many  will 
be  glad  to  make  closer  acquaintance  with  the  Swiss 
Professor  to  whom  some  of  Thomas  Erskine's  ]  most  inte- 
resting letters  were  addressed. 

"  I  made  a  new  acquaintance  at  Lausanne,"  wrote 
Erskine,  September  14,  1838,  "with  M.  Vinet,  the  most 
remarkable  man  in  the  French  Protestant  Church.  .  .  . 
He  has  that  basis  of  thought  in  him  on  which  thoughts 
from  all  quarters  can  find  a  footing  or  a  rooting.  .  .  . 
There  are  few  men  like  him  in  the  world.  Such  a  com- 
bination of  mental  power  and  Christian  character  is  the 
rarest  of  all  tilings." 

Nor  was  Mr.  Erskine  the  only  inhabitant  of  Great 
Britain  who  appreciated  Vinet's  intellectual  and  moral 
gifts.  In  the  Reminiscences  of  A.  P.  Stanley,  Dean  of 
Westminster,  we  read, — 

"  Vinet  was  constantly  going  forward :  he  had  a  fine 
power  of  writing.  Yet  he  says  himself  he  could  count 
those  who  fully  sympathized  with  him  upon  '  the  ten 
fingers  of  his  two  hands.'  " 

1  T.  Erskine  of  Linlathen. 


V1U  PREFATORY  NOTE. 

In  the  Life  and  Letters  of  Frederic  Denison  Maurice 
we  find  the  following  allusion  to  Vinet : — 

"  In  Bunsen's  account,  the  political  condition  of  Switzer- 
land is  sufficiently  sad.  In  Lausanne,  Vinet  and  the  most 
intelligent  of  the  Swiss  are  taking  up  a  kind  of  non- 
juring  doctrine,  which  they  are  maintaining  with  great 
ability.  .  .  .  There  is  a  book  which  I  doubt  not  you  know 
well,  Sur  la  manifestation  des  convictions  rcligieuscs,  by 
Alexander  Vinet.  I  differ  from  its  anti-State  doctrines  as 
much  as  any  one  can  differ.  Nevertheless  there  is  more 
in  that  book  than  its  great  eloquence  and  earnestness, 
which  moved  me  when  I  read  it,  and  which  moves  me 
now." ' 

Lord  Acton,  in  his  article  on  George  Eliot,"  deplores 
the  loss  that  gifted  writer  sustained  by  persistently 
ignoring  the  phases  of  religious  thought  which  gather 
round  the  names  of  Eothe  and  Vinet.3 

"The  literature  of  ethics  and  psychology,  so  far  as  it 
touched  religion,  dropped  out  of  her  sight,  and  she 
renounced  intercourse  with  half  the  talent  in  the  world. 
The  most  eminent  of  the  men  who  pursued  like  problems 
in  her  lifetime,  among  the  most  eminent  who  have  thought 
about  them  at  any  time,  were  Vinet  and  Rothe.  Both  were 
admirable  in  their  lives,  and  still  more  in  the  presence  of 
death  ;  and  neither  of  them  could  be  taxed  with  thraldom 
to  the  formulas  of  preceding  divines.  .  .  .  Yet,  although 
she  knew  and  highly  valued  M.  Scherer,  she  did  not 
remember  that  he  was  the  friend  of  Vinet,  and  that  the 

1  To  Dean  Stanley. 

-  Nineteenth  Century,  vol.  xvii.  p.  179,  March  1885. 
3  This  testimony  is  particularly  valuable  from  a  member  of  the  Roman 
Catholic  communion. 


PREFATORY  NOTE.  IX 


history  of  his  opinions  is  as  remarkable  as  anything  to  be 
found  in  the  Ajwlogia  or  in  her  own  biography." 

To  how  many  others  might  not  the  same  reproach  be 
addressed.  Outside  the  little  world  of  those  who  watch 
with  keen  interest  the  struggle  between  the  old  and  the 
new  theology,  the  name  of  Vinet  is  unknown. 

Yet  there  has  always  existed  in  the  French-speaking 
Churches  an  ditc  who  feel  for  Vinet  much  of  the 
enthusiasm  that  the  Germans  display  with  regard  to 
Schleiermacher.  All  theological  parties  claim  him  for 
their  own.  For  the  one  he  is  too  liberal,  for  the  other 
lie  is  too  orthodox  ;  but  neither  will  relegate  him  to 
the  opposite  camp.  Even  those  who  sympathize  the 
least  with  his  views  cannot  refrain  from  rendering 
homage  to  the  beauty  and  depth  of  his  writings.  All 
share  the  opinion  of  Pierson  l  the  Dutch  critic : — 

"Where  Vinet  is  concerned,  everything  that  resembles 
superficiality  is  almost  sacrilege." 

"Vinet's  coup  d'oeil"  writes  Edmond  de  Pressense,  "has 
not  the  power  of  Pascal ;  but  his  horizon  is  vaster,  and  his 
mind  is  freer." 

But  it  is  not  exclusively  as  a  theologian  that  I  wish  to 
introduce  Vinet  to  English  readers.  He  was  a  many- 
sided  man,  a  thinker,  a  moralist,  a  critic — T  might  almost 
say  a  statesman.  Men  so  widely  divergent  as  Sainte- 
Beuve,  Emile  Souvestre,  Victor  Hugo,  Michelet,  St.  Rene* 
Taillandier,    Lamartine,   Kavaisson,2    Henri    Amiel,    and 

1  Professor  of  Literature,  University  of  Amsterdam. 
'-'  Author  of  the  Essay  on  (he  MetajHtysies  of  Aristotle. 


X  PREFATORY  NOTE. 

Edmond  Scherer  unite  in  paying  homage  to  Vinet's 
"inexhaustible  abundance  of  ideas,  originality  of  ex- 
pression, literary  taste,  Christian  feeling,  and  universal 
sympathy." 

The  following  pages  will  trace  the  history  of  Vinet's 
magnificent  struggle  on  behalf  of  religious  liberty  both 
within  and  without  the  Church  :  on  the  one  hand,  by 
freeing  it  from  the  tyranny  of  a  despotic  and  brutal 
majority  ;  and,  on  the  other,  by  presenting  a  conception 
of  Christianity  which  was  destined  to  effect  an  intel- 
lectual revolution  whose  influence  is  still  spreading  in 
ever-widening  circles  throughout  the  world  of  thought. 


CONTENTS. 


PACK 

Introduction,    .......  1 

TART  FIRST. 

CHAP. 

I.   Childhood  and  Youth — Betrothal,  .  .  .15 

II.  Basle — Ordination — Marriage,      .  .  .  .23 

III.  The    Methodists  —  Marc    Vinet's     Letter    on    Church 

Authority — Independent  Views.  .  .  .30 

IV.  Married    Life  —  Literary   Work — Answer   to   the    Con- 

venticles of  Rolle— Death  of  Father,     ...         35 
V.   Influence  of  Revival— De  Wette— Morality  and  Dogma 

— Illness — Personal  Religion,    .  .  .  .43 

FART  SECOND. 

VI.    Law  of  20th  May — Vinet  on  Liberty  of  Conscience  and 

Worship — Sincerity,     .....         52 
VII.   Vinet's  Letters — Change  of  Opinion  —  De  Wette  —  In- 
fluence of  Stapfer,  .  .  ...         60 
VIII.    Extracts  from  Journal  and  Letters — Cette— Observation 

and  Description— Baths  of  Loueche,     .  .  .66 

IX.    "  Letter  to  a  Friend  " — Political  and  Social  Questions — 

Religious  Problems— Death  of  Mother,  .  .         72 

X.  Trial  of  M.  Monnard  and  of  Vinet— "  Observations  "— 

"  Essay  on  Liberty  of  Conscience" — Observations,      .         SI 
XI.   Publication  of  "  Chrestomathie  " — Literary  Criticism — 

Revolution  of  July  1830— Letters  on  Political  Subjects,         90 
XII.    "Some  Ideas  on  Religious  Liberty" — Opinion  on  Dis- 
senters —  Respect  for  Antiquity  —  State  of  Europe — 
Religion  and  Politics,    .....       100 


Xll 


CONTEXTS. 


XIII.  Calls  to  Montauban — Paris — Geneva — Articles  in  "  Le 

Semeur,"  .  .  .  .  .  .109 

XIV.  Publication  of  "Discourses  on  Religious   Subjects"  — 

Abstract  of  Sermons,     .  .  .  .  .117 

XV.  Death  of  Doyen  Curtat — Retractation  of  Denunciation 
of  Conventicles   of  Rolle  —  Invitation    to   undertake 
Direction  of  "  Semeur " — Journal,        .  .  .       127 

XVI.  Political   Agitation  —  Basle — 111 -Health — Course   of 

Lectures  on  the  Moralists,         ....       135 

XVII.   Physical    Weakness  —  Spiritual     Growth  —  Letters  — 

Journal,  .  .  .  .  .  .148 

XVIII.  Vinet's  "Cure  of  Souls  "—Letter  to  a  Jew— Letters  to 

E.  Souvestre — M.  cle  Chateaubriand,    .  .  .       157 

XIX.  New  Edition  of  the   "Discourses"  —  Essays  on  Moral 

Philosophy — Call  to  Lausanne,  .  .  .162 


PART  THIRD. 

XX.   Vinet's  Inaugural  Address  —  Sainte-Beuve  —  Transition 
Period— Vinet  regrets  the  "Orthodox  Rationalism "  of 
the  Revival,       .  .  .  .  .  .172 

XXI.   New  Surroundings — Friendships:  Erskine,  Sainte-Beuve 

—Death  of  Daughter,  .  .  .  .  .180 

XXII.  Doubts — Letter  to  Pastor  Scholl — Sense  of  Unfitness  for 
his  Work — Baths  of  Lavey — Extracts  from  Letters  and 
Journal,  .  .  .  .  .  .       18t> 

XXIII.  New  Ecclesiastical  Law— Vinet's  Speeches— Abolition  of 

Helvetic  Confession — Jury  of  Discipline — Vinet's  Pro- 
test,       .  .  .  .  .  .  .192 

XXIV.  Preparation  of  Memoir — Success  —  Life  in  Lausanne — 

Letters — Visits  from  Working   Men — Illness — Marks 

of  Sympathy— Social  Life,         ....       202 

XXV.   Letters   on   the    Subject   of  Catholicism  —  Vinet   as   a 
Director  of  Conscience  —  Letters  on   Religious   Sub- 
jects,     .......       212 

XXVI.  The    "New    Religious    Discourses"  —  Extracts    from 

Sermons,  ......       220 

XXVII.  Essay  on  the  Manifestation  of  Religious  Convictions,      .      288 


CONTENTS.  Xlll 

'HAP.  PAUK 

XXVIII.  Robinson   Crusoe  —  Vinet   as   a    "Literary   Man"  — 

Criticism,        ......       238 

NX IX.  Letters  to  Friends,  .  .  .  .  .248 

XXX.  Lectures  on  Theology,  and  on  the  Philosophy  of  Chris- 
tianity— Lectures  on  History  of  Literature — Tenders 
his  Resignation  as  Professor  of  Theology,      .  .       254 

XXXI.  The  Revolution  of  1845 — Downfall  of  the  Government 
— Vinet  preaches  on  the  Accomplices  of  the  Cruci- 
fixion, ......       261 

XXXII.  The  Council  of  State  and  the  Clergy — Resignation  of 

160  Pastors — Vinet's  Letters,  .  .  .       270 

XXXIII.  Marks  of  Sympathy  from  England — Formation  of  Free 

Church — Persecution — Vinet's  Moral  Authority,       .       279 

XXXIV.  Vinet  as  a  Preacher — Extracts  from  Sermons,  .  .       287 
XXXV.  Studies    on    Blaise    Pascal  —  Essay  on    Socialism  — 

Dialogue,        ......       298 

XXXVI.  Dismissal   of  the  Teaching  Body  of  the  Academy — 
Literary     Projects  —  Lectures     ("New    Evangelical 
Studies  "and  "Literature  of  the  Seventeenth  Cen- 
tury ")— Failing  Health,        .  .  .  .306 

XXXVII.  The  Foundation  of  the  Free  Church— "  Confession  of 

Faith"— Vinet's  Joy  in  the  Work,    .  .  .312 

XXXVIII.  (See  Life  of  Alex.  Vinet:  E.  Rambert,  chap,  xxi.),      .       319 

XXXIX.  Conclusion,         ......       327 


BOOKS    CONSULTED. 


A.   Vinct,    Histoire  de  sa  vie  et  de  ses  ouvrages.     2  vols.     Par  Eugene 

Rambert. 
Lettres  de  A.  Vinet.     2  vols. 
Esprit  de  A.  Vinet.     2  vols.     Par  J.  F.  Astie. 
Histoire  du  Mouvement  Religieux  et  Eeelesiastique  dans  le  Canton  de 

Vaud.     6  vols.     Tar  J.  Cart. 
Geneve  Religieuse.     Par  H.  von  der  Goltz. 
Le  Vinet  de  la  legende.     Par  J.  F.  Astie. 

Alexandre  Vinet,  Notice  et  Memoires.     Par  Frederic  Chavannes.' 
Christianisrne  et  Theologie.     Par  Ami  Bost. 

Memoires  pouvant  servir  a  l'histoire  du  Reveil  Religieux.     Par  Ami  Post. 
A.  Vinet,  Notice  sur  sa  vie  et  ses  Merits.     Par  E.  Scherer. 
A.  Vinet,  Moraliste  et  Apologiste  Chretien.     Par  J.  Cramer. 
A.    Vinet,   Considere   com  me   apologiste  et  moraliste  chretien.     Par    F. 

Chavannes. 
Apropos  de  quelques  travaux  recents  sur  Vinct.      Far  J.  F.  Astie. 
Fa  vie  de  E.  Chastel.     Par  B.  Bouvier. 
Quelques  Episodes  de  la  vie  de  Vinct.     Par  J.  F.  Astir. 
Encyclopedic  des  Sciences  Religieuses.     Par  F.  Liehtenbergcr. 
Questions  de  Morale  et  de  Legislation.     Par  Jules  Chavannes.     'Chretien 

Evangelique). 
L'n  Episode  peu  connu  de  la  vie  de  Vinet.     Par  H.  Lecoultrc. 
See  Revue  ChrtStienne,  Jan.  1890.      "A.  Vinet,  d'apres  la  correspondance 

inddite  avec  Henri  Futteroth."     E.  de  Presscn.se. 
Viuet  et  son  pere  d'apres  des  letters  incdites,  1890.    Chretien  Evangcliijue. 

H.  Lecoultre. 
Vinet  comme  Apologete.     Widmer. 
Alexandre  Vinet.      Paul  Bonnard. 


XVI  BOOKS  CONSULTED. 

ALEXANDER  VINET. 
Memoire  en  faveur  de  la  liberte  des  cultes. 
Essai  sur  la  Conscience. 
Discours  sur  quelques  sujets  religieux. 
Nouveaux  Discours. 
Etudes  Evangeliques. 
L'Education,  la  Famille,  et  la  Society. 
Melanges  :  Philosophic     Etudes  Litteraires. 
Essai  sur  la  Manifestation  des  convictions  religieuses. 
Etudes  sur  Blaise  Pascal. 
Moralistes  des  16e  et  17e  Siecles. 
Poetes  du  Siecle  de  Louis  XIV. 
Histoire  de  la  Literature  Francaise,  18e  19e  Siecles. 
<  'hrestomathie  Francaise. 


Those  who  are  acquainted  with  that  masterpiece  of  biography, — "A. 
Vinet,  Histoire  de  sa  vie  et  de  ses  ouvrages,"  by  Eugene  Rambert, — will 
easily  recognise  the  source  whence  most  of  the  incidents  related  in  the 
following  pages  are  drawn. 


LIFE  OF   ALEXANDER  VINET. 


INTRODUCTION. 

The  Canton  of  Vaud,  which  encircles  the  shores  of  Lake 
Leman,  may  be  regarded  as  an  epitome  of  Switzerland. 
Holding  a  mid-position  between  the  south,  to  which  it 
owes  its  first  civilisation,  and  the  north,  which  has 
called  it  to  independence,  it  reproduces  on  a  limited 
scale  the  characteristic  features  of  the  country,  —  the 
undulating  plain  bounded  by  lakes,  the  peaks  and 
turrets  of  the  snow-clad  Alps,  and  the  waving  outline 
of  the  Jura. 

Romans,  Burgundians,  and  Savoyards  have  successively 
striven  for  the  possession  of  the  "good  country  of  Vaud," 
which  fell  at  last  into  the  hands  of  the  powerful  Republic 
of  Berne  in  the  year  1536.  Not  content  with  territorial 
sway,  the  conquerors  sought  to  dominate  the  minds  and 
consciences  of  the  conquered  race,  and  the  new  religion 
(i.e.  the  Reformed  faith)  was  imposed  by  the  sword. 
Under  the  rule  of  "  their  Excellencies  of  Berne "  the 
Vaudois  Church  became  the  mere  creature  of  the 
Government.  Nor  was  its  position  improved  by  the 
Revolution  of  1798,  which  delivered  Vaud  from  the 
Bernese  yoke  to  incorporate  it  in  "  the  one  and  undivided 
Helvetic  Republic."     A  system  of  centralization,  hitherto 

A 


2  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

unknown,  characterized  the  new  Government,  and  the 
Representative  Assembly  exercised  an  authority  as 
despotic  as  that  which  had  formerly  been  assumed  by 
Berne. 

After  the  fall  of  the  llepublic  in  1803  the  Vaudois 
Church  became  "  Cantonal ; "  but  this  was  only  the 
exchange  of  one  form  of  tyranny  for  another.  The 
clergy  submitted  themselves  to  the  civil  authorities 
with  a  servile  humility  which  at  once  provokes  our 
indignation  and  our  amazement.1  It  was  the  State,  not 
the  Church,  which  exercised  ecclesiastical  discipline, — 
imposing  on  those  who  wished  to  be  joined  together 
in  holy  matrimony  the  obligation  of  possessing  a  "  Bible 
certificate"  as  well  as  a  musket,  and  inflicting  penalties 
on  those  persons  who  did  not  approach  the  Lord's  table 
at  stated  times. 

This  condition  of  subordination  to  the  State  was  a 
rooted  obstacle  to  all  free  development,  and  it  betokened, 
moreover,  that  the  need  of  liberty  was  not  felt.  There 
was  no  force  of  resistance,  because  there  was  no  free 
healthy  life.  The  sojourn  of  Voltaire  in  Lausanne 
(where  he  saw  "Zaire"  performed,  "better  than  in 
Paris,"  before  two  hundred  spectators,  "  as  good  judges 
as  can  be  found  in  Europe "),  and  the  presence  of 
iiousseau  in  an  adjacent  canton,  exercised  a  parching 
influence  upon  the  minds  of  the  Vaudois  clergy.  The 
sermons  of  the  time  are  redolent  of  the  perfume  of 
the  eighteenth  century.  The  words  "  virtue  "  and  "  sensi- 
bility "  are  to  be  read  on  every  page. 

The  students  led  disorderly  and  scandalous  lives,  and 
if  a  pastor  were  seen  leaving  his  home  with  staggering 
footsteps,  the  members  of  his  flock  would  only  remark 
with   a   smile  that  the  shepherd   of  their  souls  had  been 

ing  his  friends  ! 

1  Cart. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  3 

Turning  to  Geneva,  we  find  matters  there  at  a  still 
lower  ebb.  In  the  famous  article  of  the  EncyclopMie 
devoted  to  that  city,  d'Alembert  affirmed  that  many 
Genevese  pastors  no  longer  believed  in  the  divinity  of 
Jesus  Christ,  and  that  their  religion  was  only  a  form  of 
Socinianism. 

Voltaire  did  not  hesitate  to  call  the  successors  of 
Calvin  "shamefaced  Socinians."  Eousseau  reproached 
them  for  their  want  of  candour.  "  They  are  singular 
people,  your  ministers ;  one  can  neither  make  out  what 
they  believe  nor  what  they  don't  believe,  nor  even  what 
they  pretend  to  believe." 

Yet  even  in  that  dark  period  some  glimmerings  of 
light  are  discernible  against  a  background  of  worldliness 
and  indifference. 

In  1741,  Count  Zinzendorf  had  established  a  branch 
of  his  community  of  Moravian  Brethren  in  Geneva.1 

It  spread  rapidly,  and  soon  numbered  several  hundred 
members.  Some  theological  students  who  were  in  com- 
munication with  the  Moravians  began  to  thirst  for 
something  better  than  the  teaching  of  their  Church,  in 
which  the  landmarks  of  Christianity  had  been  well-nigh 
swept  away  by  a  strong  current  of  nationalism. 

Accordingly  they  formed  a  society  under  the  direction 
of  the  Precentor  Bost,  a  member  of  the  Moravian  Society. 
The  motive  which  inspired  them  was  briefly  stated  to  be 
that  of  "encouraging  ourselves  to  persist  and  to  grow  in 
the  love  of  God  and  in  purity  of  life." 

From  the  first  these  meetings  excited  the  displeasure 

1  Close  by  the  meeting-place  of  the  Moravians  was  a  lodge  of  Free- 
masons. Its  members  held  firmly  to  the  dogma  of  the  Trinity,  and 
their  ideas  and  religions  habits  were  coloured  by  an  extreme  form  of 
mysticism.  They  were  in  close  communication  with  a  small  sect  of 
theosophists  then  existing  in  Lausanne,  who,  in  addition  to  the  works 
of  Madame  Guyon,  studied  the  writings  of  Jung  Stilling  and  uf  Jacob 
Boehrae. 


4  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

of  the  "  Venerable  Company "  (Consistory  of  Geneva). 
It  was  in  vain  that  Bost  urged  the  pastors  to  come 
to  the  assemblies  in  order  to  convince  themselves  that 
they  were  free  of  any  sectarian  aim. 

The  few  who  ventured  to  respond  to  his  appeal  were 
so  alarmed  by  the  doctrines  they  heard  professed  respect- 
ing the  divinity  of  Christ  and  justification  by  faith  that 
they  refused  to  return.  Furthermore,  the  young  men 
who  frequented  the  meetings  were  warned  that  unless 
they  broke  off  their  connection  with  the  society  they 
could  not  be  admitted  to  the  ministry. 

Matters  were  at  this  point  when  the  famous  Baronne 
de  Krudener  arrived  in  Geneva,  July  1813.  She  was 
brought  thither  by  a  so-called  prophecy  of  Madame  de 
Guyon,  which  led  her  to  expect  great  results  from  this 
visit.  This  remarkable  woman,  after  an  adventurous 
life,  had .  passed  from  the  extreme  of  worldliness  to  the 
extreme  of  devotion.  She  brought  to  the  service  of  God 
the  same  feverish  activity,  the  same  excitability  which 
had  distinguished  her  in  society.  Stilling  introduced  her 
to  mysticism,  and  the  prophetess  Kummerin  opened  to 
her  the  world  of  visions.  She  preached  from  morning  to 
night,  and,  not  content  with  this,  she  sought  to  enter 
into  communication  with  the  invisible  world.  While 
forced  to  admit  that  the  wish  to  play  a  leading  part, 
which  had  been  always  one  of  her  marked  character- 
istics, became  one  of  the  motive  powers  of  her  religious 
activity,  it  is  certainly  no  less  true  that  the  fire  of 
her  enthusiasm  kindled  in  many  hearts  a  sincere  love 
of  God. 

Madame  de  Krudener  lost  no  time  in  entering  into 
relations  with  the  "  Society."  One  of  the  theological 
students  named  Empeytaz,  strongly  attracted  by  her  love 
of  souls,  determined  to  cast  in  his  lot  with  hers.  When 
Madame  de  Krudener  left  Geneva,  Empeytaz  accompanied 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  O 

her,  and  spent  some  years  aiding  her  in  her  missionary 
work.1  Later,  the  Baronne's  fanatical  indiscretion  obliged 
the  civil  authorities  to  adopt  rigorous  measures  which 
separated  her  from  her  followers,  and,  among  others,  from 
Empeytaz. 

Meantime,  the  religious  movement  of  which  Geneva 
was  the  theatre  had  been  quickened  by  the  arrival  of 
certain  strangers,  and  notably  of  Robert  Haldane,  a 
Scotch  gentleman,  who,  after  devoting  twenty  years  of 
his  life  to  the  evangelization  of  his  own  country,  under- 
took a  missionary  journey  to  the  Continent. 

"  After  the  lapse  of  many  years,"  writes  F.  Monod,  "  1 
can  picture  this  handsome,  dignified  man  surrounded  by 
students,  his  Bible  in  hand,  losing  no  time  in  argument, 
but  pointing  with  his  finger  to  the  Bible  and  saying: 
1  Look,  this  is  written  with  the  finger  of  God.' ' 

Many  of  the  candidates  for  the  ministry  —  Merle 
d'Aubigne,  Gaussen,  Frederic  Monod,  Pyt,  and  Cesar  Malan 
— dated  from  his  teaching  the  beginning  of  a  new  life. 

Malan  has  been  named  "  the  Csesar  of  the  Revival." 
His  exao-o-erated  Calvinism  and  his  manner  of  presenting 
the  doctrine  of  assurance  distinguished  him  from  the 
rest.  It  may  be  said  of  Malan  that  he  made  ultimate 
salvation  depend  on  the  cogency  of  a  syllogism.  "  God 
has  said  in  His  word :  '  Whosoever  believeth  in  the  Son 
hath  life.' 

"  I  believe ! 

"  Therefore,  I  have  life  !  " 

A  contemporary  wrote  of  him, — 

"  Malan  can  only  live  in  extremes.  He  takes  three 
or  four  dogmas,  deduces  from  them  logical  consequences, 

1  It  was  on  the  occasion  of  their  visit  to  Paris  that  took  place  Madame 
de  Krudener's  celebrated  conversation  with  the  Emperor  of  Russia,  which 
gave  birth  to  the  formation  of  the  Holy  Alliance. 


6  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

which  the  orthodox  refrain  from  putting  into  words, 
and  then  damns  every  one  who  diverges  from  them 
<>ne  iota." 


It  was  a  sermon  from  Cesar  Malan  on  the  subject  of 
salvation  by  grace,  together  with  a  pamphlet  from 
Enipeytaz,  entitled  Considerations  on  the  Divinity  of 
■Jesus  Christ,  which  aroused  into  activity  the  long 
slumbering  displeasure  of  the  Geneva  Consistory.  The 
regulation  of  3rd  May  1817  was  the  result.  By  it  the 
pastors  were  ordered  to  sign  a  promise  to  abstain  from 
speaking  on  controverted  subjects,  such  as  the  Divinity 
of  Christ,  Original  Sin,  and  Divine  Grace. 

The  immediate  consequence  of  this  enactment  was 
precisely  the  opposite  to  that  which  it  had  been  intended 
to  produce.  Instead  of  consolidating  the  Church,  it 
introduced  schism. 

Haldane  had  left  Geneva,  begging  his  friends  to  take 
no  hasty,  ill  -  considered  action.  He  was  replaced  by 
Henry  Drummond,  a  man  of  an  altogether  different  turn 
of  mind,  who  possessed  neither  the  depth  nor  the  calm 
good  sense  of  Haldane.  While  the  latter  had  contented 
himself  with  expounding  the  doctrines  of  Christianity 
and  edifying  the  souls  of  individuals,  Drummond  excited 
his  youthful  followers  to  found  a  sect.  On  the  21st 
September  1818  the  New  Church  inaugurated  its  exist- 
ence by  the  celebration  of  the  Lord's  Supper,  and 
Enipeytaz,  who  had  just  separated  from  Madame  de 
Krudener,  was  the  first  preacher. 

Popular  indignation  was  aroused  by  these  innovations. 
The  building  where  the  meetings  of  the  "  New  Church  " 
were  held  was  attacked  by  an  angry  crowd,  and  cries  of 
"  Down  with  the  Moravians  !  To  the  Lantern  !  Down  with 
Jesus  Christ !  "  resounded  on  the  air.  The  Government 
did  its  best  to  protect  the  worshippers,  and  two  com- 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  ' 

panics  of  militia  were  called  out.  In  their  ranks  was 
found  a  new  Saul,  one  Sergeant  Felix  Neff,  who,  out- 
raged by  the  blasphemous  conduct  of  the  populace,  was 
led  a  few  weeks  later  to  cast  in  his  lot  with  the  perse- 
cuted Church. 

The  origin  of  the  nickname  Momiers,  i.e.  Mummers, 
which  will  frequently  occur  in  the  course  of  these  pages, 
is  to  be  found  in  a  number  of  the  Feuille  d'Avis,  bearing 
the  date  7th  October  1818  : — 

"Next  Sunday  at  Fernay  the  troupe  of  Mummers, 
under  the  direction  of  the  President,  will  continue  its 
fantastic  performance.  The  clown  will  amuse  the  audi- 
ence," etc. 

This  ignoble  ioke  sufficed  to  introduce  the  word  into 
the  language  of  the  period. 

The  influence  of  Haldane  had  tinged  with  Calvinism 
the  doctrines  of  the  New  Church.  The  Church  and  the 
world  were  to  be  separate  in  custom  as  well  as  in 
principle.  Games,  worldly  pleasures,  luxury  in  dress, 
curling  of  the  hair,  were  absolutely  forbidden,  and  the 
"Patois  of   Canaan"   became  the  habitual   language    of 

Christians. 

Ami  Post,  a  man  of  great  breadth  of  view  as  well 
as  largeness  of  heart,  separated  himself  from  the  Xew 
Church  on  account  of  its  narrowness  and  bigotry,  and 
founded  another  at  Carrouge.  He  deplored  the  spirit 
of  harsh  criticism  which   had  invaded  the  kingdom   oi 

(}0d complaining  that  "oil  religious  looks  which  one  has 

not  written  oneself  are  condemned,  and  that  oil  preachers 
who  do  not  adopt  ones  own  particular  point  of  view  an 
accused  of  heresy."  It  is  probably  due  to  the  fact  that 
the  Church  in  Geneva  had  wandered  so  far  from  ortho- 
doxy, that  the  Revival  there  assumed  so  rigid  and  dog- 
matic a  character. 


8  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

Men  such  as  Malan,  Empeytaz,  Pyt,  and  JSTeff  recoiled 
in  horror  from  the  barren,  lifeless  teaching  of  the 
*  Venerable  Company,"  and  raised  their  voices  to  arouse 
sinners  from  the  sleep  of  indifference. 

The  sphere  of  their  activity  was  not  limited  to  Geneva. 
They  looked  abroad  to  the  other  Swiss  cantons,  and  evan- 
gelists were  sent  in  all  directions  to  win  souls  to  God. 

Speaking  of  these  early  workers  of  the  Revival, 
Guisan  has  declared  that  "  the  salvation  of  souls  was 
their  only  passion  and  aim." 

While  cordially  endorsing  this  statement,  we  cannot 
close  our  eyes  to  the  fact  that  this  noble  passion  was 
marred  by  narrow  views,  by  spiritual  pride,  by  censori- 
ous and  unjust  judgment.  "  The  presentation  of  dogma 
in  its  most  absolute  form  was  the  natural  result  of  a  re- 
action against  the  withered  and  lifeless  Rationalism  of 
the  past,  A  rigid  orthodoxy,  which  confounded  Christi- 
anity itself  with  the  scholastic  theology  borrowed  from 
England,  characterized  the  modern  view.  While  recog- 
nising, under  this  narrow  form,  the  existence  of  a  warm, 
living  faith,  we  are  compelled  to  acknowledge  that  the 
leaders  of  the  Revival  made  no  distinction  between 
religion  and  theology,  and  that  they  appeared  to  imagine 
that  their  interpretations  of  divine  truth  had  fallen  from 
heaven  with  the  inspired  text."  l 

They  were  thus  led  to  make  of  Christianity  a  doctrine, 
a  book,  a  theory,  rather  than  a  life,  and  to  depend  on  an 
external  authority,  which  after  all  was  purely  human,  for 
the  interpretation  of  the  letter  of  Scripture. 

It  was  impossible  for  the  Canton  of  Vaud  to  remain 
uninllueuced  by  a  movement  which  was  stirring  most  of 
the  Protestant  Churches  of  France,  Switzerland,  and 
Holland  to  their  depths.      Unlike  Geneva,  the  Church  of 

1  E.  di!  Pressensi''. 


ALEXANDER  VINET. 


Vaud  had  never  lapsed  from  orthodoxy.1  Pastors  and 
people  gave  their  assent  to  the  doctrines  of  the  Helvetic 
Confession,  but  the  churches  were  empty,  the  preachers 
lacked  life,  and  worldliness  and  frivolity  had  invaded  all 
classes  of  society. 

The  Catechism  of  Ostervald  and  translations  from  the 
sermons  of  Blair  and  Tillotson  satisfied  the  religious 
aspirations  of  most  professing  Christians.  In  a  sermon 
on  the  Prodigal  Son,  preached  by  Professor  Durand, 
we  find  the  expression,  "We  seek  to  exhibit  the 
religion  of  Christ  as  a  supplement  to  human  weakness." 
The  course  of  religious  instruction  published  by  the 
Doyen  Peal  contains  a  strong  flavour  of  eighteenth  cen- 
tury philosophy ;  witness  such  phrases  as  "  our  relations 
with  the  Great  Being,"  and  "  Eeligion  merits  the  attention 
of  every  man  of  sensibility."  It  was  in  vain  that  the  law 
was  preached  in  all  its  rigour.  Morality  separated  from 
its  basis  soon  lapsed  into  utilitarianism. 

"  I  cannot  recall  without  pain,"  writes  a  former  candidate 
for  the  ministry, "  the  sad  years  of  our  university  life.  Our 
evenings  were  spent  in  clubs  and  in  cafes,  our  theological 
societies  were  mere  excuses  for  splendid  suppers.  Our 
professors  never  spoke  to  us  of  vital  godliness.  Never 
shall  I  forget  the  day  of  our  ordination.  The  preacher 
chose  for  his  theme  some  point  of  ecclesiastical  history  ; 
and  we  took  the  oath  to  teach  according  to  the  doctrines 
of  the  Helvetic  Confession,  about  which  we  knew  absolutely 
nothing." 

It  is  incontestable  that  English  Methodism,  passing  by 
way  of  Geneva,  played  an  important  part  in  the  history 
of  the  religious  movement  of  the  Canton  of  Vaud.     But 

1  The  Church  of  Geneva  had  wandered  so  far  from  the  Helvetic  Con- 
fession, that  after  the  publication  of  an  anti-reform  pamphlet  from  the 
pen  of  Professor  Cheneviere,  the  Church  of  Lausanne  felt  bound  to  break 
off  all  communion  with  that  of  Geneva. 


10  LIFE  AND  WAITINGS  OF 

revival  of  religion,  to  be  real  and  profound,  must  be 
in  conformity  with  the  genius  of  the  people.  In  the 
Canton  of  Vaud  the  movement  owes  its  origin  to  the 
teaching  of  the  Doyen  Curtat. 

The  personal  appearance  of  this  remarkable  man  was 
insignificant.  He  was  short  of  stature,  and  his  figure 
was  bent.  His  voice  was  thin  and  weak.  When  he 
wished  to  impress  some  truth  upon  his  audience,  he  was 
in  the  habit  of  dropping  instead  of  raising  his  voice,  and 
in  the  hush  of  eager  expectancy  that  ensued  a  pin  might 
be  heard  to  drop.  Eeacting  against  the  tendency  of  the 
age,  the  Doyen  insisted  on  the  fallen  condition  of  man, 
the  divinity  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  the  inspiration  of  Scrip- 
ture ;  but,  as  has  been  truly  observed,  "  Curtat  preached 
the  old  rather  than  the  new  man,  and  the  call  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  rather  than  His  constant  action  in  the  souls 
of  Christians." 

"  Gentlemen,  read  Calvin,"  he  was  fond  of  saying  to 
his  theological  candidates ;  but  when  the  young  men 
followed  his  advice,  they  found  in  Calvin  many  things 
that  Curtat  did  not  teach.  When  they  came  to  preach 
in  their  turn,  lie  complained  that  they  "  went  too  far,  and 
fell  into  exaggeration."  According  to  the  saying  of  one 
of  his  disciples,  the  worthy  Doyen  "  put  his  hand  on  the 
latch  ;  others  opened  the  door  and  entered  in." 

"  Regarded  from  the  historical  point  of  view,"  says  M. 
Bouvier,  "the  Revival  was  a  reaction  from  the  influences  of 
the  eighteenth  century,  and  a  passionate  return  towards 
the  principles  of  the  sixteenth.  To  the  two  objects  of 
worship  of  the  former  century,  i.e.  reason  and  virtue  (which 
had  been  discredited  by  the  horrors  of  the  devolution), 
the  Revival  put  in  opposition  the  dogmas  of  the  fall,  of  the 
sovereignty  of  divine  grace,  of  salvation  by  supernatural 
means,  and  of  the  infallible  authority  of  Holy  Scripture. 
Looking  deeper,  we  cannot  fail  to  see  in  the  religious 
Revival  one  of  the  signs  of  effort  towards  the  transforma- 


ALEXANDER  V1NKT.  11 

lion  of  the  political,  literary,  and  religious  ideal  whence 
was  to  emerge  the  nineteenth  century  thirsting  for  emotion, 
for  belief,  for  food  for  the  conscience,  and  for  the  imagina- 
tion which  had  been  crushed  by  the  imperious  sway  of 
reason." 

It  remains  for  us  now  to  consider  the  influence  upon 
modern  thought  of  a  man  whose  life  and  activities  are  so 
closely  bound  up  with  the  progress  of  the  Revival  that 
the  one  cannot  be  studied  independently  of  the  other. 
This  was  Alexander  Vinet,  the  "  Pascal  of  Protestantism." 


PART    FIRST 


1797-1823. 


LIKE  AND  WRITINGS  OF  ALEXANDER  VINF.T.  15 


CHAPTER  I. 

Childhood  and.  Youth — Betrothal} 

Lausanne,  which  from  the  height  of  its  three  hills 
dominates  Lake  Leman,  has  for  its  port  the  little  hamlet 
of  Ouchy.  Close  to  the  shore  rises  a  square  grey  tower, 
which  was  formerly  used  as  a  Custom-house.  Here 
Alexander  Rodolphe  Vinet  was  born,  17th  June  1797. 

The  family,  which  was  of  French  origin,  had  resided 
in  Switzerland  during  two  generations. 

Alexander's  father,  who  began  life  as  a  village  school- 
master, belonged  to  that  vigorous  generation  which  the 
Canton  of  Valid,  on  her  deliverance  from  the  yoke  of 
Berne,  was  fortunate  in  finding  ready  to  support  the 
burden  of  a  suddenly  improvised  administration.  While 
fulfilling  the  duties  of  Secretary  to  the  Home  Department 
he  occupied  himself  with  the  education  of  his  family, 
bringing  up  his  children  in  the  austere  traditions  which 
had  formed  the  background  of  his  own  youth.  Duty 
and  submission  were  the  watchwords  of  the  household. 
Pleasure  and  frivolity  were  unknown.  Even  when  Alex- 
ander was  a  tall  schoolboy,  he  was  obliged  to  wear  the 
clumsy  garments  made  by  a  village  tailor,  while  his  father 
undertook  the  office  of  barber,  shaving  his  child's  hair  so 
close  that  his  appearance  excited  the  ridicule  of  his  com- 
rades. Society  was  avoided  as  much  from  principle  as 
from  economy.  Yet  this  sternly  disciplined  family — 
which  reminds  one  of  a  Puritan  household  in  New  Eng- 

1  Rambert.     Astie. 


1  6  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

land — was  not  a  sad  one.  The  vivacity  of  Southern 
blood  tempered  Marc  Vinet's  Huguenot  severity.  At 
table  he  had  always  some  entertaining  story  to  relate. 
In  the  evening  he  read  aloud  to  his  family,  and  poetry 
was  not  numbered  among  the  vanities  which  had  to  be 
severely  banished  from  the  domestic  hearth. 

Marc  Vinet  loved  his  children  tenderly  ;  but,  following 
the  example  of  his  ancestors,  he  had  learned  to  regard 
life  as  a  conflict,  and  to  repress  sternly  all  enervating 
influences.  Although  Madame  Vinet  was  "  kindness 
itself — made  up  of  devotion  and  sacrifice,"  it  is  impos- 
sible to  deny  that  the  domestic  discipline  was  too  severe 
for  Alexander.  To  his  dying  day  he  never  succeeded 
in  overcoming  a  timidity  that  he  bitterly  deplored. 
As  a  child  he  trembled  when  lie  heard  his  father's  step 
on  the  staircase — "  I  will  not  cry,  mamma,  I  will  not 
cry,"  he  used  to  say ;  but  in  spite  of  his  resolution  the 
tears  would  force  their  way.  This  extreme  sensibility 
astonished  and  irritated  the  father.  "  I  expect  a  great 
deal  from  Henry "  (an  elder  brother),  he  would  say, 
"  but  little  from  Alexander." 

The  consciousness  that  he  occupied  a  low  place  in  his 
father's  esteem  increased  his  timidity,  and  made  him 
more  sensitive  than  ever  to  reproof. 

At  the  age  of  seven,  Alexander  entered  the  cantonal 
school. 

He  was  fond  of  reading,  and  had  soon  exhausted  the 
home  library,  which  consisted  of  the  works  of  La  Bruyere, 
Voltaire's  Sidcle  de  Louis  XIV.,  the  works  of  Berquin,  the 
Discovery  of  America,  by  Campe  ;  Madame  de  Genlis' 
Hays,  and  Robinson  Crusoe,  which  remained  Alexander's 
favourite  volume  to  the  end. 

When  the  time  came  for  entering  the  Academy,  Marc 
Vinet  began  to  realize  that  a  little  more  liberty  must  be 
given  to  his  son.      Accordingly,  Alexander  was  permitted 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  17 

to  take  his  part  in  the  pursuits  and  amusements  of  his 
fellow-students. 

In  November  1812  he  became  a  member  of  the  so- 
called  "  Society  of  Philosophy."  Papers  were  read  and 
discussed.  Every  now  and  then  a  favourite  professor 
took  a  friendly  part  in  the  proceedings.  "  One  day  when 
Alexander,  napkin  on  arm,  was  serving  as  butler  at  an 
impromptu  repast,  he  suddenly  perceived  the  grave 
figure  of  his  father  standing  in  the  doorway.  To  his 
dying  day  his  son  never  forgot  the  emotion  caused  by 
this  unexpected  apparition." 

The  young  student  soon  gave  evidence  of  considerable 
literary  ability.  Verses  began  to  flow  from  his  pen. 
His  father  criticized  these  juvenile  productions  without 
mercy  ;  but  he  told  himself  that  after  all  there  was  good 
stuff  in  this  son,  whose  abilities  he  had  formerly  held  in 
scant  esteem. 

Vinet's  comrades  were  quick  to  recognise  his  talents. 
He  undertook  the  direction  of  a  troupe  of  amateurs  who 
acted  Society  plays  with  great  spirit.  He  wrote  songs 
for  fete-days,  and  was  always  ready  to  turn  the  exploits 
of  his  fellow-students  into  verse.  He  was  full  of  fun 
and  of  mischief,  but  in  later  days  he  never  had  occasion 
to  blush  for  the  deeds  of  his  youth. 

"  The  most  important  of  his  boyish  adventures  con- 
cerned the  deliverance  of  a  '  persecuted  fair  one.'  It  was 
rumoured  that  a  young  girl — the  victim  of  a  cruel  step- 
mother— was  held  prisoner  in  a  solitary  country  house 
situated  in  the  outskirts  of  Lausanne.  Cries  and  moans 
were  heard  at  night,  and  it  was  feared  that  the  victim's 
reason  would  succumb  to  this  harsh  treatment.  Vinet 
and  some  of  his  friends  pledged  themselves  to  release 
her.  One  night  at  11  P.M.  they  approached  the 
suspected  house.  A  light  was  seen  to  pass  from  window 
to    window ;  then    it   disappeared,  and   was  seen  shortly 

B 


18  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

afterwards  in  another  part  of  the  building,  absolutely 
separate  from  the  lirst.  This  caused  the  young  Don 
Quixotes  to  imagine  that  the  prisoner  might  be  approached 
by  a  subterranean  way,  and  their  ardour  was  redoubled. 
One  of  the  party  attempted  to  scale  a  tree  which  grew 
beneath  the  window  of  the  chamber  wherein  languished 
the  Dulcinea.  Unfortunately  a  noise  betrayed  their 
presence.  The  master  of  the  house  appeared,  armed 
with  a  gun,  and  fired  straight  at  the  band  of  rescuers, 
who  were  obliged  to  beat  a  retreat,  carrying  their  wounded 
with  them.  Vinet  himself  was  honoured  with  the 
reception  of  a  few  grains  of  lead. 

"  In  the  course  of  the  legal  proceedings  which  were  the 
result  of  this  escapade,  it  transpired  that  the  prisoner  was 
now  more  kindly  treated.  Vinet  '  was  transported  with 
joy '  on  learning  that  his  chivalrous  enterprise  had  borne 
H'ood  fruit." 

A  year  later,  Vinet  received  an  official  reprimand  for 
having  wounded  by  means  of  a  patriotic  song  the 
susceptibilities  of  the  Bernese,  who  were  trying  to  regain 
possession  of  the  Canton.  Vinet  had  embodied  the 
general  excitement  in  a  kind  of  "  Marseillaise,"  entitled 
"  Le  lteveil  des  Vaudois." 

Professor  Durand,  a  pleasant,  kindly  old  man  of  French 
origin,  who  lectured  on  Ethics,  contributed  more  than 
any  one  else  to  form  the  young  student's  taste,  and  to 
inspire  him  with  admiration  for  the  true  models  of 
literary  style.  The  kindness,  the  generosity  of  mind,  and 
the  natural  elevation  of  sentiment,  which  none  could  fail 
to  recognise,  endeared  the  professor  to  all  who  knew 
him.  He  kept  open  house,  and  one  of  his  most  constant 
visitors  was  Vinet.  Later  we  find  the  young  student 
giving  lessons  to  Mademoiselle  Durand  (the  professor's 
grandchild),  a  charming  girl,  full  of  intelligence  and 
vivacity ;  "  and  there  can  be  little  doubt  but  that  there 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  19 

would  have  resulted  a  second  edition  of  the  story  of 
Abelard  and  Heloise,  if  Fate  had  not  brought  about  a 
separation."  * 

The  personal  appearance  of  the  teacher  was  not 
calculated  to  charm  the  fancy  of  a  young  girl.  His 
bearing  was  ungraceful,  his  limbs  were  bony  and  heavy, 
his  features  thick  and  strongly  marked.  Yet  we  learn 
that  Madame  de  Montolieu  (author  of  the  Chateaux  Swisses) 
inquired  who  that  ugly  young  man  was  "  who  became 
handsome  when  he  spoke "  ?  It  sufficed  to  see  him 
smile,  to  hear  his  voice,  to  be  surprised  by  his  glance,  to 
divine  a  sensibility  which  was  almost  feminine  in  its 
charm. 

Professor  Durand  died  in  1816.  As  the  coffin  which 
contained  his  mortal  remains  was  lowered  into  the  grave 
in  the  presence  of  a  crowd  of  sympathizing  spectators, 
Vinet  advanced  and  pronounced  a  farewell  discourse.  This 
was  done  naturally,  without  premeditation  ;  but  funeral 
orations  had  been  forbidden  on  account  of  former  abuses, 
and  many  were  shocked  by  this  innovation.  Vinet  received 
an  official  rebuke  of  a  more  severe  character  than  that 
which  he  had  incurred  on  account  of  his  patriotic  song. 

By  the  desire  of  friends  the  discourse  was  printed. 
Its  stilted  language  may  provoke  a  smile  from  those  who 
have  not  learned  that  simplicity  of  expression  is  the 
crowning  triumph  of  art. 

"  If  we  murmur  at  the  fate  of  a  being  cut  off  from 
hope  and  happiness  in  the  morning  of  life,  we  accord  still 
more  resret  to  the  aged  man  who  consecrated  all  the 
moments  of  his  long  life  to  the  practice  of  virtue." 
Nevertheless,  those  who  listened  were  impressed.  "  My 
fellow-disciples  wept  bitterly,"  wrote  Vinet  to  his  cousin, 
Mademoiselle  Sophie  de  la  Eottaz,  to  whom  he  had 
become  engaged  with  the  full  approbation  of  his  parents. 

1  Astu-. 


20  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

The  character  of  this  lady  can  best  be  described  by  a 
quotation  from  one  of  Vinet's  letters  written  in  the  early 
days  of  the  engagement. 

"  Your  letters  are — yourself,  your  language,  your  bearing, 
your  looks,  all  that  you  do,  is  yourself.  You  allow  others 
to  read  the  clear  depths  of  your  mind.  Art,  which  can 
imitate  everything  else,  can  never  imitate  this  perfect 
truthfulness  of  soul." 

In  obedience  to  his  father's  wish,  but  without  any 
marked  sense  of  a  vocation,  Vinet  prepared  himself  for 
the  ministry.  His  piety  had  not  the  depth  and  spiritu- 
ality which  it  was  subsequently  to  acquire.  Later,  Vinet 
deplored  the  fact  that  he  had  presented  himself  for 
ordination  thoughtlessly.  In  his  poetry  we  sometimes 
catch  the  accents  of  the  eighteenth  century,  which  he  had 
learned  from  Professor  Durand.      Yet — 

"  from  the  first,"  writes  his  friend,  Isaac  Secretan,  "  I 
saw  in  him  an  innate  love  of  truth,  uprightness,  can- 
dour, and  directness.  While  yet  a  boy  he  was  shocked 
to  see  the  oath  taken  by  certain  members  of  the  council 
who  were  notorious  unbelievers.  He  was  always  in  dread 
lest  speech  should  outrun  sincere  conviction." 

The  study  of  theology  was  pursued  at  this  time  with 
little  earnestness.  Vinet  founded  a  society  among  the 
students  which  had  for  its  aim  the  translation  of  the 
sacred  books  from  the  original. 

But  his  tastes  were  turned  in  the  direction  of  litera- 
ture rather  than  of  theology.  His  father  was  alarmed 
by  this  fatal  gift  for  verse-making,  and  Mademoiselle  de 
la  Rottaz  became  the  interpreter  of  the  paternal  anxiety. 

"Who  can  have  made  you  imagine,"  answered  Vinet, 
"  that  the  poetic  bagatelles  which  I  let  fall  from  my  pen 
have  any  other  end  than  that  of  amusement  ?  Poetry  is 
the  confidant  of  my  sentiments  and  the  reflection  of  my 
pleasures.     By  this  means  I  try  to  express  the  charm  of 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  21 

your  memory,  the  hopes  of  affection,  the  illusions  of  youth, 
the  pure  joys  of  virtue,  the  recollection  of  former  days — in 
a  word,  all  that  touches  me  nearly  causes  the  poetic  fibre 
to  vibrate  :  even  the  delegability  of  the  pipe  which  I 
smoke,  filled  with  tobacco  that  comes  from  you." 

In  the  summer  of  1816,  Vinet  spent  three  months  at 
Longeraie  (near  Morges),  where  he  directed  the  studies  of 
Auguste  Jaquet  the  future  statesman.  Here,  for  the 
first  time,  Vinet  experienced  the  delights  which  are 
attainable  by  riches  when  purified  by  refined  taste.  It 
was  an  idyllic  moment  of  sunshine,  of  liberty,  and  of 
poetry.  He  heard  plenty  of  good  music,  and  this  was 
for  him  a  source  of  the  keenest  enjoyment,  for  he  "  adored 
music." 

"  One  evening,  as  he  listened  to  the  air  from  '  (Edipe 
a  Colonne,'  '  Elle  m'a  prodiguJ  sa  tendresse  ct  ses  soins,'  he 
was  unable  to  master  his  emotion.  On  another  occasion 
he  was  reading  aloud  the  '  Cid '  in  his  rich  sonorous 
voice.      When  he  reached  the  immortal  dialogue— 

'  Rodrigue,  qui  l'efit  cm  ?    Chimcne,  qui  l'eut  dit  ? ' 

lie  threw  down  the  book  and  rushed  from  the  room. 
When  his  friends  went  in  search  of  him,  he  was  found 
sobbing  on  his  bed."  His  nervous  organization  was 
extraordinarily  delicate,  and  his  extreme  sensitiveness 
increased  to  an  alarming  degree  his  capacity  for 
suffering. 

On  his  return  from  Longeraie,  Vinet  found  the  lettered 
society  of  Lausanne  greatly  excited  on  the  subject  of  an 
academic  competition.  These  literary  or  scientific 
tournaments  were  the  passion  of  the  town.  They  were 
opened  by  the  candidate,  who  pronounced  a  dissertation, 
which  was  followed  by  a  free  discussion. 

In  this  instance  it  concerned  the  selection  of  a  pro- 
fessor of  French  literature. 


22  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

Monsieur  Charles  Monnard  presented  himself  as  a 
candidate  for  the  vacant  chair.  "  Towards  the  end  of  the 
meeting,  a  young  man  of  awkward  appearance  rose  and 
timidly  presented  some  objections.  This  was  Vinet. 
He  defended  the  classic  authors  against  the  tendencies 
of  the  modem  Romanticists,  whom  he  considered  Mr. 
Monnard  to  have  placed  on  too  high  a  pedestal." 

Marc  Vinet  was  standing  at  the  end  of  the  room.  On 
seeing  his  son  rise  to  combat  the  arguments  of  Mr. 
Monnard,  he  was  so  overwhelmed  that  he  left  the  place 
precipitately.  Later,  Vinet  felt  some  remorse  on  account 
of  his  temerity,  and  he  wrote  Mr.  Monnard  a  respectful 
apology. 

"  My  veneration  for  ancient  authors  has  perhaps  betrayed 
me  into  an  improper  manner  of  exhibiting  my  respect.  I 
beg  you,  sir,  to  pardon  my  thoughtlessness,"  etc. 

But  the  elder  had  been  so  much  impressed  by  the 
keen  and  judicious  criticism  of  his  young  adversary,  that 
he  lost  no  time  in  recommending  him  to  fill  the  post 
of  Professor  of  Languages  and  of  Literature  in  the 
(Jymnasium  of  Basle. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  2?> 


CHAPTER  IL 

Basle — Ordination — Marriage} 

Alexander  Vinet  left  for  Basle,  30th  July  1817.  On 
the  ensuing  day  he  received  the  following  letter  from 
his  father : — 

"My  very  dear  Son  and  Friend, — Since  your  departure, 
you  have  not  ceased  to  be  present  to  my  thoughts  and  near 
my  heart.  The  tears  you  shed  at  the  moment  of  separa- 
tion were  tears  of  blood  for  your  father.  Believe  in  my 
deep  affection,  and  let  me  have  yours  in  exchange.  Your 
mother  has  wept  bitterly,  but  the  thought  of  your  return 
and  the  hope  of  your  happiness  console,  her.  Elise  and 
Henri  share  her  feelings,  but  your  father  is  so  unfortunate 
as  to  be  unable  to  surmount  his  grief." 

Vinet's  answer  has  not  been  preserved,  but  we  can 
readily  imagine  that  the  father's  tender  letter  helped  to 
soothe  the  sorrow  of  those  first  days  of  exile — sorrow 
which  found  expression  in  many  of  his  letters,  and 
particularly  in  those  which  were  addressed  to  his  friends, 
Isaac  Secretan  and  Louis  Leresche.  He  suffered  greatly 
from  the  prejudices  of  his  German  colleagues. 

"  It  is  in  vain  that  I  tell  myself  Basle  is  a  Swiss  canton, 
and  that  Switzerland  is  my  country.  I  always  feel  like 
an  exile  .  .  .  the  people  here  are  absorbed  in  their  com- 
mercial affairs,  and  this  renders  them  unsociable  and 
phlegmatic,  although  I  believe  they  are  sincere,  and  that 
their  esteem  once  gained,  will  be  firm  and  lasting." 

Then  comes  the  sorrowful  complaint — 

"  I  am  too  much  alone.  .  .  .  People  were  right  when 

1  Riiinbert. 


24  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

they  warned  me  that  I  should  not  make  any  acquaintances 
under  six  months.  ...  As  for  the  ladies,  they  seem  to  be 
enclosed  in  an  impenetrable  sanctuary.  It  is  a  wonder  if 
one  encounters  half  a  dozen  in  the  course  of  a  week.  .  .  . 
There  is  a  unique  invention  to  be  seen  at  every  window : 
a  mirror  attached  to  the  framework,  by  which  means  the 
•  fair  ones '  can  keep  their  eye  on  the  passers-by  without 
exposing  their  charms  to  the  public  gaze.  ...  At  home 
(in  Lausanne)  everything  is  life  ;  here  it  is  torpor.  In 
Lausanne  you  find  animated  beings,  in  Basle  only  the 
walls  of  houses." 

In  spite  of  these  uncomplimentary  remarks,  Vinet 
rendered  full  justice  to  all  that  was  solid  and  good  in 
the  character  of  the  Balois.  He  respects  their  religious 
spirit.  "  The  churches  are  full,  the  doctrine  is  pure,  the 
piety  is  sincere." 

His  new  life  was  one  of  incessant  toil. 

"  My  occupations  are  innumerable.  I  hardly  see  how  I 
am  to  squeeze  them  all  in.  I  give  three  or  four  public 
lessons  a  day.  Three  times  a  week  I  receive  those  of  my 
pupils  who  need  private  help,  and  I  give  to  the  more 
advanced  a  course  of  lessons  on  literature." 

In  addition  to  all  this,  Vinet  preached  sometimes.' 
He  took  an  active  part  in  the  work  of  the  Bible  Society, 
and  he  studied  Greek,  Hebrew,  and  Exegesis  in  view  of 
his  ordination.  The  ideal,  long  time  dreamt  of,  "of  a 
quiet  parsonage  with  Sophie,"  was  never  abandoned, 
although  his  preoccupations  at  this  time  were  essentially 
literary. 

To  M.  Monnard,  2§th  Oct.  1818. 

'  I  cannot  express  the  exquisite  joy  I  feel  in  being 
permitted  to  give  myself,  without  constraint,  to  the  study 
of  literature.  How  sweet  is  existence  when  all  pleasures 
have  a  useful  end,  and  all  work  is  pleasure !     How  magni- 

1  Candidates  for  Loly  orders  are  permitted  to  preach  prior  to  ordination. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  25 


ficent  is  this  study,  which  embraces  all  that  is  best  and 
highest,  and  which  is  united  by  a  magic  bond  to  all  the 
faculties  of  man  !  If  anything  has  ever  made  me  feel  the 
sensation  of  intoxication,  it  is  noble  poetry.  I  cannot 
explain  the  charm.  .  .  .  What  should  I  gain  by  decom- 
posing the  azure  of  the  sky  ? " 

In  spite  of  this  joy  in  his  work,  Yinet's  letters  some- 
times reveal  the  habit  of  ruthless  self-dissection  which 
embittered  his  life. 

To  Sophie  de  la  Rottaz. 

"  Often  in  reading  your  letters  I  exclaim :  '  Ah,  if  she 
only  knew  me  as  I  know  myself!'  Morally,  I  am  only  a 
rough  sketch.  Everything  is  half-finished ;  my  disposi- 
tion, character,  mind,  virtues,  and  vices  are  only  fragments. 
I  have  a  smattering  of  everything — just  enough  to  make 
me  realize  how  little  I  know,  and  to  hold  before  me  an 
ideal  to  which  I  shall  never  attain.  For  instance,  I  sup- 
pose that  I  may  be  called  good  in  the  vague  sense  of  the 
word.  But  I  know  nothing — absolutely  nothing  of  the 
fire,  the  perseverance,  and  the  devotion  which  render  you 
so  interesting  in  my  eyes.  I  see  that  at  every  moment 
you  find  the  opportunity  to  do  good,  to  be  of  use,  and  I 
— never !  I  have  never  visited  the  cottage  of  the  poor. 
I  have  never  been  the  consoler  of  the  unfortunate  ;  and 
whence  comes  this  omission  ?  Ah,  it  is  the  heart  that 
teaches  this  science,  and  mine  is  not  large  enough  !  I 
have  enough  for  feeling,  but  not  enough  for  action.  What 
would  become  of  me  if  you  were  not  my  hope  ?  You 
must  lay  in  store  for  me  a  surplus  of  virtue,  for  indeed  I 
am  not  good  for  much." 

In  the  midst  of  these  moments  of  profound  discourage- 
ment he  yearned  to  attain  his  ideal. 

■r 

To  Sophie  de  la  Rottaz,  May  1819. 

"  I  should  be  unhappy  if  my  manner  of  life  caused  you 
to  look  on  me  as  a  selfish  or  indifferent  being.  Selfishness 
unites  (or  replaces)  all  other  vices  in  the  soul  it  governs. 


26  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

Nothing  wrings  my  heart  so  painfully  as  the  sight  of  those 
egotistical  beings  who  centre  all  their  existence  on  them- 
selves. I  am  scarcely  more  tolerant  of  those  who  have 
only  one  affection  to  which  they  sacrifice  all  the  rest.  It 
is  in  my  opinion  a  kind  of  selfishness,  quite  as  unpleasant 
as  the  first ;  perhaps  more  so,  because  it  is  displayed  with 
such  odious  naiveU.  I  am  tempted  to  say  of  such  persons, 
with  Ste.  Therese,  '  The  unfortunates,  they  do  not  know 
how  to  love.'  ...  I  tell  myself  again  and  again,  how 
blest  I  am  to  be  called  to  walk  through  life  with  a  woman 
whose  generous  nature  is  capable  of  both  thought  and 
love.  ...  0  Sophie,  should  we  be  perfectly  happy  if  we 
only  loved  one  another,  and  if  our  hearts  were  not  filled 
with  that  divine  spirit  of  charity  which  embraces  all 
sentient  beings  in  its  pure  and  noble  bonds  ? 

"  We,  to  whom  God  has  given  the  power  of  thinking 
and  of  feeling,  shall  we  be  content  with  a  commonplace 
union  which  excludes  all  interest  in  the  rest  of  mankind  ? 
And  in  order  to  love  one  another  better,  ought  we  not  to  seek 
to  love  all  the  family  of  God  ?  I  often  say,  when  I  witness 
the  tiresome,  narrow  affection  of  certain  married  couples : 
'  No,  my  wife  must  not  forget  how  to  love  others  in  order 
to  love  only  me.'  And  I — I  must  not  forget  the  needs  of 
the  rest  of  the  world  in  order  to  devote  myself  wholly  to 
my  dear  one.  Rather  let  us  unite  all  the  energy  of  our 
love  and  all  the  breadth  of  our  minds  in  the  interests  of 
those  whom  we  can  serve.  Let  us  learn  to  weep  over  the 
sorrows  of  others.  Let  us  try  to  keep  in  mind  the  fact  that 
we  are  not  united  in  marriage  only  for  our  own  felicity, 
but  for  the  good  of  the  whole  human  family.  After 
having  rendered  to  our  tender  parents  some  of  the  happi- 
ness which  we  owe  to  them,  let  us  work  for  the  well-being 
of  a  parish,  or  of  some  beloved  pupils  for  whose  sake  God 
will  condescend  to  bless  us.  Do  you  believe,  Sophie,  that 
one  should  ever  give  up  the  idea  of  being  of  use  in  the 
world  ? " 

Solitude,  separation  from  his  friends  and  from  his 
beloved  lake — all  tended  to  imprint  a  character  of  sad- 
ness upon  the  letters  of  this  period.    . 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  27 

To  Sophie  de  la  Rottaz,  1819. 

"  I  need  some  one  to  whom  I  can  say,.'  I  love  you,'  and 
to  whom  I  can  consecrate  my  life.  Nothing  alarms  me  so 
much  as  the  possibility  of  losing  the  power  of  loving. 
AY  hen  I  compare  my  present  condition  with  that  of  my 
childhood,  I  am  terrified.  I  dreamed  in  those  days  of 
nothing  but  devotion,  sacrifice,  and  self-abnegation.  .  .  . 
1  would  willingly  have  flung  myself  into  the  fire  or  the 
water  for  any  one.  And  now,  oh,  what  a  difference  ! 
Sophie,  you  will  help  me  to  grow  better." 

It  was  to  books  that  the  solitary  young  professor 
frequently  turned  for  consolation. 

To  Sophie  de  la  Rottaz,  1819. 

"  1  compare  my  library  to  a  collection  of  balms  which  1 
apply  to  the  wounds  of  my  heart.  In  very  truth,  books 
are  a  blessing  from  Heaven!  Literature  is  as  old  as  the 
world,  and  to  it  has  been  assigned  the  task  of  collecting 
the  scattered  features  of  Beauty,  and  of  presenting  them  to 
Humanity,  which  has  need  of  beauty  in  order  to  arrive  at 
goodness. 

"  Without  books,  slothful  minds  would  never  have  dis- 
covered in  Nature  traces  of  the  Ideal  which  alone  can 
give  value  to  existence.  By  means  of  books,  passions  are 
ennobled,  moral  delights  are  augmented,  a  new  world  is 
revealed,  and  man  learns  that  life  is  beautiful.  Is  it  not 
admirable  that  an  author  can  thus  reign  as  a  king  over  the 
secret  motives  of  the  heart,  can  influence  the  moral  destiny 
of  posterity,  and  can  engender  the  ideal  he  has  himself 
conceived  ?  I  look  on  books  rather  as  a  gift  of  nature 
than  as  an  institution  of  man;  and  these  instruments  of 
human  happiness  and  development  were  doubtless  included 
in  the  eternal  intentions  of  Providence." 

Vinet's  chief  correspondent  was  his  father,  who  found 
time  to  send  long  letters  full  of  minute  details  to  his 
absent  son.  If  the  Sunday  sermon  preached  by  the 
Doyen  Curtat  has  been  interesting,  its  argument  was 
faithfully  recorded   in  the  weekly  budget  from  Lausanne. 


28  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

New  books  were  criticized,  and  a  course  of  theological 
reading  was  indicated  for  the  guidance  of  the  future 
pastor. 

On  his  side,  Vinet  sent  his  father  verses  and  sermons, 
and  asked  for  his  opinion.  Marc  Vinet  did  not  fail  to 
subject  his  son's  essays  to  a  severe  and  detailed 
criticism. 

"Your  good  mother  has  just  come  to  me  with  tears  in 
her  great  eyes,  desiring  me  to  let  you  know  how  fully  she 
appreciates  the  sentiment  which  led  you  to  address  your 
last  letter  particularly  to  her,  and  to  assure  you  of  her  love. 
Here  her  voice  trembled,  and  I  finished  the  conversation 
with  a  kiss.  Your  dear  mother  was  vexed,  I  think,  to  read 
my  remarks  on  your  verses,  which,  however,  were  not 
unfavourable,  with  the  exception  of  my  allusion  to  the 
absence  of  plan.  But  her  tenderness  makes  her  suscep- 
tible, so  that  all  criticism  appears  unjust  or  too  severe. 
Pardon  your  father  for  the  sake  of  your  mother's  love." 

In  the  month  of  July  1819,  Vinet  returned  to  pass 
his  final  examinations  in  Lausanne. 

While  teaching  others,  he  had  pursued  his  own  studies, 
not  without  great  difficulty,  as  he  was  in  a  low  state  of 
health,  brought  on  by  insufficient  and  irregular  meals ; 
but  all  this  was  forgotten  when  he  saw  once  more  his 
beloved  lake,  and  found  himself  in  the  arms  of  bis 
friends. 

Mademoiselle  de  la  llottaz  came  to  Lausanne  in  order 
to  learn  the  result  of  the  examination  on  the  spot. 

"She  left  the  door  open  in  order  to  hear  him  come  in, 
for  he  had  said,  '  If  I  run  up-stairs  whistling,  you  will 
know  that  I  have  succeeded.'  He  was  naturally  anxious, 
as  he  had  not  had  time  enough  for  his  studies.  I  cannot 
remember  if  he  came  up-stairs  whistling,  but  he  said  once  : 
'Ah,  L  was  not  so  foolish  as  to  let  them  question  me.  I 
just  let  myself  go,  and  they  had  to  listen  for  half-an-hour. 
It  succeeded  capitally,'  he  added,  laughing." 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  29 

Vinet  was  ordained  immediately  after  the  examination. 
He  returned  to  Basle  alone,  but  only  for  a  short  time. 

To  Sophie  de  la  Rottaz. 

"  It  is  with  delight  that  I  associate  you  with  all  the 
occupations  of  my  life.  I  picture  myself  returning  home 
after  the  fatigue  of  my  lectures,  to  read,  study,  walk,  and 
laugh  with  you." 

Then  he  plunges  into  practical  details.  He  has  found 
a  house,  cheerful,  airy,  commanding  a  fine  view  of  the 
Ehine  and  of  the  open  country,  and  "  all  for  twelve 
louis  per  annum." 

"  I  feel  more  than  ever  that  my  love  for  you  makes  me 
a  better  man,  and  revives  religion  in  my  heart.  Ah,  my 
dear  Sophie,  it  is  religion,  and  religion  alone,  that  gives 
true  happiness !  It  is  the  look  raised  to  heaven  that 
brings  joy  to  the  heart.  The  idea  of  God  is  linked  with 
all  pure  and  deep  affections.  This  is  why  your  image  has 
revived  in  my  soul  the  feeble  flame  of  personal  religion." 

In  October  1819,  Vinet's  marriage  took  place.  The 
officiating  pastor  was  his  intimate  friend,  M.  Louis 
Leresche.  The  wedding  was  simple  and  homely  —  a 
family  gathering,  where  all  were  knit  together  in  the 
bonds  of  sincere  affection. 


30  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


CHAPTER  III. 

The  Methodists — Marc  Vinet's  Letter  on  Church  Authority 
— Independent  Views.1 

It  was  at  Basle  that  Vinet  first  came  in  contact  with  the 
religious  movement  which  was  destined  to  stir  the  Pro- 
testant  Churches  of  Europe  to  their  depths. 
His  impressions  were  not  favourable. 

To  Louis  Leresche,  7  th  Sept.  1817. 

"  The  town  is  full  of  Pietists,  who  can  be  recognised  a 
mile  off.  If  ever  I  hare  any  power,  moral  or  political,  I 
will  spare  no  pains  to  disperse  this  nest  of  presumptuous 
sectarians,  who  find  it  beneath  their  dignity  to  be  simply 
Christian,  and  who  only  succeed  in  filling  their  heads  with 
false  mysticism,  and  in  turning  men  away  from  the  religion 
of  Christ." 

After  this  diatribe  we  are  glad  to  note  the  following  : 
"  After  all,  these  people  have  their  good  side." 

The  Pietists  of  Basle  were  not  the  only  persons  whom 
the  young  professor  judged  with  severity.  The  Method- 
ists, who  were  beginning  to  form  congregations  in  Geneva 
and  in  the  Canton  of  Yam  I,  were  not  viewed  by  him  with 
a  favourable  eye. 

To  Louis  Leresche. 

We  have  been  lately  honoured  with  the  visit  of  some 
wandering    idiots,    known    as    Methodists,  all   citizens   of 

1  Rambert 


ALEXANDER  VI  NET.  31 

Switzerland,  which  is  becoming  a  nest  of  sects,  thanks  to 
English  influence.  These  people  pretend  that  regeneration 
is  a  purely  divine  work,  neither  accelerated  nor  hindered 
by  human  effort — that  it  is  consequently  useless  to  give 
oneself  the  trouble  to  try  to  be  better;  that  the  men  who 
lived  before  Jesus  Christ  are  all  excluded  from  salvation, 
because  they  had  not  exercised  their  virtue  under  the  influ- 
ence of  a  revelation  which  hud  never  been  made  to  them  ; 
that  in  addition  to  the  weight  of  their  sins  they  have  also 
the  weight  of  their  virtues,  which  are  all  vices ;  that 
Bourdaloue  and  Saurin  did  not  understand  the  scheme  of 
salvation,  for  they  preached  morality  while  we  must  never 
preach  anything  but  dogma;  that  in  order  to  be  Christian 
one  must  abjure  reason,  intelligence,  and  good  sense  (1 
quote  their  own  words,  which  caused  some  one  to  exclaim  : 
'I  should  like  to  know  by  what  means  they  believed !') : 
that  human  knowledge  ought  to  be  rejected  by  every  good 
ecclesiastic,  and  that  one  must  content  oneself  with  a 
certain  heart  knowledge  which  they  have  invented. 
Strange  to  say,  these  people  are  zealous  missionaries.  I 
really  don't  know  why,  for,  according  to  their  theory, 
regeneration  comes  suddenly  from  above  without  any 
intermediary.  [  should  never  end  if  I  were  to  tell  you 
half  their  follies.  I  hope  to  Cod  this  mysticism  will  not 
gain  ground  in  Switzerland  ! " 

Vinet  is  hardly  more  favourable  to  the  Institute  of 
Missions  in  Basle,  although  he  admits  that — 
"  the  aim  is  noble,  and  that  the  zeal  of  tin/  pupils  would 
overcome  every  obstacle  if  zeal  would  suffice  so  to  do.  [ 
hear  that  many  of  the  young  men  have  been  taken  away 
from  manual  labour,  and  that  they  are  without  the 
elements  of  education.  It  was  not  thus  that  the  Jesuits 
trained  their  missionaries.  ...  In  spite  of  my  sincere 
respect  tor  missions,  I  consider  that  it  would  not  be  a  bad 
thing  to  Christianize  our  old  Europe  before  carrying  the 
gospel  to  Otaheiti.  .  .  .  These  people  an'  always  furious 
against  reason,  always  preaching  blind  faith  and  instant 
submission.  I  will  have  nothing  of  all  this  in  my  religion. 
The  law  of  Christ  is  a  law  of  light,  and  the  apostles  were 
not  Pietists." 


32  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

Marc  Vinet  shared  his  son's  hostility  to  the  revival. 
"  As  a  Protestant  of  the  old  school,  brought  up  to  respect 
Holy  Scripture  and  the  Church,  he  could  not  bring  him- 
self to  recognise  the  right  of  the  individual  conscience 
to  withstand  the  authority  of  ancient  tradition.  He 
abhorred  the  spirit  of  curiosity  and  the  freaks  of  human 
pride.  Conscience,  duty,  fidelity,  submission — these  he 
regarded  as  synonymous  terms."1  Vinet  had  been  brought 
up  in  this  belief,  but  almost  unconsciously  he  was  begin- 
ning to  strike  out  a  path  for  himself.  We  read  in  a 
letter,  bearing  the  date  of  July  24,  1818,  the  following 
significant  avowal : — 

To  Louis  Zeresche,  1818. 

"  I  must  own  that  while  I  see  with  pleasure  my  ideas 
developed  by  study,  I  feel  with  regret  that  many  of  these 
notions  are  at  variance,  and  on  many  subjects  I  entertain 
a  painful  feeling  of  scepticism.  To  tell  the  truth,  this 
causes  me  sorrow  rather  than  alarm.  After  having  slum- 
bered for  a  long  time  on  the  tranquil  pillow  of  prejudice 
and  of  ready-made  opinions,  one  must  arouse  oneself  and 
prepare  for  the  conflict.  Is  this  an  evil?  I  do  not  think 
so.  This  new  examination  may  upset  some  idols,  but  it 
will  never  weaken  our  respect  for  true  objects  of  worship. 
On  the  contrary,  it  will  teach  us  to  love  them  better,  and 
it  will  arm  us  against  the  indifference  towards  which  we 
might  have  been  led  by  an  indolent  and  cowardly  submis- 
sion. Truths  which  are  imposed  on  us  run  the  risk  of 
becoming  as  distasteful  as  a  wife  whom  one  has  not  freely 
chosen.  If  there  are  any  sacred  principles  which  run  the 
risk  of  being  endangered  by  this  new  conflict,  our  sentiment 
ijuarantees  and  'preserves  them  from  harm.  I  am  happy  in 
the  consciousness  that  for  me  there  are  many  precious 
truths  which  discussion  cannot  injure,  because  they  have 
taken  refuge  in  my  heart.  Why  should  I  seek  to  support 
them  with  reasoning  ?  If  God  has  planted  them  in  my 
heart,  it  would  be  equally  illogical  to  attack  or  to  defend 

1  Rambert. 


•      ALEXANDER  VINET.  33 

them.     Ought  we  not  in  many  cases  to  trust  to  sentiment  as 
much  as  to  reason  ?  " 

"The  Vinet  of  the  future,"  says  Professor  Astic\  "is 
already  here.  He  appears  to  have  been  led  to  form  this 
conception  of  religion  spontaneously,  by  the  natural  develop- 
ment of  a  heart  that  was  eminently  moral  and  religious — 
I  might  almost  say  Christian." 

Some  indications  of  this  new  spirit  of  independence, 
which  "preferred  conflict  to  a  weak  and  cowardly  sub- 
mission," must  have  aroused  the  anxiety  of  Vinet's  father  ; 
for  in  the  following  year  we  find  him  writing  to  warn 
the  future  pastor  against  the  error  of  substituting  his  par- 
ticular opinions  for  the  received  doctrines  of  the  Church. 

"April  1819. 
"  Remember  that  it  is  this  faith  or  doctrine  which  you 
will  be  called  to  preach,  and  not  your  individual  point  of 
view.  The  servant  of  the  Church  owes  submission  to 
received  doctrine,  awe?  cannot  without  treason,  without  crime, 
deviate  from  the  path  traced  for  him  by  the  Church.  Such 
is,  I  am  sure,  the  opinion  of  M.  Curtat,  who,  I  am  certain, 
will  always  sacrifice  his  individual  opinion  when  he  finds 
it  conflicts  with  Church  doctrine.  Be  on  your  guard, 
my  dear  son,  against  all  innovation  of  doctrine — all  exalta- 
tion of  individual  opinion.  Learn  to  shudder  at  the 
thought  of  the  logical  result  of  a  contrary  disposition. 
Aim  at  the  glory  of  God  and  the  happiness  of  men,  and 
have  confidence  in  the  enlightened  judgments  of  the 
Church  in  which  you  are  called  to  be,  not  a  doctor,  but  a 
faithful  minister." 

Vinet's  reply  has  not  been  preserved ;  but  although 
we  may  feel  sure  that  he  received  his  father's  warning  in 
the  spirit  of  love  and  of  respect,  it  did  not  arrest  him  in 
his  independent  course. 

To  Louis  Leresche,  Nov.  1820. 

"  I  tremble  at  the  thought  of  seeing  myself  at  the  head 
of  a  parish.  ...  I  do  not  bid  farewell  to  the  calling  to 

c 


•> 


4  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


which  I  have  been  consecrated,  but  I  wait  till  age  has 
fitted  me  to  exercise  it  with  independence.  I  own  frankly 
that  although  weak  by  nature,  my  spirit  rises  at  the  idea  of 
being  dominated,  and,  above  all,  by  ecclesiastical  authority, 
which  is  always  exclusive  and  intolerant." 

Vinet's  father,  without  giving  up  the  hope  of  seeing 
his  son  one  day  at  the  head  of  a  parish,  understood  his 
reluctance  to  accept  a  position  for  which  he  did  not  feel 
himself  fitted,  and  the  young  professor  was  able  to  devote 
an  undivided  heart  to  the  study  of  literature,  which  to 
him  was  closely  connected  with  ethics  and  philosophy. 


ALEXANDER  VINKT.  35 


CHAPTER  IV. 

Married  Life — Literary  Work — Answer  to  the  Conventicles 
of  Rolle — Death  of  Fatlier. 

"  Charmante  pauvrete,  tu  vaux  bien  la  richesse." 

It  was  thus  that  Vinet  had  expressed  himself  in  a 
poetical  epistle  addressed  to  his  fiancte,  and  he  was 
now  called  on  to  put  his  theory  to  the  test  of  experi- 
ence. All  his  savings  had  been  expended  on  the  pur- 
chase of  furniture,  and  his  only  resources  were  his  salary 
as  professor,  which  did  not  exceed  the  modest  sum  of  a 
hundred  louis. 

'You  are  courageous,  and  I  love  you,"  had  been 
Vinet's  answer  to  his  fiance'e,  while  energetically  com- 
bating his  parent's  proposal  that  the  marriage  should  be 
delayed.  And  with  this  stock  of  love  and  courage  the 
young  couple  began  housekeeping. 

Nothing  marred  the  serenity  of  those  early  days  of 
married  life.  Vinet  always  looked  back  on  them  as  the 
happiest  he  had  ever  known.  His  heart  was  full  and 
satisfied,  and  he  forgot  to  meditate  on  himself.  On.- 
Light  cloud  appeared  on  the.  horizon,  but  it  was  quickly 
dispelled.  Madame  Vinet  observed  an  expression  of 
anxiety  on  her  husband's  face,  and  after  some  hesitation 
he  owned  that  he  had  contracted  a  debt  of  300  francs 
(£12)  for  the  purchase  of  books. 

"  1  must  have  books,  they  are  my  tools,"  explained 
Vinet.      The  fault  was  quickly  pardoned,  and  the  young 


36  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

couple  pledged  themselves  never  again  to  anticipate  their 
balance. 

We  find  Vinet  again  singiug  the  praises  of  poverty  in 
some  verses  which  bear  the  date  July  8,  1819.  His 
wife  had  just  presented  him  with  their  first  child  —  a 
daughter.  Vinet  was  ill,  and  his  pecuniary  resources 
consisted  of  2  francs  20  centimes,  which  sum  had  to 
suffice  for  the  needs  of  the  family  till  the  end  of  the 
quarter. 

Others  might  have  bemoaned  the  difficulties  of  their 
position,  but  Vinet's  verses  only  express  the  joy  of  a 
grateful  heart. 

To  M.  Alexis  Ford,  1820. 

"  I  do  not  know  what  is  meant  by  the  independence  of 
celibacy,"  he  wrote  to  a  friend  who  was  contemplating 
marriage.  "  On  the  contrary,  it  is  only  since  my  marriage 
that  I  have  been  really  independent.  The  obligations  of 
love  are  never  heavy.  And  what  other  condition  affords 
scope  for  this  overflow  of  tenderness  from  two  hearts  that 
understand  and  love  one  another  ?  Marriage  is  the  sweet 
fulfilment  of  the  sweetest  of  dreams." 

During  the  temporary  absence  of  his  wife,  Vinet  re- 
read some  of  the  letters  which  he  had  addressed  her 
during  their  engaged  days. 

"  I  cannot  tell  you  how  greatly  they  displease  me.  The 
sentiments  which  they  express  are  sincere  enough,  but 
I  was  bitten  with  the  mania  of  '  fine  writing.'  .  .  .  Let 
us  say  no  more.  Tilings  are  changed.  I  love  you  too 
well  not  to  be  simple  with  you.  Dear  Sophie,  is  there  a 
union  comparable  to  that  of  marriage,  and  are  there  many 
marriages  such  as  ours  ?  Should  I  have  found  with  another 
this  delicious  intimacy — this  perpetual  confidence  of  two 
hearts  who  suffer  from  the  slightest  concealment  ?" 

During  the  years  1820  to  1821  Vinet  worked  hard 
with  his  "  favourite  tools,"  his  books.  .  . 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  37 

The  University  of  Basle  had  conferred  on  him  the 
title  of  "  Professor  Extraordinary  of  French  Literature," 
and  Vinet  felt  the  necessity  of  concentrating  his  reading 
upon  one  subject. 

Letter  to  M.  Monnard,  5th  May  1820. 
"My  theological  studies  were  a  thorn  in  my  Bide, 
although  1  love  theology.  But  it  is  essential  that  the 
man  of  letters  should  have  but  one  object  in  view.  U  nity 
of  view  is  inseparable  from  liberty,  and  (here  is  a  cha- 
racteristic utterance):  Liberty  alone  can  develope  and  ripen 
thxmqht.  What  joy  to  walk  with  firm  footsteps  in  this 
vast  rich  and  noble  career  of  letters,  to  which  are  attached 
questions  and  ideas  of  the  highest  importance  tor  the 
human  mind  ! " 

To  his  friend  Leresche  he  wrote  : — 
"I  have  taken  again  to  the  study  of  Greek.  No  cul- 
ture can  be  real  and  deep  for  one  who  has  not  drunk  at 
the  source  of  this  noble  antiquity  which  has  formed  and 
inspired  all  our  modern  classics;  and  it  is  not  only  taste 
which  ought  to  gain  by  this  study,  but  reason,  intelligence 
— all  the  faculties." 

The  study  of  grammar,  which  he  associated  with 
metaphysics,  declaring  that  the  "two  sciences  were 
indispensable  one  to  the  other,"  also  engaged  his  atten- 
tion. This  was  a  period  of  abundant  literary  vigour. 
He  prepared  a  course  of  lectures  on  French  literature, 
and  to  this  end  he  read  with  order  and  method,  not 
neglecting  a  page  of  Voltaire  or  of  Bossuet.  He  wrote 
an  article  in  answer  to  the  question :  "  Why  does  not 
France  possess  a  national  tragedy  ?  "  He  wished  to  con- 
tribute to  a  journal  for  the  young,  but  this  idea  was 
abandoned.  "  I  feel  that  it  is  far  more  difficult  to 
write  for  children  than  for  grown-up  people.  With  the 
latter,  it  suffices  to  be  on  the  level  of  one's  subject ;  with 
the  former,  one  must  be  above  it." 


38  LIFE  AND  WHITINGS  OF 

With  the  help  of  his  wife  he  began  to  translate  the 
Stttnden  der  Andacht. 

To  M.  Monnard,  5th  May  1820. 

"  You  know  perhaps  that  a  German  pastor  has  just 
given  it  as  his  opinion  that  the  Stunden  der  Andacht  is 
the  work  of  the  devil,  which  will  present  an  entirely  new 
view  of  the  prince  of  darkness.  Here  the  good  people 
will  not  go  quite  so  far,  but  we  shall  probably  be  told — 
first,  that  all  this  comes  from  Germany  ;  secondly,  that  it 
is  new ;  and  thirdly,  that  it  is  useless  to  try  to  improve 
on  our  fathers." 

While  digging  deep  in  the  rich  field  of  French  litera- 
ture, Vinet  began  to  familiarize  himself  with  the  poetry 
and  the  criticism  of  Germany.  For  Goethe  he  had  more 
admiration  than  sympathy,  but,  from  the  first,  he  was 
strongly  attracted  by  Schiller. 

No  poet  was  dearer  to  him  than  Salis,  whose  verses 
"  breathe  the  love  of  nature  and  of  the  Fatherland." 

To  M.  Monnard,  6th  January  1821. 

"  As  to  meditations,  have  you  read  those  of  M.  de 
Lamartine  ?  They  are  beautiful,  and  I  have  read  some  of 
them  with  delight,  but  I  think  the  man  who  reviles  nature 
has  no  right  to  speak  of  religion.  I  cannot  imagine  a 
love  of  God  which  is  not  founded  on  gratitude.  A  friend 
of  M.  de  Lamartine's  has  told  us  that  the  young  poet 
has  chosen  melancholy  for  his  theme,  much  as  a  musician 
might  choose  a  particular  string  for  the  violin.  Schiller 
says  somewhere :  '  I  own  it  frankly,  I  believe  in  the 
reality  of  disinterested  love  ;  I  am  lost  if  it  does  not  exist, 
and  I  renounce  belief  in  divinity,  immortality,  and  virtue.' 
And  T,  if  1  am  not  permitted  to  believe  in  the  good  faith 
of  the  masses,  and  if  it  can  be  proved  that  poets  are  char- 
latans and  that  we  are  dupes,  I  renounce  the  study  of 
poetry,  and  1  spurn  the  deceivers  who  have  beguiled  me 
from  my  childhood." 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  2  9 

Vinet  was  not  so  absorbed  in  literary  work  as  to  be 
blind  to  all  that  was  passing  around  him.  "  He  was  a 
born  patriot,  and  his  love  of  country  stretched  beyond 
the  limits  of  the  Canton  of  Vaud.  He  dreamed  of  a 
united  Switzerland — not  centralized,  but  one  in  mind, 
in  conduct,  and  in  hope.  He  hailed  with  joy  the  efforts 
of  the  founders  of  the  Society  of  Zofingen  to  establish 
friendly  relations  among  all  the  students  of  Switzerland. 
He  longed  for  the  birth  of  a  national  literature,  inspired 
by  the  love  of  the  Fatherland,  and  instinct  with  the  breath 
of  true  religion.  The  idea  of  country  and  the  idea  of 
religion  were  united  in  his  heart.  There  was  patriotism 
in  his  religion,  and  religion  in  his  patriotism."  ] 

In  the  spring  of  the  year  1821  an  event  took  place 
which  was  destined  to  exercise  a  great  influence  upon 
Vinet's  subsequent  career. 

M.  Felix  Neff  was  invited  by  Miss  Greaves  —  an 
English  lady  resident  in  Lausanne — to  spend  a  few  days 
under  her  roof  in  order  to  assist  in  the  formation  of  a 
missionary  society.  This  innocent  proceeding  aroused 
the  indignation  of  the  President  of  the  State  Council, 
who  hastened  to  express  "  the  pain  with  which  he  had 
seen  that  by  an  inconsiderate  zeal  for  distant  enterprizes, 
the  law  had  been  disobeyed."2 

The  right  of  free  association,  which  had  never  been 
withheld  from  persons  desirous  of  holding  political, 
literary,  or  scientific  meetings,  was  now  denied  to  those 
who  wished  to  assemble  for  a  moral  and  religious 
purpose. 

Nor  was  the  President  the  only  dignitary  who  raised 
his  voice  in  opposition.  The  Doyen  Curtat,  distressed 
beyond  measure  by  the  logical  result  of  his  own  teach- 
ing,   issued    a    pamphlet 3    in    which    he    denounced    as 

1  Rambert.  *  Cart. 

a  The  EstabliKhine.nt  of  Conventicles  in  the  Canton  of  laud. 


40  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OP 

hypocritical  the  efforts  of  the  "  Methodists  "  to  establish 
missionary  societies.  He  complained  that  "  the  English 
were  seeking  to  make  the  Vaudois  Church  the  copy  of 
English  Methodism."  He  maintained  that  to  establish 
religions  meetings  on  Sunday  evenings  "  would  be  tanta- 
mount to  condemning  those  who  spend  them  in  card- 
playing,  and  we  have  no  right  to  judge  others."  Who 
can  forbear  a  smile  as  the  venerable  Doyen  caps  his 
argument  against  the  propriety  of  evening  services  by 
gravely  quoting  "  the  fall  of  Eutychus  "  ? 

Soon  after  the  issue  of  this  protest  he  renounced  his 
lessons  to  the  candidates  on  account  of  the  horror  he  felt 
at  having  "  helped  to  fabricate  Methodists." 

Among  the  pamphlets  called  forth  by  the  Doyen's 
attack  was  one  from  the  pen  of  M.  Cesar  Malan,  entitled, 
The  Conventicles  of  Rolle.  It  contained  an  account  of 
two  religious  services  wherein  several  transparent  allu- 
sions had  been  made  to  the  Doyen's  conduct,  and  the 
following  prayer  had  been  offered  on  his  behalf:  "We 
beseech  Thee  to  enlighten  and  to  touch  the  heart  of  one 
who  has  written  against  our  meetings.  Oh,  have  pity 
on  his  soul.  0  God,  show  him  his  error  :  teach  him 
to  love." 

These  expressions  roused  Vinet's  deep  indignation. 
He  did  not  concern  himself  with  the  theological 
opinions  expressed  in  either  of  the  pamphlets  ;  but 
the  tone  of  the  Conventicles  of  Jxolle  inspired  him 
with  profound  disgust. 

"  In  very  truth,"  writes  M.  F.  Chavannes,  "  when  one 
re  -  reads  M.  Malan's  paper,  and  when  one  considers 
the  teaching  of  the  Revival  at  its  dawn,  one  adores  the 
patience  and  mercy  of  God,  who  does  not  despise  weak 
beginnings." 

Vinet  seized  his  pen  and  wrote  the  following  scathing 
reply : — 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  41 

'*  According  to  your  master  (M.  CtSsar  Malan),  M.  Curtat 
has  not  inspired  you  with  the  love  of  the  cross  of  Christ, 
and  contempt  for  your  own  merits.  Did  not  these 
verities  form  the  basis  of  his  teaching  ?  It  is  true  that 
he  never  imagined  the  curious  mixture  of  humility  and 
pride  which  characterizes  the  new  doctrine,  but  this  is 
because  he  did  not  aim  at  forming  a  sect  and  founding 
conventicles." 

Marc  Vinet  warmly  approved  of  this  letter,  which 
excited  a  great  deal  of  attention,  chiefly  on  account  of 
the  arrow  let  fly  at  the  new  doctrines. 

The  correspondence  between  father  and  son  had  be- 
come more  intimate  than  ever.  However  jealous  Vinet 
may  have  been  of  his  independence,  his  spirit  was  not 
ruffled  by  the  tone  of  anxiety  displayed  in  his  father's 
letters.  He  regarded  it,  and  rightly,  as  a  proof  of  tender- 
ness, and  this  tenderness  had  overflowed  more  freely 
since  Marc  Vinet  had  held  his  two  little  grandchildren 
in  his  arms. 

At  the  age  of  twenty-five,  Vinet  could  not  picture  life 
without  the  love  and  the  protection  of  a  father. 

This  protection  was  suddenly  snatched  away  from  him. 
Marc  Vinet  died  suddenly,  June  8,  1822. 

To  Louis  Leresche,  June  1822. 

"  The  spring  of  my  life  is  broken,"  wrote  Vinet.  "  I 
feel  adrift  in  the  world,  and  it  is  only  in  turning  my  eyes 
towards  heaven  that  1  feel  myself  clinging  to  something 
that  is  immutable,  certain,  and  eternal." 

On  the  same  day,  Madame  Vinet  wrote — 

"  I  often  think  that  perhaps  we  loved  him  too  devotedly, 
that  we  considered  his  approbation  too  much  as  the  end 
of  existence,  and  that  God  has  taken  him  from  us  in 
order  that  we  may  learn  to  turn  our  eyes  and  our  hearts 


42  IJFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

towards  Him.     But  how  could  we  have  loved  so  tender  a 
friend  less  ? " 

The  sense  of  loneliness  of  which  Vinet  speaks  was 
salutary.  In  order  to  become  completely  master  of 
himself,  it  was  necessary  that  he  should  learn  to  walk- 
alone. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  43 


CHAPTER  V. 

Influence  of  Revival — Be  Wette — Morality  and  Dogma — 
Illness — Personal  Religion. 

The  obstacles  encountered  by  the  religious  movement 
only  served  to  add  fuel  to  the  flame,  and  the  right  of  all 
men  to  worship  God  in  accordance  with  the  dictates  of 
conscience  began  to  be  loudly  proclaimed. 

The  civil  authorities  fondly  imagined  that  the  new 
ideas  could  be  exterminated  by  the  arrest  of  a  few  in- 
dividuals, but  subsequent  events  proved  they  were  mis- 
taken.1 The  pastor  of  Aubonne  (M.  Alexander  Chavannes) 
was  dismissed  from  his  functions  on  account  of  his 
"  pretended  religious  services  "  on  Sunday  evening.  These 
had  given  rise  to  one  of  the  first  of  those  outbreaks  of 
popular  fury  which  disgrace  the  history  of  the  canton.2 
Viuet  was  divided  between  two  contrary  sentiments.  On 
the  one  hand,  he  was  irritated  by  the  tone  as  well  as  by 
the  narrow  teaching  of  the  reformers ;  on  the  other,  his 
indignation   rose   against   the   intolerance  and   apathy  of 

1  Cart. 

2  "The  Mummers  must  be  killed,"  was  the  cry  ;  "  if  these  meetings 
continue,  we  shall  fire  the  town." 

It  was  asserted  blasphemously  that  M.  Chavannes  " found  that  the 
Father  was  too  old  for  him,  and  that  he  woidd  only  apeak  of  the  Son." 

Another  pastor  (M.  Juvet),  after  reading  from  the  pulpit  portions  of 
the  Helvetic  Confession  of  Faith,  was  informed  that,  "the  form  of  service 
being  regulated  by  law,  no  innovations  could  be  made."  This  same  pastor 
found  in  his  garden  a  cross  on  which  the  enemies  of  the  gospel  had  nailed 
the  image  of  a  pig.  Above  was  written  :  "  A  Mummer  in  the  form  of  a 
pig."  Underneath  were  the  words  :  "These  Mummers  must  be  possessed 
of  a  devil  to  be  able  thus  to  change  the  form  of  the  figure  on  the  cross." 


44  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OK 

the  Vaudois,  and  he  recognised  that  the  "  Mummers " 
might  do  good  by  arousing  slumbering  souls.  But  he 
was  already  "  sick  of  controversy." 

To  Louis  Leresche,  Nov.  1822. 
"  My  soul,  imbued  from  childhood  with  the  spirit  of  a 
religion  of  love,  has  lost  in  the  midst  of  discussion  a  good 
deal  of  the  sentiment  that  rendered  me  so  happy:  My 
mind  has  been  painfully  impressed  by  these  quarrels. 
Instead  of  the  peaceful  Eden  of  former  days,  I  see  a 
battle-field  where  my  sentiments  are  discussed,  my  piety 
is  regulated,  and  the  emotions  which  I  formerly  enjoyed 
without  effort  are  rigorously  enforced.  In  former  days, 
God  seemed  to  be  an  intimate  personal  friend.  To-day, 
controversial  theology  has  come  to  separate  me  from  Him." 

The  arrival  of  Professor  de  Wette  caused  crreat  emotion 
in  the  religious  world  of  Basle.  Speaking  of  a  certain 
doctor,  whom  the  public  were  inclined  to  regard  as  the 
forerunner  of  Antichrist,  Vinet  wrote  : — 

To  M.  Monnard,  VSth  Feb.  1822. 
"The  real  Antichrist  is  M.  de  Wette.  His  nomination 
has  caused  an  extraordinary  sensation.  The  wood-cutters 
canvass  his  opinions  in  the  streets;  he  is  universally 
criticized  and  condemned,  and,  as  is  frequently  the  case, 
the  ignorant  make  the  most  noise." 

As  soon  as  de  "Wette  began  his  lectures,  Vinet  became 
one  of  his  most  attentive  listeners. 

To  Louis  Leresche,  2nd  Oct.  1822. 

"  You  must  know  that  during   the   last  six  months  I 

have  followed  the  teaching  of  the  celebrated  Professor  do 

Wette.     It  has  given  me  immense  pleasure.     It  seems  as 

if  I  had  never  done  any  exegesis  before.1     We  have  read 

1  "There  is  nothing  more  vivifying  than  the  teaching  of  these  great 
German  theologians,  who  know  how  to  be  impartial  in  explaining  a  book 
of  Scripture  .  .  .  and  who  remember  that  exegesis  is  the  parent,  and  not 
the  maid -of.  all -work  of  dogma  "  (AstnS). 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  45 

in  the  original  the  Epistles  to  the  Galatians  and  the 
Romans.  The  professor's  doctrinal  teaching  is  pure,  his 
criticism  is  judicious,  his  views  vast  and  profound.  His 
doctrine  has  not  always  been  the  same.  He  has  faithfully 
sought  for  truth,  and  by  degrees  he  has  obtained  it.  He 
has  arrived  at  a  pure  and  clearly  defined  orthodoxy,  and 
he  appears  to  me  to  be  far  more  solidly  anchored  in  the 
truth  than  those  who  accept  a  belief  imposed  at  once  and 
without  reserve." 

It  is  difficult  to  measure  the  extent  of  the  influence 
which  such  teaching  must  have  exercised  upon  the  mind 
of  a  young  man  "  who  was  still  naif  enough  to  take  all 
this  for  orthodoxy."  1 

An  excellent  understanding  soon  sprang  up  between 
the  new  professor  and  his  young  colleague.  One  of  de 
Wette's  sermons  on  the  "  Trial  of  the  spirits  "  was  trans- 
lated by  Vinet,  and  preceded  by  a  preface  in  which  the 
future  champion  of  religious  liberty  blamed  the  spirit 
of  intolerance,  of  which  the  Canton  of  Vaud  was  then 
the  theatre,  and  showed  himself  hardly  less  severe 
towards  those  who  were  "  indiscreet  in  their  piety," 
whom  he  earnestly  recommends  to  "  seek  the  true  com- 
munion of  hearts  in  the  love  of  God." 

About  the  same  time  Vinet  addressed  to  the  Journal 
of  Christian  Morality  a  remarkable  letter  in  answer  to 
the  question  :  "  Is  morality  inseparable  from  Dogma  ?  " 
He  insisted  on  the  essential  connection  between  dogma 
arid  morality  as  the  characteristic  feature  of  Christianity. 

"April  isi>:;. 

"  The  Christian  religion  is  all  of  one  piece — if  I  may 
be  permitted  to  use  the  expression.  It  does  not  present 
dogma  on  the  one  side  and  duties  on  the  other,  and  leave 
its  adherents  free  to  choose  between  them.  A  spiritual 
and  sensible  bond  unites  them  inseparably,  so  that  it  is 

'Asia. 


46  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

equally  impossible  to  believe  without  practising,  and  to 
practise  without  believing.  Do  not  present  to  the  people 
a  morality  founded  on  arguments — give  them  a  morality 
based  on  facts.  .  .  .  God  in  His  wisdom  has  given  us  a 
religion  which  is  historical,  because,  if  there  are  a  few- 
persons  accessible  to  abstract  reasonings,  the  immense 
majority  can  only  grasp  facts.  Set  forth  then  the  mar- 
vellous and  adorable  facts  of  the  gospel  proclaiming  these 
mysteries  of  love  and  power,  and  fasten,  to  this  golden 
chain  all  your  precepts  and  all  your  teachings." 

"  The  essence  of  Vinet's  apologetics  and  of  his  morality 
are  found  here,  and  one  immediately  recognises  the 
leading  idea  of  his  subsequent  discourses,  the  profound 
union  between  moralitv  and  dogma,  between  faith  and 
action :  conduct  that  demands  a  motive  power  which 
cannot  be  anything  but  an  affection  :  this  affection 
needing  an  awakening — an  inspiring  fact :  this  fact 
realized  in  the  redemption,  which  is  only  dogma  because 
it  is  first  fact, — such  was  Vinet's  conception  of  Chris- 
tianity— of  that  golden  chain  of  marvellous  and  adorable 
realities  which  constitute  the  religion  of  Jesus  Christ."  x 

In  the  spring  of  the  same  year  Vinet's  anxiety  was 
aroused  by  the  state  of  his  health.  A  painful  opera- 
tion had  proved  unsuccessful,  and  he  was  doomed  to 
suffer  for  the  rest  of  his  days. 

This  period  of  physical  weakness  and  suffering,  following 
closely  upon  the  workings  of  sorrow  caused  by  the  father's 
death,  was  also  a  time  of  spiritual  growth.  Almost  un- 
consciously, Vinet  had  been  impressed  by  the  questions 
raised  by  the  pioneers  of  the  revival.  "  Like  many  others, 
he  had  gone  on  his  solitary  way,  obedient  to  the  heavenly 
guide — who,  by  the  voice  of  conscience  directed  him  in 
secret — towards  the  personal  knowledge  of  Christ." 

One    of    the    indications   of    this  change,   which    was 

1  Edmond  Seh<$rer. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  47 

operating  silently  in  the  depths  of  his  soul  with  only 
God  for  witness,  is  that  he  lost  for  a  time  his  poetic 
talent.  "  He  lost  possession  of  the  universe  in  whose 
hosom  he  had  lived,  and  from  whence  he  had  drawn  his 
ideal  of  poetry,  and  the  new  universe  had  not  yet  been 
given  him."  ' 

To  Louis  Leresche,  Ind  July  1823. 

"  If  I  have  made  you  anxious  by  my  silence,  it  was  far 
from  my  intention  so  to  do.  I  waited  for  recovery  before 
letting  you  know  that  I  had  been  ill.  My  sufferings  have 
rilled  me  with  an  anguish  and  a  melancholy  which  I  could 
not  overcome,  and  which  hindered  me  in  the  performance 
of  my  duties.  At  last  I  resolved  to  try  the  effect  of  rest, 
and  I  now  find  myself  much  better.  In  recalling  how 
many  times  God  has  protected  me  in  some  signal  way,  I 
am  resolved  to  put  all  my  trust  in  Him.  I  reproach 
myself  that  this  confidence  has  not  enabled  me  to  vanquish 
the  dark  fears  that  rose  so  often  in  my  heart." 

A  relapse  brought  Vinet  face  to  face  with  death.  From 
this  moment  he  never  regained  the  vigour  of  health.  He 
always  regarded  this  period  as  the  turning-point  of  his  life. 

"  [  long  to  see  you,"  he  wrote  to  his  friend  Leresche ; 
"  there  are  thoughts  '  at  the  back  of  the  head,'  as  Pascal 
said,  which  one  does  not  care  to  lay  bare  to  every  one.  .  .  . 
For  some  time,  and  especially  since  my  illness,  I  have 
become  more  serious." 

"This  conversion  was  exclusively  religious  and  moral, 
and  almost  unconscious  of  dogmatism.  The  verses  which 
Vinet  dictated  from  his  sick-bed  in  order  to  preserve  the 
remembrance  of  his  feelings  at  the  time,  contain  no  trace 
of  the  favourite  ideas  of  the  revival.  Another  indication 
that  while  Vinet  accepted  the  religious  life  of  the  revival, 
he  ignored  its  dogmatic  teaching,  is  found  in  the  fact 
that  he  delivered  to  de  Wette  a  certificate  of  orthodoxy 

1  F.  Chavauncs. 


48  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

which  he  certainly  would  not  have  done  had  he  grasped 
the  full  import  of  the  doctrines  held  by  the  Genevese  and 
Scotch  teachers.  In  the  very  letter  to  Leresche  in  which 
he  announces  that  he  has  become  more  serious,  he  marks 
the  exact  point  to  which  he  had  attained."  2 

"  I  am,  in  my  search  for  truth,  led  naturally  to  examine 
its  manifestations  in  those  who  appear  penetrated  with 
zeal  for  it.  I  find  myself  in  a  painful  position.  I  see  a. 
fervour,  a  sensibility  which  charms  me,  a  religion  in  action, 
which  claims  my  respect ;  but,  looking  deeper,  I  cannot 
close  my  eyes  to  singular  illusions — a  tendency  towards 
what  is  systematic  and  exclusive,  and  often  a  defective 
logic.  I  do  not  know  where  to  rest.  The  neologians,  who 
transform  religion  into  philosophy,  inspire  me  with  aver- 
sion. I  will  have  none  of  them.  I  want  the  gospel.  This 
letter  makes  my  condition  appear  graver  than  it  really  is, 
on  account  of  the  vagueness  of  my  ideas.  It  will  make 
you  think  that  I  am  descending  to  a  lower  plane.  But  I, 
on  the  contrary,  feel  that  I  am  mounting.  ...  I  have 
read  with  the  purest  pleasure  Erskine's  work,  Reflections 
on  the  Intrinsic  Evidence  of  Christianity.  You  are  right  in 
saying  that  it  lacks  '  method ; '  but  what  sincerity,  what 
conviction,  what  warmth,  what  new  and  interesting  points 
of  view  !  If  I  did  not  detest  on  principle  such  expressions 
as  '  I  am  of  Apollos  '  or  of  '  Cephas,'  I  could  find  it  in  my 
heart  to  say,  '  I  am  of  Erskine.'  He  does  not  shroud  the 
gospel  in  darkness.  He  shows  plainly  that  although  we 
cannot  conceive  the  'how'  of  the  mysteries  of  religion,  the 
'  why '  is  perfectly  accessible  to  our  reason,  and  that  there 
is  no  true  faith  without  it." 

In  another  letter  we  learn  that  Vinet  had  no  intention 
of  adopting  the  views  of  those  who  regarded  poetry  and 
art  as  snares  of  the  devil. 

To  M.  Monnard. 

"  I  have  been  brought  so  near  the  borderland  of  another 
world  during  my  long  illness,  that  one  might  think  that  I 

1  Astil. 


ALEXANDER  VJNET.  49 

ought  not  to  occupy  myself  any  longer  with  the  arts  which 
make  the  charm  of  this  one.  But  I  could  not  shake  off' 
my  love  of  art,  '  Manet  imd  mente  repostit?n.' 

"  And  even  if  it  were  not  my  duty  to  busy  myself  with 
art  and  letters,  I  cannot  bring  myself  to  believe  that  they 
would  be  in  contradiction  with  the  solemnity  of  the 
thoughts  which  ou<dit  to  dominate  the  mind  of  the 
Christian.  Why  should  I  not  cultivate  this  intellectual 
domain  which  Cod  has  stretched  between  heaven  and 
earth  ?  Why  should  I  not  study  the  secrets  of  the  noble 
faculties  made  in  His  image  ? " 

"  Vinet's  faith,  slowly  acquired,  was  eminently  personal. 
Hence  his  aversion  to  everything  that  seemed  to  menace 
the  independence  and  individuality  of  belief.  Yinet  had 
doubted,  but  truth  had  conquered  him  and  made  him 
free.  Not  less  sceptical  than  Pascal,  he  had  arrived  at 
firmer  convictions.  Pascal  took  pleasure  in  exaggerating 
the  duality  of  faith  and  reason,  while  for  Vinet  faith 
becomes  reason,  and  reason  becomes  faith.  He  had 
acquired  by  personal  experience  a  great  confidence  in  the 
power  of  truth,  and  this  is  a  second  characteristic  of  his 
religious  idea.  What  does  it  matter  that  men  are  hostile 
and  indifferent  ?  The  gospel  which  has  reached  his  own 
heart  cannot  fail  to  reach  others.  Christianity  is  true, 
therefore  it  is  a  force.  All  that  it  needs  is  liberty. 
Leave  it  to  itself,  offer  neither  hindrance  nor  support, 
and  it  will  conquer  the  world.  The  principle  of  religious 
liberty  was  the  corollary  of  Vinet's  faith,  and  each  period 
of  his  literary  existence  has  been  marked  by  some  work 
consecrated  to  the  defence  of  the  principle  which  took 
possession  of  his  soul  on  the  same  day  that  it  was 
vanquished  by  the  power  of  Jesus  Christ."  ' 

1  E.  Scherer. 


PART    SECOND. 


1823-1837. 


52  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Law  of  20  th  May — Vinet  on  Liberty  of  Conscience  and 
Worship —  Sincerity. 

It  is  essential  that  the  character  of  the  new  religious 
services  which  awakened  such  violent  opposition  in  the 
Canton  of  Vaud  should  be  rightly  understood.  Persons 
who  felt  the  need  of  religious  instruction  acquired  the 
habit  of  gathering  together  in  the  pastor's  house  on  Sun- 
day evenings  for  this  purpose.  The  attendants  at  these 
peaceable  meetings,  which  may  be  compared  to  the  Bible, 
classes  and  mission  services  of  the  Anglican  Church, 
were  the  same  persons  who  had  followed  the  services  of 
the  Established  Church  in  the  morning,  and  the  idea  of 
separation  from  the  Church  of  their  baptism  had  never 
entered  their  minds.  Yet  these  were  the  meetings  which 
the  Order  in  Council  of  15th  January  1824  forbade  as 
"  contrary  to  religious  order  and  public  peace." 

The  attention  of  all  thinking  men  was  aroused  by  this 
incident. 

"  If  the  Government  of  Vaud  is  the  chief  of  the  State 
religion,"  wrote  Baron  Auguste  de  Stael,  "  what  is  this 
religion  but  the  very  doctrines  of  the  Helvetic  Confession 
which  the  persecuted  ministers  invoke  ? l  .  .  .  The  house 
of  each  citizen,  which  in  a  free  State  should  be  his  castle, 

1  At  the  same  time  M.  de  Stael  owns  that  "  the  zeal  of  the  young 
ministers  has  not  always  been  tempered  by  prudence  or  charity  ;  nor  has 
it  been  always  exempt  from  the  need  of  bra  ring  persecution,  which  is  the 
weakness  of  geuerous  souls." 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  53 

is  open  to  inquisitorial  visits.  The  judge  appears  ...  if 
he  is  told  that  persons  are  met  together  to  drink  or  to 
gamble,  he  is  satisfied.  But  if  he  hears  any  conversation  on 
religious  subjects — if  he  sees  the  Bible  on  the  table — the 
meeting  is  pronounced  dangerous.  .  .  .  The  judge,  who  is 
probably  only  a  peasant,  is  suddenly  transformed  into  a 
doctor  of  theology;  and  if  he  considers  that  the  Epistles  of 
St.  Paul  are  not  being  suitably  interpreted,  the  master  of 
the  house  becomes  a  criminal,  and  is  dragged  before  the 
tribunal."  l 

The  Order  in  Council  did  not  succeed  in  arresting  the 
progress  of  the  new  movement.  A  true  principle  is  a 
power  which  must  achieve  victory  sooner  or  later.  Here 
the  principle  was  the  cause  of  liberty  itself :  liberty  of 
conscience  and  of  worship — of  free  activity  in  the  field 
of  God,  which  is  the  world. 

We  find  the  first  trace  of  the  preoccupations  which 
were  destined  to  play  so  important  a  part  in  Vinet's 
future  life,  in  a  letter  addressed  to  his  friend  Leresche. 

"23rd  March  1823. 

"  If  you  had  time  to  add  some  work  of  another  kind  to 
your  pastoral  functions,  I  would  ask  you  to  meditate  on  a 
subject  of  great  importance  which  is  the  source  of  per- 
petual conflicts  in  Switzerland,  i.e.  the  mutual  relations  of 
civil  and  ecclesiastical  authority  in  the  Protestant  Church, 
and  in  our  canton  in  particular." 

To  Louis  Leresche,  February  18'24. 

"  I  was  hoping  to  receive  from  you  some  reflections  on 
the  events  which  are  taking  place  in  our  country.  Before 
pronouncing  a  summary  judgment,  I  wish  to  hear  your 
report.  But  I  will  say  at  all  hazards  that  the  measures 
taken  by  the  Government  alarm  me  greatly.  ...  It  seems 
to  me  that  we  are  in  a  vicious  circle,  and  that  nothing  can 
deliver  us  so  long  as  we  cling  to  the  specious  principle  of 
a  State  religion.  .  .  .  Jesus  Christ  has  said,  '  My  kingdom 
1  Compare  Letters  <>f  T.  Erskine,  p.  44. 


54  LIFE  AND  WAITINGS  OF 

is  not  of  this  world.'  .  .  .  There  is  nothing  so  spiritual, 
nothing  so  individual,  as  religion.  .  .  .  The  protection  of 
Government  is  a  yoke  for  the  Church.  The  conscience  is 
hampered  by  its  protection  as  well  as  by  its  oppression.  .  .  . 
Liberty  is  the  soul  of  religious  fervour  as  well  as  the  gauge 
of  toleration.  When  the  Government  does  not  cause  one 
form  of  religion  to  dominate  the  rest,  there  are  doubtless 
irreligious  men  and  free-thinkers,  but  there  are  fewer 
hypocrites  and  lukewarm  partisans.  Ministers  are  no 
longer  State  functionaries  responsible  to  the  civil  power, 
and  sometimes  trembling  before  it :  they  are  missionaries 
and  apostles;  they  do  not  exercise  a  profession,  they  obey 
a  vocation.  Jesus  Christ  did  not  claim  the  protection  of 
the  oreat  ones  of  the  earth.  He  came  to  establish  the 
reign  of  truth.  Moreover,  Truth  ought  to  have  an  in- 
dependent progress  and  pure  triumph  :  she  ought  to 
vanquish  by  her  own  power.  She  is  never  so  strong  as 
when  she  is  abandoned  to  her  own  strength.  ...  In 
former  days  I  had  never  imagined  that  the  question  of 
the  religion  of  the  State,  so  much  discussed  in  France, 
could  be  decided  in  the  negative  by  a  Christian.  The 
i  cents  of  which  our  country  is  the  theatre  have  induced  these 
reflections.  I  know  that  God  can  extract  good  from  evil. 
J  trust  He  will  do  so  yet." 

In  the  following  letter  Vinet  replies  to  the  objections 

raised  by  M.  Leresche : — 

"24th  February  1824. 

"  I  do  not  think  that  a  country  which  has  grown  old 
under  the  system  of  a  State  religion  can  suddenly  place 
itself  in  the  position  of  the  United  States.  But  I  think 
that  an  entire  tolerance  of  opinions  ought  to  enter  into 
the  system  of  a  wise  government  and  of  an  enlightened 
and  zealous  clergy.  The  Reformed  Church  did  not  shake 
off  the  Papal  yoke  in  order  to  accept  that  of  the  civil 
power.  A  Government  that  seeks  to  arrest  the  current  of 
opinion  resembles  the  man  who  seeks  to  stay  with  his 
puny  hand  the  movement  of  a  mill-wheel  which  a  mighty 
mass  of  water  causes  to  revolve.  Government  must 
understand  that  it  is  not  instituted  to  create  rights  nor  to 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  56 

establish  new  social  relations,  but  only  to  preserve  all  thai 
lias  been  already  created  by  necessity  and  by  reason.  If 
it  goes  one  step  farther,  it  violates  the  rights  which  it 
ought  to  defend;  and  what  rights  can  be  more  sacred  than 
those  of  opinion  and  of  hope  ? — what  liberty  more  inviolable 
than  that  of  faith  ?  ...  If  you  wish  the  Church  to  be 
protected  'as  in  England,'  then  you  must  allow  opinion 
to  circulate  freely,  and  sects  to  be  established  '  as  in 
England.'  That  which  is  false  will  decay,  and  that  which 
is  true  will  endure.  It  is  resistance  which  gives  form  to 
error,  as  the  water  in  our  fountains  derives  its  energy 
from  the  compression  to  which  it  is  subjected  in  the 
narrow  channels  whence  it  flows.  Since  the  advent  of 
Methodism  in  England,  the  Anglican  clergy  are  wortb  a 
great  deal  more.  May  we  not  look  for  the  same  effect 
from  the  introduction  of  the  'mummers'?  An  English- 
man told  me  the  other  day  that  in  his  country  the 
sectarian  spirit  is  like  a  functionary  watching  at  the  door 
of  every  ecclesiastic  and  forcing  him  to  conduct  himself 
well.  '  Fifty  years  ago,'  said  he,  '  our  pastors  were  honest 
gentlemen,  hunting,  fishing,  indulging  in  good  cheer, 
enjoying  with  a  good  conscience  all  the  pleasure  of  the 
world.     To-day  they  are  pastors.' " 

Eight  days  later  Vinet  wrote  to  M.  Monnard, — 

"  1st  March  1824. 

"  ]Jo  you  know  what  has  become  the  constant  subject 
of  my  thoughts  ?  Liberty  of  conscience.  T  had  thought 
little  about  it  till  certain  events  took  place  which 
appeared  to  compromise  it,  and  since  then  it  has  become 
my  fixed  idea." 

In  its  memorable  sitting  of  20th  May  1824,  the 
Grand  Council '  confirmed  the  project  of  the  law  directed 

1  Here  a  word  of  explanation  may  tic  necessary.  The  Staff.  Council 
(of  the  Canton  of  Vaud)  is  the  executive  body.  The  ('•rami  Council  is 
the  general  body,  corresponding  to  the  House  of  Commons.  We  may 
add  that  the  Rational  Council  is  composed  of  deputies  from  all  parts 
(in  proportion  to  the  population),  and  is  the  representative  assembly 
of  Switzerland  considered  as  a  whole.     The  Council  of  Slates  is  composed 


56  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS.  OF 

against  the  "  new  doctrines."  Nothing  is  sadder  than 
the  chorus  of  universal  approbation  which  these  measures 
awakened  in  the  country.  "  The  Canton  of  Vaud  failed 
to  fulfil  the  promise  of  the  first  years  of  her  indepen- 
dent existence.  She  disowned  liberty.  Magistrates, 
pastors,  politicians  allowed  themselves  to  be  influenced 
by  the  anti-religious  passions  of  a  certain  number  of 
rude,  ignorant  men  who  needed  repression  and  enlighten- 
ment. To  Vinet  must  be  ascribed  the  honour  of  having 
raised  his  solitary  voice  against  this  despicable  una- 
nimity. His  pamphlet,  entitled  Respect  of  Opinions, 
appeared  shortly  after  the  promulgation  of  the  new 
law. 

"  In  this  paper  Vinet  does  not  so  much  protest  against 
intolerance  or  oppression  in  the  ordinary  sense  of  the 
word,  as  against  the  more  subtle  form  of  tyranny  which 
overwhelms  opinion  with  the  weight  of  prejudice.  Vinet 
insists  that  opinions  have  the  right  to  manifest  them- 
selves— nay,  more,  that  it  is  necessary  and  desirable  that 
they  should  thus  be  manifested."  x 

"Justice  demands  that  opinions  should  only  be  con- 
demned after  full  and  fair  examination.  .  .  .  We  owe  no 
respect  to  error,  but  we  do  owe  respect  to  all  sincere 
belief.  .  .  .  The  novelty  of  an  opinion  is  not  a  reason  for 
its  rejection.  It  is  the  duty  of  all  right-minded  persons 
either  to  examine  for  themselves  or  to  keep  silence.  .  .  . 
The  feebleness  which  fears  to  examine,  the  obstinacy 
which  refuses  to  draw  comparisons,  the  presumption 
which  decides  every  question  ex  cathedrd,  is  unworthy  of  a 
free  people.  If  every  new  opinion  is  to  be  called  sectarian, 
and  every  energetic  manifestation  of  belief  fanaticism,  we 
shall  tremble  for  the  future  of  the  canton." 

of  the  representatives  of  each  canton,  which  sends  two  deputies,  irre- 
spective of  population.     The  Federal  Council,   i.e.   the  governing  body, 
is  chosen  from  the  National  Council  and  the  Council  of  States. 
1  Frederic  Chavannes. 


ALEXANDER  V1NKT.  57 

Does  this  mean  that  Vinet  had  gone  over  to  the 
enemy,  and  that  the  Gazette  of  Zurich  was  right  in 
attributing  this  pamphlet  to  a  "  Momier  "  ?  The  follow- 
ing letter  will  best  answer  this  question : — 

To  Louis  Leresche,  25th  October  1824. 

"  If  we  could  talk  together,  I  would  give  you  particulars 
respecting  our  friends  at  Geneva  which  would  make  you 
both  laugh  and  cry.  Grandpierre,  whom  we  look  on  here 
as  an  enthusiast,  has  been  anathematized  at  Geneva  as  an 
adversary  of  the  gospel  on  account  of  a  sermon  which  had 
seemed  to  them  to  be  too  strong.  Will  you  say  with  me, 
'  0  quantum  est  in  rebus  inane  '  ?  " 

It  is  clear  from  the  above  that  Vinet  defends  liberty  of 
conscience  for  its  own  sake,  and  not  on  account  of  any 
particular  set  of  opinions.1  An  admirable  commentary 
on  his  conduct  is  to  be  found  in  an  extract  from  a  letter 
to  his  friend  Leresche, — 

"  26th  May  1824. 

"  I  am  always  more  and  more  convinced  that  that  which 
God  requires  of  us  in  the  first  place  is  sincerity." 

The  rights  of  liberty  are  in  Vinet's  eyes  the  public 
recognition  of  the  duty  of  sincerity. 

"  Those  men  are  great,"  says  Eugene  Eambert,  "  who 
are  able  to  seize  with  clearness  and  decision  the  ideas 
which  respond  to  the  genius  of  their  epoch,  but  of 
which  the  crowd  is  not  conscious."  The  occasion  to 
reveal  the  idea  over  which  he  had  long  brooded  in  secret, 
was  afforded  Vinet  by  the  Society  of  Christian  Ethics.  A 
prize  was  offered  for  the  best  work  on  Liberty  of  Worship. 
Vinet  felt  the  necessity  laid  upon  him  to  "  undertake  a 
combat  in  which  were  engaged  the  most  profound  con- 
victions of  his  mind."  It  was  the  first  time  that  he  set 
himself  to  write  a  book.     He  had  need  of  leisure,  of  quiet, 

1  Eugene  Rainbert. 


58  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

and  of  strength.  All  these  were  lacking.  The  state  of  his 
health  caused  serious  anxiety  to  his  friends.  He  had 
tried  the  effect  of  the  waters  of  Baden,  and  had  spent 
some  weeks  on  the  sunny  shores  of  the  Mediterranean, 
but  all  to  no  purpose ;  partly  because  the  malady  was 
too  deeply  rooted,  and  partly  because  (here  is  a  charac- 
teristic trait)  ':  imprudence,  fatal  imprudence,  caused  by 
an  excessive  fear  of  disobliging  others,  has  destroyed  all 
the  good  effect  of  the  cure."  Nevertheless  he  persevered, 
and  the  book  was  terminated  by  the  end  of  the  year 
1825. 

In  this  remarkable  work  Vinet  shows  that  "  Liberty  of 
conscience  is  the  right  we  possess  to  establish  our  rela- 
tions with  the  Divinity  in  the  manner  which  we  deem 
most  suitable.  It  is  the  right  to  admit  no  judge  save 
conscience.  It  is  the  perfect  independence  of  the  indi- 
vidual in  matters  of  religious  belief.  ...  If  liberty  of 
conscience  is  the  right  of  the  individual,  liberty  of 
worship  is  the  right  of  the  community." 

These,  according  to  Vinet,  "  depend  on  one  another,  as 
speech  depends  on  thought. 

"  Religion  being  an  affair  between  God  and  man,  Govern- 
ment has  no  authority  in  matters  of  religious  belief.  .  .  . 
The  loss  of  religious  liberty  involves  the  loss  of  all 
other  liberties.  A  State  religion  implies  a  rigid,  official 
system  of  metaphysics,  of  criticism,  of  science,  of  truth  in 
general.  .  .  .  Civil  society  is  the  outcome  of  an  imperious 
physical  necessity  which  draws  men  together  for  their 
common  preservation.  Religious  society,  on  the  contrary, 
is  born  of  an  instinct  which  is  superior  to  terrestrial  needs. 
It  is  founded  on  sympathy. 

"  Every  Government  becomes  a  pope  when  it  takes  upon 
itself  to  protect  the  Church.  '  When  kings  meddle  with 
religion,  they  reduce  it  to  a  condition  of  servitude.'" 

1  FentMon. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  59 

"  '  What  is  the  Episcopacy  when  it  separates  itself  from 
the  Church  in  order  to  enter  into  an  unnatural  union 
with  the  State  ? '  These  two  conflicting  powers,  instead 
of  uniting,  embarrass  one  another  the  moment  that  they 
are  blended."  * 

The  article  ends  with  the  prayer  that  the  "  hearts  of 
kings  may  be  inspired  to  abolish  all  the  hindrances  that 
banish  love,  and  hold  the  human  soul  under  the  yoke  of 
fear." a 

On  the  2nd  March  1826  the  committee  named  by  the 
society  to  examine  the  twenty-nine  manuscripts  unani- 
mously selected  the  paper  which  bore  the  superscription, 
"  "Where  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  is,  there  is  liberty." 
M.  Stapfer  was  desired  to  request  the  author  to  soften 
certain  expressions  which  were  calculated  to  give  pain  to 
members  of  the  Roman  Catholic  communion.  To  this 
Yinet  willingly  acceded. 

"  \  si  April  1826. 
"I  feel  that  if  on  one  side  truth  must  never  be  sacri- 
ficed,  on    the   other  it    must   never   be   separated    from 
charity." 

M.  Stapfer  hastened  to  express  the  gratitude  of  the 
committee  for  the  proposed  changes. 

"Many  of  my  colleagues,  MM.  Guizot,  the  Due  de 
Broglie,  MM.  de  Keratry  and  de  Eemusat,  were  so  capti- 
vated by  your  manuscript  that  they  could  not  leave  it  till 
it  had  been  read  from  end  to  end." 

This  correspondence  was  the  beginning  of  a  friendship 
which  exercised  an  important  influence  upon  A'inet's  life. 

1  Bossuct. 

a  It  is  interesting  to  note  en  passant  Vinet's  opinion  respecting  the 
oath:  "The  oath,  being  an  act  essentially  religious,  belongs  to  the 
domain  of  conscience.  It  is  difficult  to  see  how  a  civil  society  could 
prescribe  an  action  which  has  no  connection  with  the  order  of  ideas  on 
which  it  is  founded.  The  oath  can  be  received,  but  it  can  never  be 
imposed." 


GO  LIFE  A.ND  WRITINGS  OF 


CHAPTER  VII. 

Vinet's  Letters — Change  of  Ojrinion — De  Wettc — 
Influence  of  Stapfer. 

1824- 1S26. 

It   is    to   Vinet's    correspondence  that  we  must  turn  if 

we  would  follow  the  history  of  his  moral  and  religious 
progress  step  by  step. 

We  find  the  serins  of  some  of  the  most  characteristic 


e>v 


features  of  his  teaching  in  the  following  letter : — 

To  Louis  Leresche,  26th  May  1824. 

"  I  will  try  not  to  forget  that  if  faith  leads  to  virtue, 
virtue  strengthens  faith,  and  he  who  acts  in  accordance 
with  the  love  of  God  and  of  men,  and  who  seeks  to  do  the 
'  will '  of  his  Father  in  heaven,  cannot  fail  to  learn  '  the 
doctrine '  that  conies  from  Him.1  .  .  .  Although  the 
Christian  is  bound  to  work  directly  for  the  conversion 
of  his  brethren,  he  can  best  influence  them  by  a  Christian 
life.  A  life  of  purity,  of  charity,  and  of  candour  pleads 
strongly  the  cause  of  the  gospel." 

Again  he  returns  to  this  theme  in  a  subsequent  letter, — ■ 
To  M.  A.  Ford,  22nd  September  1824. 

"  I  think  with  you  that  sincerity  is  the  first  thing  that 
is  asked  of  us,  as  also  it  is  the  sole  means  of  arriving  at 
truth.  But  sincerity  is  something  positive  and  active. 
It  is  the  desire  and  the  search  for  truth.  No  one  is 
obliged  to  believe  without  proof,  and  no  one  is  dispensed 

1  See  this  idea  developed  in  the  sermon  on  Law  and  Grace,  JH.s- 
fours  sur  quelques  sujeta  religitux. 


ALEXANDEK  VINET.  CI 

from  the  duty  of  seeking  it.  .  .  .  It  is  not  sincere  to 
disobey  the  voice  of  conscience  which  urges  us  to  seek 
light  on  subjects  of  eternal  importance. 

"  Keligion  is  not  a  science  :  it  is  not  a  series  of  external 
facts  submitted  to  our  reason.  The  human  heart  is  both 
the  subject  and  the  instrument  of  this  study.  Certainly, 
there  have  been  in  the  order  of  time  prophecies  and 
miracles  which  have  established  the  divinity  of  religion, 
but  there  is  in  all  ages  a  living  witness  we  can  consult, 
to  wit,  the  heart. 

"  It  is  by  the  heart  we  shall  learn  to  know  if  the  Messiah, 
who  appeared  in  Juda±a  at  a  certain  period,  is  a  Being 
whose  coming  was  necessitated  by  the  craving  of  the 
human  soul.  It  is  by  the  heart  that  we  shall  learn  to 
know  if  the  Holy  Spirit  is  really  essential  to  our  increase 
in  holiness  ;  and  we  may  say  the  same  with  regard  to  all  the 
other  doctrines.  While  acknowledging  that  religion  is  an 
external  fact  which  takes  its  place  in  history,  we  must 
also  affirm  that  it  is  of  the  same  date  as  the  human  heart, 
it  harmonizes  with  its  needs,  and  must  be  judged  by  it, 

14  We  are  not  called  upon  to  penetrate  the  mystery  of  the 
divine  essence,  nor  to  grope  our  way  in  the  uncertain 
glimmer  of  a  subtle  system  of  Metaphysics.  .  .  . 

"  To  study  our  own  heart,  and  to  consult  the  religious 
experience  of  those  who  have  consecrated  their  lives  to 
the  service  of  Christ — this  is  the  first  means.  To  study  the 
gospel  and  some  of  the  books  that  explain  and  apply  its 
system — this  is  the  second.  Among  the  latter  I  will  name 
Reflections  on  the  Intrinsic  Evidence  of  Christianity,  by 
Erskine,  and  the  Application  of  the  Principles  of  Christi- 
anity to  Commerce  ami  to  the  Affairs  of  Civil  Life." 

We  see  by  the  above  that  Vinet  had  already  grasped 
the  idea  that  man  must  go  "  from  Christ  to  the  Scrip- 
tures, rather  than  from  the  Scriptures  to  Christ."1  Here 
Vinet  strikes  clearly  enough  the  note  which  was  to 
resound  in  his  later  teaching.  But  on  other  points  we 
mark  a  change  of  attitude. 

A  letter  written  in  1825  indicates  this  transformation. 

1  Astic. 


62  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

Vinet  deplores  the  nomination  of  Hagenbach  because  lie 
represents  "  the  same  tendency  as  de  Wette,"  whose  work 
on  Ethics  Vinet's  scruples  had  obliged  him  to  renounce 
the  project  of  translating. 
He  now  writes  that — 

"  Humanly  speaking,  it  is  a  bad  plan  to  give  as  pendant 
to  one  neologian  a  professor  of  the  same  fibre. 

"  Hagenbach  is  but  the  echo  of  de  Wette  .  .  .  they 
demolish  to  perfection,  but  no  one  can  see  that  they 
build  up.  .  .  .  Humanity  must  have  something  to  believe. 
It  will  not  raise  altars  to  those  who  have  only  learned  to 
doubt. 

"  It  is  miserable  work  tearing  down  the  old  monuments 
which  have  resisted  the  sapping  effect  of  time." 

We  see  that  the  Great  critic  is  no  longer  the  "  orthodox  " 
professor  whose  praises  Vinet  sang  in  1822.  This  new 
severity  is  all  the  more  striking  from  the  fact  that  de 
Wette  was  on  the  point  of  effecting  a  reconciliation  with 
the  Pietists,  and  that  the  adversaries  of  religion  directed 
an  attack  against  de  Wette,  and  against  the  University 
of  Basle  in  general,  as  the  "  refuge  of  fanaticism  and 
bigotry."  It  was  not  de  Wette  who  had  changed,  it 
was  Vinet. 

In  the  person  of  Stapfer,  Vinet  hailed  at  once  a 
kindred  spirit  and  a  master.1  In  order  to  understand 
the  nature  of  the  influence  exercised  by  the  Bernese 
theologian,  it  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  he  belonged  to 
the  old  school  of  Tubingen  (represented  in  England  by 
Paley).  Stapfer  was  one  of  those  who  esteemed  the  Bible 
to  be  a  code  of  revealed  doctrines.  He  held,  with  the 
addition  of  more  science,  the  same  theological  views  as 
the  French  and  Swiss  "  Pietists."  But  he  believed  that 
he  was  able  to  justify,  by  means  of  reason,  the  theology 

1  Asti<5. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  6 


o 


which  they  taught,  while  condemning  the  efforts  of  the 
human  understanding.  The  influence  of  Stapfer  had  the 
effect  of  pushing  Vinet  more  and  more  in  the  direction 
of  the  doctrines  of  the  revival  by  removing  the  stum- 
bling-blocks cast  in  his  way  by  ignorant  "  Pietists." 

The  disciple  has  written  a  preface  to  the  works  of 
the  master,1  which  show  to  all  who  know  Vinet,  that  in 
writing  the  history  of  Stapfer  he  has  described  his  own. 

We  know  that  already,  in  1818,  Vinet  seeing  the 
basis  of  certainty  escape  him,  appealed,  as  did,  at  a  later 
period  in  our  own  country,  Frederick  liobertson,  to  those 
"  grand  landmarks  of  morality  "  which  do  not  need  the 
support  of  reason.  Stapfer  had  brought  back  from 
(Jermany  "all  the  anguish  of  doubt."  But  he  did  not 
resign  himself  to  this  condition.  "  The  soul  was  called 
into  council,  it  brought  a  new  element — it  explained  that 
which  it  alone  has  the  power  to  explain- — the  faith  of 
early  years  was  reconquered,  and  Stapfer  embraced  the 
gospel  with  all  the  faculties  of  his  being."  2 

M.  Stapfer  avowed  that  the  illustrious  founder  of 
critical  philosophy  had  largely  contributed  to  the  solution 
of  his  doubts. 

"  It  was  through  reading  Kant's  work  on  '  Religion  con- 
sidered within  the  Limits  of  lieason,'  that  the  young 
student  learned  to  recognise  the  limits  of  pure  reason 
and  of  the  understanding,  and  the  competency  of  reason 
and  of  the  moral  sense  in  questions  of  this  order.  Kant 
had  led  him  to  this  point.  He  pursued  without  him  the 
rest  of  the  route.  All  the  philosophy  of  Kant  confirmed 
the  impression  received  from  the  first  work.  This 
philosophy,  unconsciously  Christian,  afforded  to  religious 
investigation  a  criterion  analogous  to  that  to  which 
Christ    Himself    had    submitted    His    teaching,   and    at 


*o> 


1  P.  A.  Stapfer :  His  Life,  his  Character,  and  his  Writings,  by  A.  Vinet. 
*  A.  Vinet. 


64  LIFE  AND  WHITINGS  OF 

the  same  time  it  brought  to  nothing  the  pretension  of 
the  human  mind  to  know  things  as  God  knows  them, 
but  reduces  its  knowledge  to  a  form  which  is  purely 
human.  It  is  under  the  shadow  of  these  principles  that 
the  faith  of  M.  Stapfer  found  refuge,  and  subsequently 
it  found  by  means  of  personal  communion  with  its  object, 
by  experience  and  by  practical  application,  a  safe, 
impregnable  asylum."  1 

We  learn  from  the  above  that  Stapfer  held  out  the 
means  of  safety  at  the  very  time  that  he  was  forcing 
his  young  disciple  2  deeper  and  deeper  into  those  waters 
of  Pietism  wherein  so  many  noble  thinkers  have  made 
shipwreck.  Some  letters,  dated  from  the  baths  of 
Loueche,  throw  considerable  light  upon  this  stage  of 
Vinet's  religious  development. 

To  Louis  Zeresche,  July  1826. 

"  T  offered  to  hold  a  religious  service  for  the  Protestants, 
and  a  goodly  number,  including  a  few  Catholics,  assembled 
in  the  saloon.  I  preached  on  the  pool  of  Bethesda  with 
great  emotion,  and  had  the  happiness  of  seeing  it  shared 
by  my  hearers.  I  noticed  that  it  was  the  idea  of  Jesus 
Christ  as  our  liberator  and  our  best  friend  that  touched 
the  assembly.  ...  I  do  not  see  among  the  evidences  of 
Christianity  any  proof  of  greater  value  than  the  moral 
transformation  of  hearts  that  are  attracted  by  the  gospel. 
.  .  .  Even  men  of  the  world  admit  its  moral  system, 
forgetting  that  all  that  is  most  pure  and  sublime  in  this 
morality  is  attached  to  dogma,  or  rather  to  the  great  fact 
of  redemption.  .  .  .  Not  that  it  suffices  to  preach  dogma. 
Christianity  must  be  incorporated  in  the  life.  Why  did 
the  apostles  not  content  themselves  with  telling  the  story 
of  the  cross  ?  Why  did  Jesus  Christ  teach  ?  To  act 
against  these  indications  is  to  ignore  human  nature.  It  is 
perfectly  true  that  charity  cannot  exist  apart  from  faith, 
but  it  is  also  true  that  one  can  believe  and  be  wanting  in 
charity." 

i  Vinet.  8  Astie. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  65 


To  Louis  Lercsche,  Sth  October  1826. 

"  In  order  to  feel  the  immensity  of  love  and  goodness 
that  is  involved  in  the  work  of  Redemption,  it  is  essential 
not  to  lose  sight  of  the  fact,  that  to  avoid  striking- 
humanity,  God  strikes  Himself  in  that  which  is  dearest. 
...  If  God  had  been  represented  to  us  as  indifferent  in 
the  choice  of  a  victim,  where  would  be  the  moral  side  of 
redemption  ?  Neither  justice  nor  mercy  is  satisfied  by 
such  a  course  of  action ;  but  if  God  strikes  Himself,  they 
are  entirely  conciliated.  .  .  .  Theologians  do  well  to 
insist  on  the  idea  that  the  sacrifice  of  Christ  was  a  volun- 
tary act.  But  the  merit  of  having  willed  the  salvation 
of  man  by  His  blood  is  no  less  real  of  God.  If  the  Son 
came  to  suffer,  the  Father  sent  Him.  There  is  as  much 
love  in  the  one  as  in  the  other.  We  cannot  admit  that 
God  the  Father  is  all  justice,  and  that  God  the  Son  is  all 
pity.  If  God  has  done  nothing  but  permit  an  exchange 
of  victims,  how  can  we  feel  for  Him  the  love  that  He 
claims  ?  We  should  carry  it  all  to  Christ,  after  the  manner 
of  those  who  refuse  to  see  in  His  work  of  redemption 
anything  deeper  than  an  act  of  justice  —  a  distinction 
which  is  daring,  dangerous,  and  anti-scriptural.  '  God  so 
loved  the  world,  that  He  gave  His  only- begotten  Son." 


E 


GG  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

Extracts  from  Journal  and  Letters1 — Cette — Observation 
and  Description — Baths  of  Loueche. 

1825-1826. 

The  following;  extracts  will  show  that  Vinet's  letters 
were  not  exclusively  confined  to  theological  subjects. 
They  afford  evidence  of  the  keenness  of  observation, 
which  was  one  of  his  peculiar  gifts. 

A  journal  permits  us  to  follow  him  on  the  way  from 
Basle  to  Cette.  After  confessing  that  his  "  eyes  were  full 
of  tears  "  when  he  bade  farewell  to  his  "  two  dear  children  " 
(Stephanie  and  Auguste),  he  proceeds  to  describe  his 
travelling  companions. 

"  21st  April  1825. 

"  I  found  seated  in  the  diligence  a  young  merchant  from 
Besane/m  whose  physiognomy  was  pleasant  and  intelli- 
gent. No  one  is  ever  as  communicative  as  a  Frenchman  ! 
My  companion  related  his  entire  biography.  It  contained 
nothing  remarkable,  and  yet  my  mind  was  riveted  by  it 
as  by  a  story  of  Walter  Scott's,  so  strongly  is  it  in  the 
power  of  man  to  interest  his  fellow.  At  Belfort  our  party 
was  augmented  by  the  entrance  of  a  law  student,  an 
engineer  officer,  and  a  merchant.  When  I  travel,  I  amuse 
myself  by  trying  to  determine  the  station  in  life  of  my 
companions,  revealed  by  numberless  small  circumstances 
which  betray  the  most  reserved — the  turn  of  conversation, 
the  habits,  even  the  position  in  sleeping  give  the  clue. 
This  interests  me  so  keenly,  that  were  I  in  good  health,  I 
should  never  find  a  journey  tedious.      Nothing  is  more 

1  Rambert. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  67 

amusing  than  the  accumulation  of  a  series  of  conceptions 
which  melt  one  into  the  other,  till  one  obtains  a  personality 
altogether  different  from  the  first  impression.  .  .  .  The 
conversation  was  as  instructive  as  it  was  varied.  Politics 
were  not  mooted,  but  we  had  instead  stirring  reminiscences 
of  a  soldier's  career,  and  interesting  details  on  the  subject  of 
various  industries  in  their  relation  to  the  army  and  navy." 

An  incident  which  took  place  on  his  return  from  Cette 
brings  into  strong  relief  the  sensitive  delicacy  of  Vinet's 
conscience.  A  certain  M.  Grandpierre,  who  had  lived  for 
some  time  under  his  roof,  exercised  so  irritating  an  effect 
upon  Vinet's  nerves — weakened,  it  must  be  remembered, 
by  constant  physical  suffering — that  he  decided  at  last  to 
beg  him  to  seek  some  other  dwelling.  We  wonder  if  it  was 
in  reference  to  this  question  that  Vinet  once  wrote  in  his 
Diary  :  "  He  who  loves  not  the  brother  whom  he  sees  " — 
alas  !  "it  is  just  the  brother  one  sees  it  is  so  difficult  to  love." 

M.  Grandpierre's  love  of  controversy  and  the  extreme 
rigidity  of  his  views  would  have  rendered  him  a  trying 
companion  to  most  people,  and  still  more  so  to  one  who 
had  absolute  need  of  tranquillity,  and  who  was  the  victim 
of  a  painful  malady.  But  Vinet's  self-reproach  was  none 
the  less  poignant. 

"  I  tremble  when  I  reflect  on  the  step  that  I  have  just 
taken.  I  have  been  unjust,  dissimulating,  impatient,  hard, 
selfish.  I  am  afraid  of  myself.  My  Father,  have  pity  on 
Thy  child  ! 

"  Our  friend  has  ceased  to  be  our  guest,  but  he  remains 
our  friend."  (This  proves  clearly  enough  that  Vinet  had 
in  reality  been  neither  "  hard  "  nor  "  selfish.")  "  This  letter 
will  show  you  that  I  am  little  advanced  in  charity  and 
Christian  patience,  because  I  still  need  natural  sympathy 
to  enable  me  to  live  with  people.  The  evil  is  that  I  have 
no  heart;  and  I  am  tempted  to  believe  that  when  my 
heart  seems  to  speak,  it  is  only  imagination  after  all."1 

1  Compare  this  with  Vinet's  theory  of  the  "Concentric  Soul."     E*?av 
on  "  Jocelyu." 


68  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

Vinet's  complaint  is  always  the  same.  He  feels 
inferior  to  the  ideal  he  pursues,  and  nothing  will  satisfy 
him  save  perfection. 

After  the  baths  of  Cette,  Vinet  was  sent  to  try  the 
effects  of  the  waters  of  Loueche  (Valais).  As  he  journeyed 
towards  his  Alpine  retreat  accompanied  by  an  uncle, 
Madame  Vinet  was  hurrying  to  Dieppe,  where  a  friend 
lay  seriously  ill. 

Had  they  not  resolved,  years  before,  that  marriage 
should  not  make  them  unmindful  of  the  sorrows  of 
others  ? 

To  Madame  Vind. 

"Here  we  are  at  Loueche.  It  is  a  village  composed  of 
wooden  dwellings  situated  immediately  below  the  Gemmi, 
which  you  can  picture  as  a  prodigious  wall  of  hewn  stones 
lined  with  battlements. 

"  They  tell  you  :  '  That  is  the  way  to  the  Canton  of 
Berne.' 

"  '  On  wings,  I  suppose  ? ' 

" '  No,  on  mules.' 

"  The  bare  idea  is  enough  to  give  one  the  vertigo  !  On 
the  other  side  of  the  village  stretch  fine  meadows,  inter- 
sected with  paths  which  lead  up  to  mountains  white  with 
snow,  and  to  a  glorious  glacier  which  I  should  certainly 
visit  were  I  strong  enough.  As  it  is,  I  content  myself 
with  gazing  from  afar  on  the  immense  surface  of  dazzling 
whiteness,  lightly  touched  with  blue.  Its  aspect  has 
something  sublime  which  sets  me  dreaming.  All  these. 
'  horrors '  are  magnificent.  Now  let  me  pass  to  other 
horrors — that  is  to  say,  to  our  lodging." 

After  describing  the  dark,  narrow  chambers,  he  con- 
tinues : — 

"  I  have  reflected  on  my  discontent,  and  I  realize  that 
part  of  it  must  be  ascribed  to  vanity.  I  feel  humiliated 
to  live  with  people  of  low  condition — as  if  there  were  any 
such  for  the  Christian  !  .  .  .  Compared  with  the  coarse- 
ness and  vulgarity  of  their  language  and  manners,  it  is  of 


ALEXANDER  V1NET.  69 

small  consequence  that  we  use  leaden  spoons  and  eat 
turnip  fritters. 

"This  morning  I  set  forth  to  visit  the  hot  springs  above 
the  village.  We  found  ourselves  in  the  midst  of  the  most 
beautiful  meadows  I  ever  beheld.  The  path  leads  to  the 
'Pala'  —  the  torrent  which  comes  from  the  'glacier'  of 
the  same  name,  and  which  pours  its  grey  water  and  its 
white  foam  across  the  rocks. 

"A  quantity  of  trees  grace  the  precipitous  banks,  which 
are  carpeted  with  the  blue  blossoms  of  a  fine  species  of 
geranium. 

"  Farther  on,  a  green  hillock  met  the  eye,  surmounted 
by  a  simple  cross.  Below,  we  found  a  little  stream  of 
water  which  reddened  the  earth.  This  is  the  mineral 
spring.  The  water  does  not  gush  forth :  it  escapes  from 
the  pores  of  the  earth,  and  only  indicates  its  exit  by  means 
of  tiny  air-bubbles. 

"  These  air-bubbles  —  the  only  visible  signs  of  hidden 
activity  —  showed  forth  the  power  of  a  Divine  Hand 
furnishing  without  stint  the  remedy  which  suffering 
humanity  comes  to  seek  from  far  and  wide. 

"  And  it  is  in  an  almost  inaccessible  solitude,  discovered 
by  hunters,  that  this  treasure  is  concealed.  I  was  moved 
to  tears ! " 

To  Louis  Lereschc,  July  1826. 

"  The  douche  is  a  diversion  which  I  recommend  you 
not  to  indulge  in  unless  you  are  obliged. 

"My  doctor  tells  me  that  it  produces  the  effect  of  sun- 
shine on  butter,  and  this  elegant  comparison  encourages 
me  to  persevere. 

"  When  I  am  thoroughly  melted  I  shall  find  no  diffi- 
culty in  leaving  the  place.  I  shall  flow  with  the  torrent 
from  the  Pala  to  the  Rhone,  and  from  thence  to  Leman. 
Then  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  running  waters  will  have 
sufficiently  coagulated  me  to  allow  me  to  pay  you  a  visit 
in  my  natural  form." 

The  following  extract  affords  an  instance  of  the  charm 
of  Yinet's  personal  influence  : — 


TO  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OK 

"  31.s£  July. 

"  Yesterday,  something  took  place  which  caused  me 
more  pleasure  than  I  can  express.  A  servant  brought  to 
my  room  a  bottle  of  choice  wine — refusing  to  say  by  whom 
it  was  sent.  To-day  I  have  learned  that  it  came  from  a 
man  who  was  touched  by  one  of  my  prayers  yesterday. 

"  I  had  heard  nothing  to  his  advantage.  Indeed  he  is 
well  known  as  the  hero  of  more  than  one  unpleasant  adven- 
ture. I  have  never  spoken  to  him  :  he  has  only  heard 
me  at  our  Sunday  service.  There  is  something  striking 
in  this  proof  of  kindly  feeling  on  the  part  of  such  a  man." 

On  his  return  to  Basle,  Vinet  resumed  his  lectures  at 
once,  and  he  put  the  finishing  touches  to  his  essay  on 
Liberty  of  Worship  before  placing  it  in  the  printer's 
hands.  His  active  mind  planned  fresh  enterprises.  He 
wished  to  extend  the  study  of  history,  and  to  apply  its 
method  to  religion. 

To  M.  Monnard. 

"  The  history  of  the  opinions  and  of  the  systems 
which  each  science  has  produced,  does  it  not  form  an 
important  part  of  the  study  of  the  aforesaid  science  ? 
Ought  we  not  to  insist  on  the  advantage  of  studying  lan- 
guages historically  ?  Do  we  not  recognise  with  Fenelon 
the  utility  of  the  application  of  this  method  to  religion, 
which  in  its  nature  is  all  history  ? " 

"  &h  Nov.  1826. 

"  I  have  been  thinking  of  late,"  he  wrote  to  his  wife,  who 
was  still  absent,  "that  if  I  had  better  health  and  fewer 
lessons  I  should  find  much  pleasure  in  my  work.  .  .  .  The 
worst  of  it  is,  that  I  have  confused  my  head  and  wearied 
rav  heart  with  things  that  would  not  have  troubled  a  man 

v  O 

of  firmer  character.  My  position  as  a  man  of  letters  ought 
to  place  me  above  many  things,  and  even  prevent  me  from 
perceiving  them.  If  I  could  recover  something  of  my  old 
intellectual  life,  I  might  succeed  in  my  career;  for,  in  the 
measure  of  my  feeble  capacity,  I  have  learned  to  base  my 
literary  ideas  on  the  great  principles  which  ennoble  all 
human  knowledge. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  71 

"  For  the  future,  I  must  live  more  in  my  study  and  less 
in  the  parlour.  But  I  cannot  neglect  my  dear  mother.  I 
like  to  have  her  near  me,  and  to  interrupt  my  work  from 
time  to  time  to  say  a  word  to  her.  She  is  the  true  centre 
around  which  the  family  life  is  grouped."  1 

Tt  must  not  be  imagined  that  Madame  Vinet  allowed 
her  husband  to  be  harassed  by  household  cares.  11  is 
time  was  encroached  on  by  visits,  and  by  requests  for 
counsel  and  help.  It  is  touching  to  see  this  thinker, 
already  overcharged  with  work  and  worn  by  suffering, 
finding  time  to  write  letter  after  letter  to  recommend  a 
friend,  or  to  give  occupation  to  some  German  pupil. 
His  numberless  letters,  all  written  in  a  delicate,  regular 
hand,  and  hardly  containing  any  erasures,  are  a  living 
proof  of  this  need  of  perfection,  which  he  brought  to 
bear  on  all  the  spheres  of  his  activity. 

On  returning  to  his  lectures,  his  books,  his  pupils, 
Vinet  could  not  refrain  from  thinking  of  the  career  that 
opened  before  him,  and  of  the  obstacles  that  impeded  his 
progress.    As  usual,  his  health  was  the  principal  hindrance. 

To  Louis  Lercsche,  8th  Oct.  1826. 
"  I  have  not  mastered  the  enemy  yet.     I  do  not  know 
what  I  have  brought  back  from  Loueche  except  a  fund  of 
good  humour,  which  is  not  exhausted  yet." 

His  wife  was  still  watching  by  the  sick-bed  of  her 
friend  when  Vinet  wrote  these  words.  At  last  the 
sacrifice  was  accomplished,  and  he  was  able  to  write, — 

"  30th  Dec.  1826. 

"You  will  learn  with  pleasure,  dear  friend,  that  my 
dear  wife  has  come  back  after  an  absence  of  six  months 
and  two  days.  Do  not  laugh  at  these  two  days,  but  be 
grateful  that  I  have  not  inflicted  upon  you  the  number  of 
Sours,  for  I  assure  you  that  1  have  counted  them  all." 

1  Vinet's  mother  and  sister  had  taken  up  their  abode  under  his  roof 
since  the  death  of  his  father. 


72  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


CHAPTER  IX. 

"  Letter  to  a  Friend  " — Political  and  Social  Questions — 
Religious  Problems — Death  of  Mother. 

1826-1828. 

The  memoir  in  favour  of  Liberty  of  Worship  was  published 
in  Paris  at  the  close  of  the  year  1826.  Its  appear- 
ance was  hailed  with  delight  in  French  Switzerland, 
where  it  created  a  great  sensation.  But  the  appro- 
bation was  not  unanimous.  An  article  from  the  pen  of 
M.  Guillaume  de  Felice  (the  future  professor  of  Mont- 
auban)  pointed  out  that  the  question  was  not  properly 
stated,  and  that  before  preaching  liberty  of  worship,  it 
would  be  well  to  preach  toleration.  "  Thanks  to  the  sense 
which  the  eighteenth  century  had  given  to  this  word, 
it  had  become  the  synonym  of  religious  indifference, 
if  not  of  incredulity.  Pious  men  rejected  the  idea  of 
toleration  as  a  sign  of  doubt ;  and  if  a  minority  lay 
claim  to  liberty,  it  was  always  in  the  name  of  truth,  of 
which  they  believed  they  held  the  monopoly.  They 
were  quite  ready  to  be  intolerant  in  their  turn  towards 
error.  It  was  not  in  the  name  of  truth,  but  in  the 
name  of  conscience,  that  Vinet  claimed  for  all  men, 
without  distinction,  perfect  liberty  in  religious  matters."1 
His  answer  to  M.  de  Pelice  was  made  in  the  form  of 
a  pamphlet,  entitled  Letter  to  a  Friend  (27th  July  1827), 
wherein  he  shows  that — 

1  Astit*. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  73 

"Liberty  of  conscience  is  as  inalienable  a  right  as 
all  others  of  which  society  guarantees  our  possession. 
...  It  is  a  political  necessity,  a  social  need.  .  .  . 
It  is  not  enough  to  preach  tolerauce  as  an  evange- 
lical virtue.  Religious  liberty  must  be  established  as  a 
right:' 

Vinet  was  instinctively  opposed  to  the  modern  socialist 
idea  of  the  State  assuming  all  the  functions  of  society, 
absorbing  all  tendencies,  and  taking  upon  itself  the 
destiny  and  mission  of  a  nation.  For  him  the  State  was 
a  condition  rather  than  an  end.  While  others  sought  to 
strip  the  individual  for  the  good  of  the  State,  Vinet  only 
claimed  that  which  belonged  to  it  of  necessity  as  a 
condition  of  social  existence.  In  the  religious  question 
are  confronted  the  two  opposing  systems — individualism 
and  socialism. 

Monsieur  Monnard  had  wished  to  insert  a  notice  of 
the  Letter  to  a  Friend  in  the  Nouvellistc  Vaudois,  but  the 
Committee  took  fright  at  the  idea. 

To  M.  Monnard,  2nd  February  1827. 

"  I  should  have  to  spend  some  time  in  Lausanne,"  wrote 
Vinet,  "  and  thoroughly  saturate  myself  with  its  spirit, 
before  I  could  understand  what  would  give  offence  in 
your  article.  .  .  .  How  is  it  that  a  new  people  can  be  so 
easily  frightened  by  a  little  novelty,  while  others,  who 
appear  riveted  to  their  ancient  institutions,  enjoy  far  more 
liberty  of  speech  and  thought?  .  .  .  How  often,  while 
reading  the  papers  and  books  of  the  time,  have  I  not 
regretted  that  politicians  should  be  so  seldom  Christian, 
and  that  Christians  should  concern  themselves  so  little 
with  politics !  ...  It  is  essential  that  Christians  should 
take  part  in  public  affairs,  provided  that  they  do  so  as 
Christians;  that  is  to  say,  in  the  spirit  of  charity  and  love. 
Why  should  they  not  bring  to  the  positive  affairs  of  the 
world  the  weight  of  their  doctrine,  and  their  pure,  calm 
wisdom  derived  from  God  ?  " 


74  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

Vinet's  interest  in  political  affairs  was  not  confined  to 
Switzerland. 

To  Louis  Leresche,  August  1827. 

"  I  have  just  heard  of  Canning's  death.  ...  I  can  never 
cease  to  deplore  the  loss  of  the  great  Minister  who  solemnly 
expressed  his  ardent  longing  for  the  religious  and  civil 
liberty  of  the  two  hemispheres,  and  to  whom  the  unfor- 
tunate Irish  would  have  owed  their  emancipation  sooner 
or  later." 

Vinet  followed  with  keen  attention  the  efforts  of  the 
Count  de  Sellon  to  abolish  capital  punishment. 

To  Count  de  Sellon,  9th  September  1827. 

"  You  defend  men's  lives  because  their  souls  are  dear  to 
you,  and  therefore  you  will  not  rob  them  of  one  of  the 
precious  moments  in  which  the  grace  of  God  might  act 
with  power.  ...  It  seems  to  me  that  one  could  not 
possess  a  living  faith  in  the  gospel  and  at  the  same  time 
approve  of  capital  punishment." 

In  a  subsequent  letter  he  sketched  the  plan  for  a 
benevolent  society,  which  included  an  establishment  for 
liberated  convicts  and  one  for  vagrants  on  the  plan  of 
the  Dutch  Home  Colonies. 

About  the  same  time  a  new  literary  scheme,  which  he 
hastened  to  impart  to  his  friend  M.  Monnard,  presented 
itself  to  his  mind. 

To  M.  Monnard,  November  1827. 

"  I  am  busy  with  an  undertaking  which  will  fill  most 
of  my  leisure  hours  this  winter.  It  is  a  French  Chresto- 
mathie  in  the  style  of  Noel  and  Laplace,  but  on  a  different 
plan  ;  fewer  pieces,  but  a  wider  and  more  classical  selection, 
with  notes  on  the  authors  and  their  style." 

But  all  these  preoccupations,  social,  literary,  and  poli- 
tical,  were   subservient  to  the   one  aim  of  seeking   the 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  75 

kingdom  of  God  and  His  righteousness.  Vinet's  letters 
prove  abundantly,  that  while  anxious  to  secure  religious 
liberty  for  the  Church  at  large,  he  yearned  still  more  for 
deeper  heart  knowledge  of  the  truth  which  alone  can 
make  men  free. 

To  Louis  Leresche,  October  1827. 

"  I  have  undertaken  a  systematic  reading  of  the  gospel 
in  the  hope  of  drawing  its  pure  teaching  direct  from  the 
source. 

"  I  hold  myself  aloof  from  received  opinion,  and  as  soon 
as  a  passage  suggests  a  reflection  or  presents  a  difficulty, 
I  write  my  naked  idea  down  on  a  bit  of  paper,  which 
already  presents  a  singular  disparity  of  ideas.  I  feel  more 
and  more  the  harmony  which  reigns  in  the  gospel  and 
which  is  disturbed  by  man.  There  are  passages  which  are 
hard  to  swallow,  especially  for  those  who  hold  extreme 
opinions,  and  yet  they  are  not  there  for  nothing.  I  have 
heard  it  said  that  at  certain  epochs  when  some  dogmas 
have  fallen  into  disuse,  it  is  on  those  one  must  insist, 
speaking  less  of  others  which  counterbalance  them.  I  am 
not  of  this  opinion.  I  think  that  one  must  endeavour  to 
show  all  sides  at  the  same  time.  Truth  is  only  truth 
when  it  is  entire." 

To  M.  Alexis  Ford,  November  1827. 

"  I  feel  the  same  repugnance  that  you  do  for  a  certain 
form  of  theology  which  is  dominated  by  some  dogma  of 
secondary  importance.  .  .  .  Predestination,  as  a  question 
of  philosophy,  appears  to  me  to  be  a  thesis  which  one  can 
sustain  or  deny  with  equal  advantage.  In  theology  it  is 
founded  on  certain  formal  passages  which  need  to  be 
balanced,  modified,  and  explained  by  other  arguments. 
We  must  try  not  to  see  more  in  these  texts  than  they 
really  teach,  and  we  must  carefully  ascertain  what  rank, 
so  to  speak,  this  dogma  of  predestination  holds  in  the 
gospel  scheme.  ...  It  is  only  too  true  that  the  'Good 
News' excites  the  repugnance  of  the  natural  man.  .  .  .  Let 
us  not  add  to  this  repugnance  by  loading  the  gospel  with 


76  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

our  own  pet  ideas,  and  turning  and  twisting  and  disturb- 
ing the  precious  balance  of  truths  which  characterize 
Christian  doctrine." 

To  M.  Monnard,  January  1828. 

"  M.  de  Wette  has  just  made  me  a  present  of  his  last 
work,  Ueber  die  Religione.  He  treats  the  same  subject  as 
does  M.  Benjamin  Constant ;  but  while  the  latter  follows 
the  religious  sentiment  in  its  different  adventures,  and 
shows  how  it  is  transformed,  disfigured,  or  purified  in 
proportion  to  the  changing  state  of  society,  the  idea  of 
the  German  author  is  rather  to  seek  at  the  basis  of  all 
the  religions- of  the  world  (and  even  of  all  its  super- 
stitions) the  '  divine  spark '  which  he,  in  common  with 
Benjamin  Constant,  calls  the  religious  sentiment.  This 
he  considers  to  be  the  basis  and  essence  of  religion,  whilst 
subordinating  to  it,  somewhat  indiscreetly  it  may  be,  the 
Erkenntniss  (objectivity). 

"  The  favourite  idea  of  de  Wette,  as  of  the  other 
idealists  of  our  epoch,  is  that  the  facts  stated  in  Revela- 
tion are  only  a  symbol,  an  image  of  certain  ideas.  And 
these  ideas,  who  creates  them  ?  There  is  to  my  mind 
great  danger  in  this  point  of  view.  With  such  principles 
each  man  can  create  a  religion  which  he  will  frame  as 
well  as  he  can  in  the  evangelical  system.  Kant  has 
given,  if  not  the  first,  at  least  the  most  memorable  ex- 
ample in  his  Exposition  of  the  Harmony  of  the  Christian 
Religion  with  Natural  Religion,  God  has  willed  that  we 
should  come  to  a  knowledge  of  the  truth  and  of  salvation 
by  means  of  the  Word  and  the  Spirit.  These  thinkers 
subordinate  the  Word  to  the  Spirit,  but  this  spirit  is  their 
own." 

To  sum  up  the  theology  of  de  Wette  in  a  few  lines 
would  be  an  impossible  task.  While  clinging  firmly  to 
the  objective,  historical  side  of  Christianity,  the  eminent 
critic  attached  primary  importance  to  subjective  impres- 
sions, believing  that  the  religious  sentiment  is  the  means 
whereby  man  rises  from  the  finite  to  the  infinite.  By 
the  emotions  and   the   enthusiasm  which   this  sentiment 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  77 

awakens,  the  heart  is  prepared  for  the  reception  of 
divine  truth.  As  these  subjective  impressions  have 
their  root  in  actual  fact,  it  is  scarcely  fair  to  accuse  de 
Wette  of  having  sought  to  create  his  own  religion,  and, 
at  a  later  period,  Vinet  would  probably  have  judged 
him  with  less  severity. 

Many  will  feel  inclined  to  echo  Vinet's  complaint  that 
there  is  "  something  lacking  in  the  religious  literature 
of  our  day." 

"  21st  February  1828. 

"  We  need  something  large  and  simple  and  straightfor- 
ward. ...  I  have  seen  with  pain  the  subtleties  by  which 
these  writers  seek  to  justify  a  hard  saying  of  Abraham's, 
while  they  fling  the  epithet  '  worldling '  at  the  heads  of 
those  who  are  puzzled  by  this  saying,  as  if  a  Christian  were 
debarred  from  seeing  difficulties  in  a  passage !  It  is  the 
tendency  of  some  persons  to  see  no  stain  in  the  per- 
sonages whom  God  has  honoured  with  His  revelation. 
They  tell  us  that  we  must  look  at  everything  with  the 
eye  of  faith,  as  if  faith  could  ever  change  and  confound 
the  eternal  principles  of  good  and  evil ;  as  if  faith  itself 
did  not  teach  us  never  to  give  to  a  good  cause  the  support 
of  bad  means ;  as  if  the  moral  spirit  of  the  Bible  was 
not  one  of  the  proofs  that  one  alleges  in  its  favour :  the 
criterion  of  its  truth.  And  where  is  the  pre-eminence  of 
Jesus  Christ  if  simple  men  have  been  perfect  ? 

"  Oh,  the  distance  is  infinite  between  Him  and  the  most 
holy  among  them  !  You  have  said  it  yourself:  The  moral 
authority  of  Paul  is  not  the  same  as  that  of  Jesus.  By 
twisting  ideas  and  facts,  one  can  only  arrive  at  one  of  two 
results, — either  to  change  the  moral  principles  of  those 
who  are  taught  to  believe  that  the  end  can  justify  the 
means,  or  to  cause  scandal  to  others  by  making  them 
believe  that  Christianity  sanctions  this  fatal  maxim. 

.  .  .  "  M.  Blanc  has  insisted  with  energy  on  the  principle 
that  I  invoke,  namely,  the  invariability  of  the  moral  law, 
and  he  has  done  it  in  order  to  condemn  the  action  of 
Judith.  Why  has  he  not  said  something  about  Jael, 
whose  conduct  is  equally  infamous  ? 


78  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

"  This  example  would  not  have  embarrassed  him  if  he 
had  taken  as  point  of  departure  the  principle  that  the 
actions  of  Biblical  personages  are  not  our  rule  of  life, 
and  that  the  most  eminent  have  diverged  from  the  path 
of  right." 

In  the  summer  of  the  same  year,  a  severe  domestic 
affliction  bowed  Vinet  to  the  earth. 

To  M.  Ford,  June  1828. 

"  I  have  lost  my  mother,"  he  wrote.  "  It  is  flesh  and 
blood  that  say,  /  Jiave  lost.  The  spirit  ought  to  speak 
another  language.  One  has  not  lost  that  which  has  been 
deposited  in  sure  and  loving  hands.  .  .  . 

"  God,  who  has  profoundly  afflicted  me,  has  also  given 
me  the  sweetest  of  consolations — that  of  seeing  our  mother 
fall  asleep  in  His  arms,  full  of  a  childlike  confidence  in 
His  promises  of  mercy.  .  .  .  You  would  have  recognised  a 
divine  phenomenon  in  that  which  we  had  the  happiness 
to  witness — the  calm  augmenting  in  proportion  to  the 
suffering — humanity  effacing  itself  from  day  to  day,  and 
all  the  faculties  of  the  soul  becoming  absorbed  in  love, 
and  operating  a  glorious  transfiguration  during  those  last 
moments.  There  is  in  the  contemplation  of  these  solemn 
scenes  a  force  of  conviction  which  is  worth  all  the  reasoning 
in  the  world." 

But  even  this  keenly  felt  affliction  could  not  turn  his 
mind  from  the  contemplation  of  the  religious  problems 
which  interested  him  so  deeply. 

To  M.  Isaac  Secrdtan,  29th  June  1828. 

"  It  is  useless  to  wish  either  to  defend  or  to  attack 
Christianity  by  means  of  abstract  reasonings,  and,  so  to 
speak,  a  priori.  Although  I  believe  that  the  fact  of  its 
truth  makes  it  eminently  rational,  I  think  that  reason 
and  metaphysics  can  only  conduct  us  to  the  threshold  of 
the  sanctuary.  One  can  follow  the  teaching  of  dogmas 
which  establish  the  necessity  of  a  satisfaction  {Genuythuung); 
but,   arrived    at   this  point,  what   can   metaphysics    do  ? 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  79 

This  '  satisfaction,'  as  it  is  presented  in  the  gospel,  is  not 
rational,  and  yet  it  is  the  only  way  to  unravel  the  great 
knot. 

"  Must  we  then  adopt  another  plan,  and  devote  ourselves 
to  historical  research  ?  The  result  of  these  researches  is 
belief  rather  than  faith.  .  .  .  Personal  experience  is  one 
of  the  means  that  God  uses  to  conduct  us  to  the  truth. 
I  have  felt  something  of  this  lately  when  overcome  by 
the  thought  of  a  life  of  sin,  feeling  that  I  could  only 
cling  to  the  idea  of  mercy,  and  convinced  that  the  violated 
moral  order  imperiously  exacts  a  reparation  that  I  had 
not  the  power  to  offer. 

"  I  have  keenly  felt  the  necessity  of  the  atonement 
offered  by  the  gospel,  and  without  which  it  would  be  use- 
less, and  even  fatal,  to  believe  in  God.  I  do  not  grasp 
the  idea  of  substitution  which  serves  as  basis  to  the  doc- 
trine of  redemption,  but  who  will  ever  grasp  it  ?  This  is 
not  what  troubles  me  !  That  which  troubles  me— it  is 
not  to  love  Jesus  as  much  as  I  ought  to  love  Him." 

To  Louis  Leresche,  1828. 

"  I  have  received  an  interesting  letter  from  Isaac,  who 
attacks  me  respecting  an  expression_ which  I  made  use  of 
in  my  last  letter  concerning  redemption.  ...  I  incline  to 
think  that  he  is  in  error,  but  this  error  is  allied  with  a 
loyalty  which  cannot  fail  to  bear  good  fruit.  There  is  a 
way  of  being  in  the  right,  which  falls  short  of  his  way  of 
being  in  the  wrong" 

In  the  course  of  the  summer  Vinet  was  ordered  to  try 
the  effects  of  a  second  water  cure  at  Loueche.  He  was 
accompanied  thither  by  his  sister,  who  was  also  ill,  and 
by  his  son  Auguste,  who  was  threatened  with  deafness, 
and  who.  suffered  from  a  complication  of  infirmities. 
He  spent  the  month  of  August  nursing  his  sister  and  his 
son,  and  endeavouring  to  nurse  himself,  but  with  little 
success. 

On  his  return  to  Basle  the  void  caused  by  his  mother's 
death  seemed  greater  than  ever. 


80  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


To  Louis  Leresche,  September  1828. 

"  It  is  better  to  leave  to  your  imagination  all  the  changes 
that  the  death  of  our  beloved  mother  has  brought  to  us. 
In  the  midst  of  absorbing  occupation  sorrow  may  sleep  for 
a  while,  but  in  solitude  and  silence  it  revives,  and  one 
seems  to  behold  the  form  of  the  dear  mother  who  was  so 
humble,  so  patient,  so  devoted, — who  sought  to  bear  every 
one's  burden,  and  to  give  up  her  own  will,  following  the. 
example  of  her  Saviour,  who  came  into  the  world  not  to 
be  ministered  unto,  but  to  minister, — who  was  never  either 
pretentious  or  exacting,  and  whom  the  slightest  mark  of 
attention  penetrated  with  gratitude.  Her  nature  was  so 
tender,  so  loving,  so  easily  touched,  and  her  heart  so 
simple,  that  she  believed  without  effort  and  hoped  without 
doubt.  Her  last  moments  are  a  precious  memory.  She 
showed  herself  gentle  towards  death,  as  she  was  towards 
everything  else.  .  .  .  The  bitter  drop  is  the  sense  of  not 
having  made  her  happy  as  we  ought  to  have  done. 

"  The  authors  of  my  being  are  now  gone  to  their  eternal 
rest.  I  was  born,  I  think,  to  be  a  son,  an  obedient  son,  all 
my  life.  As  long  as  I  had  their  counsel  to  enlighten,  and 
their  approbation  to  calm  me,  life  did  not  seem  so  terrible. 
I  am  now  in  a  totally  different  position :  I  find  myself  the 
head  of  the  family.  Alas  !  this  role  does  not  suit  me.  To 
you  I  can  confide  my  sense  of  feebleness.  To  others  I 
could  not  own  it  without  a  blush." 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  81 


CHAPTER  X. 

Trial  of  M.  Monnard  and  of  Vinct — "  Observations  " — 
"Essay  on  Liberty  of  Conscience  " — Observations. 

1829. 

In  the  month  of  January  1829  an  event  took  place 
which  brought  once  more  to  the  front  the  question  of 
religious  liberty. 

An  evangelist,  travelling  through  the  canton,  held  at 
Payerne  a  religious  meeting,  which  was  dispersed  by  an 
angry  mob.  The  evangelist  was  first  arrested,  then 
released  on  bail ;  but  as  he  was  leaving  the  town  he 
was  attacked,  insulted,  and  bespattered  with  mud  by  the 
enraged  populace.  The  Gazette  (the  organ  of  the  Govern- 
ment) proceeded  to  comment  on  these  disgraceful  pro- 
ceedings as  follows : — 


o 


"  Look  at  this  handful  of  men  who,  without  vocation  and 
without  legitimate  title,  usurp  ecclesiastical  power  in  the 
heart  of  the  canton,  appoint  a  priesthood,  create  new 
Churches,  and  introduce  schism  and  disorder,"  etc. 

The  discussion  was  thus  placed  on  Vinet's  favourite 
ground.  He  sent  his  reply  in  the  form  of  a  letter 
destined  for  the  Nourdliste  Vaudois,  but  the  Committee 
refused  to  insert  it.  He  accordingly  requested  M. 
Monnard  to  publish  it  as  a  pamphlet.  A  thousand 
copies  were  sold  in  a  few  days.  Never  had  Vinet 
showed  himself  more  intrepid  or  more  eloquent. 

F 


82  LIFE  AND  WK1TINGS  OF 

"  Society  ought  to  protect  unity  of  worship,"  says  the 
Gazette.1  "  History,  knowledge  of  human  nature,  and 
common  sense  teach  us  that  this  would  be  a  rude  task. 
What !  all  these  moral  and  independent  beings,  all  these 
imaginations,  all  these  souls, — are  they  to  be  brought  to 
accept  the  same  form  of  religion  ?  What  new  force  has 
Society  received  that  she  should  now  succeed  when  fifteen 
centuries  have  failed  ? 

"Measure,  if  you  can,  the  evils  that  have  been  poured 
upon  the  world  by  this  impious  system  of  external  unity. 

"  Yes,  impious  is  the  word,  for  if  it  be  an  impiety  to 
deny  God,  is  it  not  an  impiety  to  deny  conscience,  which 
is  His  voice,  His  organ,  His  representative  in  our  souls  ? 
To  deny  conscience,  is  it  not  to  deny  Him  ?  For  if  there 
be  no  conscience,  there  is  no  longer  any  distinction  between 
good  and  evil ;  and  if  this  does  not  exist,  what  is  God  ?  " 

Once  aroused,  Vinet  did  not  stop  here.  The  Gazette 
had  inquired,  What  name  should  be  given  to  a  "  citizen 
who  braved  the  law  "  ? 

"  The  word  is  easily  found,"  answered  Vinet ;  "  he  is 
seditious,  rebellious  in  the  eyes  of  the  law.  But  laws 
themselves  are  sometimes  rebellious  to  the  eternal  law  of 
righteousness.  Placed  between  the  two,  a  citizen  can 
remember  that  he  is  a  man  and  a  Christian.  If,  in  the 
necessity  of  choosing  between  his  fellow-creatures  and  his 
Master,  he  decides  for  Him  by  whom  kings  reign,  by 
whom  legislators  make  laws  and  magistrates  execute 
justice,  his  name  may  be  inscribed  on  the  list  of  outlaws 
here  below,  but  he  is  numbered  among  the  loyal  and 
faithful  citizens  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  .  .  . 

"An  unjust  law  ought  to  be  respected  although  unjust 
when  it  only  injures  my  personal  interest.  But  an  im- 
moral law,  an  irreligious  law,  a  law  which  obliges  me  to 
do  that  which  my  conscience  and  the  law  of  God  condemn, 
if  it  cannot  be  revoked  must  be  braved.2 

1  "Observations  on  the  article  on  Sectaries  inserted  in  the  Gazetli ," 
March  13,  1829. 

2  We  are  reminded  of   Bishop  Trela\vne\''s   famous   answer   to    King 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  83 

"  This  principle,  far  from  being  subversive,  is  the  prin- 
ciple of  the  life  of  society.  It  is  the  struggle  between 
good  and  evil.  Suppress  this  conflict,  and  what  is  left  to 
check  the  downward  progress  of  humanity  on  the  fatal 
slope  of  vice  and  misery  ?  ...  It  is  from  revolt  to  revolt, 
if  one  insist  on  employing  this  word,  that  society  becomes 
perfect,  that  civilisation  is  established,  that  justice  reigns 
ami  truth  flourishes."  .  .  . 

Vinet  terminates  the  article  by  turning  the  words  of 
his  adversary  against  him. 

"  Look  at  these  half-dozen  individuals.  .  .  .  See  these 
twelve  fishermen  who,  without  vocation,  without  legitimate 
title  (according  to  the  eyes  of  the  flesh),  usurp  ecclesias- 
tical power,  appoint  a  priesthood,  name  missionaries  and 
preachers — these  twelve  fishermen  were  the  apostles. 

"  Look  again  at  the  handful  of  men  who,  in  the  sixteenth 
century,  without  vocation  and  without  legitimate  title, 
constitute  themselves  as  an  ecclesiastical  power — these 
were  our  glorious  Reformers. 

"See,  in  all  ages,  those  illustrious  champions  of  light 
who  have  sought  to  establish  among  men  the  priesthood  of 
truth, — what  have  they  been  called  by  their  contempor- 
aries ?  What  pagan  Home  called  the  apostles,  and  what 
Papal  Rome  called  the  Reformers,  was  precisely  what  you 
call  these  troublesome  evangelists. 

"  All  you  say  of  them  has  already  been  said  of  Paul  and 
of  Cephas,  of  Calvin  and  of  Luther,  of  Ramus  and  of 
Descartes.  .  .  .  Let  us  admit  that  their  contemporaries 
were  not  less  sure  of  what  they  were  doing  in  scorning 
them  than  you  are  in  scorning  these  sectaries.  Let  us 
admit  also  that  in  all  periods  of  the  world's  history,  under 
this  same  title  of  champions  of  truth,  impostors  and  mad- 
men have  risen  up,  and  have  excited  as  much  enthusiasm 
as  the  noble  heroes  whose  zeal  they  parodied,  and  have 
encountered  a  like  hostility.     Their  own  generation  may 

James  II.  "  Vinet,"  says  M.  Astie\  "  preached  on  this  subject  the 
same  obedience  to  a  superior  principle  which  forced  the  American  Chris- 
tian to  violate  joyfully  the  monstrous  law  which  enjoined  him  to  aid 
the  law  officers  to  force  back  into  bondage  a  poor  fugitive  slave." 


84  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

have  confounded  them  with  the  true  witnesses  for  God, 
but  in  the  end  time  has  pronounced  its  unerring  verdict. 
Let  us,  too,  leave  the  issue  to  time." 

There  was  more  conviction  and  generous  feeling  in 
this  spirited  pamphlet  than  political  prudence.  The 
Gazette  revenged  itself  by  picking  out  some  of  Vinet's 
most  daring  utterances,  accentuating  them  by  criticism, 
and  demanding  that  such  doctrines  should  be  repressed 
before  they  "  made  a  breach  in  the  bulwarks  of  our 
institutions  and  morals." 

Vinet's  answer  was  dated  from  Basle,  and  this  time  it 
was  signed. 

New  Observations  cm-  a  new  Article  of  the  "  Gazette." 

"  1st  April  1829. 

"  To  condemn  the  proposition  that  '  it  is  better  to  obey 
God  than  man,'  is  tantamount  to  the  admission  that  it  is 
'  better  to  obey  man  than  God.'  It  is  to  assert  that  all 
morality  consists  in  obeying  the  Government,  and  that 
each  Government  as  it  comes  into  power  votes  a  morality 
according  to  its  taste,  just  as  the  Civil  List  is  voted  at  the 
beginning  of  a  reign.  It  is  to  affirm  that  there  is  no 
morality  and  no  duty,  and  as  men  must  be  obeyed  rather 
than  God,  that  there  is  no  God." 

But  the  menaces  of  the  Gazette  had  already  produced 
their  effect.  The  judges  were  instructed  to  find  the 
author,  editor,  and  printer  of  Vinet's  first  pamphlet.  It 
was  discovered  without  difficulty  that  M.  Monnard  was 
implicated  in  the  affair.  He  was  one  of  the  most  dis- 
tinguished members  of  the  Liberal  Tarty.  The  incessant 
war  which  he  waged  in  the  Nouvclliste  against  the 
majority  of  the  Grand  Council,  an  aristocratic  coterie 
organized  to  reject  all  the  liberal  reforms  reclaimed  by 
an  enlightened  opinion,  had  rendered  him  odious  to  the 
dominant  party.      His  political  adversaries  hoped  to  ruin 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  85 

his  influence  by  striking  at  him  as  the  defender  of  the 
unpopular  cause  of  religious  liberty.  They  rejoiced  to  be 
able  to  fix  him  with  the  responsibility  of  being  the  editor 
of  Vinet's  pamphlet. 

To  M.  Monnard,  4th  April  1829. 

"  I  rejoice,"  wrote  Vinet,  "  to  see  champions  more 
worthy  than  myself  enter  the  list." 

But  if  his  modesty  caused  him  to  rejoice,  he  was,  on 
the  other  hand,  full  of  regret  at  having  compromised  his 
friend,  and  he  took  measures  to  turn  the  arrows  of  his 
adversaries  against  himself. 


o 


To  M.  Monnard,  4th  April  1829. 

"  I  have  begun  a  pamphlet  which  will  be  short  but  I  hope 
conclusive.  ...  I  work  at  it  with  delight.  .  .  .  There  is 
only  one  thing  that  I  have  difficulty  in  accepting  .  .  . 
noise  .  .  .  noise  .  .  .  noise. 

"  Yesterday  I  opened  at  random  my  New  Testament, 
saying,  Let  me  see  whether  I  shall  find  some  helpful  word. 
The  first  verses  I  lighted  on  were, — 

" '  And  when  they  bring  you  into  the  synagogues,  and 
before  magistrates  and  powers,  take  ye  no  thought  how  or 
what  thing  ye  shall  answer.  .  .  .  For  the  Holy  Ghost  shall 
teach  you  in  the  same  hour  what  ye  ought  to  say.' ' 

At  last  Yinet  was  brought  to  understand  clearly  the 
object  his  adversaries  had  in  view  ;  it  was  nothing  less 
than  the  wish  to  ruin  M.  Monnard  in  the  opinion  of  the 
public.     His  sorrow  and  regret  knew  no  bounds. 

"  I  do  not  believe  1  have  ever  experienced  such  anguish 
as  that  which  now  fills  my  heart  to  bursting.  To  think 
that  you  should  be  enveloped  in  the  whirlwind  which 
ought  only  to  have  touched  me.  0  God,  pardon  me, 
and  spare  me  the  sorrow  of  doinsi  harm  to  a  generous 
friend." 


86  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

The  fault  with  which  Vinet  reproached  himself  with 
so  much  vehemence  was  in  itself  but  venial.  In  his 
examination  by  the  authorities  he  had  said : — 

"  I  expressed  to  M.  Monnard  my  desire  that  the  article 
should  be  printed  in  the  form  of  a  pamphlet  at  my 
expense." 

It  was  the  execution  of  this  friendly  commission  which 
political  hatred  chose  to  regard  as  a  function  of  editor- 
ship, amenable  to  the  tribunals ;  and  before  the  tribunals 
had  pronounced  their  judgment,  the  State  Council  took 
the  extreme  step  of  suspending  M.  Monnard  from  his 
functions  as  professor.  The  tribunal  was  enlightened 
enough  to  understand  that  written  law  could  not  prevail 
over  moral  law,  and  it  declared  that  the  pamphlet  did 
not  contain  any  provocation  to  revolt.  In  defence  of  the 
words :  "  Wlien  a  law  obliges  us  to  do  that  which  conscience 
and  the  law  of  God  condemn,  it  must  be  disobeyed,"  Viuet 
had  declared  that  "  the  advent  of  Christianity  was  itself 
the  occasion  of  a  striking  conflict  between  the  holy 
authority  of  God  and  the  pretensions  of  man.  There 
was  a  time  when  the  pure  and  simple  profession  of  the 
gospel  was  of  itself  a  resistance  to  human  laws,  and  the 
followers  of  Christ  in  all  ages  have  proclaimed  the  prin- 
ciple without  which  religion  is  not  possible — that  we 
must  obey  God  rather  than  man." 

On  the  principal  charge  Vinet  was  thus  fully  exone- 
rated, but  he  had  erred  in  not  submitting  the  article  to 
the  judgment  of  the  Censor.  The  Court  at  once  liberated 
M.  Monnard,  but  imposed  on  Vinet  a  fine  of  80  francs, 
with  costs. 

Such  were  the  events  which  induced  Vinet  to  publish 
his  Essay  on  the  Conscience  and  on  Religious  Liberty. 
In  common  with  the  most  enlightened  men  of  our 
century,    Vinet    desired    that     the     spiritual    should    be 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  87 

clearly  distinguished  from  the  temporal  domain,  and  this 
as  much  in  the  interest  of  the  State  as  in  that  of 
liberty  and  truth. 

"  I  am  told  that  by  rejecting  the  idea  that  society  ought 
to  impose  unity  of  worship,  I  have  '  outraged  religion.' 
But  which  religion  ?  Is  it  that  of  Mahomet,  forcing  the 
people  to  submit  to  the  Koran  by  the  bloody  argument  of 
the  sword  ?  Is  it  that  of  Charlemagne,  reddening  with 
the  blood  of  the  Saxons  the  waters  of  their  baptism  ?  Is  it 
that  of  Ivan  the  Terrible,  turning  the  bed  of  a  river  into 
a  vast  baptistery,  towards  which  the  Siberians  were  forced 
in  detachments  at  the  bayonet's  point  ?  Is  it  that  of  the 
Count  of  Montfort,  enlightening  the  Albigenses  on  the 
truths  of  Romanism  by  the  glare  of  his  blazing  torches  ? 
Is  it  that  of  Louis  XIV.,  sword  in  hand,  declaring 
to  a  million  of  Protestants  that  there  were  no  more 
Protestants  in  France  ?  I  own  frankly  that  I  have  '  out- 
raged '  the  religion  of  Mahomet,  of  Charlemagne,  of  Ivan 
the  Terrible,  of  Louis  XIV. ;  but  if  in  speaking  of  out- 
raging religion  is  meant  the  Christian  religion,  I  contend 
that,  on  the  contrary,  I  have  rendered  it  a  signal  homage. 
.  .  .  There  is  certainly  one  method  of  introducing  a  species 
of  unity  into  religious  questions.  This  method  is  the  pro- 
scription of  all  light  and  of  all  knowledge.  .  .  .  Just  as 
all  colours,  according  to  Bacon,  harmonize  in  darkness ;  so 
all  opinions  are  confounded  and  effaced  in  the  extinction 
of  human  thought.  Differences  of  opinion  no  longer  exist, 
because  opinion  itself  has  disc/'jicrred. . . .  There  is  no  natural 
affinity  between  truth  and  force,  any  more  than  between 
water  and  fire.  ...  To  seek  to  create  religious  unity  by 
means  of  force  is  no  less  impious  than  it  is  absurd.  There 
is  no  such  thing  as  a  collective  natural,  official  conscience. 
The  conscience  is  always  individual. 

"  Whatsoever  may  be  the  course  adopted  by  the  law,  I 
desire  that  an  authority  which  is  higher  than  human  law, 
namely,  natural  right,  should  decide  this  question.  ...  I 
desire  that  Vaudois  hearts  may  be  struck  with  the  cruel  in- 
justice of  depriving  a  community  of  the  worship  in  which  it 
finds  its  consolation,  its  hopes,  and  the  motives  of  its  virtue. 


88  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

I  am  averse  to  separation,  yet  1  plead  the  cause  of  the  separat- 
ists. I  would  even  plead  for  Socinians,  if  their  doctrine 
took  root  in  our  land.  I  plead  with  faith,  for  I  know  that 
this  cause  is  rearing  the  hour  of  its  triumph.  In  a  few 
years  liberty  of  worship  will  be  secured  for  our  canton. 
A  thousand  hearts  thrill  with  joy  at  this  sweet  anticipa- 
tion. Our  Eternal  Friend,  whom  we  have  seen  on  earth, 
and  whom  faith  contemplates  in  heaven,  has  asked  this 
victory  of  His  Father.  We  shall  obtain  it :  His  cross  is 
all-powerful — Hoc  signo  vinces." 

Vinet  profited  by  the  veil  of  anonymity  in  order  to 
criticize  his  own  work,  in  a  pamphlet  entitled  Observa- 
tions on  the  Essay  on  Conscience  and  Religious  Liberty. 
He  defines  conscience  as  an  inexplicable  fact — the  neces- 
sity of  placing  our  actions  in  harmony  with  our  persuasion. 
This  "  inexplicable  sentiment "  is  the  basis  of  morality, 
for  without  conscience  there  would  be  no  "  moral  obliga- 
tion." Vinet  presses  St.  Paul  and  J.  J.  Kousseau  into 
the  service,  in  order  to  show  that  everything  dictated  by 
this  persuasion  is  a  duty  in  the  absolute  and  sovereign 
sense  of  the  word.  "  Let  every  one  be  fully  persuaded 
in  his  own  mind."  "  All  the  moralitv  of  our  actions 
resides  in  the  judgment  that  we  bring  to  bear  on 
them." 

Just  as  everything  that  our  conscience  dictates  is  duty, 
so  "  everything  that  we  are  persuaded  not  to  do  is  sin. 
We  can  sacrifice  everything  to  society  save  conscience. 
The  goods  of  the  world  belong  to  us,  but  we  belong  to  our 
conscience." 

"  My  little  pen-and-ink  war,"  wrote  Vinet,  "  has  done 
me  no  harm.  Never  did  polemics  infuse  so  little  malice 
in  the  blood."  .  .  .  Then  he  adds  maliciously,  "Contem)>t  has 
saved  me  from  anger." 

Vinet  was  not  always  so  philosophical.  Every  now 
and  then  a  note  of  deep  sadness  makes  itself  heard. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  89 

To  M.  Ford,  August  1829. 

"  Certain  opinions,  to  say  nothing  of  interests,  separate 
hearts  with  violence.  ...  I  have  already  lost  friends  who 
seemed  as  though  they  ought  always  to  belong  to  me.  .  .  . 
At  present  we  are  more  estranged  than  if  we  had  never 
been  friends.  I  sutler,  and  I  do  not  complain,  because  it  is 
just.  To  love  with  all  the  heart,  one  must  live  the  same 
life.  In  order  to  be  friends,  one  must  either  have  no 
principles  whatsoever,  or  one  must  have  them  in  common." 

This  new  pamphlet  appeared  most  opportunely,  for 
the  Council  of  State  was  taking  its  revenge  upon  the 
tribunals  by  the  suspension  of  M.  Monnard,  while  Vinet 
was  himself  inhibited  from  preaching  for  two  years. 

Marks  of  sympathy  were  not  lacking  to  the  two 
champions  of  truth  and  liberty.  The  University  of 
Basle  offered  the  Chair  of  Philosophy  to  M.  Monnard, 
and  the  freedom  of  the  city  to  Vinet.  From  all  parts 
flowed  letters  of  encouragement  and  congratulation.  But 
Vinet's  one  longing  was  for  peace. 

To  Louis  Leresche,  9th  October  1829. 

"  These  combats  are  not  meant  for  me.  I  sigh  for 
silence.  But  to  see  daily  the  most  sacred  rights  trampled 
under  foot,  and  to  hear  oppression  raised  to  the  dignity  of 
a  theory,  was  a  little  too  much  for  me.  I  know  that  I 
have  closed  against  me  the  only  door  by  which  I  could 
hope  to  re-enter  my  country.  I  am  actually  banished ; 
but  the  world  is  large,  and  God  is  an  asylum  for  all.  Oh, 
abode  of  peace,  which  is  in  the  bosom  of  God,  receive  the 
exile  !  From  this  high  retreat  how  wretched  are  all  these 
debates,  and  how  pitiable  is  oppression  !  Struggle  on  ! — 
God  reigns,  and  His  judgment  awaits  us." 


90  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


CHAPTER  XL 

Publication  of  "  Chrestomathie  " — Literary  Criticism — He- 
volution  of  July  1830 — Letters  on  Political  Subjects. 

1830-1831. 

The  anxiety  occasioned  by  the  Monnard  trial,  and  the 
interruptions  caused  by  illness,  delayed  the  publication 
of  Vinet's  latest  project,  the  Chrestomathie,  which  made 
its  first  appearance  towards  the  close  of  the  year  1829. 
In  French  Switzerland  it  was  immediately  appreciated 
as  it  deserved  to  be.  It  soon  made  its  way  into 
Germany  and  Protestant  France,  and  later  it  was  bril- 
liantly introduced  to  the  literary  world  by  Sainte-Beuve.1 
Vinet  did  not  seek  in  literature  merely  the  conven- 
tional  beauties,  —  the   grace   and  delicacy  which   charm 

1  Extract  from  Portraits  Contemporains,  de  M.  Sainte-Beuve,  vol.  ii.  : — - 
"  I  have  already  called  attention  to  the  excellent  little  biographies  and 
notices  placed  at  the  head  of  the  extracts.  But  all  these  merits  are  to  be 
found  condensed,  united,  and  enlarged  in  the  Review  of  the  Principal 
Prose  Writers  and  Poets — a  rich  and  finished  work,  a  true  literary  chef 
oVoeuvre.  It  is  the  most  sustained,  the  most  intense,  and  at  the  same  time 
the  most  condensed  piece  of  writing  that  I  know.  The  style  of  Marc 
Joseph  Chenier  in  his  Description  of  Literature  is  equalled  as  regards 
clearness,  and  surpassed  as  regards  novelty  and  depth  of  meaning.  I  only 
know  the  manner  of  Daunon  in  his  Eloge  de  Boileau,  which  can  be  fitly 
compared  with  that  of  Monsieur  Vinet.  .  .  .  His  criticisms  are  as  so 
many  precious  stones  set  in  array.  I  cannot  find  one  point  to  catch  hold 
of.     The  whole  is  compact  and  harmonious." 

The  Chrestomathie  has  since  been  enriched  by  copious  notes  from  the 
pen  of  Vinet's  gifted  countryman,  Eugene  Rambert. 


ALEXANDER  VINET. 


91 


the  taste  of  refined  and  fastidious  minds,  but  he  recog- 
nised therein  the  grand  voice  of  humanity  renewing  in 
each  successive  age  its  eternal  plaint  and  its  eternal 
aspiration.  "  He  listened  to  the  brilliant  and  melancholy 
prophecy,  whereby  man  reveals  himself  to  man  in  the 
voice  of  song.  He  caught  its  true  signification,  and  he 
forced  Python  to  render  homage  to  the  truth  of  Jesus 
Christ.  It  was  thus  that  in  his  hands  literary  criticism 
became  an  apology  for  Christianity."1 

Writing   to   thank   M.    Monnard   for    his    interesting 
notice  on  Madame  de  Stael,  Vinet  adds, — 

To  M.  Monnard,  20th  February  1823. 
"  De  Wette  thinks  that  you  lower  the  plane  occupied 
by  the  fine  arts.  He  attributes  to  them  a  great  moral 
importance.  .  .  .  He  is  rather  on  the  side  of  those  moralists 
who  have  confounded  the  principle  of  the  good  and  the 
beautiful.  As  I  did  not  say  '  Amen '  to  his  remark  a  dis- 
cussion ensued,  when  I  should  have  liked  you  to  have 
been  in  my  place.  He  maintained  that  poets  ought  to 
devote  themselves  exclusively  to  the  portrayal  of  virtue, 
and  that  it  is  in  this  way  that  they  are  moral.  I  opposed 
several  illustrious  examples  to  the  contrary,  and  also  the 
fact  that  one  can  be  as  dangerous  in  painting  virtue  as 
in  depicting  vice.  I  only  ask  of  poets  to  be  true,  and  to 
select  with  care,  persuaded  that  in  observing  these  rules 

they  will  be  moral. 

"  What  place,  according  to  de  Wette,  ought  we  to  assign 
to  Faust,  in  which  virtue  occupies  a  very  small  place  ? 

A  new  study  occupied  Vinet's  attention.  He  began 
to  learn  English,  hoping  to  be  able  to  read  Erskine  in 
the  original.  But  his  progress  was  slow,  and  he  begged 
M.  Forel  to  remind  "a  certain  author  dear  to  you 
(Mme.  Eorel)  of  her  promise  to  translate  Erskine's  new 
work.  It  would  be  a  real  blessing  to  me  and  to  many 
others." 

1  F.  Chavannes. 


92  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

He  was  attracted  also  by  the  theories  of  St.  Simon 
and  his  adepts. 

To  M.  Ford,  1829. 

"  They  talk  very  prettily  about  hereditary  right  and 
property.     I  should  like  to  know  more  about  them.  .  .  . 

"  I  have  undertaken  the  study  of  political  economy.  I 
hope  that  this  science  will  render  great  moral  services  to 
the  human  race,  independent  of  material  utility." 

"  The  course  of  public  events  induced  Vinet  to  turn  his 
attention  more  and  more  in  the  direction  of  practical 
politics.  While  feeling  with  enthusiasm  all  modern 
aspirations  towards  liberty,  Vinet  remained  Christian  and 
spiritual.  He  was  not  disposed  to  accept  forms  and 
institutions  which  were  reputed  liberal  when  the  reality 
was  wanting.  He  frankly  accepted  all  liberal  ideas, 
but  he  believed  that  they  needed  the  influence  of  the 
gospel  in  order  to  become  realities."  l 

"  Switzerland,  in  order  to  be  saved,  needs  two  forms  of 
courage.  Military  courage  she  already  possesses ;  but  a  rarer 
form  of  courage — that  of  avowing  her  opinion,  of  professing 
her  views,  of  declaring  for  a  principle — she  has  yet  to  gain." 

In  the  Canton  of  Vaud,  the  Constitution  of  1815 
tended  towards  the  establishment  of  an  oligarchy  by  the 
long  duration  of  the  magistrates  and  the  complicated 
mode  of  election,  which  practically  permitted  the  Grand 
Council  to  choose  its  own  members.  A  large  party 
demanded  the  abolition  of  the  Constitution,  which, 
elaborated  and  accepted  in  a  moment  of  universal  re- 
action, deprived  the  majority  of  the  citizens  of  their 
electoral  rights.  The  shock  created  by  the  fall  of 
the  Bourbons  in  the  person  of  Charles  X.  gave  an 
unexpected  force  to  the  Kepublican  party.2     The  throne 

1  Astie. 

2  Charles  X.,  who  succeeded  his  brother,  Louis  XVIII.,  had  sought  to 
revive  tile  ancient  system  of  monarchy  in  Frauce.    On  the  26th  July  1830 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  93 

that  crumbled  away  in  Paris  on  the  29th  July  1830, 
caused  all  other  thrones  to  tremble.  In  Germany  liberal 
innovations  were  introduced;  Italy  was  simmering;  Spain 
was  preparing  a  revolution  ;  Belgium  was  on  the  point 
of  separating  itself  from  Holland ;  and  England,  thrilled 
by  European  events,  was  preparing  the  way  for  the 
Reform  Bill. 

The  Eevolution  in  France,  which  had  for  its  basis 
the  hatred  of  the  institutions  imposed  in  1814,  served  as 
an  incentive  to  the  work  begun  in  the  Canton  of  Vaud. 
Petitions  flowed  in  from  all  parts  of  the  canton,  and  the 
Grand  Council  was  convoked  for  an  extraordinary  sitting. 
Bands  of  peasants,  summoned  by  fires  lighted  on  the 
heights,  assembled  on  the  Place  du  Chateau.  At  noon 
the  Grand  Hall  was  invaded  by  crowds  bearing  staves, 
and  numerous  scenes  of  disorder  took  place.  Under  this 
pressure  the  Council  decided  on  the  nomination  of  a 
( 'onstituent  Assembly,  and  declared  itself  "  provisional," 
which  was  tantamount  to  an  abdication.  M.  Monnard 
announced  from  the  top  of  a  ladder  these  resolutions  to 
the  masses,  who  dispersed  peaceably,  well  satisfied  with 
the  result  of  their  little  revolution. 

Vinet  watched  the  course  of  affairs  with  deep  anxiety. 

To  M.  Grandpierre,  11th  August  1830. 

"  Since  my  last  letter  events  have  marched  with  giant 
strides.  A  few  days  have  performed  the  work  of  centuries. 
I  have  heard  one  from  whom  1  did  nol  expect  such 
opinions,  declare  that  '  the  hand  of  Providence  was  there." 
...  If  God  does  not  withhold  His  protection,  this  event 
will  lie  the  greatest  of  the  century.     It  is  not  the  reversal 

appeared  the  famous  Ordinances,  which  suppressed  the  liberty  of  the 
press,  and  created  a  new  system  of  elections.  Paris  replied  to  this  severe 
provocation  by  the  three  memorable  days  of  27th,  28th,  and  29th  July 
1830.  In  spite  of  the  determined  gallantry  of  the  Guard,  Charles  X.  was 
banished,  and  the  Chamber  raised  Louis  Philippe,  Duke  of  Orleans,  to  1 1 1  - 
throne. 


94  LIFE  AND  WKITINGS  OF 

of  a  dynasty,  it  is  the  opening  of  a  new  era.  I  believe 
that  the  men  who  aid  are  not  as  great  as  the  measures 
they  enforce,  and  that  they  are  performing  unconsciously 
the  will  of  Another.  After  the  first  impetus  given  to  the 
masses,  I  do  not  find  a  mind  proportionate  to  the  situa- 
tion, much  less  proportionate  to  the  future,  which  this 
present  situation  involves.  .  .  .  Decisions  are  dictated  by 
an  invisible  force.  One  does  not  press  forward  ;  one 
receives  the  impulse.  One  does  not  make  a  revolution  ; 
one  accepts  it.  ...  I  own  that  the  petulance  of  certain 
ambitions  has  alarmed  me.  I  shuddered  to  hear  declama- 
tions against  feudal  aristocracy.  I  should  like  its  continua- 
tion if  only  to  counterbalance  the  industrial  aristocracy, 
which  increases  with  rapidity,  and  which  is  far  more  one- 
sided (einseitig)  than  any  other  form  of  aristocracy  what- 
soever. Of  this  I  am  fully  persuaded.  .  .  .  Deprived  of 
the  moderating  influence  which  characterizes  the  peerage, 
one  will  have  nothing  in  the  future  but  the  despotism  of 
a  Chamber  or  the  despotism  of  an  individual."  .  .  . 

"Vinet  returns  to  the  subject  in  a  letter  addressed  to 
M.  Grandpierre  : — 

To  M.  Grandpierre,  14th  September  1830. 

"  Where  is  your  proof  that  the  peerage  must  necessarily 
degenerate  ?  In  the  case  of  Peers  who  have  no  successors, 
the  Chamber  recruits  itself  with  new  celebrities.  It 
stands  to  reason  that  hereditary  Peers  will  seek  to  resemble 
their  forefathers,  and  thus  give  to  their  dignity  a  second 
legitimation.  .  .  .  Hitherto  they  have  only  cultivated 
military  virtues,  and  these  have  flourished  among  them. 
When  the  honour  of  the  aristocracy  finds  its  field  in  civil 
virtues,  I  believe  that  we  shall  see  the  same  result.  (Of 
course  you  understand  that  I  am  not  talking  of  Christian 
virtues.)"  .  .  . 

As  time  wore  on,  the  admiration  which  Vinet  had  at 
first  conceived  for  the  July  Pievolution  began  to  cool. 

"  If  certain  things  continue,  I  shall  end  by  admiring 
nothing   but    Providence,   which   is   certainly  the   surest 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  95 

object  of  admiration  !  .  .  .  The  Orleanist  Revolution  will 
always  be  finer  than  the  Orange  usurpation.  But  how 
soon  man  wearies  of  being  great !  .  .  .  Liberty — absent, 
desired,  pursued — has  an  ideal  character  which  renders  it 
tit  to  be  an  object  of  veneration.  But  when  firmly  estab- 
lished and  tranquilly  possessed,  it  is  no  longer  the  same 
thing;  and  the  need  of  the  infinite,  which  is  part  of  man's 
nature,  must  take  its  true  direction.  ...  I  love  in  such 
a  moment  as  this  to  read  the  Prophets.  They  cast  our 
thoughts  towards  a  glorious  future  which  man  will  not 
snatch  from  us." 

Basle  was  not  exempted  from  the  political  agitation 
which  convulsed  the  rest  of  Switzerland.  As  has  been 
well  said  by  M.  Rambert :  "  The  tempests  which  take 
place  in  tea-cups  are  the  only  ones  which  penetrate  to 
the  depths  and  stir  the  entire  mass." 

In  Basle  the  question  at  issue  was  the  admission  of 
country  voters  to  a  full  share  of  the  electoral  rights 
which  had  hitherto  been  absorbed  by  the  city. 

To  M.  Monnard,  30th  October  1830. 
"  I  am  fain  to  own,"  wrote  Vinet,  "  that  circumstance 
often  places  obstacles  in  the  way  of  the  full  and  frank 
application  of  principles.  One  is  in  danger  of  forgetting 
that  progress  is  only  one  of  the  elements  of  civilisation  and 
of  national  happiness,  and  that  vessels  without  ballast 
advance  quickly,  but  founder  with  still  greater  rapidity. 
.  .  .  The  epoch  is  prodigiously  critical.  The  historic  bond 
which  unites  the  present  to  the  past  seems  on  the  point  of 
rupture.  Dare  I  own  that  I,  whom  no  logical  theory  can 
affright,  am  afraid  of  the  ravages  which  theories  may  make 
until  they  themselves  form  part  of  history,  and  possess 
antecedents  and  memories  1  The  tyranny  of  princes  is 
terrible.  Is  there  nothing  to  fear  from  the  tyranny  of 
opinion  ?" 

It  was  rumoured  that  the  peasants  were  coming  en 
masse  to  claim  their  rights ;  the  town  was  put  in  a  state 
of  defence,  and  a  week  of  painful  anxiety  ensued. 


96  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

To  M.  Grandpierre. 

"  Thank  God,  the  danger  is  past ! "  wrote  Yinet.  "  We 
should  have  felt  less  alarm  if  we  had  realized  the  small 
amount  of  force,  of  union,  and  of  resolution  our  enemies 
possessed.  .  .  .  Every  one  took  up  arms,  even  children. 
I,  who  write  to  you,  I  seized  musket  and  cartridges.  I 
answered  the  call  of  the  tocsin.  I  mounted  guard.  And 
all  this  without  enthusiasm  or  heroism,  but  with  the  senti- 
ment of  a  father  of  a  family  who  protects  his  hearth,  and 
of  a  citizen  who  defends  the  town  where  he  has  spent 
fourteen  happy  years.  A  few  sorties,  a  few  cannon-shot 
sufficed  to  clear  the  environs  of  the  town.  Our  assailants 
were  scattered  to  the  winds,  leaving  some  wounded  and 
several  prisoners  in  our  hands.  The  loyal  but  timid  dis- 
tricts hold  up  their  heads  and  declare  themselves  on  the 
side  of  order." 

Vinet  knew  full  well  that  the  country  was  incapable 
of  furnishing  two-thirds  of  the  national  representation, 
and  that  the  clamour  for  equal  electoral  rights  only 
represented  the  wish  of  "  a  factious  minority,  led  by  a 
handful  of  good-for-nothing  men." 

The  advocates  of  an  educational  test  will  appreciate 
the  following ; — 

"Shall  I  confess  (but  this  is  strictly  entre  noes)  that  I 
should  like  by  some  means  to  assure  to  enlightened  men 
better  chances  than  to  the  ignorant  ? " 

Humours  of  war  oppressed  Vinet's  heart.  Humanity 
appears  to  him  to  he  "  stupid  and  hideous,"  because  some 
personal  ambition  can  at  any  moment  precipitate  it  on 
the  battle-field.  "  Oh,  admirers  of  the  human  kind," 
cries  Vinet,  "  come  and  see  ! "  On  the  other  hand,  he 
realizes  that  Providence  can  reduce  all  to  order,  and  this 
consciousness  "  gives  him  quiet  sleep." 

To  M.  Alexis  For,/,  IS///  December  1830. 

'•  That  which  is  taking  place  in  the  Canton  of  Vaud  tills 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  97 

my  thoughts  and  agitates  my  heart.  I  believe  that  my 
dear  country  is  on  the  eve  of  a  true  political  regeneration. 
As  we  have  a  new  Constitution,  would  it  not  be  possible 
to  ensure  the  principle  of  liberty  of  conscience  ?  Would  it 
not  be  well  to  insert  after  Art.  36  :  '  No  person  shall  be 
disturbed  on  account  of  his  religious  opinions,  or  in  the 
exercise  of  his  worship,  as  long  as  he  does  not  violate  any 
recognised  rights '  ? " 

Although  Vinet  rejoiced  that  Europe  should  be  about 
to  learn  the  meaning  of  liberty,  he  rejoiced  with  trem- 
bling. He  believed  that  liberty  would  be  a  source  of 
trouble  to  a  people  who  did  not  offer  it  to  God.  It 
was  the  absence  of  the  religious  spirit  which  made  him 
tremble. 

To  M.  Monnard,  2nd  April  1831. 

"  I  endorse  all  that  you  say  respecting  the  irreligious 
darkness  of  French  politics.  A  whole  generation  changes 
its  destiny  without  invoking  the  name  of  God.  .  .  .  We 
are  far  behind  our  heathen  ancestors.  These  pagans  were 
more  religious  than  we  are." 


o 


To  M.  Charie',  December  1830. 

"  It  (i.e.  the  system  of  St,  Simon)  is  not  full  of  life  as  is 
this  old  Christianity  to  which  the  '  Globists ' l  have  just 
given  its  dismissal.  Of  how  many  religious  systems  lias 
not  this  ancient  worship  celebrated  the  funeral !  and  how 
puerile  are  all  these  parodies  and  imitations !  Does  one 
believe  Christianity  to  be  dead  because  M.  de  Lamennais  is 
at  bay  ?  What  do  you  think  of  this  sudden  conversion  of 
an  Ultramontane  to  the  principles  of  liberty  of  conscience  ? 
He  preaches  to  the  deaf.  Roman  Catholicism  needs  a  new 
order  of  clergy,  and  then  we  m'ujht  see  wonders." 

Vinet  followed  with  keen  interest  the  progress  of  the 
Committee  charged  to  present  the  project  of  a  new 
Constitution  to  the  Canton  of  Vaud. 

1  The  Olobe  newspaper. 
G 


98  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

To  M.  A.  Ford,  4th  April  1831. 

"It  is  a  fine  scheme,"  lie  wrote,  "but  I  cannot  help 
thinking  that  those  who  frame  it  submit  too  readily  to  the 
ideas  of  the  day.  ...  I  see  many  sage  precautions  against 
power :  none  against  liberty.  I  own  that  all  this  gives 
me  some  uneasiness.  Present  circumstances  have  made 
people  forget  that  power  is  one  of  the  elements  of  social 
order.  Another  thing  that  they  have  forgotten  is — the 
corruption  of  the  human  heart.  Our  Constitutions  scatter 
political  rights  broadcast,  as  though  they  were  dealing  with 
angels ;  and,  strange  to  say,  the  more  those  at  the  head  of 
affairs  are  honest  and  disinterested,  the  more  inevitable  is 
their  error.  Such  men  readily  believe  that  others  share 
their  own  rectitude  and  delicacy  of  conscience.  I  believe 
those  who  understand  these  things  would  find  no  difficulty 
in  proving  that  political  organization  is  not  so  much  the 
end  as  the  means — the  means  of  protecting  the  rights  of 
all,  and  of  facilitating  the  perfectionment  of  the  human 
race.  In  conformity  with  this  principle,  political  power 
beginning  with  the  franchise  should  be  confided  to  the 
most  worthy,  the  most  capable,  and  the  best  placed  for  its 
exercise.  .  .  .  That  which  puts  a  bridle  to  my  hopes  and 
sympathies  for  the  enfranchisement  of  the  people,  is  the 
absence  of  the  religious  element.  As  long  as  this  is 
lacking,  nations  will  torment  themselves  in  vain." 

In  Basle  the  struggle  between  city  and  country 
continued,  and  much  bitterness  of  feeling  was  provoked 
on  either  side.  The  Government  of  Basle  charged  Vinet 
with  a  diplomatic  mission  to  Lausanne  in  order  to 
explain  the  situation  of  affairs  and  refute  calumnies. 
But  the  division  between  the  two  populations  was  too 
deep  to  admit  of  reconciliation,  and,  weary  of  this  con- 
tinued strife,  the  Diet  pronounced  the  separation  of  the 
canton  into  two  parts. 

To  M.  Monnard,  October  1832. 

"  You  know  that  I  have  made  my  profession  of  faith  at 
the  J)iet  in  an  unmistakable  fashion  ? 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  99 

"You  imagined,  perhaps,  that  in  pronouncing  the  word 
aristocracy,  I  meant  the  ambition  of  place.  Not  at  all :  I 
meant  the  aristocracy  of  money — the  inflexible  pride  and 
the  hardness  which  result  from  the  sense  of  the  superiority 
of  wealth.  This  is  the  cause  of  the  unfortunate  division 
of  Basle  into  two  populations." 

The  last  two  years  had  brought  to  Vinet  much  bitter 
experience  of  the  selfishness  of  man.  While  ready  to 
"  adore  results  "  as  the  work  of  God,  he  felt  profoundly 
disgusted  at  the  principles,  the  means,  the  agents,  by 
which  they  were  obtained. 

To  M.  Scholl,  Pastor  in  London,  2Sth  Sejrtember  1831. 

"  Selfishness  is  everywhere,  because  incredulity  is  every- 
where," wrote  Vinet.  "  Is  it  the  same  in  England  ?  Have 
you  not  there  a  background  of  belief  and  of  piety  which 
will  save  you  ?  Have  you  not  taught  the  mass  to  accept 
a  better  Reform  Bill  than  that  which  has  just  been  adopted 
by  Parliament — a  perfect  bill,  which  does  not  need  to  be 
altered  from  session  to  session  ?  God  grant  that  it  may 
be  accepted  everywhere.  It  is  the  sole  hope  of  society — 
sick  unto  death." 


100  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


CHAPTER    XII. 

"  Some  Ideas  on  Religious  Liberty  " — Opinion  on  Dissenters 
— Respect  for  Antiquity — State  of  Europe — Religion 
and  Politics. 

1831. 

A  new  era  had  dawned  for  the  Vaudois  people.     It  began 
—as   do   all  new    eras — by   exciting   many   hopes,   and 
fostering  many  illusions. 

"  We  are  now  given  over  to  liberty,"  wrote  Vinet  in  the 
Xouvelliste  Vaudois.  "  By  this  fact  we  are  brought  face 
to  face  with  either  a  great  privilege  or  a  great  danger. 
Your  liberty  (do  not  forget  this  fact)  will  be  worth  just 
that  which  you  are  worth  yourselves." 

Foremost  among  the  questions  which  the  new 
Assembly  (called  into  existence  by  the  Revolution)  was 
invited  to  solve,  came  the  question  of  religious  liberty. 
The  clergy,  unanimous  on  the  subject  of  the  maintenance 
of  the  National  Church,  were  divided  on  that  of  liberty 
of  worship. 

The  friends  of  Vinet  turned  their  eyes  in  the  direction 
of  Basle,  hoping  for  some  vigorous  article  from  his 
pen.  They  had  not  long  to  wait.  In  February 
appeared  a  pamphlet,  entitled  Some  Ideas  on  Religious 
liberty.  According  to  Vinet,  religious  liberty  was  not 
merely  a  right,  but  an  imperious  necessity  of  our  human 
nature. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  101 

"  February  1831. 

" Conscience  is  opinion  reinforced  by  the  sentiment  of 
obligation.  He  who  will  weigh  these  two  elements  when 
united,  will  learn  that  nothing  in  the  world  will  out- 
balance them.  .  .  .  Nothing  can  endure  but  that  which 
rests  on  the  immutable  basis  of  reason,  right,  and  nature. 
The  exercise  of  all  other  virtues  is  a  simple  right,  but  the 
exercise  of  religious  liberty  has  the  character  of  a  duty. 
The  object  of  all  other  rights  is  more  or  less  outside  of  our- 
selves. They  are  our  goods,  our  means  of  existence,  and,  in 
certain  cases,  our  life.  But  the  object  of  this  right  is  the 
most  intimate  part  of  our  being,  God  Himself  manifest- 
ing Himself  in  us.  When  such  a  right  is  violated,  what 
else  would  be  sacred  ?  Who  would  respect  my  dwelling- 
after  having  violated  the  sanctuary  of  my  soul  ?  Who 
would  keep  his  hand  from  my  goods  after  having  laid  it  on 
my  most  precious  treasure  ?  Who  would  leave  me  master 
of  my  opinions  after  forbidding  nieto  obey  my  conscience? 
.  .  .  Without  Liberty  there  can  be  no  security.  She  is 
the  sign  of  all  true  progress.  She  indicates  the  highest 
degree  of  civilisation,  and  the  triumph  of  moral  ideas." 

After  having  recalled  the  fact  that  the  liberty  of  the 
press  had  been  established  by  law,  Vinet  declared 
that — 

"  one  must  hold  fast  by  this  law,  or  else  make  another 
in  favour  of  religious  liberty.  For  how  would  it  be 
possible  to  refuse  to  conscience  that  which  we  have 
accorded  to  opinion  ?  " 

It  is  interesting  to  note  that  a  pamphlet  from  the  pen 
of  the  Doyen  Curtat  appeared  at  the  same  time,  in  which 
he  stated  his  conviction  that  the  independence  of  the 
Church  would  result  in  the  destruction  of  religion,  in 
civil  war,  and  in  national  ruin. 

"  Obedient  to  the  voice  of  conscience,  the  Doyen  Curtat 
showed  himself  full  of  intolerance  ;  while  Vinet,  following 
the    same    internal   guide,   established    the    principle    of 


102  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

religious  liberty,  and  inspirited  the  ever-growing  array  of 
its  devoted  adherents.  Vinet  obeyed  without  hesitation 
the  promptings  of  his  conscience,  and  followed  them  to 
their  logical  end. 

"  If  he  succeeded  in  finding  a  firm  standing-ground,, 
as  his  venerable  master  the  Doyen  Curtat  had  done,  it 
was  on  the  other  side  of  the  torrent.  Destined  to  meet 
with  joy  in  the  heavenly  mansions,  an  abyss  separated 
them  for  the  rest  of  their  terrestrial  pilgrimage." :  2 

Vinet  took  care  to  distinguish  between  the  cause  he 
pleaded  and  that  of  the  "  Dissenters."  He  even  went  the 
length  of  showing  the  advantage  they  had  gained  from 
persecution. 

"  Because  they  suffer  with  courage,  many  think  that 
they  suffer  for  the  cause  of  truth. 

"  Doubtless  they  had  truth  and  reason  on  their  side,  but 
they  thought  that  they  possessed  more  than  their  share. 
Had  they  been  left  in  peace,  they  would  have  been  judged 
with  fewer  prepossessions  in  their  favour. 

"  Their  position  would  not  have  added  sanction  to  their 
doctrine.  They  would  have  been  treated  dispassionately, 
and  probably  that  which  was  anti-scriptural,  narrow,  arbi- 
trary, and  exclusive,  and  put  them  out  of  touch  with  the 
law  of  progress  in  the  human  mind  and  with  some  of  the 
principles  of  human  nature,  would  have  been  confined 
within  yet  stricter  limits." 

Vinet  was  called  on  to  pay  dearly  for  this  plain 
speaking.  Yet  these  strictures  only  afforded  further 
proof — if  proof  were  needed — of  his  sincerity.  In  his 
preceding  articles,  written  in  anticipation  of  popular 
violence,  he  had  had  good  reason  for  regarding  the 
persecuted  Christians  as  victims  of  a  grievous  intolerance. 

1  F.  Chavaniics. 

2  In  a  letter  to  M.  Monnard  (1881)  we  find  the  following  malicious 
sentence:  "Pardon  me,  M.  Curtat,  I  said  my  DOCTRINES,  in  the  plural!" 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  103 

But  on  one  important  point  his  sentiments  had  not 
changed.  lie  had  less  sympathy  than  ever  with  the 
spirit  of  contention  and  indiscreet  zeal.  One  passage 
will  suftiee. 

To  M.  Ford,  July. 

"With  regard  to  Christianity,  we  have  men  here  who 
undertake  to  discredit  it.  It  is  a  branch  of  the  great  tree 
of  Cesar  Malan,  grafted  after  the  fashion  of  mistletoe  on 
our  Church  of  Basle  by  a  disciple  of  the  Pre  BenV  I  have 
had  the  opportunity  of  watching  the  proceedings  of  these 
ladies  and  gentlemen,  and  I  ask  myself  if  the  Macbriars 
and  Balf  ours  of  Walter  Scott  were  not  more  reasonable! 
These  people,  with  their  little  views  and  their  big  words, 
with  the  thunder  of  their  anathemas  and  the  platitude  of 
their  plottings,  have  the  appearance  of  children  who  play  at 
religion.  It  would  be  well  if  they  were  only  ridiculous,  but 
it  is  much  worse  in  reality.  Oh,  if  persecution  were  not 
so  near,  and  not  so  easy  to  kindle,  I  should  long  for  a  good 
'  JProvinciede"  directed  against  these  cold  fanatics !  You 
are  astonished  that  I,  their  defender,  should  speak  of  them 
in  this  way  ?  I  would  defend  them  again,  but  that  which 
1  have  lately  seen  stirs  all  the  moral  sentiment  I  possess. 
.  .  .  After  all,  they  are  not  all  alike,  and  I  know  else- 
where some  who  are  worthy  of  respect." 

Vinet  approached  with  delicacy  the  subject  of  the 
separation  of  Church  and  State.  It  was  still  a  far-off 
ideal,  and  he  did  not  wish  to  realize  it  at  the  expense  of 
any  particular  Church. 

He  still  clung  with  all  the  tender  fibres  of  old  associa- 
tion  to  the  National  Church  in  which  he  had  been  bred. 

Letter  to  the  "  Nouvelliste." 

"  I  am  not  a  stranger  to  the  sentiment  which  attaches 
one  to  the  past,  and  to  this  respect  for  ancient  institutions 
which  is  akin  to  respect  for  age.  ...  I  would  almost 
reproach  myself  as  much  to  be  wanting  in  respect  for  an 

1  The  residence  of  C.  Malan. 

2  Allusion  to  the  Ltttres  Provinciates. 


104  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

old  thing  as  for  an  old  man.  .  .  .  The  age  of  our  Church 
recommends  it:  its  origin  still  more  so.  .  .  .  But  I  love 
in  her  more  that  which  she  might  become  than  that  which 
she  has  been.  ...  I  see  in  her  one  of  the  manifestations 
of  the  invisible  Church.  I  love  in  her  that  which  our 
fathers  have  loved :  an  asylum  for  souls  that  are  weary 
and  heavy  laden,  a  hostelry  for  travellers  on  the  way  to 
eternity,  a  link  cast  by  the  hand  of  my  Lord  between  heaven 
and  earth.  I  love  in  her  something  more  ancient  than 
all  my  past — something  which  she  still  possesses  of  the 
Church  of  Christ — or  rather,  it  is  the  Church  of  Christ 
which  I  love  in  her." 

The  most  remarkable  of  the  articles  written  by  Vinet 
during  this  period  took  the  form  of  a  letter  on  the 
subject  of  the  attitude  of  the  pastors,  of  whom  a  great 
number  separated  the  cause  of  the  national  Church  from 
that  of  liberty. 

"How  can  religious  liberty  be  called  in  question  by 
Christians  ?  How  can  those  who  profess  to  be  saved  by 
faith  talk  of  constraint  and  restriction  ?  How  can  the 
disciples  of  one  whose  reign  is  not  of  this  world  consent 
to  the  dominion  by  earthly  powers  of  the  inheritance  of 
the  Lord  ? 

"  Take  with  you  this  thought  to  Mount  Sinai  shrouded 
in  the  thunders  of  the  Law,  or  to  Calvary  encircled  by 
miracles  of  love.  Take  it  from  the  height  of  heaven 
to  the  foot  of  the  Cross :  raise  yourself  so  high  that 
all  the  vain  obstacles  of  carnal  wisdom  and  of  earthly 
politics  are  lost  in  the  immensities  of  the  other  world. 
Meditate  on  liberty  of  worship  on  your  knees  before  the 
Cross  of  the  God-man ;  plunge  yourselves  in  His  atmo- 
sphere of  the  Infinite,  the  Divine,  and  the  Eternal;  fill 
yourself  with  thoughts  of  death  and  of  immortality,  and 
then  come  if  you  can  to  oppose  to  us  your  frail  objections, 
your  petty  measures,  and  your  dwarfed  wisdom.  Try 
to  enchain  the  conscience  of  the  people  with  your  puny 
bonds,  and  point  out  a  narrow  entrance  for  the  chariot  of 
fire  whose  pathway  leads  to  the  heavens.  .  .  .  Separation 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  105 

is  nothing  at  present,"  he  wrote;  "but  if  this  ancient 
slavery  of  the  Church  continues,  another  kind  of  dissent 
is  preparing  itself,  a  large,  liberal,  perhaps  national  dissent. 
It  is  necessary  that  the  Church  should  be  free,  and  it  shall 
be  free.  .  .  .  We  will  advance:  we  must.  By  liberty  to 
unity.     Such  will  be  the  device  of  Christianity." 

But  all  this  eloquence  was  of  no  avail.  The  Assembly 
rejected  by  a  large  majority  the  amendment  which 
sought  to  establish  liberty  of  worship. 

The  discouragement  felt  by  Vinet  is  discernible  in 
his  letters.  Everywhere  the  outlook  seemed  dark 
and  sad. 

To  M.  CkarM,  October  1831. 

"  The  state  of  Europe  appears  extremely  serious.  Public 
questions  have  reached  a  height  which  puts  them  in 
contact  with  metaphysics  and  religion.  There  is  no 
institution,  old  or  new,  whereon  the  faith  of  nations  and 
of  individuals  can  rest.  Everything  is  argued  about, 
discussed,  and  judged.  A  king  is  an  idea;  a  form  of 
government  is  an  idea:  nothing  is  real,  nothing  is  neces- 
sary, nothing  is  loved.  .  .  .  As  political  faith  will  not  be 
revived  for  a  long  time,  and  as,  meanwhile,  something 
must  be  believed, — as  all  external  force  is  vain  without 
moral  force,  and  as  all  moral  force  is  based  on  faith, — it 
follows  that  if  the  French  people  wish  to  be  guaranteed 
against  the  dangers  of  political  incredulity,  it  must  cast 
itself  in  the  arms  of  religious  faith.  .  .  . 

"Your  St.  Simonians  have  realized  that  we  cannot 
dispense  with  worship.  But  their  system  of  religion  and 
of  morality  is  hollow  and  empty.  .  .  .  There  is  not  enough 
in  it  to  deceive  a  child,  yet  I  cannot  too  much  admire 
their  assurance  when  they  speak  of  God,  who  is  only  for 
them  the  Great  All,  the  mass  of  beings,  the  ocean  of 
existences,  and  in  whose  bosom  will  be  lost  (without  con- 
sciousness or  remembrance)  all  men — the  St.  Simonians 
with  the  rest.  It  is  true  that,  having  bequeathed  their 
personality  to  humanity,  they  have  the  immense  con- 
solation of  knowing  that  humanity  does  not  die,  and  that 


106  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

their  personality  is  preserved  with  it,  while  on  their  side 
they  are  as  if  they  had  never  existed  !  .  .  .  How  delightful 
to  pass  from  these  cloudy  metaphysics  to  the  elevated  and 
noble  system  of  Royer  Collard  !  " 

It  will  not  be  out  of  place  to  close  this  account  of  the 
lie  volution — in  which  we  have  seen  Vinet  under  so 
many  different  lights  (sometimes  taking  the  musket, 
sometimes  trying  his  hand  at  diplomatic  negotiations, 
and  sometimes  fighting  with  the  more  familiar  weapons 
of  pen  and  ink) — by  the  insertion  of  a  letter  in  which 
he  developes  his  manner  of  considering  the  relations 
that  exist  between  religion  and  patriotism. 

Madame  Jaquet  Forel  had  asked  his  opinion  of  a 
definition  of  patriotism  given  by  an  English  writer, — 
"  Something  which  commands  us  to  oppress  other 
countries  in  order  to  augment  the  imaginary  happiness  of 
our  own." 

Vinet  began  his  reply  by  setting  aside  that  spurious 
form  of  patriotism  which  is  only  pride  in  disguise. 

To  Mine.  Ford,  5th  August  1831. 

"  Patriotism  has  always  been  a  favourite  virtue  of  the 
human  race.  It  is  certainly  that  of  our  epoch :  it  has 
even  become  its  religion,  and  as  religion  it  has  naturally 
its  '  tartuffes '  (hypocrites).  They  are  of  the  kind  Moliere 
would  paint,  if  Moliere  were  of  our  time.  The  day  is  not 
far  off  when  this  kind  of  hypocrisy  will  not  be  less  odious 
to  the  masses  than  was  the  religious  hypocrisy  of  the 
epoch  of  Louis  XIV." 

Then,  leaving  abuses  and  make-believes  on  one  side, 
Vinet  goes  on  to  say, — 

"Let  us  recognise  patriotism  to  be.  one  of  the  natural 
affections  which  precede  Christianity,  and  without  which 
one  could  not  be  Christian.  St.  Paul  ranks  among  those 
who  dishonour  the  Christian  profession  men  who  are  with- 


ALEXANDER  VINLT.  107 

out  'natural  affection.'  These  affections  become  virtues 
when  in  action,  and  Christian  virtues  when  penetrated  by 
divine  charity.  It  is  not  necessary  for  a  man  to  be 
Christian  in  order  to  love  his  father,  his  wife,  his  children, 
his  country ;  but  under  the  influence  of  Christianity  these 
affections  receive  a  new  character.  The  supernatural  is 
joined  to  the  natural  affection.  One  no  longer  loves  his 
children  and  his  country  by  instinct  and  by  inclination — 
one  loves  them  in  God.  These  individual  sentiments 
increase  in  energy  and  in  purity.  One  loves  more,  and 
one  loves  better.  .  .  . 

"  The  compilers  of  catechisms  can  make  long  catalogues 
of  duties  and  of  virtues;  but,  an  fond,  Christian  virtue  is 
one.1  It  is  a  general  disposition,  a  life  that  animates  all 
life.  It  is  a  first  notion  from  which  flows  spontaneously 
all  the  rest.  .  .  .  Christian  morality  is  the  acquisition  of 
a  new  heart  which  knows  and  loves  God.  .  .  .  True 
morality,  in  its  bearing  and  in  its  application,  is  to  be 
found  in  the  gift  of  a"  new  heart.  And  true  patriotism 
is  only  one  of  the  manifestations  of  this  moral  principle 
deposited  by  Christ  in  the  heart. 

"  The  Christian  loves  christian] '//  all  that  it  is  natural  to 
man  to  love.  The  Christian  serves  christianly  his  country, 
towards  which  he  has  natural  duties.  He  can,  he  must  be 
a  patriot.  I  believe  that  he  alone  is  a  true  patriot,  whether 
he  serves  his  country  indirectly  by  his  private  virtues,  or 
directly  in  the  service  of  war  or  of  peace.  He  prefers  his 
fatherland  to  other  countries  ;  but  his  affection  is  not  a 
narrow  exclusiveness,  and  if  he  had  to  choose  between 
his  country  and  humanity,  lie  would  certainly  choose 
humanity.  .  .  .  Many  have  asserted  that  the  Christian 
ought  not  to  busy  himself  with  public  affairs.  I  know  of 
11. aliing  in  the  gospel  to  support  this  opinion.  If  it  is 
generally  adopted,  one  must  renounce  all  hope  of  seeing  the 
Christian  in  the  Administration ;  and  the  same  point  of 
view  would  remove  Christians  from  the  careers  of  industry, 
of  commerce,  and  of  art.     ( >ne  does  not  seize  at  a  glance 

1  We  are  reminded  of  a  passage  which  occurs  in  Dr.  Martineau's 
sermon  on  "Martha  and  Mary"  (Hour*  of  Thought):  "Life  is  not  a 
succession  of  buainessea  ;  it  is  the  flow  of  one  spirit." 


108  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

all  the  consequences  of  this  system  which  would  practi- 
cally result  in  the  degradation  of  all  Christian  persons." 

A  year  later  Vinet  wrote  :  — 

"  13th  March  1832. 

"  I  am  still  bound  to  the  cause  of  liberty.  I  love 
equality  in  so  far  as  it  may  be  conciliated  with  the 
interests  of  liberty  and  of  civilisation.  I  think  that  the 
world  gravitates  towards  equality,  but  I  think  it  impossible 
for  the  moment. 

"  As  to  the  sovereignty  of  the  people  as  it  is  understood 
and  preached  in  our  cantons,  I  am  altogether  incredulous  ! " 


ALEXANDER  VINET. 


109 


CHAPTEE    XIII.1 

Calls  to  Montauban — Paris — Geneva — Articles  in  "  Lc 

Semeur." 

1830-1831. 

The  publication  of  the  Essay  on  Liberty  of  Worship  and 
of  the  Chrestomathie  had  brought  Vinet's  name  before 
the  notice  of  the  public,  and  people  began  to  express 
surprise  that  so  gifted  a  writer  should  be  condemned  to 
the  routine  of  elementary  teaching. 

The  first  attempts  to  draw  him  from  obscurity  came 
from  France.  He  was  invited  to  compete  for  the  chair 
of  Ethics  at  the  Theological  Faculty  of  Montauban,  and 
at  the  same  time  others  urged  him  to  establish  himself 
in  Paris  in  order  to  take  part  in  the  work  of  evangeliza- 
tion.    Both  these  offers  were  declined. 

To  M.  Grandpierre,  March  1830. 

"  You  make  a  great  mistake  when  you  speak  of  my 
playing  a  role  in  the  great  theatre  of  Paris.  My  feeble 
character  could  not  stand  the  shock  of  opinions  and  of 
ideas.  Solitude  alone  can  give  me  force.  But  it  anything 
of  moment  takes  place  in  Paris,  let  me  share  it.  Tell  me 
on  what  side  my  poor  meditations  can  turn  with  most 
advantage." 

Later,  Vinet  was  invited  to  compete  for  the  chair  of 
Latin  Literature  then  vacant  at  the  Academy  of  Lausanne. 
1  A.  Vinet,  by  E.  Rambcrt. 


110  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

He  again  refused  the  offer,  and  this  time  on  the  ground 
that  he  was  incapable  of  filling  it  properly. 

At  Basle,  where  there  were  already  two  French  pastors, 
a  third  pulpit  was  offered  to  Vinet. 

To  Louis  Leresche. 

"  I  cannot  help  telling  you  of  a  proposition  which  has 
just  been  made  to  me.  I  have  preached  once  or  twice 
this  winter,  and  this  has  resulted  in  the  offer  of  a  pulpit 
from  the  Consistory  of  the  French  Church.  .  .  .  These 
gentlemen  see  that  the  Mummers  hear  me  with  pleasure, 
and  that  others  like  my  style  of  preaching.  They  hope 
that  I  may  be  able  to  repeople  their  church,  and  at  all 
events  they  need  an  assistant.  This  is  a  matter  for 
reflection  and  for  prayer.  I  have  not  yet  sent  my  reply. 
I  said  to  one  of  these  gentlemen,  '  Whence  comes  it  that  I 
cannot  succeed  in  shocking  my  hearers  ? '  (For  I  have 
said  things  that  were  not  well  received  from  my  pre- 
decessor.) It  was  explained  that  I  spared  them  the  kind 
of  classification  that  causes  displeasure.  I  think  also  that 
my  habit  of  addressing  myself  to  reason  is  one  of .  the 
points  that  gives  satisfaction.  Nevertheless,  I  do  not 
think  that  my  preaching  is  suited  to  the  conversion  of 
souls." 

Finally,  Vinet  refused  the  post. 

In  the  following  year  came  a  call  from  Geneva,  which 
was  passing  through  an  ecclesiastical  crisis.  We  have 
already  seen  that  the  venerable  company  of  pastors  was 
accused  of  substituting  the  unitarian  heresy  for  the 
dogmatic  teaching  of  Christianity.  Towards  1831  the 
struggle  between  the  preachers  of  the  revival  and  the 
pastors  of  the  old  school  became  more  marked.  An 
Evangelical  Society  was  founded,  and  a  regular  service 
was  organized.  Furthermore,  the  society  announced  the 
intention  of  establishing  a  school  of  theology.  The  pro- 
moters of  this  enterprise  repudiated  all  idea  of  dissent. 

But  the  "  venerable  company  :'  could   not  view   with 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  Ill 

an  indifferent  eye  the  foundation  of  a  Faculty  in  opposi- 
tion to  the  existing  school.  The  consequence  was  that 
the  three  pastors l  who  were  at  the  head  of  the  move- 
ment were  inhibited  from  preaching  in  the  canton. 

This  event  gave  rise  to  an  ardent  controversy  in  which 
Vinet  took  an  active  part.  He  endeavoured  to  show 
that  "  as  the  Church  of  Geneva  plumed  itself  on  the 
fact  that  it  was  not  tied  down  to  a  Confession  of  Faith, 
it  was  therefore  bound  to  leave  its  pulpit  open  to  the 
proclamation  of  all  shades  of  doctrine,  without  distinction 
or  exception." 

The  FiVangelical  Society  of  Geneva  invited  Vinet  to 
occupy  one  of  the  chairs  of  its  new  Faculty. 

To  M.  Merle,  2?>rd  July  1831. 

"  Never,"  wrote  Vinet,  "  did  it  enter  my  head  that  I 
should  be  called  to  co-operate  in  your  labours. 

"  Your  letter  has  only  made  me  realize  my  incapacity 
more  keenly.  You  need  for  this  struggle  men  who  are 
strong,  who  are  well  prepared,  who  unite  culture  with 
character.  You  need  theologians  and  well-armed  scholars, 
who  will  suffice  not  only  for  a  recognised  sphere,  but  for 
needs  and  for  circumstances  which  cannot  be  foreseen.  .  .  . 
I  am  not  one  of  these.  My  intellectual  as  well  as  my 
physical  powers  are  below  these  conditions.  Above  all. 
vou  need  men  of  faith — mature  Christians.  .  .  .  Oh,  seek 
them  elsewhere  !  He  whom  you  call  to  your  holy  war 
does  not  walk  firmly,  he  only  totters;  does  not  speak,  he 
only  lisps;  does  not  will  vigorously,  he  only  wishes. 

"It  is  painful  to  him  thus  to  expose  his  weakness  to 
your  gaze,  but  do  you  wish  that  in  a  work  where  decision, 
energy,  and  an  appearance  of  frankness  are  essential  to 
success,  he  should  hinder  you  by  his  weakness  and  slow- 
ness, or  that  "fn  order  to  appear  at  one  with  you,  he  should 
adopt  a  language  which  would  not  be  the  faithful  expres- 
sion of  his  inner  life  ?  Do  not  mix  this  insipid  water 
with  your  generous  wine.  ...  I  can  only  be  known  to 
1  MM.  Oaussen,  Gallaml  et  Merle. 


112  LIFE  AND  WAITINGS  OF 

you  by  my  writings.  Have  I  been  guilty  of  making 
use  of  expressions  which  exaggerate  the  depth  of  my 
knowledge  and  of  my  religious  life  ?  Hardly,  for  one 
of  your  colleagues — M.  Malan — wrote  to  me  last  year 
with  much  gentleness  and  affection,  that  he  inferred  from 
my  writings  that  I  was  a  '  stranger  to  the  spirit  of 
adoption.'  .  .  .  You  will  be  able  to  judge  better  if  you 
will  read  the  sermons  I  am  now  printing.  You  will 
recognise  one  who  mounts  with  the  crowd  the  steps  of 
the  temple,  turning  to  invite  those  who  linger  to  follow, 
and  knowing  nothing  of  the  sanctuary  save  a  little  of  the 
light  and  of  the  perfume  which  the  open  door  had  per- 
mitted to  escape."  l 

"  The  tone  of  humility  is  perhaps  exaggerated,  but  the 
letter  is  most  valuable  as  an  indication  that  at  this  period 
Vinet  acknowledged  that  he  could  not  adopt  the  language 
of  the  Genevan  revival."  2 

A  more  congenial  sphere  of  work  soon  presented 
itself.  In  September  a  weekly  journal,  entitled  Le 
Semeur,  was  founded  in  Paris.  Its  mission  was  to 
approach  political,  literary,  and  philosophical  subjects  in 
a  Christian  spirit. 

To  M.  Scholl,  28th  September  1831. 

"  I  rejoice  with  you  at  the  appearance  of  Le  Scmcur. 
It  is  a  beautiful  idea  to  endeavour  to  show  how  Chris- 
tianity turns  to  account  the  different  spheres  of  human 
thought.  It  gives  to  religion  the  right  of  citizenship 
in  the  domain  of  science  and  art.  .  .  .  People  will  see 
that  one  can  be  both  Christian  and  man.  ...  I  have 
been  asked  to  contribute  some  articles  to  this  journal. 
I  am  trying  to  comply,  but  with  an  ever-increasing  senti- 

1  When  this  letter  was  read  for  the  first  time  by  M.  E.  Scherer,  he 
expressed  his  astonishment  that  Vinet  should  have  ventured  to  push  irony 
beyond  the  permitted  limits.  But  those  who  knew  him  intimately 
assure  us  that  we  must  only  see  in  it  the  sincere  expression  of  a  deeply 
humble  nature. 

2  Astie\ 


ALEXANDEB  VINET.  113 

ment  of  incapacity.     Alas!  I  sow  little.     From   time  to 
time  I  gather  some  dry  leaves." 

In  spite  of  this  modest  estimate  of  his  merits,  Vinet 
soon  became  the  life  and  soul  of  the  journal.  In  the 
world  of  letters  it  was  guessed  at  once  that  none  other 
than  Vinet  could  be  the  author  of  some  remarkable 
studies  on  "Utilitarianism,"  on  the  Feuilles  d'automne  of 
Victor  Hugo,  and  the  VolupU  of  Sainte-Beuve. 

In  the  essay  on  "  Utilitarianism  "  Vinet  endeavours 
to  show  that  it  was  during  an  epoch  of  moral  exhaustion 
that  Cicero  tried  to  reconcile  the  Roman  public  to  duty 
by  the  consideration  of  utility. 

Again,  it  was  during  a  period  of  social  putrefaction  that 
Helvetius  conferred  on  selfishness  the  empire  of  moral 
determination.  According  to  this  theory,  the  virtuous 
man  is  he  who  best  understands  his  own  interest. 
Morality  thus  becomes  the  arithmetic  of  happiness. 

Vinet  goes  on  to  show  that  if  personal  interest  is  the 
basis  of  action,  those  who  substitute  for  it  general  utility 
are  false  to  their  principle. 

..."  The  useful  and  the  right  are  too  distinct  to  be 
confounded.  Neither  enthusiasm  nor  moral  independence 
can  be  awakened  by  mere  utility.  .  .  .  Between  a  parricide 
and  a  devoted  son  there  is  no  distinction,  save  that  one 
understands  his  interest  letter  than  the  other.  .  .  .  Gratitude 
is  abolished  the  moment  that  one  cannot  believe  a  man  to 
be  influenced  by  other  than  interested  motives.  Under 
such  a  system  self-sacrifice  is  impossible,  for  how  can  you 
persuade  an  individual  so  trained  that  the  general  interest 
demands  the  sacrifice  of  his  particular  interest  ?  Or  how 
can  he  keep  before  his  eyes  all  the  general  consequences 
which  may  ensue  from  some  particular  action,  for  instance, 
from  a  hasty  word  ?  ...  If  there  be  such  things  as  duty 
and  conscience,  empire  belongs  to  them.  There  is  between 
the  right  and  the  useful  the  same  difference  that  there  is 
between  a  law  and  a  fact.     The  useful  is  as  subordinate 

li 


1  14  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


to  the  right  as  facts  are  to  ideas.  Eight  is  the  motive  of 
existence ; — utility  is  the  condition.  The  right  is  God  in 
us  ; — the  useful  is  the  '  ego  '  in  each  of  us.  These  oppos- 
ing principles  are  united  in  the  love  of  God,  which  unites 
duty  and  felicity." 

In    the    article    on   "  Voluptuousness "    Vinet    asserts 
that — 

"  the  moral  sense  of  the  age  is  not  sufficiently  on  its  guard 
against  this  particular  form  of  sin.  There  are  so  many 
degrees  between  'its  gracious  dawn  and  its  lurid  setting' 
that  one  is  tempted  to  imagine  the  two  have  nothing  in 
common.  But  this  ingenuous  distinction  is  onlv  turned 
to  the  profit  of  one  sex.  The  other  is  treated  with  uniform 
severity.  The  dawn  and  the  setting  are  confounded — 
usa«e  is  confounded  with  excess  ;  accident  with  habit.  On 
the  one  hand,  social  interest  reveals  and  sharpens  the  truth  ; 
but,  on  the  other,  it  slumbers.  .  .  .  Those  who  penetrate 
below  the  surface  of  society  cannot  bring  themselves  to 
speak  lightly  of  these  sins.  They  are  destructive  alike  to 
the  family  and  to  the  State.  For  the  State  is  based  on 
justice,  and  voluptuousness  is  a  cruel  injustice,  for  it 
engages  in  a  combat  which  is  both  unequal  and  cowardly ; 
the  aggressor  risks  comparatively  nothing,  and  the  victim 
risks  all. 

"  It  is  a  flagrant  injustice  to  render  one  sex  more 
responsible  than  the  other  for  a  common  fault.  The 
social  state  of  a  country  is  always  exactly  in  proportion 
to  the  purity  of  its  morals.  Impurity  is  at  the  root  of  all 
disorderly  vices.  It  is  the  source  of  crime ; — it  is  the 
victory  of  the  grosser  side  of  our  nature  and  the  defeat  of 
the  soul.  Conversion  becomes  well-nigh  impossible,  for 
there  is  no  longer  a  spiritual  being  to  influence  ;  the  soul 
is  swallowed  up  in  the  flesh.  What  stronger  reproach  can 
be  made  to  the  voluptuary  than  the  simple  enunciation 
of  the  fact  that  the  human  body  was  destined  to  be  the 
temple  of  the  Holy  Ghost  ? " 

In  the  article  on  the  Feuillcs  d'automnc  Vinet  ridicules 
the   criticism   which   announced  that  "  literary  anarchy  " 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  115 

was  imminent,  because  a  style  unknown  to  Corneille 
and  Racine, — 

"the  drama,  had  taken  its  place  between  tragedy  and 
comedy,  and  had  given  a  freer  and  simpler  representation 
of  all  the  phases  of  human  life. 

"  The  fine  arts,  and  especially  poetry,  are  the  voice  of 
humanity,  the  expression,  under  changing  forms,  of  that 
which  is  unchangeable,  and  which  is  common  to  all.  It 
is  because  the  poet  knows  how  to  touch  the  invisible 
lyre  which  vibrates  in  all  human  souls  that  he  is  recog- 
nised as  such  by  his  fellows.  In  the  poet  and  the  artist 
humanity  only  seeks  an  organ  of  expression,  an  echo  of 
its  speech,  the  impress  of  its  personality.  Humanity, 
which  never  dies,  aspires  to  the  truth,  which  is  immortal. 
It  is  by  the  heart,  not  by  the  mind,  that  all  the  nations  are 
citizens,  and  all  the  ages  are  contemporaneous.  It  is  by 
the  heart  that  the  identity  of  human  nature  is  ascertained. 
It  is  from  the  heart  that  proceed  the  thoughts  which  unite 
varying  personalities.  The  mind  is  too  apt  to  create 
divisions." 

Vinet  complains  of  the — 

"  lack  of  faith  revealed  by  modern  criticism.  1'eople  do 
not  dispute  about  forms  and  means  when  the  source  is 
pure  and  abundant.  They  create  spontaneously.  Sterility 
in  poetry  proceeds  as  much  from  the  absence  of  a 
common  faith,  as  from  the  insufficiency  of  individual 
capacity. 

Vinet  severely  condemns  all  poetry  which  addresses 
itself  exclusively  to  the  senses.  "  The  best  representa- 
tives of  modern  poetry  are  those  who  sigh  and  who 
wait."  .  .  .  Victor  Hugo  is  one  of  those  "  who  mount 
by  the  ladder  of  poetry  towards  ancient  worship  and 
ancient  religious  traditions."   .  .  . 

Vinet  believes  in  the  real  inspiration  of  the  poet. 

"  He  listens,  he  does  not  force  his  mind  to  utter  what  he 
does  not  know:  he  listens  and  twits." 


116  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

Sainte-Beuve  was  one  of  the  first  to  remark  these 
articles. 

"  I  have  to  thank  the  author  of  a  criticism  on  Volupte 
for  the  Christian  counsels  and  the  moral  point  of  view 
which  dominated  his  judgment.  ...  I  have  felt  how 
much  remains  to  be  done  in  the  future  in  order  not  to 
be  unworthy  of  such  criticism,  which  honours  even  less 
than  it  touches  the  heart  of  the  writer,  and  provokes 
serious  reflection." 


ALEXANDER  VINET. 


117 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

Publication  of  "Discourses  on  Religious  Subjects" — 
Abstract  of  Sermons. 

1830-1831. 

The  Semeur  did  not  absorb  the  whole  of  Vinet's  literary 
activity.  In  the  year  1830  he  published  two  sermons 
on  the  "  Tolerance  "  and  on  the  "  Intolerance  "  of  the 
gospel,  preceding  them  by  a  short  preface. 

"  Persons  advanced  in  Christian  knowledge  and  in  piety 
will  find  little  nourishment  in  these  discourses.  .  .  .  We 
have  constrained  our  words  to  remain  within  the  limits  ot 
our  personal  feeling  and  experience  ...  an  artificial  en- 
thusiasm will  not  convey  a  blessing."  ' 

The  sermons  reflect  Vinet's  preoccupations  at  this 
period.  It  had  been  decided  at  the  opening  of  the 
Grand  Council  that  a  retrospect  of  the  public  admini- 
stration of  the  Canton  of  Vaud,  from  1803  to  1831, 
should  be  drawn  up  by  the  secretary  and  sent  to  each 
pastor,  with  orders  that  it  should  be  read  from  the  pulpit 
on  the  following  Sunday,  and  that,  if  possible,  sermons 
should  be  preached  on  the  subject.      This  intimation  fell 

1  See  Reality,  Candour,  and  Courage,  by  J.  F.  Astir,  L88S.  "  Preach 
what  you  believe,  and  what  you  have  experienced,  rather  than  what 
is  expected  of  you.  .  .  .  The  great  danger  which  the  preacher  has  to  face 
is  the  temptation  to  go  beyond  the  measure  of  the  truth  which  he  has 
received." 


118  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

like  a  thunderbolt  on  the  clergy.  Many  of  the  pastors 
in  isolated  cures,  unable  to  confer  with  their  brethren  before 
the  appointed  Sunday,  were  perplexed  how  they  ought 
to  act ;  and  many  a  harassed  ecclesiastic  must  have 
ardently  longed  to  see  the  day  when  he  should  be  left 
to  the  peaceful  exercise  of  his  spiritual  functions,  and 
no  longer  called  upon  to  perform  the  office  of  the  public 
crier. 

Vinet  felt  that  it  was  necessary  to  stigmatise  the  spirit 
of  persecution  as  well  as  the  narrowness  of  certain  Chris- 
tians. It  was  necessary  to  show  the  true  character  of  the 
largeness  of  the  gospel  as  well  as  the  nullity  of  civil 
authority  in  matters  of  religion.  These  were  the  subjects 
treated  in  the  two  sermons. 

In  the  following  year  Vinet  published  a  volume, 
entitled  Discours  sur  q_uelqit.es  sujets  religieux.  The 
inscription  borrowed  from  Pascal  is  significant. 

"  Those  to  whom  God  has  given  religion  by  the  senti- 
ment of  the  heart  are  truly  happy.  But  to  others  we  can 
only  present  it  by  reasoning,  while  waiting  till  God 
Himself  shall  imprint  it  on  the  heart." 

"We  should  here  recall,"  says  M.  Astie,  "the  letter 
addressed  to  M.  Monnard  in  which  the  young  man  of 
twenty-one  expressly  declared  that  religious  truth  appealed 
to  the  heart  and  the  conscience,  and  that  reason  could 
neither  support  nor  upset  it. 

"  That  which  the  young  man  declared  impracticable, 
the  man  of  ripe  age  undertook  to  perform,  and,  strange  to 
say,  it  was  the  young  man  who  was  in  the  right." 

In  the  "  Preliminary  reflections "  of  the  first  edition, 
Vinet  condemns  Pieason  to  an  exclusively  formal  role. 
"  She  is  the  servant  guiding  the  soul  to  the  door  of  the 
sanctuary,  but  not  venturing  to  enter  in." 

In  the  fourteen  sermons  which  compose  the  first 
volume,  Vinet  endeavours  to  show  how    much    wisdom 


ALEXANDER  VINET. 


119 


there  is  in  the  "  folly  of  the  cross,"  and  how  far  its 
mysteries  which  surpass  our  reason  are  in  conformity 
with  the  great  mystery  before  our  eyes  in  all  ages — the 
mystery  of  human  nature. 

"The  point  of  departure  of  all  science  is  mystery. 
Every  system  begins  by  an  article  of  faith.  Here  the  posi- 
tion of  the  philosopher  and  that  of  the  Christian  are  identical. 
Both  are  incapable  of  proving  their  premisses.  ...  As  the 
philosopher  does  not  admit  any  revelation  save  that  ol 
reason  he  tails  back  on  a  priori  arguments  which  we  have 
recognised  to  be  impossible.  The  Christian,  on  his  side, 
invokes  a  positive  revelation,  and  here  begins  for  him  the 
rdle  of  reason." 

The  impression  produced  by  these  discourses1  was 
prompt  and  durable.  Marks  of  sympathy  and  of 
admiration  flowed  from  all  quarters. 

"  Nothing  is  lacking  to  complete  his  triumph— not  even 
the  slave  following  the  chariot,  who  appeared  under  the 
form  of  a  pious  brother.  <  I  know  that  you  receive  praises 
from  all  sides.  May  God  preserve  you  from  the  swellings 
of  pride.  ...  It  is  likely  that  from  time  to  time,  ami 
perhaps  often,  you  may  be  conscious  of  self-satisfaction. 
As  your  friend  and  brother,  I  think  it  right  to  say— Take 

1  Contents  : — 

I.  The  Religions  of  Man  and  the  Religion  of  God. 
II.  The  Mysteries  of  Christianity. 

III.  The  Gospel  understood  by  the  Heart. 

IV.  A  Proof  of  Christianity. 
V.   Faith. 

VI.  The  Atheism  of  the  Ephesians. 
VII.  Grace  and  Law. 

VIII.   On  the  Principle  of  Christian  Morality. 
IX.  The  Christian  in  Active  Life. 

X.  On  the  Beeking  of  Human  Glory. 
XL  The  feeble  Members  of  the  Church. 
XII.  The  Entry  of  Jesus  Christ  into  Jerusalem. 

XIII.  The  Consolations  of  Christ 

XIV.  Favourite  Idols. 


120  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

care.     What  do  you  possess  that  you  have    not   already 
received  ? ' " l 

Hardly  any  of  the  letters  of  congratulation  that  Vinet 
received  at  this  period  have  been  preserved ;  but  he  kept 
religiously  the  letter  of  the  unknown  Mentor,  which  was 
destined  apparently  to  play  the  rule  of  the  amulet  of 
Pascal. 

The  publication  of  the  Discours  enables  us  to  mark 
the  point  reached  by  Vinet  in  the  year  1831.  The 
means  by  which  men  are  to  be  convinced  of  the  truth  of 
Christianity  are  those  advanced  by  the  ordinary  apologists 
of  the  school  of  Paley. 

"  Some  will  be  brought  to  Christianity  by  historical 
arguments :  they  will  prove  the  truth  of  the  Bible  as  we 
prove  the  truth  of  all  history  ;  they  will  assure  themselves 
that  the  books  which  compose  it  are  really  written  by  the 
authors  indicated.  They  will  confront  the  prophecies"  con- 
tained in  these  ancient  documents  with  the  events  which 
took  place  ten  centuries  later.  They  will  assure  them- 
selves of  the  reality  of  the  miraculous  facts  recounted  in 
the  book,  and  will  conclude  that  the  intervention  of  the 
divine  power  which  alone  could  dispose  the  forces  of 
nature  whs  necessary,"  etc. 

'  To  sum  up  this  exhortation  in  a  word,  one  must  be  in 
a  position  to  solve,  each  for  himself,  the  interminable  ques- 
tions raised  by  criticism  on  the  various  books  of  the  Old 
and  New  Testaments. 

"  What  becomes  of  faith  in  this  system  which  teaches 
I  hat  the  religions  of  the  world  and  the  religion  of  Jesus 
Christ  are  alike  in  principle ;  with  this  difference  only,  that 
there  is  in  the  first  merely  a  feeble  beginning  of  truth, 
mid  that  in  the  religion  of  Jesus  Christ  is  found  the  truth 
in  all  its  fulness  and  energy. 

"  According  to  Vinet  (the  Vinet  of  1831),  faith  is  the 
intellectual     faculty   which    supplements    physical    sight. 

1  Astiu. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  121 

The  Christian  believes  as  Leonidas,  Brutus,  Christopher 
Columbus  believed.  It  is  not  the  faith  of  the  Apostle 
Paul  which  introduces  the  soul  into  communion  with  the 
life  of  Christ. 

"  The  distinction  between  religion  and  theology  does  not 
seem  to  exist  for  Vinet  at  this  period.  His  faith  is  nothing 
more  than  belief  in  the  dogmas  taught  by  theologians.  He 
confuses  the  teaching  of  the  preachers  of  the  Revival,  of 
the  Reformers,  of  the  Fathers  of  the  Church,  with  the 
simple  burning  words  which  fall  from  the  divine  lips  of 
Jesus  Christ.  It  does  not  occur  to  him  to  inquire  whether 
the  doctrines  which  he  regards  as  eternal  truth  have  not 
made  their  appearance  at  certain  well-known  historic  dates. 
1 1  is  on  this  confusion  between  the  gospel  and  the  concep- 
tions of  men  that  is  based  the  discourse  which  has  for  its 
title,  '  The  Mysteries  of  Christianity.' "  [ 

'  Each  of  the  mysteries  that  you  try  to  snatch  from  the 
system  of  religion  will  carry  with  it  some  one  of  the  truths 
which  interest  directly  your  salvation.  Accept  them — not 
as  truths  that  can  save  you,  but  as  the  necessary  accom- 
paniments of  the  work  of  love  "  (Vinet). 

"  Here  is  a  manifest  confusion  between  the  incontestable 
mysteries  which  are  in  the  nature  of  things,  and  those 
which  the  human  mind  arbitrarily  creates  when  it  brings 
a  faulty  philosophy  to  bear  on  simple  truth.  Such 
'  mysteries  '  are  not  indispensable  to  salvation.  It  is 
not  on  account  of  them,  but  rather  in  spite  of  them,  that 
piety  is  fostered  and  spread." 

Vinet  sent  a  copy  of  his  work  to  M.  Monnard,  with 
the  following  letter  : — 

To  M.  Monnard,  L831. 

"  I  will  not  have  anything  to  do  with  rationalism, 
neither  in  weak  nor  in  strong  doses.  When  I  have  once 
submitted  myself  to  God,  I  can  no  longer  dispute  with 
Him  for  the  possession  of  scraps  of  my  confused  philoso- 

1  Astir. 


122  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

phies.  .  .  .  But  if  I  seek  a  logical  form  of  Christianity, 
I  wish  it  to  be  consequent  in  all  its  directions.  I  prefer 
the  largeness  and  liberty  of  Manuel  to  the  'strait-jacket' 
in  which  Malan  would  confine  his  partisans." 

'  Yet  Vinet  did  not  differ  as  much  as  he  imagined  from 
the  Caesar  of  the  Eevival,  for  he  adopted  the  most 
characteristic  of  the  ultra- Calvinist  doctrines  —  that  of 
'  special  election.'  In  spite  of  his  protest  against 
rationalism,  he  is  himself  an  orthodox  rationalist,  and 
his  conceptions  of  Christianity  are  purely  intellectual."  l 

M.  Astie  has  called  the  volume  before  us  a  "  hybrid 
collection ;"  and  with  reason.  Some  of  the  sermons  are 
in  striking  contrast  with  those  from  which  we  have  just 
quoted.  From  these  we  learn  that  there  were  two 
Vinets  even  at  this  period — one  caught  in  the  toils  of 
intellectual  orthodoxy,  the  other  reaching  onward  to  the 
spiritual  religion  of  Jesus  Christ.  In  "  The  Gospel 
understood  by  the  Heart,"  we  read : — 

"  You  may  have  exhausted  the  force  of  your  reason  and 
the  resources  of  your  science  in  order  to  establish  the 
authority  of  the  Scriptures, — you  may  have  explained  the 
apparent  contradiction  of  your  sacred  books, — you  may 
have  seized  the  connection  of  the  most  important  truths  of 
the  gospel ; — but,  if  you  do  not  love — the  gospel  will  remain 
for  you  a  dead  letter  and  a  sealed  book.  .  .  .  Even  for 
those  who  receive  it  as  a  divine  religion, — even  for  those 
who  believe  in  the  Spirit, — it  is  veiled,  it  is  empty ;  it  is 
dead  so  long  as  the  heart  is  not  called  into  council." 


o 


In  another  sermon,  entitled  "  Grace  and  Law,"  Vinet 
maintains  that  the  law  leads  naturally  to  grace,  and  that 
grace  leads  back  to  law. 

"  But  are  there  not,  even  among  those  who  do  not  admit 
salvation  by  grace,  men  penetrated  by  the  holiness  of  law. 
and  eagerly  desirous  to  fulfil  it  ?     We  are  speaking  of  a 

1  Asttf. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  123 

remarkable  and  highly  interesting  class  of  men, — they 
are  the  candidates  of  grace,  if  I  may  so  name  them. 
There  are  some  to  whom  God  appears  to  have  manifested 
Himself  as  to  Moses  —  on  Mount  Sinai,  with  all  the 
majesty  of  a  Legislator  and  a  Judge.  By  a  heavenly  favour 
which  one  may  call  a  beginning  of  grace,  they  have  felt 
the  grandeur,  the  necessity,  the  inflexibility  of  the  moral 
law,  and  have  believed  themselves  able  to  realize  it  in 
their  life.  .  .  .  But  when  they  understood  that  the  task 
was  practically  endless ;  that  one  vice  extirpated  caused 
another  to  be  perceived ;  that,  after  so  many  corrections  of 
detail,  the  depths  of  the  soul  were  not  essentially  changed 
.  .  .  then  is  verified  the  saying  of  Jesus  Christ :  '  If  any 
man  will  do  His  will,  he  shall  know  of  the  doctrine 
whether  it  be  of  God.'  " 

In  the  "Religions  of  Man  and  the  Religion  of  God,"  Vinet 
contrasts  Christianity  with  the  religion  of  the  imagina- 
tion, of  the  intellect,  of  sentiment,  and  of  conscience,  and 
shows  the  incompleteness  of  each  ;  while  in  Christianity 
all  the  aspirations  of  human  nature  find  their  legitimate 
outlet.  Magnificent  perspectives  are  offered  to  the 
imagination  :  the  heart  is  satisfied  by  the  manifestation 
of  a  love  which  is  above  all  other  love,  and  the  intellect 
by  the  contemplation  of  a  vast  and  admirable  system. 
In  Christianity  all  contrasts  are  conciliated — fear  and 
love,  obedience  and  liberty,  action  and  contemplation, 
faith  and  reason. 

In  the  "  Atheism  of  the  Ephesians,"  Vinet  shows  that 
while  believing  intellectually  in  the  existence  of  God,  a 
man  may  be  practically  "  without  God."  The  thought 
of  Him  is  not  the  centre  of  his  thoughts  or  the  soul  of 
his  existence.  God  is  to  him  a  scientific  dogma, — not 
a  real  fact  which  determines  the  end  of  his  existence, 
giving  value  to  his  life.  His  belief  in  God  is  almost 
purely  negative  :  he  permits  God  to  exist,  but  this  belief 
does  not  direct  his  life  nor  regulate  his  actions. 


124  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

In  the  "  Principle  of  Christian  Morality,"  Vinet  lays 
down  the  fact  that  a  system  of  morality  needs  a  motor 
to  render  it  practical.  The  only  two  that  are  possible 
are  self-interest  and  self-devotion. 

Self-interest  introduces  a  hostile  element,  for  virtue 
is  essentially  the  sacrifice  of  self.  The  value  of  an 
action  is  made  to  depend  on  its  result.  If  promises 
are  attached  to  vice,  it  becomes  virtue ;  if  menaces  are 
attached  to  virtue,  it  becomes  vice.  Self-interest, 
carried  to  its  extreme  limits,  will  never  rise  to  the 
heights  of  love — the  first  of  all  duties.  The  doctrine 
we  teach  is  the  doctrine  of  love — the  merciful  love  of 
God ;  the  grateful  love  of  man.  A  doctrine  which 
doubles  the  sense  of  all  duties,  the  weight  of  all 
precepts,  the  importance  of  all  motives,  is  the  only  good 
morality. 

In  "  The  Christian  in  Active  Life,"  Vinet  urged  that — 

" '  the  things  that  are  above '  are  the  promptings  of  a 
renewed  heart  —  the  motives,  the  impulsion  of  a  re- 
generated soul.  It  is  to  love  God,  to  subordinate  to 
Him  our  life,  to  seek  and  to  find  God  in  everything. 
.  .  .  God  is  in  everything  that  is  true,  beautiful, 
great,  and  useful.  He  is  everywhere  except  in  evil. 
...  To  love  God  is  to  have  discovered  the  secret  of 
life." 

Vinet  goes  on  to  speak  severely  of  the  selfish  heart 
that  dares  not  give  itself  completely  to  God  or  completely 
to  the  world. 

"  Is  this  forbidden,  is  this  worldly  ?  May  one  do  this  and 
that  ?  What  mean  these  bargainings  between  man  and 
God  ?  Love  has  solved  the  difficulty.  This  is  her  divine, 
'  all  for  God,  and  nothing  for  myself.'  All  for  God,  pro- 
vided that  God  is  for  me.  It  is  Him  I  will  serve,  the 
rest  is  indifferent.  .  .  .  Leave  these  idle  scruples  which 
are  attached  to  a  few  isolated  actions,  and  consider  life  as 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  125 

a  whole.  ...  If  it  were  possible  for  the  life  of  one  who 
loves  God,  and  of  one  who  loves  Him  not,  to  be  exactly- 
alike,  the  difference  of  motive  would  alone  suffice  to  separate 
them  entirely." 

In  reply  to  those  who  demand  a  perfectly  authentic 
miracle,  Vinet,  in  "  The  Character  of  Christianity,"  esta- 
blishes the  fact  that  miracles  do  not  convert.  The 
mind  may  be  convinced,  but  the  heart  needs  the 
demonstration  of  the  power  of  the  Spirit.  The  character 
of  perpetuity  and  of  universalism  which  Christianity 
displays  is  as  striking  to  the  reason  as  the  sight  of  an 
angel  flying  across  the  sky  would  be  to  the  imagination. 

We  have  dwelt  at  length  upon  the  contents  of  this 
volume,  believing  it  to  mark  an  important  point  in  the 
history  of  Vinet's  religious  and  intellectual  development. 
It  will  be  instructive  to  note  his  change  of  view  with 
regard  to  the  relations  which  exist  between  faith  and 
reason,  displayed  in  subsequent  editions.  "We  cannot 
close  our  eyes  to  the  fact  that  even  at  this  moment 
when  he  was  paying  his  largest  tribute  to  intellectualism, 
Vinet  did  not  succeed  in  absolutely  denying  his  better 
self.  The  basis  of  his  doctrine  was  the  teaching  of  the 
Revival  in  183 1.1  But  more  than  any  previous  teacher 
he  sought  to  bring  into  relief  the  moral  aspects  of  Chris- 
tianity. It  is  in  the  regenerating  power  of  the  gospel, 
in  its  virtue  as  an  incentive  to  a  new  life,  that  he  finds 
the  evidence  of  its  divine  origin.  He  insisted  on  the 
profoundly  human  character  of  Christianity,  and  on  its 
marvellous  adaptation  to  all  the  most  elevated  needs  of 
our  nature.  It  was  thus  that  he  prepared  the  way  for 
an  expansion  of  religious  thought. 

A  letter  addressed  to  M.  Forel  gives  us  Vinet's 
opinion  of  his  recent  publication. 

1  Can. 


126  LIFE  AND  WHITINGS  OF 


To  M.  Ford,  February  1832. 

"  I  have  not  gone  deep  enough.  I  have  only  skimmed 
the  surface  of  the  great  problem.  The  needs  of  the  cen- 
tury demand  far  more,  if  the  intellectual  torments  of  others 
equal  those  through  which  I  have  passed.  I  will  try  to 
redescend  into  my  Tartarus.  I  will  try  to  seek  there 
some  one  of  those  insolent  doubts,  those  fearful  visions, 
created  by  reason,  against  which  I  only  know  of  one 
refuge.  Have  we  reached  the  epoch  when  all  must  be 
said  ?  Must  all  the  secrets  of  unbelief  be  revealed  ? 
Must  we  anticipate  the  objections  which  it  does  not  own 
to  itself  ?  I  cannot  answer.  Pascal  himself  only 
approached  this  awful  question  in  trembling." 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  127 


CHAPTEK  XV. 

Death  of  Doyen  Curtal — Retractation  of  Denunciation  of 
Conventicles  of  Rolle — Invitation  to  undertake  Direc- 
tion of  "  Semcur  " — Journal. 

1832-1834. 

In  1832  the  Doyen  Curtat  passed  away. 

To  Louis  Leresche. 

"  I  have  just  heard  of  the  death  of  M.  Curtat,  and  it  has 
deeply  affected  me.  All  that  he  did  for  the  Church  and 
for  us  presents  itself  vividly  to  my  memory,  and  I  mourn 
for  him  as  a  son.  God,  who  knows  the  heart,  has  read 
that  of  the  old  pastor ;  and  I  think  that  He  has  seen  there 
far  more  Christianity  than  some  persons  have  been  willing 
to  ascribe  to  him." 

A  short  time  after  the  death  of  the  Doyen,  Vinet  made 
a  public  apology  to  the  Dissenters,  against  whom  he  had 
hurled  a  satirical  denunciation  some  years  previously. 

"12th  March  1832. 

"  In  representing  the  doctrine  of  '  the  Conventicle  of 
Polle '  as  '  new,'  and  as  a  '  curious  mixture  of  humility  and 
pride,'  I  spoke  without  knowledge,  and  I  judged  wrongly. 

"  In  attributing  to  certain  persons  the  design  of  forming 
a  sect  and  of  founding  conventicles,  I  delivered  a  rash 
judgment. 

"  In  defending  the  Christian  character  of  M.  Curtat, 
I   did  not  dream   of  making  an  apology  for  any  of  his 


writings." 


128  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

One  cannot  forbear  inquiring  if  it  was  not  the  conscious- 
ness that  he  was  drifting  farther  and  farther  from  the 
dogmatic  teaching  of  the  Eevival,  which  urged  Vinet  to 
display  this  sensitive  regard  for  the  feelings  of  those  with 
whose  principles  he  was  no  longer  in  sympathy. 

"  New  efforts  were  constantly  made  to  draw  Vinet  from 
his  retirement.  Among  the  number  of  those  who  were 
anxious  to  do  him  honour  we  must  count  M.  Cousin, 
who  offered  to  procure  for  him  the  chair  of  Ethics  and  of 
'  Pastoral  Theology  '  from  the  Faculty  of  Montauban."  * 

To  Louis  Zeresehe,  1Uh  March  1833. 

"  This  is  the  third  time  that  I  am  called  to  Montauban," 
wrote  Vinet.  "  These  gentlemen  have  taken  it  into  their 
heads  that  I  am  a  learned  man.  Have  I  been  guilty 
of  giving  myself  the  airs  of  a  savant  ?  For  the  third 
time  I  reply  that  I  am  an  ass !  Perhaps  they  will 
believe  me ! " 

The  next  offer  came  from  Paris.  He  was  invited  to 
undertake  the  editorship  of  the  Semeur,  where  his  articles 
had  attracted  the  attention  of  the  literary  world.  Victor 
Hugo  had  inquired  the  name  of  the  critic  who  united  so 
much  delicacy  with  severity  of  judgment;  and  imagining 
him  to  be  some  first-rate  man  hidden  in  Paris,  he  invited 
Vinet  to  call  on  him. 

In  addition  to  the  editorship  of  the  Semeur,  Vinet  was 
summoned  to  help  in  the  work  of  evangelization  (Paris). 
He  was  asked  to  preach  sometimes  in  the  faubourg  of  the 
Temple.  He  was  told  that  these  sermons  would  require 
hardly  any  preparation,  for  the  audience  was  composed  of 
poor  people.  "  There  were  more  sabots  than  shoes,  and 
more  blouses  than  coats." 

But  Vinet  could  not  adopt  this  view.  He  considered 
that  sermons  addressed  to  the  working-classes  needed  as 

O 

1  Ramhcrt. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  129 

much  preparation  as  those  addressed  to  a  cultured  audi- 
ence. As  had  been  the  case  with  the  offers  from 
Montauban  and  Geneva,  he  declined  those  from  Paris, 
declaring  himself  unequal  to  the  task.  The  sense  of  the 
gaps  in  his  studies,  and  his  self-distrust  with  regard 
to  his  religious  qualifications,  held  him  back,  lie  was 
entreated  to  reconsider  his  decision.  "  If  you  do  not 
come  to  Paris,''  wrote  one  of  his  correspondents,  "  I  am 
almost  sure  that  the  Semeur  will  fail." 

To  M.  Grcmdpierre,  July  1833. 

"  My  vacation  of  four  weeks  begins  to-day,"  replied 
Vinet.  "  They  are  almost  entirely  retained  by  the  Semeur, 
to  which  I  have  promised  an  article  on  M.  Charpentier's 
essay,  and  two  articles  on  the  Melanges  of  Jouffroy,  and 
five  or  six  on  Fichte's  Destiny  of  Man,  articles  which 
oblige  the  study  of  all  the  new  German  philosophy. 

"You  know  that  I  compose  with  difficulty — that  I  often 
re-write  an  article  two  or  three  times,  so  that  all  my  ex- 
ollicial  work  is  consecrated  to  the  Semeur.  I  only  tell  you 
this  to  make  you  understand  that  it  is  impossible  for  me 
to  consider  this  question  for  the  present.  Indite  and 
Kant  absorb  my  whole  mind." 

M.  Forel,  whom  Vinet  hastened  to  consult,  complicated 
the  situation  by  hinting  at  the  probability  of  his  being 
called  to  fill  a  chair  at  the  Academy  of  Lausanne. 
Vi net's  reply  is  characteristic  : — 

"  17 th  July  1833. 

..."  When  the  choice  of  a  profession  is  concerned,  one 
must  take  care  not  to  mistake  the  glow  of  the  imagination 
for  the  feelings  of  the  heart.  .  .  .  What  can  be  more 
alarming  than  the  occupation  of  a  position  which  obliges 
one  to  be  systematically  and  officially  convinced  and  faith- 
ful ?  .  .  .  Can  I  in  my  writings  have  outstripped  and 
exaggerated  my  real  self?  I  consider  it  to  be  the  last  of 
misfortunes  to  till  a  position  which  demands  hypocrisy. 

i 


130  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

At  length  Vinet  decided  to  go  to  Paris  for  a  time  and 
make  a  trial  of  his  new  duties. 

To  M.  Scholl. 

"All   my  tastes,  all  the  desires  of  my  heart,  all  my 

interests,  keep   me   in  Switzerland;   but    I    fear   that    I 

might  reproach  myself  if  I  did  not  test  the  work  ottered 
to  me." 

A  month  later  he  writes, — 

"  If  I  could  inspire  all  the  Vaudois  with  the  sentiments 
of  your  sister,  it  seems  as  if  I  would  fly  to  Lausanne,  were 
it  only  to  cut  wood.  .  .  .  There  are  still  in  the  Canton  of 
Vaud  good  honest  folk,  perhaps  more  than  in  any  other 
place  in  the  world.  .  .  .  Yet,  in  spite  of  all  this,  I  cannot 
describe  the  terror  with  which  the  thought  of  Lausanne 
inspires  me.  I  cannot  make  it  out.  To  a  certain  extent 
Paris  frightens  me  less.  Paris  is  a  solitude  where  one  is 
buried  and  invisible,  when  one  does  not  form  one  of  the 
two  or  three  hundred  notabilities  of  the  day.  But  Basle 
pleases  me  still  better.  I  tell  myself  sometimes  that  I  am 
captivated  by  this  peace,  tins  monotony,  this  atmosphere 
of  kindliness,  and  that,  for  my  soul's  health,  I  ought  to  get 
out  of  this  box  of  cotton  wool." 

Vinet's  Journal  permits  us  to  follow  the  progress  of 
his  inner  life. 

Extracts. 

"1st  January  L833. — I  have  received  a  letter  from  M. 
Monnard,  who  urges  me  to  accept  the  post  of  Counsellor 
of  Public  Instruction  for  the  Canton  of  Vaud. 

"  1  cannot  decide,  and  the  thought  of  Paris  terrifies 
me.  .  .  .  The  soul  is  poor  and  weak,  faith  seems  dead,  and 
courage  is  nowhere. 

-  A  new  proof  that  I  cannot  command  my  temper  in 
dealing  with  poor  Auguste.  1  am  miserable  and  ashamed, 
and  ill  as  well.  All  this  proves  that  1  am  not  regenerate. 
.May  God  help  me  !  I  have  done  nothing  for  the  child 
except  scold  him.     lie  is  very  backward." 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  131 

Some  explanation  is  needed  here.  It  was  in  the 
realities  of  family  life,  in  the  positive  duties  of  every 
day,  that  Vinet  found  the  true  touchstone  of  Christianity. 
He  did  not  belong  to  the  school  of  those  who,  while 
professing  high  spirituality,  think  lightly  of  moral  falls, 
and  charge  them  to  the  account  of  the  old  Adam. 

One  of  the  points  on  which  Vinet  reproached  himself 
incessantly  was  neglect  of  his  paternal  duties.  His 
eldest  child,  Stephanie,  was  timid  and  delicate,  and 
learned  with  difficulty.  He  prepared  for  her  special  use 
a  course  of  lessons  on  language  and  literature.  Some  of 
her  companions,  who  were  permitted  to  share  this  teach- 
ing, spoke  with  gratitude  and  emotion  of  the  time  and 
pains  Vinet  devoted  to  them,  while  accusing  himself  of 
neglect.  The  second  child,  Auguste,  became  deaf  when 
three  years  of  age.  His  mental  development  was  seriously 
retarded  by  this  circumstance  and  by  other  infirmities. 
Whether  there  was  something  in  the  character  of  Ammste 
which  was  antipathetic  to  the  father's  nature,  or  whether, 
in  the  state  of  Vinet's  health,  the  task  of  instructing  a 
deaf  and  backward  child  was  a  burden  too  heavy  to  be 
borne,  we  cannot  determine.  But  it  is  certain  from  the 
testimony  of  eye-witnesses  that  in  this  case  Vinet's  self- 
reproaches  were  not  without  foundation,  and  that  his 
lack  of  patience  sometimes  excited  the  sorrowful  surprise 
of  his  friends. 

Journal  continued. 

"  I  have  felt  to-day  for  the  hundredth  time  that  one  must 
not  emerge  from  one's  quiet  for  any  attempt — for  a  visit, 
for  a  letter — without  placing  oneself  under  the  keeping  of 
the  Spirit  of  God,  that  He  may  show  us  each  moment 
things  as  they  really  are,  and  prevent  us  from  illusions 
respecting  the  value  and  the  sense  of  that  which  we  do 
and  say.  Vanity  and  other  passions  cause  us  to  live  con- 
stantly in  a  kind  of  half  intoxication  from  which  we  need 


132  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

to  be  aroused.  .  .  .  When  one  is  happy,  praised,  borne 
along  on  the  breath  of  public  favour,  one  must  make  one's 
constant  prayer  of  the  words,  '  Lord,  a  thorn  from  Thy 
crown.' 

"  God  loves  those  who  give  cheerfully.  This  can  be 
applied  to  all  kinds  of  service.  Ani  I  penetrated  with  this 
truth  ? 

"  Pride  is  the  last  stronghold  of  selfishness.  This  is  why 
the  humiliations  that  one  inflicts  on  oneself  fall  short  of 
the  mark.  Those  one  receives  from  others  are  worth  a 
great  deal  more. 

"  Yesterday  I  reproached  myself  for  not  having  governed 
my  tongue.  I  have  not  governed  it  any  better  to-day. 
This  is  because  my  heart  is  full  of  bitterness  and  gall. 
1  do  not  know  what  vice  I  do  not  possess ! " 

Towards  the  end  of  the  year  these  daily  confessions 
became  still  sadder.  His  moral  nature  was  embittered 
by  physical  suffering. 

"  Slst  December. — Here  closes  a  year  of  my  life, — a  year 
that  covers  me  with  confusion, — a  year  in  which  I  have 
gone  back  instead  of  advancing, — in  which  I  have  recognised 
the  gifts  of  Providence  without  adoring  Him, — in  which  I 
have  learned  to  know  myself  better  than  ever  without 
becoming  better, — a  year  in  which  my  negligence  of  my 
children  has  borne  visible  fruit,— in  which  I  have  been  a 
thousand  times  ungrateful  towards  my  wife  :  unjust,  bitter, 
prompt  to  think  and  to  speak  evil,  and  in  which  my  con- 
science has  seemed  to  be  seared.     May  God  help  me!" 

Vinet  saw  the  day  approach  for  his  departure  for 
Paris  with  ever-increasing  terror.  At  length  he  came  to 
the  conclusion  that  it  was  impossible  to  respond  even 
temporarily  to  the  call  he  had  received. 

"  l$tk  January  1834.  —  The  considerations  that  have 
brought  me  to  this  decision  are  individual,  interior, 
known  to  none  but  God.  The  functions  offered  me 
demand,  not  only  particular  convictions  which  I  do  not 
possess,  but  also  a  spiritual  life  which  is  wholly  wanting, 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  133 

which  one  must  possess  before  one  can  display  it,  and  which 
/  trill  not  simulate.  .  .  .  God  does  not  promise  to  give 
blessings  to  workmen  who  are  not  called.  He  prom: 
them  to  the  weakest  so  long  as  they  remain  at  their  post, 
and  as  long  as  they  are  true  and  sincere.  .  .  .  But  I  will 
not  tempt  God  by  placing  myself  in  a  kind  of  necessity  of 
outstepping  the  limits  of  my  character,  and  going  beyond 
the  truth." 

A  few  weeks  later  Vinet  refused  the  offers  of  the 
uncil  of  the  Canton  of  Vaud,  alleging  his  incapacity. 
This  time  he  insisted  less  on  the  feebleness  of  his 
religious  life  than  on  that  of  his  studies,  and  on  the 
want  of  the  practical  qualities  which  render  a  man 
suitable  for  direction  and  action. 

To  M.  Jaquet,  1834. 

••  I  do  not  know  anything  well,"  he  wrote  to  M.  Jaquet. 
•■  1  am  an  ignoramus  with  a  smattering  of  science.  Add 
to  this  the  incurable  disadvantage  of  my  character,  du- 
al »sence  of  presence  of  mind,  of  accuracy  of  perception,  "t 
lirrnness,  and  of  logic.  The  practical  (dement  is  absolutely 
Lacking.  1  only  know  after  the  event  what  ought  to  have 
been  done.  Before  and  during  the  event  I  know  nothing. 
Morally  long-sighted  (just  as  I  am  physically  short-sighted  i. 
I  must  rerything  at  a  distance  in  order  to  see  it  well.'" 

Fresh  offers  were  showered  upon  him.  Among  them 
came  a  call  from  the  French  Church  of  Frankfort. 
Vinet  refused  with  a  heavy  heart,  thinkiug  of  his  family 
and  of  his  children  who  looked  to  him  for  support ;  but 
although  he  preached  from  time  to  time,  he  shrank  from 
the  idea  of  undertaking  the  cure  of  souls.  The  state  of 
his  health  made  him  regret  the  pecuniary  advantages  of 
which  he  deprived  his  children. 

To  M.  Ft  1834 

••  1   suffer  from   the  least  vicissitudes   of   temperat 
I  am  serving  my  apprenticeship  to  rheumatism.     1   can 


134  LIKE  AND  WHITINGS  OF 

only  bear  work  in  small  doses.  I  hardly  ever  feel  any  joy 
in  composing.  .  .  .  Yet,  owing  to  special  circumstances,  I 
close  one  after  the  other  the  doors  that  open  for  me  on  the 
side  of  quiet  and  tranquillity.  ...  It  is  almost  as  sweet 
to  wait  on  God  as  to  receive  from  Him.  (Here  note  Vinet's 
absolute  sincerity.)  At  least  others  say  so.  I  should  like 
to  know  it  from  experience." 

And  so  it  came  to  pass  that  Vinet  remained  in  Basle, 
and  that  the  only  change  he  knew  was  that  of  "  turning 
from  substantive  to  participle,  and  from  participle  to 
substantive." 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  135 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

Political  Agitation — Bask — Ill-Health — Course  of 
Lectures  on  the  Moralists. 

1833-1835. 

The   political   troubles    which    had    long  agitated    Basle 
were  not  yet  over. 

Switzerland  was  practically  divided  into  two  countries. 
Several  cantons,  carried  away  by  the  revolutionary  senti- 
ment, had  formed  an  alliance,  to  which  the  city  of 
Basle,  Neuchatel,  and  the  cantons  of  the  centre,  repre- 
senting the  Conservative  and  aristocratic  tendency,  had 
replied  by  the  formation  of  another  league,  called  the 
League  of  Saarnen.  A  conflict  was  inevitable.  The  troops 
marched  to  Basle,  and  the  League  of  Saarnen  was  speedily 
dissolved.  A  court  of  arbitration  was  charged  with  the 
division  between  the  city  and  the  country  of  the  posses- 
sions of  the  State,  including  the  literary  museum  and 
public  endowments. 

To  M.  Jaquet,  1833. 

"  Our  university  will  cease  to  exist,"  wrote  Vinet 
mournfully.  "  The  library,  contemporary  with  the  inven- 
tion of  printing, — a  monumental  collection,  rich  in  manu- 
scripts, in  precious  pictures,  in  memories  and  treasures  of 
the  ancient  glory  of  Basle, — will  be  divided,  and  three- 
fifths  transported  to  some  barn,  and  then  sold  to  a  second- 
hand dealer,  because  the  people,  who  had  been  led  to  hope 
for  ready  money,  care  neither  for  folios  nor  for  pictures. 


136  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OK 

Our  professors  will  leave ;  the  colony  of  letters  will  no 
longer  exist,  and  a  centre  of  light  will  be  extinguished." 

Happily,  these  dark  visions  were  not  realized.  The 
country  folk  preferred  a  sum  of  money  to  a  share  in  the 
dingy  folios,  and  the  generosity  of  the  citizens  repaired 
the  breaches  made  in  the  fortunes  of  this  venerable 
institution. 

To  M.  Alexis  Ford,  November  1833. 

"I  am  profoundly  convinced,"  wrote  Vinet,  "  that  this 
agitation  will  not  cease  until  the  practical  atheism  which 
devours  society  has  been  itself  absorbed  by  the  ancient 
faith.  .  .  .  One  must  cease  to  regard  liberty  as  the  unique 
need  of  the  human  race.  She  is  the  soil  without  which 
the  tree  of  virtue  cannot  flourish.  She  is  not  the  sun  that 
warms  and  vivifies  the  sap." 

When  tranquillity  was  restored,  people  began  to  busy 
themselves  once  more  with  Vinet's  career,  and  he  was 
named  Professor  of  Literature  at  the  university.  But 
he  still  continued  his  elementary  teaching  in  spite  of 
ever-increasing  delicacy  of  health. 

"  April  1835. 

"  During  two  months  and  a  half  I  have  been  confined 
to  my  room,  incapable  of  any  work.  If  I  lack  patience,  I 
do  not  lack  hope.  I  believe  God  will  spare  me.  How 
nm  I  complain  of  such  a  light  trial  when  better  men  have 
much  heavier  ones  ? " 

Under  such  disadvantageous  circumstances  Vinet's 
literary  ability  could  only  be  displayed  at  rare  intervals. 
Nevertheless  these  years  of  physical  suffering  and  weak- 
ness were  not  wasted. 

"In  response  to  the  request  of  my  old  audience,  I  have 
begun  a  public  course  of  lectures  on  the  '  Moralists  of  the 


ALEXANDER  VINKT.  137 

Eighteenth  Century ; '  a  subject  which  has  caused  me  to 
wade  through  a  good  deal  of  mud  during  the  past  weeks. 
I  am  impatient  to  place  my  foot  on  some  such  precious 
stone  as  Vauvenargues.  But  how  am  I  to  avoid  the  bogs 
of  Diderot,  of  Helvetius,  and  of  Holbach  ?  It  is  a  large 
and  disagreeable  undertaking." 

By  moralists  Vinet  did  not  only  mean  those  who  have 
written  moral  treatises,  but  also  those  descriptive 
writers — novelists  or  poets— who  have  reproduced  the 
manners,  ideas,  and  needs  of  their  epoch.  He  concerned 
himself  with  all  writers  who  were  capable  of  furnishing 
him  with  authentic  information  respecting  the  moral 
conceptions  which  have  had  their  course  in  society.  His 
aim  was  to  compare  them  with  each  other,  and,  above  all, 
with  the  perfect  morality  of  the  gospel. 

"All  human  systems  can  be  reduced  to  four  or  five 
principal  ideas  which  succeed  each  other  at  more  or  less 
distant  epochs.  They  occupy  by  turns  the  theatre  of  the 
world  under  different  aspects  and  names.  Each  receives 
a  particular  physiognomy  from  the  epoch  of  its  introduc- 
tion, as,  for  example,  the  ancient  system  of  Epicurus,  and 
the  epicurism  of  the  eighteenth  century.  These  are  the 
different  attempts  which  will  occupy  our  attention.  We 
will  consider  what  man  has  sought  and  found.  One  fact 
will  strike  us.  Man  has  never  of  himself  been  able  to  dis- 
cover more  than  one  side  of  the  truth.  ...  All  the  systems, 
beginning  with  that  of  self-interest,  present  some  side  of 
the  truth.  They  are  the  cUhris  of  a  living  body  which  in 
actual  fact  remains  isolated  and  lifeless.  ...  It  is  beyond 
human  power  to  constitute  a  whole  out  of  these  diverse 
elements.  The  bond  of  moral  truth  comes  from  else- 
where. 

"One    recognises  here  Vinet's  dominant  idea,  namely, 
that  in  morality  the  criterion  of  truth  is  to  be  found  in  the 
relation  which  exists  between  doctrines   and   the   various 
1  Vinet,  Introductory  Lecture. 


138  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

and  apparently  contradictory  needs  of  the  human  heart. 
To  know  man  is  the  beginning  of  all  knowledge,  and  it  is 
in  order  to  furnish  this  basis  that  literature  is  called  into 
council.  Its  testimony  is  the  most  universal,  the  most 
disinterested,  and  the  most  authentic  that  we  can  discover. 
In  Vinet's  hands  the  study  of  literature  is  transformed 
into  the  study  of  Christian  psychology.  In  his  lectures 
on  the  Moralists,  all  is  subordinated  to  the  essential 
aim,  and  literature  becomes  the  pure  instrument  of 
morality."  ' 

Portions  of  these  lectures  have  been  published  in  the 
volume  entitled  Moralists  of  the  Sixteenth  and  Seventeenth 
Centuries',  and  in  the  History  of  French  Literature  in  the 
Eighteenth  Century. 

In  the  introduction  to  the  former  work,  Vinet  defines 
morality  as  the  "  art  of  conforming  one's  actions  to  the 
authority  of  conscience." 

Under  the  title  of  Moralists,  he  includes  "  those  who 
give  to  the'  human  soul  a  just  idea  of  its  value "  by 
means  of  the  study  of  human  nature.  These  are  descrip- 
tive moralists.  Those  who  concern  themselves  with 
precepts  and  with  the  motive  springs  of  action — scientific 
moralists.  Then  come  political  moralists,  for  "  political 
systems  correspond  with  the  moral  ideas  from  which 
they  draw  their  strength."  But  best  and  highest  of  all 
are  the  poet  moralists. 

"  These  are  the  great  revealers  of  human  nature,  and  in 
a  sense  the  first  of  philosophers.  Every  great  poet  is  a 
philosopher,  and  every  great  philosopher  is  a  poet.  There 
is  no  high  philosophy  without  imagination :  observation 
and  induction,  the  two  crutches  of  science,  do  not  advance 
if  they  are  not  inspired  by  the  vivifying  power  of  the 
imagination.  The  genius  of  Newton  and  of  La  Place 
touches  the  genius  of  the  poet  more  closely  than  the 
vulgar  can  imagine.  .  .  .  The  true  poets  are  those  who 

1  Rambcrt. 


ALEXANDER  VINET. 


139 


have  received  from  God,  with  the  gift  of  expression  the 
power  of  penetrating  deeper  than  others  the  things  of  the 
heart  and  of  life.  .  .  .  They  express  the  secret  thoughts  of 
humanity.  ...  It  is  not  imitation :  it  is  reality.  I  only 
ask  the  poet  to  be  true,  and  not  to  interest  himself  in 
vice  :  here  is  all  his  positive  morality.  All  moral  truth  is 
part  of  Christianity,  which  is  the  whole  of  truth.  Chris- 
tianity claims  for  its  own  everything  that  is  true.  .  .  .  It 
is  thus  that  poets  have  been  unconsciously  Christian  by  then- 
portrayal  of  human  nature.  .  .  .  Thus  Goethe's  Faust  is  a 
Christian  work,  and  the  Misanthrope  of  Moliere  is  a  ser- 
mon on  James  iii.  17.  .  .  .  Every  written  article  is  in  my 
eyes  moral,  in  the  sense  that  it  bears  witness  to  a  particu- 
lar condition  of  society.  For  literature  is  the  '  expression 
of  social  existence.'  .  .  .  The  witness  of  history  has  not 
the  sincerity  of  that  of  literature.  The  witness  of  litera- 
ture is  unconscious  and  involuntary." 

Vinet  chooses  the  sixteenth  century  for  his  point  of 
departure — 

"  because  it  is  the  beginning  of  a  new  era.  The  religious 
movement  of  the  century  was  before  all  things  moral.  It 
was  the  effort  of  the  moral  idea  to  reconquer  its  rights 
The  mind  could  no  longer  adhere  to  religion  separated 
from  its  substance— morality.  .  .  .  Everything  in  Chris- 
tianity is  moral ;  the  divinity  of  Christ,  redemption  :  all 
the  mysteries  of  religion  are  moral.  Their  end  is  the 
salvation  and  the  regeneration  of  man.  What  is  this 
regeneration  if  it  be  not  moral  ? 

"  Luther's  dominant  idea  of  salvation  by  grace  is  not  a 
human  imagination,  but  the  root  principle  of  the  Bible 
and  far  from  injuring  morality,  it  is  its  foundation  and 
its  life." 

We  can  only  allow  ourselves  a  brief  glimpse  at  some 
of  the  subjects  treated  in  this  captivating  volume. 

The  negative  tendency  of  the  sixteenth  century  is 
expressed  in  the  works  of  Rabelais.1     He  was  the  father 

1  Francois  Rabelais,  1483-1553. 


1-40  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

of  scoffers,  the  Homer  of  the  race  of  satirical,  humour- 
istic,  and  observing  poets.  His  first  work,  the  Life  of 
the  Great  Gargantua,  the  father  of  Pantagruel,  is  a 
satirical  allegory  directed  against  the  Court  of  Francis  I. 
"  Laughter,"  says  Eabelais,  "  is  the  natural  bent  of  man." 
It  was  certainly  the  natural  bent  of  Eabelais.  His 
oons-mots  have  been  quoted  a  thousand  times,  and  allu- 
sions to  his  writings  colour  and  brighten  the  conver- 
sation of  to-day.  His  excellent  judgment  discerned  the 
folly  of  mankind,  but  it  did  not  make  him  sorrowful. 
Eabelais  may  be  compared  with  Aristophanes.  Swift 
and  Sterne  belong  to  the  same  family. 

The  obscenity  of  his  writings  did  not  scandalize  the 
readers  of  the  day.  Not  only  was  it  admired,  but  the 
Life  of  Gargantua  was  regarded  as  a  "  serious  work." 
This  work  contained  one  valuable  element — destruction. 
There  are  moments  when  the  heart  bounds  at  the  thought 
of  the  demolition  of  abuses-  long  endured.  In  the 
history  of  Thamous,  Eabelais  becomes  tragic  when  a 
voice  is  heard  crying  aloud  that  "  Pan,  the  great  god,  is 
dead." 

Often  Eabelais  displays  a  profound  and  philosophic 
view  of  the  universe.  Thus  when  he  ascribes  to  hunger 
the  invention  of  the  arts,  or  when  lie  satirically  attributes 
the  continuity  of  existence  to  a  "  system  of  borrowing 
and  lending."  He  affords  proof  of  great  good  sense  in 
many  of  his  judgments,  and  there  is  nothing  which  is  so 
closely  allied  to  genius  as  common  sense.  "  Thus  Bacon 
opened  the  path  to  natural  science  by  the  expression  of  a 
common-sense  truism — that  systems  must  be  based  on 
recognised  facts.  Here  common  sense  and  genius  are 
merged."  It  was  necessary  to  react  against  tradition 
and  authority,  as  did  the  Reformers  in  the  name  of 
divine  authority,  or  as  did  Eabelais  in  the  simple  name 
of  "Common  sense. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  141 

In  his  study  of  M.  de  Montaigne  (1533-1592),  Vinet 
breaks  a  lance  in  favour  of  inconsistency.  He  quotes 
the  opinion  of  Madame  de  Stael,  who  maintains  that 
one  cannot  be  perfectly  true  and  sincere  without  being 
somewhat  inconsistent. 

"  Outside  of  Christian  truth  there  is  only  an  artificial 
consistency.  None  of  the  impulsions  which  we  receive 
from  nature  and  from  the  world  are  strong  enough  to 
bring  us  to  the  end  of  the  line  of  duty  .  .  .  thus  con- 
science has  to  be  completed  by  vanity.  Virtue  would  not 
go  so  far,  says  La  liochefoucauld,  if  vanity  did  not  bear  its 
company.  .  .  .  There  is  no  motive  save  the  love  of  God, 
which  is  powerful  enough  to  carry  us  to  the  end.  If 
there  are  some  inconsistent  Christians,  it  is  because  they 
are  not  Christian  enough." 

Vinet  considers  three  points  :  the  Book,  the  Author, 
and  the  Doctrine. 

The  "  essay  "  is  less  a  book  than  a  conversation, 
where  the  thinker  is  more  prominent  than  the  writer. 
Balzac  writes  that  Montaigne  knows  what  he  is  saying, 
but  not  what  he  is  going  to  say.  "  I  have  not  made  my 
book  ;  my  book  has  made  me,"  he  says  himself.  He  is 
the  subject-matter  of  his  work  ;  he  gives  himself  as  a 
sample  of  humanity.  To  study  oneself  is  to  study  the 
human  species,  but  one  must  carefully  separate  the 
"eneral  from  the  individual  nature. 

Montaigne's  education  had  made  him  independent  and 
natural.  His  father  had  brought  him  up  to  be  a  man  as 
well  as  a  gentleman,  and  had  early  accustomed  him  to 
intercourse  with  the  poor.  He  was  the  "  man  of 
nature,"  but  nature  cannot  teach  the  relations  between 
man  and  the  Infinite.  Montaigne  shuts  out  God.  Con- 
sequently he  has  no  morality.  Where  else  can  one  find 
a  standard  of  truth  ?  He  speaks  of  conscience,  but  con- 
science (according  to  Montaigne)  is  only  another  word 


142  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

for  custom.  Conscience  is  the  sentiment  of  obligation, 
but  to  whom  ?  To  man.  The  moment  that  one  obeys 
oneself,  all  obligation  ceases.  To  the  idea  of  right  ?  It 
is  not  in  the  nature  of  things  to  yield  obedience  to  an 
idea.  In  substituting  God  for  the  right,  we  place  a 
reality  in  the  room  of  an  idea.  The  voice  of  conscience, 
is  it  the  ego  or  the  non-ego  ?  If  it  be  the  non-ego  (as 
it  is  impossible  to  doubt),  is  not  this  non-ego  God  ?  If 
conscience  is  the  ambassador  of  God,  how  is  it  possible  to 
receive  the  ambassador  and  to  reject  the  sovereign  ? 
"  For  three-fourths  of  mankind,"  says  Cousin,  "  there  is 
no  morality  apart  from  religion."  Although  Montaigne 
ignores  God,  he  cannot  ignore  death  :  "  the  knot  which 
clinches  all  morality."  He  takes  refuge  in  Stoicism. 
"  Montaigne  was  the  type  of  the  Gallic  mind,  of  the 
practical  sense  which  discriminates  what  is  palpable, 
which  trusts  to  appearances,  which  has  taste,  movement, 
spirit,  but  little  seriousness  or  spirituality.  Montaigne, 
La  Fontaine,  Mme.  de  SeVigne,  Voltaire  will  always  be 
favourites,  because  their  moral  ideas  are  on  a  level  with 
those  of  their  readers." 

With  Montaigne,  Vinet  couples  the  name  of  Pierre 
Charron.  "  They  have  the  same  end  in  view :  the  sub- 
stitution of  morality  for  dogma,  and  of  the  law  of  nature 
for  that  of  revelation."  Charron's  principal  work, 
Wisdom,  teaches  the  art  of  right  living,  which  lie 
entirely  separates  from  belief.  He  beholds  man  under 
five  principal  aspects :  vanity,  weakness,  inconsistency, 
misery,  presumption.  Vinet  asks  how  is  a  moral 
edifice  to  be  raised  on  such  a  basis  ?  and  he  combats 
Charron's  idea  that  the  .soul  is  disposed  to  virtue  by 
means  of  argument.  Passions  can  only  be  driven  out 
by  the  expulsive  power  of  a  new  affection.  He  com- 
plains that  religion  is  an  extra  in  Charron's  system, 
instead  of  God  being  the  centre  and   pivot  of  moral   life. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  143 

Christianity  seizes  man  by  the  two  poles,  the  ego  and 
the  non-ego,  and  satisfies  the  ego  by  the  inexhaustible 
aliment  offered  to  the  soul,  which,  thrilled  by  gratitude, 
learns  to  love. 

According  to  Charron,  primitive  morality  may  be 
altered  to  suit  passing  circumstances.  Vinet  replies  that 
God  has  graven  on  the  heart  the  immutable  law  of  duty 
which  cannot  change,  and  Christianity  has  rehabilitated 
human  nature. 

Etienne  de  la  Boetie  (1530-1563).  Vinet  points 
out  that  La  Boiitie's  discourse  on  voluntary  servitude 
— a  furious  attack  on  the  monarchical  principle — might 
have  brought  about  a  revolution  at  any  other  period, 
and  he  quotes  Voltaire,  saying,  "  There  is  nothing  in 
the  world  so  advantageous  as  to  arrive  at  the  right 
moment."  This  work  contains  no  trace  of  the  scepticism 
of  Montaigne. 

Jean  Bodin  (1530-151)6).  In  his  study  of  Bodin's 
interesting  work,  The  Republic,  Vinet  combats  the  idea 
that  Moses  was  the  founder  of  a  religion  rather  than 
lawgiver.  If  God  has  given  a  religion  to  mankind,  He 
has  given  but  one,  and  this  religion  existed  before  Moses. 
A  law  which  does  not  supply  a  vital  motive  of  action 
cannot  be  called  a  religion. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  that  Vinet  numbers  among 
the  moralists  Michel  de  l'Hopital,  that  splendid  model  of 
Christian  Stoicism. 

Vinet  shows  that  the  philosophers  of  the  sixteenth 
century  made  doubt  their  aim  as  well  as  their  point 
of  departure.  This  is  contrary  to  human  nature, 
which  needs  to  believe  in  something,  and  those 
who  turn  it  from  its  natural  impulse  only  succeed 
in  casting  it  back  to  the  side  of  authority.  In  the 
sixteenth  century,  authority  was  the  foundation  of  all 
belief. 


144  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

"  Although  personal  conviction  must  be  the  basis  of  our 
intellectual  operations,  man  is  not  so  constituted  that  he 
can  form  on  every  subject  a  special  independent  opinion. 
Doubtless  our  opinions  seem  to  belong  entirely  to  our- 
selves ;  but  if  we  take  the  trouble  to  mount  to  their 
source,  we  shall  find  that  the  thought  of  another  has  given 
birth  to  our  own.  It  is  by  assimilation  rather  than  by 
creation  that  it  becomes  our  own. 

"  The  philosophers  of  the  seventeenth  century,  instead  of 
attacking  the  principle  of  authority,  sought  to  establish  its 
natural  limits,  and  to  introduce  new  convictions.  This 
was  especially  the  work  of  Descartes,  the  contemporary 
of  Bacon,  who  shares  with  him  the  glory  of  having  created 
experimental  philosophy." 

Self-interest  was  the  basis  of  the  morality  of  La  Roche- 
foucauld. His  maxims  denote  the  imperious  claims  of 
the  "  ego,"  and  the  interpolation  of  the  "  non-ego  ;  "  the 
former  by  the  dominant  principle  of  selfishness  as  the 
mainspring  of  action,  the  latter  by  the  singular  need  of 
attributing  to  a  disinterested  motive  acts  which  proceed 
from  self-interest. 

In  La  Bruyere  we  have  not  only  the  historian  of  the 
epoch,  but  the  painter  of  human  nature  in  general,  and 
the  possessor  of  a  truly  Christian  faith. 

Pascal  places  himself  between  "  the  two  systems  which 
have  divided  philosophers,  that  of  Epicurus  and  of  Zeno, 
— crushes  them,  and  evolves  from  their  ruins  a  new 
system,  wherein  the  grandeur  and  the  misery  of  man  figure 
as  two  corresponding  truths,  whose  meeting  point  is  the 
point  of  departure  of  all  true  speculation  in  moral  philo- 
sophy. He  brings  out  with  marvellous  force  the  truth 
of  Christianity,  which  alone  has  recognised  our  true 
condition  and  the  contradictions  of  our  nature,  con- 
ciliating them,  not  by  reasoning  but  by  Fact, — superior 
to  all  the  data  of  reason." 

Vinet  reserves  for  a  later  period  the  consideration  of 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  145 

those  writers  who  believe  Christian  truth  to  be  the  basis 
of  morality.  "  Bossuet,  in  whom  all  the  majesty  of 
Christian  dogma  seems  concentrated ;  Bourdaloue,  the 
passionate  dialectician  ;  Massillon,  the  universal  confessor 
of  human  nature ;  Saurin,  the  champion  of  morality ; 
Fenelou,  whose  name  is  synonymous  with  all  that  is 
graceful  in  religion ;  Nicole  (of  the  school  of  Port-Royal), 
whose  Essays  are  a  treasure-house  of  wisdom  ;  Duguet, 
and  Quesnel." 

Under  an  appearance  of  stagnation  the  age  of  Louis  XIV. 
concealed  a  secret  movement,  and  a  reaction  against 
the  orthodoxy  which  sought  to  rule  all  intellectual  mani- 
festations. In  literature,  in  politics,  in  philosophy,  the 
reaction  was  profound  ;  instead  of  morality,  Epicureanism  ; 
and  instead  of  faith,  scepticism.  These  tendencies  were 
strengthened  by  communication  with  England,  where  free- 
thinking  was  introduced  by  Charles  II.  at  the  same  time 
as  moral  licence.  The  character  of  the  eighteenth 
century  will  be  more  universal,  more  human,  more 
distinctly  French  than  that  of  the  seventeenth.  Between 
these  two  periods,  St.  Evremond,  Bayle,  Massillon, 
and  Fontenelle  may  be  regarded  as  intermediaries. 

1613-1703. 

St.  Evremond,  the  friend  of  Ninon  de  l'Enclos,  was  the 
preacher  of  Epicureanism,  which  is  "  tantamount  to  the 
negation  of  all  religion  and  of  all  moral  principle." 

1647-170G. 

Pierre  Bayle  was  foremost  among  the  founders  of  the 
new  philosophy  of  the  eighteenth  century.  He  has  been 
called  the  Montaigne  of  the  seventeenth  century.  Vinet 
styles  him  the  "  Corypheus  of  doubt." 

K 


146  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

"  Scepticism  is  in  reality  a  malady  of  the  heart  rather 
than  of  the  mind.  Man  is  created  for  knowledge ;  it  is 
the  primitive  need  of  his  nature.  There  is  nothing  more 
legitimate  than  to  employ  doubt  as  a  precaution  against 
error.  Thus  to  doubt  is  to  believe.  There  is  more  love  and 
more  respect  for  truth  in  the  conscientious  efforts  of  those 
who  fight  during  long  years  for  its  appropriation,  than  in 
the  weak  assent  of  minds  carried  away  by  the  current  of 
opinion.  But  to  admit  doubt  to  be  other  than  the  means 
or  method  of  arriving  at  truth,  is  to  misunderstand  human 
nature.  The  preachers  of  doubt,  by  removing  certainty, 
have  abolished  all  the  enlightened  principles  of  morality, 
and  moral  ideas  are  forced  to  give  way  to  transient 
impulse." 

Bayle's  central  doctrine  was  the  superiority  of  atheism 
to  Christianity.  "  It  was  the  first  time  that  the  founda- 
tions of  religion  had  been  attacked,  and  many  minds  were 
shaken.  Nevertheless,  Bayle  was  the  means  of  rendering 
service  to  religion.  Attacked  in  the  possession  of  its 
most  precious  treasure,  men's  souls  were  awakened  to 
the  necessity  of  deeper  knowledge.  Prom  age  to  age 
the  arguments  adduced  in  support  of  Christianity  grow 
more  coherent,  and  from  the  friction  between  faith  and 
doubt,  flashes  of  new  light  are  emitted." 

The  cream  of  the  volume  is  found  in  the  two  con- 
cluding essays:  "On  Spontaneity  in  matters  of  Philo- 
sophy," and  "  Will  seeking  its  Law."  Vinet  quotes  the 
saying  of  Pascal,  "  The  will  is  the  organ  of  belief."  The 
dawn  of  philosophy  was  sombre  and  troubled  ;  its 
searching  after  light  was  laborious ;  the  moral  being  had 
lost  its  centre,  and  the  will,  separated  from  reason,  sought 
by  means  of  the  intellect  to  effect  a  union.  The  passions 
and  prejudices  of  the  "  ego  "  are  fatal  to  the  impartiality 
of  research.  Each  aspires  to  bring  his  life  into  con- 
formity with  his  belief;  but  if  this  belief  is  nothing  but 
his   own  will   in    disguise,  he    is  reduced   to  turn  in   a 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  147 

vicious  circle.  Even  if  it  were  possible  to  conceive 
a  perfect  type  of  humanity,  he  would  not  consent 
to  accept  himself  for  rule ;  he  would  seek  a  rule 
outside  and  above  him.  "  We  cannot,"  says  Kant, 
"imagine  the  idea  of  obligation  without  joining  to  it  the 
idea  of  another,  which  is  God."  Vinet  shows  that  the 
gospel  of  Jesus  Christ  has  conquered  self-will,  "  nailing 
it  to  the  cross."  The  morality  of  the  gospel  is  not  the 
partial  and  successive  restoration  of  man,  but  the 
implanting  of  a  new  principle  of  life  and  action  which 
has  for  its  basis  a  fact  of  immeasurable  import, — a  fact 
which  pacifies  the  soul,  organizes  chaos,  rules  the  world ; 
God  taking  the  nature  of  man  in  order  to  effect  his 
salvation.  Strong  in  the  possession  of  this  stupendous 
fact,  the  gospel  puts  the  pretensions  of  human  moralists 
to  shame. 

"  I  do  not  know  what  is  meant  by  receiving  the  morality 
of  the  gospel  and  rejecting  the  dogma.  One  might  as 
easily  try  to  transplant  a  tree  without  its  roots.  And 
who  can  say  where  dogma  ends  and  morality  begins  ?  In 
the  gospel,  dogma  is  morality,  and  morality  is  dogma, 
and  their  respective  characteristics  depend  on  the  intimate 
organic  union,  which  make  them  the  continuation  one  of 
the  other.  .  .  .  On  one  side  the  morality  of  the  gospel 
makes  great  demands  on  the  soul,  by  claiming  a  complete 
surrender  of  all  that  it  loves,  it  wills,  and  it  is.  This  is 
the  indispensable  condition  of  true  morality  —  the  rigid 
exclusion  of  the  ego." 


148  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

Physical  Weakness — Spiritual  Growth — Letters — Journal. 

"  The  book,"  says  M.  Rambert,  "  upon  which  Vinet 
worked  the  most  assiduously  during  those  long  years  of 
physical  suffering,  was  the  living  tablet  of  the  heart." 

To  31.  Forel,  10th  April  1835. 
"  It  rests  with  me  whether  I  shall  be  able  to  extract 
blessings  from  this  long  and  precious  Sabbath  which  God 
is  providing  for  me,"  wrote  Vinet  to  his  friend,  and  his 
correspondence  permits  us  to  follow  him  in  his  efforts  to 
"  redeem  the  time  "  of  those  "  evil  days." 

To  31.  Vulliemin. 

"  I  expect  a  great  deal  of  good  to  result  from  your 
notice  of  M.  Gonthier.1  He  formed  one  of  the  small 
number  of  complete  patterns  of  Christianity.  Human 
weakness  is  the  cause  that  when  Christianity  enters  the 
soul,  finding  itself  cramped  for  room,  it  takes  its  place  by 
force,  tearing  some  part  away.  There  are  few  Christians 
who  remain  entirely  men,  although  Christ,  our  model,  was 
perfectly  manly,  and  He  has  shown  us  by  His  example 
that  Christianity  and  humanity  are  not  in  contradiction. . 
M.  Gonthier  has  cast  nothing  aside  (except  sin),  and 
every  one  can  contemplate  in  him  the  Christian  father, 
husband,  and  son ;  the  Christian  philanthropist,  citizen, 
and  thinker." 

"  To-day  I  have  spent  a  peaceful  Sunday.  I  read  the 
Bible  with  my  children.  They  were  attentive,  and  the 
time  was  well  spent.  Ah,  I  realize  how  much  T  have 
injured  them  by  my  impatience  and  my  negligence.  .  .  . 

1  Uncle  to  M.  Vulliemin. 


ALEXANDER  V I N  ET.  1  4  9 

"  I  have  greatly  enjoyed  making  the  acquaintance  of  the 
poet  Knap}).  He  is  a  country  pastor;  a  tall  large  man, 
with  a  gentle,  serene,  and  cheerful  countenance.  His 
manners  are  simple  and  kindly,  and  he  is  yet  more 
impregnated  with  Christianity  than  with  poetry.  Here  is 
an  extract  he  has  made  from  a  poem  by  Schwab : — 

" '  They  say  that  Kant  is  the  inventor  of  the  categorical 
imperative  (the  principle  which  commands  obedience  to 
the  law  of  duty).  This  is  a  mistake.  The  system  was 
invented  300  years  before  by  a  minister  of  Bohemia, 
named  Johannes.  This  minister,  returning  from  a  journey, 
found  himself  one  evening  in  a  forest.  He  was  assailed 
by  robbers,  who,  having  deprived  him  of  the  money  that 
they  found  upon  him,  asked  him  if  he  had  anything  more, 
and  on  receiving  a  reply  in  the  negative,  they  let  him  go. 
Escaped  from  their  hands,  Johannes  reflected  with  satisfac- 
tion that  he  had  saved  from  their  rapacity  a  few  pieces  of 
-old,  sown  in  the  lining  of  his  coat.  Then  the  categorical 
nnperative  raises  its  head  and  its  lion's  voice,  and  says 
to  him:  "Thou  hast  lied."  "But  my  children  need  it." 
"  Thou  hast  lied."  "  But  —  but  — "  At  each  "  but "  the 
categorical  imperative  repeats,  "  Thou  Jiast  lied."  Then 
Johannes  turned  back  in  the  dark,  and  went  in  search  of 
the  robbers.  He  found  them  occupied  in  dividing  his 
money,  and,  advancing  into  their  midst,  he  said,  "  I  have 
lied  ;  "here  is  the  gold  ! "  The  robbers  burst  out  laughing  ; 
but  almost  at  the  same  moment  the  categorical  imperative 
raised  its  lion's  head,  and  said  to  them,  "  If  he  has  lied, 
you  have  stolen.  If  he  has  violated  the  eighth  command- 
ment, you  have  violated  the  ninth."  This  was  repeated 
with  a  force  which  overwhelmed  them.  They  confessed 
that  they  had  sinned.  They  humiliated  themselves  before 
Johannes.  They  invited  him  to  pray  for  them.  The 
minister  and  the  robbers  prayed  together  .  .  .  and  thus 
was  discovered  the  categorical  imperative.' 

"Yesterday  I  received  a  visit  from — whom?  From 
M.  Cesar  Malan.  His  greeting  was  affable  and  pleasant. 
Then  came  conversation,  or  rather  a  monologue;  then— a 
sermon  on  the  assurance  of  salvation.  .  .  .  This  evening,  at 
the  farewell  meeting  to  M.  Bonnet, Malan  made  the  happy 


150  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

choice  of  the  Epistle  of  St.  John  to  Gaius,  but  he  destroyed 
the  effect  of  the  selection  by  speaking  on  a  totally  different 
subject.  Of  what  ?  Of  his  favourite  doctrine  of  assurance. 
'  The  first  care  of  one  who  begins  to  believe  is  to  assure 
himself  that  his  faith  is  seated  in  the  heart — that  it  is 
really  an  affection  of  the  soul.'  Yet  the  same  preacher  tells 
us  every  moment  that  we  must  not  consult  our  sensations, 
but  onlv  the  written  word.  Twice  in  the  same  sermon  he 
has  insisted  on  the  fact  that  the  Holy  Spirit  is  only  given 
after  one  has  believed.  It  follows,  then,  that  we  believe 
In/  ourselves — that  we  give  ourselves  faith.  And  yet  Paul 
has  said, '  None  can  say  that  Jesus  Christ  is  the  Son  of 
God,  save  by  the  Holy  Ghost.'  .  .  . 

"  The  visit  which  I  was  expecting  has  taken  place.  M. 
Malan  began  by  asking  me  for  a  pipe.  Bonnet  drew  out 
his,  and  we  talked  and  smoked.  I  thought  that  I  ought 
to  be  frank,  and  not  appear,  by  my  silence,  to  acquiesce  in 
all  their  opinions.  I  raised  the  objections  I  have  stated 
above,  and  met  with  but  a  feeble  response.  The  stone 
once  thrown,  I  did  not  amuse  myself  with  hearing  it  roll. 
One  can  do  better  than  to  argue,  and  really  Malan  was 
edifying.  .  .  .  Finally,  he  took  me  in  hand.  It  was,  of 
course,  the  usual  question  of,  How  is  your  soul  ?  I  took  it 
in  the  spirit  in  which  it  had  been  uttered.  I  endeavoured 
to  generalize,  without  avoiding  the  individual  application. 
.  .  .  Then  he  proposed  that  we  should  pray  together,  to 
winch  I  willingly  consented. 

"  January  1835. — This  evening  I  finished  reading  to 
Sophie  a  sermon  of  Theremin's  on  the  barren  fig-tree.  I 
was  greatly  struck  by  all  he  said  respecting  the  acts  and 
thoughts  by  which  each  day  should  begin. 

"  10th  January. — The  first  thing  I  did  on  awaking  was  to 
judge  and  condemn  my  neighbour !  That  does  not  resemble 
the  counsels  of  Theremin. 

"  This  afternoon  I  have  read  with  M.  Chappuis  some 
pages  of  Rochat's  Meditations  on  Hezekiak ;  and  the  con- 
fession of  sin  made  by  this  prince  before  asking  to  be 
cured  made  me  reflect  on  the  importance  of  confession  as 
a  means  and  as  a  sign  of  progress.  .  .  . 

"  The  theology  of  the  Revival  lays  down  a  certain  course 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  151 

of  development — an  orthodox  history  of  conversion  and  of 
all  that  follows  thereon.  .  .  .  Things  ought  to  take  place  in 
a  certain  manner  and  in  a  certain  order,  and  not  otherwise. 
Being  apprized  of  all  this,  one  lends  oneself  to  it  readily. 
People  run  the  danger  of  being  artificially  impressed 
and  of  creating  fictitious  sentiments.  The  soul  loses  all 
nuirete,  spontaneity  disappears,  and  the  religion  of  the 
heart  becomes  mechanical  .  .    . 

"  However  feebly  the  mind  is  brought  to  bear  on  God 
wnd  on  His  word,  there  ensues  an  invisible  influence  on 
thought  and  action.  But  how  abandoned  and  miserable 
one  is  when  this  upward  look  is  wanting  !  " 

Every  now  and  then  an  undertone  of  sadness  rises  to 
the  surface.  We  are  apt,  in  the  presence  of  this  abundant 
mental  activity,  to  lose  sight  of  the  fact  that  Vinet's  life 
was  one  of  continuous  struggle  against  the  ravages  of  a 
painful  malady. 

"April.  —  This  lovely  spring  sunshine,  this  almost 
summer  warmth,  has  not  reanimated  me.  It  is  a  strange 
sensation  to  see  everything  around  one  spring  to  life— 
everything  rejoice — and  not  be  able  to  participate  in  this 
joy  in  existence. 

"5th  May. — 'Everything  for  the  people,  and  nothing  by 
them ' — this  is  what  men  dare  to  profess.  '  All  by  the 
people,  and  nothing  for  them' — this  is  what  is  practised 
without  being  professed.  ...  I  have  had  a  restless  night. 
I  dreamed,  among  other  things,  that  I  was  conversing  with 
M.  de  Chateaubriand,  and  that  I  said  to  him,  '  Genius  is 
like  the  marmot,  that  nourishes  itself  with  its  own  sub- 
stance;  but  it  only  does  this  in  winter, — and  genius  in 
all  seasons.'  Then  I  questioned  him  with  regard  to  the 
<  'hristianity  of  his  historical  Studies.  He  replied,  '  Chris- 
tianity and  social  progress  are  the  same  thing.'  .  .  . 

"  24ih. — I  have  had  a  conversation  on  the  subject  of 
progress  with  my  friend  Verny.  It  seems  to  me  that 
social  progress  is  inevitably  derived  from  material  progress, 
which  is  the  necessary  consequence  of  the  continuous 
movement   of    intelligence    stimulated    by    interest.   .  .  . 


152  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

Christianity  furnishes  the  sole  example  of  social  progress 
proceeding  naturally  from  moral  elements. 

"  To  '  conduct  oneself  with  our  friends  as  if  they  may 
one  day  become  our  enemies,'  is  an  odious  rule.  But 
never  to  lose  sight,  even  in  moments  of  the  most  perfect 
unrestraint,  of  their  weakness  and  of  our  own,  and  to  con- 
duct ourselves  in  the  light  of  this  knowledge, — this  rule  is 
prudent,  and  in  harmony  with  charity.  .  .  . 

"  Facts  are  the  true  parents  of  theories,  which  are 
reasoned  out  afterwards.  .  .  . 

"The  faults  of  women  are  produced,  or  increased,  by 
their  ignorance.  To  have  the  mind  active  and  empty  is  a 
great  danger."  .  .  . 

To  M.  Ford,  1st  July. 

"  The  best  means  of  perpetuating  the  blessings  of  civilisa- 
tion is  to  admit  women  to  the  privileges  of  instruction. 
One  would  then  see  what  this  lever  can  do  when  once  it  is 
applied. 

"  30^  September. — We  do  not  see  the  multitude,  the 
myriad  of  sins,  until  the  divine  light  falls  on  their  obscure 
depths.  Thus  the  dust  Hying  in  a  room  becomes  invisible 
until  the  sun  penetrates  the  darkness,  and  we  see  the 
grains  of  dust  moving  by  millions  in  its  rays. 

"  I  allow  the  truth  of  the  saying,  '  Who  works,  prays  ; ' 
if  one  will  add  the  inseparable  pendant,  'Who  prays, 
works.' " 

To  Madame  Vinet,  1th  September  1835. 

"  In  seeing  the  happiness  which  Leresche  derives  from 
his  children,  I  have  lamented  the  severity,  or  rather  the 
impatience,  that  deprived  me  of  the  same  enjoyment.  ( >n 
the  other  hand,  I  have  made  consoling  reflections  with 
regard  to  other  families.  I  have  seen  that  faith  and 
Christian  principles  have  not  prevented  parents  from 
spoiling  their  children  in  such  a  way  that  later  religious 
teaching  will  have  much  difficulty  in  overcoming  these 
early  influences. 

"  I  have  thought  of  my  own  children,  who,  less  saturated 
by  sermonings  and  ascetic  habits,  are  yet,  thanks  to  Coil, 


ALEXANDER  V1NET.  153 

exempt  from  many  things  that  these  religious  but  over- 
tender  parents  could  never  extirpate  from  the  hearts  of 
their  children.  These  observations  are  not  new.  I  do  not 
know  in  how  many  pious  families  I  have  not  noticed  that 
the  children  were  very  badly  brought  up!  The  parents 
believe  in  the  gospel  and  in  the  Holy  Spirit,  but  they  do 
not  believe  in  education.  And  yet  what  is  religion  if  it  is 
not  an  instrument  of  education — God  adapted  to  our  moral 
being  such  as  He  has  made  or  such  as  He  has  found  it  ? 
<  )ne  trusts  to  the  force  of  a  truth  outside  of  ourselves,  and, 
in  the  meantime,  one  accumulates  every  possible  obstacle. 
There  is  a  truth  within  us  which  must  be  cultivated  and 
made  good  use  of.  There  is  the  power  of  habit  in  nature, 
— a  power  which  is  incalculable  in  its  depth,  in  its  inten- 
sity, and  in  its  extent,— and  there  is  an  invaluable  energy 
in  example. 

"  Example  and  habit :  let  these  two  levers  be  Christian, 
and  the  result  will  be  a  Christian  culture  which  religious 
teaching  will  only  systematize  and  consolidate.  These  are 
truths  which  ought  to  be  proclaimed  on  the  house-tops. 
Let  us  foster  sentiments  while  waiting  for  the  moment  to 
give  ideas ;  give  life  while  waiting  for  knowledge." 

Vinet  returns  to  this  subject  in  a  letter  addressed  to  a 

friend. 

"  18th  September  1835. 

"  You  have  observed  and  reflected  too  much  not  to  know- 
that  Christian  parents  can  spoil  their  children,  and  even 
that  they  are  particularly  disposed  to  do  so.  They  place 
their  confidence  in  the  principles  inculcated  by  Christian 
teaching,  but  these  principles  will  exercise  slight  force  on 
the  soul  that  has  not  been  prepared  to  comprehend  them, 
liefore  Christian  notions,  the  child  must  be  given  Christian 
habits  and  affections;  he  must  be  Christian  in  the  soul 
before  he  becomes  Christian  in  the  spirit.  We  might 
speak  a  great  deal  about  Jesus  Christ  to  a  child,  and  yet 
bring  him  up  as  a  heathen  ;  we  can  give  him  a  Christian 
heart  without  speaking  to  him  of  Jesus  Christ.  Without 
a  particular  intervention  of  Cod  no  later  teaching  could 


154  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

repair  the  harm  done  to  a  child  by  the  extreme  blind 
tenderness  of  his  parents. 

"  24:th  November. — Apropos  of  the  Chants  du  Crepuscule : 
V.  Hugo.  It  is  clear  that  the  poet  suffers  from  ennui. 
Try  as  hard  as  you  will,  you  can  never  produce  poetry 
from  ennui.  There  is  only  one  thing  so  poetical  as  doubt, 
— that  is  faith  ! 

"  27th  November. — A  long  discussion  (with  MM.  Emile 
Souvestre,  de  Wette,  Verny,  etc.)  on  the  subject  of  Bildvng 
(culture)  by  means  of  the  study  of  natural  science.  But 
they  forgot  to  define  the  word  Bildung.  I  take  it  to  be 
the  harmony  of  man  with  Hod,  with  himself,  with  man- 
kind, and  the  world  of  sense. 

"  I  wish  to  write  an  article  in  order  to  show  how  foolish 
it  is  to  suppose  that  Christianity,  which  has  survived  all 
the  attacks  of  human  thought,  will  not  be  able  to  withstand 
the  writings  of  Strauss. 

"  31st  December. — The  last  evening  of  the  year  has  been  a 
painful  one  in  every  sense.  Poor  Auguste  gives  us  new 
occasion  for  serious  anxiety  on  his  account.  .  .  . 

"1st  January  1836. — We  began  the  new  year  with  tears. 
We  read  together  the  85th  Psalm,  and  were  struck  by  its 
applicability  to  our  case. 

"  2nd  March. — After  having  remarked  that  the  life  of 
many  persons  was  inconsistent  with  their  profession  of 
Christianity,  is  it  not  permitted  to  hope  for  the  best  with 
regard  to  the  religious  condition  of  those  persons  who 
edify  me  by  the  consistency  of  their  life  ? 

"  lAth  March. — To  display  energy  in  little  things  is  the 
sign  of  a  feeble  character.  There  are  some  people  who 
stretch  all  their  muscles  to  break  the  wing  of  a  butterfly. 

"  People  like  to  be  dominated  rather  than  to  be  indoc- 
trinated. Casimir  Perier  is  more  acceptable  than  M. 
Guizot. 

"  Voltaire  speaks  fluently  of  happiness ;  man  wishes  it 
to  be  infinite. 

"There  are  certain  things  about  which  we  ought  never 
to  speak  save  out  of  the  abundance  of  the  heart.  The 
abuse  of  pious  expressions  is  calculated  to  enfeeble  the 
sentiments  they  express. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  155 

"  There  is  more  force,  and  consequently  more  eloquence, 
in  the  careful  assignment  of  each  truth  to  its  proper  place 
than  in  all  the  transports  of  speech  and  thought. 

"  I  have  been  led  to  reflect  on  the  degree  of  inconsider- 
ateness  to  which  I  can  arrive  through  being  myself  an 
object  of  consideration, — on  the  habit  one  can  acquire  <>f 
receiving  without  giving.  I  will  take  care  ;  my  illness  has 
made  me  too  exacting.  .  .  .  More  and  more  suffering,  and 
weak.     I  begin  to  entertain  sorrowful  previsions. 

"  Moral  force  alone  is  real ;  material  force  has  never 
been  anything  but  its  instrument. 

"  If  slavery  is  disorder,  disorder  is  also  slavery. 

"  Around  the  word  order,  as  well  as  around  that  of 
liberty,  the  worst  passions  can  be  assembled. 

"13th  July. — I  have  continued  with  facility  my  dis- 
courses on  2  Tim.  iii.  7.  Ought  I  to  congratulate  myself 
on  this  facility  ?  Do  I  compose  with  the  seriousness 
which  is  necessary?  Am  I  a  writer  or  a  preacher?  But 
on  this  subject  1  can  speak  from  experience,  1  have  seen, 
these  truths  in  action.  .  .  . 

"  The  disinterestedness  of  our  hosts  has  afforded  me  a 
subject  of  edification  and  of  warning.  What  are  our 
acquired  virtues  in  comparison  with  certain  natural  gifts  { 
There  is  a  sermon  yet  to  be  written  on  natural  virtue. 

"  Let  us  be  on  our  guard  against  an  error  which  is  a  form 
of  ingratitude.  There  is  in  the  worst  day  of  the  condition  of 
the  least  favoured  enough  to  bring  each  of  God's  creatures 
to  his  knees.  Blessings  abound.  Everything  that  is  bail 
must  be  laid  to  our  charge,  inasmuch  as  if  we  are  not  the 
authors  of  the  evil,  we  have  at  least  not  succeeded  in 
changing  it  into  good. 

"  22ml  September. — I  have  been  obliged  to  spend  the 
day  in  bed.  I  have  been,  as  regards  reading,  a  veritable 
ostrich.  Bead  two  or  three  sermons  of  Massillon,  twit  of 
Sailers,  five  or  six  pages  of  Chrysostom  in  Greek,  four 
journals,  a  part  of  the  School  of  Fathers  (Piron),  some 
articles  of  (ieoffroy,  part  of  the  Life  of  Frederick  II,  by 
Lord  Dover,  etc.  etc. 

"To-day,  I  have  blackened  my  imagination  and  saddened 
my  heart  by  reading  Caleb  Will  in  ids,  a  poisonous  book. 


156  LIFE  AND  WAITINGS  OF 

"  I  am  again  reading  Paradise  Lost.  Its  beauties  send 
me  into  a  state  of  ecstasy. 

"  The  simple  phrase,  '  Love  your  children  for  their  sake 
and  for  your  own,'  well  considered  and  taken  to  heart, 
contains  all  the  secret  of  moral  education. 

"  One  cannot  be  the  master  of  the  judgments  that  one 
forms  of  people  ;  but  one  ought  to  be,  to  a  certain  point,  of 
one's  feelings  towards  them. 

"  \Uh  November  1836. — Every  time  that  I  have  com- 
posed with  spirit,  it  has  seemed  to  me  as  though  another 
was  dictating  what  I  wrote ;  and  in  reading  it  over,  I 
seemed  to  be  reading  the  work  of  another.  .  .  .  The  term 
inspiration  is  certainly  just. 

"  It  is  the.  province  of  others  to  reveal  us  to  ourselves, 
just  as  strangers  teach  a  country  what  it  really  is. 

"December  1836.  —  I  have  received  a  visit  from  M. 
Nouguier,1  who  talked  most  interestingly  of  his  life's  work. 
How  small  I  feel  by  the  side  of  these  strong,  firm,  perse- 
vering wills,  and  how  old  I  am  in  comparison  with  these 
vigorous  old  men !  Oh,  if  I  could  revive  even  at  this 
eleventh  hour,  and,  after  having  so  long  chattered  about 
Christianity,  become  at  last  actually  and  truly  Christian ! " 

1  M.  Nouguier,  of  Nimes,  the  founder  of  various  charitable  institutions. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  157 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

Vinci's  "  Cure  of  Souls  "  —  Letter  to  a  Jew  —  Letters  to 
E.  Sourestre — M.  de  Chdteauhrialid. 

The  extracts  given  in  the  preceding  chapter  afford  an 
idea  of  the  manner  in  which  Vinet  understood  the 
functions  of  a  "  director  of  conscience."  ' 

After  having  dreamed  of  "  a  quiet  parsonage  with 
Sophie,"  he  refused  to  enter  the  ministry  when  he  had 
once  realised  all  its  gravity.  He  pushed  his  scruples  so 
far  as  to  refuse  to  fulfil  the  duties  of  a  pastor  towards 
the  sick  and  afflicted.  He  gave  as  his  reason,  that  there 
was  so  much  to  correct  in  his  own  character,  that  he 
could  not  undertake  to  exhort  and  reprove  his  neighbour. 
He  did  not  depart  from  this  line  of  conduct,  save  when 
he  felt  distinctly  called  to  do  so.  These  cases  were  not 
rare,  and  it  may  be  said  that  Vinet  had  his  "  cure  of 
souls."  Tact,  humility,  and  gentleness  were  associated 
in  his  case  with  perfect  frankness,  and  he  knew  how  to 
speak  to  the  point  when  necessary. 

A  remarkable  example  of  this  is  found  in  a  letter 
that  Vinet  addressed  to  a  Jewish  Rabbi,  his  former  pupil. 
We  learn  that  lie  showed  marked  consideration  towards 
those  of  his  pupils  who  were  of  Jewish  origin.  He 
honoured  in  them  "  an  illustrious  and  persecuted  race." 

The  young  Rabbi  in  question  had  submitted  a  sermon 
for  Vinet's  criticism  ;  he  received  the  following  reply  : — 

.  .  .  "All  morality  in  the  Bible  is  religious,  and,  if  I 

1  Rambert. 


158  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

dare  to  say  it,  your  discourse  is  not  religious  enough.  .  .  . 
Your  precepts  belong  rather  to  human  morality,  and 
certainly  you  know  as  well  as  I  do  that  the  regeneration 
of  your  people  cannot  be  drawn  from  such  a  source.  I 
can  only  feel  astonished  that — the  preacher  of  a  law 
eminently  theocratic,  where  everything,  down  to  the 
smallest  detail,  is  attributed  to  God,  and  receives  the 
solemn  sanction  :  '  Thus  saith  the  Eternal '  —  you  can 
neglect  to  give#this  same  sanction  to  the  exhortations  you 
address  to  your  brethren.  Your  discourse  is  rather  the 
discourse  of  a  philosopher — of  a  philanthropist — than  of 
an  Israelite. 

"  Not  only  ought  you  to  speak  much  of  God,  but  you 
ought  also  to  speak  of  the  Messiah.  .  .  .  Your  religion  is 
full  of  the  Messiah.  He  is  the  key  of  your  law,  the 
justification  of  your  history,  the  light  of  your  destiny.  .  .  . 
Without  the  Messiah,  you  neither  know  why  you  suffer 
nor  why  you  exist. 

"  It  is  the  expectation  of  the  Messiah  which  holds  you 
united.  Take  away  the  Messiah,  and  nothing  remains  for 
you  but  to  abdicate  as  a  nation,  and  lose  yourself  as 
quickly  as  possible  among  the  '  goim,'  as  a  river  loses 
itself  in  the  ocean. 

"  Without  the  Messiah  you  are  without  hope  in  this 
world  or  in  the  next,  where  you  will  arrive  loaded  with 
sins  from  which  none  can  free  you.  It  is  absolutely 
necessary,  then,  in  the  name  of  your  eternal  interests,  that 
you  should  speak  of  a  Messiah.  If  you  believe  in  Him, 
why  do  you  not  speak  ?  If  you  do  not  believe,  what 
then  is  the  Jewish  nationality  and  religion?  A  vain 
word,  a  '  non-sense.'  ...  I  offer  these  remarks  in  the 
persuasion  that  you  do  not  consider  yourself  merely  as  an 
officer  of  morality,  but  as  a  servant  of  the  living  God  :  the 
<  rod  of  Abraham,  the  God  of  Isaac,  and  the  God  of  Jacob, 
who  are  living  at  His  right  hand." 

This  fraternal  correction  was  not  wanting  in  force  and 
strength, !  but  generally  Vinet  preferred  gentler  ways. 
His   correspondence   offers  numerous   and    toiiching    ex- 

1  Rambert. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  159 

amples.  He  has  so  often  spoken  of  his  impatience,  of 
his  bitterness,  of  his  stony  heart,  that  if  we  are  silent 
respecting  the  favours  which  he  scattered  around  him,  our 
conception  of  his  character  would  lack  proportion.  One 
example  will  suffice.  A  man  whose  name  has  since 
become  celebrated  had  the  good  fortune  to  come  across  a 
volume  of  Vinet's  sermons.  A  correspondence  ensued. 
Visits  succeeded  letters,  and  before  long,  friendly  relations 
of  a  most  touching  character  were  formed. 


*o 


"  Let  us  bless  the  name  of  this  Saviour  whom  we  have 
the  happiness  to  know,  whose  powerful  hand  raises  us 
above  the  uncertainties  of  earth ;  who  simplifies  all  our 
thoughts  and  all  our  ways  ;  who  satisfies  our  mind  with 
His  light,  and  our  heart  with  His  loving-kindness.  There 
is  no  noble  form  of  joy  which  we  do  not  owe  to  Him,  that 
of  knowing  as  well  as  that  of  loving  Him.  And  yet, 
however  great  the  first  may  be,  i.e.  the  delight  of  seeing 
gradually  dispersed  the  clouds  which  veil  the  knotty 
points  of  life,  it  is  not  to  be  compared  with  the  second. 
It  is  in  love  that  there  is  most  Light.  I  have  climbed 
towards  the  gospel  by  means  of  speculation.  Happy  are 
those  to  whom  it  presents  itself,  not  by  the  speculative 
side,  which  is  only  its  profile,  but  its  full  face,  as  a 
quickening  power  of  regeneration  and  love." 

The  recipient  of  the  above  letter  spent  two  days  under 
Vinet's  roof.  A  short  time  afterwards  Vinet  wrote  as 
follows : — 

"  Your  letter  to  my  wife  has  done  us  both  good.  It  has 
been  for  us  a  new  proof  of  the  truth  that  it  is  only  on  the 
ground  of  Christian  conviction  that  true  heart  intimacy  is 
born.  .  .  .  God  alone  is  the  real  centre  of  true  friendship. 
It  is  in  Him  that  it  is  fulfilled.  Every  union,  however 
dear  and  sweet  it  may  be,  remains  superficial  so  long  as  it 
is  not  steeped  in  this  element.  .  .  .  Divine  love  can  add 
itself  to  all  forms  of  love,  as  the  infinite  blends  with  all 
hopes."  .  .  . 


160  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

It  was  not  only  upon  his  near  neighbours  that  Vinet 
exercised  this  direct  Christian  influence  which  flows 
from  soul  to  soul.1  His  articles  in  the  Semeur  had 
brought  him  into  connection  with  more  than  one  distin- 
guished  man,  .and  in  the  letters  he  exchanged  with  them 
he  did  not  dissimulate  his  secret  thoughts.  From  this 
period  dates  his  relations  with  Emile  Souvestre,  who  was 
spending  some  time  in  Mulhouse.  Souvestre  made  the 
first  advances.      Vinet  replied  in  the  following  terms : — 

To  E.  Souvestre,  April  1836. 

"  In  order  to  feel  the  true  attraction  of  literary  glory, 
we  must  understand  by  this  expression  the  power  of 
awakening  in  a  thousand  hearts  the  pure  sentiments  and 
noble  desires  that  lie  dormant.  If  the  echo  of  a  soul  in 
many  other  souls  is  what  one  calls  glory,  it  is  almost  a 
duty  to  seek  it  ...  it  ought  to  be,  at  least,  the  sweetest 
recompense  of  talent,  and  the  supreme  delight  of  poetic 
labour.  .  .  .  What  is  admiration  but  sympathy  carried  to 
its  highest  degree,  and  appealing  to  that  which  is  most 
intimate  and  precious  in  the  treasures  of  the  heart  ?  [ 
venture  to  count  myself  among  the  number  of  those  who 
understand  you  by  the  heart.  You  have  placed  your  talent 
at  the  service  of  moral  truth.  .  .  .  You  believe,  that 
morality  will  perish  or  revive  with  religious  belief.  To 
put  this  age  on  the  track  of  such  ideas,  is  to  place  it  on 
the  path  of  salvation.  May  it  be  given  you  to  go  farther 
still,  to  name  this  truth — keystone  of  all  moral,  social,  and 
political  truths — the  grand  dogma  of  reconciliation  in 
Jesus  Christ,  which  prepares  the  restoration  of  society  by 
that  of  each  individual." 

About  the  same  time  Vinet  received  a  letter  signed  by 
the  name  of  Chateaubriand.  After  thanking  him  for  his 
articles  in  the  Semeur,  M.  de  Chateaubriand  adds, — 

"27th  October  1836. 
"  You  have  remarked  a  tone  of  sadness  in  my  writings. 

1  Rambert. 


ALEXANDER  V1NET.  161 

It  is  caused  by  the  fact  that,  with  the  exception  of  religious 
truth,  I  have  lost  faith  in  everything  on  the  earth.  I  no 
longer  believe  in  politics,  in  literature,  in  renown,  in 
human  affection.  .  .  .  This  long  letter  will  prove  the 
esteem  with  which  your  article  has  inspired  me.  I  am 
all  the  more  grateful  for  your  praise,  that  it  comes  from  a 
man  whose  literary  judgment  is  inspired  by  the  morality 
and  the  probity  of  religion." 

To  this  letter  Vinet  replied  as  follows  : — 

To  M.  de  Chateaubriand,  183G. 

..."  I  rejoice  to  see  your  religious  aspirations  flourish 
on  the  ruin  of  your  human  hopes.  .  .  .  Your  last  words 
prove  that  the  breath  which  dissipated  the  smoke  has 
nourished  and  kindled  the  flame.  ...  A  generation  of 
minds  entirely  devoted  to  Art  and  to  Intellect  appear  to 
have  only  asked  of  you  the  fruits  of  genius.  Give  them 
something  more.  Bring  before  their  eyes  the  faith  you 
have  preserved,  the  one  hope  that  is  never  confounded. 
Prepare  for  the  youth  of  this  generation,  which  must  grow 
old  and  lose  its  illusions,  an  indemnity  for  the  system  of 
opinions  which  change  and  decay.  Use  to  this  end  the 
genius  which  God  has  sheltered  from  the  ravages  of  time. 
Your  utterance  is  powerful  to  communicate  'the  sorrow 
of  the  world  which  worketh  death  : '  will  it  be  less  powerful 
to  teach  the 'godly  sorrow  which  worketh  life,'  and  out 
of  which  springs  a  holy  joy,  a  celestial  flower  on  a  crown 
of  thorns  ? " 


162  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OK 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

New  Edition  of  the  "  Discourses  "  — Essays  on  Moral 
Philosophy — Call  to  Lausanne. 

In  the  year  1836,  Vinet  published  a  second  edition  of 
his  Discourses  on  some  Religious  Subjects.  It  contained  a 
new  preface,  in  which,  after  pleading  in  favour  of  sincerity 
and  condemning  conventional  expressions,  Vinet  goes  on 
to  say  : — 

"  Every  soul  believes  in  something  that  is  true,  even  if 
it  were  only  in  its  own  existence.  Every  true  belief  is  on 
the  road  to  the  gospel,  and  it  must  be  taken  for  the  point 
of  departure.  I  cannot  think  that  those  have  been  in 
error  who  have  sought  to  bring  into  relief  the  rational  side 
of  Christianity.  Reason,  that  is  to  say,  the  nature  of 
things,  will  always  be  the  criterion  of  truth  and  the 
fulcrum  of  belief.  The  truth  which  is  outside  of  our- 
selves measures  and  compares  itself  to  the  truth  which  is 
in  us — to  this  intellectual  conscience  which,  as  well  as  the 
moral  conscience,  is  invested  with  sovereignty — :in  a  word, 
to  Reason.  On  one  point  alone  does  Reason  abdicate.  It 
refuses  to  explain  or  to  construct  a  priori  the  capital  facts 
of  Christianity.  These  it  abandons  to  the  heart,  who  takes 
possession  of  and  vivifies  them.  Thus  the  essential  oppo- 
sition which  is  said  to  exist  between  Reason  and  Faith  is 
not  real.  They  are  two  powers  reigning  over  two  different 
domains.  Those  who  declare  that  Christianity  is  only 
Faith,  and  those  who  pretend  that  it  is  only  Reason,  are 
ecpially  mistaken  ;  it  is  both:  it  dominates  the  region  of 
thought  as  well  as  that  of  sentiment." 


*&>■ 


It  would  be  impossible  to  be  more  clearly  in  contra- 
diction with  the   aim   proposed  in  the  first  edition,  where 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  16^ 

we  have  seen  Reason  condemned  to  a  purely  formal  role, 
and  permitted  to  exercise  her  function  only  within  certain 
authorized  and  recognised  limits. 

Now  we  see  Reason  taking  its  place  frankly  as  the 
"intellectual  conscience,  which,  as  well  as  the  moral 
conscience,  is  invested  with  sovereign  rights."  Accord- 
ing to  his  former  point  of  view,  Reason  was  only  per- 
mitted to  ascertain  the  dates  and  authorship  of  the 
sacred  books.  According  to  the  latter,  Reason  became 
the  criterion  of  the  truths  which  they  contained. 

To  use  an  illustration,  the  formal  use  of  Reason  may 
be  compared  to  the  action  of  a  man  who,  on  receiving  a 
chest  of  merchandise,  assures  himself  that  the  articles 
bear  the  trade-mark  of  the  factory  whence  they  come  ; 
while  the  legitimate  use  of  Reason  may  be  compared  to 
the  action  of  one  who  touches,  tastes,  and  analyses  the 
contents  in  order  to  ascertain  their  genuine  worth. 

The  third  edition  is  still  more  significant.  It  con- 
tains two  remarkable  discourses,  entitled  "Study  without 
Limit,"  designed  to  point  out  the  danger  of  the  very 
tendency  to  which  Vinet  had  given  way  for  a  moment.1 
At  the  very  time  when,  more  than  ever,  he  was  applying 
intelligence  to  religion,  he  takes  care  to  remind  us,  not 
only  that  this  application  does  not  bring  us  to  the  truth, 
that  is  to  say,  to  the  life,  but  that  it  tends  to  remove  us 
from  it.  How  can  we  doubt  that  Vinet  feared  to  have 
approached  too  close  to  the  abyss  when  we  read: — 

•'The  religion  of  the  soul  was  not  a  stranger  to  the  man 
whose  first  steps  succumbed  to  this  danger.  It  is  scarcely 
possible  not  to  admit  that  at  first  he  only  saw  in  religion 
an  object  of  philosophical  speculation;  his  first  design, 
doubtless,  was  to  appropriate  it,  to  his  soul,  and  to  submit 
to  it  his  life;  but  this  impression  was  superficial  and 
fugitive;  the  mind,  keenly  attracted,  thing  itself  on  this 

1  Astte. 


164  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

rich  prey,  and  turned  it  entirely  to  his  profit.  This 
inclination  became  dominant  and  tyrannical.  That  which 
had  been  destined  to  be  the  aliment  of  the  soul  became 
the  pasture  of  the  intelligence.  Each  of  the  gains  of  the 
intelligence  was  a  loss  for  the  soul.  This  man,  having 
contracted  the  habit  of  seizing  everything  by  the  intel- 
lectual side,  became  by  degrees  incapable  of  seizing  them 
under  any  other  aspect.  The  idea  appearing  before  the 
reality,  interposed  itself  as  an  obstacle  between  the  fact  and 
his  sotd.  Soon  nothing  was  left  of  all  these  facts  but 
phantoms  which  represented  faithfully  the  surface  of  the 
outline,  but  did  not  contain  the  substance.  He  felt  the 
evil,  and  became  anxious  :  he  tried  to  make  of  religion,  so 
long  his  study,  an  affair,  and  his  affair.  He  sought  to  place 
himself  under  the  action  and  the  dominion  of  truth,  but 
by  force  of  habit  his  mind  came  each  time  to  substitute 
itself  for  his  conscience.  Seeking  in  vain  a  religion  in  this 
system,  he  found  nothing  but  a  svstem  in  this  religion." 

"  No  one  was  better  prepared  than  Vinet  to  meet  this 
danger.  But  the  fear  seems  to  have  pursued  him  all  his 
life,  as  Pascal  was  pursued  by  the  remembrance  of  the 
accident  of  the  Bridge  of  Neuilly.  The  entry  in  his  diary 
of  12th  July  1836,  which  we  have  already  noted  ('Am 
I  writer  or  preacher  ?  Do  I  compose  with  the  necessary 
seriousness  ? '),  was  written  on  the  same  day  that  he  was 
working  at  his  sermon  on  '  Study  without  Limit.' 

"  The  method  he  had  employed  in  the  Discourses  of 
seizing  Christianity  by  the  intellectual  side,  entangled 
him  in  a  labyrinth  of  difficulties.  When  he  spoke  of 
'  descending  into  his  Tartarus,'  and  of  '  climbing  to  the 
gospel '  by  means  of  speculation,  he  adds,  '  /  am  not 
speaking  by  hearsay,  I  have  experienced  it.'  "  l 

1  Miring  this  period  the  philosophic  vein  undoubtedly 
predominated.  Already,  in  1834,  we  have  seen  Vinet 
occupied  vvitli  Fichte  and  Kant.  Later  he  collected 
some  of  his  articles,  and  the  result  was  a  volume,  entitled 

1  Astie. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  165 

Essays  on  Moral  Philosophy.  With  the  exception  of  a  few 
literary  pieces  at  the  end  of  the  volume,  it  is  with  specula- 
tive morality  that  this  volume  is  concerned.  "  Never  has 
Vinet  skirted  so  closely  the  borderland  of  metaphysics." 

The  inscriptions  on  the  title-page  serve  as  keynotes  to 
the  book : — 

"Religion  ought  to  be  all  or  nothing  in  life."— M me.  DE  StaKl. 

"One  does  not  show  one's  greatness  by  being  in  extremities,  but  by 
touching  both  extremities  at  the  same  time,  and  tilling  up  the  apace 
between." — Pascal. 

"That  in  the  dispensation  of  the  fulness  of  times,  He  might  gather 
together  in  one  all  things  in  Christ,  both  which  are  in  heaven  and  winch 
are  on  earth,  even  in  Him." — Em.  i.  10. 

Vinet  reviews  rapidly  the  principal  systems  of  modern 
philosophy,  and  attempts  to  show  that  it  is  engaged  on  a 
path  that  has  no  outlet.  "  It  has  tried  all  the  roads,  but 
has  never  arrived  at  the  end  it  had  in  view.  It  has 
never  seized  the  unity  of  the  universe  and  of  human  life. 
Logic  has  pushed  it  to  the  edge  of  a  precipice,  before 
which,  in  spite  of  its  audacity,  it  has  been  obliged  to 
draw  back ;  because,  if  human  thought  is  devoured  by  a 
thirst  for  eternal  unity,  it  will  never  consent  to  satisfy 
it  by  self  -  mutilation.  These  useless  efforts  have 
engendered  a  great  lassitude,  and  from  it  is  born  a  new 
philosophy,  which  is  nothing  else  than  negation. 

"It  is  called  eclecticism,  and  it  professes  that  in  phi- 
losophy and  morality  truth  is  everywhere  and  nowhere  : 
that  every  doctrine  conceals  a  part ;  that  no  doctrine  con- 
tains it  entirely ;  and  that  science,  instead  of  espousing  one 
of  the  parties  who  dispute  opinion,  ought  to  come  between 
them  as  a  safe  mediator,  giving  to  each  his  part,  and 
exacting  consciousness  from  each  in  order  to  bring  them 
all  together,  if  it  be  possible,  towards  a  common  point, 
which  is  truth,"1 

"  Vinet  has  no  difficulty  in  showing  that  this  pretended 

1  Kambert. 


166  LIFE  AND  WHITINGS  OF 

'mediator'  is  not  entitled  to  the  high  functions  which 
it  claims  for  itself, — that  it  needs  a  principle  in  order 
to  make  a  choice  ; — that  this  principle  ought  to  be 
a  philosophy,  so  that  the  new  science  which  promises 
such  great  results  makes  its  appearance  in  a  vicious 
circle.  .  .  .  But  eclecticism  has  had  the  merit  to  see  that 
truth  lies  in  the  conciliation  of  contrary  principles.  If 
it  be  a  question  of  God,  it  must  be  infinite,  and  at  the 
same  time  personal.  If  it  be  a  question  of  morality, 
justice  and  mercy  are  opposed  one  to  the  other  with 
equal  rights,  one  asking  for  pardon,  the  other  for  punish- 
ment. There  is  the  same  conflict  between  the  principle 
of  obedience  and  that  of  liberty,  between  individualism 
and  socialism,  between  good  and  evil,  life  and  death,  being 
and  non-existence.  What  is  to  be  done  in  the  midst  of 
these  difficulties  ?  Proclaim  a  divorce  between  theory  and 
practice  ?  Many  have  done  so.  '  I  seek,'  says  a  certain 
philosopher,  '  the  seeds  of  an  enigma  that  necessity  solves 
each  day.'  I  have  tried,  so  far  as  I  am  concerned,  to  be 
logical,  and  I  have  reason  to  be  so.  I  shall  linger,  per- 
haps, on  the  way,  and  perhaps  I  shall  never  arrive  at  the 
goal.  But  you  who  have  to  live  do  not  linger.  Live. 
Act  as  if  you  had  principles.  Find  in  your  facts  the 
unity  which  you  do  not  find  in  your  ideas.  Inconsistency 
is  the  first  condition  of  practical  wisdom."  l 

"  What  an  avowal ! "  cries  Vinet.  "  Action  separated  from 
ideas.  Practical  truth  to  be  purchased  at  the  price  of  the 
exclusion  of  speculative  truth.  Logic  commanded  to  stand 
aside  in  order  to  make  room  for  life.  Let  there  be  no 
ci  [invocation,  that  which  is  asked  is  not  only  the  recog- 
nition of  certain  limits  in  the  domain  of  thought — a  recog- 
nition which  is  necessary  ami  inevitable  in  all  systems, — 
but  that  which  is  asked  is :  a  practical  lie,  the  sacrifice  of 
convictions,  a  scandalous  divorce  between  thought  and 
life.      And   who   is    it    that    asks    this?      All  the  world. 

1  Rambert. 


ALEXANDER   VINET.  167 

And  who  are  they  who  arc  opposed  ?  .  .  .  They  are 
Christians.  .  .  .  Christians  who  know  that  this  gospel 
contains  the  reduction  in  principle  and  in  fact  of  all  the 
dualities  which  torment  the  mind.  .  .  .  Christians  who 
know  that  in  the  divine  and  admirable  gospel  one  key 
opens  all  the  doors.  ...  A  sole  fact  solves  all  problems 
.  .  .  they  give  way  to  the  irresistible  power  of  one  word. 
This  word  is  a  name,  Jesus  Christ.  This  word  is  an 
image,  the  cross.  This  wrord  is  a  fact,  the  expiation.  This 
word  reorganizes  the  mind  of  the  world.  It  is  virtunllv 
the  perfection  of  order.  By  it  the  dualities  are  reduced, 
the  mediator  has  conquered,  and  unity  is  triumphant 

"  To  show  that  Jesus  Christ  is  the  mediator  of  disunited 
and  conflicting  thoughts,  that  He  has  brought  to  the  world 
peace  and  intelligence  as  well  as  heart  and  life  ;  such  is  the 
thought  which  dominates  the  composition  of  the  Essays." 

Compared  to  the  Discourses,  the  Essays  are  remark- 
able for  the  vigour  and  depth  of  their  convictions. 

"  One  needs  to  go  deeper,"  he  had  said,  with  reference 
to  his  Discourses. 

Was  this  the  profound  book  which  was  to  meet  the 
need  of  the  age  ?  •    Vinet  does  not  advance  such  a  claim. 

"  We  shall  rejoice,"  he  says,  "  if  this  essay  were  to  arouse 
the  right  man  for  the  work.  If  some  Christian  philosopher, 
recounting  from  a  scientific  point  of  view  his  personal 
experiences  and  his  discoveries,  were  to  expose  to  the  eyes 
of  sages  the  universal  mediation  of  Christ,  interposing  in 
the  world  of  thought  and  of  conscience  between  contra- 
dictory truths,  establishing  harmony  between  ideas  and 
facts,  teaching  by  action,  creating  in  order  to  instruct, 
completing  human  thought  incompleting  human  existence, 
giving  us  a  new  light  in  giving  a  new  eye,  bringing  to  the 
world  a  life  which  is  a  light,  bringing  peace  by  the  same 
power  and  by  the  same  act  to  the  heart  and  the  intelligence. 
Here  is  the  miracle  whose  different  faces  must  be  exposed 
to  the  light.  The  task  is  great  and  laborious,  but  interest- 
ing, and  worthy  of  the  forces  of  a  superior  mind. 
'  Ibgnus,  vindice  nodus.' ' 


168  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

4 

Early  in  1837  the  chair  of  Practical  Theology  at  the 
Academy  of  Lausanne  became  vacant.  In  the  opinion  of 
his  friends  this  was  Vinet's  true  place,  and  they  began  to 
sound  his  wishes  with  regard  to  the  call  which  could  not 
fail  to  be  addressed  to  him. 

His  diary  again  permits  us  to  follow  him  step  by  step. 

"  January  1837. — I  have  been  obliged  to  miss  my  lesson 
at  8,  and  to  give  the  following  one  in  my  room.  .  .  .  Con- 
fined to  my  bed,  I  have  turned  over  in  my  mind  an 
article  on  the  question — '  Can  Christianity  come  to  an 
end?' 

"M.  Nisard  demands  from  new  doctrines  the  effects 
which  are  produced  by  Christianity.  But  one  does  not 
make  truth,  one  receives  it.  The  moral  force  of  Christianity 
is  attached  to  extra  -  natural  data  that  cannot  be 
invented. 

"A  letter  from  M.  Scholl  concerning  the  post  at  Lau- 
sanne. .  .  .  The  cold  has  finished  me,  and  I  have 
descended  to  my  former  level,  discouraged  and  inert.  A 
fine  time  for  making  plans. 

"  February  15th. — Began  with  a  languid  hand  my  essay 
on  the  Reduction  of  Dualities. 

"  Overwhelmed  to  realize  how  little  religion  is  incor- 
porated in  my  life — the  small  use  I  make  of  it  in  the 
functions  of  my  place.  Bitterness,  harsh  judgment,  rejoic- 
ing in  iniquity,  the  tongue  distilling  blame. 

" '  Eternal,  guard  my  lips.' 

"  Prayer  is  the  beginning  of  truth. 

"  Those  who  consider  themselves  too  spiritual  to  need 
rule  and  method  in  devotion  are  in  great  error." 

To  M.  Forel,  March. 

"Twenty  years  have  made  me  man,  husband,  father, 
Christian — all  that  I  am !  Twenty  such  years  have  attached 
me  to  the  soil  of  Basle.  .  .  .  My  heart  is  wrung  at  the 
idea  of  leaving  this  town,  where  1  had  hoped  to  die.  .  .  . 
If  I  decide  to  go  to  Lausanne,  it  will  be  because  my  life 
grows  feeble  by  the  nature  of  my  functions  and  by  my 
isolation.     Solitude  is  sweet,  but   this  sweetness  alarms 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  160 

me.  I  need  more  responsibility,  more  frequent  contact 
with  men  and  things,  more  intellectual  and  moral  peril-. 
...  I  need  to  be  tied  by  positive  duties,  by  daily  occupa- 
tions, by  Christian  habits  of  thought  and  life.  This  need 
cries  aloud  in  anguish.  The  exercise  of  the  ministry 
would  seem  to  reply  to  it,  hut  I  am  far  belovj  the  ministry ; 
it  is  too  much  for  me,  and  for  this  reason  I  would  refuse  a 
third  time  the  tempting  post  of  Frankfort." 

Other  considerations  weighed  in  the  balance  against 
Lausanne.  The  change  would  involve  a  pecuniary 
sacrifice ;  and  the  weak  health  of  his  children  caused 
Vinet  to  be  anxious  to  make  a  suitable  provision  for 
them. 

"Fith  March. — Always  tossed  hither  and  thither,  never 
knowing  what  to  do— always  incapable  of  consulting  posi- 
tively the  Great  Counsellor. 

"SOth  March. — I  have  said  'Yes.'  This  day  has  fixed 
my  fate." 

To  M.  Ford. 

"  Here,  dear  friend,  is  an  important  moment  in  my  life.  I 
hope  that  I  do  not  profane  it.  I  have  the  feeling  of  writing 
all  this  before  God  1  I  hope  that  He  does  not  see  in  the 
depths  of  my  soul  anything  different  from  that  which  1 
put  on  paper.  It  seems  to  me  that — with  a  bad  grace, 
it  is  true — I  wish  to  do  His  will.  May  I  see  nothing 
but  His  will,  and  in  following  may  I  learn  to  love  it. 
The  career  which  opens  before  me  does  not  appear  as  it 
might  have  done — large,  luminous,  and  smiling.  It  is  a 
narrow  passage  through  which  I  must  pass  hurriedly.  A 
few  days  and  everything  will  be  finished.  But  may  these 
davs  be  well  filled,  useful  to  me  and  to  others,  and  then 
raise  your  eyes  for  me  to  heaven. 

Before  entering  upon  his  new  functions,  Vinet's  health 
obliged  him  to  take  a  long  holiday.  He  was  advised 
to  try  the  effect  of  the  whey  baths  at  Gais,  Canton  of 
Appenzell. 


170  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF  ALEXANDER  VINET. 

The  weather  was  cold  and  gloomy,  and  there  was 
"  only  one  ray  of  light "  for  Vinet  in  this  "  monotonous 
horizon."  This  was  the  fact  that  he  found  himself  in  the 
summer  residence  of  the  Scherer  family,  where  his  wife's 
youth  had  been  spent. 

To  Mmc.  Vinet,  2\st  July  1837. 

"  If  I  have  said  nothing  yet  about  St.  Gall,  it  is  because 
I  have  reserved  this  subject  for  a  '  bonne  bouche.'  You 
would  never  believe,  and  I  would  never  have  foreseen,  all 
the  emotion  I  have  felt  in  this  house,  the  home  of  your 
young  years.  I  cannot  imagine  any  greater  pleasure  than 
that  of  passing  some  hours  in  St.  Gall,  and  of  going  with 
you  to  '  Castel.'  Do  not  talk  of  sacrifice  and  of  '  incon- 
venience.' I  will  have  this  happiness,  and  understand  that 
it  is  above  all  the  happiness  of  being  the  witness  of  your 
delight." 


o 


We  must  find  space  for  an  amusing  letter  describing  a 
carriage  accident. 

"  L'essuie  crie  et  se  rompt :  l'intr^pide  Hippolyte 
Voit  voler  en  eclats  tout  son  char  fracasseV' 

"  The  intrepid  Hippolyte  in  question  is  my  coachman. 
As  for  me,  if  I  was  not  frightened,  it  is,  I  think,  because  I 
have  not  had  time  for  anything  but  to  allow  myself  to 
follow  serenely  the  quarter  of  a  circle  which  one  involun- 
tarily describes  in  such  cases." 

Then  comes  a  P.S.  which  is  eminently  characteristic. 

"  I  fear  that  in  my  love  of  jesting  I  have  wronged  my 
poor  coachman.  He  is  a  good  fellow,  and  I  am  thoroughly 
satisfied  with  him." 

At  last  the  moment  came  for  Vinet  to  leave  Basle.  It 
was  a  painful  wrench.  He  left  behind  him  his  sister, 
many  dear  friends,  and  the  memories  of  twenty  of  the 
finest  years  of  his  life.  What  had  Lausanne  to  offer 
in  exchange  ? 


PART   THIRD. 


1837-1847 


172  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


CHAPTER  XX.1 

Vinet' s  Inaugural  Address  —  Sainte-Beuve  —Transition 
Period  —  Vinet  regrets  the  "Orthodox  nationalism  " 
of  the  Revival. 

The  1st  November  1837  was  a  festival  day  for  the 
Academy  of  Lausanne. 

An  eager  crowd  pressed  into  the  Hall,  anxious  to  do 
honour  to  the  heroes  of  the  hour.  These  were  Sainte- 
Beuve  and  Vinet.2 

The  former  came  to  Lausanne  to  sketch  under  the  form 
of  a  course  of  lectures  the  outline  of  his  great  work  on 
Port-lioyal.  The  inhabitants  of  Lausanne  rejoiced  to  see 
easy  and  daily  communications  established  between  Paris 
and  the  quiet  town  on  the  shores  of  Lake  Leman. 

Vinet,  the  lost  child  brought  back  to  the  Fatherland, 
was  the  cynosure  of  all  eyes.      In  spite  of  the  traces  of 

1  Rambert. 

-  In  a  letter  of  Professor  Chappuis'  we  find  the  following  interesting 
description  of  Sainte-Beuve  : — 

"Sainte-Beuve  is  giving  us  a  course  of  lectures  on  the  history  of  Port- 
Royal.  Everybody  has  been  taken  by  surprise.  The  public  expected 
a  type  of  Parisian — lively,  thoughtless,  elegant,  witty,  gallant,  and — 
bumptious:  a  kind  of  Alexander  Dumas,  who  would  amuse  by  relating 
risky  anecdotes,  and  who  would  indulge  in  keen  Voltairian  satire  on  the 
subject  of  devotion  and  superstition.  Instead  of  this,  the  rector  pre- 
sents to  us  a  little  man,  bent,  ugly,  awkward,  still  young,  but  with  the 
face  of  a  wrinkled  old  man,  and,  above  all,  bald. 

"It  was  still  worse  when  he  began  to  lecture:  a  kind  of  recitative,  a 
'sing-song,'  which  harmonized  ill  with  the  hopes  we  had  formed  of  our 
Parisian.  .  .  .  And  then,  instead  of  the  'impressions'  of  Alexander  Dumas, 
we  have  a  solid,    profound,  well-prepared  course  of  lectures.     Instead  of 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  173 

suffering  visible  on  his  worn  features,  no  one  believed  in 
this  "  weight  of  a^e "  which  he  said  "  bowed  down  his 
heart."  "  In  the  midst  of  his  doubts,  his  scruples,  his 
sufferings,  his  languor  of  mind  and  of  body,  the  Christian 
hero  always  reappeared  rearing,  as  the  Categorical  Impera- 
tive, its  lion's  head.  Had  he  not  thrown  down  a  challenge 
to  all  human  wisdom  in  proclaiming  the  philosophy  of 
Christianity  ?  '  The  dualities  are  reduced,  the  mediator 
is  vanquished,  unity  triumphs.'  This  language  certainly 
did  not  express  a  timid  conviction.  It  was  this  internal 
force,  this  elevation  of  thought,  this  energy  of  faith,  which 
struck  all  who  heard  him.  The  religious  aud  literary 
movement  of  the  Canton  of  Vaud  had  already  produced 
beautiful  blossoms,  but  they  were  scattered.  Unity  and 
independence  were  w7anting,  as  well  as  freedom  from 
certain  external  influences.  Men  were  looking  for  a 
rallying  point,  a  centre,  a  guide.  They  believed  it  was 
to  be  found  in  Vinet.'  1 

Far  from  disappointing  these  high  hopes,  Vinet's 
opening  address  raised  them  still  higher.  It  was  a 
confession  of  faith. 

"What,"  he  asked,  "has  been  the  influence  of  the 
religious  movement  on  preaching;  and  how,  in  its  turn, 

jokes  and  scandalous  stories,  we  hear  theological  arguments  ;  and  instead 
of  piquant  sallies,  utterances  of  deep  earnestness.  Hence  great  dis- 
appointment in  certain  quarters.  But  every  one  is  not  disappointed.  In 
the  first  place,  the  'beau  sexe '  are  enchanted.  Their  zeal  goes  so  far 
that  there  are  a  certain  number  of  young  girls  who  dream  of  founding  a 
little  Protestant  Port-Royal.  I  ignore  the  rules,  but  I  have  my  doubts 
as  to  whether  absolute  silence  is  imposed.  .  .  .  Saiute-Beuve's  lessons  are 
deeply  serious.  He  is  as  theological  as  he  is  literary.  Above  all,  he  has 
taste  and  talent  for  psychological  observation.  Add  that  lie  is  Christian, 
or,  at  all  events,  the  friend  of  Christianity,  which  takes  nothing  from 
his  merits,  and  that  there  is  in  his  faith  (still  too  literary,  perhaps)  a 
candour  and  a  sincerity  which  make  him  lovable.  I  acknowledge  that 
his  delivery  is  heavy,  that  he  sings  half  his  lectures,  and  that  he  reads — 
deplorably.  But  his  real  merits  must  not  be  overlooked." 
1  Rambert. 


174  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

has  preaching  reacted  on  the  religious  movement  ?  The 
Eevival  was  an  effort  to  revert  to  the  source  of  religion,  and 
to  a  more  strict  application  of  its  principles  to  human  life. 
.  .  .  But  we  refuse  to  accredit  this  movement  with  the 
character  of  novelty,  which  would  be  a  cause  of  suspicion. 
Jesus  Christ  has  promised  to  be  with  His  Church  till  the 
'  end  of  the  world.'  Jesus  Christ  cannot  be  divided  He 
is  Truth,  and  this  Truth  is  one  and  undivided,  and  none  of 
its  elements  can  perish.  ...  If  Christ  can  be  divided  in 
theory,  i.e.  in  formulae  and  words,  which  are  outside  of 
man,  He  can  never  be  divided  in  sentiment,  which  is  man 
himself." 

Vinet  recognises  that  in  the  Church  of  Vaud  "  Jesus 
Christ  has  never  been  enveloped  in  the  grave-clothes  of 
neglect,  nor  clad  derisively  in  the  mantle  of  Socrates ; " 
and  he  yields  homage  to  the  venerable  voice  of  the  Doyen 
Curtat,  who  "recommended  the  love  of  Christ  as  the  first 
condition  and  only  form  of  the  evangelical  ministry." 

At  the  same  time,  Vinet  recognises  a  progress  on  the 
past, "  a  movement  of  reform  and  of  renovation."    This  is — 

"  neither  the  place  nor  the  moment  to  mention  the 
faults  of  the  human  side  of  the  work.  Let  us  only  see  in 
it  the  touch  of  the  Master's  hand  ...  let  us  recognise 
that  the  need  of  a  severe  unity  has  been  felt  by  many  who 
formerly  gained  nothing  from  religion.  Christianity, 
jealous  of  consistency,  has  caused  its  presence  to  be  felt 
in  all  the  spheres  of  human  existence. 

"  It  is  by  means  of  preaching  that  the  religious  move- 
ment has  spread.  .  .  .  But  here  again  is  nothing  that  is 
absolutely  new — nothing  which  did  not  already  exist  as  an 
exception.  It  is  merely  the  exception  becoming  the  rule. 
.  .  .  If  individuality  has  suffered  loss,  it  is  our  fault,  and 
not  that  of  religion." 

Vinet  criticizes  with  great  delicacy  some  of  the  pre- 
vailing abuses.  The  meditation  which  tended  to  supplant 
the    sermon  was   "  the  least  meditated  of  discourses."      A 


ALEXANDER  V1NET.  175 

certain  familiarity  tended  to  "  lower  the  dignity  of  the 
word."  But  the  principal  criticism  was  expressed  in  the 
wish  that,  following  the  example  of  their  Master,  "  the 
disciples  of  Jesus  Christ  should  be  perfectly  human" 

"Truth  claims  to  become  incorporated  in  the  personality 
of  each  man.  It  makes  of  James,  Peter,  and  John,  St. 
-lames,  St.  Peter,  and  St.  John;  but  in  adding  sanctity,  it 
docs  not  takeaway  their  humanity.  ...  In  becoming  more 
biblical,  the  teaching  of  the  pulpit  has  appeared  more 
logical,  more  harmonious,  and  more  complete.  Each  truth 
calls  another  truth  to  be  its  complement  or  support,  until 
the  chain  has  joined  the  infinity  of  our  misery  to  the  in- 
finite wisdom  of  divine  love.  ...  It  is  true  that  this  joy. 
which  ought  to  penetrate  the  soul,  has  turned  too  much  in 
the  direction  of  intelligence,  and  on  account  of  the  intimate 
connection  between  the  different  parts  of  our  moral  being 
one  has  sometimes  mistaken  the  seat  of  this  joy.  It  may 
be  that  a  religion  perfectly  connected  (because  it  is  per- 
fectly true)  may  have  enchanted  some  minds  because  it 
has  taken  the  form  of  a  complete  syllogism.  It  may  be 
that  in  the  satisfaction  of  being  able  to  reason  out  religion, 
one  has  reasoned  on  it  rather  too  much  .  .  .  it  may  be  that 
u  little  of  this  rationalism  so  harshly  attacked  by  orthodoxy 
it  one  of  the  clutracterixtics  of  tJie  new  orthodoxy ;  but  this 
abuse  does  not  outweigh  the  incontestable  merit  of  a  more 
systematic  instruction." 

The  question  of  the  connection  between  Faith  and 
Reason  had  long  preoccupied  Vinet. 

''The  Word,"  he  wrote  in  his  diary,"  is  implicitly  Truth 
and  Reason,  and  nothing  (as  regards  dogmatic  exactitude! 
would  hinder  the  substitution  of  one  of  the  two  latter  terms 
for  the  first.  Jesus  Christ  is  Reason,  Truth,  Natural  Light 
made  substantial  and  personal." 

This  thought  was  developed  in  the  opening  address  : — 

"The  present  epoch  demands  that  the  rational  side  of 
( 'hristianity,  i.e.  its  philosophy,  should  be  brought  into  relief, 


176  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

and  that  it  should  become,  as  well  as  a  moral  reformation, 
the  instrument  of  an  intellectual  renaissance.  .  .  .  There 
has  certainly  never  been  an  epoch  when  the  gospel  could 
have  dispensed  with  the  necessity  of  being  reasonable. 
One  may,  in  a  sublime  sense,  even  call  Eeason  that  which 
in  all  times  has  determined  minds  to  submit  to  the  gospel. 
But  the  equilibrium  which  is  asked  to-day  has  not  always 
been  claimed  so  distinctly.  The  conscience  and  the  heart 
have  often  been  charged  to  be  reasonable  in  the  place  of 
Reason,  which  had  ceased  to  he  so,  and  all  was  clear  and 
logical  in  the  soul,  while  the  mind  was  embarrassed  and 
confused. 

"  The  epoch  in  which  we  live  seems  to  have  taken  for 
its  device,  '  Let  your  obedience  be  reasonable.'  It  does 
not  ask  so  much  the  exposition  of  the  external  proofs  of 
religion,  as  the  demonstration  of  its  internal  coherence,  and 
of  the  agreement  of  the  whole  with  the  things  of  the  heart 
and  of  human  affairs.  It  entreats  Christianity  to  give  an 
account  of  its  philosophy.  It  is  not  a  philosophy  that  it 
wishes  to  obtain  in  exchange  for  Christianity,  but  rather  a 
philosophy  that  it  wishes  to  receive  from  its  hands.  It  is 
not  only  an  intellectual  spectacle  craved  by  some  ambitious 
minds ;  it  is  a  satisfaction  that  it  will  share  with  the 
popular  intelligence.  That  which  it  claims  as  an  end, 
it  also  asks  as  a  means,  believing  that  Christianity  thus 
taught  would  become  for  the  people  a  keen  stimulant  to 
reflection,  the  most  energetic  means  of  intellectual  develop- 
ment, and  the  source  of  all  the  true  and  healthy  ideas  on 
which  it  orders  its  life.  .  .  .  There  is  so  close  a  connection 
between  the  Christian  religion  and  humanity,  that  each 
ou<dit  to  draw  the  other  nearer — faith  towards  nature,  and 
nature  towards  faith. 

"  When  one  speaks  of  the  philosophy  of  Christianity, 
one  appears  to  speak  of  something  extraordinary — acces- 
sible only  to  a  few  minds  ;  and  yet,  to  say  that  Christianity 
is  philosophical,  is  only  to  say  in  other  terms  that  it  is  in 
accordance  with  itself  and  with  our  nature,  that  it  is 
human,  simple,  consequent,  and  practical.  Thus  we  cannot 
better  bring  out  the  philosophy  of  the  gospel,  nor  better 
enter  into  the  spirit  of  the  times,  nor  better  serve  the  cause 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  177 

of  the  Revival,  than  by  causing  to  abound  in  sermons  the 
morality  which  abounds  in  the  gospel.  .  .  .  Let  the  preacher 
examine  under  a  wide  aspect  the  book  of  God,  he  will 
everywhere  find  molality,  sometimes  completing  doctrine, 
and  sometimes  completed  by  it :  he  will  see  two  sides  of 
the  truth,  not  only  in  accordance  with,  but  completing  each 
other;  and  in  his  sermons  he  will  show  with  equal  euro 
that  morality  is  all  dogma,  and  that  dogma  is  all  morality." 

"  The  effect  produced  by  Vinet's  inaugural  address  was 
immense.  It  was  spoken  of  as  an  event.  The  Canton 
of  Vaud  had  been  flooded  by  itinerant  preachers  from 
Geneva  and  from  England,  who  compromised  the  holiness 
of  their  cause  by  narrow  views  and  vulgar  affectations. 

"  The  Vaudois  revival  owed  something  to  these  exotic 
influences,  and  this  caused  suffering  to  many  of  the  souls 
most  deeply  touched  by  the  new  teaching.  On  seeing 
Vinet  afford  the  example  of  a  simple,  natural  faith,  and 
display  the  grace  of  good  sense,  more  than  one  drooping 
heart  took  courage. 

"  It  was  an  event,  not  only  for  the  Canton  of  Vaud,  but 
for  the  religious  revival  in  general.  If  the  Revival  had 
encountered  obstacles,  it  owed  them,  not  only  to  indiffer- 
ence or  to  natural  opposition,  but  also  to  the  insufficiency 
of  its  principle.  It  was  because  it  was  not  Christian 
enough,  or,  what  comes  to  the  same  thing,  not  human 
enough.  To  humanize  it,  to  reconcile  it  with  science,  with 
reason,  and  with  art — such  was  the  work  to  which  the 
new  professor  was  called."  ' 

According  to  Professor  Asl  it'',  we  may  distinguish  three 
phases  separating  the  Vinet  of  the  second  from  the  Vinet 
of  the  third  period,  upon  which  we  are  now  entering. 
(1)  He  bewails  his  inability  to  accept  the  shibboleths  of 
the  ordinary  pietist ;  (2)  he  submits  to  the  inevitable 
and   gives  up   the   struggle;  (3)   and    finally,  he  boldly 

1  Kainbert. 
M 


178  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

repudiates  the  theology  which  he  had  tried  in  vain  to 
assimilate.  ...  It  was  during  this  phase  of  transition 
that  he  passed  through  a  deep  spiritual  conflict  provoked 
by  frequent  doubts,  leading  him  to  unforeseen  conclusions. 
"  Having  first  criticized  severely,  and  then  repudiated 
the  theology  of  the  Revival,  Vinet  attached  himself  more 
firmly  than  ever  to  the  gospel."  1 

"  The  religious  revival  of  our  day,"  said  Vinet,  "  is  con- 
nected in  some  countries  with  a  rigid  and  formal  dogmatism, 
and  people  have  been  slow  to  perceive  that  such  dogmatism 
proceeds  from  rationalism,  or,  at  all  events,  that  it  leads 
easily  to  it,  and  that  we  are  tempted  to  substitute  the 
system  of  man  for  the  plan  of  God,  and  to  subordinate 
the  work  of  God  to  the  ideas  of  man.  .  .  .  Much  of  its 
vaunted  result  has  been  recognised  to  be  artificial,  much 
of  its  worth  to  be  illusory,  many  of  its  conversions  to  be 
the  evolution  of  the  natural  man.  Finally,  that  which 
was  taken  to  be  a  living  principle  has  only  left  at  the 
bottom  of  the  crucible  a  kind  of  fervent  logic,  a  mania  of 
sequence,  a  party  spirit  tinged  with  asceticism.  In  a 
word,  it  has  been  verified  even  among  the  ignorant  (for 
the  ignorant  have  been  subject  to  dogmatism)  that  many 
were  only  Christian  in  the  same  way  that  one  is  a  disciple 
of  Plato  or  of  the  Stagvrite." 


*»., 


Vinet  accuses  the  Revival  of  having  neglected  morality 
and  of  giving  pledges  to  intellectualism,  in  a  word,  to 
have  been  an  "  orthodox  form  of  rationalism."  His 
own  views  are  clearly  expressed  in  a  letter  addressed 
to  M.  Ulrich  Gottinger  :2 — 

"  November  1837. 

"  To  affirm  or  to  deny  the  existence  of  God  would  be 
equally  bold,  and  one  would  have  to  remain  on  this  subject 

1  Astie. 

a  M.  Ulrich  Gottinger  had  raised  the.  objection  that,  as  he  failed  to  dis- 
c-over perfect  loving-kindness  in  God  and  perfect  happiness  in  man,  it  was 
not  possible  for  him  to  believe  in  a  benelicent  Creator. 


ALEXANDER   VINET.  179 

eternally  in  suspense  if  conscience,  the  inward  revelation 
of  righteousness,  the  manifestation  of  moral  order,  had  not 
asserted  the  empire  of  God  in  every  soul  of  man. 

"  l>uty  and  God:  here  are  two  correlative  and  indis- 
soluble ideas.     And  when  once  this  idea  of  God  is  appre- 
hended under  the  attribute  which  makes  its  reality, — the 
attribute  of  moral  order, — nothing  can  overturn  or  shake  it. 
It  is  easier  to  accept  the  world  such  as  it  is,  or  even  worse, 
than  to  deny  moral  order.  .  .  .  Why  should  we  be  scandalized 
to  see  evil  endure  in  part  after  the  coming  of  Christ,  when 
we  had  made  up  our  mind  before  His  coming  to  see  this 
same  evil  subsist  in  entirety?     "Why  should  we  not  sub- 
scribe, although  with  sadness,  to  all  the  conditions  of  the 
creation  of  a  moral  world — to  liberty,  which  is  the  first  of 
i  hese  conditions,  and  to  all  the  consequences  of  liberty?  .  .  . 
•  Wherefore   this  liberty  ? '  one  will  ask.     '  How  can  one 
have  a  moral  world  without  liberty?'  another  will  reply. 
How  can  one  conceive  God  without  a  moral  world,  and 
how  can  one  explain  without  the  existence  of  God  the 
sentiment  of  moral  order  in  man,  since  this  order  or  this 
attribute  cannot  be  without  a  source,  and  this  source  is 
God  ?  .  .  .  I  cling  to  this  invincible  idea  of  moral  order ! 
As  an  idea  it  gives  me  the  notion  of  God,  but  afterwards' 
realized  in  all  its  fulness,  it  has  given  us  God  Himself  and 
not  only  His  notion.  .  .  .  God  has  been  fully  manifested 
in  Jesus  Christ,  the  living  and  perfect  type,  the  realization 
of  moral  order.     When  God  thus  revealed  Himself,  was 
that  not  enough  ?     Can  eyes  and  heart  desire    anything 
more  than  God  Himself?     Can  anything  essential  be  lack- 
ing when  we  see,  when  we  possess  Him  ?     This  is  all  that 
even  the  most  skilful  pleader  can  say.  .  .  .  For  them,  as 
for  us,  the  problem  remains,  but  God  remains  too,  and  that 
is  enough." 


180  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


CHAPTER  XXL 

New  Surroundings — Friendships  :  Erskine,  Sainte-Beuve — 

Death  of  Davghter. 

1837-1838. 

Among  the  motives  which  had  decided  Vinet  to  exchange 
Basle  for  Lausanne  was  the  need  of  a  position  surrounded 
by  greater  moral  and  intellectual  perils — the  position,  in 
a  word,  of  a  full-grown  man.  Under  this  head  he  found 
even  more  than  he  desired.  From  the  moment  of  his 
arrival  in  Lausanne,  Vinet  became  a  doctor,  a  master  in 
the  Church.  His  influence  upon  the  students  was  very 
great ;  yet,  owing  to  his  extreme  delicacy  of  conscience, 
and  to  his  respect  for  individual  opinion,  he  kept  himself 
from  the  temptation  of  exercising  any  pressure  in  the 
direction  of  his  own  views  respecting  the  relations  of 
Church  and  State. 

"You  can  form  no  idea  of  the  pleasure  with  which  one 
listens  to  Vinet's  lectures,"  writes  one  of  his  colleagues. 
"Solidity,  depth,  many-sidedness,  elevation,  piety,  noble 
simplicity,  enthusiasm — all  these  qualities  are  united  in 
him.     He  is  the  type  of  the  professor." 

"  Those  who  did  not  live  in  the  Canton  of  Vaud  from 
1837  to  1845  could  never  imagine  what  joy  it  was  for  a 
numerous  public  to  possess  at  last  this  remarkable  man, 
and  to  see  him  draw  towards  Lausanne  the  eyes  of 
Europe."  l 

1  R;im!)crt. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  181 

From  the  first  days  of  his  arrival  in  Lausanne,  Vinet's 
door  was  open  to  all  who  had  need  of  his  counsel  or 
ussistance.  He  was  not  one  of  those  whose  indiscreet 
zeal  alarms  the  timid  soul.  The  "  How  goes  your  soul  ?  " 
of  Malan  was  a  phrase  not  to  be  found  in  his  vocabulary. 
His  respect  for  every  living  soul  was  only  the  supreme 
form  of  his  love  for  truth.  The  "  one  thing  needful " 
embraced  for  him  the  whole  man.  Every  now  and  then 
Vinet  sighs  over  the  loss  of  time  entailed  by  these 
visits. 

"  15th  November  1837. 

"My  days  are  consumed  by  visits  and  by  trivial 
nothings.  Hardly  any  time  is  left  for  work,  for  medita- 
tion, for  the  inner  life.  I'hvsically  I  suffer  from  all 
this." 

This  complaint  recurs  again  and  again.  But  we  never 
meet  with  an  impatient  or  a  disparaging  word,  save 
perhaps  the  following  rapid  note  : — 

"Visit  from  (a  theological  candidate),  who  came 

to  ask  me  certain  explanations  of  my  opening  address,  in 
oilier  words,  to  read  me  a  lecture  ! " 

A  few  days  later,  Vinet  invited  the  youthful  Timothy 
to  dinner. 

Vinet's  table,  where  everything  was  simple  but  in 
good  taste,  was  often  furnished  with  distinguished  guests : 
the  poet  Juste  Olivier,1  the  critic  Sainte-l'euve,  the 
theologian  8.  Chappuis,  and  the  future  philosopher 
( Jharles  Secivtan.2  Every  now  and  then  some  foreigner 
was  numbered  among  the  visitors,  notably  Thomas 
Erskine  of  Linlathen. 

1  Juste  Olivier.  Readers  of  Amiel's  Journal  will  recognise  the  name 
of  one  of  the  freshest  and  most  spontaneous  singers  of  modern  times. 

2  Charles  Secr6tan,  Professor  of  Moral  Law  at  the  Academy  of 
Lausanne,  and  Member  of  the  Institute  of  France.  The  jubilee  of  this 
venerated  teacher  was  celebrated  in  Lausanne,  1888. 


182  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OP 

To  his  Sister. 

"  They  say  that  he  is  a  great  heretic,"  wrote  Vinet,  "  but 
lie  is  a  very  good  Christian  nevertheless." 

When  the  illustrious  Scotchman  returned  to  his  native 
land  in  1839,  after  a  sojourn  of  several  months  in 
Lausanne,  Vinet  and  he  had  become  friends  for  life. 

Sainte-Beuve  and  Vinet  spent  long  hours  engaged  in 
intimate  conversation.  A  friend  had  taken  care  not  to 
let  Vinet  ignore  the  fact  that  the  public  voice  designated 
him  to  be  the  brilliant  critic's  director  of  conscience. 

Vinet  wrote  in  his  Journal  a  few  days  later, — 

"  17th  January  1838. — Yesterday  I  neglected  from  lack 
of  courage,  that  is  to  say,  from  lack  of  love,  the  kind  of 
pastorate  that conferred  upon  me." 

Judging  by  other  notes,  it  does  not  appear  that  he 
always  neglected  it.  He  laboured  to  this  end  with 
great  earnestness,  —  among  other  means  by  a  page  of 
serious  reflection  on  a  novel,  entitled  Madame  de  Pontivy, 
which  Sainte-Beuve  had  published  in  the  fievue  des 
Deux  Moudes. 

Vinet  ranked  this  work  among  the  number  of  "  caprices 
of  worn-out  souls  whose  lives  had  been  spent  in  seeing 
and  their  sensibility  in  reflection."  He  reproaches  the 
author  for  "  exciting  interest  by  an  illegitimate  affection 
which  he  surrounds  by  a  false  aureole  of  virtue  and 
innocence." 

Vinet  communicated  this  criticism  to  Sainte-Beuve 
before  its  publication.      We  read  in  the  Journal : — 

"1st  February  1838.  —  Visit  from  MM.  Sainte-Beuve 
and  Olivier.  The  former  brought  a  reply  to  my  com- 
munication respecting  Mme.  de  Pontivy.  This  reply  has 
greatly  touched  me." 


ALEXANDER  VINKT.  183 

Later  we  read, — 

'  Visit  from  M.  Sainte-Beuve,  who  has  allowed  me  to 
read  in  his  heart."  l 

The  year  18:58  was  a  year  of  trial  and  suffering  to 
Vinet.  The  malady  from  which  his  son  Auguste  had 
suffered  during  several  years  now  assumed  the  character 
of  epilepsy,  and  the  fits  became  more  and  more  frequent. 
His  daughter  Stephanie  continued  to  linger  rather  than 
to  live,  and  it  soon  became  evident  that  her  lungs  were 
seriously  affected.  She  was  sent  to  Veytaux,  to  her 
maternal  grandparents,  in  order  to  breathe  a  milder  air. 
But  her  condition  grew  daily  worse. 

"  My  very  dear  child,"  wrote  Vinet,  "  it  is  a  great 
privation  to  be  detained  far  from  you,  not  to  be  able  to 
embrace  you — to  console  you  when  you  suffer— to  show  you 
a  part  of  the  tenderness  of  which  my  heart  is  full.  1  pray 
Cod  to  soften  your  sufferings,  to  make  you  submissive  to 
His  will,  and  to  persuade  you  that  He  loves  you  more 
than  father  and  mother,  to  teach  you  to  make  of  this  love, 
your  treasure  and  your  all.  .  .  .  Yes,  God  loves  you  when 
Ee  makes  you  suffer.  Unite  your  heart  to  one  who  hath 
suffered  for  you.     Fix  your  eyes  on  the  tender  consoling 

face  of  Jesus  Christ I  embrace  you  tenderly.    Your 

father." 

As  soon  as  circumstances  permitted  them  to  do  so,  the 
father  and  mother  hastened  to  the  bedside  of  the  suffering 
child.      But  all  hope  had  disappeared. 

1  In  the  last  edition  of  Sainte-Beuve's  Port-Royal  we  find  the  following 

note  respecting  the  sojourn  of  the  illustrious  critic  in  Lausanne  : — 

"The  great,  the  incomparable  moral  profit  which  I  gained  from  the 
neighbourhood  of  IU.  Vinet,  and  from  my  sojourn  in  the  good  country  of 
Vaud,  was  the  better  understanding,   by  means  of  living  examples  of 

spiritual  Christianity,  of  that  which  in  every  communion  constitute.-,    i 
faithful  disciple  of  the  Master. 

"  '  To  be  of  the  School  of  Christ.'  1  learned  to  know  what  is  meant 
by  these  words,  and  the  noble  meaning  which  they  couvey." 


184  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


Diary. 

"  Till  now  God  has  spared  our  child  the  anguish  of  great 
physical  suffering.  This  excessive  weakness  is  indeed  a 
form  of  suffering,  and  the  more  it  increases  the  more 
patience  becomes  difficult,  but  of  this  our  dear  child  has  a 
great  store."  .  .  . 

Then  comes  this  simple  entry, — 

"  l§th  April  1838. — After  a  night  of  anguish,  our  dear 
child  fell  sweetly  asleep  in  the  arms  of  her  mother  at 
twenty  minutes  past  seven." 

On  the  same  day,  Vinet  wrote  to  his  friend, — 

"  I  write  to  announce  to  you  the  deliverance  from 
suffering  of  our  dear  child.  ...  In  proportion  as  the 
physical  anguish  augmented,  the  peace  augmented  too,  and 
this  peace  became  joy.  In  the  midst  of  her  sufferings  the 
child  said  she  was  perfectly  happy,  because  she  suffered 
for  God.  We  have  been  abundantly  blessed  in  her.  She 
has  taught  us  more  in  her  humble  simplicity  than  either 
myself  or  any  other  pastor  could  have  taught  her.  There 
is  not  a  day  that  has  not  brought  her  some  new  grace ;  and 
such  was  her  inner  peace,  that  until  the  last  moment  her 
preoccupation  was  for  those  whom  she  loved."  .  .  . 

On  the  anniversary  of  his  child's  death,  Vinet  poured 
out  his  soul  in  a  hymn,  which  shows  how  he  sought  to 
profit  by  the  trial,  and  to  bear  it  in  a  Christian  spirit. 

"  Pourquoi  reprendre, 

0  Pere  tendre, 
Lea  Mens  dont  tu  m'as  couronn<5  ? 

Ce  qu'en  oft'raudes, 

Tu  redeniandes, 
Pourquoi  douc  l'avais-tu  donn6  ?  " 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  185 

The  hymn  ends  with  the  touching  words, — 

"  Tu  piux  reprendre, 
( )  l'ere  tendre, 
Les  biens  dont  tu  m'as  couronne. 
Ce  qu'en  ofirandes, 
Tu  redemandes, 
Je  sais  pourquoi  tu  l'as  donne 
Et  le  secret  de  tcs  oeuvres  si  grandes, 
J'explique  a  mou  esprit  borneV' 

Nevertheless,  the  entries  in  his  diary  denote  the  anguish 
of  a  bereaved  heart, — 

"  15th  October. — The  remembrance  of  our  dear  child,  and 
the  bitter  regret  to  have  done  so  little  for  her  happiness, 
have  filled  my  heart  to  bursting.  We  have  found  relief, 
her  mother  and  I,  in  tears." 

To  his  Sister,  November  1838. 

"  It  seems  to  me  that  our  mourning  has  only  just  begun. 
( )h  for  an  hour,  one  hour  only,  of  her  dear  presence,— one 
hour  in  which  to  lavish  upon  her  those  marks  of  tenderness 
of  which  I  have  been  too  miserly  !  I  am  not  strong  enough 
1o  hear  the  weight  of  this  thought,  and  when  it  seizes  me, 
there  are  no  words  to  express  all  that  I  feel." 

Years  afterwards,  Vinet  said  to  a  friend, — 

"  To-day  I  learned  the  marriage  of  a  companion  of  my 
Stephanie  with  one  of  my  old  pupils;  and  1  do  not  know 
why,  but  I  wept  for  a  couple  of  hours.  I  was  not  really 
sorrowful,  I  knew  that  my  daughter  was  wedded  to  a 
fairer  spouse,  and  I  blessed  Clod  that  she  was  happy ;  and 
yet  my  tears  would  not  cease." 


186  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

Doubts — Letter  to  Pastor  Scholl — Sense  of  unfitness  for  his 
Work — Baths  of  Lavey — Extracts  from  Letters  and 
Journal. 

1838. 

Scarcely  arrived  in  Lausanne,  Vinet  found  himself  caught 
in  the  complicated  machinery  of  ecclesiastical  reform. 
He  was  thoroughly  unfit  for  the  task ;  for  not  only  was 
his  frame  racked  by  physical  suffering  and  his  heart 
torn  by  his  recent  cruel  bereavement,  but  his  mind  was 
also  painfully  exercised  by  doubts  respecting  his  vocation. 
He  entertained  at  first  the  strange  idea  of  refusing  the 
emoluments  attached  to  his  office.  This  idea,  which 
made  his  wife  "  shudder,"  and  with  good  reason,  was 
ardently  combated  by  his  friends,  who  induced  him  to 
content  himself  with  refusing  to  receive  anything  above 
the  strict  sum  allotted  to  his  colleagues.  But  the 
pecuniary  difficulty  set  aside,  his  doubts  did  not  diminish, 
and  these  are  best  revealed  in  a  letter1  which  he 
addressed  to  his  friend  the  pastor  Scholl,  just  fifteen 
days  after  his  child's  death.  This  letter  marks  a  date 
in  the  history  of  Vinet,  and  casts  a  vivid  light  upon  his 
moral  character.  It  proves  also  that  theological  doubts 
can  exist  side  by  side  with  an  intensely  religious  inner 
life.      Many  of  his  preceding  letters  had  disclosed  the  fact 

1   From  "  An  episode  little  known   in  the  life  of  Vinet,"  in   Chretien 
Evang&ique,  H.  Lecoultre. 


ALEXANDER   VINET.  187 

that  he  felt  keenly  the  thorns  of  his  official  position,  and 
the  entries  in  his  Diary  prove  that  he  passed  through  a 
period  of  profound  discouragement.  The  reader  must 
never  lose  sight  of  the  fact  that  the  state  of  Vinet's 
health  seriously  affected  his  mind,  and  that  his  spiritual 
state  was  greatly  influenced  by  his  bodily  sufferings. 

To  Professor  Scholl,  May  18.38. 

..."  I  feel  that  I  have  not  insisted  enough  upon  the 
fact  which  is  the  most  serious.  In  the  solemn  moment  in 
which  I  found  myself  face  to  face  with  death,  the  realities 
of  which  I  have  so  long  handled  the  ideas,  were  no  more 
present  to  me  than  if  they  did  not  exist;  it  was  a  perfect 
vacuum,  a  darkness  which  could  be  felt. 

"  It  was  not  one  of  those  passing  obscurities  which  the 
faith  of  the  most  fervent  of  believers  is  sometimes  called  to 
endure — my  terror  was  without  surprise  I  realized  that, 
only  possessing  an  intellectual  faith,  I  could  not  hope  to 
hud  the  treasure  of  the  faith  of  the  heart.  I  will  not  say 
that  my  heart  has  never  been  touched  and  interested,  but 
the  verity  of  salvation  by  grace  has  never  been  a  property 
of  my  being.  And  this  is  so  sorrowfully  true,  that  after 
seeing  the  joy  this  belief  spreads  in  the  heart  and  in  the 
discourse  of  Christians,  I  have  felt  myself  in  the  presence 
of  a  strange  phenomenon,  which  did  not  cease  to  haunt 
me.  ...  I  must  add,  that  I  believe  I  have  been  preserved 
from  the  sin  of  hypocrisy.  I  do  not  know  but  that 
enthusiasm,  emotion,  and  admiration  have  not  sometimes 
borne  my  words  beyond  the  habitual  condition  of  my  soul ; 
but,  as  a  rule,  I  have  sought  to  appear  as  1  really  am,  and 
even  to  be  known  to  my  disadvantage." 

A  few  days  later,  Vinet  writes  again  to  the  same 
address : — 

"4th  May  1838. 

"Dated  from  the  garden,  where  I  should  greatly  like  to 
see  you,  and  from  my  knees,  which  serve  me  badly  for  a 
desk. 

"  This  is  the  question  1  want  you  to  solve  :  not  only  to 


188  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

know  what  is  to  be  thought  and  hoped  of  mc  as  an 
individual,  but  to  know  if  a  man  is  fit  to  be  professor  of 
theology  who — 

"(1.)  Has  come  without  a  true  sense  of  a  vocation, 
only  seeking  greater  convenience,  and  has  not  since  felt 
symptoms  of  any  other  vocation. 

"  (2.)  Who  has  recognised  that  he  is  unconverted,  believ- 
ing by  the  mind  the  one  thing  needful,  and  not  living  it ; 
who  is  in  all  things,  good  as  well  as  bad,  the  natural  man, 
laden  with  particular  sins,  which  oblige  him  to  think  him- 
self lost  when  all  other  men  appear  to  be  in  safety ;  yet 
not  being  driven  by  this  conviction  to  seize  the  anchor  of 
salvation  and  to  rejoice  in  it.  Do  you  wish  to  understand 
what  I  am,  and  to  understand  at  the  same  time  that  I 
have  always  been  unconverted,  and  that,  nevertheless,  I 
have  been  sincere  (at  least  that  I  have  wished  to  be  so). 
Take  in  my  essays  the  criticism  of  Jocelyn  ; 1  you  will 
recognise  me  in  all  I  say  of  the  two  concentric  souls. 

"  (3.)  Who  has  on  many  points,  more  or  less  serious, 
and  notably  on  the  inspiration  of  Scripture,  extremely 
heterodox  views,  which  become  still  more  so  in  proportion 
as  I  study  the  Scripture  with  more  independence,  candour, 
and  freedom  from  prejudice.     In  my  present  position  an 

1  "In  subjects  that  are  touching  or  pathetic,  that  which  one  calls 
imagination  is  in  reality  a  second  .soul, — a  soul  in  some  sort  exterior  and 
concentric  to  the  first,  or,  if  you  like,  something  less  than  the  soul  and 
something  more  than  the  imagination  ;  soul  of  the  poet  and  not  of  the 
man,  a  soul  that  is  irresponsible,  a  soul  that  does  not  count  in  the 
appreciation  of  the  moral  being,  and  whose  value  does  not  always 
represent  with  exactitude  the  nature  and  the  value  of  the  true  soul. 
That  which  passes,  then,  is  not  life,  and  yet  it  is  more  than  a  simple 
idea.  This  soul  is  moved,  touched  ;  it  weeps,  it  loves  ;  it  is  so  near  to  us 
that  it  seems  to  be  ourselves.  And  yet  there  is  a  point,  there  comes  a 
moment,  when  the  distinction,  the  independence  of  the  two  souls  is 
ascertained,  when  one  recognises  in  which  of  the  two  resides  the  human 
reality,  when  one  refuses  to  honour  the  engagements  of  the  other,  and 
when  we  ask  ourselves  with  moanings  and  lamentations  if  these  emotions, 
which  brought  tears  to  the  eyes,  were  the  emotions  of  a  stranger,  of  a 
third  person,  whom,  by  an  inconceivable  illusion,  we  have  identified 
with  ourselves. 

"Let  us  seek  to  distinguish  between  the  second  soul  and  the  first  ; 
between  the  poet  and  the  man,  between  poetry  and  life." 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  189 

obstinate  reticence  on  this  or  that  point  would  be  beyond 
endurance  in  the  long  run,  and  besides,  in  principle,  it 
would  be  cowardly  and  disloyal.  The  profession  of  my 
heresies  would  not  be  in  itself  an  evil,  it  would  even  be 
a  duty  if  I  were  able  to  build  on  my  own  ruins,  and  if  I 
were  not  fearful  of  causing  trouble  and  fruitless  anguish 
to  young  minds.  I  have  the  conviction,  but  I  have  neither 
the  science  nor  the  moral  and  physical  force  necessary  to 
enter  the  lists. 

"  Is  it  not  horribly  corrupting  and  fatal  to  preserve  a 
false  position  ?  As  to  having  accepted  it,  that  is  not  so 
astonishing.  Independent  as  I  then  was,  and  holding  a 
lay  position,  I  had  allowed  my  ideas  to  form  after  die 
observation  of  facts.  As  I  did  not  force  my  mind  to 
believe  such  and  such  things  because  '  they '  believe  them, 
I  enjoyed  peace  of  mind.  My  error  arises  from  not  having 
calculated  the  difference  between  the  position  that  I  was 
leaving  and  that  which  I  was  going  to  occupy.  My  fault, 
above  all,  is  not  to  have  seen  that  in  my  spiritual  state  1 
could  be  neither  pastor  nor  professor.  My  folly  was  to 
have  thought  that  because  my  decision  involved  many 
sacrifices,  this  fact  announced  a  vocation. 

'  To-day,  as  you  know,  no  sacrifice  would  bar  the  return 
to  truth  and  the  rescue  of  my  soul,  which  dissimulation 
(I  do  not  say  simulation,  but  that  will  come)  fatigues, 
corrupts,  and  destroys. 

"I  hope  that  I  shall  not  again  be  obliged  to  inflict  this 
sorrowful  subject  upon  you.  If  you  come  to  Veytaux  we 
will  speak  of  other  things.  I  am  still  weak  and  incapable  : 
but  this  lovely  weather,  this  beautiful  sky,  and  remem- 
brances that  are  sorrowful  but  tender,  have  softened  me, 
and  you  will  find  me  less  ill-disposed  than  when  you 
left  me  the  other  day.  Farewell,  dearest  and  best  of 
friends." 

In  his  reply  Scholl  exhorted  Vinet  to  take  courage, 
and  to  go  on  with  his  work,  maintaining  that  his  very 
scruples  were  the  "  fruits  of  the  Spirit  of  God,"  anil 
proved  that  his  soul  was  "  not  a  stranger  to  the  regenerat- 
ing action  of  divine  grace." 


190  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

Whether  this  answer  satisfied  Vinet's  scruples  we 
have  no  means  of  discovering.  The  curtain  must  fall 
upon  this  scene  of  conflict.  But  it  has  already  been  lifted 
high  enough  for  us  to  witness  the  anguish  of  a  soul 
whose  one  aim  was  to  be  "  absolutely  sincere." 

Towards  the  middle  of  May,  Vinet  endeavoured  to 
resume  his  lessons,  and  he  continued  them,  although 
always  suffering,  until  the  summer  vacation,  when  the 
doctors  sent  him  to  the  baths  of  Lavey.  His  letters  to 
his  wife  permit  us  to  follow  the  progress  of  those 
struggles  and  of  those  emotions  which  make  up  the  true 
history  of  a  life. 

"  That  which  I  most  lack  is  a  strong  intellectual  interest. 
Reading  satisfies  me  less  than  ever.  I  recognise  the  value 
of  a  book  by  its  power  of  forcing  me  to  think  or  to  compose 
on  the  idea  to  which  it  has  given  rise  in  my  brain.  But 
the  habit  is  formed,  and  I  shall  go  on  devouring  books. 
Only  I  shall  no  longer  call  it  work,  except  when  my  read- 
ing becomes  a  positive  study." 

As  usual,  Vinet  bewails  his  lack  of  Christian  graces. 
He  compares  himself  with  "  a  young  Frenchman,  who, 
seated  by  the  side  of  a  childish  old  man,  replied  with 
patience  to  his  foolish  questions.  When  I  expressed  my 
admiration,  he  answered :  '  My  father  is  seventy-four, 
and  he  is  in  the  same  condition.  I  should  be  happy  to 
know  that  young  people  treated  him  with  consideration 
and  indulgence.'  " 


*»^ 


"  I  have  just  come  back  from  the  spring.  The  weather 
is  splendid.  There  are  beauties  here  of  which  the  sight  of 
our  lake  can  give  no  idea.  I  thought  much  of  our  dear 
child,  whose  eyes,  closed  for  ever  on  these  sights,  are  open 
to  behold  those  which  are  more  beautiful.  My  God,  how 
sweet  it  would  be  to  see  her  for  a  moment,  to  hear  again 
the  sound  of  her  voice!  What  sweetness  taken  from  our 
life,  from  yours  above  all  !     Oh,  as  for  me,  it  is  only  too 


ALEXANDER   VINET.  191 

just.  I  am  not  worthy  of  the  felicity  God  has  bestowed 
on  me.  I  submit  myself,  but  with  a  broken  heart.  But 
for  you,  I  cannot  accept  it. 

"  10th    August.  —  This    morning,   after    inquiring    for 

Auguste  with  much  interest,    M.  asked   suddenly  : 

'  Does  he  know  the  Lord  ? '  I  hardly  know  how  to  reply 
to  such  questions.  I  do  not  exactly  know  the  value  of  the 
terms.     1    might  perhaps  reply  '  Yes,'  when,  according  to 

M. ,  1  ought  to  have  said  '  No.'     In  any  case,  it  seems 

to  me  that  these  questions  ought  to  be  put  under  another 
form ;  and,  first  of  all,  that  they  ought  not  to  be  formulated 
in  such  a  way  as  to  demand  a  positive  'Yes'  or  'No.' 
But  these  limitations  are  not  in  accordance  with  certain 
leading  views." 


*& 


Vinet  reproaches  himself  for  not  having  raised  his 
voice  more  promptly  against  the  "  hard  thoughtlessness 
of  a  fine  lady  "  who  had  driven  away  some  poor  musicians, 
forgetting  that  "her  displeasure  in  listening  to  bad  music 
was  not  so  bad  as  the  hunger  the  poor  musicians  would 
have  to  endure." 

"Speaking  generally,  I  reproach  myself  for  showing  too 
much  tolerance  for  certain  persons.  To  love  a  fictitious 
peace  is  a  veritable  cowardice.  La  Fontaine  says  some- 
where :  'It  is  foolish  to  be  kind  to  the  /real,:'  lie,  might 
have  added  :  '  To  be  kind  to  the  wicked  is  wicked.'  (The 
affair  of  to-day  was  not  wicked,  but  thoughtless.) 

"It  seems  to  me  that  a  noble  need  of  impartiality 
almost  leads  M.  (iuizot  to  lie  partial.  For  fear  of  not 
seeing  enough  good  in  Catholicism,  I  find  that  he  sees  too 
much.  How  came  it  to  escape  him  that  'Catholicism  is 
the  cradle  of  the  Christian  Church,'  or  some  such  phrase  ? 
That  which  is  as  old  as  the  Christian  Church  is — Chris- 
tianity, and  nothing  else.  It  is  true  that  Protestantism  as 
a  fact  is  of  the  sixteenth  century  ;  but,  as  a  principle,  it  is 
without  date.  If  its  principle  be  false,  it  is  of  no  time. 
If  true,  it  belongs  to  every  age." 


192  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

New  Ecclesiastical  Law —  Vinci's  Sjjeeckes — Abolition  of 
Helvetic  Confession — Jury  of  Discipline —  Vinet's  Protest. 

1838-1839. 

Returned  to  Lausanne,  Vinet  assisted  at  the  last  days 
of  the  old  Academy  and  the  inauguration  of  the  new  ; 
but  not  without  sorrowful  presentiments.  The  Constitu- 
tion of  1831  had  fixed  the  term  of  ten  years  for  the 
revision  of  the  laws,  which  dated  from  the  time  of  the 
Bernese  dominion  ;  and  among  these  figured  ecclesias- 
tical  law.  The  Government  considered  that  the  moment 
had  come  to  examine  also  the  new  law  relating  to  the 
organization  of  the  Academy  itself. 

"  September  1838. — Lying  awake  in  the  night  1  thought 
of  my  academic  future,  and  I  foresaw  certain  disagreeable 
things  capable  of  embittering  me,  because  the  very  thought 
of  them  embitters  me  already.  There  is  no  peace  save  in 
casting  oneself  upon  God,  and  placing  oneself  entirely 
under  His  shadow." 

According  to  the  new  scheme,  the  Academy  was  to  be 
considered  as  a  new  establishment,  which  permitted  the 
Government  to  make  changes  in  the  teaching  body  at  will. 
Vinet  had  not  at  first  grasped  the  full  import  of  this  veiled 
coup  d'e'tat,  but  its  meaning  was  made  plain  to  him  when 
it  touched  the  question  of  persons  whom  he  knew  and 
loved.      The  fabulist  J.  Porchat,  known  iu  England  as  the 


ALEXANDER  VINKT.  19 


o 


author  of  the  touching  story,  Three  Months  under  the  Snow, 
and  several  of  his  colleagues,  were  dismissed,  and  for  a 
moment  the  fate  of  Juste  Olivier  trembled  in  the  balance. 

The  question  of  the  reorganization  of  the  National 
Church  agitated  the  public  mind.  Vinet  published  a 
short  essay,  in  which  he  suggested  the  formation  of 
parochial  councils,  composed  of  professors  of  theology,  of 
pastors,  and  of  laymen. 

Shortly  after,  Vinet  was  named  delegate  by  the  "  class  " 
of  Lausanne  and  Vevay.  (The  Vaudois  clergy  were 
divided  into  four  groups  or  classes.) 

"  It  would  have  been  a  great  comfort  not  to  have  been 
named,"  he  wrote  in  his  Diary.  Later  he  added,  signifi- 
cantly, "  I  am  anxious  about  what  our  associations  will 
do,  and  still  more  about  what  they  will  be." 

The  approach  of  the  opening  of  the  debates  filled 
Vinet  with  a  kind  of  terror.  Again  and  again  we  read 
in  his  Diary  such  entries  as, — 

"Discussion  on  union  of  Church  and  State.  I  spoke 
very  badly.  I  am  afraid  that  I  appeared  unfaithful  to  my 
principles  respecting  the  independence  of  the  Church." 

In  a  word,  Vinet  was  an  opportunist,  and  he  was  thus 
forced  to  struggle  at  times  against  the  logical  application 
of  his  own  ideas. 

Later,  Vinet  pronounced  an  impressive  discourse  on 
the  question,  "  By  whom  shall  the  Church  be  governed  \  " 
Whilst  claiming  for  the  laity  a  share  in  the  government  of 
the  Church,  he  insisted  that  the*  people  should  learn  to 
understand  that  there  was  a  Church  as  well  as  a  religion, 
both  of  divine  institution  :  that  there  was  a  religious  and  an 
ecclesiastical  life,  and  that  the  second  was  the  complement 
of  the  first. 

"I  ask  for  the  laity  that  they  may  cease  to  exist,  and 
that  the  grand  idea  of  a  universal  priesthood,  proclaimed 

N 


194  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

by  the  gospel  and  restored  by  the  Reformation,  may 
reappear.  I  ask  that  our  Church  may  enter  into  the 
interests  of  the  great  reformed  Church,  and  that  it  may 
hasten  the  coming  of  that  time  when  all  Churches  born  of 
the  Reformation  may  conclude  in  the  face  of  heaven  an 
offensive  and  defensive  alliance  in  favour  of  the  grand  and 
vital  principle  of  freedom  of  conscience.  .  .  . 

"  I  repeat  the  word  ecclesiastic  courageously,  because  we 
have  a  Church  to  preserve ;  yes,  to  save.  The  gospel  never 
falters,  although  the  Church  may  do  so,  and  it  is  strange  yet 
true  that  the  progress  of  the  gospel  may  in  the  long  run 
be  fatal  to  the  Church  by  creating  beyond  its  pale,  a  life,  a 
movement,  an  activity,  which  have  ceased  to  be  found 
within  it.  If,  in  its  bosom,  all  is  monotonous  and  con- 
strained, its  members  will  seek  life  elsewhere.  .  .  .  This 
evangelical  movement  is  not  the  only  sign  of  the  times, 
nor  the  only  warning  voice  that  resounds  in  our  ears.  We 
are  warned  also  by  this  anarchy  of  ideas,  by  this  unloosing 
of  theories,  by  this  chaos  of  the  spiritual  world.  God  is 
the  Master,  and  His  word  is  powerful.  But  this  conviction 
does  not  dispense  us  from  seeking  the  best  ways  of  estab- 
lishing the  reign  of  God,  and  of  causing  the  power  of  His 
word  to  appear.  .  .  .  The  pastor  preaches :  the  Church 
must  preach  too.  Is  this  then  not  the  moment  when  the 
religious  life  ought  to  develop  itself,  and  to  become,  with- 
out losing  its  essential  character,  an  ecclesiastical  life  ?  " 

( )ne  of  the  delegates,  after  expressing  the  greatest 
admiration  for  Vinet's  speech,  invited  him  to  "draw  a 
practical  conclusion."  This  conclusion,  which  could 
point  to  nothing  short  of  the  separation  of  Church  and 
State,  could  hardly  be  uttered  in  the  presence  of  such  an 
assembly. 

Vinet,  taken  unawares,  stammered,  excused  himself, 
and  withdrew. 

On  the  following  day  he  wrote : — 

"9th  March. — I  am  confined  to  my  bed,  ill  with  fever, 
and  a  prey  to  thoughts  that  give  me  no  respite :  fresh 
points  of  view  crowd  on  me.  .  .  . 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  195 

"  10th  March. — Still  harassed  by  the  remembrance  of 
our  discussion.     Another  day  in  bed." 

Vinet  only  reappeared  once  or  twice  at  the  meetings 
of  the  delegates.  It  must  be  confessed  that  he  exercised 
little  or  no  influence  on  the  deliberations ;  but,  according 
to  M.  Cart,  this  arose  from  the  fact  that  "  he  towered  too 
far  above  the  heads  of  the  majority  of  his  colleagues." 

In  the  first  months  of  the  year  1839,  the  Council  of 
State  submitted  a  project  of  ecclesiastical  law  to  the 
consideration  of  the  Grand  Council.  It  met  with  a 
storm  of  opposition  both  from  the  ecclesiastical  and  the 
lay  element.  The  latter  demanded  the  abolition  of  the 
Helvetic  Confession  of  Faith. 

Vinet  found  himself  once  more  forced  to  the  battle 
front.  He  re-wrote  eight  times  his  article  on  "  The  Church 
and  Confessions  of  Faith." 

"We  have  already  seen  his  opinion  with  regard  to 
the  laity.  We  must  now  consider  his  attitude  with  re- 
gard to  confessions  of  faith.  He  defends  the  Helvetic 
Confession  of  Faith  simply  because  he  is  afraid  of  ivhat 
might  replace  it.  He  fully  recognised  its  imperfections, 
and  asked  for  nothing  better  than  to  see  it  replaced  by 
some  verse  from  the  Bible,  such  as  "  He  that  believeth 
on  the  Son  hath  everlasting  life  ;  and  he  that  believeth 
not  the  Son  shall  not  see  lite,  but  the  wrath  of  God 
abideth  on  him."  He  proposed  ironically  the  idea  of 
this  substitution,  knowing  that  this  simple  test  would 
be  harder  to  accept  than  the  whole  of  the  Helvetic  Con- 
fession of  Faith.  "  There  were  only  two  alternatives — 
to  replace  the  existing  Confession  by  another  symbol,  or 
to  abolish  symbols  altogether." 

What  would  become  of  a  Church  without  a  creed? 

"A  creed,"  says  Vinet,  "represents  very  imperfectly, 
but   at   all  events   it   does   represent   a  Church.      It  is, 


196  lij:       :  wbitis'GS  or 

speak,  its  w:  ke  from  the 

xrch  a:  once         --'.:-_     -rnment  and  its  confession  of 
:h.  and  what  remains  of  the  notion  of  a  Church  ?     H 
e  feeb!  There  only  remains  that  which 

purely  monstrous,  both  from  a  logical  and  from  a  re".:  _ 
point  of  view  —  a  few  individuals  without  authority  and 
wr  -  ruleimpositj  then     elief  and  their  rites  on  a 

people.     Le:  it  be  the  ck  _  eminent,  or  the 

two  together  acting     n  a  pr-  md  without 

any  umpire   in  case   of  dispute  little.     The 

arch  not  being  represented,  even  ;anbol,  no  lon_ 

Religion  becomes  purely  and  simply  a  department  of 
th-  charge    I    -      -: jrins  me1  religious 

needs  of  the  m& a  al  towards  which  : 

abolition  of  a  creed  is  leading  us  with  giant  strides.  .  .  . 

ae  book  which  is  called  the  HtI  ulythe 

envelope  of  certain  tr  .  to 

the  book,  that  you  are  attached :  but  if  the  sword  of  the 
enemy  pi  _rough  the  book  to  the  most  fundamental 

.of  the  book  is  the  solemn 
wal  of  the  truths  that  it  contains. — the  book  m 
be  defended,  however  human  and  imperfect  it  may  be." 

In  spite  of  this  eloquent  pleading,  the  cause  w 
The  Grand  Council  adopted  ttr  :f  the  lay   ele- 

ment, and  the  B  ifesskm  of  Faith  was  abolished 

-  :he  creed  of  I  idois  Church,  17  th  Janua: 

rule  of  faith  was  to  be  recognised  in  the  National 
Church  save  the  Old  and  j  stamcnts. 

In  an  article  which  appeared  under  the  title  of  ■  The 
Church    and   Confessions  of  Faith  affirms    that 

each   -  ks  in  the   Bible  the  sole  authority  for  his 

own  id 

A  creed  cannot  be  treated  so  cheaply.     Its  adher 
must  fully  grasp  its  meaning.     The  r 
abolition   of    creeds)   means   either   anarchy  or   tyranny. 

.ce  abolish  the  Confession  of  Faith,  and  I  can  see  noth: 
in  your  ecch  -     eminent  save  a 


ALEXANDER   YINET.  107 

pensive  machinery,  or  the  establishment  of  a  despotism 
without  limit  The  Church,  not  being  represented  by  its 
symbol,  no  longer  exists.  lieligion  becomes  purely  and 
simply  a  department  of  the  Administration,  a  branch,  if 
you  like,  of  public  instruction.  The  abolition  of  the 
creed  is  alike  prejudicial  to  peace  and  to  liberty.  When 
this  is  suppressed  nothing  remains,  and  one  must  summon 
courage  to  say  to  a  free  people,  '  You  had  a  Church ;  we 
have  suppressed  it;  nothing  remains  but  parishes,  build- 
ings, black  coats,  and  a  budget  to  keep  all  going. 


j  it 


M.  Scherer  points  out  that  Vinet's  attitude  on  this 
occasion  is  worthy  of  attention.  The  ground  on  which 
he  places  himself  is  that  of  relative  truth.  While 
retaining  the  ideas  he  had  previously  put  forward 
on  the  evil  of  the  union  of  Church  and  State,  he 
accepts  the  fact,  that  is  to  say,  the  existence  of  the 
National  Church.  He  does  not  defend  the  Helvetic 
Creed  considered  in  itself,  but  he  maintains  the  narrow 
connection  existing  between  the  creed  and  the  Church. 
He  declares  that  the  Vaudois  Church  must  have 
its  creed  in  any  case,  and  that  creed  for  creed  he 
prefers — 

"  that  which  is  known  to  that  which  is  unknown  :  that 
which  is  born  of  an  historic  and  positive  faith  to  that 
which  in  all  probability  will  be  only  negative  ;  that  whose 
fundamental  doctrines  are  found  in  accordance  with  life 
to  that  of  dry  indifference."  ' 

Yinet  understood  perfectly  that  this  discussion  veiled 
the  struggle  between  indifferentism  or  even  incredulity  and 
the  Christian  faith.  He  endeavoured  to  show  that  in 
abandoning  the  creed,  the  only  point  where  consciences 
could  unite  would  be  in  theism.  As  to  the  doctrines 
opposed  to  the  Helvetic  Confession,  they  did  not,  in  the 
judgment  of  Vinet,  contain  "any  germ  of  life." 

1  E.  Soberer. 


198  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

A  significant  event  soon  proved  that  the  enemies  of 
vital  religion  meant  to  profit  by  their  recent  triumph. 
They  presented  a  petition  requesting  that  the  pulpit 
left  vacant  by  the  death  of  the  Doyen  Eecou  should  be 
filled  in  such  a  way  as  to  satisfy  the  needs  of  the  nation. 
They  complained  that  the  sermons  turned  on  "  a  narrow 
circle  of  dogmas  borrowed  from  the  most  sombre  mysti- 
cism," and  that  "  they  outraged  the  good  sense  of  the 
listeners." 

It  was  proposed  that  the  Liturgy  and  the  Catechism 
should  be  thoroughly  revised.1  The  Narrateur  Beligieux 
raised  its  voice  to  declare  that  if  the  State  tried  to  im- 
pose an  atheistic  formulary,  three  hundred  ministers  would 
come  forward  to  sign  the  separation  of  the  Church  and  State. 
The  Church  would  not  be  replaced  by  congregations  in 
imitation  of  the  dissenters,  but  by  a  strongly  organized 
Presbyterian  Church.  It  is  thus  that  the  idea  and  even 
the  name  the  Free  Church  first  appeared. 

The  new  scheme  did  not  recognise  a  Church :  it  only 
recognised  parishes  governed  by  the  Council  of  State, 
which  thus  became  a  kind  of  episcopal  court. 

"  '  L'&at  e'est  moi,'  said  Louis  XIV.  But  our  '  bishops,' 2 
will  they  dare  to  say,  We  are  the  Church  ? "  asked  the 
indignant  Narrateur. 

Many  petitions  were  addressed  to  the  Council.  Among 
them  was  one  from  Vinet. 

"  You  have  suppressed  the  standard  of  religious  in- 
struction which  has  been  recognised  during  the  past  three 
hundred  years,  and  you  oblige  the  Church  to  bear  the 
impress  of  the  successive  doctrines  and  systems  which 
may  find  favour  in  the  eyes  of  the  Council.  It  follows 
then  that  doctrines  which  are  characteristic  of  the  Chris- 

1  The  Church  of  Geneva,  which  had  long  abolished  the  "  yoke  of  creeds," 
rejoiced  openly  at  the  conduct  of  the  Council  of  Vaiul. 

2  Bishops,  i.e.  the  State  Council. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  199 

tian  Church  may  at  any  time  be  altered  or  removed.  You 
substitute  the  iron  rule  of  the  State  for  the  free  opinion 
of  man,  and  this  in  a  country  where  liberty  is  the  watch- 
word. Political  power  invades  a  domain  which  philosophy 
and  religion  alike  interdict.  Religion  is  to  be  subjected 
to  the  capricious  tyranny  of  public  opinion.  Yet  you 
cannot  ignore  the  fact  that  no  infraction  of  the  immutable 
principles  on  which  depend  the  progressive  development 
of  humanity  has  been  left  without  evil  consequences. 
Error  in  questions  of  this  nature  is  fraught  with  danger 
and  evil.  I  ask  you,  is  it  the  province  of  political  power 
to  prescribe  the  religion  of  the  country  ?  The  answer  of  your 
conscience  leaves  no  room  for  doubt." 

This  petition  was  laid  before  the  Grand  Council  during 
a  sitting  which  was  occupied  with  the  question  of  "  Dis- 
cipline." The  institution  of  a  "  Jury  of  Discipline  "  was 
the  result.1 

Vinet  declared  that  the  Grand  Council  had  set  the 
example  of  being  revolutionary  in  Lausanne. 

"  The  doors  of  the  Church  and  the  steps  of  the  pulpit 
have  been  left  open  to  rationalism  under  the  name  of 
liberty  of  doctrine.  ...  It  is  not  liberty  which  has  been 
instituted,  but  the  capricious  tyranny  of  the  majority. 
The  system  in  virtue  of  which  the  pastors,  on  the  accusa- 
tions of  the  Government,  can  be  dragged  before  a  jury 
who  would  judge  them  according  to  their  own  personal 
opinions,  is  disloyal  and  anarchic." 

The  protest  was  not  too  strong.  By  the  new  law  the 
Grand  Council  arrogated  sovereign  authority  in  spiritual 
matters,  and  the  pastors  were  placed  under  the  direct 
control  of  the  municipalities. 

The  "  class  "  of  Lausanne  and  Vevay  met  in  the  great 
hall  of  the  Cantonal  Library.     Vinet  rose  to  move  the 

1  The  Jury  of  Discipline  was  composed  of  a  certain  number  of  eccle- 
siastics called  to  judge  each  particular  case,  hut  not  having  the  power  to 
initiate  prooeedtnga.     This  right  was  reserved  to  the  civil  power. 


200  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

rejection  of  an  address  which,  in  the  interests  of  peace, 
seemed  to  advise  the  adoption  of  the  law. 

"9th  June  1840. 

"  As  for  me,  I  refuse  to  accept  it.  Besides  the  abolition 
of  the  Confession  of  Faith,  which  creates  anarch}-,  a  system 
of  despotism  has  been  erected  by  the  institution  of  a  Jury 
of  Discipline.  ...  I  ask  that  a  memoir  may  be  addressed 
to  the  Grand  Council  requesting  either  that  the  Confession 
of  Faith  be  restored  or  that  the  Jury  of  Doctrine  be 
suppressed." 

The  protest  was  prepared  by  Vinet,  and  submitted  to 
the  "  class."      In  it  Vinet  complained — 

"that  by  the  new  law  ministers  were  made  the  instru- 
ments of  despotism  and  of  persecution.  It  was  persecution 
to  judge  and  condemn  without  law,  i.e.  without  a  standard 
or  rule  of  faith.  The  Scriptures  could  not  serve  as  law 
in  such  circumstances,  because,  although  in  themselves  they 
have  but  one  sense,  historically  they  have  many.  The 
Bible  is  Trinitarian  for  some ;  Unitarian,  Arminian,  or  Cal- 
vinist  for  others.  A  law  by  which  an  accused  person  may 
stand  or  fall  can  only  have  one  sense." 

To  h  is  Sister. 

"  Public  affairs  are  in  a  bad  way,"  wrote  Vinet  to  his 
sister.  "  The  optimists  are  becoming  pessimists.  Every 
one  is  alarmed.  It  is  a  recommencement  of  the  satur- 
nalian  revels  celebrated  on  the  ruins  of  the  Confession  of 
Faith.  A  kind  of  giddiness  has  seized  the  people.  Nothing 
is  held  in  a  true  balance.  It  is  a  stupid  and  furious  re- 
action against  light,  against  culture,  against  elevated  senti- 
ments. The  Academy  is  threatened  as  well  as  the  Church. 
Everything  that  is  decent  and  worthy  of  respect  is  de- 
nounced as  Methodism.     One  must  be  of  the  mob  to  find 


grace. 


Vinet  recalled   the    fact  that  spiritual   despotism  had 
been  at  all  times  the  principal  passion  of  the  clergy,  and 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  201 

he  warned  them   not   to  accept  a  position  which  would 
put  them  in  the  way  of  temptation. 

"Nothing  is  so  intoxicating  as  arbitrary  power  ;  and  in 
the  hands  of  ecclesiastics  nothing  is  so  closely  allied 
to  power  as  persecution.  .  .  .  We  are  told  to  take'eomfort 
from  the  fact  that  the  jury,  if  ever  it  is  convoked,  will 
only  condemn  the  '  heterodox.'  .  .  .  What  right  have  you 
to  condemn  them  ?  How  can  there  be  '  heterodoxy  '  when 
the  law  no  longer  recognises  '  orthodoxy  '  ?  By '  orthodoxy  ' 
you  understand  the  doctrines  of  the  Helvetic  Confession ; 
but  if  these  doctrines  are  the  truth,  you  ought  to  respect 
them,  and  it  is  not  respect,  it  is  outrage,  to  make  them 
triumph  by  force." 

At  the  time  of  the  promulgation  of  the  new  eccle- 
siastical law,  Vinet  was  a  firm  member  of  the  National 
Church.  He  felt  at  home  there,  and  he  disapproved  of 
the  principle  as  well  as  of  the  fact  of  secession.  As 
long  as  possible  he  maintained  the  hope  that  the  Church 
would  obtain  a  certain  measure  of  independence.  But 
the  experience  gained  in  1838  exercised  upon  him  a 
decisive  influence.  He  asked  himself  if,  after  having 
] 'leaded  so  energetically  the  cause  of  the  separation  of 
Church  and  State,  he  did  not  run  the  risk  of  causing 
scandal  by  remaining  a  member  of  an  Established  Church. 
It  was  thus  that  he  expressed  his  convictions  on  the 
subject  in  a  work  entitled  The  Manifestation  of  Religious 
Convictions. 


202  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


CHAPTER  XXIV.1 

Preparation  of  Memoir — Success — Life  in  Lausanne — 
Letters  —  Visits  from  Working  Men  —  Illness — 
Marks  of  Sympathy — Social  Life. 

1840-1841. 

So  far  back  as  the  year  1833,  M.  de  Eochefoucauld, 
President  of  the  Society  of  Christian  Morality,  proposed 
for  competition  the  following  subject : — 

"  Is  it  a  duty  for  each  man  to  try  to  form  a  conviction 
on  matters  of  religion,  and  to  bring  all  his  words  and 
actions  into  conformity  with  this  conviction  ? " 

The  reply  was  too  evident,  and  M.  Stapfer,  who  was 
charged  to  revise  the  programme,  changed  the  subject  of 
competition  to  that  of  the  "  Manifestation  of  religious 
convictions."  The  question  thus  stated  changed  its  aspect. 
It  seemed  to  address  itself  to  Vinet. 

"  23rd  April  1836. — I  am  much  taken  with  the  idea  of 
working  on  the  subject  of  the  manifestation  of  religious 
convictions,"  we  read  in  his  Diary. 

The  idea  pursued  him,  and  a  year  later  we  find  him 
embarked  on  his  subject. 

His  manifold  occupations  did  not  permit  him  to  work 
at  it  regularly,  for  practical  matters  engrossed  him  as 
well  as  questions  of  principle." 

While  he  was  pondering  on  the  theoretical  possibility 
1  See  Life  of  A.  Vinet,  by  E.  Rambcrt.  i  Rambert. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  203 

or  impossibility  of  a  legitimate  and  fruitful  union  between 
Church  and  State,  he  was  trying  in  the  Canton  of  Vaud 
to  enable  them  to  dwell  harmoniously  together,  each 
fulfilling  his  proper  mission.  His  desire  for  peace  was 
at  least  equal  to  his  thirst  for  sincerity.  The  ideas  that 
had  previously  struck  him  had  passed  through  his  mind 
like  lightning  flashes  rather  than  as  irrevocable  convic- 
tions.  Without  denying  them,  he  appeared  not  to  be 
attached  to  them  with  the  same  ardour  of  faith.  It  is 
evident  that  he  only  regarded  the  separation  of  Church 
and  State  as  a  far-off  ideal.  He  was  brought  back  to 
it  as  to  the  only  possible  solution  by  the  logic  of  facts. 
He  says  himself  in  his  Diary, — 

"  I  am  urged  with  violence  towards  doctrines  which  I 
professed  twelve  years  ago." 

Thus  Vinet  was  brought  reluctantly  and  in  self-defence 
to  see  no  other  issue  to  the  religious  question  than  the 
absolute  separation  of  Church  and  State.  Before  accept- 
ing this  extreme  solution,  every  other  path  had  to  be 
closed.  It  was  in  the  conflict  that  his  convictions  were 
strengthened.  The  conclusion  was  forced  upon  him,  but 
only  after  a  combat  full  of  tears  and  anguish.  We  are 
told  that  while  writing  his  Memoir,  he  did  not  cease  t<> 
repeat  Luther's  phrase,  "  /  cannot  help  it."  1 

The  Diary  shows  us  that  it  was  in  the  beginning  of 
1839  that  Vinet  worked  the  most  actively  on  this  long 
pamphlet ;  that  is  to  say,  during  and  after  the  debates 
of  the  Grand  Council  on  the  subject  of  Ecclesiastical  Law, 
and  under  the  impression  of  the  disappointments  incident 
on  the  part  he  took  in  the  struggle. 

"  18th  March  1839. — To-day  I  wrote  the  last  lines  of  my 
treatise. 

1  Rambert. 


204  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

"  I  spent  the  day  reading  my  treatise,  with  which  I  am 
utterly  disgusted,"  he  added  later. 

"  A  month  from  that  date,  a  friend  wrote  him  that  his 
work  was  crowned.  On  the  following  day  Vinet  found, 
his  lecture-room  filled  to  overflowing.  In  addition  to  his 
ordinary  pupils  were  others  from  the  Gymnasium,  together 
with  numerous  friends  and  colleagues.  As  he  entered 
every  one  rose,  and  a  hymn,  composed  by  Juste  Olivier, 
was  sung.  Vinet  paused  on  the  threshold,  visibly 
affected.  When  the  singing  was  ended  he  addressed  a 
few  words  to  the  students,  and  terminated  with  a  short 
prayer.  Then  he  begged  to  be  excused  from  giving  his 
lesson.  His  chair  was  ornamented  with  garlands  and 
bouquets.  A  crown  of  laurel,  which  was  offered  to  him 
on  this  occasion,  remained  suspended  in  his  cabinet  until 
his  death.  On  the  following  day  Vinet  wrote  in  his 
Diary  :  '2nd  May. — All  fetes  have  their  morrow.' 

To  Mdlle.  Vinet,  5th  May  1839. 

" '  I  reproach  myself,  dear  sister,  with  having  left  you  to 
learn  from  others  the  prize  I  have  obtained.  Will  you 
forgive  me  ?  Thirteen  years  bring  many  changes,  within 
as  well  as  without.  This  triumph  has  not  touched  and 
thrilled  me  as  did  the  first,  and  I  should  scarcely  think 
anything  about  it  if  others  did  not  make  me  do  so.  The 
affection  shown  me  by  the  students  has  been  the  true 
crown.  I  am  wrong :  the  true  crown  is  the  crown  of 
thorns,  and  that  will  soon  come.  The  wise  and  prudent 
are  greatly  alarmed.  .  .  .  People  ask  how  it  comes  to 
pass  that  with  such  convictions  I  can  remain  "at  the  head 
of  the  Church,"  as  they  say — as  if  1  had  put  myself  there. 
.  .  .  The  day  will  come  when  those  who  are  most  opposed 
to  my  theory  will  become  its  defenders.  It  is  for  me  a 
part  of  Christian  truth.  M.  and  K.  have  always  believed 
that  it  was  only  liberalism  on  my  side.     They  are  per- 


ALEXANDER  VLNET.  205 

fectly  mistaken ;  and  if  they  will  only  deign  to  read  me, 
they  will  see  of  what  stuff  I  am  made.' 

"  Vinet's  friends  were  impatient  to  read  his  pamphlet ; 
but  when  he  received  the  news  of  its  success,  he  was 
already  engaged  in  the  preparation  of  his  New  Dis- 
courses. During  the  years  1839—41  these  works  were 
the  principal  occupations  of  Vinet's  hours  of  so-called 
leisure, — occupations  which  were  constantly  interrupted 
by  appeals  from  the  outer  world.  In  addition  to  his 
regular  contributions  to  the  Semcur,  a  thousand  other 
claims  demanded  his  attention.  Consultations,  discus- 
sions, conferences  with  pastors,  work  on  committees  and 
councils,  the  supervision  of  a  secondary  school1  for  girls 
which  he  had  been  instrumental  in  founding,  and  the 
countless  visits  to  which  we  have  before  alluded,  left 
little  leisure  in  his  life.  Two  principles  were  at  war  in 
Vinet's  breast.  The  first  has  been  well  described  by  a 
quotation  from  Lavater :  '  Enlarge  rarely  ;  but  always 
accomplish  the  circle  of  your  vocation.'  The  second 
principle  was  the  instinct  of  charity,  which  led  him  not 

1  The  Ecole  Superieure  de  Jeunes  Filles  (Rue  Bel.  Air.)  still  flourishes 
in  Lausanne,  and  is  faithful  to  the  traditions  of  its  early  history.  In 
an  article,  entitled  "The  Education  of  Women  of  the  Middle  Classes," 
Vinet  had  exposed  his  plan,  realized  by  the  foundation  of  the  school. 
His  ideas  are  best  expressed  in  a  letter  written  to  a  young  girl  : — 

"8th  June  1844.— I  cannot  plate  an  insuperable  barrier  between  your 
list  and  mine.  Certainly  there  are  books  which  must  be  left  to  those 
who  are  condemned  to  read  them,  or  else  one  must  be  strong  enough  to 
describe  the  whole  of  the  ellipse— to  read  and  ponder  over  everything ! 
Then  perhaps  the  ideas  would  be  neutralized  one  by  the  other,  and  the 
universal  levelling  would  create  a  blank.  Failing  this,  you  must  reduce 
the  list.  But  how?  Perhaps  by  reserving  to  a  more  advanced  age 
speculative  reading.  You  could  then  devote  your  time  to  concrete  facts 
—the  history  of  human  society,  the  history  of  nature,  ami  the  beat  poetry. 
Better  twice  Dante  than  once  Jocelyn  (let  this  lie  said  without  contempt 
for  a  poet  whom  I  admire).  Poetry  is  the  universal  language  :  prose  is 
that  of  a  race,  of  an  age,  of  a  class  of  objects  ;  poetry  is  that  of  all  the 
world,  and  of  everything." 


206  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

to  hold  back  if  any  had  need  of  him.  He  has  often  been 
seen  flying  away  at  the  sound  of  the  door- bell,  and  implor- 
ing his  wife  to  receive  the  visitor  in  his  place,  and  returning 
a  few  moments  later  smitten  with  remorse  at  the  thought 
of  having  turned  from  an  occasion  of  usefulness.  More 
than  once  he  undertook  to  look  over  some  MSS.  that  a 
friend  desired  to  publish,  and  the  work  became  trans- 
formed under  his  pen.  Too  often  he  was  tormented  by 
laborious  correspondence.  It  is  touching  to  watch  this 
thinker,  so  occupied  and  so  ill,  write  letter  after  letter  to 
recommend  a  friend,  or  to  try  to  find  some  occupation 
for  a  pupil.  These  letters,  all  written  in  a  fine  clear, 
regular  hand,  are  a  living  proof  of  that  '  mania  of 
perfection  '  which  he  applied  to  all  the  spheres  of  life. 
Among  Vinet's  correspondents  must  be  numbered  most 
of  the  men  of  letters — poets,  thinkers,  and  journalists — 
of  Paris.  He  had  no  need  to  travel  in  order  to  see  the 
world,  for  the  world  came  to  him.  He  was  the  fore- 
most representative  of  a  form  of  Christianity  which  is 
everywhere  in  a  minority,  but  which  nevertheless  every- 
where exists,  and  which,  instead  of  applying  itself  to  the 
externals  of  life,  penetrates  and  raises  it  to  the  height  of 
the  ideal.  People  came  to  him  just  as  in  the  Middle 
Ages  souls  which  hungered  and  thirsted  after  righteous- 
ness haunted  the  solitude  of  illustrious  penitents.  Among 
others  was  a  Ptussian  Prince,  with  whom  he  made  a  long 
study  of  some  of  the  books  of  the  New  Testament.  Then 
came  students  from  German  Switzerland,  who,  not  content 
with  following  his  lectures,  brought  him  every  week  a 
new  composition,  and  received  the  preceding  essay  cor- 
rected, annotated,  sometimes  almost  re-written.  The 
moment  came  when  he  felt  obliged  to  take  measures  to 
secure  a  little  privacy.  Yielding  to  the  insistance  of  his 
friends,  he  placed  a  card  on  the  door,  begging  visitors 
not   to   knock    between    certain    hours.      But   in   a   few 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  207 

weeks  the  card  disappeared.  Vinet  had  taken  it  down 
himself,  after  bitterly  reproaching  his  lack  of  charity  and 
patience. 

"  In  spite  of  so  many  different  preoccupations,  the  period 
of  which  we  speak  was  perhaps  the  most  fruitful  in  the 
career  of  Vinet.  It  would  probably  have  been  still  more 
so  if  his  health  had  been  less  precarious.  Towards  the 
end  of  the  year  1840  he  was  attacked  by  the  smallpox. 
The  crisis  once  passed,  he  appeared  to  be  in  better  health, 
and  he  took  up  his  work  with  renewed  vigour.  He  had 
resumed  his  old  habit  of  singing  as  he  went  in  and  out 
of  the  house,  and  his  friends  rejoiced  in  this  respite  from 
suffering,  when  on  the  21st  January  1841  an  accident 
threatened  to  cost  him  his  life.  AVhile  walking  in  the 
street,  he  slipped  and  fell  heavily  to  the  ground.  The 
passers-by  carried  him  to  the  nearest  house,  and  hastened 
to  bring  medical  assistance.  During  the  first  days,  his 
sufferings  were  so  cruel  that  the  least  movement  called 
forth  cries.  '  Oh,  it  is  too  much,'  he  was  heard  to  say 
while  under  the  influence  of  this  physical  anguish.  Then 
he  added,  'No;  it  is  never  too  much.'  If  during  these 
moments  of  agonized  suffering  an  impatient  word  escaped 
his  lips,  he  was  sure  to  express  sorrow  afterwards. 
At  times  he  imagined  himself  to  be  near  death,  and  lie 
prepared  to  meet  his  end.  'Ah,  friend,'  he  said  to  his 
kindly  host,  '  it  is  not  theology  that  helps  one  to  die.' 
His  friends  rallied  around  him.  One  day,  when  three 
or  four  of  them  transported  him  on  a  sheet  from  one  bed 
to  another,  he  stretched  out  his  trembling  hands  and 
blessed  them.  The  emotion  was  great  in  Lausanne  when 
In-  was  known  to  be  in  danger.  'I  must  go  and  thank 
all  the  people  who  have  inquired  for  me,'  said  Vinet. 
'  You  must  do  nothing  of  the  kind,'  was  the  reply,  '  or 
you  will  have  to  visit  the  whole  town.' 

"  Working  men  clustered  round  the  house  in  order  to 


208  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

get  the  earliest  news  of  his  condition  ;  and  when  it  was 
made  known  that  he  was  well  enough  to  bear  a  move, 
they  offered  to  transport  him  to  his  own  dwelling.  One 
of  them — a  poor  cobbler — gave  him  on  this  occasion  a 
crown  of  moss,  which  was  henceforth  suspended  in 
Vinet's  study  by  the  side  of  the  crown  of  laurel.  These 
touching  marks  of  respect  were  offered  neither  to  the 
preacher  nor  to  the  man  of  letters,  but  to  the  friend  of 
the  '  common  people.'  They  knew,  these  working  men, 
that  if  one  of  them  w7ent  to  ask  for  help  or  counsel, 
Vinet  would  receive  him  in  his  study,  would  make  him 
sit  down,  and  would  listen  to  him  to  the  end  with 
serious  interest,  and  would  accompany  him  to  the  door 
with  the  same  courtesy  and  respect  that  he  would  have 
bestowed  on  a  personage  of  exalted  rank.  In  reality 
Vinet  pushed  to  excess  the  respect  which  he  considered 
due  to  his  social  inferiors.  He  tormented  himself  with 
the  idea  that  his  small  writing — which  nevertheless  was 
very  distinct — gave  trouble  to  the  compositors,  and,  in 
order  to  save  their  eyes  and  their  time,  he  caused  most 
of  his  manuscript  to  be  copied.  Once  a  working  printer 
paid  him  a  visit  in  order  to  ask,  '  What  is  meant  by 
philosophy  ? '  Vinet,  without  replying  directly,  enume- 
rated some  general  ideas  respecting  the  existence  of 
God  and  the  immortality  of  the  soul.  The  workman 
who  possessed  certain  theories,  hastened  to  expose  them, 
and  was  met  by  the  exclamation,  '  You  are  talking 
philosophy,  sir  ;  you  are  talking  philosophy  ! '  "  It 
may  readily  be  imagined  that  the  honest  printer 
was  as  pleased  to  find  that  he  was  a  philosopher  as 
was  M.  Jourdain  to  learn  that  he  had  been  talking 
"  prose." 

"  The  story  readies  us  of  a  peasant  woman,  intelligent, 
cultivated,  and  pious,  who  had  moments  of  doubt  and 
anguish,    accompanied    by    secret    rebellion.       She    had 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  209 

opened  her  heart  to  her  pastor,  who  had  reproved, 
counselled,  but  all  in  vain.  He  lent  her  theological 
works,  which  she  understood  without  difficulty,  and 
devoured  with  passion.  It  was  in  this  way  that  she 
came  across  Vinet's  writings.  Never  had  any  author 
touched  her  so  deeply  ;  and  she  was  seized  with  a  great 
desire  to  speak  with  him,  if  only  for  a  few  moments.  But 
how  was  she  to  reach  a  man  placed  so  high  ?  '  It  is 
very  easy,'  snid  the  pastor.  'Lausanne  is  not  far:  go 
and  see  him.'  At  length  she  summoned  courage  to 
follow  this  advice.  Her  heart  beat  violently  when  one 
morning  she  knocked  at  Vinet's  door.  He  retained  her 
for  the  whole  of  the  day.  On  her  return  the  pastor 
asked,  '  Well,  have  you  seen  him  ? '  '  Yes  ;  and  this 
time  I  have  found  some  one  who  has  humiliated  me.' 
'What,  humiliated?  M.  Vinet  would  never  humiliate 
any  one.'  '  Yes,  he  has  humiliated  me  profoundly. 
His  humility,  his  goodness  broke  the  pride  which  always 
rises  within  me  when  you  and  others  try  to  help  me. 
You  say  good  things,  but  you  say  them  as  a  director. 
You  judge  me  from  above  ;  but  he— he  placed  himself  at 
my  side  as  if  I  had  been  his  equal.  I  spent  the  whole  day 
with  him,  and  he  never  uttered  a  word  which  could  make 
me  feel  that  I  was  his  inferior.  You — you  only  half 
understand  me,  and  he — he  understands  me  altogether. 
He  has  felt  all  that  I  have  felt.  I  could  have  believed 
he  was  my  brother,  and  yet — such  a  great  man.'  "  1 

A  few  days  later  Vinet  sent  to  this  peasant  woman,  as 
to  a  friend,  one  of  his  books  from  the  press. 

Many  are  the  delightful  souvenirs  left  by  Vinet  to 
those  who  saw  him  during  his  rare  hours  of  leisure. 
Surrounded  by  a  few  chosen  friends,  he  could  laugh, 
expand,  and  charm  his  listeners  by  his  gaiety.  Some- 
times yielding  to  the  pressing  invitation  of  M.  de  Stael, 

1  Rambert. 
0 


210  MFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

he  went  to  pass  a  day  at  Coppet,  when  he  would  meet  M. 
de  Broglie  and  Mrae.  Neckar  de  Saussure,  and  the  conver- 
sation would  he  graceful  and  animated.  Vinet's  talk  was 
that  of  a  man  of  taste.  He  did  not  preach,  he  conversed. 
He  was  guiltless  of  the  affectation  which  leads  some 
devout  persons  to  talk  of  nothing  but  devotion.  He 
feared  that  self-love  had  a  great  deal  to  do  with  the 
matter;  and  in  the  unrestraint  of  familiar  conversation  he 
preferred  to  turn  towards  literature,  art,  poetry,  in  which 
every  one  can  bear  a  part,  and  which,  if  properly 
handled,  are  not  more  futile  than  any  other. 

"  What  would  you  go  first  to  see  in  Paris  ?  "  inquired 
a  lady  renowned  for  her  severe  form  of  piety. 

"  Rachel,"  was  Vinet's  calm  reply. 

"  22nd  May  1840. 

"  If  all  conversation  was  not  infected  with  politics," 
wrote  Vinet  to  his  sister,  "1  should  greatly  like  the 
society  of  Lausanne.  But,  in  reality,  politics  are  odious 
things,  especially  when  they  are  complicated  with  religion. 
( )n  "this  last  point  minds  are  more  irritated  than  since 
the  law  of  20th  May.  The  hatred  of  the  Revival  did  not 
slop  at  the  dissenters.  Never  have  the  clergy  been  so 
unpopular,  so  bitterly  attacked,  and  so  little  defended.  1 
see  in  this  a  sign  that  the  Church  or  religion  will  conduct 
its  affairs  itself.  The  clergy  can  never  be  the  point  of 
departure,  or  the  rallying  point  of  any  generous  movement. 
Remember  what  I  tell  you.  I  should  be  only  too  happy 
if  events  prove  me  to  be  wrong." 

"Vinet  knew  how  to  laugh  ;  and  so  heartily  that  those 
who  lived  in  his  intimacy  think  they  can  still  hear  the 
joyous  sound  of  his  voice.  He  did  not  laugh  faintly  on 
a  certain  day  when  he  recounted  at  table  the  history  of 
the  good  lady  who,  desirous  of  making  a  present  to  a 
friend,  and  not  knowing  what  to  choose,  took  a  pen  and 
pricked  a  passage  in  the  Bible,  much  as  Panurge  consults 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  211 

the  'Virgilian  oracle.'  'He  put  their  garments  on  the 
ass,'  replied  the  sacred  text.  Immediately  the  good  lady 
betook  herself  to  the  nearest  shop  and  bought  a  dress 
for  her  friend." 

We  will  conclude  this  chapter  with  a  charming  letter 
written  to  some  little  girls  : — 

To  the  Misses  Marquis,  June  1841. 
'  Here  is  the  little  Breton  song  I  promised  you.  I  send 
you  with  it  a  thousand  good  wishes,  which  do  not  need  to 
be  set  to  music.  Since  my  visit  to  you,  I  hope  that  your 
health  has  been  as  good  as  mine  has  been  had.  My 
malady  allowed  me  to  mount  alone  to  Chatelard,  but  it 
was  waiting  for  me  below.  May  God  preserve  you,  dear 
little  ones  !  We  should  love  you  even  better  if  you  would 
come  to  see  us  with  father  and  mother.  You  ought  to 
know  what  a  pleasure  it  is  to  have  had  one's  friendsunder 
one's  own  roof.  Something  remains  behind  when  they  are 
no  longer  there.  Their  remembrance  haunts  the  chambers 
when  one  sees  them  no  more.  I  am  sure  that  mine  must 
haunt  you  as  a  long,  pah;,  black  spectre.  But  I  hope  that 
it  does  not  frighten  you.  Oh,  how  sweet  it  would  be  to 
see  the  image  of  all  those  one  has  loved!  The  only 
spectres  that  are  terrible;  are  the  visions  of  our  sins.  May 
they  never  present  themselves  to  us,  save  as  supplicating 
iigures  bathed  in  tears  who  take  us  by  the  hand  to  lead  us 
to  Jesus  ! — Good-bye,  dear  children.  *  Av  revoir. 

"A.  ViNT/r." 


212  LIKE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


CHAPTER    XXV. 

Letters  on  the  Subject  of  Catholicism —  Vinet  as  a  Director 
of  Conscience — Letters  on  Religious  Subjects. 

It  was  about  this  time  that  Vinet  entered  upon  a 
correspondence  with  the  Abbe  de  Baudry,  a  venerable 
old  man,  who  was  persuaded  that  Vinet  had  only  one 
step  to  make  in  order  to  enter  into  the  bosom  of  Mother 
Church.  The  discussion  turned  on  such  subjects  as  the 
institution  of  the  ministry,  the  succession  of  tradition,  the 
respective  positions  of  Catholicism  and  of  Protestantism. 
A  page  selected  from  this  long  controversy  will  show 
Vinet's  position  with  regard  to  Catholicism. 

"  We  do  not  like  to  hear  it  said  that  Protestantism  has 
succeeded  to  Catholicism.  That  which  has  existed  during 
fifteen  centuries  is  the  Christian  Church,  which  belongs  to 
us,  and  to  which  we  belong  in  so  far  as  we  are  Christian. 
We  claim  Chrysostom,  Basil,  Augustin,  Bernard,  as  well 
as  you.  To  deny  them,  or  to  deny  the  Church  wherein 
they  shine  as  torches,  would  be  to  deny  ourselves.  As 
Christians,  that  is  to  say,  as  free  (because  Christianity  is  a 
holy  liberty),  this  Church  has  borne  fine  fruit,  it  bears  it 
still,  and  the  principle  of  truth  and  of  liberty  which  it  has 
still  retained  has  not  perished  under  the  blows  that  it  has 
received  from  a  deplorable  system.  It  is  against  this 
system  that  we  protest;  it  is  in  this  sense  that  we  are 
Protestant.  We  disavow  the  principle  of  the  Romish 
Church  which  has  interrupted  the  rays  of  pure  luminous 
truth,  which  descend  upon  humanity  from  the  adorable 
throne  of  God." 


ALEXANDER  VINKT.  21 


o 


After  protesting  against  "  the  making  of  human  altera- 
tions in  divine  documents,  forbidding  the  reading  of  the 
Bible,  the  invention  of  tradition,  and  the  usurpation  of 
the  authority  of  God's  truth  by  the  priest,"  Vinet  goes 
on  to  consider  the  question  of  unity. 

"  Catholicism  alone  is  said  to  possess  unity.  This  is 
certainly  true.  Protestantism  has  liberty  for  its  principle, 
it  is  reduced  in  consequence  to  accept  diversity  of  opinion. 
What  would  it  gain  to  have  unity  without  liberty  ?  that  is 
to  say,  unity  without  life,  without  the  ludicrous  imitation 
of  unity :  this  would  be  a  contradiction  of  terms.  Unity 
is  in  the  kingdom  of  Jesus  Christ  and  of  the  Spirit. 
Unity  is  in  Christianity.  There  is  a  universal  Church,  and 
we  believe  in  it ;  and  there  we  find,  not  the  vain  form  of 
unity,  but  its  reality,  and  therein  consists  true  Catholicism, 
taking  the  word  in  the  primitive  beauty  of  its  significance. 

"  Let  us  be  content  with  this  unity,  and  let  us  regret  all 
unity  that  is  not  formed  under  the  auspices  of  liberty." 

The  breadth  of  Vinet's  sympathies  may  be  seen  in  a 
letter  addressed  some  years  later  to  another  distinguished 
Romanist. 

To  M.  de  Chdtcaubriand,  10th  June  L844. 

"My  position  as  a  Protestant  has  not  increased  the  gulf 
marked  by  nature  between  the  author  of  the  '  Genius  of 
Christianity  '  and  one  of  his  most  obscure  admirers.  1  am  a 
Protestant,  it  is  true,  but  in  a  sense  that  is  so  general  and 
so  little  historical,  that  1  do  not  feel  myself'  a  stranger  in 
any  spot  wherein  I  find  that  faith  in  divine  charity,  that 
recourse  to  the  mystery  of  the  incarnation,  ami  that 
sincerity  of  repentance,  which  are  the  crown  and  the 
humble  triumph  of  our  shattered  existence.  Porn  a  Pro- 
testant, 1  may  say  that  I  have  also  become  one  by 
conviction;  but  1  entreat  you  not  to  see  in  me  only  the 
Protestant  and  the  adversary,  but  the  Christian:  that  is 
to  sav,  thr  brother." 


214  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

To  M.  P.  Beranger. 

"  You  say  you  are  neither  Catholic  nor  Protestant.  He 
-who  writes  to  you  could  also  say  in  a  sense  that  he  is 
neither  the  one  nor  the  other.  Protestant  on  the  questions 
of  hierarchy  and  authority,  on  every  other  I  am  simply 
Christian  ;  that  is  to  say,  that  I  believe  in  the  greatness  of 
man,  and  that  I  believe  that  his  misery  is  in  proportion  to 
his  greatness;  that  I  believe  in  the  necessity,  the  reality, 
and  the  regenerating  virtue  of  divine  pardon;  in  the 
intimate  union  of  humanity  and  of  God  in  the  person  of 
Christ  the  Mediator;  the  new  Adam  of  a  new  humanity, 
the  immortal  King  of  the  future.  The  problem  posed 
by  all  religion  and  all  philosophy,  and  which,  humanly 
speaking,  remains  insoluble,  is  the  birth  and  the  triumph 
of  the  love  of  God  in  the  heart.  All  that  is  worthy  to  be 
called  happiness,  glory,  liberty  is  there.  One  cannot,  save 
by  loving  God  with  a  sovereign  love,  frankly  accept  either 
life  or  death.  Moreover,  God  is  only  sovereignly  lovable 
in  Jesus  Christ,  and  Jesus  Christ  is  in  the  gospel : 
that  is  to  say,  in  His  own  words  and  acts,  and  not  in  the 
mouth  of  man.  This  is  my  creed,  or,  if  you  like  better, 
my  philosophy." 

Another  quotation  will  show  that,  with  all  his  breadth 
and  liberality,  Vinet  could  be  true  to  his  principles. 

To  M.  Turqitetz. 

"  1  do  not  feel  the  least  inclination  to  idealize  the  characters 
of  the  Keformers  of  the  sixteenth  century.  Truth  will  be 
stronger  than  1  am.  I  know  that  they  were  men,  and  that 
the  divine  treasure  was  carried  in  earthen  vessels.  .  .  . 
But  one  must  not  seek  to  blacken  them,  and  the  writers  of 
your  communion  have  strangely  blackened  Luther.  Ah, 
if  you  would  only  free  yourself  from  prejudice,  how  you 
would  love  this  grand  personality  !  Many  persons,  friends 
even  more  than  enemies,  have  made  Luther  the  hero  of 
free  criticism  and  nothing  more.  He  has  neither  merited 
this  excess  of  honour  nor  this  indignity.  The  private 
letters  which,  long  before  undertaking  a  religious  revolu- 
tion, or  even  seeing  the  necessity  for  so  doing,  he  wrote 


ALEXANDEB  VINET.  215 

from  his  cell  are  full  of  the  central  idea  of  Protestantism, 
of  salvation  by  the  internal  work  of  faith  in  opposition  to 
the  external  works  of  the  law  ;  and  faith  for  Luther  implies 
moral  reformation,  the  regeneration,  of  the  heart,  but  first  oi 
all,  the  humble  abandonment  of  our  late  to  the  hands  of 
divine  grace.  This  is  the  point  of  departure  of  Luther 
and  the  Reformation. 

"  It  is  in  'the  hunger  and  thirst  for  righteousness'  that 
the  Reformation  took  its  source.  Later,  the  river  was 
obliged  to  traverse  the  miry  ground  of  our  humanity. 

"  Will  you  believe  it,  the  magnificent  verses  which  you 
fulminate  against  a  great  man — but  only  a  man — cause 
me  less  pain  than  the  homage  you  render  to  a  human 
creature,  to  a  woman  whom  the  gospel  had  sufficiently 
honoured  by  the  announcement  that  all  the  ages  would 
call  her  blessed.  ...  It  is  absolutely  impossible  to  find  in 
the  gospel  anything  that  gives  the  least  sanction  to  Virgin- 
worship,  which,  in  our  days,  tends  to  substitute  itself  for 
the  religion  of  Christ,  and  of  which  Bossuet,  Bourdaloue, 
and  air  the  great  men  of  the  Church  of  the  seventeenth 
century  saw  with  terror  the  enormous  development.  .  .  . 
1  would  not  enlarge  on  this  subject  if  I  did  not  see  in  the 
worship  of  Mary  the  annihilation  of  true  Christianity. 

"If  you  reflect  on  the  capital  idea  and  on  the  moral 
sense  of  Christianity,  I  might  say  on  its  psychology, and  if 
a  tier  this  you  contemplate  the  place  that  Catholicism  gives 
in  its  system  to  Mary  and  to  some  personages  arbitrarily 
decorated  with  the  title  of  saint,  you  may  then  ask  your- 
self if  it  be  not  a  snare  of  the  tempter  to  bring  back 
humanity  by  slow  degrees  to  polytheism." 

\'i net's  correspondence  may  be  regarded  as  one  of  the 
most  valuable  sides  of  his  ministry.  He  had  become 
almost  in  spite  of  himself  the  director  of  conscience  to 
numbers  of  persons  belonging  to  all  classes  of  society 
and  all  shades  of  thought. 

The  value  which  he  put  upon  right  thinking,  con- 
sidering it  as  the  mainspring  of  all  right  action,  may  be 
seen  from  the  following : — 


216  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

To  Mine,  la  Baronnc  de  Stael,  1840. 

"  When  we  think  about  religion,  we  must  be  sure  to 
think  well.  The  moment  one  sees  a  difficulty,  it  must  be 
grappled  with — not  lightly  dismissed  without  a  solution. 
To  be  able  to  prove  clearly  that  some  point  must  be  left 
obscure  is  in  itself  a  kind  of  solution.  During  some  time 
the  conscience  has  been  obstructed  by  confusion  of  prin- 
ciples. Ideas  have  travelled  in  a  vicious  circle,  and  the 
two  elements  of  which  the  work  of  salvation  is  composed 
— I  mean  grace  and  faith— appear  to  me  to  dispute  the 
ground.  There  is  a  definition  of  faith  on  page  42  a  which 
lias  been  for  me  a  ray  of  light  and  a  real  deliverance.  I  do 
not  know  whether  everything  in  this  treatise  would  appear 
orthodox  to  the  tlteology  of  the  Revival,  but  I  have1  not 
the  least  doubt  about  its  being  in  the  intention  and 
meaning  of  the  Bible.2 

" '  Faith,'  says  the  author,  '  is  nothing  else  than  the  will 
to  accept  the  pardon  of  God  and  to  renounce  the  research 
of  all  other  means  of  salvation.'  The  more  I  examine  this 
definition,  the  more  it  rejoices  my  heart.  It  gives  me 
something  to  say  to  those  sincere  but  unfortunate  minds 
who,  touched  by  the  Spirit  of  Truth,  believe  in  their  state 
of  sin,  abjure  all  self-righteousness,  and  yet  find  themselves 
kept  back  by  a  chain  which  stretches  before  them — by 
education,  by  first  impressions,  or  perhaps  by  a  sceptical 
temperament.  .  .  .  With  such  a  disposition  of  will  one  is 
brought  very  near  to  believe  altogether  .  .  .  and  sooner 
or  later  the  light  must  dawn." 

In  the  latter  part  of  this  letter  Vinet  owns  that  on 
the  question  of  the  "larger  hope"  he  inclines  with  all  the 
"  weight  of  his  heart "  towards  the  opinion  of  the  author, 
and  that  he  is  fain  to  confess  that  those  who  partake  it 
"  have  advanced  arguments  which  are  not  without  value." 
But  he  fears  that  this  view  may  lead  men  to  "  put  off  their 

1  Referring  to  a  MS.  shown  to  Vinet  by  M.  de  Stael. 

2  Here  Vinet  enunciates  clearly  enough  his  doubts  as  to  whether  the 
theology  of  the  Revival  was  identical  with  the  meaning  and  intention  of 
the  Bible. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  217 

conversion  from  year  to  year,"  and  this  fear,  this  "  scruple," 
makes  him  "  hesitate."  He  thinks  also  that  there  may  be 
a  moment  known  only  to  God  when  the  renewal  of  the 
soul  could  be  nothing  short  of  the  cessation  of  identity. 

Some  of  Vinet's  most  interesting  letters  are  addressed 
to  M.  Clavel  de  Brenles,  who  had  urged  that  advanced 
age  was  an  obstacle  to  the  appropriation  of  truth. 

To  M.  de  Brenles. 

"  It  is  the  heart  that  recognises  and  appropriates  religious 
truth.  It  is  the  heart  that  knows.  The  most  learned,  in 
order  to  be  taught  well,  need  to  be  taught  by  the  heart. 
God  is  not  within  the  compass  of  metaphysics.  Philosophy 
never  obtains  under  the  name  of  God  anything  but  an 
aggregate  of  abstract  properties.  .  .  .  God  is  not  reflected 
as  a  living  substantial  Reality  except  in  the  soul :  the  soul 
alone  knows  God.  A  life  which  is  too  intellectual  as  well 
as  one  that  is  too  sensual  can  dull  this  sense  of  God  .  .  . 
if  I  dare  so  call  the  principle  of  all  religion.  Apart  from 
the  tyrannical  preoccupations  of  the  intellect  or  of  the 
senses,  the  soul  would  believe  naturally  in  the  living  God, 
for  all  the  pure  and  true  inclinations  which  it  feels  are 
nothing  else  than  the  presence  of  God  in  His  internal 
dwelling.  It  is  more  easy  for  the  eye  to  deny  the  light 
than  for  the  soul  to  deny  God.  To  believe  in  God,  it  is  to 
believe  in  the  soul,  in  life,  in  reason,  in  will,  and  in  love. 
.  .  .  All  these  when  perfect,  infinite,  and  eternal,  are  God. 
Either  there  is  in  us  neither  thought,  nor  will,  nor  love,  nor 
personality,  or  else  God  is  a  personality  thinking,  willing, 
loving  infinitely.  It  is  not  indirectly  but  instantaneously 
that  a  simple  man  acquires  the  consciousness  of  God.  It  is 
not  for  him  the  last  term  of  a  syllogism,  but  the  necessary 
premises  of  all  his  reasoning,  the  basis  of  all  truth  and  of 
all  certainty.  If  any  one  loves  God,  God  is  known  of  him. 
We  must  come  back  to  this  natural  method :  we  must, 
adore  God  before  we  know  Him,  invoke  Him  before  haying 
denned  Him ;  suppose  His  existence  and  His  personality, 
cast  ourselves  on  our  knees  before  His  mercy  and  love 
which  must  be  somewhere,  because  we  find  them  in  our- 


218  LIFE  AND  WHITINGS  OF 

selves ;  name  God,  call  upon  God,  cry  to  Him  without 
troubling  ourselves  whether  our  sighs  will  find  their  way; 
pray,  pray  again,  and  force  God,  in  whom  we  scarcely 
believe,  to  descend  and  to  become  sensible  to  our  hearts." 

In  his  reply,  M.  de  Brenles  exposed  the  difficulties 
he  experienced  (1)  with  regard  to  the  personality  of 
God ;  (2)  concerning  the  divine  origin  of  the  Bible. 
"  These  books  appear  to  me  to  have  been  written  by 
men."     Vinet  sent  the  following  letter  to  M.  Forel : — 

"  I  feel  myself  drawn  towards  this  sincere  soul  (i.e.  M. 
de  Brenles)  by  the  bond  of  a  common  faith  in  moral 
truth,  which,  after  all,  is  the  soil  upon  which  religious 
convictions  grow  and  flourish.  I  can  see  no  obstacle  to 
his  reception  of  the  truth  save  the  force  of  certain  intel- 
lectual habits  against  which  I  know  myself  how  difficult  it 
is  to  struggle.  Such  is  this  repugnance  for  anthropomor- 
phism. .  .  .  The  personality  of  God  implies  it,  and  it  is 
the  personality  which  is  the  real  difficulty.  The  rest 
•  oines  of  itself,  and  in  the  system  of  a  personal  God  a 
degree  more  or  less  great  of  anthropomorphism  in  the 
writings  which  relate  His  dispensations  cannot  be  a  sub- 
ject either  of  scandal  or  of  embarrassment.  And  as  to 
the  personality  of  God,  I  would  venture  to  ask  if  the 
personality  of  man,  which  it  is  impossible  to  deny,  is  not  in 
itself  an  unfathomable  problem.  Is  it  possible  to  deny  to 
(rod  the  qualities  which  emanate  from  Him?  ...  I  can- 
not but  approve  of  M.  de  Brenles'  wish  to  ask  Scripture  to 
explain  itself,  but  1  hardly  know  what  method  of  study 
to  suggest.  Perhaps  I  would  seek  to  extract  from  the 
Gospels  the  form,  the  character,  and  the  thoughts  of  Jesus 
( 'hrist,  then  I  would  seek  Him  in  the  Prophets,  which  are 
full  of  Him,  and  themselves  so  spiritual,  so  profound  in  the 
midst  of  a  coarse  people  prone  to  materialize  everything. 
Perhaps  the  sight  of  these  great  preparations  and  of  the 
gradual  development  of  a  universal  religion  would  inspire 
me  with  the  desire  to  mount  to  the  cradle  of  humanity,  and 
to  seize  there  the  first  indications  of  the  designs  of  God. 
All  this,  well  grasped,  would  render  easy  and  intelligible 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  219 

the  history  of  the  dispensations  of  God  towards  the  chosen 
people.  ...  In  all  this  study/  should  have  met  men;  I 
should  have  read  human  writings,  more  human  in  a  sense 
than  an  unintelligent  orthodoxy  would  care  to  concede;  but 
I  should  not  be  surprised  by  this  fact,  any  more  than  by 
the  atmosphere  which  envelopes  the  earth  and  intercepts 
the  rays  of  heaven's  sunshine." 

In  another  letter  Vinet  returned  to  the  question  of  the 
definition  of  faith. 

To  M.  C.  Scl, oil,  September  1840. 

<!  Do  you  not  believe,  dear  friend,  that  faith  is  essentially 
a  moral  state,  a  form  of  life?  '  To  believe  otherwise  is  not 
to  believe.  .  .  .  The  greatest  certitude  obtained  by  though* 
alone  is  so  far  removed  from  faith  that  with  certain  men 
it  resembles  incredulity,  or,  at  all  events,  it  allows  incre- 
dulity to  exist  by  its  side.  It  is  in  a  way  to  receive  light 
from  below  instead  of  from  above.  ...  The  heart  must  be 
taken  into  account.  Logic  and  philosophy  both  demand 
this.  It  is  with  religpm  that  we  must  reason  about  religion. 
I  once  wrote  this  on  my  tablets :  '  Never  speak  of  God 
without  speaking  to  (Jod.  On  religious  subjects  the  best 
meditation  is  prayer.  To  have  prayed  is  to  have  thought.' 
I  should  almost  have  preferred  not  to  have  had  any 
theology.  The  best  is  that  which  is  summed  up  in  the  word 
'  Jesus,  Son  of  David,  have  pity  on  me.'  But  if  we  must- 
have  theology,  let  it  be  bold  and  let  it  be  good  ;  otherwise 
do  not  attempt  to  be  a  theologian.  I  respect  and  I  envy 
the  faith  of  the  simple,  but  I  cannot  endure  the  specula- 
tion which  will  only  speculate  according  to  its  taste,— the 
research  which  does  not  really  seek  Truth,— the  theology 
which  stops  half  way  because  it  does  not  suit  it  to  go 
farther,  —  the  theology  which  reasons  and  which  curses 
reasons, — the  theology  which  grows  angry  when  one  will 
not  stop  at  its  point  of  view." 


220  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


CHAPTER  XXVI.1 

The  "  New  Religious  Discourses  " — Extracts  from  Sermons. 

Yinet  had  been  attracted  by  the  character  of  systematic 
simplicity  offered  by  the  doctrine  of  the  Revival.  The 
sacrifice  of  Christ  procuring  to  believers  a  free  salvation, 
this  salvation  producing  love,  this  love  giving  birth  to  a 
new  life  and  to  good  works,  such  was  the  machinery  by 
means  of  which  Christianity  seemed  alone  to  work. 
Later,  this  very  simplicity  became  suspicious  in  his  eyes. 
He  saw  in  it  the  impoverishment  of  the  gospel.  With- 
out giving  up  the  idea  of  the  new  incentive  which 
morality  borrows  from  Christian  doctrine,  he  recognised 
that  religious  as  well  as  physical  life  is  an  infinitely  com- 
plex phenomenon.  He  perceived  a  grave  error  in  the 
point  of  view  which  condemns  the  moral  principle  to 
evolve  its  consequences  with  the  necessity  of  a 
mechanical  law.  Finally,  it  appeared  to  him  that  con- 
temporary preaching  had  cheapened  the  riches  of  the 
points  of  view  contained  in  Holy  Scripture.  The  New 
Discourses  were  the  result  of  these  reflections.  These 
studies  rather  than  sermons  were  addressed  to  the 
students  in  theology,  not  preached  from  the  pulpit.  We 
find  Vinet  rehabilitating  a  word  which  had  been  almost 
banished  from  the  language  of  religion,  —  morality. 
"  True  morality,"  it  has  been  well  said,  "  proceeds  from 
law  taken  in  its  highest  sense  :  Love — the  love   of  God 

1  Edmond  Scherer. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  221 

and  of  men."     This  was   the  underlying  thought  of  the 
Discourses. 

"  They  are,"  says  Vinet  in  his  preface,  "  studies  on  some 
of  the  principal  characters  or  principal  applications  of  the 
law  of  Christianity.  Herein  consists  the  unity  of  the 
volume.  ...  In  morality  man  cannot  comprehend  any- 
thing short  of  perfection,  and  for  the  conscience  every 
incomplete  sense  is  a  non-sense.  It  is  a  non-sense  for 
man  to  propose  to  himself  any  end  save  perfection.  .  .  . 
The  only  possible  perfection  is  progress, — progress  which 
knows  neither  limit  nor  cessation." 

It  is  easy  to  see  that  Vinet  has  little  taste  lor 
historical  arguments,  or  for  that  chain-work  of  inferences 
by  which  the  proselyte  is  supposed  to  be  led  from  the 
authenticity  of  the  biblical  records  to  their  credibility ; 
from  their  credibility  to  the  reality  of  the  miracles  ami 
prophecies  related  in  the  book ;  finally,  from  the  reality 
of  miracles  to  the  divinity  of  doctrine.  Vinet  owed 
none  of  his  Christianity  to  such  researches ;  a  secret 
sentiment  warned  him  of  the  insufficiency  of  history,  we 
will  not  say  to  give  faith,  but  even  to  produce  an  assured 
conviction. 

"  The  religious  conviction  is  of  such  a  nature  that  it 
implies  the  historic  certitude  of  evangelical  facts  much 
more  than  it  rests  upon  them." 

The  argument  which  Vinet  loved  to  develope  was  that 
which  he  draws  from  the  moral  renovation  of  man  by  the 
gospel.  This  change,  this  new  life,  are  realities  whose 
evidence  is  full  and  striking. 

"It  is  impossible,"  says  Vinet,  "that  a  religion  which 
leads  to  God  should  not  also  come  from  Him." 

The  first  sermon  has  for  its  title  "  The  Folly  of  Truth."  ' 
Vinet  affirms — 

1  1  Cor.  iii.  18. 


222  LIFE  AND  WHITINGS  OF 

"  that  a  religion  which  appeared  reasonable  to  everybody 
would  not  be  the  true  religion.  The  world  will  always 
call  the  solitary  follower  of  truth  a  fool.  It  knows  no 
wisdom  apart  from  the  authority  of  the  greatest  number. 
It  is  certainly  not  natural  to  suppose  that  truth  was 
intended  to  belong  only  to  the  few.  ft  was  meant  to 
belong  to  all ;  but  sin  has  deadened  the  moral  sense,  and 
the  soul  is  no  longer  the  mirror  in  which  truth  is  reflected. 
Although  truth  can  only  be  discerned  at  first  by  the  few, 
sooner  or  later  this  particular  view  becomes  the  opinion  of 
the  crowd. 

"Derision  has  greeted  those  who  first  endeavoured  to 
recall  some  principle  of  eternal  justice  to  mankind.  Torture, 
slavery,  the  degradation  of  women,  and  religious  persecu- 
tion have  been  approved  by  the  public  voice  in  spite  of 
private  protest. 

"This  conflict  proves  (1)  that  man  cannot  do  without 
truth ;  (2)  that  he  is  no  longer  in  communion  with  it. 
A  principle  is  needed  to  create,  so  to  speak,  another 
human  nature.  This  principle  is  Christian  Truth,  which,  at 
its  first  appearance,  had  all  the  world  against  it.  The 
folly  of  the  Christian  is  seen  in  the  maxims  which  serve 
as  rules  of  conduct  and  pass  into  his  life,  as  well  as  in  the 
doctrines  he  professes.  The  world  believes  in  the  opinion 
of  the  majority,  in  antiquity,  and  little  in  truth.  But 
Christianity  has  wished  to  found  a  race  of  men  who 
would  believe  in  truth  rather  than  in  human  opinion, 
in  antiquity,  or  in  force,  and  whom  the  world  would 
regard  as  fools." 

In  the  second  sermon,1  on  "  The  Wicked  and  the  Day 
of   Calamity," "    the    exact   correspondence,   the  intimate 

1   To  Mme.  Fore/. 

"I  have  received  Vinet's  New  Discourses,  into  which  I  Lave  looked 
with  much  pleasure.  I  was  very  much  struck  by  the  second,  '  Le  Mediant 
et  le  jour  de  la  calamite.'  The  certainty,  the  inevitable,  infallible 
certainty,  of  the  connection  between  moral  goodness  and  happiness,  moral 
evil  and  misery,  is  an  immense  doctrine,  full  of  important  results." 
T.  Erskine. 

-  Prov.  xvi.  4. 


ALEXANDER  VlNET.  223 

connection  between  sin  and  suffering,  is  shown  to  be 
the  meaning  of  a  text  which  has  been  sometimes  inter- 
preted  in  such  a  manner  as  to  blaspheme  the  idea  of 
a  God  of  love.  Vinet  invites  us,  on  the  contrary,  to 
gaze  on  the  order  and  harmony  which  reign  throughout 
creation. 

"  Supposing  that  bodies  sometimes  remembered  and 
sometimes  forgot  to  press  towards  the  centre  of  the 
globe, — that  the  law  which  reduces  to  vapour  a  quantity 
of  water  proportionate  to  the  intensity  of  the  rays  of 
the  sun  could  be  suspended  or  act  irregularly, — accidents 
would  result  that  would  upset  the  world  and  dishonour 
God." 

Vinet  shows  that  the  same  disturbance  would  take 
place  in  the  region  of  morals  if  once  the  moral  order 
binding  together  cause  and  effect,  sin  and  suffering,  were 
infringed. 

Perhaps  the  sermon  which  marks  most  distinctly  the 
progress  made  by  Vinet  is  that  entitled  "The  Work  of 
God."1  Vinet  represented  faith  to  be  a  work,  and. 
indeed,  the  first  of  works,  something  essentially  moral." 

"  Judaism  and  Christianity  are  not,  cannot  be,  other 
than  two  ages  of  the  same  truth.  Each  of  these  Churches 
has  its  watchword, — that  of  the  Jewish  Church  is  law,  and 
that  of  the  Christian  Church  is  faith.  .  .  .  The  error  of 
the  Jews  is  to  reduce  all  to  works,  and  not  to  raise  them- 
selves to  the  faith.  The  error  of  the  Christian  is  not  to 
see  that  true  faith  is  a  work,  and  that  if  it  be  not  a  work 
it  is  nothing.    These  two  errors  do  not  so  much  characterize 

1  "When  theologiaus  understand  that  faith  is  not  a  special  faculty,  but 
a  spiritual  complex  act  in  which  tin'  whole  man  is  engaged,  they  will 
cease  to  imagine  that  men  ran  believe  without  understanding,  or  accept 
by  faith  that  which  they  reject  l>y  the  intelligence."     E.  Scherer. 

-  John  vi.  28,  29. 


224  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

two  epochs — of  which  one  still  endures  and  the  other  no 
longer  exists — as  two  classes  of  persons,  or  two  tendencies 
which  reproduce  themselves  at  all  times  and  in  all 
places.  .  .  .  These  two  errors  are  actual,  are  living,  and 
doubtless  one  or  the  other  has  representatives  in  this 
audience." 

The  second  part  of  the  sermon  addressed  to  Christians 
who  refuse  to  understand  that  faith  itself  is  a  work, 
touches  at  the  root  of  the  narrow  exaggerated  views 
which  fatally  compromised  the  Revival. 

"  For  some  to  believe  in  salvation  by  grace  is  nothing 
more  than  to  consent  to  be  saved  by  grace!'  But,  accord- 
ing to  Vinet,  it  is  the  acquiescence  of  the  heart  in  the 
living  realities  of  the  Christian  religion.  Faith  is  the 
principle  of  vital  religion,  and  salvation  consists  less 
in  the  reversal  of  a  judicial  sentence  than  in  newness 
of  life.  "  In  expressing  himself  thus,  Vinet  cut  himself 
adrift  from  Protestant  orthodoxy.  The  form  under  which 
the  doctrine  of  justification  was  expressed  appeared  to 
him  fatal,  because  it  suppressed  as  much  as  possible  the 
moral  element  of  belief  in  order  to  express  a  kind  of 
•  intellectual  opus  operatum!  "  l 

In  "  Tears  and  Songs,"  2  Vinet  contrasts  the  work  of 
John  the  Baptist  and  of  Jesus  Christ. 

"  The  preaching  of  repentance,  which  was  that  of  John, 
is,  in  a  sense,  an  earthly,  human  word, — an  idea  which  is 
born  in  the  conscience  of  man,  which  the  conscience 
of  man  receives  and  understands.  But  the  preaching  of 
grace  is  a  divine  word,  and  He  who  pronounces  it  is  of 
heaven,  and  is  above  all.  .  .  . 

"  People  have  disputed  for  centuries  on  the  subject  of 
grace  and  of  law,  on  the  rigour  of  the  gospel  and  its 
sweetness,  and  the  last  word  will  always  belong,  not  to 
the  most  true,  but  to  the  most  skilful.     But  when  the 

i  Astie.  s  Matt.  xi.  16-19. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  225 

wisdom  from  on  high  passes  from  a  book  to  a  man,  and 
from  words  to  life,  the  world  can  see  with  its  eyes  the 
truth.  Christians  will  be  always  the  living  and  triumphant 
apology  of  Christianity.  .  .  .  You  have  disputed  whether 
,nrace  and  law  could  subsist  side  by  side;  here  is  the 
union  realized  in  a  man  like  yourself.  Because  this  man 
thought  he  had  received  from  God  an  irrevocable  and 
absolute  pardon,  he  is  only  the  more  attached  to  the 
observation  of  the  holy  law  of  God ;  this  man,  who  makes 
of  his  will  a  perpetual  offering  to  the  will  of  God,  who 
treats  his  body  with  severity  and  represses  his  earthly 
inclinations,  does  not  taste  any  the  less  the  sweet  assur- 
ance that  his  salvation  does  not  depend  on  his  works,  but 
•  in  the  pure  grace  of  God.  You  have  disputed  as  to 
whether  Christianity  destroyed  the  affections  and  narrowed 
the  heart;  here  is  a  man  who  has  chosen  Jesus  Christ 
for  his  portion,  and  has  placed  his  heart  '  where  his  treasure 
is;'  yet  no  one  could  be  more  accessible,  more  tender,  more 
human,  more  truly  social.  You  ask  how  one  could,  with 
this  assurance  of  salvation,  remain  within  the  limits  of 
humility ;  here  is  a  man  to  whom  the  most  glorious  hopes 
only  reveal  more  clearly  his  nothingness,  and  who  is 
more  disposed  than  ever  to  place  himself  below  others, 
regarding  all  men  as  more  excellent  than  himself.  .  .  . 
We  must  own  that  the  problem  is  solved,  and  that 
'  Wisdom  is  justified  of  her  children.'  .  .  .  Speak  about 
Christian  doctrine,  but  above  all  live  as  Christians.  To 
all  sophisms,  to  all  subtleties,  oppose  your  life.  Cause 
Christianity  to  be  recognised,  not  only  as  a  doctrine,  but 
as  a  living,  unexceptionable,  perpetual  fact." 

An  excellent  example  of  the  same  kind  of  reasoning  is 
afforded  in  a  reply  to  a  letter  from  one  who  felt  himself 
to  be  weighed  down  with  the  burden  of  sin,  from  which 
he  felt  that  the  gospel  alone  could  deliver  him,  if  tht 
gospel  were  true. 

"  You  recognise  that  religion  conciliates,  repairs,  accom- 
plishes all,  and  yet  you  ask,  Is  it  true  ?  I  ask  you  if  you 
are  not  already  in  possession  of  a  result  which  no  one  can 

P 


226  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

take  from  you,  and  if  from  this  moment  you  ought  not  to 
act  and  live  as  though  religion  were  true.  .  .  .  You  will 
say,  may  be,  '  Who  would  run  these  risks  on  the  faith  of 
a  "  perhaps  "  \ '  What  '  risk '  do  you  run  ?  That  of  being 
wiser,  purer,  more  virtuous  than  you  would  have  been 
without  it,  and  consequently  happier.  From  the  moment 
that  you  have  recognised  moral  truth,  nothing  can  dis- 
pense you  from  the  obligation  of  living  in  accordance  with 
its  rule.  A  profound  saying  has  been  uttered  by  Jesus 
Christ :  '  If  any  man  will  do  His  will,  he  shall  know  of  the 
doctrine  whether  it  be  of  God.'  Yes,  he  who  wills  shall 
learn.  Will  is  almost  knowledge.  Act — act  while  study- 
ing, and  study  while  acting." 

In  the  sermon  on  the  "  Extraordinary,"  '  M.  Iiambert 
affirms  that  "  Vinet  had  never  been  more  ideally  Chris- 
tian,— had  never  exposed  with  greater  power  the  per- 
fection of  Christian  Ethics, — had  never  shown  himself 
more  frankly  opposed  to  the  tepid  unmeaning  form  of 
Christianity  which  reigns  in  the  world." 

"  All  the  gospel  is  extraordinary'1  says  Vinet.  "  It  is 
all  terror  for  him  to  whom  it  is  not  all  love.  .  .  .  The 
'  extraordinary  '  is  the  '  ordinary  '  of  the  Christian."  .  .  . 

Vinet  draws  the  portrait  of  the  extraordinary  being 
(the  Christian),  and  renders  it  more  life-like  by  means 
of  the  authentic  examples  of  Jesus  Christ  and  of  St. 
Paul.     Then  he  compares  sadly  the  ideal  with  the  real. 

"  The  Church  needs  a  new  heroic  a^e.  In  former  times, 
it  found  the  elements  prepared  in  the  ardent  and  frenzied 
hatred  of  kings  and  of  nations ;  now,  if  this  arena  is  lack- 
ing, it  must  be  found  elsewhere.  We  must  search  for  war  in 
the  bosom  of  peace.  But  what  war  if  not  that  of  the  spirit 
against  the  flesh,  and  the  will  of  love  against  the  will  of 
selfishness  ?  This  war  alone,  this  conflict  of  the  Christian 
against  himself,  this  work  of  perfection,  will  proclaim  its 

1  Matt.  v.  47.     French  translation  :     "What  do  ye  that  is  extraordi- 
nary ? " 


ALEXANDER  VINKT.  227 

true  character  to  the  world.  .  .  .  Christianity  in  the  midst 
of  general  exhaustion  is  the  one  thing  that  is  new,  young, 
and  inexhaustible.  Christianity  is  the  eternal  youth  of 
the  human  race,  but  it  is  on  condition  that  its  votaries  are 
*  extraordinary.'  ...  Is  it  so  with  us  ?  Are  we  the  wit- 
nesses or  the  accusers  of  the  gospel,  the  false  or  the  true 
patterns  of  Christianity  ?  Do  we  feel  within  ourselves 
instincts  of  heroism  or  of  cowardice  ?  Are  we  simple 
'  amateurs '  of  the  wisdom  of  the  gospel,  or  are  we  the 
champions  and  soldiers  of  Jesus  Christ  ?  Do  we  look  upon 
the  world  as  a  field  of  battle,  life  as  a  bloody  yet  glorious 
campaign  ?  Jesus  Christ  as  a  divine  victim  whom  we  must 
avenge — yes,  avenge  wpon  ourselves  ?  If  it  be  thus  with  us, 
we  are  Christians  ;  otherwise,  we  are  not.  If  it  be  not 
thus  with  us,  we  have  nothing  to  give  to  our  contempor- 
aries— nothing  to  transmit  to  the  future ;  but  if  we  answer 
to  the  description  given  in  the  sacred  text,  we  shall  be  a  link 
in  the  living  chain  by  which  the  last  ages  will  be  joined 
to  the  first,  and  the  consummation  of  ages  to  the  consum- 
mation of  Calvary." 

In  the  sermon  on  the  "  Good  Samaritan,"  !  Vinet  shows 
that  the  Christian  who  would  resemble  Jesus  Christ 
must  love  the  whole  of  the  human  race. 

"  It  is  the  mark,  the  glory  of  true  Christianity,  not 
that  we  should  confound  with  the  love  of  humanity  this 
insane  adoration  of  human  nature,  this  great  league  of 
human  pride,  which,  making  of  humanity  a  chimerical 
personality,  reduces  the  individual  to  nothing,  and  collects 
around  a  vague  idea  the  workmen  of  a  second  Babel. 
.  .  .  No,  this  humanity  that  Jesus  Christ  commends  to 
your  love  is  composed  of  men  whom  He  has  loved,  and 
whom  He  is  come  to  save.  Social  progress  is  not  the  chief 
end  of  the  great  work  of  Jesus  Christ ;  no,  individuals 
have  a  value  of  their  own,  they  exist  for  themselves,  they 
depend  immediately  on  God,  they  are  not  merely  the 
agents  of  a  collective  progress  which  is  but  a  sign  or 
means  of  individual  progress.     No,  it  is  not  society  that 

1  Luke  x.  29-37. 


228  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

Jesus  Christ  has  come  to  save  ;  it  is  not  (  society  '  that  will 
be  transported  to  heaven  and  crowned  with  palms.  Never- 
theless, humanity  forms  a  real  body  organized  to  fulfil  the 
designs  of  God,  and  warring  on  all  sides  for  their  accomplish- 
ment. .  .  .  Humanity  works  for  men,  and  in  this  co-opera- 
tion with  humanity  it  is  for  men  that  you  work,  because 
Jesus  Christ  commends  them  as  individuals  to  you." 

In  the  sermon  on  the  "  Principle  of  Human  Equality,"  * 
Vinet  touches  one  of  the  burning  questions  of  the  times ; 
but  he  touches  it  only  to  purify  it  and  lift  it  into  a 
higher  sphere.  He  invites  the  partisans  of  equality  to 
consider  the  fact  that — 

"  at  all  periods  of  history  men  create  for  themselves 
superiors,  masters,  rulers.  Embarrassed  by  the  sentiment 
of  his  responsibility,  alienated  from  the  divine  will,  man 
seeks  a  guide.  It  suffices  for  man  that  these  masters  are 
subject  to  death  to  feel  his  equality  with  them.  In  the 
presence  of  death,  of  sorrow,  and  of  weakness,  all  men  are 
equal.  But  we  must  not  look  for  complete  truth  in  facts 
that  humiliate  us.  All  love  has  its  root  in  joy.  The  love 
of  equality  from  the  joy  in  salvation.  God  will  have 
mercy  upon  all  men.  There  is  a  joy  which  does  not 
destroy  humiliation,  but  which  blesses  it.  Justice  and 
mercy  have  kissed  each  other.  Who  will  be  more  humble 
than  he  who  is  saved  by  grace  ?  Who  will  better  realize 
the  dignity  of  human  nature  than  the  poor  and  insigni- 
ficant being  who  feels  that  he  is  saved  by  grace.  Grace 
which  humbles  the  rich  towards  the  poor  raises  the  poor 
towards  the  rich." 

In  the  sermon  on  the  "  Duty  of  Mutual  Submission,"  2 
Vinet  declares — 

"  the  spirit  of  submission  and  the  spirit  of  independence 
to  be  the  two  elements  which  make  up  the  perfection  of 
social  life.  Neither  the  man  who  knows  not  how  to 
submit,  nor  the  man  who  knows  not  how  to  resist,  is 
fit  for  society.     The  man  who  can  do  both  is  the  truly 

J  Rom.  xi.  32.  -  Eph.  v.  21. 


ALEXANDER  Y1NET.  229 

social  being.  We  know  that  the  Christian  can  submit ;  do 
we  need  to  learn  after  so  many  facts  related  by  history 
that  the  Christian  can  also  resist  ?  Who  will  give,  if  it 
be  not  the  Christian,  the  example  of  true  independence  ? 
Who  will  maintain  the  principle  of  resistance  for  the  sake 
of  justice,  of  human  dignity,  and  of  God,  if  not  those 
who  have  inaugurated  it  in  the  world  ?  What  should  we 
see  in  society,  oscillating  between  the  two  extremes  of 
servility  and  insolence,  if  Christians  had  not  given — even 
to  those  who  have  not  fully  accepted  it  —  the  respect, 
unknown  in  the  ancient  world,  for  principles  as  principles, 
for  truth  as  truth  ?  .  .  .  The  gospel  has  solved  the  problem 
in  making  us  draw  by  turns  liberty  from  submission,  and 
submission  from  liberty." 

In  the  "  Time  to  do  Good,"  1  Vinet  speaks  with  deep 
earnestness  (we  might  almost  say  with  passion)  of  our 
duties  towards  the  disinherited  of  the  earth. 

"  According  to  the  divine  institution,  there  is  in  the 
world  a  loaf  for  every  hungry  man,  a  coat  for  every  naked 
one,  a  consolation  for  each  misfortune,  a  satisfaction  for 
each  need ;  the  balance  would  be  exact  if  we  had  not 
disturbed  it ;  it  is  not  God  who  is  to  blame,  it  is  our- 
selves. He  has  only  permitted  this  inequality  in  order  to 
allow  us  to  efface,  or  at  all  events  to  mitigate  it.  .  .  .  He 
has  willed  that  we  should  owe  something  to  one  another. 
.  .  .  He  has  willed  that  the  re-establishment  of  the  equi- 
librium should  be  our  work." 

"A  touching  story  reaches  us  respecting  the  effect  pro- 
duced by  the  above  sermon.  A  poor  woman  who  gained 
her  livelihood  with  dilliculty  received  on  Sunday  the 
visit  of  an  old  friend  who  was  not  distinguished  by  her 
regard  for  cleanliness.  As  she  only  possessed  one  bed,  she 
contemplated  advising  her  visitor  to  seek  hospitality  else- 
where. The  same  evening,  she  heard  Vinet  preach  on  the 
Time  to  do  Good,  and  she  determined  immediately  to  give 
up  her  bed  to  her  friend,  and  to  pass  the  night  on  a  bench."1 
1  Gal.  vi.  10.  i  Rambert. 


230  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

In  the  "  Vase  of  Perfumes,"  i  Vinet  shows  that  the 
spirit  of  those  who  asked  the  indignant  question — Why 
this  waste  ?  is  alive  among  us  at  this  hour. 

"Would  our  century,  preoccupied  with  questions  of 
economy  and  of  utility,  understand  any  better  than  Judas 
this  useless  profusion  and  expensive  homage  ?  I  suspect 
it  of  admiring  in  the  history  of  the  multiplication  of 
the  loaves,  less  the  helpful  compassion  of  the  Friend  of 
man  than  the  care  He  showed  to  gather  up  the  fragments 
that  remained.  How  could  this  broken  vase  and  spilt 
fragrance  please  those  who  say  at  the  sight  of  our  admir- 
able cathedral,2  '  Here  is  waste,  both  of  money  and  of 
time.  God  does  not  dwell  in  temples  made  with  hands ; 
a  more  modest  edifice  would  have  sufficed  —  shelter, 
decency,  and  quiet :  here  are  all  the  conditions  which 
must  be  satisfied.  A  fine  temple  is  a  fine  thing,  but  the 
"  beautiful "  must  not  be  numbered  among  our  needs  ; 
those  of  the  poor  cry  louder,  and  it  is  only  when  they 
shall  have  ceased  to  cry  that  we  can  have  the  right  to 
build  cathedrals.'  Mark  well  that  it  is  not  the  idea  of 
the  disciples  that  our  Saviour  reproves,  nor  do  we  find  in 
His  reply  an  express  approbation  of  Mary's  conduct. 
Was  her  action  the  best  possible  in  matter  and  in  form  ? 
Our  Saviour  does  not  say.  He  honours  Mary's  intention. 
.  .  .  We  learn  from  this  story  the  important  lesson  that 
an  action  is  worth  exactly  as  much  as  the  intention  which 
prompts  its  performance." 

The  preaching  of  the  Revival  had  reduced  all  morality 
to  an  affection  of  the  soul.  The  ideas  of  law  and  of 
duty  had  become  foreign  to  its  theology.  "Love  God 
and  do  as  you  like."  Such  was  the  received  formulary. 
It  is  against  this  antinomian  tendency  that  Vinet  protests, 
recalling  the  reality  and  the  independent  substance  of 
moral  obligation.  He  admits  that  charity  alone  can 
accomplish  righteousness,  but  he  believes  that  righteous- 
ness  is    no    less    something   which   has   an    independent 

1  Mark  xiv.  3-9.  -  The  cathedral  of  Lausanne. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  231 

existence.  He  believes  that  religion  is  before  all  things 
— obedience,  and  that  there  are  error  and  peril  in  wishing 
to  drown  duty  in  love. 

We  shall  see  how  Vinet  treats  these  questions  in  the 
following  discourse. 

The  sermon  on  the  "  End  and  the  Beginning  of  the 
Law  " '  opens  with  the  remark  that — 
"  the    subtlety   of    the   Jewish    mind    and    the    natural 
malice  of  the  human  heart  put  obstacles  in  the  way  of 
the  first  preachers  of  the  gospel.     They  could  not  avoid 
discussion,  and  many  of  St.  Paul's  letters  owe  their  form 
to  this  necessity,  although  this  form  of  teaching  does  not 
appear  to  have  been  St.  Paul's  own  choice,  and  the  simple 
and  touching  exposition  of  the  truths  of  salvation,  or  an 
energetic  appeal  to  the  conscience  and  the  heart,  would 
probably  have  dominated  in  his  writing,  if  the  choice  had 
depended  on  his  taste.  .  .  .  Love  is  a  force  which  enables 
us  to  perform  our  duty,  and  even  a  light  by  which  to 
discern  it;  but  love  is  not  the  principle  of  duty.     Duty 
has  its  reason  in  itself,  and  conscience  bears  witness  to 
it  before  love  has  urged  us  to  accomplish  it.     It  is  true 
that  love  itself  is  commanded ;  because,  on  the  one  hand, 
love  is  righteous;   and,  on  the  other,  it  is  the  means  of 
accomplishing  all  that  is  right.     But  love  is  the  end,  not 
the  beginning,  of  the  law.  ...  In  a  word,  righteousness 
is  something  apart,  and  although  it  can  only  be  accom- 
plished by  love,  it  is  not  love  itself.    .    .    .    Religion  is 
before  all  things  —  obedience.      Take  away  the  idea  of 
obedience,  and  you  treat  God  as  your  equal  instead  of  as 
\ our  Lord.  .  .  .  Great  sacrifices,  suggested  by  love,  can  be 
accomplished  without  difficulty,  because  there  is  always 
joy  in  love ;   but,  enforced  by  duty,  the  lightest  sacrifice 
becomes  painful.    There  is  in  justice  something  severe  and 
imperious ;  there  the  conscience  finds  a  Master.     We  are 
tempted  to  bargain  our  obedience  ;  we  doubt  the  sacrifices 
that  are  not  asked  of  us  in  order  to  reduce  to  nothing 
those  that  duty  imposes ;    and   one  sees  but  too  many 
people  who  are  at  once  generous  and  unjust,  obliging  and 

1  1  Tim.  i.  5. 


232  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

ungrateful,  prodigal  and  stingy, — devoted  to  the  objects  of 
their  preference,  hard  to  those  who  have  claims  on  them ; 
odious  in  the  sphere  wherein  God  has  placed  them, — admir- 
able elsewhere;  volunteers  of  affection  and  deserters  of  duty  ; 
and  imagining  that  they  can  redeem  by  spontaneous  sacri- 
fice the  violation  of  near  and  positive  obligations.  When 
you  see  certain  persons  neglecting  obvious  and  known 
duties  within  their  reach  to  seek  others  in  another  sphere, 
remember  that  it  is  because  duties  that  are  sought  are  not 
real  duties.  These  men  feel  the  need  of  occupation  and 
of  movement ;  they  do  not  spare  themselves  ;  it  is  neither 
the  work,  nor  the  sacrifice,  nor  the  danger — it  is  the  rule 
that  causes  them  to  revolt.  It  is  more  easy  for  them  to 
be  sublime  than  to  be  simply  virtuous  ;  to  be  generous 
than  to  be  just.  .  .  .  Can  true  love  be  found  in  a  heart 
to  which  duty  is  not  dear,  to  which  the  commandment  is 
not  sacred  ?  .  .  .  No,  man  is  not  thus  framed :  in  good  as 
well  as  in  evil  everything  is  connected.  The  good  and 
the  true  are  in  unity.  Justice  is  to  love  what  the  root 
is  to  the  tree.  ...  If  you  are  wanting  in  charity,  you 
are  also  wanting  in  justice.  If  one  can,  to  a  certain  degree, 
be  just  towards  some  one  without  loving  him,  it  is  evident 
that  if  one  does  him  harm  one  cannot  love  him.  And 
when  we  see  a  man  unfaithful  to  his  first  duties,  it  is  in 
vain  that  he  gives  his  body  to  be  burned, — he  has  neither 
justice  nor  charity  .  .  .  give  what  name  you  like  to  the 
sentiment  which  makes  him  act  for  the  good  of  others, 
this  man  loves  only  himself  in  them.  He  is  mistaken  in 
wishing  to  replace  justice  by  charity,  because  justice  is 
an  essential  part  of  charity.  Charity  is  nothing  but  a 
superior  and  sublime  justice." 

The  concluding  sermon  on  "  Joy  " x  is  perhaps,  from  a 
literary  point  of  view,  the  most  beautiful  of  the  series. 
Joy  is  shown  to  be,  not  only  the  privilege  of  the  Chris- 
tian, but  also  his  force,  and  the  soil,  so  to  speak,  upon 
which  the  new  creature  is  developed. 

1  1  Thess.  v.  16. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  233 


CHAPTEK  XXVII. 

Essay  on  the  Manifestation  of  Beligious  Convictions. 

Scarcely  had  the  volume  of  Discourses  appeared, 
when  Vinet  was  seized  with  scruples,  we  might  almost 
say  with  remorse.  The  day  following  the  receipt  of  the 
first  proofs  he  wrote  in  his  Diary  : — 

"  /  ham  been  troubled  on  the  subject  of  my  sermons.  I 
have  not  sufficiently  insisted  on  the  doctrine  of  salvation  by 
grace" 

Later,  he  satisfied  his  conscience  by  criticizing  the 
merit  of  works  from  the  philosophical  as  well  as  from  the 
religious  point  of  view.  It  was  his  constant  aim  to  em- 
brace the  two  poles  of  thought  at  the  same  time.  Vinet 
owns  that  the  New  Discourses  do  not  reveal  his  entire 
opinions. 

To  Mr.  T.  Erskine. 

"This  official  character  impressed  on  the  outflow  of 
the  heart  and  thought  is  a  painful  thing  ;  and  if  I  do  not 
succeed  in  shaking  off  this  yoke — if  I  cannot  go  back  to  the 
solitude  in  which  alone  I  "can  find  sincere  inspiration— I 
shall  not  write  any  more.  Understand  me  :  if  these  dis- 
courses do  not  contain  all  my  opinion,  at  least  they  contain 
nothing  against  it.  But  is  one  quite  sincere  when  one 
does  not  say  all  ?  .  .  .  Your  friendship  encourages  me  to 
tell  you  of  a  step  I  have  just  taken.  I  have  left  tin- 
national  Church  :  but  this  subject  would  take  me  too  far 
to-day.  You  will  be  pleased  to  learn  that,  as  far  as  I  can 
know  myself,  passion  and  caprice  have  had  no  part  in  this 


234  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

determination.  ...  I  do  not  need  to  tell  you  that  there  is 
none  of  the  spirit  of  separation  in  my  action.  I  am  as 
little  of  a  separatist  as  it  is  possible  to  be  ;  and  what  right 
have  I  to  separate  myself  from  others,  I  who  only  feel, 
with  regard  to  those  with  whom  I  am  associated,  my  in- 
feriority and  my  unworthiness  ?  But  I  could  not  bear  to 
appear  as  the  instrument  of  an  iniquitous  law,  and  among 
the  clergy  of  the  National  Church  I  should  have  been  badly 
placed  to  plead  the  cause  of  the  separation  of  Church  and 
State.  I  am  printing  a  work  on  the  subject  at  this  moment. 
The  argument  of  my  thesis  is  essentially  religious ;  and  I 
believe  that  I  have  placed  the  question  on  its  true  ground 
and  in  its  strongest  position.  This  will  make  up  for  the 
force  which  the  author  has  failed  to  find  in  himself." 

We  must  turn  now  to  the  book  of  which  he  speaks. 
Its  cumbersome  title  reveals  the  author's  plan :  An 
Essay  on  the  Manifestation  of  Religious  Convictions,  and 
on  the  Separation  of  Church  and  State,  regarded  as  the 
Necessary  Consequence,  and  as  the  Guarantee  of  a  Principle. 

The  work  divides  itself  naturally  into  two  parts  :  one, 
a  tine  exposition  of  the  duty  of  the  expression  of  indi- 
vidual conviction ;  the  other  is  a  dissertation  on  the 
relations  existing  between  civil  and  religious  society. 

"  The  manifestation  of  individual  belief  is  a  duty 
imposed  on  every  believer.  Individuality  is  never  the 
opponent  of  unity ;  it  is  rather  its  means.  Furthermore, 
the  manifestation  of  our  convictions  is  a  duty  which  we 
owe  to  our  neighbours.  Christianity  makes  a  duty  of 
proselytism  by  giving  it  two  powerful  motives,  gratitude 
and  charity.  We  owe  to  our  brother  a  share  of  the  truth 
we  have  received. 

"  It  is  also  a  right.  The  Christian  will  neither  accept 
protection  nor  persecution.  Religion  is  not  a  language, 
it  is  a  life.  Association  is  one  of  the  forms  under  which 
religious  conviction  is  manifested.  It  is  formed,  not  in 
order  that  we  may  believe  (which  is  the  act  of  the  indi- 
vidual), but  in  order  that  we  may  adore.  The  first  effect 
of  a  religion  is  to  organize  a  society  which  is  the  communion 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  235 

of  spirits  in  the  bond  of  a  common  idea.  By  this  means 
conscience  is  aided,  strengthened,  and  encouraged.  If 
religion  refused  to  be  social,  it  would  also  cease  to  be  indi- 
vidual. If  each  individual  respected  his  conscience, 
association  would  never  absorb  individuality,  it  would 
never  appear  as  a  monument  of  prejudice  and  tyranny. 
.  .  .  We  are  bound  to  be  true,  even  if  we  are  alone  in  the 
attainment.  ...  To  know  what  we  believe  is  to  know  what 
we  are.     Silence  is  fatal." 

At  the  same  time,  Vinet  recommends  that  zeal  should 
be  tempered  by  discretion. 

"  The  soul  has  its  sentiment  of  modesty  as  well  as  the 
body,  and  a  living  faith  renders  this  modesty  yet  more 
delicate  and  timid.  .  .  .  We  must  carefully  watch  over  a 
treasure  which  can  be  easily  dissipated  by  the  breath  of 
speech.  .  .  .  Religion  is  not  an  idiom  which  one  must  learn 
to  speak  fluently,  but  a  life  which  must  be  expressed  by 
action.  Our  soul  must  oiler  a  home  rather  than  an  echo 
to  holy  truth." 

It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  add,  that  if  Vinet  boldly 
invites  all  convictions  to  manifest  themselves  in  the  light 
of  day,  it  is  because  he  firmly  believes  in  the  ultimate 
triumph  of  truth. 

The  connecting  link  between  the  two  parts  of  the 
essay  is  found  in  a  chapter,  entitled  "  Persecution  and 
Protection  :  " — 

"  Every  duty  carries  with  it  a  right;  there  is  no  right 
more  sacred  than  that  of  fulfilling  a  duty;  it  is  even  the 
one  absolute  right,  because  it  is  linked  to  primitive  neces- 
sity. Duty  is  the  first,  or  to  speak  strictly,  the  self 
necessity." 

Thence  follows  the  absolute  condemnation  of  every  kind 
of  persecution,  and  of  "protection  as  a  kind  of  persecution. 
because  it  is  a  privilege  for  some  and  an  exclusion  for 
others." 


236  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

In  the  second  part  of  the  essay,  Vinet  seizes  the 
general  features  of  the  history  of  the  mutual  relations  of 
Church  and  State. 

"  From  the  days  when  Bome,  superficially  converted  to 
the  doctrine  of  the  Cross,  turned  the  religion  of  the  martyrs 
into  a  religion  of  the  State,  clown  to  the  present  century, 
the  antique,  heathen,  and  Jewish  idea  of  unity  has  prevailed 
over  the  modern  and  Christian  idea  of  the  distinction  of 
the  two  societies.  The  alliance  was  often  a  compromise 
between  the  passions  of  the  court  and  of  the  sacristy.  By 
this  ill-assorted  union  the  two  institutions  which  serve  as 
the  basis  of  social  life,  religion  and  politics,  have  been 
demoralized."  .  .  . 

Later,  Vinet  withdrew  some  of  the  expressions  con- 
tained in  this  volume  ;  but  he  held  fast  to  the  following 
sentence : — 

"  If  the  State  has  a  conscience,  /  have  none.  .  .  .  All  my 
theory  is  there.  The  conscience  of  the  State,  if  it  have  one, 
must  be  sovereign,  and  must  absorb  mine.  ...  I  recognise 
the  legitimacy  of  certain  relations  between  religion  and 
the  State.  Religion  dictates  morals,  and  morals  inspire 
laws.  What  more  can  one  ask  ?  There  is  nothing  in 
common  between  the  thesis  I  have  defended  and  that 
which  is  commonly  called  dissent.  I  do  not  say  separate 
yourselves  from  your  Church,  but  separate  the  Church  from 
the  State.  It  is  not  a  question  of  destruction,  but  of  en- 
franchisement. Instead  of  overturning  the  Church,  let  us 
seek  to  reform  it." 

The  following  is  Vinet' s  definition  of  the  State : — 

"'  The  State  reproduces  the  whole  man,'  affirm  certain 
philosophers  —  Hegel,  Eothe,  etc.  This  formula  has  a 
fine  sound,  but  it  is  impossible.  If  there  be  identity  be- 
tween man  and  the  State,  it  is  but  just  to  claim  from  the 
State  all  that  one  claims  from  the  individual.  If  charity 
be  a  duty  for  the  individual,  it  is  also  one  for  the  State  ; 
and  as  the  individual  has  been  commanded  to  present  the 


ALEXANDER  VLNET.  237 

right  cheek  after  having  been  struck  on  the  left,  it  would 
be  equally  legitimate  to  impose  this  rule  upon  the  State. 
The  logical  consequence  of  such  a  system  would  be  no- 
thing more  or  less  than  the  establishment  of  a  theocracy. 

"To  this  notion  is  opposed  another, which  reduces  the  State 
to  the  level  of  a  simple  institution,  which  only  embraces  one 
part  of  human  life.  This  conception  has  for  its  result  the 
separation  of  politics  and  religion,— of  the  State  and  of  the 
( 'hurch.  .  .  .  Christianity  obstinately  resists  the  idea  of  an 
alliance  between  Church  and  State,  which  is  neither  more 
nor  less  than,  a  heresy.  Eeligion  is  the  choice  that  the 
soul  makes  between  the  world  and  God,  the  visible  and 
the  invisible.  One  must  be  able  to  choose ;  and  where 
there  is  no  scope  for  freedom,  one  can  neither  love  nor 
obey.  If  we  obey,  it  is  the  obedience  of  the  star,  the 
plant,  or  the  stone, — a  purely  passive  obedience,  which 
causes  man  to  fall  below  himself.  Eeligion  is  not  possible 
except  when  doubt  is  possible.  .  .  .  Miracles  produced  the 
necessary  impression,  but  they  were  only  the  preliminaries 
of  religion,  not  religion  itself.  External  theocracy  shed  a 
]  carting  glow  in  the  miracles  of  Jesus  Christ,  but  the 
miracle  was  sacrificed  little  by  little  to  the  interest  of 
individuality  and  of  liberty.  Miracle  could  not  be  the  law 
of  the  new  economy,  whose  aim  was  not  the  creation  of  a 
people,  but  of  believing  individuals.  The  principle  of 
evidence  gave  place  to  the  principle  of  liberty.  ...  If  this 
end  has  not  been  attained,  Christianity  would  only  be  a 
transitory  work,  adoration  '  in  spirit  and  in  truth  '  would 
not  have  been  inaugurated,  and  Jesus  Christ  would  have 
said  prematurely — '  It  is  finished.'  " 


238  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


CHAPTER   XXVIII. 

Robinson  Crusoe — Vinet  as  a  "Man  of  Letters" — Criticism. 

"  Every  one  has  a  mania,"  writes  Vinet.  "  Mine  is  to  read 
every  year  the  chef-d'ceuvre  of  Defoe.  I  possess  two  copies, 
— one,  a  modern  edition  with  elegant  illustrations  ;  the 
other  printed  in  1720  by  l'Honore  &  Chatelain,  pub- 
lishers of  Amsterdam,  with  engravings,  of  which  Robinson 
himself  seems  to  have  furnished  the  design,  and  a  full- 
length  portrait  of  this  famous  adventurer  after  the  manner 
of  Bernard  Picard.  This  is  the  one  I  use,  and  lovers  of 
Robinson  will  understand  my  preference.  The  style  of  the 
translation,  the  character  of  the  printing,  the  form  and  the 
binding  of  the  book,  harmonize  singularly  with  the  subject 
and  the  nature  of  the  story.  I  will  never  read  it,  if  I  can 
help  it,  in  a  modern  edition,  and  I  hope  to  read  it  again  in 
this.  I  hardly  know  sweeter  moments  than  those  which  I 
consecrate  to  this  volume.  To  complete  my  pleasure,  it 
needed  but  to  speak  of  it  to  my  friends  ;  and  this  is  why  I 
write  this  article."  ' 

"Whence  comes  this  predilection  of  Vinet  for  Robinson? 
He  loves  him  because  he  sees  in  him  the  type — the 
simplest,  but  none  the  less  striking — of  the  misfortunes 
and  sorrows  of  man. 

"  On  one  occasion  Vinet  found  himself  in  a  drawing- 
room  when  the  conversation  turned  on  some  of  the  burn- 
ing social  questions  of  the  day.  The  Socialists  were 
severely  handled.  Vinet  did  not  take  part  in  the  con- 
versation till,  unable  to  bear  it  any  longer,  he  began  to 

1  Le  Semeur. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  239 

pass  in  review  the  principles,  the  sentiments,  and  the 
actions  of  those  who  proclaimed  themselves  the  exclusive 
defenders  of  social  order.  This  unlooked-for  incident 
produced  a  striking  effect,  and  all  present  listened  in 
awed  silence  to  the  floods  of  eloquence  which  his  inti- 
mates alone  recognised  as  his  natural  utterance,  and 
which  differed  entirely  from  the  chastened  style  of  his 
preaching.  While  rejecting  the  heathen  theory  of  the 
State,  by  means  of  which  certain  persons  undertook  to  heal 
the  evils  of  society,  he  recognised  no  less  the  legitimacy 
of  the  end  the  Socialists  had  in  view.  Vinet  came  from 
the  people,  and  he  remained  one  of  them  to  the  end. 
Was  it  astonishing  that  this  workman  in  the  field  of 
thought  should  not  consider  the  division  of  the  good 
things  of  life  between  those  whose  mission  it  is  to  produce 
and  those  whose  mission  it  is  to  enjoy,  to  be  absolutely 
equitable  ? 

"We  need  not  inquire  on  which  side  were  his  sym- 
pathies. Vinet  has  allowed  us  to  perceive  them  at  the 
end  of  his  article  on  Eobinson.' 


» i 


"  Alas  :  there  are  perhaps  in  the  bosom  of  society  more 
Robinsons  than  one  thinks.  I  own  that  for  the  most 
unfortunate  it  is  still  better  to  live  in  society  than  in  the 
desert.  We  render  one  another  involuntary  services,  and 
society  bears  us  up;  much  as  the  sea  bears  the 'ship 
that  she  sometimes  engulphs.  Nevertheless,  for  a  greal 
number  of  those  who,  from  custom,  one  continues  to  call 
members  of  the  social  body,  there  is  much  isolation,  and 
for  them  society  is  a  desert.  It  is  of  the  utmost  conse- 
quence that  society,  under  the  auspices  of  an  enlightened 
charity,  shall  become  more  and  more  a  living  and  spon- 
taneous force,  and  that  the  most  unfortunate  may  at  last 
feel  that  they  belong  to  it  as  truly  as  the  members  belong 
to  a  body.  We  tend,  it  seems  to  me,  towards  this  end, 
and  1  believe  that  we  shall  arrive  there,— the  solidarity 

1  Astiu. 


240  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

of  all.  This  Christian  idea,  which  certain  classes 
parody  coarsely,  gradually  penetrates  the  conscience  ; 
and  when  conviction  and  good  -  will  are  there,  can  the 
means  be  long  wanting  ?  I  own  that  all  progress  is  slow, 
and  that  we  shall  not  see  all  that  our  children  will ;  but 
Robinson  can  already  see  the  horizon  whitened  by  the 
sails  of  the  ship  which  is  coming  to  carry  him  away  from 
the  desert  island.  Eobinson,  my  brother,  toiling  man, 
without  leisure,  without  liberty,  almost  without  social  rela- 
tions, why  can  I  not,  with  the  eyes  of  the  flesh,  see  the 
ship  weigh  anchor,  and  yourself  mount  with  joy  to  return 
to  the  bosom  of  society, — only  carrying  with  you  from 
your  desert  island  a  few  fragments  to  remind  you  of  the 
time  when  you  were  solitary  ? " 

But  most  of  Vinet's  literary  articles  concerned  contem- 
porary writers, — the  poems  of  his  friend  Juste  Olivier  and 
of  J.  Porchat ;  Christian  Marriage,  by  Mme.  de  Gasparin  ; 
and  Progressive  Education,  by  Mme.  Neckar  de  Saussure. 

We  can  but  detach  a  fragment  or  two  from  these 
studies,  which  are  as  remarkable  for  their  insight  into 
the  hidden  depths  of  human  nature  as  for  their  elevation 
of  moral  sentiment.  Vinet  repudiates  with  some  indigna- 
tion Mme.  de  Gasparin's  exaggerated  interpretation  of  the 
text,  "  The  woman  is  made  for  the  man."  * 

"  If  a  woman  does  not  marry,  she  does  not  fulfil  the  end 
of  her  existence.  .  .  .  Marriage  alone  can  make  of  her  a 
normal  and  rational  being.  '  Woman  is  made  for  the 
man.'  But  what,  is  it  the  individual  woman  for  the  indi- 
vidual man,  and  not  in  a  more  general  and  more  spiritual 
sense  —  one  sex  for  the  other  ?  It  is  only  the  latter 
formulary  which  can  be  taken  as  absolutely  true.  The 
lirst  is  only  the  complete  form  of  the  latter.  We  admit 
that  a  woman  is  placed  by  marriage  in  the  most  favourable 
conditions  to  fulfil  her  mission  ;  but  we  dare  not  say  that 
the  woman  who  does  not  marry  fails  to  fulfil  it.  .  .  .  Who 
knows  if,  for  a  woman,  it  is  not  better  accomplished  by 

1  1  Cor.  xi.  9. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  241 

celibacy  than  by  marriage  ?  .  .  .  That  '  the  woman  has 
been  made  for  the  man'  must  not  prejudice  another 
truth,  that  woman  has  Heen  made  for  God.  .  .  .  After  all, 
women  are  men  (homines).  They  are,  as  regards  their 
Maker,  in  exactly  the  same  position  as  men  ;  and  accord- 
ing to  this  point  of  view,  which  is  supreme,  the  equality 
between  the  two  sexes  is  perfect,  as  it  is  between  the  rich 
and  the  poor,  the  weak  and  the  strong." 

Vinet  allows  himself  one  or  two  playful  gibes  in  the 
course  of  criticism  ;  as,  for  example,  when  he  reminds 
the  authoress  (so  prompt  to  prop  her  arguments  with 
quotations  from  Holy  Writ),  "  that  she  would  find  it 
difficult  to  absolve  St.  Paul  from  the  charge  of  having 
recommended  celibacy  ;  "  and  when  he  expresses  the  hope 
that  in  her  future  works  "  Port-Royal  would  soften  and 
complete  Geneva." 

In  Madame  Neckar's  beautiful  book  on  education, 
Vinet  complains  of  her  treatment  of  the  imagination, 
which  she  places  beyond  the  pale  of  human  faculties. 

"And  yet  the  imagination  is  in  reality  a  normal  and 
necessary  faculty;  it  is  the  spontaneity  of  the  human  mind. 
...  It  is  in  vain  that  people  seek  to  reduce  science  to  the 
two  crutches,  observation  and  induction.  The  first  of 
these  acts,  however  passive  it  may  appear,  is  necessarily 
preceded  by  an  act  of  imagination.  In  order  to  observe, 
one  must  imagine  that  one  will  discover^ — one  must  direct 
attention  to  a  certain  point,  and  in  order  to  do  that  one 
must  suppose  something.  All  the  progress  of  science  is 
from  hypothesis  to  fact,  and  from  fact  to  hypothesis." 

Passing  on  to  France,  the  works  of  Casimir  Delavigne, 
P.eranger,  Lamartine,  Victor  Hugo,  Sainte-Beuve,  Quinet, 
Michelet,  St.  Marc  Girardin,  were  passed  through  the 
crucible  of  Vinet's  criticism.  M.  St.  Rene*  Taillandier  was 
astonished  to  find  Vinet  anticipating  Parisian  criticism — 
notably  in  the  case  of  P>c ranger.      With  the  latter  Vinet 

Q 


242  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

had  a  long  correspondence,  which  turned  chiefly  on 
religious  questions ;  one  sees  clearly  that  the  distance 
which  separated  him  from  Paris  was  even  greater  morally 
than  materially.  The  only  writer  with  whom  he  could 
keep  up  an  intimate  correspondence  was  his  old  friend 
Emile  Souvestre.  In  one  of  his  letters  Vinet  gently 
blames  the  note  of  sadness  which  is  breathed  by  his 
books. 

To  Emile  Souvestre. 

"Your  motives  are  superhuman.  To  be  virtuous,  sub- 
lime, devoted  quancl  menu, — this  is  the  point  at  which 
you  seek  to  arrive.  This  quand  meme  soars  at  once  above 
humanity  and  the  gospel, — the  gospel  which,  in  raising 
humanity  to  its  ideal,  does  not  rise  above  itself.  The 
gospel  does  not  allow  man  to  fall  back  on  himself,  and 
does  not  send  him  for  all  consolation  and  all  comfort  to 
the  pure  idea  of  his  duty,  his  dignity,  and  his  perfection. 
I  do  not  know  if  such  a  system  could  hold,  and  if  for  not 
having  wished  to  accept  the  consolations  of  the  gospel  one 
would  not  be  reduced  to  accept  inferior  ones,  because 
consolation  is  the  first  of  human  needs.  .  .  .  Your  suffering, 
or  the  special  form  of  your  suffering,  is  pity, — a  pity  which 
is  tender  and  nevertheless  bitter.  .  .  .  The  general  condi- 
tion of  humanity  provokes  the  reflection  that  nature  has 
provided  an  insufficient  sum  of  felicity,  and  reserved  it  only 
lor  a  few,  steeped  for  these  in  the  sweat  and  tears  of  the 
great  mass  of  their  fellows.  You  need  then  for  your  own 
suffering,  which  takes  the  form  of  pity,  and  for  the  suffer- 
ings of  others,  consolation  other  than  that  which  you  offer. 
A  reason  is  needed  for  the  devotion  of  some  and  for  the 
resignation  of  others.  .  .  .  You  and  humanity,  you  need 
in  your  destitution  that  convention  with  God  which  we  call 
hope.  Hope  is  so  much  a  condition  of  life,  a  need  of 
humanity,  a  virtue  of  the  soul,  that  it  does  not  appear 
possible  that  you  do  not  propose  some  hope  to  others  and 
io  yourself.  .  .  .  But  what  is  this  hope?  Do  you  believe 
that  by  means  of  increased  culture, or  a  better  distribution 
of  social  forces,  the  inequality  will  cease  in  that  which  is 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  243 

truly  iniquitous  ?      I   have  not  this  hope  ;  but  if  1  had  it, 
what  would  he  the  result?      Simply  that  the   period  of 
struggle  would  be  past,  and  that  mankind  could  sheathe 
its  weapons  of  will,  of  perseverance  (I  would  willingly 
add,  of  faith),  which  it  had  hitherto  employed.     And  who 
knows  if,  from  the  point  of  view  of  its  highest  interests, 
humanity  would  not  lose  more  than  it  would  gain  ?     Tin; 
hope  of  a  social  progress  which  would  not  be  individual, 
and  of  a  material  progress  which  would  not  be  moral,  or 
even  of  a  moral  progress  which  would  not  be  religious, 
can  neither  satisfy  nor  fill  the  heart.      To  give  God  to 
humanity,  and   humanity  to  God,  such  ought  to  be  our 
immediate  aim.     It  must  not  be  said  that  when  humanity 
is  happy  and  enlightened,  it  will  know  God ;  but  rather 
that  when  it  knows  God  it  will  be  enlightened  and  happy. 
God  is  the  way  of  wisdom  and  happiness.     One  must  first 
find  God;    a   personal  and  living  God,  a   spiritual  and 
visible  God,  a  God  who  is  infinite  and  accessible— a  God- 
man.      He  alone  can  be  at  once  a  human  God  and  the 
God  of  humanity.     If  God  is,  we  cannot  make  of  Him 
an  abstraction,  and  act  as  if  He  was  not.  .  .  .  The  funda- 
mental sin,  it  is  to  have  willed  to  be  something  by  and  for 
ourselves.      It   was   by  this    unique   temptation    of  self- 
independent  existence  that  evil  began  in  the  world. 
Do  not  think  that  I  would  confound  the  man  who  aban- 
dons himself  to  the  inferior  instincts  of  his  nature  with 
one  who  strenuously  resists  evil  and  submits  to  the  laws 
of  conscience  and  of  reason.     Before  long  such  a  man  will 
feel  the  need  of  God.     The  soul  that  hungers  and  thirsts 
after  righteousness   will   be   tilled.     He   who  wills   to  do 
what  is  right  will  finish  by  doing  the  will  of  ( tod  ;  '  and  he 
who  would  make  known  tins  will,  will  know,'  says  Jesus 
Christ,  'if  my  doctrine  is  of  God,  or  whether  I  speak  of 
myself.' " 

We  must  not  omit  the  mention  of  a  writer  who  was 
especially  dear  to  Vinet,  Rudolph  Toepflfer,  the  brilliant 
author  of  the  Nouvelles  Genevoises,  of  which  Vinet  knew 
whole  pages  by  heart.  Nevertheless  Vinet  did  not  share 
all  ToepfFer's  opinions.     Toepffer,  brought  up  among  other 


244  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

traditions,  saw  with  more  bitterness  than  Vinet  revolu- 
tions follow  swiftly  one  upon  the  other.  Vinet  was  not 
an  optimist,  he  dreaded  as  much  as  Toepffer  the  excesses 
of  democracy ;  but  he  dreaded  less  its  principle,  and 
perhaps  he  discerned  better  the  great  laws  which  are 
accomplished  in  the  midst  of  passing  events. 

To  B.  Toeppr. 

"  It  is  not  my  business  to  judge  the  Revolution  of 
Geneva,  nor  to  give  advice  to  any  one.  But  hope  is  such 
a  good  thing,  and  such  a  great  force,  that  I  should  like, 
although  the  least  hopeful  of  mortals,  to  advise  it  to  every 
one." 

One  cannot  fail  to  remark  the  religious  tone  which 
Vinet  imparted  to  all  literary  criticism.  He  complains 
that  Beranger's  morality  is — 

"  without  principle  :  made  up  of  instinct  and  tradition. 
Lamartine's  intellectual  self-complacency,  if  one  can  employ 
such  a  term,  affects  his  religion  as  well.  His  religion 
affords  too  little  scope  to  reflection  to  be  able  to  take  the 
place  in  life  it  ought  to  take.  Conscience  and  reason  are 
not  sufficiently  nourished.  This  kind  of  religion  gives 
neither  bread  nor  meat,  but  a  delicate  perfumed  '  blanc 
manger,'  which  every  one  is  glad  to  taste,  but  on  which 
one  could  not  live." 

Vinet  goes  on  to  say — 

"he  would  fain  warn  the  poet  himself,  although  we  know- 
too  well  that  truth  does  not  arrive  easily  to  the  ears  of 
kings  ;  and  who  is  king — who  lias  inherited  the  dangerous 
privileges  of  royalty,  if  it  be  not  genius  ?  But  if  genius 
is  greater  than  we  are,  truth  is  greater  than  genius,  and 
genius  is  no  more  dispensed  than  we  are  from  the  duty  of 
listening  to  it  and  yielding  it  homage." 

Sometimes    his    tone    becomes    still   more    severe.     A 


ALEXANDER  VINET:  24"i 

verse  from   the   Promitkte  of   M.   Quinet    excites  these 
remarks  : — 

"  Is  not  Pantheism  here,  with  its  most  extreme  conse- 
quences and  its  most  hideous  aspect?  And  can  one 
picture  without  terror  this  new  God,  that  is  to  say,  God  in 
His  most  perfect  notion,  identified  with  songs  that  deny 
Him,  with  excesses  that  affront  Him,  and  with  attempts 
that  outrage  Him?  Ah,  how  painful  it  is  to  meet  such 
contradictions  in  such  a  work  ;  and  how  well  one  recognises 
by  this  absence  of  all  respect,  the  absence  as  well  of  the 
only  conviction  which  can  cause  His  holy  name  to  be  pro- 
nounced with  the  holy  terror  which  is  due  to  it !  " 

Vinet  was  not  one  of  those  critics  who  can  only 
recognise  the  good  and  the  true  under  a  particular  form. 
To  a  great  sense  of  justice  he  joined  a  living  sympathy 
for  all  that  was  human.  It  is  only  necessary  to  mention 
his  manner  of  judging  Catholicism,  the  eighteenth  century, 
and  Voltaire  to  prove  the  truth  of  our  assertion.  "  The 
pleasure  of  finding  fault  is  a  poor  pleasure ;  that  of 
admiring  is  as  lively  as  it  is  pure."  1  His  portraits  are 
always  true,  and  he  derives  from  this  truth  itself  a  vigour 
and  a  grace  which  only  belong  to  his  pen.  Sometimes  ;i 
line  will  suffice  him.  "  Many  of  Pascal's  paragraphs  arc 
the  strophes  of  a  Christian  Byron."  Apropos  of  the 
narratives  of  Xavier  de  Maistre  he  writes:  " One  could 
<dve  them  for  device  the  words  of  Horace :  '  Xardi 
parvus  onyx.'"  Speaking  of  Chateaubriand:  'The 
author  calls  the  situation  of  liene  'the  vagueness  of  the 
passion  ; '  one  might  also  call  it  the  '  passion  of  the  vague  ! ' 
.  .  It  is  by  means  of  words  that  M.  de  Chateaubriand 
exercises  his  prestige."  This  is  how  he  sums  up  Werther : 
"  He  is  true,  but  somewhat  common.  The  pity  which  he 
inspires  is  scarcely  touched  with  respect." 

Vinet  excels  in  characterizing  the  style  of  the  writers 

1  Vinet. 


246  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

whom  he  criticizes.  The  personal  dignity  of  Corneille 
has  never  been  better  seized  than  by  the  following : — 

"  This  enthusiasm,  these  powerful  impulses,  these  pro- 
found compassions,  this  art  which  causes  the  flow  of 
generous  tears,  these  moninrantal  words  of  which  vile 
paper  is  not  worthy,  and  which  ought  to  be  inscribed  on 
pages  of  bronze  or  of  marble, — all  this,  is  Corneille  him- 
self." 

Let  us  read  also  this  appreciation  of  Voltaire : — 

"His  lively,  brilliant  prose  is  wanting,  so  to  speak,  in 
body.  It  is  delicate  and  easy,  but  thin,  meagre,  facile,  and 
without  majesty. 

"  '  Legere  ct  court  vStue  die,  marche  a  (/rands  juts ; '  but  one 
does  not  feel  the  earth  tremble  beneath  her,  and  each 
touch  awakens  a  metallic  clatter.  It  has  the  vivacity  which 
comes  from  the  mind — rarely  the  warmth  which  comes 
from  the  soul.  It  sums  up,  but  it  does  not  concentrate ; 
it  never  descends  to  the  hidden  depths  of  things,  as  does 
the  prose  of  Montesquieu.  It  has  the  effect  upon  me  of  a 
piece  of  wood  which  one  endeavours  to  sink  in  the  water, 
and  which  persists  in  coming  to  the  surface.  It  is  without 
faults,  but  it  is  lacking  in  essential  qualities." 

In  another  place  this  critic  shows  us  M.  Victor  Hugo  : — 

"Stirring  in  their  depths  the  soil  of  the  national  idiom, 
and  convoking  the  '  last  reserve'  of  the  French  vocabulary 
with  a  power  and  an  authority  which  remind  us  of  Eabelais." 

Again,  it  is  M.  de  Lamartine  whom  he  causes  to  pass 
before  us :  "  He  is  always  magnificent,  but  it  is  the 
magnificence  of  a  spendthrift."  M.  de  Lamartine  reminds 
us  of  the  Cleon  of  Destouches,  who— 

'  would  throw  his  gold  from  the  window  if  he  could  not 
find  some  one  to  whom  to  give  it.  Good  cheer,  blazing 
tires,  noisy  joy,  and,  under  a  disguise,  ruin  seated  among 
tbe  guests,  and  proposing  with  a  mocking  laugh  a  toast  to 
the  prodigal.    And  we  who  are  also  guests,  we  contemplate 


ALEXANDEK  VINET.  247 

with  terror  the  extravagant  expenditure  of  our  host,  ye! 
we  do  not  cease  to  aid  him  to  devour  his  goods,  because 
life  is  always  pleasant  at  this  opulent  table,  where  even 
the  scraps  are  exquisite." 

The  religion  of  the  same  writer  is  expressed  with 
equal  felicity : — 

"  Catholic  in  the  ancient  cathedrals,  pantheist  in  the 
forests,  agreeing  by  turns  with  the  rationalists  and  the 
orthodox,  Christian  because  his  mother  was  Christian, 
philosopher  because  he  lives  in  the  nineteenth  century ; 
but  always,  we  must  admit,  touched  with  the  beauty  of 
God,  resounding  as  a  living  lyre  in  contact  with  the 
marvels  of  creation,  pouring  out  his  heart  with  the 
simplicity  of  childhood  and  of  genius  before  the  Invisible 
Being  whose  thought  at  once  oppresses  and  delights  him." 

With  regard  to  Yinet's  style  of  writing,  M.  Scherer 
considers  that  it  underwent  two  distinct  phases.  "In  the 
Memoir  on  Libert//  of  Worship  and  in  the  first  volume  of 
Sermons  he  was  more  or  less  classical,  but  afterwards  he 
became  more  ingenious,  more  expressive,  more  recherche, 
and,  at  the  same  time,  less  simple  and  severe,  permitting 
himself  some  of  those  jeux  de  mots  which  St.  Paul,  Tertul- 
lian,  and  Augustine  did  not  disdain. 

"  It  is  worthy  of  attention  that,  with  so  impressionable 
an  aesthetic  organization  and  so  indulgent  a  disposition, 
Vinet  was  yet  able  to  maintain  the  decrees  of  Christianity 
in  their  incorruptible  purity.  The  literary  sentiment  is 
readily  pagan,  evangelical  belief  is  readily  Puritan  ;  but 
Vinet  has  taught  us  that  the  austerity  of  faith  can  be 
allied  to  the  most  delicate  and  lively  taste  for  literature. 
His  catholic  sympathies  were  open  to  all  that  is  true  and 
holy  everywhere;  he  loved  to  recognise  the  broken, 
dispersed  rays  of  divine  light,  and  lie  felt  drawn 
towards  every  man  in  whose  heart  the  moral  fibre  had 
begun  to  vibrate." 


2  48  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


CHAPTEll    XXIX. 

Letters  to  Friends. 

1844-1846. 

To    some    of  his    more    intimate   friends   Vinet  did  not 
hesitate  to  open  the  whole  of  his  mind. 

To  M.  Verny. 

"  You  have  believed  me  to  be  narrow,  hostile  to  spon- 
taneity and  to  the  development  of  human  nature,—/  for 
whom  the  Christian  is  not  perfectly  Christian  if  he  is  not 
also  perfectly  human !  You  have  not  understood  that  I 
was  only  trying  to  see  how  certain  developments  of  human 
life  could  harmonize  with  certain  dogmatical  views  which 
till  then  were  mine,  and  which  appeared  to  be  yours." 

To  his  friend  Thomas  Erskine  he  expressed  himself 
with  still  greater  clearness  : — 

"  On  many  points  which  are  considered  to  be  important 
I  cannot  speak  with  the  Church.  It  is  true  that  I  am  not 
obliged  to  do  so,  and  that  I  ought  to  speak  as  I  think  ;  but 
if  one  ought  to  teach  a  conviction,  can  one  in  the  same 
way  teach  doubt  on  important  subjects  ?  My  doubts  are 
instinctive  rather  than  reasoned  or  scientific;  and  I  ought 
to  admit  that  there  is  more  than  one  of  my  views  in 
favour  of  which  I  have  not  in  a  clear  and  decisive  manner 
t lie  witness  of  Scripture.  Thus  I  cannot  believe  in  sub- 
stitution, and  I  am  able  to  speak  theologically  against  it. 
...  I  am  well  persuaded  that  such  a  heresy  would  never 
compromise  my  salvation,  inasmuch  as  my  heart  would  be 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  249 

given  to  God.  But  it  would  be  necessary  to  pronounce 
publicly  for  or  against  it.  Can  I  do  so,  not  being  one  of 
t  he  learned  ?     Could  I,  even  if  I  were  so  ?  " 

In  the  course  of  this  letter,  Vinet  thanks  Erskine  for 
a  parcel  of  books  : — 

"Trench's  sermons  are  very  striking  — far  above  the 
ordinary  run  of  theology  and  preaching.  .  .  .  Arnold 
interests  me  deeply,  even  by  the  views  that  are  opposed  to 
mine.  At  any  rate,  he  is  a  distinguished  man,  a  specimen 
of  the  best  variety  of  Christian  humanity.  I  cannot  tell 
you  how  many  precious  things  I  have  gathered  from  the 
first  volume  of  his  Life  and  Letters.  But  allow  me  to  tell 
you  that  I  owe  much  more  to  a  book  that  comes  from  you, 
although  you  did  not  send  it,  The  Brazen  Serpent." 

Vinet's  strong  dislike  of  all  views  which  tend  to  create 
a  barrier  between  religion  and  all  that  is  noble  and  sweet 
in  human  nature  and  in  human  existence,  is  displayed 
in  the  following  letter: — 


o 


To  a  Lad//,  3rd  February  184."). 

"Believe  that  Christian  wisdom  consists  first  of  all, 
not  in  compressing  or  repressing,  but  rather  in  extending. 
One  does  not  proceed  in  Christianity  from  negation  to 
affirmation,  but  from  affirmation  to  negation,  from  love  to 
hatred,  from  liberty  to  submission.  God  is  love — let  that 
be  our  point  of  departure.  Let  me  remind  you  that 
Pascal  has  not  only  placed  first  of  all  the  faith  and  the 
logic  of  the  heart,  but  has  maintained  that  they  Buffice  for 
us.  Philosophy  and  nature  are  on  the  side  of  the  gospel. 
The  gospel  alone  among  all  these  doctrines  is  at  once 
philosophical  and  natural." 

In  answer  to  one  who  had  confided  to  him  his  spiritual 
difficulties,  Vinet  writes  : — 

"  Pray,  do  not  think  that  you  have  shocked  me.  I  have 
less  than  any  one  the  right  to  be  so;    and  the    superb 


250  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

assurance  of  those  who  believe  without  examination 
scandalizes  me  a  great  deal  more  than  the  vacillations 
or  even  the  errors  of  a  humble  heart  that  doubts  and 
seeks.  Be  consoled !  You  would  not  seek  if  you  had  no! 
already  found.  It  is  thus  that  in  an  unpublished  page  of 
Pascal's,  Jesus  Christ  speaks  to  the  sinner.  ...  I  am  not 
in  a  hurry  to  see  you  perfectly  clear  respecting  the  exact 
formula  of  the  dogma  of  redemption ;  if,  while  seeking, 
you  recognise  your  state  of  siu,  the  absolute  need  of 
pardon,  the  indispensable  necessity  of  grace,  I  am  well 
content.  To  believe,  in  the  gospel  sense  of  the  word, — it  is 
to  prostrate  yourself  before  God ;  it  is  to  call  for  pardon 
(even  supposing  it  had  not  been  decreed) ;  it  is  to  demand 
a  Saviour  even  when  one  ignores  that  one  exists !  The 
prayer  of  a  soldier  at  the  beginning  of  battle — '  0  God,  if 
there  be  a  God,  save  my  soul  if  I  have  one!' — if  not  a 
ribald  jest,  was  a  grand  saying.  The  humble  soul  still 
seeking  may  utter  a  similar  prayer :  '  0  my  God,  if  there 
be  pardon,  redemption,  salvation,  I  accept,  I  claim  them. 
I  do  not  understand  the  form  under  which  they  are  pre- 
sented. ...  I  only  understand  my  misery  and  Thy  great 
mercy.' 

..."  The  Incarnation  is  the  essential  point :  God 
manifest  in  the  flesh  —  God  with  lis  —  God  united  to 
human  nature — God  giving  Himself  after  having  given  to 
us  that  which  was  not  Him.  It  is  the  summing  up  of  the 
gospel,  the  light  of  life,  the  unique  consolation  and  the 
unique  hope." 

But  it  is  to  Erskine  that  Vinet  unbosoms  himself  witli 
the  greatest  freedom  : — 

"  Many  reforms  are  necessary.  The  principal  must  be 
brought  to  bear  on  the  form  as  well  as  on  the  matter  of 
preaching.  We  must  go  farther :  we  must  reconsider  our 
theology.  In  the  midst  of  a  new  order  of  facts  I  do  not 
perceive  a  single  new  idea,  or,  to  express  myself  better,  a 
single  idea.  1  could  not  express  how  the  uniformity  that 
reigns  in  our  sermons  appears  fictitious,  superficial,  and 
fatiguing.      The  preachers  recite  a  chaplet    of  doctrines 


ALEXANDEB  VINET.  21  1 

much  as  the  Catholics  recite  their  chaplets  of  prayers. 
They  are  sincere,  well-intentioned,  but  neither  original  nor 
profound,  nor  even  convinced,  if  conviction  means  some- 
thing more  than  prejudice.  They  declaim  against  the 
'  merit  of  works '  without  seeing  that  they  themselves  are 
imbued  with  the  same  spirit  when  they  pretend  to  be 
saved  by  doctrines,  which  is  an  'opus  ojuratum'  like  any 
other,  and  sometimes  worse  than  any  other.  As  for 
myself,  I  have  many  good  reasons  to  keep  aloof.  I 
have  more  than  is  necessary  in  the  ten  fingers  of  my  two 
hands  to  count  those  who  think  as  I  do.  Christianity  for 
me  is  not  exclusively  nor  par  excellence  that  which  has 
been  preached  to  us  during  twenty-five  years.  I  believe 
that  this  formula  is  powerless  and  useless  with  regard  to 
the  masses:  it  is  a  rechauffe',  almost  cold,  of  the  sixteenth 
century.  That  which  was  original  in  the  time  of  Luther 
is  no  more  so  to-day.  We  speak  a  dead  language  to  the 
century.  Many  people  account  for  this  result  by  saying 
that  Christianity  is  not  the  affair  of  the  masses,  and  I  own 
that  1  do  not  know  either  in  the  past  or  in  the  present  a 
converted  people;  but  it  is  no  less  true  that  Christianity 
has  acted  on  the  masses,  that  it  has  created  a  Christian 
civilisation,  and  yet  I  see  to-day  that  the  masses  arc 
impenetrable  to  our  efforts.  But  if  I  am  not  greatly 
mistaken,  the  new  form  of  ancient  and  eternal  truth  is 
preparing  itself  in  the  human  mind,  and  later  the  neces- 
sary man  will  be  found.  I  greatly  desire  to  learn  your 
thoughts  on  this  point.  Here  I  can  reveal  mine  but  to 
few  persons.     'All  fear,  none  aid,  and  few  understand.'  " 

"Yinet  has  never  clearly  explained  his  views  on  the 
subject  of  the  Bible.  He  furnishes  many  indications 
showing  it  to  be  no  longer  in  his  eyes  a  code  of 
doctrines  imposing  itself  with  the  necessity  of  a  symbol. 
He  even  thanks  God  that  we  are  not  compelled  to  under- 
stand it,  so  that  a  place  is  left  to  our  activity  in  the 
acquisition  of  faith.  He  realizes  that  there  can  be  no 
authority  in  the  Bible  apart  from  that  which  is  eternally 
true  and   permanent.      '  The  truths  of  the  gospel  are  not 


252  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

truths  because  God  has  said  them  ;  but  rather,  God  has 
said  them  because  they  are  truths' 

"  Vinet  had  arrived  at  a  sufficiently  spiritual  notion  of 
revelation  to  be  able  to  understand  that  Judaism  had  not 
been  the  exclusive  preparation  of  Christianity,  and  to  give 
to  God  the  credit  of  all  that  is  good  in  humanity.  He 
goes  so  far  as  to  say  that  men  outside  of  the  household 
of  faith  who  have  received  the  impulse  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,  '  are  in  better  conditions  than  those  who,  knowing 
Jesus  Christ,  believe  in  Him  with  a  literal  and  passive 
faith.' " l 

Vinet's  idea  of  authority  can  best  be  gathered  from 
the  following  extract  : — 

On  the  Question  of  the  Sabbath. 

"  The  general  character  of  the  evangelical  dispensation 
excludes  literal  legality;  and  if  religion,  in  order  to  mani- 
fest itself,  to  give  itself  a  body  and  a  tangible  reality,  is 
obliged  to  use  certain  forms,  these  forms  have  not  been 
prescribed  by  divine  authority.  .  .  .  The  legislator,  the 
supreme  organizer  of  the  Church,  is  the  Spirit  of  God. 
No  path  has  been  laid  down  for  the  future." 

Religion,  according  to  Vinet,  has  two  bases  :  the  Man- 
God,  and  the  individual  conscience  called  to  enter  into 
communion  with  Him.  It  is  not  to  Christianity,  it  is 
to  Jesus  Christ  that  you  must  go.  True  Christianity 
is  nowhere  complete  if  not  in  Jesus  Christ.  Religion  is 
presented  to  us  in  the  gospel  as  a  Fact,  a  Person,  a  new 
creation. 

Here  is  a  characteristic  utterance  whereby  the  intel- 
lectual side  is  closely  subordinated  to  the  moral  and 
religious  element : — 

"  To  history,  to  systems,  to  Christianity,  let  us  prefer 
Jesus  Christ ;  let  us  be  Christians  bv  communion  with 
Him,  instead  of  by  familiarizing  ourselves  with  the  doctrine 

1  Astte. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  253 

and  the  science  which  depend  on  Him.  Speculations  as 
to  the  nature  of  Christ,  even  the  most  sublime  and  the 
most  necessary,  are  withering  and  destructive.  If  we 
imitate  Him  not,  Jesus  Christ  will  ever  remain  for  us  an 
enigma." 

To  sum  up  our  characterization  of  Vinet  during  this 
last  period  of  his  development,  we  have  only  to  add  the 
following  : — 

K  From  first  to  last  Christianity  is  molality.  Specula- 
tion only  enters  in  occasionally,  ami  occupies  the  second 
place.  Religion  is  nothing  but  molality  sown  on  the  soil 
of  grace;  it  must  be  cultivated,  and  every  theologian  who 
is  not  a  moralist  is  only  half  a  theologian,  if,  indeed,  he 
can  be  called  one  at  all.  .  .  .  The  need  of  religion,  in  order 
to  be  efficacious  and  fruitful,  ought  to  have  at  its  basis  the 
■nerd  of  morality. 

"  Conversion  is  only  the  beginning  of  sanctification,  and 
sanctification  is  the  continuation  of  conversion.  ...  It  is 
by  the  contagion  of  this  moral  element  that  truth  not  only 
shows  itself,  but  that  it  communicates  itself  to  the  soul.  .  .  . 

"  Morality  and  dogma  are  so  closely  connected  that  one 
can  scarcely  distinguish  between  them." 

Every  genius  has  its  great  artery  through  which  its 
blood  flows.     With  Vinet  this  "great  artery  "was  incon- 

testably  morality. 


254  LIFE  AND  WHITINGS  OF 


rw  i 


CHAPTER  XXX 

Lectures  on  Theology  and  on  the  Philosophy  of  Chris- 
tianity— Lectures  on  History  of  Literature — Tenders 
his  Resignation  as  Professor  of  Theology. 

1844-1845. 

The  period  during  which  Viuet  lectured  in  Lausanne  was 
a  memorable  epoch  in  the  history  of  the  Academy.  The 
different  chairs  were  rilled  by  professors  of  rare  merit ;  the 
teaching  was  of  an  elevated  character  ;  and  the  students 
responded  by  an  overflow  of  zeal  and  of  attachment. 

Yinet's  chair  embraced  the  different  branches  of  pas- 
toral theology,  that  is  to  say,  homiletics,  the  preparation 
of  catechumens,  and  the  theory  of  the  cure  of  souls. 
To  this  teaching  Vinet  joined  the  history  of  pulpit 
eloquence, — a  course  of  lessons  on  the  practical  philo- 
sophy of  Christianity,  and  an  exegesis  of  certain  books 
of  the  Old  and  New  Testament, 

The  professor  often  interrupted  the  course  of  his  ex- 
planations in  order  to  make,  under  the  form  of  a  sermon,  a 
particular  study  of  some  important  passage.  It  was  thus, 
as  we  have  already  seen,  that  the  New  Discourses  were  born. 

We  may  here  insert  a  page  from  Sainte-Beuve  which 
records  the  impression  he  received  from  one  of  Vinet's 
lessons. 

"  I  owe  to   M.  Yhu't  one  of  the  most  vivid  and  serious 

1  Rainbert. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  2oo 

impressions  that  I  ever  experienced.  I  had  just  re- 
turned from  the  Eternal  City.  1  had  seen  in  unusual 
splendour  this  superb  Queen.  St.  Peter  had  appeared 
with  an  addition  of  golden  baldachinos,  with  magnificent 
hangings  and  pictures  where  figured  the  miracles  of  a 
certain  number  of  new  saints  that  had  just  been  canonized. 
From  one  of  the  balconies  of  the  Vatican  I  had  admired 
the  far-off  horizon  of  Albano.  In  presence  of  the  Apollo 
Belvedere,  I  had  seen  our  guide,  the  excellent  sculptor 
Fogelberg,  who  had  visited  it  every  day  for  twenty  years, 
let  fall  a  tear,  and  this  tear  of  the  artist  had  seemed  to 
me  more  beautiful  than  Apollo  himself.  A  steamer  trans- 
ported me  in  two  days  from  Civita-Vecchia  to  Marseilles, 
and  from  thence  I  flew  to  Lausanne,  where  I  found  myself 
six  days  after  having  left  Rome.  The  morning  following 
my  arrival,  I  went  to  hear  Vinet's  lesson  given  in  a  poor 
college  class-room,  perfectly  bare,  with  simple  whitewashed 
walls  and  wooden  desks.  The  Scotchman  Erskine  was 
there  as  well.  I  heard  a  lesson  which  was  both  pene- 
trating and  elevated, — an  eloquence  of  reflection  and  of 
conscience  on  the  subject  of  Bourdaloue  and  La  Bruy<  r, . 

"  In  exquisitely  concise  language,  serious,  and  yet  full 
of  inward  emotion,  the  soul  of  a  moral  being  laid  bare 
its  treasures.  What  a  profound  impression,  intimate  and 
altogether  Christian,  of  a  real  and  spiritual  form  of 
Christianity!  What  a  contrast  on  leaving  the  pomp  of 
the  Vatican  !  Never  have  I  tasted  so  fully  the  sober  and 
pure  joys  of  the  mind,  and  never  have  I  had  a  more 
lively  sense  of  the  moral  sentiment  of  the  intellect." 

All  who  have  heard  Vinet  are  of  the  same  opinion  as 
Sainte-Beuve.  They  regret  that  the  written  word  can 
never  reproduce  the  accent,  the  look,  the  voice,  in  a 
word,  the  gift  of  utterance. 

"  Vinet,"  says  one  who  often  attended  his  lessons,  "  has 
only  been  entirely  known  to  his  pupils.  Provided  with  a 
few  notes  traced  on  a  card,  the  master  began  by  an  ex- 
position of  the  subject  of  the  lesson.  Gradually  the  voice 
of  the  orator,  always  penetrating,  although  rather  veiled 
at  the  beginning,  soon  resumed  its  power  and  charm  :  and 


256  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

if  in  his  improvisation  the  professor  met  by  the  way 
some  great  ideas  which  expressed  his  inmost  being,  then 
he  gave  himself  up  without  reserve  to  the  movements 
of  his  soul,  his  emotion  gained  the  audience  more  and 
more,  the  pens  fell  from  the  hands,  and  there  remained 
from  those  moments  an  increase  of  affection  in  the  hearts 
of  those  who  had  the  happiness  to  enjoy  them." 

But  it  was  the  course  of  Lectures  on  the  Philosophy 
of  Christianity  which  marked  the  culminating  point  of 
Vinet's  theological  teaching.  The  public  know  nothing 
of  it  save  twenty  pages  which  indicate  the  plan  at  the 
end  of  the  volume  of  Melanges}  A  glance  at  this  pro- 
gramme will  suffice  to  show  the  purport  of  the  work. 
What  was  the  end  the  writer  had  in  view  ?  Nothing 
less  than  to  confront,  once  for  all,  not  in  general  terms,  as 
Pascal  had  done,  but  point  by  point,  feature  by  feature, 
human  nature  and  the  Christian  religion.  The  table  of 
contents  (it  is  thus  that  Vinet  calls  his  first  lesson)  indi- 
cates with  what  fulness  the  subject  was  conceived  and 
was  meant  to  be  treated.  If  any  will  compare  certain 
passages  in  the  first  volume  of  Sermons  (1830)  with  the 
last  pages  of  this  Table  of  Contents,  they  will  see  the 
distance  Vinet  had  traversed  in  the  interval.  It  is  once 
more  the  question  of  the  relations  of  faith  and  reason. 
This  is  Vinet's  point  of  view  fourteen  years  later : — 

"The  practical  interest  of  the  study  we  are  undertaking 
is  the  better  understanding  of  Christianity  in  order  that 
we  may  believe  letter.  I  have  said  to  believe  better,  be- 
cause in  reality  one  may  believe  more  or  less  well,  in 
proportion  as  one  has  understood  more  or  less  well. 

"This,  I  own,  has  greatly  the  appearance  of  a  paradox, 
after  having  heard  so  many  persons  declare  that  '  not 
being  able  to  understand,  they  could  not  believe,'  and 
after  having  beard  Christians  reply  in  concert  that  '  they 
would   understand  as   soon  as   they   believed.'     But  it  is 

1  Revue  Chritknne.     E.  de  Pressen.se. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  257 

easy  to  explain  our  meaning.  In  religion,  as  in  everything 
else,  the  pretension  to  understand  everything  is  an  absurd 
pretension.  To  understand  everything  is  to  understand 
God;  and  he  who  would  understand  God  would  be  God 
Himself.  From  cause  to  cause,  from  motive  to  motive, 
Ave  must  arrive  sooner  or  later  at  a  moment  in  which  we 
say,  '  This  is  because  it  is.'  If  we  will  not  make  up  our 
mind  to  utter  this  last  word,  if  we  are  not  satisfied  unless 
we  understand  everything,  it  is  plain  that  we  shall  not 
believe.  Not  to  believe  is  to  remain  in  ignorance,  because 
in  many  things  belief  is  the  only  means  of  knowing.  .  .  . 
We  must  then  believe  in  order  to  understand,  but  we  must 
also  understand  in  order  to  believe,  or  at  least  in  order  to 
believe  well.  If  under  the  name  of  faith  you  designate  a 
principle  which  renews  the  soul,  faith  ought  to  be  a  compre- 
hension, an  adoption  of  all  truth  by  the  entire  man, — a 
harmony  felt  by  the  believer  with  what  he  believes, — an 
interdependence  of  subject  and  object. 

"  The  gospel  itself  exhorts  us  to  regard,  to  contemplate ; 
but  what  will  avail  this  contemplation  if  it  lead  us  not 
to  understand ;  or,  at  any  rate,  to  fortify  our  faith,  or  to 
possess  under  this  name  something  better  than  a  superficial, 
ineffectual,  illusory  belief?  It  does  not  suffice  to  touch 
with  the  tip  of  the  finger  the  extremity  or  the  surface 
of  truth.  .  .  .  No,  the  truth  must  be  embraced.  To  com- 
prehend means  that  it  must  be  caught  hold  of  and  enfolded 
in  the  arms  while  the  hands  are  raised  in  adoration.  We 
do  not  lower  faith  ;  we  do  not  profane  the  sacred  mystery 
in  speaking  thus,  because  such  an  intelligence  as  that  of 
which  we  speak,  or,  more  correctly,  such  a  comprehension, 
is  neither  easier  to  explain  nor  to  practise  than  is  anything 
else  which  it  pleases  you  to  call  by  the  name  of  faith." 

The  central  idea  of  the  Sermon  on  Faith  (the  work  of 
God)  is  found  here,  but  enlarged  and  carried  on  to  the 
highest  application.  This  faith,  which  is  a  work,  would 
be  an  incomplete,  superficial,  illusory  work,  if  it  was  not 
also  intelligence. 

But  Vinet's  theological  lectures  only  represent  a  part 
of    his    activity   as    professor.       During    the   absence  of 

K 


258  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

M.  Monnard,1  Vinet  took  his  place  at  the  Academy  as 
Professor  of  French  Literature.  He  gave  a  course  on  the 
history  of  literature  under  the  Empire,  with  special 
reference  to  Madame  de  Stael  and  Chateaubriand.  He 
was  often  obliged  to  begin  his  lessons  by  making  excuses 
for  lack  of  preparation.  "  Good,"  his  pupils  would  say  ; 
"  now  we  are  sure  to  have  a  splendid  lecture."  His  ill 
health  could  prevent  him  from  giving  his  lectures,  but  not 
from  giving  them  well.  "  I  gave  my  lesson  in  agony," 
he  said  one  day  to  his  wife.  Later  in  the  day,  Madame 
Vinet  met  a  student,  who  accosted  her,  saying,  "  Monsieur 
Vinet  is  much  better,  is  he  not  ?  he  gave  his  lesson  with 
so  much  vigour." 

We  may  imagine  that  his  lectures  on  literary  subjects 
were  given  with  more  spirit  than  those  on  theology,  for 
the  idea  of  a  moral  incompatibility  between  his  convic- 
tions and  the  chair  he  filled  in  the  Faculty  did  not  cease 
to  torment  him.2 

We  read  in  the  Diary, — • 

"  29th  October  1843. — Communicated  to  Sophie  my  views 
on  the  necessity  of  sending  in  my  resignation." 

The  more  he  reflected  on  the  subject,  the  more  was  he 
convinced  that  his  dignity,  his  conscience,  and  the  future 
of  the  cause  of  which  he  was  the  representative,  were  in 
([uestion.  Legally  he  was  free.  As  long  as  his  teaching 
was  in  conformity  with  that  of  the  gospel,  no  one  had 
the  right  to  examine  his  opinions  on  any  particular 
point.  But  he  realized  that  his  position  would  become 
stronger  and  more  logical  when  independent  of  the 
National  Church.  It  was  a  sacrifice  ;  but  how  can  one 
have  convictions  if  not   prepared   to   make   sacrifices  for 

'   M.  Monnard  was  obliged  to  make  a  long  sojourn  in  Paris  in  order  to 
collect  materia]  Cor  the  continuation  of  Jean  de  Midler's  history. 
'-'  Rambert. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  25  9 

them  ?  This  sacrifice  alone  would  be  more  eloquent  in 
the  eyes  of  public  opinion  than  all  the  eloquence  of  the 
pen.     These  considerations  gained  the  victory. 

On  11th  November  1844,  Vinet  addressed  to  the 
State  Council  a  letter  to  the  effect  that  conscientious 
motives  obliged  him  to  resign  the  post  of  Professor  of 
Practical  Theology. 

The  same  day  he  wrote, — 

To  M.  For  el,  llth  November  1844. 
"  My  heart  is  big  with  tears  that  cannot  flow,  although 
I  have  acted,  it  seems  to  me,  with  full  knowledge. 

Mainteiiant  pour  tout  prix  de  mes  soins  superflus, 
Je  me  cherche  moi  nieme  et  ne  me  trouve  plus. 

Besides,  it  is  not  oneself  that  one  must  seek ;  because 
when  found,  what  would  it  be  ?  One  must  seek  Him  who 
is  ever  seeking  us,  from  whom  we  fly  by  a  thousand  paths." 

'  The  Council  sent  one  of  its  members  to  engage  Vinet 
not  to  send  in  his  resignation  immediately,  but  to  defer 
the  step  on  account  of  the  state  of  public  affairs  and 
the  excited  condition  of  the  public  mind.  Vinet  thought 
it  his  duty  to  comply  with  this  request.  But  too  many 
people  had  been  admitted  into  the  secret  for  it  to  be 
kept.  To  those  who  expressed  their  surprise,  Vinet 
replied  simply  as  he  did  to  a  friend,  '  What  1  have  done, 
I  did  in  order  not  merely  to  appear  but  to  be  in  the 
right  path.      God  will  take  care  of  the  rest.' 

'It  was  currently  reported  in  Basle  that  Vinet  was 
going  to  join  the  dissenters.  This  proved  how  little 
they  understood  him.  Vinet  was  so  disinclined  to  be 
mewed  up  in  a  small,  narrow  sect,  that  he  actually 
refused  to  participate  directly  in  the  work  of  an  association 
which  was  formed  to  propagate  his  own  ideas  on  the  separa- 
tion of  Church  and  State.  He  only  appeared  at  one  of  the 
meetings  in  order  to  make  the  following  declaration  : 


260  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

" '  I  come  to  pay  homage  to  the  double  principle  of  spon- 
taneity in  things  of  religion  and  of  autonomy  in  ecclesi- 
astical matters.  ...  I  do  not  desire  to  see  the  Church 
destroyed,  but  liberated, — associated  in  spirit  with  all  who 
work  in  the  same  sense.  Nevertheless,  I  shall  go  on  work- 
ing alone  till  I  receive  a  new  order  from  God.' 

"  Here  we  must  record  an  instance  of  Vinet' s  extreme 
delicacy  of  conscience.  After  quitting  the  Assembly  he 
wrote  the  President  the  following  letter  : — 

" '  I  perceive  that  I  have  spoken  more  absolutely  than  I 
had  intended.  I  had  only  meant  to  say  that  until  the 
arrival  of  a  new  order  of  things  I  would  work  in  my  own 
name,  but  I  did  not  wish  to  imply  that  I  would  not 
continue  to  form  part  of  the  great  society  of  all  who 
follow  the  same  end.  It  is  not  spiritually  but  formally 
that  I  remain  alone,  and  this  point  of  view  does  not  imply 
the  condemnation  of  any  combined  action.' 

"  This  declaration,  made  less  than  a  month  after  his 
letter  of  resignation,  shows  us  plainly  of  what  stuff  he 
was  made.  He  would  have  neither  party,  nor  sect,  nor 
coterie,  and  the  term  partisan  was  of  all  others  the  most 
painful  to  him.  He  wished,  not  only  in  theory  but  in 
practice,  to  create  individualities,  men  truly  free,  and  it 
was  in  order  to  be  so  himself,  to  avoid  all  appearance  of 
disagreement  between  his  life  and  his  convictions,  that  he 
had  tendered  his  resignation. 

"  The  students  who  knew  him  thoroughly  did  not 
mistake  his  motives  for  an  instant.  Ou  New  Year's 
Day  (1845)  Vinet  found  his  salon  adorned  with  fine 
engravings,  which  were  accompanied  by  a  touching  letter, 
expressive  of  his  pupils'  affection  and  gratitude. 

"  A  few  months  later  the  Revolution,  which  Vinet  had 
long  foretold,  burst  forth."  1 

1  Kambert. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  261 


CHAPTER  XXXI. 

The  Revolution  of  1845 — Downfall  of  the  Government — 
Vinet  preaches  on  the  Accomplices  of  the  Crucifixion. 

Since  the  Revolution  of  1830  the  country  had  been 
governed  by  the  Doctrinaires}  Idealists  rather  than 
practical  statesmen,  they  had  sought  only  to  enforce  the 
law,  without  making  allowance  for  the  passions  of  the 
rebellious  multitude,  or  even  for  those  of  their  proper 
adherents.  Their  error  consisted  in  imagining  that  this 
law  could  at  their  command  incarnate  itself  in  the  soul 
of  the  people,  and  become  the  rule  of  its  morals  and  of 
its  institutions. 

The  Vaudois  Revolution  of  February  1845  was  less  a 
political  than  a  moral  and  social  revolution.  It  was  not 
the  substitution  of  one  form  of  government  for  another, 
but  the  insurrection  of  the  mass  against  all  superiority. 

1  Doctrinaires  :  the  school  of  Guizot,  of  the  Due  de  Brenles,  and 
of  Royer  Collard,  who  wished  to  found  government  neither  on  the 
principle  of  aristocratic  nor  of  popular  government,  but  on  the  principle 
of  Reason.  Where  was  this  principle  to  be  found  ?  Guizot  found  it 
in  a  small  number  ;  in  the  bourgeoisie,  in  all  who  could  contribute  a 
certain  sum  and  become  electors.  Vinet,  on  the  contrary,  had  small 
hope  of  any  permanent  good  resulting  from  the  action  of  the  middle 
class.  "The  monopoly  of  power  by  the  intermediate  class  will  not 
bequeath  anything  great  to  history.  A  Republic  which  is  purelv 
bourgeois  will  only  perform  bourgeois  acts.  It  is  to  the  aristocracy,  or 
to  the  frank  democracy,  that  a/I  that  is  sublime  in  politics  is  reserved  ; 
and  if  it  be  true  that  the  time  of  the  aristocracy  is  passed,  the  bourgeois 
policy  will  never  rise  above  itself  but  by  becoming  popular." 


262  LIFE  AND  WETTINGS  OF 

The  Radical  party  was  tired  of  what  it  was  pleased  to 
term  the  Methodist  doctrinairism  of  the  Government. 
The  question  of  the  Jesuits  was  the  pretext,  but  in  reality- 
it  was  against  order,  against  civilisation,  against  what 
was  termed  the  aristocracy  of  morality,  that  the  adver- 
saries were  arraigned.  The  revival  of  religion  had  doubly 
irritated  the  democracy,  first  by  its  self-righteous  tone, 
and  secondly  by  the  reception  it  had  met  with  from  the 
upper  classes  of  society.  It  was  against  religion  itself 
that  the  popular  fury  was  directed.  The  "  Jesuits  "  or 
the  "  Momiers,"  it  was  all  one.  At  the  time  that  they 
demanded  the  expulsion  of  the  Jesuits,  they  endeavoured 
to  excite  the  people  against  the  Protestant  Jesuits, — the 
"  Mummers," — and  they  included  in  the  circle  of  their  dis- 
pleasure the  whole  of  the  teaching  body.  "  Down  with 
the  Academy  ! "  was  the  cry.  It  was  looked  on  as  the 
source  of  all  the  trouble  and  sorrow  in  the  canton.1 

A  monster  petition  was  set  on  foot.  More  than 
30,000  signatures  were  appended.  The  Grand  Council 
had  scarcely  had  time  to  deliberate  before  the  popular 
agitation  rose  and  spread  throughout  the  canton.  The 
Council  of  State  called  out  the  troops  ;  but,  seeing  that  it 
was  impossible  for  it  to  maintain  a  bloody  struggle,  it 
gave  in  its  resignation,  and  a  Provisional  Government  was 
set  up,  February  14. 

The  new  Government  commanded  all  public  function- 
aries  to  recognise  its  authority.      Vinet,  as  well  as  the 

1  Here  wo  may  quote  from  one  of  Juste  Olivier's  ballads, — 

Messieurs,  dit  un  bon  campagnard, 

Toutes  les  vignes  sont  gelees  ; 
Les  bl^s  furent  semes  trop  tard, 

Nos  forets  sont  envolees. 

De  la  Dole  jusqu'  a  Jaman, 

Ecoutez  done  cette  infamie, 
Nous  n'avons  point  en  de  cboux  rette  annee  : 

Ce.it  Mexsiew*,  e'est  I'academie. 


ALEXANDEB  VINET.  263 

greater  number  of  his  colleagues,  obeyed.  A  few  days 
later  he  denounced  "  certain  emblems  "  in  the  streets  of 
Lausanne,  which  gave  pain  to  honest  people,  calling 
forth  hatred  and  contempt  with  regard  to  "certain 
opinions  and  certain  classes  of  citizens." 

The  Revolution  soon  bore  fruit.  It  was  evident  that 
with  regard  to  religious  liberty  everything  was  to  re- 
commence, that  the  ancient  spirit  of  intolerance  was 
awakened  more  violently  than  ever,  and  that  the  Govern- 
ment had  neither  the  courage  nor  the  desire  to  repress 
it.  Religious  assemblies  were  disturbed  in  several  parts 
of  the  canton.  Not  only  were  the  dissenting  chapels 
assailed,  but  the  "  oratoires  "  in  which  the  pastors  of  the 
Xational  Church  presided  at  the  services  were  attacked 
with  the  same  violence.  Bands  of  men  armed  with 
sticks  entered  these  buildings  and  dispersed  the  wor- 
shippers, assaulting  women  and  aged  persons,  and  doing 
much  damage.  Grave  conflicts  between  the  Government 
and  the  clergy  were  inevitable.  The  law  of  1839,  which 
had  delivered  the  Church  to  be  the  humble  servant  of  the 
State,  was  now  bearing  fruit.  Vinet's  heart  was  wrung 
in  witnessing  the  decadence  of  his  country. 

"The  people  will  it,"  he  wrote.  "These  words  sum  up 
the  law,  the  politics,  and  the  morals  of  an  immense 
majority.  ...  1  do  not  understand  the  divine  right  of 
the  many  any  more  than  the  divine  right  of  one.  .  .  . 
In  many  cases  right  and  truth  would  be  sacrificed 
if  they  should  become  questions  of  majority.  A  thing 
wished  for  by  the  greatest  number  does  not  by  that  fact 
become  either  right  or  social;  it  can  be,  on  the  contrary, 
execrable,  and  subversive  of  all  social  order:  and  even  if 
it  were  wished  for  by  a  majority  of  nil  against  one,  it  ought 
not  to  be." 

The  first  step  taken  by  the  Government  was  to  address 
a  letter  to  the   Separatists,  who  were  "  amicably  invited 


264  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

to  abstain  from  meetings  which  disturb  the  public 
peace."  This,  tben,  was  the  point  of  view  of  the  new 
Government.  The  persons  who  "  disturbed  the  peace  " 
were  not  the  members  of  the  yelling  mob  which  paraded 
the  streets,  but  the  two  or  three  gathered  together  in  a 
quiet  room  for  the  study  of  the  Scriptures.  One  of  the 
"  Mummers  "  retorted  that  it  was  exactly  as  though  he 
were  being  "  amicably  invited  to  abstain  from  serving 
God." 

Vinet  endeavoured  to — 

"convince  the  Council  of  two  facts  —  first,  that  it  was 
impossible  for  the  civil  power  to  deal  with  the  subject  of 
religious  belief ;  and  secondly,  that  the  new  Constitution 
ought  to  pronounce  in  favour  of  religious  liberty.  To  keep 
silence  was  to  deny  this  right.  If  the  legislators  do  not 
pronounce  in  this  sense,  to  what  a  pitiful  role  will  the 
National  Church  be  reduced  !  For  it  is  in  its  name  that 
they  will  persecute.  Must  the  Council,  in  order  to  vote 
for  or  against  liberty,  wait  to  ascertain  the  wishes  of  the 
people  ?  The  people  only  wish  legislators  to  vote  accord- 
ing to  their  conscience. 

"  Whatsoever  may  be  said  to  the  contrary,  it  is  to  those 
who  respect  themselves,  not  to  those  who  only  respect  the 
people,  that  esteem  is  assured." 

Other  voices  cried  from  all  parts  of  the  canton  that 
the  Methodist  sect  compromised  the  public  peace,  and 
they  declared  loudly  that  there  must  be  but  one  form  of 
►State  religion.  The  former  legislation  in  matters  of 
religious  liberty  had  had  for  result  :  1.  A  National 
Church  in  which  the  ministers  were  subject  to  the 
central  political  power.  2.  No  liberty  either  for  parish 
or  pastor.  .">.  All  religious  meetings  save  the  public 
services  of  the  National  Church  absolutelv  forbidden. 

Yinet  gave  vent  to  the  sentiments  inspired  by  passing 
events  in  two  sermons  which  were  preached  in  the 
Church   of  St.    Francis   (Lausanne)    on    two   successive 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  265 

Sundays.1  These  sermons,  entitled  "The  Accomplices 
of  the  Crucifixion  of  the  Saviour,"  were  not  only  a 
remarkable  study  of  this  mysterious  text  (Heb.  vi.  6), 
but  also  a  Christian  appeal  to  the  whole  of  Switzerland. 
Never  had  Vinet  been  more  truly  eloquent — with  that 
eloquence  of  the  prophet  recalling  the  people  to  God  and. 
to  duty. 

"  What  do  I  hear,  and  what  have  you,  too,  heard  ? "  he 
cried  (alluding  to  the  bloody  struggles  which  had  recently 
taken  place  in  different  parts  of  Switzerland 2).  "  A  pierc- 
ing cry  of  sorrow,  in  the  midst  of  which  are  distinguishable 
the  moans  of  despair  of  those  whose  fathers,  husbands, 
and  sons  have  been  removed  by  a  tragical  death. 

"  What  have  I  seen,  and  what  do  you  see,  my  brethren  ? 
Men  who  call  each  other  true  and  faithful  confederates, 
men  who  have  taken  the  Father  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ 
for  witness  and  guarantee  of  their  alliance,  rushing  for- 
ward, not  in  order  to  embrace,  but  to  destroy  one  another : 
the  blood  of  brethren  shed  by  fratricidal  hands  in  this 
country  that  calls  itself  Christian,  and  a  new  Rachel,  tin- 
Fatherland,  weeping  for  its  children,  and  refusing  to  be 
consoled  because  they  are  not. 

"  And  long  before  these  scenes  of  horror  and  of  mourning, 
have  we  not  seen  and  heard  much  that  ought  to  cover  us 
with  shame  when  we  recall  that  our  God  is  not  a  God  of 
confusion,  but  a  God  of  peace.  Let  others  judge  between 
the  combatants— the  ministry  which  I  accomplish  at  this 
moment  dispenses  me  from  the  performance  of  such  a 
function.  I  accuse  no  one  in  particular,  but  I  accuse  all. 
If  we  have  been  constrained  to  see  these  fearful  scenes, 
it  is  because  we  are  not  that  which  we  pretend  to  be; 
it  is  that,  taking  us  in  the  mass,  we  have  nothing  that  is 
Christian  about  us  but  the  name.  We  can  no  longer 
deceive  ourselves;  the  covering,  to  speak  witli  the  prophet, 

1  30th  March  and  6th  April  1845. 

•-'  For  a  long  time  a  considerable  party  in  Switzerland  had  been  agitat- 
ing to  make  an  end  of  the  Switzerland  of  181 5.  The  call  of  the  Jesuits  to 
undertake  public  instruction  in  Lucerne  caused  the  storm  to  burst. 


2G6  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

is  too  narrow  to  envelope  us,  and  our  uniform  of  soldier 
in  the  army  of  Christ  can  no  longer  disguise  us.  ...  It  is 
of  the  piety  of  individuals  that  the  piety  of  the  public  is 
composed,  and  just  as  a  family  of  pagans  cannot  form  a 
Christian  family,  a  people  cannot  be  Christian  if  formed 
of  families  that  are  not  Christian.  All  is  real,  all  is  sub- 
stantial in  the  kingdom  of  God.  Fiction  has  there  no 
place.  In  order  that  the  people  be  Christian,  we  must 
each  of  us  begin  by  being  so ;  and  if  Christianity  alone, 
can  save  our  country,  the  care  of  saving  it  regards  each  of 
us.  What  has  each  of  us  done  to  save  it  ?  What  has  not 
each  done  to  lose  it?  'Nothing'  you  will  say,  perhaps  ; 
'  nothing  in  cither  sense,  for  each  of  us  is  of  small  import- 
ance, in  the  mass! 

"  Who  has  told  you  this — what  do  you  know  about  it, 
and,  in  every  case,  show  me  how  the  mass  can  become 
Christian  if  you  are  not  so  yourselves ;  and  tell  me  who 
ought  to  make  a  beginning  if  not  each  of  us,  equally  and 
indistinctly  ?  Do  you  consider  it  more  reasonable  that 
each  should  wait  in  order  to  be  Christian  till  every  one 
lias  become  so  ?  But  every  one  having  this  right  to  wait, 
one  would  wait  eternally.  Turn  your  gaze  upon  yourselves 
at  the  sight  of  these  national  calamities.  Accuse  your- 
selves, and  without  refusing  to  the  victims  of  your  miser- 
aide  discords  the  compassion  which  is  due  to  them,  keep 
some  of  it  for  yourselves." 

These  two  discourses  made  a  great  sensation.  The 
Radical  press  demanded  by  what  right  Vinet  preached  in 
the  National  Church,  of  which  he  denied  the  moral  right 
to  exist.  Vinet  replied  that  his  controversy  was  with 
the  intervention  of  the  State,  that  he  bore  no  ill-will  to 
the  Church  to  which  he  belonged  as  an  individual. 

"  A  thousand  sentiments  bind  me  to  the  Church  of  my 
fathers.  As  I  write,  the  beautiful  chimes  of  our  cathedral 
announce  the  hour  of  divine  service.  What  do  these 
sounds  say  to  so  many  differently  disposed  persons?  As 
for  me,  they  touch  me  as  deeply  as  ever.  But  even  the 
monument  from  which  it  spreads  in  the  air  belongs  en- 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  267 

tirely  to  the  past  .  .  .  the  grand  unity  of  the  Middle  Ages 
is  no  more  than  a  souvenir  or  a  dream.  But  that  does 
not  hinder  the  fact  that  the  sound  of  the  cathedral  hells 
brings  tears  to  my  eyes." 

A  few  days  later,  the  Grand  Council  adopted  a 
resolution  which  had  been  proposed  in  order  "to  put 
a  bridle  on  the  excesses  of  the  Methodists."  It  was  to 
the  effect  that  "  all  salary  from  the  Treasury  was  to  be 
cut  off  from  those  pastors  who  officiated  in  religious 
meetings  other  than  the  legally  constituted  services  of 
the  National  Church."  1 

On  the  following  day  Vinet  tendered  his  resignation 
as  professor  of  theology.  In  the  touching  letter  of  fare- 
well which  he  addressed  to  his  pupils,  he  explained  the 
motives  which  influenced  this  decision. 

"  I  believed  that  1  was  called  upon  to  bear  witness  on 
behalf  of  a  sacred  principle— the  principle  of  religious 
liberty  in  general,  and  of  the  sacred  and  inviolable  liberty 
.if  Christian  ministers  in  particular."  Vinet  goes  on  to 
say  that  lie  was  "  never  move  firmly  attached  to  the  Church 
of  his  country  than  at  the  moment  that  he  ceased  to  be 
numbered  among  its  functionaries." 

To  Einilc  Sourest  re,  August  184.".. 
"Do  you  wish  to  sec  a  revolution  upside  down  ?"  wrote 
Vinet.  "  Come  here  then  and  witness  the  spectacle  of  a 
people  wearying  of  its  happiness  and  revolting  against 
civilisation."  We  are  promised  a  magnificent  future, 
towards  which  we  march  over  the  ruins  of  our  liberties. 
'Hie   multitude  is   indifferent,   for   what   does  it   care   for 

1  We  can  better  understand  the  scope  of  this  infamous  resolution  if  we 
pause  i"  consider  what  would  be  the  effect  of  such  an  enactment  on  any 
other  religious  body — for  example,  on  the  Anglican  Church. 

Bible  classes,  temperance  meetings,  communicants'  guilds,  Sunday- 
school  unions,  mission  services,  girls'  friendly  societies,  young  women's 
and  young  men's  Christian  Associations,  and  missionary  meetings,  would 
all  be  abolished  at  a  stroke. 


268  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

liberty  ?  It  has  more  than  enough  for  its  poor  aspirations. 
...  1  believe  that  the  Mind  which  has  put  unity  into  the 
world  watches  over  our  destinies,  and  will  brino-  forth 
unity  in  the  world  of  will.  The  circle  of  universal  truths 
will  complete  itself ;  human  conscience  will  be  enriched 
as  science  is  enriched,  but  our  progress  will  be  slow  and 
stormy.  I  should  be  horror-struck  did  I  not  know  that 
One  is  at  the  centre  of  all  this  movement,  holding  events 
in  the  hollow  of  His  hand  :  One  towards  whom,  knowingly 
or  unknowingly,  all  creation  turns  with  deep  sighing, 
uttering  the  tender  and  reassuring  name  of  Father." 

The  difficulties  of  Vinet's  position  caused  his  foreign 
friends  to  hope  that  they  would  now  succeed  in  drawing 
him  away  from  Lausanne.  From  Montauban,  Basle, 
Geneva,  and  Paris  came  new  and  pressing  invitations. 

It  is  probable  that  these  overtures  would  have  been 
accepted  but  for  the  fact  that  at  the  same  moment  the 
chair  of  literature  became  vacant  at  the  Academy  of 
Lausanne  owing  to  the  retirement  of  M.  Monnard,  who 
sought  refuge  from  a  political  career  in  the  calm  life  of 
a  country  pastor.     Vinet  was  called  to  take  his  place. 

To  M.  Faesch,  2lst  May. 

"  Dear  friend,"  wrote  Vinet,  "  you  know  that  I  have 
sent  in  my  resignation  as  professor  of  theology.  ...  I 
wished  release  from  a  position  in  which  silence  concerning 
my  convictions  on  political  subjects  would  be  no  longer 
imposed  on  me.  I  would  not  continue  to  be  the  func- 
tionary of  the  Established  Church,  as  part  of  the  duties 
attached  to  my  charge  obliged  me  to  consider  myself  to 
be.  Finally,  willingly  or  unwillingly,  I  was  believed  to 
represent  a  theological  system  with  which  in  many  points 
I  was  no  longer  in  agreement,  or  rather  on  which  all  my 
convictions  are  not  fixed.  These  motives  are  of  long  stand- 
ing: circumstance  has  only  brought  them  to  light.  .  .  . 
Providence  has  willed  that  at  the  same  moment  my  friend 
Monnard's  vacant  place  should  be  offered  to  me  ;  and  what 
is  more  remarkable,  the  Government  has  made  the  offer 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  269 

even  more  pressingly  than  the  Academy,  which  manifested 
a  disposition  to  question  my  vocation" 

The  President  of  the  State  Council,  on  the  contrary, 
expressly  stated  that  this  call  was  founded  on  the 
European  reputation  which  Vinet  had  acquired  by  his 
writings.  Vinet  was  thus  restored  to  the  Academy  at 
the  moment  in  which  he  was  leaving  it.  Although  he 
was  no  longer  their  professor,  he  did  not  entirely  abandon 
his  friends  of  the  Theological  Faculty.  Many  of  them 
assembled  regularly  once  a  week  in  his  house  to  continue 
their  exercises  in  pastoral  theology. 

But  for  the  future  his  true  pupils  were  those  of  the 
Faculty  of  Letters,  to  whom  he  delivered  courses  of 
lectures  on  the  history  of  French  literature  and  on  the 
poets  of  the  century  of  Louis  XIV. 


270  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


CHAPTEll   XXXII. 

The  Council  of  State  and  the  Clergy — Resignation  of 
160  Pastors — Vinefs  Letters. 

1845-1846. 

It  was  not  long  before  the  Council  of  State  found  occasion 
to  put  the  docility  of  the  pastors  to  the  test.  They  re- 
ceived orders  to  read  the  draft  of  the  new  Constitution 
from  the  pulpit  on  the  morning  of  Sunday,  August  3, 
1845.  There  was  no  time  for  the  pastors  to  consult 
and  organize  a  scheme  of  action.  About  forty  refused  to 
obey  this  arbitrary  behest,  basing  their  refusal  on  the  fact 
that  "  the  law  restrained  the  publication  of  official  acts 
from  the  pulpit  to  those  bearing  on  religion  or  on 
religious  ceremonial."  They  received  for  reply  the  in- 
formation that,  in  the  National  Church  of  the  Canton 
of  Yaud,  the  "  ministers  of  the  gospel  held  office  from 
the  civil  authorities,"  and  that  in  consequence  they  were 
bound  to  obey.  Still  they  stood  firm,  some  even  refusing 
to  allow  the  proclamation  to  be  read  by  a  civilian,  and 
inviting  the  faithful  to  protest  against  it  by  leaving  the 
Church.  The  Council  of  State  invited  "  the  classes  "  to 
pronounce  judgment. 

Yinet  watched  the  struggle  with  ever-deepening  interest. 
His  first  care  was  to  make  the  public  understand  the 
strange  role  to  which  the  State  episcopate  had  reduced 
the  clergy. 


ALEXANDEi;   VINET.  271 

This  is  how  he  defined  it  in  a  piquant  article  which 
appeared  in  a  local  paper  : — 

"  Who  was  it  who  told  us  that  zeal  is  the  essence  of  the 
ministry,  aud  that  a  ministry  without  zeal  cannot  be  better 
conceived  than  a  fire  without  heat?  It  was  a  mistake 
The  establishment  of  the  ministry  is  only  a  preventive 
measure  against  religious  zeal.  .  .  .  The  ministers  who 
understand  their  true  mission  will  reduce  themselves  little 
by  little  or  directly  (for  why  should  one  linger?)  to  the 
commodious  office  of  public  crier  and  official  master  of  the 
ceremonies,  or  to  something  resembling  the  role  plaved  in 
our  funerals  by  the  personage  called  '  le  prieur' — because 
he  does  not  pray  !  Only,  in  his  case,  he  does  not  even 
make  pretence  of"  so  doing,  and  a  minister  ought  at  least 
to  have  the  appearance  of  praying  at  church.  Nowhere 
else,  of  course." 

The  classes  pronounced  a  verdict  of  acquittal ;  but  the 
Council  had  the  right  of  final  judgment,  and  the  incrimi- 
nated pastors  were  suspended.  As  soon  as  the  suspen- 
sion was  pronounced,  the  pastors  united  at  Lausanne  to 
deliberate.  After  two  days  of  discussion,  160,  i.e.  the 
majority  of  the  clergy,  tendered  their  resignation.1 

While  the  pastors  were  in  conclave,  the  Council  was 
sitting  at  the  Chateau.  After  examining  the  declaration 
of  the  ministers,  they  decided  that  "the  subordination  of 

'  They  alleged  the  following  reasons  : — 

"  1.  That  forty -two  pastors  had  beeD  punished  for  having  refused  to  read 

i  political  proclamation  from  the  pulpit. 

"2.  That  this  was  done  in  defiance  of  the  law,  and  in  defiance  of  the 
sentence  of  absolution  of  the  classes. 

"3.  That  contrary  to  the  Constitution,  which  says  that  the  law  regu- 
lates the  relations  that  exist  between  Church  and  State,  the  Church  is 
ruled  despotically,  and,  instead  of  being  united,  it  is  now  subject  to  the 
Slate. 

"  Furthermore,  civil  magistrates  usurp  the  right  of  occupying  the  pulpit 
by  their  agents,  in  order  to  read  political  proclamations  during  the  hours 
of  divine  service" 


2  72  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

the  Church  to  the  State  is  the  inevitable  condition  of 
their  union."  A  member  of  the  Council  rose  to  declare 
that  although  "  regarded  as  a  divine  institution  Christ 
was  the  Head  of  the  Church  ;  as  a  human  institution  it 
needed  a  human  spouse,  and  that  this  spouse  was  the 
State." 

Then  he  proceeded  to  denounce  "  the  exaggerated  pre- 
tensions of  the  pastors  who  wished  to  treat  with  the 
State  as  a  co-equal  Power.  It  was  the  position  of 
the  Pope  vis-a-vis  to  the  Emperor ;  it  was  Adrian  IV. 
forcing  Frederick  Barbarossa  to  hold  his  stirrup.  Was 
the  State  Council  to  '  hold  the  stirrup '  for  the  Vaudois 
clergy  ? " 

This  display  of  oratory  was  received  with  vehement 
applause. 

Vinet's  letters  enable  us  to  follow  him  during  this 
momentous  crisis. 

To  L.  Burnier,  Oth  November. 

"  Scholl,  Esperandieu,  and  Des  Combaz  gave  in  their 
resignation  this  morning;  the  former  preaching  on  Matt. 
xvi.  18,  the  two  others  on  Acts  xx.  24.  .  .  .  The 
churches  were  full.  Esperandieu's  sermon  affected  many 
to  tears.  But  not  more  than  Scholl's,  who  only  bestowed 
on  his  present  position  a  few  calm,  almost  cold,  words  at 
the  end  of  his  discourse.  ...  I  do  not  venture  to  make 
conjectures.  The  issue  may  be  great,  and  it  might  be 
little.  One  thing  is  more  and  more  evident  for  me.  It 
is  that  the  national  institution  is  everywhere  dispropor- 
tionate to  the  state  of  the  world  and  of  the  human  mind, 
and  that  the  Church  ought  to  rise  to  the  spirit  of  the 
apostolic  age.  The  religion  of  God,  cramped  in  the 
swaddling-clothes  of  the  Establishment,  imprisoned  in 
forms,  hindered  in  its  progress,  compressed  in  all  its 
enthusiasm,  cannot  enter  the  lists  with  the  worship  of 
Satan,  which  advances  free,  erect,  the  head  in  the  air, 
proselytizing  with  ardour,  opposing  apostles  to  our  clerks, 
obeying,   as   all   true   ministers   should,   a   vocation,    not 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  273 

exercising    a   trade.     Unless   spontaneity   is    opposed   t<i 
spontaneity,  I  do  not  know  what  will  become  of  religion." 

There  was  a  divergence  of  opinion,  of  interests,  and  of 
views  between  Vinet  and  the  greater  number  of  the 
pastors  who  resigned  their  office.  He  considered  the 
Church  in  the  general  and  more  elevated  sense  of  the 
word  as  the  spouse  of  Jesus  Christ — the  link  between 
heaven  and  earth.  The  pastors,  on  the  contrary,  fixed 
their  eyes  on  the  National  Church  of  Vaud  and  its 
parsonages.  When  Vinet  learned  that  the  clergy  were 
preparing  for  united  action,  he  did  not  hope  for  any 
great  result. 

"The  question  to  be  solved,"  said  he,  "  is  purely  indi- 
vidual. To  make  of  it  a  question  of  majority  is  to  distort 
it.  I  hope  but  little  from  assemblies,  and  least  of  all 
from  this  one.  Our  pastors  are  worth  much  more  in  tete- 
a-tUe  with  their  own  consciences  than  in  company  with 
those  of  others.  ...  It  is  true  that  an  idea  has  been 
brought  forward  which,  without  changing  the  state  of 
hearts,  might  completely  change  the  face  of  things.  It 
is,  that  if  all  the  pastors  were  to  retire  at  once,  the  State 
Mould  be  embarrassed,  and  finally  it  would  be  forced  to 
tender  its  arms  to  the  Church,  that  is,  to  the  der^v.  I  do 
not  know  whether  the  plan  would  succeed,  but  I  know 
that  it  has  been  conceived  by  some  wiseacres.  /  would 
•prefer  anything  in  the  world  to  such  tactics." 

To  L.  Bumier,  12th  November  1845. 

"  I  have  just  heard  that  after  two  days  of  deliberation 
160  ministers  have  tendered  their  resignation.  .  .  . 
I  should  have  preferred  20  to  200.  .  .  .  Forty  resig- 
nations well  given  would  have  benefited  the  gospel,  the 
religious  life  of  the  country,  and  the  principle  of  the  inde- 
pendence of  the  Church,  better  than  160." 

This  was  Vinet's  first  impression,  but  a  subsequent 
letter  showed  us  that  he  had  reason  to  modify  his 
opinion. 

s 


274  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

"  l<kth  November. 

"  There  seems  to  have  been  more  force  and  more 
simplicity  of  heart  than  I  had  at  tirst  supposed.  '  God 
was  there,'  Scholl  says." 

"  15th  November. 

"  I  come  back  again  to  my  doubts  and  fears.  I  honour 
the  assembly  and  all  its  members.  I  honour  their  inten- 
tions ;  but  I  believe  that  they  have  acted  on  impulse,  and 
that  many  at  this  moment  are  astonished  at  what  they 
have  done.  I  should  have  liked  the  resignations  to  have 
been  well  considered  as  well  as  numerous.  I  should  have 
liked  them  to  have  come  from  men  capable  of  conceiving 
the  idea  of  a  Free  Church,  and  ready  to  put  their  hand  to 
the  work.  But  the  great  majority  of  the  'non-jurors' 
only  wish  to  save  the  Establishment  by  forcing  the  hand 
of  the  Government.  It  is  a  political  movement  issuing 
from  the  clergy  !  0  religion  of  Jesus  Christ !  O  spiritual 
worship  !     0  peaceful  and  silent  asylum  of  souls  ! " 

In  order  to  present  the  complete  expression  of  Vinet's 
ideas,  we  must  add  the  following  lines  from  the  Semeur  : — 

"  At  the  risk  of  appearing  severe,  we  have  said  what  we 
think  of  the  intimate  union  which  exists  between  the 
unjust  sovereignty  of  the  Government  and  the  ecclesi- 
astical sphere,  and  to  which,  according  to  our  judgment,  the 
clergy  have  opposed  too  little  resistance.  .  .  .  But  the 
actual  conduct  of  the  pastors  is  a  precious  commentary  on 
their  preceding  conduct,  and  obliges  us  to  believe  that 
there  was  in  their  acceptance  of  an  ecclesiastical  code 
nothing  worse  than  an  intellectual  error.  .  .  .  From  the 
moral  and  social  point  of  view,  the  pastors  have  rendered 
to  their  country  an  inestimable  service. 

"  Victims  of  duty,  they  are  also  its  witnesses  and 
guarantees.  Their  sacrifice  has  strengthened  on  its  trem- 
bling basis  the  morality  of  the  citizen.  Liberty  and  law 
have  not  received  in  the  Canton  of  Vaud  a  more  striking 
homage  since  the  llevolution  of  February.  It  is  not  a 
political  movement,  although  the  action  of  the  pastors 
lias  a  political  bearing,  because  it  is  a  protest  against  the 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  275 

exercise  of  arbitrary  power.  It  is  another  proof  that 
Christian  principles  well  followed  are  the  principles  of 
order  in  the  State  as  well  as  in  the  Church." 

On  the  25th  November,  the  Council  of  State  informed 
the  pastors  that  in  forty-eight  hours  they  must  withdraw 
their  resignation  or  submit.  The  question  was  posed  with 
brutal  frankness.  It  was  declared  that  the  "  Union  of 
Church  and  State  in  the  Canton  of  Vaud  is  not  on  «. 
footing  of  equality,  but  that  it  implies  the  subordination  of 
the  Church  to  the  State." 

It  was  repeated  again  and  again  that  the  National 
Church  was  nothing  else  than  the  nation,  and  that  who- 
soever retired  from  the  National  Church  ceased  to  form 
part  of  the  State,  and  renounced  his  right  of  citizenship. 

Vinet  had  foreshadowed  these  consequences  in  his 
Essay  on  the  Manifestation  of  Religious  Convictions,  when, 
seeking  to  deduce  the  logical  result  of  the  maxim,  "  the 
State  has  a  religion,"  he  added, — 

"  Whosoever  has  not  the  State  form  of  religion  is  not  a 
citizen ;  and  if  he  will  be  one  {i.e.  a  citizen)  at  any  price, 
he  must  join  a  form  of  religion  which  is  not  according  to 
his  convictions." 

Thirty-three  ministers  made  use  of  the  forty-eight  hours 
conceded  to  them  for  reflection  to  make  their  peace  with 
the  State.     The  rest  held  firm. 

The  following  excellent  rtsumi  of  the  political  and 
ecclesiastical  situation  is  found  in  a  letter  from  Vinet's 
pen : — - 

To  M.  Rocprr,  1st  January  184G. 

"  The  little  country  for  whose  sake  I  quitted  Basle  has 
been  given  up  for  a  long  time  to  the  action  of  blind,  brutal 
forces,  hostile  to  civilisation. 

"  When  the  coup  de   main  of  December  1830  tore  the 


276  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

power  away  from  a  party  without  morality,  and  gave  to  the 
country  a  Constitution  based  on  absolute  equality  of  rights, 
the  Government  fell  into  honest  hands.  We  had  a  Council 
of  State  composed  of  men  sincerely  attached  to  the  cause 
of  civilisation,  taken  in  its  most  elevated  sense.  Many  of 
them  were  sincere  Christians.  They  imagined  themselves 
accepted  by  the  people,  and  gave  themselves  joyfully  to 
the  work  of  developing  education  and  morality.  But  the 
people,  dragged  in  a  direction  contrary  to  its  instincts, 
followed  its  lead  without  love  and  without  conviction.  A 
party  was  formed  which  sought  to  render  all  progress  odious. 
Radicalism  had  representatives  in  the  State  Council  and 
also  in  the  Great  Council.  Besides,  even  wise  men  became, 
unwittingly,  a  little  radical,  and  turned  federal  interests 
into  party  questions.  This  radical  faction  aroused  in  the 
people  a  terrible  enmity  against  the  religious  revival, 
qualified  by  the  name  of  Methodism ;  and  this  element  of 
opposition  served  more  than  once  to  unite  men  who  were 
altogether  opposed  to  one  another  in  political  matters. 
One  has  seen  a  man  rise  on  the  shoulders  of  an  adversary 
in  order  to  get  out  of  the  ditch,  and  this  is  what  one  sees 
here.  An  impious  proselytism  was  carried  on  in  town  and 
country.  There  was  perhaps  not  much  to  destroy.  Religion 
with  the  people  was  scarcely  other  than  a  cold,  dreary 
formalism,  the  churches  empty,  the  ministers  despised. 
The  Revolution  was  made  with  the  cry  of  "  Down  with  the 
Jesuits  ;  "  but  on  the  same  day  arose  the  cry,  "  Down  with 
the  Momiers,"  and  it  was  understood  that  it  was  against 
them — against  Methodism,  against  pedantry,  against  the 
aristocracy  of  morality  —  that  the  Revolution  had  been 
made. 

"  The  Vaudois  ministers,  having  accepted  in  1839  an 
ecclesiastical  law  which  consecrated  the  servitude  of  the 
Church,  and  having  refused  to  the  laity  any  share  in  the 
government,  have  borne  the  penalty  of  the  illiberality  of 
their  principles,  or  rather  of  their  absence  of  principle.  .  .  . 
The  subordination  of  the  Church  to  the  State  has  been 
erected  into  a  principle.  The  clergy  have  at  last  grasped 
the  position  which  they  ought  long  ago  to  have  understood. 
They  have  felt  themselves  wounded  as  a  body,  and  a  great 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  277 

number  have  resigned  their  functions,  some  few  succumb- 
ing to  a  calculation  which  they  ought  not  to  have  made, 
and  hoping  to  place  the  Government  in  a  difficulty  which 
would  force  its  hand. 

"The  question  now  is — Will  the  Establishment  survive, 
th  is  bloiv  ?     I  believe  that  it  will. 

"  Another  question  is — Will  a  Free  Church  be  formed 
by  the  side  of  the  Establishment  ?  I  believe  this  also  ;  but 
in  the  beginning  it  will  be  as  scanty  in  numbers  as  it  is 
rich  in  the  piety  and  zeal  of  its  leaders — nearly  all  the 
flower  of  the  clergy. 

"  Many  of  the  pastors  have  a  superstitious  fear  of  an 
ecclesiastical  Establishment  independent  of  the  State  :  they 
have  not  as  yet  realized  the  philosophy  of  their  action,  and 
are  Nationalists  in  the  marrow  of  their  bones.  They  have 
this  in  common  with  Radicals  who  are  also  Nationalists, 
not  from  love,  but  from  hatred  of  Christianity,  and  because 
uniformity  appears  to  them  to  be  an  admirable  refrigerant  of 
godly  zeal.  .  .  .  Nationalism,  or  the  theory  of  the  Church 
Nation,  is  materialism  in  spiritual  matters,  and  the  system 
gives  way  in  every  detail.  .  .  .  These  events  have  affected 
my  own  position.  In  1 840,  I  renounced  the  position  and 
the  rights  of  a  minister  of  the  National  Church.  Last 
year  (1844),  recognising  that  the  Faculty  of  Theology, 
although  secular  in  intention,  preserved  relations  and  some 
solidarity  with  the  Church,  I  sent  in  my  resignation  as 
Professor  of  Theology.  .  .  .  Later,  the  chair  of  French 
Literature  having  become  vacant,  it  was  offered  me  by  the 
Government.  It  would  be  difficult  for  me  to  tell  you  all 
that  my  resignation  has  cost  me.  I  left  an  ancient  parish, 
and  disciples  who  showed  me  great  confidence  and  filial 
affection.  Professor  Chappuis  has  also  tendered  his  resig- 
nation. The  Academy  is  as  much  hated  as  is  Methodism  : 
and  it  is  as  much  against  the  one  as  against  the  other  that 
the  Revolution  is  made.  Indeed,  before  the  ecclesiastical 
events  of  which  I  speak,  it  had  resolved  to  resist.  .  .  . 
Many  professors  will  certainly  be  dismissed, — among  others 
Charles  Secretan, — guilty  of  not  having  taught  Hegelianism. 
How  will  all  this  end  ?  I  cannot  tell.  The  revolutionary 
movement  continues  and  mounts.     The   people   consent. 


2  78  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

As  long  as  only  rights,  liberties,  and  principles  are  sacri- 
ficed, they  will  not  complain,  but  will  rather  applaud.  It 
will  be  quite  another  thing  when  they  have  to  pay  down  in 
ringing  coin  the  costs  of  the  escapade  of  14th  February. 
But  even  then  the  burden  will  fall  on  the  rich,  and,  by 
means  of  a  progressive  tax,  a  kind  of  agrarian  law  will  be 
realized.  The  moral  good  of  all  this  evil  is  nevertheless 
great.  The  circumstances  in  which  we  are  placed  ought  to 
form  political  character  and  develope  the  religious  spirit. 
It  is  a  great  punishment,  but  it  is  also  a  great  lesson.  We 
have  assisted  at  the  victory  of  instincts  over  ideas.  We 
shall  now  see  that  of  ideas  over  instincts.  ...  As  you 
speak  of  our  pastors  with  so  much  interest,  I  will  tell  you 
that  the  generosity  of  their  sacrifice  merits,  according  to 
my  idea,  the  gratitude  of  the  country  to  which  they  give  a 
great  example,  the  esteem  of  good  men  of  all  nations,  and 
the  sympathy  of  Christians.  They  have  rendered  service 
to  the  grand  cause  of  liberty  of  conscience,  although  they 
hardly  yet  understand  all  that  is  involved  in  this 
principle." 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  279 


CHAPTER  XXXIII. 

Marks  of  Sympathy  from  England — Formation  of  Free 
Church — Persecution — Vinet's  Moral  Authority. 

1846. 

The  cause  for  which  Vinet  and  his  brethren  were  fight- 
ing was  not  one  of  merely  local  interest.  From  all  parts 
of  Europe  flowed  letters  of  sympathy  and  encouragement. 
In  Scotland  meetings  were  convoked  in  order  to  consider 
what  measures  could  be  taken  to  cope  with  a  persecu- 
tion which  was  a  disgrace  to  the  nineteenth  century. 
Soldiers,  lawyers,  and  professors,  as  well  as  pastors,  joined 
in  petitioning  the  British  Government  to  address  a 
remonstrance  to  the  State  Council  of  the  Canton  of  Vaud. 
liy  desire  of  the  General  Assembly,  the  Moderator  of  the 
Free  Church  of  Scotland  sent  a  letter  expressive  of  sym- 
pathy, which  was  brought  to  Lausanne  by  private  hand. 
Similar  addresses  arrived  from  France  and  Germany  ;  but 
the  most  astounding  manifestation  of  sympathy  was  a 
letter  signed  by  403  of  the  clergy  of  the  Anglican 
Church,  expressing  the  interest  and  admiration  awakened 
in  England  by  the  fidelity  of  the  Vaudois  clergy. 

At  the  same  time  Lord  Aberdeen  addressed  the  follow- 
in"  letter  to  the  English  Minister  in  Switzerland : — 

"  I  do  not  hesitate  to  authorize  you  to  express  the  feel- 
ings of  profound  regret  with  which  Her  Majesty's  Govern- 
ment has  received  your  report,1  as  well  as  the  conviction 
1  On  subject  of  persecution  of  ministers. 


280  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

that  perseverance  in  such  a  course  must  sooner  or  later 
engage  the  canton,  and  even  the  Swiss  Confederation,  in 
new  troubles,  and  materially  hinder  the  progress  of  civilisa- 
tion." 

In  response  to  a  counter-petition  which  the  Council  of 
State  hastened  to  lay  before  the  British  Government, 
Lord  Aberdeen  declared  that — 

"  Her  Majesty's  Government  is  incapable  of  comprehending 
how  a  particular  form  of  legislation  can  be  considered  as 
justifying  an  abandonment  of  those  first  principles  of  civil 
and  religious  liberty,  whose  maintenance  distinguishes  the 
civilisation  of  Christian  States." 

Vinet's  correspondence  at  this  epoch  resembled  that  of 
some  of  those  great  bishops  of  former  days  towards  whom 
were  turned  the  eyes  of  Christendom.1  But  nearer  and 
more  pressing  needs  absorbed  the  best  part  of  his  time 
and  attention.  It  was  necessary  to  provide  for  the  main- 
tenance of  a  great  number  of  families ;  because  many 
of  the  pastors  in  sacrificing  their  position  had  also 
sacrificed  their  means  of  subsistence,  and  found  them- 
selves without  resources  at  the  beginning  of  a  rigorous 
winter. 

Vinet  drew  up  an  address,  signed  by  several  persons, 
which  declared  that  the  burden  of  privation  which  the 
pastors  had  taken  upon  themselves  must  be  shared  by  the 
whole  Church.  "  We  make  common  cause  with  you,  and 
we  must  also  share  a  common  purse." 

Vinet's  next  care  was  to  issue  a  pamphlet  on  the 
subject  of  the  new  position  in  which  the  pastors  found 
themselves  placed. 

"  They  have  only  resigned  their  official  functions :  they 
remain  pastors,  that  is  to  say,  they  do  not  abandon  the 
care  of  their  flocks,  or,  at  all  events,  they  do  not  renounce 

1  Rambert. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  281 

the  exercise  of  their  ministry.  This  resolution  is  the  germ 
of  the  Free  Church.  The  fact  has  preceded  the  principle  ; 
but  the  principle  will  not  be  slow  in  coming  to  light.  .  .  . 
The  first  affair,  the  sole  preoccupation  of  the  Church,  in 
this  solemn  moment  ought  to  be  to  exist, — to  exist,  say  I, 
and  nothing  more, — that  is  to  say,  to  be  born. 

"For  that  which  has  been  called  a  Church  was  not 
really  one  at  all.  The  hour  has  come  to  establish  a  true 
one.  Some  will  ask  if  I  mean  a  sect  of  dissenters. 
Certainly  not ;  at  least  not  in  the  sense  which  we  generally 
attach  to  this  word.  The  forms  of  dissent  which  are 
known  among  us  have  principles  which  this  Church  will 
not  have.  We  must  admit  that  it  will  be  '  dissenting ' 
with  regard  to  the  National  Church,  just  as  the  national 
Church  is  '  dissenting '  with  regard  to  Catholicism.1  But 
this  new  Church  will  be  a  so-called  Church  '  of  multitude.' 
Let  me  define  this  term.  A  Church  of  multitude  is  one  to 
which  one  can  adhere  without  having  submitted  previously 
to  an  examination  testing  the  spiritual  condition  of  the 
candidate. 

"  State  Churches  belong  to  this  category  ;  but  that  which 
distinguishes  the  Church  which  I  have  in  view  from  State 
Churches  are  spontaneity,  liberty  of  choice,  and,  above  all, 
the  abolition  of  the  fatal  formulary — '  Cujus  Regio,  hujus 
Religio.' " 

But  how  was  this  to  be  brought  about  ?  Listen  to 
Vi net's  answer  : — 

"  Day  after  day  to  achieve  what  God  permits  us,  neither 
less  nor  more;  to  remember  that  all  great  things  have  had 
small  beginnings,  and  that  many  little  things  have  had 
great  ones;  to  hold  obstinately  neither  to  form  nor  to 
number,  but  in  every  way  to  truth  ;  to  tell  oneself  every 
day  that  Jesus  is  in  the  midst  of  '  two  or  three '  as  well  as 
of  a  hundred  or  of  a  thousand;  to  aim  at  doing  good  rather 
than  at  making  a  noise;    to  follow,  without  urging  the 

1  Nor  must  we  forget  that  Rome  was  herself  the  first  dissenter.  Her 
arrogant  pretensions  were  the  cause  of  the  schism  which  rent  asunder  East 
and  West. 


282  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

Divine  Providence,  but  to  follow  step  by  step,  to  under- 
stand, and  to  obey.  For  the  rest,  to  live  peaceably,  sub- 
mitting to  every  ordinance  of  man  for  the  Lord's  sake ;  to 
see  in  the  refusal  to  obey,  not  the  rule,  but  the  exception;  to 
hold  aloof  from  all  politics ;  and  to  make  of  the  sanctuary 
an  asylum  of  solemn  devotion  and  of  peace." 

It  was  thus  that  the  Free  Church  of  the  Canton  of 
Vaud  was  called  into  beincr. 

The  fundamental  principles  of  this  Church  were  as 
follows : — 

"  1.  The  Tree  Church'  is  a  Church  of  multitude,  composed 
of  all  persons  domiciled  in  the  canton  who  belong  to  the 
lieformed  faith  by  the  fact  of  their  baptism  and  their 
admission  to  the  Holy  Communion.  The  confirmation  of 
baptismal  vows  dispenses  from  the  necessity  of  making  any 
other  decision. 

"2.  The  Church  is  founded  on  the  word  of  God,  according 
to  the  principles  of  the  Keformation. 

"  3.  The  Liturgy  of  the  Church  of  the  canton  is  adopted 
in  public  worship. 

"  4.  The  Church  has  an  existence  of  its  own,  and  is 
governed  by  the  bodies  named  by  her  members.  The 
expenses  of  public  worship  are  defrayed  by  the  voluntary 
gifts  of  the  faithful." 

Its  first  days  were  difficult.  The  members  of  the 
new  Church  met  together  in  the  drawing-room  of  some 
of  the  more  wealthy  members  of  the  flock.  The  poor 
hesitated  to  enter. 

To  Louis  Bumier,  1st  December  1845. 

"  We  shall  never  do  anything  without  the  poor,"  wrote 
Vinet.  "Nothing  is  great,  nothing  is  strong,  save  that 
which  begins  by  the  poor." 

As  long  as  they  were  deprived  of  public  buildings,  the 
Free  Church  presented  an  aristocratic  appearance  which 
injured  its  progress.  Other  difficulties  came  from  with- 
out.     The  "  oratoire  "  was  assailed  one  night  by  an  armed 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  283 

band.  At  Montreux  fire  -  engines  played  their  hose 
against  the  attendants  at  the  Free  meetings. 

In  a  circular  addressed  to  the  Municipalities,  the 
Council  of  State  alluded  to — 

"the  establishment  of  a  Church  calling  itself  free,  whose 
professed  doctrine  was  nothing  short  of  the  Methodism 
which  had  already  done  so  much  harm  in  the  country." 

In  reply,  the  ministers  put  forth  a  declaration  to  the 
effect  that  their  faith  was  the  same  as  that  of  their 
fathers,  and  that  they  adhered  firmly  to  the  sovereign 
spiritual  authority  of  Christ  and  of  His  word  in  the 
Church,  and  to  the  divine  institution  of  the  evangelical 
ministry.  By  the  Act  of  Separation  they  had  become 
more  closely  and  intimately  united  to  the  communion  of 
the  Reformed  Church.  They  had  expressed  their  need 
of  marking  their  sense  of  communion  with  the  universal 
Church,  and,  by  making  this  their  main  point,  they 
cleared  themselves  of  all  suspicion  of  sectarian  tendencies. 

By  way  of  reply,  the  Council  of  State  seized  the 
occasion  to  make  use  of  its  powers.  The  decree  of 
2nd  December  forbade  every  religious  meeting  outside  of 
the  National  Church.  At  the  same  time  the  theological 
students  were  put  to  the  test.  Some  sixteen  or  twenty 
received  from  the  President  of  the  Ecclesiastical  Commis- 
sion letters  by  which  this  magistrate  invited  them  to 
fulfil  pastoral  functions  in  the  parishes  to  which  they 
would  be  sent.  The  majority  of  the  young  men — 
disciples  of  Vinet  and  of  Chappuis — decided  to  cast  in 
their  lot  with  that  of  the  non-juring  clergy.  They  asked 
the  pastors  to  provide  for  the  continuation  of  the  theo- 
logical lectures,  and  to  name  a  commission  of  examina- 
tion  and  of  consecration.  Accordingly,  M.  Chappuis  was 
called  on  to  continue  his  course  of  dogmatic,  and  M. 
Vinet  of  pastoral  theology. 


284  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

In  spite  of  occasional  fears,  Vinet  was  full  of  joy 
and  gratitude  at  the  thought  of  this  new  Church,  which 
seemed  to  realize  an  ideal  he  had  never  dared  hope  to 
see  pass  into  the  region  of  fact. 

"  I  do  not  wish  anything,"  said  he,  "  or  rather  I  make  a 
rule  of  desiring  nothing  save  that  there  may  be  developed 
among  us  religious  spontaneity  and  the  sentiment  of 
religious  responsibility." 

As  is  generally  the  case,  persecution  only  served  to 
strengthen  the  bonds  it  tried  to  break.  Each  day  some 
new  progress  was  made. 

"February  1846. 

"  I  spoke  just  now  of  my  unhappy  country,"  he  wrote. 
"  It  is  certainly  unhappy  ;  but  do  not  doubt  but  that  a 
country  which  affords  scope  for  persecution  is  certainly 
not  abandoned  by  God.  Persecution  has  caused  the  good 
seed  to  sprout,  and  all  the  country  is  covered  with  fresh 
verdure.  If  you  know  the  Christianity  of  this  country, 
you  will  see  how  simple,  practical,  and  human  it  is,  re- 
moved from  all  spirit  of  sect  and  of  fanaticism.  It  is 
just  this  life  of  God  in  the  soul,  morality  itself,  which  is 
attacked.  It  is  not  dogma  that  is  persecuted.  Dogma 
has  not  even  been  called  into  question.  It  is  its  maxims 
and  examples  which  are  disliked.  I  hope  that  good  will 
come  out  of  all  this.  Neither  the  Government  nor  the 
people  will  succeed  in  overturning  the  Free  Church  which 
is  being  formed,  and  of  which  the  worship  till  now  is  only 
celebrated  in  private  houses.  They  will  succeed  in  expa- 
triating some  of  our  best  citizens  ;  many  have  already  left 
us,  and  emigration  is  on  the  increase.  But  a  kernel  of 
resolute  and  humble  Christians  will  remain,  who,  at  the 
cost  of  some  suffering,  will  render  to  Christianity  and  to 
civilisation  a  country  which  has  been  rudely  torn  from 
both.  These  little  meetings,  in  which  the  most  honoured 
citizens  take  part,  are  visibly  blessed.  Here  and  there 
they  are  dissolved — here  with  the  hose  of  the  fire-engine, 
there  with  stones,  elsewhere  legally  and  officially.      But 


ALEXANDER  VLNET.  285 

they  are  too  numerous  and  too  frequent  for  the  greater 
part  not  to  be  left  in  peace." 

The  indirect  but  real  services  which  Vinet  hoped  to 
gain  from  persecution  did  not  prevent  him  from  doing 
all  in  his  power  to  reconcile  his  fellow-citizens  with  re- 
ligious liberty.  He  addressed  a  "  petition  to  the  Vaudois 
people,"  in  which  he  declared  that  one  form  of  liberty 
alone  was  wanting,  namely,  religious  liberty, — 

"  the  noblest  of  all  liberties ;  the  only  one  that  is 
perfectly  disinterested,  for  it  is  the  liberty  to  do  that 
which  is  pleasing  in  God's  sight — the  liberty  to  obey. 

"  During  the  last  ten  months  it  has  been  no  longer 
possible  for  honest  citizens  to  serve  God  according  to  their 
consciences.  Everything  else  is  freely  permitted.  Taverns 
are  open  from  8  a.m.  to  10  p.m.,  and  the  wives  weep  and 
lament,  yet  no  one  dreams  of  closing  them,  while  meet- 
ings where,  instead  of  drinking,  prayers  are  offered  to  God, 
are  looked  on  as  infamous  resorts  which  must  be  closed. 
If  the  best  of  liberties,  religious  liberty,  was  popular  in  the 
country,  can  you  believe  such  things  would  be  possible  ? 

"  What,  I  ask,  is  the  utility  of  intolerance  ?  I  defy  you 
to  find  a  single  good  side  to  it.  I  defy  you  to  show  me 
that  when  people  have  been  ill-treated  on  account  of  their 
religious  opinions,  our  fields  have  become  more  fertile,  our 
purses  better  filled,  our  souls  more  contented,  our  rights 
more  assured,  our  Government  stronger.  We  shall  have 
satisfied  the  spirit  of  hate,  that  is  all.  If  persecution 
becomes  established  and  legalized,  what  will  happen  ? 
Ivead  history  ;  be  on  your  guard.  Show  your  good  sense 
and  your  good  heart.  You  are  free  ;  be  also  just.  You  are 
the  masters ;  obey  duty's  voice.  Become  the  servants  of 
right,  of  justice,  and  of  truth." 

Vinet  was  no  less  plain-spoken  in  a  pamphlet  addressed 
to  his  non-juring  brethren,  some  of  whom  clung  firmly  to 
the  idea  of  a  National  Church. 

"  The  State,"  says  Vinet,  "  is  organized  civil  society,  and 
not  a  spiritual  society  of  believers.     Civil  society  which 


286  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

excludes  no  one,  and  only  excommunicates  crime,  is 
primarily  composed  of  individuals  whom  we  are  accustomed 
to  designate  as  natural  men.  Could  such  a  State  frankly 
and  loyally  make  official  religion  depend  on  the  austere 
beauty  of  the  gospel,  which  demands  that  the  flesh'  be 
crucified  with  its  ajfections  and  lusts  ?  " 

Vinet's  moral  authority  in  the  canton  was  too  con- 
siderable to  escape  criticism  in  the  newspapers.  He  was 
regarded  as  an  important  factor  in  the  religious  revolu- 
tion. The  heart  swells  with  indignation  on  learning 
that  he  did  not  escape  personal  outrage.1  A  meeting 
(29th  March)  at  which  Vinet  was  present  was  summarily 
dismissed.  He  uplifted  his  voice  to  claim  some  con- 
sideration for  the  women  and  children.  The  police  in- 
spector, exasperated  by  the  interference,  cried  out,  "  Seize 
Vinet ;  arrest  him  ;  lay  hold  of  the  man  !  " 

Happily,  the  agents  had  the  tact  to  avoid  the  grave 
scandal  which  would  have  been  caused  by  such  a 
proceeding. 

On  the  8 tli  July  took  place  the  first  consecration  of 
pastors. 

"  I  must  not  forget  a  piece  of  news,"  wrote  Vinet  on 
the  morrow  of  this  memorable  day,  "  namely,  the  ordination 
of  three  young  ministers — first-fruits  of  the  Free  Church. 
The  ceremony  was  a  beautiful  and  touching  one.  The 
meeting  was  not  disturbed,  as  the  place  and  hour  had  been 
kept  secret.  Would  it  have  been  interrupted  otherwise  ? 
Perhaps  ;  but,  generally  speaking,  persecution  is  dying  out. 
After  all,  I  fear  some  successes  as  much  as  some  reverses, 
and  we  have  still  progress  to  make  in  the  love  of  the 
Invisible." 

1  The  order  had  been  couched  in  the  following  terms  :— The  Prefect  of 
Lausanne  summons  the  religious  assembly,  which  will  take  place  at  M. 
,  to  dissolve  immediately. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  287 


CHAPTER  XXX IV. 

Vinet  as  a  Preacher — Extracts  from  Sermons. 

Vinet,  who  had  rarely  occupied  the  national  pulpit, 
preached  constantly  in  the  new  Church.  His  superiority 
as  a  preacher  was  more  marked  than  in  all  the  other 
spheres  of  his  activity.1  That  which  constituted  the 
inimitable  charm  of  his  style  was  less  the  talent  it  dis- 
played than  the  fidelity  with  which  it  expressed  a  noble 
and  saintly  personality.  He  had,  too,  one  characteristic 
which  dominated  all  the  others  ;  we  mean  sincerity. 
One  scarcely  remarked  his  rich,  sonorous  voice,  the 
native  nobility  of  his  gestures,  the  keenness  of  his 
reasoning,  the  abundance  and  originality  of  his  thoughts, 
the  exquisite  taste  of  his  delivery, — one  was  absorbed  by 
something  newer  and  more  powerful.  The  secret  of  the 
charm  that  held  one  spell-bound  lay  in  his  absolute  truth- 
fulness. One  saw  in  Vinet  a  man  who  entered  the  pulpit 
because  he  had  something  to  say.  One  felt  that  what 
he  gave  was  himself — his  life.  Humility  gave  birth  to 
simplicity,  and  simplicity  to  the  most  exquisite  naturalness. 
He  sought  to  put  in  practice  the  duty  of  evangelization, 
which  he  recommended  to  his  colleagues  as  the  first  great 
duty  of  the  moment.  He  preached  at  Lausanne,  at 
Morges,  at  Montreux,  at  Coppet  in  Mme.  de  StaeTs  salon, 
and  frequently  in  Geneva, — a  town  which  held  personal 
attractions  in  the  shape  of  his  son  engaged  in  a  printing 
house,  and  of  his  friend  M.  Edmond  Scherer. 

1  Scherer. 


288  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

Some  of  the  sermons  of  this  period  have  since  been 
published  in  book  form.  The  characteristic  points  of 
Vinet's  later  teaching  reveal  the  new  spirit  which  ani- 
mated him.  Religion  is  no  longer  a  science,  a  system, 
or  an  institution ;  it  is  a  virtue,  a  principle  of  life 
deposited  in  the  human  soul. 

"  Religion  is  neither  a  law  nor  a  doctrine  ;  it  is  a  fact 
which  unites  the  heart  and  the  will  of  man  to  the  Author 
of  his  being.  .  .  .  Religion  is  not  so  much  an  idiom  which 
one  must  learn  to  talk  fluently,  as  a  life  which  must  be 
appropriated  by  action,  and  our  soul  ought  to  offer  to  holy 
truth  a  home  rather  than  an  echo.  ...  It  is  a  life  added 
to  life ;  it  is  the  life  of  our  soul ;  it  penetrates  the  latter 
as  intimately  as  blood  is  united  to  the  flesh  it  sustains 
and  nourishes." 

"  We  come  now  to  a  point  which  establishes  expressly 
the  dynamic  character  of  Christianity  in  opposition  to 
an  intellectual  conception."  1 

"  The  religion  of  the  gospel  is  a  force,  a  sap  diffused 
throughout  all  life.  ...  It  is  not  a  system  of  reasoning ; 
it  is  a  fact  which  takes  possession  of  the  heart  and  pre- 
vails over  the  acts." 

Vinet  no  longer  classifies  the  diverse  manifestations  of 
the  Christian  life.  "  He  has  grasped  the  fact  that  it  is  one 
in  its  principle  and  in  its  effects,  and  that  by  analysing 
it  one  runs  the  risk  of  reducing  it  to  a  mechanism.  A 
notion  of  salvation  which  was  so  religious  as  that  of 
Vinet's,  by  which  eternal  life  is  none  other  than  the  life 
of  God  in  the  soul,  this  notion  no  longer  permitted  the 
establishment  between  salvation  and  the  renewing  of  the 
inner  life  of  the  distinction  which  characterized  his  first 
conception." 

Not   only    can    there   be    no    pardon   save   that  which 

1  Astie. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  289 

regenerates,  but  pardon  and  regeneration  are  confounded 
in  the  unity  of  spiritual  action. 

This  spiritual  action  is  faith,  which  consists  of  em- 
bracing the  person  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  of  entering  into 
communion  with  that  life  which  emanates  from  Him. 
By  life '  we  mean  also  pardon,  salvation,  regeneration, 
sanctification ;  but  those  who  make  an  inventory  of  the 
fruits  of  faith  lose  sight  of  the  synthetic  character  of 
religious  phenomena.  This  is  what  Vinet  himself  has 
excellently  expressed  in  the  Studies,  entitled  "  The  Look 
of  Faith,"  and  "  Grace  and  Law"  1 

In  the  first  sermon,  which  lias  for  its  text  Num. 
xxi.  9,  Vinet  passes  over  the  historical  fact. 

"'The  Look  of  Faith' — the  vivifying  virtue  of  the  look 
of  faith — is  the  subject  of  these  reflections. 

"The  object  of  the  look,  namely,  Jesus  Christ  crucified, 
comprehends  all  the  gospel. 

"In  Jesus  we  contemplate  God  in  the  fulness  of  Hi- 
attributes,  for  it  has  pleased  Him  that  all  the  fulness  of 
His  divinity  should  dwell  substantially  in  Christ,  and  for 
the  first  time  He  has  revealed  to  the  world  the  immensity 
of  His  love.  This  is  the  object  which  the  gospel  offers  to 
our  gaze ;  but  there  is  in  this  gospel  a  central  point,  a 
supreme  moment  which  is  the  principle  of  a  new  moral  life. 
This  central  point,  this  supreme  moment,  is  the  sacrifice. 

"  "VVe  will  not  say  that  there  is  in  Jesus  Christ  nothing  of 
value  save  His  cross.  .  .  .  Jesus  Christ  did  not  come  on 
earth  only  to  die.  He  taught,  He  wrought  miracles,  He 
discharged  the  different  relations  of  human  life;  and  the 
gospel,  by  presenting  other  remembrances  than  those  of 
His  death,  has  presented  to  our  gaze  Jesus  Christ  as  a 
whole. 

"  We  know  that  it  pleased  His  Father  that  all  fulness 
should  dwell  in  Him,  and  that  He  has  been  made  wisdom, 
justice,  sanctification,  Jeca«5c  He  lias  been  >n<t<lr  redemption. 
You  cannot  seize  these  things  save  by  the  light  of  the 
cross.  .  .  .  He    who    neglects    this    fact     (Jesus    Christ 

1  Scherer. 
T 


290  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

crucified)  misses  the  end  to  which  He  aspires.  .  .  .  It  is 
not  to  the  publication  of  the  maxims  of  Jesus  Christ  that 
salvation  is  attached,  but  to  His  incarnation,  His  humilia- 
tion, His  sufferings,  and  His  death,  and  consequently  to  the 
look  of  faith,  which  puts  all  these  marvels  within  our  reach. 
.  .  .  Who  would  ever  have  believed  in  the  holiness  of  the 
law  without  this  bloody  expiation,  in  the  profound  evil  of 
humanity  without  the  application  of  so  violent  a  remedy, 
in  such  mercy  without  such  a  sacrifice  ?  Jesus,  victim, 
accredited  Jesus  the  physician, — the  priest  introduced  the 
prophet.1  .  .  .  All  Christ's  life  was  a  passion,  a  prolonged 
dying  of  which  the  cross  was  only  the  culmination.  Leave 
to  this  Divine  Head  all  that  He  cannot  communicate  to 
us.  His  divinity  is  His  alone,  but  His  humanity  is  ours. 
.  .  .  The  virtues  that  He  displays  on  the  cross  are  human 
virtues  in  their  perfection  ;  they  are  proposed  for  our  imi- 
tation ;  His  example  forms  our  heritage.  All  His  life 
bore  the  same  character  as  His  death.  He  was  faithful, 
obedient,  patient,  charitable  from  the  beginning  of  His 
history,  but  without  the  cross  we  should  not  have  known 
this.  .  .  .  That  which  alone  has  determined  so  many 
generations  to  make  of  the  cross  the  symbol  of  their  faitli 
and  of  their  civilisation,  is  that  they  have  seen  there  the 
last  word  of  God  concerning  Himself  and  humanity. 

"  What  are  the  happiest  moments  in  the  life  of  man  ? 
They  are  the  sublime,  moments,  by  which  I  mean,  those  in 
which  the  soul  unites  itself  by  admiration  or  by  sympathy 
to  that  which  is  good,  great,  and  generous.  .  .  .  The  soul 
is  only  completely  happy  when,  in  union  with  its  principle, 
it  forgets  itself,  and  becomes  with  regard  to  God  a  mirror, 
an  altar,  and  an  echo. 

"  The  noblest  speculations  ars  often  in  danger  of  occupy- 
ing us  too  much  with  ourselves.  .  .  .  But  the  look  turned 
towards  Jesus  has  a  contrary  effect.     As  long  as  we  gaze 

1  In  a  letter  to  M.  de  Brenles  this  passage  occurs  :  "  It  is  not  only  in 
dying  that  Jesus  Christ  has  revealed  to  us  the  love  of  God,  it  is  in  being 
born,  and  in  living  our  life.  Could  we  have  believed  that  He  to  whom 
philosophy  gives  the  icy  name  of  the  Infinite  and  the  Absolute  was  in  all 
the  force  of  the  word  our  Father  and  our  Friend,  if  Christ  had  not 
deigned  to  become  man  ?  " 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  291 

upon  Him,  He  excites  in  our  soul  a  holy  enthusiasm,  a 
holy  love,  and  He  renders  these  dispositions  habitual  to 
our  heart.  ...  In  the  Lord's  Supper  the  gospel  is  reduced 
by  an  image  to  its  fundamental  idea  —  it  is  the  gospel 
itself  in  miniature. 

"Man,  lost  in  the  first  Adam,  would  not  be  saved  by  the 
second,  if  the  second  were  not  a  '  living  Spirit,'  enabling 
him  to  rise  to  '  newness  of  life.'  It  is  this  resurrection 
which  is  the  true  salvation. 

"  '  Grace  and  Faith,'  Eph.  ii.  8. — The  act  destined  to  place 
us  in  communion  with  the  thoughts  and  will  of  Jesus 
Christ  ought  to  be  a  moral  act.  Faith  is  a  desire  as  well 
as  a  homage,  faith  is  a  promise,  it  is  almost  an  affection. 
It  is  all  this,  and  at  the  same  time  it  is  all  that  is  most 
simple,  a  look  of  the  heart  turned  towards  the  God  of 
mercy,  a  serious  and  vehement  consideration  of  Jesus 
Christ  crucilied,  the  abandonment  of  all  our  interests  into 
His  divine  hands,  the  peace  of  the  heart  resting  in  the 
certainty  of  His  love  and  power,  our  hand  placed  con- 
fidingly in  His,  as  in  that  of  a  protector  and  guide.  Such 
is  faith.  It  may  have  for  its  point  of  departure  an 
historic  certitude,  but  this  certitude  is  not  faith ;  it  can 
take  the  form  of  a  philosophical  theory,  but  this  theory  is 
not  faith.  It  may  halt  in  the  state  of  opinion,  but  this 
opinion  is  not  faith;  it  can  reduce  itself  to  a  popular 
prejudice,  but  this  prejudice  is  not  faith.  To  believe, — it 
is  to  confide  ourself  to  God,  to  rest  upon  Him.  Thus 
Abraham  believed,  and  it  is  this  faith  alone  which  wa  ; 
imputed  to  him  for  righteousness. 

" '  Jesus  Invisible.' — The  first  of  the  graces  of  the  new 
alliance  is  faith,  the  second  is  spiritual  affection.  Even 
the  enemies  of  Christianity  have  a  kind  of  love  for  Jesus 
Christ.  The  affection  of  Peter  was  not  spiritual;  that  of 
the  world  for  Jesus  is  still  less  so.  It  (the  affection  of 
Peter)  was  a  human  attachment  which  did  not  suffice  for 
Jesus,  and  which  He  could  not  accept  because  it  did  not 
contain  the  principles  of  the  new  life  that  He  came  to 
pour  out  upon  humanity.  ...  In  a  word,  this  affection 
could  not  lead  the  soul  to  God. 

"  '  Philosophy  and  Tradition,'  Col.  ii.  8. — The  enemies 


292  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OV 

of  Christianity  do  not  dare  to  separate  themselves  ab- 
solutely from  Christ, — it  is  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ  that 
they  make  war  against  Him.  The  cynical  incredulity  of" 
the  last  century  is  no  more  in  season.  Christianity  may 
be  only  a  phantom,  a  vain  name ;  but  one  has  to  count 
with  this  phantom.  It  is  not  only  to-day,  it  is  from  all 
time  that  the  adversaries  of  Jesus  Christ  have  sought  to 
diminish  rather  than  to  crush  Him.  Whenever  they  have 
succeeded  in  robbing  Him  of  a  single  ray  of  His  glory,  the 
result  has  been  a  thick  darkness  in  the  midst  of  which 
you  hear  the  lugubrious  voice  of  humanity  crying  :  '  They 
have  taken  away  my  Lord,  and  I  knoiv  not  where  they  have 
laid  Him.'  This  revelation  is  the  tradition  above  all 
others,  but  there  is  yet  another  tradition  of  God  in  the 
succession  of  holy  lives  which  adorn  human  history.  These 
lives  are  Christianity  itself  ;  because  Christianity,  although 
it  has  flowed  from  a  doctrine  and  is  written  in  a  book,  is 
essentially  a  life  welling  eternally  from  the  bosom  of  God. 
This  life,  perpetuated  in  the  lives  of  believers,  is  also  a 
revelation,  a  tradition,  a  divine  witness.  The  philosopher, 
marking  the  marvellous  harmony  uniting  extreme  differ- 
ences of  time  and  place,  cannot  fail  to  recognise  a 
fact  worthy  to  be  weighed  in  favour  of  the  Christian 
religion. 

"  1  doubt  if  it  enters  into  the  counsels  of  God  to  close 
entirely  the  mouth  of  incredulity,  and  to  make  religion  as 
capable  of  proof  as  an  arithmetical  problem.  Were  this 
the  cas«,  good  intentions,  earnestness,  and  meditation  would 
count  for  nothing:,  and  the  'search  for  truth,'  which  exer- 
cises  the  different  forces  of  the  soul,  would  cease  to  exist. 
If  all  those  who  profess  the  mystery  of  the  fulness  of 
( Ihristianity  believed  with  a  living  intense  faith,  it  would 
not  be  necessary  to  put  them  on  their  guard  against 
philosophy  and  the  tradition  of  men. 

"'The  Stones  of  the  Temple.' — The  universe  is  the  most 
holy  and  the  most  magnificent  of  temples.  But  this  also 
must  perish  in  accordance  with  the  eternal  principle  of 
divine  government,  i.e.  that  matter  has  only  been  created 
to  serve  as  the  instrument  of  the  Spirit,  ami  that  the 
Spirit  alone  issued  from  Cod,  and  is  capable  of  union  with 


ALEXANDER  YIN  EX.  29  o 

Him, — the  Spirit  alone  is  immortal.  Of  this  temple,  as  of 
all  others,  there  will  not  remain  one  stone  upon  another. 
'  What  is  it  that  ye  look  for?'1  Patient  investigators  of 
the  mystery  of  nature,  do  we  pretend  to  condemn  you  ? 
Certainly  not,  if  it  be  the  Spirit  that  you  seek  in  matter, 
if  across  the  visible  you  search  after  the  invisible.  But  if 
it  be  not  so,  it  is  to  you  that  Jesus  Christ  addresses  the 
question.  You  will  answer, '  It  is  not  merely  phenomena 
that  we  look  for,  it  is  a  law  ;  and  a  law  is  a  thought'  Will 
you  say  positively  that  it  is  the  thought  of  God ?  If  not, 
we  will  say  that  it  is  yours ;  that  it  is  your  sagacity,  your 
penetration,  your  spirit  of  discovery,  and  that,  consequently, 
it  is  on  yourselves  that  you  have  looked,  so  that  the  whole 
of  nature  has  become  nothing  but  a  mirror  for  the  pride  of 
your  intelligence.  Men  must  be  told  that  if  their  subservi- 
ency to  matter  be  a  degradation  the  subordination  of  morality 
to  intelligence  is  another  degradation,  and  that  the  most 
intellectual  man,  if  he  be  nothing  else,  is  only  an  intelligent 
brute, — that  the  triumphs  of  a  demoralized  intelligence  are 
not  essentially  different  to  the  triumphs  of  brute  force, 
and  that  the  excessive  admiration  of  genius  takes  its 
departure  from  the  same  principle  as  the  lust  of  the  eye. 
included  by  an  apostle  in  the  same  condemnation  as  '  the 
lust  of  the  flesh  and  the  pride  of  life.'  Modern  idolatry 
has  raised  two  altars, — one  to  matter,  the  other  to  in- 
tellect. In  the  delights  of  the  mind  as  in  those  of  the 
senses,  the  heart  withers,  and  man  becomes  cruel.  Tin 
are  so  many  things  that  can  be  judged  only  by  the  heart, 
that  when  the  heart  fails  reason  itself  becomes  unreason- 
able. In  order  to  know  to  what  degree  the  heart.  gii 
intelligence, and  to  what  degree  the  worship  of  the  intellect 
lowers  the  same,  one  has  only  to  place  face  to  face  with  a 
•  use  of  conscience  an  intellectual  and  a  pious  man, — '  Thy 
law,  O  my  God,  giveth  wisdom  to  the  simple.' 

"  Oh,  I  need  to  rest  my  eyes,  weary  of  so  much  dazzling 
emptiness;  my  heart  hungers  for  reality,  and  reality  is 
there  with  you,  poor  woman,2  despised  of  men  but  approved 
of  God  .  .  .  ;  but  above  all  with  Thee,  0  divine  Saviour! 

1  Literal  translation  from  French  Testament. 

*  The  poor  widow  lasting  her  mitts  into  the  treasury. 


294  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OP 

It  is  in  Jesus  Christ  that  the  Spirit  triumphs  over  the 
Mesh.  .  .  .  Can  you  look  at  anything  else  when  love  is 
there  ?  Love  is  the  glory  of  the  Spirit,  the  glory  of  God  ; 
and  He  in  whom  dwells  supreme  charity  represents  supreme 
magnificence.  .  .  .  Christianity  can  only  be  understood 
and  received  as  the  reign  of  the  Spirit  and  triumph  of  the 
invisible.  .  .  .  But  Christianity  has  taken  a  form  in  the 
world,  it  has  become  visible ;  it  has  become  great  (as  the 
world  counts  greatness).  To  regard  only  the  intellectual 
and  material  greatness  of  Christianity, — is  it  not  to  iraze 
on  stones  ?  Vast  thoughts,  secular  traditions,  striking 
recollections, — are  they  not,  after  all,  cold,  dead,  hard,  and 
material  ?  The  living  stones  are  the  sincere  and  loving 
souls  whose  life  is  hid  with  Christ  in  God." 

The  sermons  entitled,  "  The  Faithful  filling  up  the 
Sufferings  of  Christ,"  "  Spiritual  Affection,"  "  Perfection," 
"  Wrath  and  Prayer,"  deal  with  the  practical  aspects  of 
the  Christian  life. 

"  '  The  Faithful  filling  up  the  Sufferings  of  Christ.'— It  is 
not  only  by  the  sufferings  endured  on  Calvary  that  Jesus 
Christ  saves  us,  but  by  the  sufferings  of  His  life,  which 
was  all  a  Passion ;  because  He  was  delivered  for  our 
offences  from  the  moment  He  opened  His  eyes  to  the  pale 
light  of  our  sun,  and  bore  His  cross  in  bearing  our  sinful 
flesh.  But  Christ  has  not  come  by  His  sufferings  to  dis- 
pense us  from  suffering,  nor  by  His  death  to  dispense  us 
from  dying.  It  is  at  the  cost  of  suffering  that  the  Church 
remains  united  to  its  Chief, — that  the  Church  is  the  body 
of  Christ.  The  Church  is  nothing  else  than  the  Man  of 
Sorrows,  perpetuated  in  the  person  of  those  who  are  united 
to  Him. 

" '  Spiritual  Affection,'  Col.  i.  8. — The  Church  brings  a 
message  of  love 1  to  the  world  ;  but,  oh  strange  difference  ! 

1  Extract  from  a  letter  : — 

"July  1844. 

"  That  which  the  gospel  has  come  to  declare  to  the  world — the  sum 

and  substance  of  revelation — is  that   '  God  is  love.'     Love  cannot    //<//> 

loving." 

"  November  1845. 

"  I  rest  in  peace  on  this  assurance,  'God  is  love.'     Love  is  His  essence; 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  295 

.  .  .  When  in  one  of  the  cities  of  the  ancient  world — 
Rome,  Ephesus,  or  Colosse — men  embraced  the  doctrine 
of  the  cross,  it  was  as  the  apparition  of  a  new  humanity ; 
and  as  their  perfume  betrays  the  presence  of  flowers,  some 
odour  of  life  and  of  eternity,  some  spiritual  emanation, 
drew  all  eyes  towards  this  new  society  which  made  no 
noise,  and  which,  without  this  pure  and  subtle  perfume, 
would  long  have  been  unknown.  What  were  the  striking 
marks  which  caused  them  to  be  recognised  by  the  world  ? 
By  this  among  others,  that  they  loved  in  the  Spirit.  Turn- 
ing our  eyes  towards  the  modern  Church,  we  behold  them 
rich  in  liberty  and  in  resources  ;  but,  alas  !  we  can  no  longer 
say,  '  See  how  these  Christians  adore,  how  they  pardon, 
how  they  love  ! ' 

"These  are  the  marks  of  Christianity;  not  vain  attempts 
'  to  wind  ourselves  too  high  for  sinful  man  beneath  the 
sky.' 

"  '  Perfection,'  Col.  ii.  20-23.— Neither  to  the  right  hand 
nor  to  the  left,  children  of  the  promise,  but  on  high.  On 
high — that  is  to  say,  in  the  practice  of  all  the  duties  that 
God  has  given  you  to  fulfil ;  on  high — that  is  to  say,  in  a 
simple  love  for  Him  whom  you  have  loved,  and  in  the 
assiduous  search  of  His  glory  at  the  expense  of  your  own ; 
on  high — that  is  to  say,  here  below,  in  tender  and  zealous 
obedience,  in  a  humility  which  is  truly  humble,  in  this 
childlike  simplicity  which  agrees  so  admirably  with  the 
reason  of  the  mature  man,  and  in  the  intelligent  accepta- 
tion of  the  gifts  God  has  given  you  and  the  truths  He  has 
taught  you.  What  matters  it  that  we  believe  much  if  our 
love  remains  small?  And  in  whom  do  we  believe  if  we 
do  not  love  ?  In  Jesus  Christ.  But  in  what  Jesus  Christ  ? 
It  is  certainly  not  in  the  Jesus  Christ  of  Bethlehem,  of 
Bethany,   of    Gethsemane,   and   of   Calvary ;    it   is    in    a 

love  is  the  principle  of  all  that  He  does  ;  love  is  the  supreme  reason 
which  has  made  Him  emerge  from  His  solitude  to  communicate  with  Bis 
creatures.  Nothing  can  contradict,  annul,  enfeeble  this  word,  which  is 
the  life  of  the  universe  and  the  light  of  our  darkness.  Ood  love*  ;  '6'"-/ 
is  love.'  ...  I  believe  it,  because  He  has  filled  with  His  love  the  abyss 
which  separates  His  divinity  from  our  humanity.  The  Man-God  makes 
me  believe  in  God." 


296  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

fantastic  Christ  which  has  none  of  the  real  Christ  save  the 
name.  It  is  a  Christ  who  has  not  loved,  who  has  not 
prayed,  who  has  not  died.  In  our  haste  to  be  saved,  we 
have  only  embraced  a  shadow. 

"  And  how  is  the  salvation  of  the  world  to  be  effected  ? 

"  All  the  pride  of  modern  wisdom  can  be  resumed  in  a 
word,  the  salvation  of  humanity  comes  from  humanity. 
.  .  .  Each  nation  is  the  bearer  and  representative  of  an 
idea ;  and  each  idea,  in  order  to  establish  itself  in  the  world, 
needs  a  nation  to  embody  it.  You  say  that  if  Jesus  Christ 
and  the  soul  meet,  that  will  suffice.  But  how  is  this 
meeting  to  be  brought  about  ?  When  towards  mid-day, 
under  the  burning  sun,  fainting  and  at  death's  door,  you 
come  to  a  river's  brink,  and  a  drop  of  water  restores  your 
drooping  soul,  you  must  not  forget  that  it  was  the  river 
that  brought  you  the  drop  of  water, — it  was  the  river 
that  saved  you.  In  the  same  way,  in  a  spiritual  sense, 
it  is  the  Church  that  saves  you,  because  it  is  from  her  that 
you  receive  Jesus  Christ.  .  .  .  Far  from  us  be  the  Eomish 
error  teaching  that  it  is  the  Church  that  believes  in  God, 
and  individual  Christians  believe  in  the  Church.  "We 
acknowledge  with  joy  that  the  relations  of  the  faithful 
with  the  Living  Water,  which  is  Christ,  are  immediate ; 
but  the  Church,  which  is  the  Christian  community  in  the 
succession  of  ages,  is  the  torrent  or  the  river  which  brings 
to  you  the  name  and  the  knowledge  of  Jesus  Christ,  and, 
so  to  speak,  Jesus  Christ  Himself. 

"  Without  the  Church  one  would  have  neither  Chris- 
tianity nor  Christians.  You  may  say,  '  The  Christian 
utterance  of  a  friend,  a  single  passage  from  the  Bible' 
(perhaps  less  than  that)  '  have  converted  me.'  But  what 
is  it  that  had  formed  around  you  this  Christian  atmosphere 
that  you  have  not  been  able  to  help  imbibing, — what  is  it 
that  had  created  in  your  heart  these  spiritual  needs  of 
which,  before  the  gospel,  one  had  not  the  slightest  idea, — 
what  is  it  that  had  prepared  for  this  hour  of  silence  and  of 
communing  with  self,  this  mysterious  action,  this  occult 
influence  to  which  you  have  ceded  ?  It  was  the  Church  : 
and,  if  you  believe  me,  you  will  perhaps  understand  the 
importance  that  the  apostles  and  Jesus  Christ  Himself 


ALEXANDER  VINKT.  297 

attached  to  the  idea  of  the  Church, — this  living  and  con- 
tinual personification  of  the  mass  of  believers, — and  the 
remarkable  preoccupation  which  inclines  the  authors  of 
the  sacred  books  to  speak  of  the  Church  when  you  would 
only  have  spoken  of  the  soul.  As  a  fact,  your  Christianity, 
however  individual  it  may  be  (and  it  will  never  be  enough 
so  for  my  taste),  is  extracted — expressed,  so  to  speak — from 
the  Christianity  of  sixty  generations ;  the  Christian  as 
well  as  the  physical  man  bears  in  his  veins  the  blood  of 
thousands  of  persons.  .  .  .  The  centuries  and  the  nations 
have  worked  for  each  of  you.  Each  is  the  heir  of  antiquity 
and  the  work  of  a  whole  world." 


298  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OK 


CHAPTER  XXXV.1 

Studies  on  Blaise  Pascal — Essay  on  Socialism — Dialogue. 

1846. 

The  study  of  the  writings  of  Blaise  Pascal  occupied  much  of 
Vinet's  time  and  attention.  The  general  direction  of  his 
work  and  the  turn  of  his  mind  placed  him  in  sympathy 
with  this  profound  thinker.  The  author  of  the  Dis- 
courses and  the  author  of  the  Thoughts  resembled  each 
other  in  many  respects.  We  find  the  same  penetrating 
analysis  of  human  nature,  the  same  irony,  the  same 
passionate  need  of  faith,  the  same  powerful  imagination 
in  the  Catholic  apologist  of  the  seventeenth  and  the 
Protestant  apologist  of  the  nineteenth  century.  If 
sympathy  and  natural  affinity  can  be  of  any  aid  to  the 
intelligence,  it  is  certain  that  Vinet  was  peculiarly  fitted 
to  understand  Pascal.  It  was  the  opinion  of  Sainte-Beuve 
that  his  articles  afforded  "  the  most  exact  conclusions  to 
which  one  can  arrive  on  the  subject  of  this  great  genius." 
In  the  first  chapter  of  the  volume,  entitled  Studies  on 
Blaise  Pascal,  Vinet  affirms  2  that  it  is  unfair  to  represent 
Pascal  as  though  he  were  in  an  habitual  state  of  despair. 

"  The  aspect  of  human  existence  is  not  bright  for  a  pro- 
found nature.  A  certain  degree  of  sadness  is  inseparable 
from  a  great  power  of  reflection,  but  this  is  not  a  selfish 
sorrow  ;  it  is,  so  to  speak,  a  sorrow  of  the  intellect.  .  .  .  Does 
the  man  exist  who  lias  not  asked  himself —What  am  1  ? 

1  Rambert.  -  Fragment  of  a  lecture  given  in  Basle,  183-15. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  290 

Whither  am  I  going  ?  ...  It  is  perhaps  only  a  moment, 
— a  lightning  Hash, — but  there  is  room  for  unspeakable 
anguish  .  .  .  the  higher  one  rises  on  the  summits  of 
thought,  the  nearer  one  approaches  the  region  of  sorrow. 
...  It  is  only  a  Christian  who  can  contemplate  the 
miseries  of  human  life  with  the  bold  gaze  of  Pascal,  and 
yet  know  the  joy  of  the  soul.  .  .  . 

"The  Thoughts  were  intended  to  form  an  apology  for 
the  Christian  religion.1  It  may  be  regarded  as  the  itinerary 
of  the  soul  towards  faith,  or  as  the  history  of  the  conflicts 
by  which  it  has  passed,  and  of  the  slow  inward  process  by 
which  God  has  overcome  its  resistance  and  brought  it 
vanquished  to  the  foot  of  the  cross.  Pascal  considers 
that  we  must  begin  by  the  study  of  man,  and  rise  from  it 
to  the  study  of  religion.  Man's  indifference  to  religion 
proceeds  from  the  fact  that  he  does  not  know  himself — he  is 
only  great  when  he  recognises  his  misery — the  misery  of  a 
deposed  monarch.  That  which  specially  characterizes  man 
is  the  consciousness  that  he  is  not  in  his  right  place,  and 
his  aspiration  towards  light  and  happiness. 

"  Man  respects  the  superior  and  divine  part  of  his  being 
— the  soul.  Nothing  proves  this  better  than  his  im- 
moderate desire  for  the  esteem  of  his  fellows.  He  has  an 
insatiable  thirst  for  truth,  and  a  deeply-rooted  need  of 
happiness.  (Nearly  all  the  unhappiness  of  men,  according 
to  Pascal,  springs  from  the  fact  that  '  they  do  not  know 
how  to  remain  quietly  in  their  own  rooms.') 

"  Man  is  only  great  when  he  realizes  his  misery.  When  a 
beggar  feels  himself  miserable  in  comparison  with  a  rich 
man,  it  is  not  a  sign  of  greatness ;  but  often  a  man  who 
possesses  all  the  advantages  of  rank  and  fortune  discovers 
iiis  misery,  and  this  is  a  sign  of  grandeur,  because  it  proves 
that  his  aspirations  extend  to  the  invisible  world.  .  .  . 
The  misery  of  man  consists  in  his  dethronement,  and  his 
grandeur  in  the  consciousness  of  this  dethronement. 

"  Pascal  does  not  attribute  the  evidence  of  mathematical 
certainty  to  the  proofs  of  the  Christian  religion.  .  .  .  Put 
if  in  course  of  my  search  for  truth  I  find  a  religion  which 

1  Vinet  ascribes  to  Pascal  the  honour  of  having  founded  apologetics  on 
the  moral  sense  and  on  the  needs  of  man. 


300  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

offers  a  solution  to  all  the  problems  of  my  nature,  I  can 
only  know  that  it  is  true  by  the  witness  of  my  heart,  and 
by  the  victorious  but  incommunicable  demonstration  of 
experience." 

Later,  Vinet  was  obliged  to  study  Pascal  in  connection 
with  the  articles  of  MM.  Faugere  and  Cousin,  and  particu- 
larly with  regard  to  the  accusation  of  pyrrhonism  which 
the  latter  hurled  at  the  author  of  the  Thoughts.  Vinet 
broke  more  than  one  lance  with  the  brilliant  Academician, 
and  he  found  no  difficulty  in  showing  how  little  the 
philosophy  of  M.  Cousin  had  understood  the  religion  of 
Pascal. 

"  Faith  possesses  its  object,  touches,  tastes,  and  unites 
itself  to  it ;  but  neither  authority  nor  syllogisms  can  give 
us,  where  the  soul  is  the  ultimate  judge,  a  certainty  which 
is  proof  against  the  attacks  of  reason.  The  best  of  argu- 
ments can  only  convince  with  the  aid  of  the  soul,  and  a 
thousand  times  one  has  seen  doubt,  hideous  and  sarcastic, 
appear  at  the  end  of  a  deduction  whose  links  formed  a 
perfect  chain.  .  .  . 

"Men  fondly  deem  that  the  intellectual  conviction  of 
the  existence  of  a  personal  God  is  enough.  .  .  .  But  it  is 
of  no  avail  to  know  God  unless  one  also  possesses  Him, 
and  one  cannot  really  know  Him  without  possessing  Him. 
This  is  the  tendency  of  the  whole  argument  of  Pascal's 
Thoughts,  namely,  the  knowledge  of  God  by  the  heart. 
This  is  the  great  affair,  and  we  need  not  be  surprised  to 
find  that  Pascal  did  not  wish  for  more  light,  and  that  lie 
was  content  to  let  obscurities  exist  even  in  the  centre  of 
( 'hristianity.  If  there  were  no  obscurities,  the  heart  would 
abdicate  in  favour  of  the  mind,  which  had  taken  the  first 
place  ;  and  abandoning  the  search  for  truth,  it  would  leave 
man  strutting  in  the,  midst  of  those  empty  forms  and 
abstract  notions  which  he  calls  knowledge. 

'  Practise  Christianity,  and  you  will  learn  to  know  it,' 
this  is  Pascal's  great  idea.  Try  to  live  purely  and 
honestly ;  be  gentle  and  submissive  to  your  inferiors : 
practise  Christian  morality;  stifle  the  fire  of  your  passions, 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  301 


and  silence  the  tempest  of  your  worldly  thoughts,  and  be 
assured  that  in  this  calm  the  voice  of  God  will  make  itself 
heard.  Try  the  life  of  Christianity,  and  you  will  soon  be 
convinced  of  its  truth  ;  he  Christian  in  action,  and  you  will 
soon  be  a  Christian  by  conviction :  piety  leads  to  truth,  as 
truth  leads  to  piety.  In  other  words,  the  man  who  seeks 
to  'do  the  will  of  His  Father  in  heaven,'  will  learn  'the 

doctrine.' 

"Pascal  introduces  the  proselyte  who  hungers  and 
thirsts  for  righteousness  to  the  feet  of  Christ  Himself. 
Christ  speaks  alone  to  the  disciple,  and  the  disciple 
listens ;  neither  man  nor  doctrine  comes  between  Master 
and  disciple :  it  is  soul  speaking  to  soul ;  it  is  the  spirit 
bathing  in  the  source  of  truth.  God  and  man  understand 
each  other  without  an  intermediary  ;  Jesus  Christ  becomes 
His  own  apologist  and  advocate. 

"Pascal  distinguishes  between  the  desire  for  salvation 
and  the  fear  of  hell.  There  is  nothing  noble  in  the  latter, 
while  all  the  nobility  of  the  soul  can  be  displayed  in  the 
former,  which  is  the  thirst  for  the  living  God.  As  to 
miracles,  they  have  been  rarely  employed  to  convert:  they 
were  the  reward  of  belief  rather  than  its  basis." 

But  it  is  in  the  article  entitled  "  The  Theology  of  the 
Thoughts  "  that  we  find  all  the  richness  of  Vinet's  appre- 
ciation  of  Pascal. 

"  The    glory    of    the    gospel  is  not  only  to    be    found 

in    having  made    truth    divine,   but    in    having    made    it 

human,    \jesus    Christ   is    God    and   man,   and   it   is  the 

same  with  His  doctrine:  it  touches  by  its  two  extremities 

the    mystery  of  the  divine  essence  and  the   mystery  of 

human"  nature.     The  two  elements,  human  and  divine,  are 

not  the  two  terms  of  an  antinomy,  but  two  poles  of  truth. 

Revealed  truth  is  only  human  because  it  is  divine,  and 

only  divine  on  condition  of  being  human.      Man  carries 

within  him  the  twofold  need  of  giving  himself  wholly  to 

God   and    of    remaining    wholly   man.  ...  All    heresies 

which    are    born   in   the   bosom    of    Christianity    either 

diminish  man  or  God.     The  religion  of  the  heart,  which  is 

a  living  faith,  maintains  an  admirable  equilibrium  between 


302  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

these  two  extremes,  while  theology  has  great  difficulty  in 
preventing  itself  from  inclining  towards  one  or  the  other. 
Why  ?  Because  it  remains  always  below  the  summit  of 
the  angle,  while  living  faith,  which  is  throned  on  the  apex, 
dominates  the  two  sides,  or  two  slopes,  of  truth  without 
inclining  towards  one  more  than  the  other.  Piety  unites 
both  by  an  ineffable  procedure  of  which  it  is  no  more 
conscious  than  we  are  ourselves  conscious  of  the  union  of 
thought  and  matter  in  our  being, — union  or  conciliation 
that  life  manifests  incessantly.  It  is  the  work  of  the 
theologian  to  distinguish  between  the  two  .  .  .  and  theo- 
logy diminishes  by  turns  divinity  or  humanity.  .  .  .  This 
conflict  takes  many  different  names,  predestination  and 
liberty,  dogma  and  morality,  the  witness  of  the  Word  or 
that  of  the  Spirit :  but  its  identity  remains  the  same.  It 
is  in  philosophy  the  inexhaustible  question  of  the  sub- 
jective and  the  objective.  Philosophy  has  not  yet  under- 
stood that  the  incarnation  of  the  Word  is  the  supreme  and 
unique  solution  of  the  problem.  For,  by  this  fact,  it  is 
face  to  face  with  impersonal  reason.  The  Christian 
believes  in  personal  and  supreme  reason,  which  is  Jesus 
Christ. 

"There  are  two  manners  -of  conceiving  Christianity — (1) 
as  the  reign  of  visible  authority  ;  (2)  as  the  reign  of  the 
Holy  Spirit.  The  first  says :  '  The  Church  is  directed  by 
God :  believe  that  which  she  believes  ; '  the  second  says : 
'  You  are  all  taught  of  God.'  ...  In  the  judgment  of 
some  persons,  all  this  is  rationalism ;  for  others  it  is  pure 
mysticism  ;  in  our  eyes  it  is  simply  the  gospel.  .  .  .  The 
gospel  can  be  nothing  else  than  spiritual,  otherwise  the 
principle  is  denied  which  Jesus  Christ  established  at  great 
cost — the  principle  of  the  immediate  relations  of  man 
with  God,  the  glorious  liberty  of  the  sons  of  God ;  or,  if 
we  wish  to  speak  in  simpler  language,  of  religious  in- 
dividuality." 

Those  who  have  understood  the  scope  of  Vinet's 
teaching  will  recognise  its  full  development  in  the  page 
we  have  just  transcribed. 

In    the    year    1846,    Vinet   was    impelled    to    study 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  303 

closely  the  principle  and  the  effects  of  Socialism.  His 
mind  had  been  turned  in  this  direction  by  the  discussion 
to  which  his  pamphlet  addressed  to  the  non-juring 
pastors  had  given  rise.  Vinet  had  declared  in  this 
article  that  the  State  was  the  natural  man.  A  professor 
of  theology  at  Zurich  denied  this  assertion.  Vinet 
replied  by  a  letter  which  appeared  in  the  Reformation  of 
the,  Nineteenth  Century. 

"  I  will  not  consume  in  passing  skirmishes  the  little 
force  that  is  left  to  me.  I  reserve  it,  if  some  months  of 
life  are  granted  me,  in  order  to  present  as  a  whole  and 
under  a  new  light  the  ideas  of  which  the  theory  I  defend 
is  composed." 

The  work  thus  announced  was  none  other  than  the 
Essay  on  Socialism. 

Vinet  himself  presents  us  in  the  preface  with  an 
analysis. 

"What  is  it  that  I  have  undertaken?"  he  asks.  "It 
is  to  display  the  principle — the  fundamental  idea  of 
Socialism,  which  is  nothing  else  than  the  identification 
of  man  witli  society,  and  to  establish,  in  opposition  to 
this  principle,  that  of  the  fundamental  distinction,  or  of 
the  duality  of  man  and  of  society ;  to  show  how  humanity, 
first  enslaved  and  deposed  by  the  priesthood,  will  seek  to 
improve  its  condition  by  exchanging  one  form  of  servitude 
for  another,  by  taking  refuge  in  the  arms  of  political 
Socialism  ;  to  show  how  the  religions  of  antiquity,  far 
from  relaxing  the  bonds  of  Socialism,  could  only  draw 
them  closer,  and  why  philosophy  was  powerless  to  prevail, 
and  above  all  to  popularize  the  principle  of  individuality. 

"  It  was  necessary,  after  having  caused  the  reader  to  assist 
at  the  death  of  ancient  Socialism,  to  give  it  the  spectacle 
of  the  revival  of  individuality  by  the  double  action  of  the 
gospel  and  of  invasion,  and  then  to  indicate  some  retro- 
grade steps  in  this  new  career.  Finally,  it  was  necessary 
to  point  out  the  danger  which  menaces  humanity  by 
the  extinction  of  this  principle  of  individuality.      This 


304  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

last  part  of  the  subject  imposed  on  me  a  double  task  : 
first  of  all,  it  was  necessary  to  claim  the  rights  of 
individuality,  and  to  defend  them  against  some  objec- 
tions ;  and,  secondly,  to  show  how  Socialism,  by  taking- 
possession  of  modern  thought,  would  be  more  false, 
more  immoral,  more  irreligious,  and  more  fatal  than 
it  has  ever  been  during  the  ages  of  antiquity.  Such 
was  the  subject-matter,  and  such  is  the  plan  of  this 
article." 

Of  all  Vinet's  writings,  none  are  so  difficult  to  read 
as  this  essay.  It  needs  great  attention  and  application. 
Vinet  recognised  this,  for  we  read  in  the  preface, — 

"  I  am  not  one  of  those  writers  who  are  born  translated. 
I  need  to  be  interpreted,  and  this  will  be  done  if  that 
which  I  have  written  be  worth  the  trouble.  If  I  have 
only  known  how  to  speak  to  a  few  persons,  perhaps  some 
one  will  take  the  trouble  to  make  me  speak  to  all.  But  I 
confess  that  on  such  a  subject  (Socialism)  I  ought  not  to 
have  needed  an  interpreter." 

In  this  essay  Vinet  sets  himself  to  discover  what 
individuality  really  is. 

'"  The  individual  alone  has  a  conscience,  learns  to  know 
the  truth,  is  capable  of  a  second  birth  ;  so  that  the  restora- 
tion of  fallen  humanity  can  only  be  effected  by  him. 
Christianity,  which  is  the  author  of  this  restoration,  is 
altogther  individual,  but  it  has  fallen  in  the  midst  of  a 
society  organized  on  the  opposite  principle  :  the  Socialist 
principle,  which  is  a  result  of  the  Fall,  and  society  in 
appropriating  it  has  changed  its  character.  Hence 
Catholicism,  the  first  and  principal  enemy  of  the  indi- 
vidual and  Christian  principle.  Hence  modern  Socialism, 
whose  menaces  are  more  serious  still,  and  whose  victory 
would  cause  us  to  fall  lower  than  antiquity." 

We  have  only  time  to  glance  at  a  dialogue,  entitled 
Hernias  and  Oncsimus,  which  may  be  regarded  as  Vinet's 
testament,  his  last  word  on  a  question  that  touched  him 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  305 

very  nearly,  namely,  that  of  discussion  between  Chris- 
tians. It  concerns  certain  Gospel  stories  relative  to  the 
perversity  of  the  disciples  of  Jesus  who  prevented  those 
who  followed  not  with  them  from  casting  out  demons 
in  His  name.  Hennas  is  amazed  by  this  narrow- 
mindedness,  this  intolerance  and  slowness  of  com- 
prehension. He  is  confounded  by  it.  Onesimus  is 
not  so  scandalised :  he  is  confused  on  his  own  account. 
The  conclusion  of  the  dialogue  tends  to  show  that 
these  failings  are  natural  to  the  heart  of  man,  and  that 
Christians  of  all  ages  too  often  follow  in  the  steps  of 
these  first  disciples. 

Onesimus  asks  himself  if  he  has  never  felt  sentiments 
of  hatred  in  seeing  the  triumphs  of  injustice,  and  if  there 
has  never  been  a  mixture  of  venom  in  his  most  righteous 
indignation.  "  The  moment  has  come  when  we  must  not 
keep  silence  on  the  subject  of  the  duty  of  mercy  and 
that  of  intercession.  I  believe,  /  feel,  that  bitterness  is 
always  ready  to  overflow  in  a  human  heart — it  flows  at 
ease  in  the  bed  dug  by  indignation.  One  must  have 
spent  a  long  time  in  the  school  and  in  the  company  of 
Jesus  Christ,  one  must  have  learned  from  Him  to  put 
many  things  under  foot,  one  must  be  seated  near  Him, 
and  able  to  view  from  above  the  interests  and  agitations 
of  this  life,  if  we  would  hope  to  escape  the  risk  of  mis- 
taking hatred  for  a  just  indignation." 


u 


306  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


CHAPTER  XXXVI. 

Dismissal  of  the  Teaching  Body  of  the  Academy — Literary 
Projects — Lectures  ("  New  Evangelical  Studies  "  arid 
"  Literature  of  the  Seventeenth  Century  ")  —  Failing 
Health. 

End  of  1846-1847. 

While  Onesimus  was  pleading  that  bitterness  should 
be  replaced  by  love,  an  occasion  presented  itself  for 
Vinet  to  put  into  practice  the  difficult  duty  which  he 
had  sought  to  enforce  by  precept.  It  will  be  re- 
membered that  he  had  been  named  member  of  the 
Commission  charged  to  revise  the  laws  relating  to  Public 
Instruction. 

After  many  attempts  at  reconstruction  by  the  authori- 
ties, a  new  law  was  put  forth  by  the  Grand  Council. 
This  was  a  terrible  blow  to  the  Academy.  Liberty  was 
sacrificed  to  popular  prejudice,  and  the  Academy  became 
the  slave  of  an  unintelligent  system.  All  the  teaching- 
body  with  one  exception  were  dismissed.1  No  reason  for 
this  arbitrary  step  was  assigned  save  in  the  case  of 
Vinet,  who  had  particular  claims,  owing  to  the  fact  that 
he  held  his  nomination  as  Professor  of  French  Literature 
direct  from  the  hands  of  the  Government.  The  motive 
given  was  drawn  from  Article  256  of  the  Law — which 
was  framed  to  remove  from  the  Academy  any  professor 
1,-iwwn  to  frequent  other  religious  assemblies  than  those 
of  the  National  Church. 

1  3rd  December  1840. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  307. 

The  students  addressed  a  touching  letter  of  farewell  to 
their  fallen  professors. 

"Is  science  to  be  no  longer  independent?"  they  ask. 
"Has  the  State  the  monopoly  of  truth?  The  artist  can 
judge  the  merits  of  a  work  of  art;  the  farmer,  a  question 
of  agriculture;  and,  until  now,  scholars  have  judged  the 
eapacity  of  men  of  science.  But  to-day  it  is  in  vain  that 
a  man  has  talents  and  vast  stores  of  knowledge  ;  if  his 
opinions  do  not  please  the  majority,  he  is  doomed.  Learn- 
ing is  thus  cheapened  and  debased,  and  the  Academy  will 
soon  become  the  laughing-stock  of  Europe." 

The  letter  ends  with  the  noble  words, — 

"  Let  us  have  faith  in  the  future.  These  are  the  last 
words  of  your  pupils.  They  express  the  hope  that  never 
fades  in  a  young  man's  breast,  for  it  is  faith  in  the  power 
of  truth,  and  in  its  ultimate  triumph." 

A  few  days  later  the  students  invited  their  formei 
professors  to  a  banquet.  One  who  was  charged  to  give 
the  toast  let  fall  an  expression  which  was  certainly 
excusable  under  such  circumstances. 

"The  country,"  said  the  young  nam,  "  the  country  which 
lias  conducted  itself  towards  you  as  a  stepmother, — the 
country  will  return  to  you." 

Vinet,  charged  to  reply  in  the  name  of  his  colleagues, 
ndjured  the  students  to  allow  no  bitterness  to  mingle 
with  the  harmony  of  these  manifestations. 

"If  we  cannot  forbid  the  entrance  of  regret,  let  it  be 
unaccompanied  by  recrimination  and  reproach.  Let  us 
only  see  in  the  act  which  separates  us  an  event,  or,  better 
still,  a  dispensation.  In  mounting  so  high,  the  gaze  can 
only  encounter  subjects  of  adoration  and  motives  of  con- 
fidence. .  .  .  Ill-founded  prejudices  have  arisen  in  the 
country  against  you,  gentlemen,  and  against  ourselves. 
They  will  not  last.     Let  time  do  its  work,  but,  above  all, 


308  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

let  us  do  nothing  to  justify  this  prejudice.  May  the  love 
of  our  country,  devotion  to  the  immutable  principles  of 
civil  liberty,  unfailing  respect  of  law  and  of  plighted 
faith,  moderation,  as  well  as  weight  of  acts  and  words, 
characterise  those  who  have  taught  and  those  who  have 
studied  in  the  ancient  Academy  of  Lausanne.  It  is  at 
this  price  that  you  will  become,  not  men  of  a  mere  party 
whatsoever  be  the  name  it  bears,  but  men  of  the  future 
which  beckons  you,  and  of  the  Fatherland  which  counts 
on  your  help." 

Thus  terminated  the  struggle  engaged — first  quietly, 
then  openly— between  Vinet's  official  position  and  his 
convictions.  He  had  retired  from  the  ranks  of  the  clergy 
and  from  the  Faculty  of  Theology.  But  the  logic  of 
party  spirit  did  not  even  permit  him  to  remain  Professor 
of  Literature  in  the  Faculty  of  Letters.  It  worked  out 
its  narrow  consequences  to  the  bitter  end. 

"  8th  December  1846. 

"I  have  no  plans,  but  I  have  a  great  wish — it  is  to 
pass  one  or  two  years,  if  God  accords  them  to  me, 
occupied  in  producing  or  in  finishing  various  literary 
undertakings." 


•o 


It  was   thus  that  Vinet  expressed  himself  two  days 
after  his  dismissal. 

The  works  he  proposed  to  complete  were  the  Evan- 
gelical Studies,  a  work  on  Pascal,  The  Philosophy  of 
Christianity,  a  French  grammar,  and,  finally,  A  History 
of  French  Literature.  They  were  already  sufficiently 
advanced  to  have  been  soon  brought  to  a  close  if  leisure 
had  been  accorded  him.  But,  as  usual,  it  was  just  the 
leisure  that  was  lacking.  Students  came  to  beg  him  to 
continue  his  lectures,  and  Vinet  was  able  to  prophesy 
that  his  winter  would  be  more  laborious  than  if  he  had 
not  been  dismissed. 


ALEXANDER  VINES'.  309 

It  would  be  impossible  to  enumerate  all  the  offers 
which  reached  him  from  different  quarters.  He  was 
greatly  touched  by  one  that  he  received  from  Basic, 
which,  under  an  appearance  of  modesty,  veiled  the 
generous  desire  of  providing  for  him  the  leisure  he 
craved. 

To  M.  Faesch. 

"The  offer  is  all  that  is  most  generous  and  attractive, 
even  too  much  so !  I  have  not  yet  come  to  a  decision. 
In  any  case  I  shall  pass  the  winter  in  Lausanne,  where 
I  am  retained,  not  only  by  the  season,  but  by  the  lectures 
I  have  undertaken  to  give  on  theology  and  literature  to 
the  students,  and  on  the  '  connection  of  the  sciences '  to 
the  girls  of  the  '  Ecole  Superieure.'  " 

Some  fragments  of  these  lectures  are  preserved  in  the 
volume  entitled  Nav  Evangelical  Studies.  The  literature 
of  the  seventeenth  century  formed  the  subject  of  the 
second  course,  with  Pascal  as  its  crown.  Vinet  has  told 
us  the  object  and  aim  of  the  teaching  that  he  gave  to 
the  girls'  school,  fie  desired  to  form,  not  Mice-stockings, 
but  well-informed,  earnest-minded,  and  sensible  women. 

In  the  midst  of  these  varied  occupations  Vinet's  health 
caused  increased  anxiety.  He  grew  weaker,  and  he  was 
haunted  by  the  presentiment  that  the  end  was  near. 
At  the  head  of  his  Diary  of  1847  we  read, — 

"  To  practise  how  to  die  ! 

"  No  man  can  die  well  if  he  is  not  dead  beforehand.'' 

Soon  Vinet's  life  became  an  hourly  struggle  between 
illness  and  the  need  to  act.  From  day  to  day  he  was 
less  and  less  able  to  bear  food.  It  often  happened  that 
he  rose  to  give  his  lesson  and  retired  to  bed  immediately 
afterwards.  He  worked  in  his  bed.  It  was  there  that 
he    wrote    or    dictated    fur    the    Semeur    an    article    on 


310  LIFE  AND  WHITINGS  OF 

Jaqueline  Pascal,1  and  two  or  three  on  the  Chansons 
lointaines  of  Juste  Olivier.  On  Thursday,  28th  January,2 
he  addressed  the  theological  students  on  the  text,  "  I 
have  glorified  Thee  on  the  earth  :  I  have  finished  the 
work  which  Thou  hast  given  me  to  do,"  and  terminated 
by  these  words, — 

"  May  we  each  of  us  take  possession  of  these  words  so 
as  to  be  able,  at  the  term  of  our  existence,  to  say  with 
humility,  and  in  the  sentiment  of  our  entire  dependence 
on  His  Father,  who  is  also  our  Father,  'I  have  finished 
the  work  which  Thou  hast  given  me  to  do.' ' 

"  These  tvords  struck  us  as  a  "presentiment"  wrote  a 
student  at  the  end  of  his  note-book. 

At  the  same  date  we  read  in  Vinet's  Diary, — 

"  The  weather  is  dark  and  rainy ;  everything  is  sad 
around  and  within  me." 

On  the  following  day  he  was  less  well,  but  he  managed 
to  rise  and  cjive  his  lesson  at  the  school.  This  last 
lesson  was,  in  the  opinion  of  those  who  heard  it,  the  most 
beautiful  of  the  series.     It  concluded  with  the  words, — 

"  When  the  dove  escaped  from  the  ark  it  found  the 
land  submerged ;  it  sought  in  vain  on  this  immense  sea 
a  place  to  rest  its  wing,  and,  trembling  with  terror,  it 
returned  to  the  ark.  0  my  soul,  cast  on  this  impure  and 
dangerous  world,  thou  also,  thou  knowest  not  where  to 
place  thy  foot !  Everywhere  the  mud  will  soil  and  the 
thorns  will  tear  it.  Fly  away  as  the  dove  :  return,  0  my 
soul,  to  the  ark  of  thy  salvation  ! " 

On  the  following  day,  4th  February,3  Vinet  wrote  in 
his  Diary, — 

"  A  bad  day !  Seized  with  cold,  I  am  obliged  to  put 
myself  back  in  bed,  where  I  shall  probably  stay  for  a 
long  time." 

1  In  Studies  on  Blaise  Pascal.  -  1847.  3  1847. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  311 

It  is  worthy  of  note  that,  in  spite  of  the  sadness  of 
heart  which  frequently  overcame  him,  Vinet  never  gave 
way  to  sickly  longings  for  death. 

"  April  1846. 

"  Disgust  and  weariness  of  the  world  are  nothing,"  he 
writes.  °  "  Impatience  to  leave  it  is  not  always  good.  We 
must  wish  to  be  where  God  wills,  and  in  fact  heaven  is 
where  He  is.  We  do  not  understand  eternal  life,  if  we  du 
not  understand  that  it  begins  here  below,  and  that  it  dates 
from  the  moment  in  which  God  has  taught  us  to  love 

"The' desire  that  St.  Paul  expresses  (Phil.  i.  21-24)  is 
to  depart  in  order  to  be  with  Christ.  By  the  same 
principle  he  might  have  wished  to  live,  to  work  for 
Christ;  and  this  des;re,  when  pure,  is  perhaps  above  the 
other.  But  the  wish  to  live  or  to  die  which  has  not  this 
principle  is  the  effect  of  a  natural  instinct  which  must 
neither  be  listened  to  nor  obeyed.  If  the  natural  desire 
is  not  a  right,  neither  is  the  spiritual  desire  a  duty ;  but 
what  we  must  desire  is  not  so  much  to  '  depart  to  be  with 
Christ/  as  to  be  '  with  Christ '  whether  departing  or  not." 


312  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


CHAPTER  XXXVII. 

The  Foundation  of  the  Free  Church — "  Confession  of 
Faith  " —  Vinet's  Joy  in  the   Work. 

1846-1847. 

Although  bodily  activity  was  henceforth  to  be  denied 
him,  Vinet,  during  the  two  following  months,  was  able 
to  devote  himself  to  the  work  of  building  up  a  new  house 
of  God.  The  Free  Church  was  daily  growing  stronger. 
Thirty  or  forty  congregations,  led  by  non-juring  pastors, 
had  united  to  form  a  single  body.  A  Synod  assembled 
in  Lausanne  (10th  November  1846)  had  charged  a 
Commission  to  prepare  a  scheme  of  constitution  ;  and 
although  the  work  was  as  yet  incomplete,  the  Free 
Church  might  he  considered  to  be  founded.  The  coup 
d'e'tat  which  had  struck  the  Academy  furnished  the  means 
to  provide  for  one  of  its  most  pressing  needs,  namely,  a 
school  of  theology. 

"  There  is  a  point,"  wrote  Vinet,  "  which  has  already 
been  practically  decided,  namely,  the  entrance  of  the  laity 
into  the  Church  Council.  ...  I  desire  for  the  new  Church 
as  much  liberty  as  is  compatible  with  unity,  and  as  much 
unity  as  is  compatible  with  liberty.  The  foundation  of  a 
Free  Church  on  this  little  spot  of  Europe  is  nothing  less 
than  the  advent  of  the  Free  Church  of  Luther  and  of 
Calvin.    It  is  the  first  example  of  a  Church  '  of  multitude,' ' 

1  Church  of  multitude.  By  this  is  meant  a  Church  ready  to  receive 
fraternally  all  who  wish  to  profit  by  the  spiritual  help  it  affords,  without 


ALEXANDER  VINET. 


3  1  3 


which  frees  itself  from  the  direction  of  the  State.  We 
dare  affirm  that  the  establishment  of  the  Free  Church  is  a 
greater  fact  than  the  retirement  of  the  pastors  was  a  great 
action." 

The  Commission  set  to  work  as  soon  as  it  was  named. 
It  met  often  in  Vinet's  house,  and  the  official  meetings 
were  followed,  when  he  was  not  too  ill,  by  friendly  and 
animated     discussions.       According     to    Vinet,    a     Free 
Church  cannot  be  allowed  to  have  any  mental  reserva- 
tions on  the  subject  of  her  belief.     "A  Church,  as  well  as 
an  individual,  ought  to  find  joy  in  the  profession  of  her 
faith.      '  /  believe '  and   '  /  am '   are,   on    the    part  of*   a 
Church,   two   inseparable   affirmations ;   for  a  Church   is 
nothing  else  than  a  communion  of  believers.      Loyalty, 
Christian  fidelity,  and  the  interests  of  general  identifica- 
tion, appear  to  demand  such  a  confession  when  a  faith 
surrounded  by  enemies  is  concerned.      Whatever  may  be 
the  harmony  and  the  clearness  which  exist  on  this  point, 
it  is  always  useful  for  a  Church,  as  well  as  for  a  Chris- 
tian, to  be  able  to  give  a  reason  for  its  hope." 

Then  came  the  question,  Ought  the  Church  to  return 
to  the  Helvetic  Confession,  or  ought  it  to  express  its  belief 
under  a  form  more  suited  to  its  needs  ?  The  Commission 
decided  that  every  Church  worthy  of  the  name  ought  to 
make  an  explicit  and  formal  confession  of  faith.  It  did 
not  suffice  at  this  hour  to  refer  to  the  witness  of  the  men 
of  the  sixteenth  century,  and  to  say,  "  That  which  they 
have  believed,  we  will  continue  to  believe."  It  was 
imperative  to  put  into  the  mouth  of  the  Church  that 
which  it  believes,  it  knows,  and  it  thinks.     Vinet  begun 

submitting  those  who  knock  for  admis>ion  to  "an  examination  <>f  con- 
science, often  followed,"  says  Vinet,  "by  unjust  refusals,  and  indiscreet, 
bold,  and  vulgar  judgments. 

"  All  who  name  the  bless-d  name  of  the  Saviour  an-  r.v.iv.-d  with  love 
in  our  ranks.  He  who  sounds  the  hearts  can  alone  judge  between  them 
and  the  Church  if  their  profession  is  a  deceitful  one." 


o 


14  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


by  submitting  to  his  colleagues  some  articles  which  estab- 
lished the  foundation  on  which  he  meant  to  build.  He 
defines  a  Free  Church  as  one  in  which  the  members  "  bind 
themselves  together  by  mutual  affection  for  the  common 
advantage."  He  sums  up  the  faith  of  this  new  Free 
Church  in  the  following  words  : — - 

"  She  confesses  the  divinity  of  the  Old  and  New  Testa- 
ment Scriptures,  and  proclaims  as  the  one  sure  means  of 
salvation  for  repentant  sinners,  faith  in  Jesus  Christ,  Son 
of  God  and  Son  of  Man,  Mediator  between  God  and  men, 
and  Priest  of  the  New  Covenant  —  delivered  for  our 
offences,  raised  for  our  justification,  operating  our  sancti- 
fication  by  the  Holy  Spirit  of  God,  which  He  sends  us 
from  His  Father;  capable,  in  short,  worthy  and  resolved 
to  save  perfectly  all  those  who  come  to  God  by  Him." 

Another  article  proclaims  the  absolute  independence  of 
the  Church  of  all  other  authority  than  that  of  Jesus 
( 'hrist,  to  whose  service  she  consecrates  herself  entirely, 
"  as  a  faithful  spouse  to  her  husband."  Thirdly,  the 
Free  Church  recognises  for  its  members  and  treats 
as  such  all  those  who,  duly  informed  of  its  faith  and 
rules,  declare  formally  their  wish  to  belong  to  it.  These 
articles,  which  ignore  all  details  of  organization,  were 
favourably  received  by  the  committee,  and  Vinet  was 
charged  with  that  part  of  the  report  which  concerned 
the  most  delicate  point,  the  question  of  the  Confession 
of  Faith.  This  draft,  which  was  executed  with  the 
greatest  care,  was  printed  in  January  1847.  Here, 
again,  we  find  Vinet  taking  up  a  position  which  is 
not  in  contradiction,  but  in  contrast  with  that  which 
he  had  formerly  adopted.  We  have  seen  him  in 
1838—39  fighting  persistently  for  the  maintenance  of 
the  Helvetic  Confession  of  Faith  in  the  National  Church 
—not  that  he  considered  it  perfect,  but  because  it  was 
the    only   creed    possible,   and   that   he    had    to    choose 


ALEXANDER  VINKT.  315 

between  that  and  nothing.  In  1847,  face  to  face  with  a 
Free  Church  established  on  free  soil,  he  still  speaks  with 
respect  of  this  ancient  and  venerable  monument  of  the 
past,  but  he  pronounces  himself  strongly  in  favour  of  a 
new  creed.  He  insists  that  all  its  articles  shall  point 
clearly  to  the  essential  point — Christ  crucified.  He  will 
have  nothing  that  resembles  a  systematic  record  of 
doctrines.  He  will  have  a  symbol  which  can  be  under- 
stood by  all. 

"  If  it  be  necessary  that  the  Church  should  confess 
its  faith,  it  is  certainly  essential  that  the  form  of 
this  confession  should  be  accessible  to  the  humblest 
servant,  the  most  ignorant  workman,  if  only  they  are 
Christian,  and  that  each  article  should  rind  an  echo  in 
their  hearts.  Every  other  system  leads  us  unconsciously, 
and  doubtless  against  the  will  of  its  adherents,  to  tin1 
faith  of  authority  ami  to  the  principle  <f  tradition." 

It  was  Vinet's  ardent  wish  that  the  new  creed  should 
be  "  simple  enough  to  flow  as  a  stream  of  gold  from  the 
lips  of  the  child,  and  from  the  old  man  on  the  bed  of 
death."  l'>ut  every  member  of  the  Synod  had  not  this 
taste  for  doctrinal  simplicity.  Many  were  astonished  that 
the  authors  of  the  new  symbol  did  not  express  dogmatic- 
ally the  mystery  of  the  Trinity,  and  that  they  thought  it 
sufficient  to  speak  of  the  divine  origin  of  the  Sacred 
Writings,  without  insisting  on  their  inspiration  and  their 
authority.  They  corrected,  consulted,  wrote  over  again, 
and  finally  added  several  dogmas  which  had  been  passed 
over  in  silence. 

Vinet  was  not  able  to  assist  at  the  deliberations  of  the 
Synod,  which  did  not  begin  till  a  few  days  after  his  last 
walk.  But  he  followed  their  progress  day  by  day  with 
an  interest  which  his  suffering  condition  did  not  diminish. 
He  even  intervened  in  the  discussion  by  means  of  a 
newspaper  article,  written  under  the  form  of  a  letter  to 


316  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

a  member  of  the  Synod.  Illness  prevented  him  from 
finishing  it ;  but  the  first  pages  of  the  MS.  show  that  he 
was  equally  frank  in  his  praise  and  blame. 

"  I  own  that  neither  the  definite  work  nor  the  creed 
itself  reaches  the  ideal  I  had  conceived  of  what  a  Christian 
Church  ought  to  be.  The  members  of  the  Synod  have 
only  approached  with  great  reserve  ecclesiastical  truths 
whose  extreme  antiquity  constitutes  their  extreme  novelty. 
Thus  they  have  not  dared  recognise  the  primitive  char- 
acter of  the  institution  of  elders,1  nor  have  they  denied  to 
pastors  the  sacerdotal  character  which  the  gospel  ignores, 
whilst  setting  them  apart  for  the  assembly  of  the  saints 
and  the  edification  of  the  Body  of  Christ.  On  more  than 
one  point  the  Synod  has  preferred  the  weak  to  the  strong 
expression  —  even  when  truth  has  been  formulated  so 
clearly  as  to  leave  no  loophole  to  the  cavils  of  theologians. 
.  .  .  As  if  it  were  less  honourable  and  less  sure  to  say 
things  than  to  think  them." 


Je>"- 


Here  the  manuscript  ends. 

Vinet  strongly  objected  to  the  omission  of  the  word 
"  repentant "  in  the  Confession  of  Faith,  on  the  plea  that 
"  repentance  contains  the  entire  work  of  grace." 

"  Eepentance  is  a  grace.  We  cannot  of  ourselves 
and  without  God  repent,  any  more  than  we  can  believe, 
obey,  and  persevere.  This  being  recognised,  let  us 
say  that  repentance,  which  is  a  grace,  is  no  less  a 
condition  of  salvation,  and  that  salvation  is  only  offered 
in  the  gospel  to  the  repentant,  and  that  faith  only  saves 
in  so  far  as  it  produces  and  implies  repentance.  ...  To 
bring  into  relief  this  great  idea,  Jesus  Christ,  who  Him- 
self preached  repentance  with  the  pardon  of  sins,  was 
preceded  by  a  prophet,  whose  special  mission  it  was  to 
preach  repentance  and  prepare  the  way  of  the  Lord.  The 
human  mind  and  heart  resemble  vases  that  shrink  and 
refuse  to  contain  the  truth  in  its  entirety.     Some  of  the 

1  Vinet  was  of  opinion  that  pastors  should  be  consecrated  with  the  aid 
of  the  ciders.      "  It  is  the  Church  that  consecrates,  not  the  clergy." 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  317 

divine  fluid  escapes  by  the  edges,  without  counting,  alas  ! 
all  that  escapes  by  the  cracks.  .  .  .  Antinomianism,  which 
was  one  of  the  weaknesses  of  the  Revival,  has  cast  into 
the  second  place  and  driven  into  the  shade  the  dogma  of 
repentance  considered  as  a  condition  of  salvation.  And  it 
was  for  this  very  reason  necessary  in  a  creed  which  had 
nothing  speculative,  where  everything  expressed  the  inti- 
mate union  of  Jesus  Christ  with  the  soul  of  the  faithful — 
it  was  necessary  to  recall  this  solemn  truth,  and  to  recog- 
nise that  it  was  the  repentant  sinner  that  Jesus  Christ 
came  to  save." 

Vinet  had  complained  of  the  bias  of  the  Eevival  on 
more  than  one  occasion,  but  this  time  he  had  summed 
up  his  reprobation  in  one  word,  and  had  given  a  name 
to  the  tendency  he  had  so  long  combated.  The  blow 
could  not  fail  to  be  keenly  felt.  One  of  the  non- 
juring  pastors,  finding  himself  Wounded  in  his  favourite 
theology,  retorted  by  imputations  of  Arminianism  or  of 
"  semi-Pelagianism."  In  spite  of  his  suffering  condition, 
Vinet  would  not  charge  any  one  else  with  the  task  of 
sending  a  reply,  and  his  feeble  hand  corrected  the  lines 
which  he  dictated  on  this  occasion.  Without  insisting 
on  the  word  antinomianism,  without  trying  to  furnish 
the  proof  of  a  fact  which  escaped  demonstration  on 
account  of  its  negative  character,  he  did  not  believe  him- 
self justified  in  withdrawing  the  accusation  he  had 
formulated.  According  to  his  judgment,  the  Eevival  had 
laid  too  little  stress  on  the  elements  of  obligation,  on  the 
witness  of  the  Spirit,  and  on  the  progress  formally  con- 
secrated by  the  gospel.  It  had  given  too  small  a  share 
to  the  subjective,  side  of  the  work  of  salvation. 

"  In  this  part  of  the  world,"  said  Vinet,  "  we  are 
specially  attached  to  the  study  of  one  of  the  writers  of  the 
New  Testament.  .  .  .  Yet  all  merit  our  equal  attention,  our 
equal  confidence;  and  I  may  add,  that  even  in  the  case 
of  the  book  we  prefer  to  study,  all  the  others  ought  to  be 


318  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

noted  with  equal  care.  It  would  ill  become  the  disciples 
of  the  gospel  to  see  nothing  in  that  gospel  save  St.  Paul, 
and  to  take  only  from  St.  Paul  that  which  distinguishes 
him  from  his  companions,  and  not  that  which  they  all 
have  in  common.  As  a  fact,  all  St.  John  is  to  be  found  in 
St.  Paul ;  but  how  many  students  of  the  Bible  seem  never 
to  have  made  this  discovery  !  " 

According  to  M.  Scherer,  this  article  may  be  considered 
as  the  testament  of  Vinet. 

Although  the  Free  Church  had  failed  to  realize  the 
ideal  existing  in  Vi net's  mind,  its  foundation  upon  the 
firm  basis  of  religious  liberty  may  be  considered  as  the 
crowning  joy  and  crowning  triumph  of  his  life. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  319 


CHAPTER  XXXVIII. 

{See  Life  of  Alex.  Vinet :  E.  fiambert,  chap,  xxi.) 

Last  Days,  1847. 

Vinet's  activities  were  not  limited  to  the  great  and 
absorbing  work  of  the  establishment  of  the  Free  Church. 
During  these  days  of  suffering  and  weariness  he  did  not 
foro-et  the  Semeur.  The  last  article  which  he  wrote  for  this 
journal  was  a  criticism  of  the  sixth  volume  of  Michelet's 
History  of  France.  History  for  Vinet  was  not  a  simple 
succession  of  accidents.  He  saw  God  in  history, — God 
working  through  the  everyday  events  of  the  political 
world. 

"  The  wisdom  of  God,"  wrote  Vinet,  "  is  various.  It 
brings  back  humanity  by  turns  to  good  sense  by  way  of 
morality,  and  back  again  to  morality  and  duty  by  means 
of  mental  activity.  In  the  fifteenth  century  it  is  to  the 
latter  that  the  sovereign  regulator  seems  to  give  the 
preference.  By  awakening  new  ideas  through  the  discovery 
of  Greek  antiquity,  and  by  giving  birth  to  new  interests  by 
means  of  naval  expeditions,  he  drew  the  century  out  of 
the  condition  of  intellectual  torpor  into  which  it  had  fallen. 
This  new  impulse,  communicated  to  minds  by  means  of 
voyages,  of  commerce,  and  of  classical  literature,  will  serve 
later  for  the  reform  of  worship  and  the  reconstitution  of 
moral  doctrines.  People  have  begun  to  th  inl ,  and  morality 
belongs  to  Thought,  and  morality  will  not  delay  to  rendei 
to  thought  much  more'  than  she  has  ever  received." 

Another  work  afforded  Vinet  occasion  for  the  exercise 


320  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

of  the  higher  criticism — The  Girondins  of  Lamartine. 
The  volumes  arrived  from  Paris.  The  greatness  of  the 
subject  and  the  magic  of  the  style  formed  a  powerful 
temptation,  but  already  he  lacked  the  force  to  grapple 
with  the  work.  Day  by  day  his  malady  was  making 
new  ravages  and  new  progress.  If  proofs  of  affection 
could  have  sufficed  to  cure  him,  Vinet  would  have  been 
cured  a  hundred  times.  Letters,  offers  of  assistance, 
receipts,  cordials,  arrived  from  all  quarters,  and  often 
from  entire  strangers.  The  sympathy  of  so  many  kind 
hearts  was  very  precious  to  the  sufferer. 

"  Only  a  word,"  he  wrote  to  a  friend,  "  because  I  cannot 
write  more  ;  or  rather  a  hundred,  which  accumulate  in  my 
heart.  One  word  —  thank  you.  ...  I  am  not  able  to 
prove  to  you  how  deeply  I  am  touched,  consoled,  and 
helped  by  your  kindness.  I  render  thanks  to  One  whose 
presence  I  love  to  recognise  in  the  benefactions  of  which 
I  am  the  object.  The  Eternal  is  with  me  among  those 
who  come  to  mv  aid." 

To  another  he  writes, — 

"  I  should  have  thought  myself  wanting  in  respect  and 
in  gratitude  in  not  taking  your  offer  seriously,  and  I  should 
not  have  failed  to  ask  for  the  cordial  at  the  proper  moment. 
.  .  .  And  now7,  as  if  you  would  fain  hide  from  me  a  return 
of  winter,  which  I  feel  only  too  well,  you  bring  me  the 
most  beautiful  symbols  of  spring.  It  would  be  difficult  to 
tell  you  all  that  the  sight  of  these  fresh,  smiling  splendours 
has  made  me  feel.  The  sense  of  unmerited  kindness, 
the  magnificence  of  the  flowers,  of  whose  royal  purple 
Solomon  might  more  justly  have  been  jealous  than  of  the 
lily  of  Palestine ;  dare  I  say  also  the  contrast  found 
in  their  brilliancy  of  hue,  energy  of  growth,  and  suavity 
of  perfume,  with  my  decrepitude, — all  this  has  produced 
emotions  which  have  ended  in  tears,  and  I  doubt  whether 
your  sherry  (which  I  believe  to  be  delicious)  has  anything 
so  intoxicating  as  the  sight  of  these  flowers  I  press  against 
my  face.     I  am  deeply  touched  by  your  kindness,  and  I 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  32  L 

reply  to  it,  not  being  able  to  do  more,  by  my  most  earnest 
and  affectionate  wishes  for  yourself  and  for  all  that  is  dear 
to  you.  May  this  Sunday  be  as  happy  for  you  as  you 
have  known  how  to  make  it  sweet  for  me." 

Vinet's  office  as  a  director  of  consciences  did  not 
cease  upon  the  bed  of  death,  lie  wrote  the  notes  for 
such  letters  in  pencil,  in  a  little  note-book  that  he 
could  hold  in  his  hand.  His  wife  copied  them,  and,  if 
necessary,  completed  the  half-written  phrases.  One  is 
addressed  to  a  young  man  who  wished  to  accept  the 
morality  of  the  gospel  and  to  reject  the  rest.  Vinet 
replies : — 

"  Can  you  explain  to  me  why  from  all  time  two  classes 
of  individuals  have  never  been  able  to  adopt  your  point  of 
view.  I  mean  the  greatest  minds  and  the  common  people. 
Your  opinion  has  been  that  of  minds  of  a  common  order, 
who  are  capable  neither  of  the  simplicity  of  the  people 
nor  of  the  elevation  of  genius.  You  speak  of  the  morality 
of  the  gospel  as  if  you  knew  all  about  it,  .  .  .  But  you 
have  not  understood  it,  because  it  has  not  produced  in  you 
the  need  of  something  more.  Law  (or  morality)  is  a  school- 
master to  bring  us  to  Christ." 

To  M.  Gabriel  Delessert,  Vinet  expresses  his  sympathy 
on  the  occasion  of  his  father's  death  : — 

"  A  Benjamin  Delessert,  as  a  Wilberforce,  belongs  to  all 
countries.  It  is  humanity,  not  only  .France,  which  has 
lost  a  great  man." 

The  last  letter  was  one  of  encouragement  to  M. 
Gaullieur,  author  of  The  Death  of  Albert: — 

"The  author  has  understood  that  it  is  not  the  isolated 
or  accidental  truth,  but  the  general,  tin;  human  truth, 
which  is  the  law  of  every  work  of  art.  .  .  .  History  has 
its  literary  aspect,  and  this  the  author  has  well  seized. 
The  moral  tone  is  excellent." 

A  lew  days  later  the  doctors  suggested  that  he  should 

x 


322  LIFE  AND  WAITINGS  OF 

try  the  effect  of  a  change  of  air.  On  the  21st  of  April 
he  was  transported  to  Clarens,  where  his  friends  and 
colleagues,  Messrs.  Chappuis  and  Secretan,  received  him 
in  their  arms  and  carried  him  to  his  bed.  He  was  lodged 
in  a  house  where  Lord  Byron  had  formerly  received 
hospitalit}r.1 

The  weather  was  cold  and  uncertain,  and  the  progress 
of  the  malady  was  such  that  its  fatal  issue  conld  no 
longer  appear  doubtful.  Vinet  himself  realized  that  the 
end  was  near.  A  certain  effort  was  necessary  in  order  to 
renounce  joyously  the  projects  he  had  formed, — the  dream 
of  a  sojourn  of  a  far  different  character  at  Clarens,  and 
all  the  labours  that  he  hoped  to  achieve.  But  when 
there  was  no  longer  any  doubt,  and  he  understood  that 
such  was  indeed  the  will  of  God,  he  submitted  without  a 
murmur. 

At  Clarens,  as  at  Lausanne,  he  was  surrounded  by 
marks  of  interest  and  affection.  His  friends  came  to 
visit  him  from  afar.  Each  day  brought  some  one  from 
Lausanne  or  Geneva,  and  he  received  them  all  with 
joy.  He  retained  his  presence  of  mind  and  perfect 
lucidity  of  thought.  He  enjoyed  listening  to  reading, 
and  took  a  vivid  interest  in  passing  events.  Occasionally 
he  dictated  his  thoughts.  One  of  the  last  and  keenest 
of  his  literary  pleasures  was  listening  to  the  reading  of 
Pascal's  Short  Life  of  Jctus,  discovered  by  M.  Faugere. 
He  wished  the  book  to  be  noticed  in  the  Scmcur,  and 
only  a  few  days  before  his  death  he  dictated  on  the 
subject  a  few  pages,  which  terminate  with  these  words 
(referring  to  Pascal's  testament) : — 

"  Many  readers  on  hearing  Pascal  implore  '  the  inter- 
cessions of  the  glorious  Virgin  Mary,  and  of  all  the  saints 
of  Paradise,'  will  be  scandalized  and  complain  of  inconsist- 

1  The  third  ('unto  of  Childe  Harold  had  been  written  in  the  room  now 
occupied  by  Vinet.     F.  Frossard. 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  323 

ency.  But,  between  ourselves,  is  there  any  one  who,  in 
matters  of  religion,  is  perfectly  consistent  ?  Probably  not. 
As  for  Pascal,  we  entertain  the  firm  conviction  that  while 
expressing  a  sincere  persuasion  on  the  subject  of  the 
Virgin  and  the  saints,  his  faith  and  hope  were  firmly  based 
on  the  one  true  foundation.  We  do  not  deny  the  existence 
of  contradiction  in  the  notions  and  the  terms.  We  content 
ourselves  with  the  certainty  that  there  was  no  contradiction 
in  the  heart." 

On  the  30th  April  arrived  a  stranger, — an  Irvingite 
minister  sent  by  a  friend  to  ask  of  God  the  restoration  of 
the  sufferer.  Vinet  consented  to  receive  him,  but  witli 
the  understanding  that  he  submitted  himself  unreservedly 
to  the  divine  will. 

Turning  to  the  Diary,  we  find  the  following  entry  in 
the  handwriting  of  Mine.  Vinet  :— 

"The  most  solemn  day  of  our  life — death  apparently 
near.  .  .  .  M.  Mejanel  (Irvingite)  came  expressly  to  pray, 
and  impose  hands  on  the  sufferer.  He  held  a  short  service, 
first  with  the  assembled  household  .  .  . ;  then  with  Alex- 
ander, with  much  unction,  tact,  and  moderation  .  .  . ;  then 
again  with  Auguste,  Charles  Secretan,  and  Sophie.  He 
went  away  in  tears." 

On  Sunday,  May  1,  M.  Chappuis  came  from  Lausanne 
in  order  to  pray  with  his  friend.  In  the  evening,  Vinet, 
left  alone  with  his  wife  and  sister,  asked  them  to  read 
him  Ps.  xxxii.  and  li.  Afterwards  he  remarked,  "  It  is 
all  that  I  can  say  to  you." 

The  following  night  was  extremely  painful.  "  A 
terrible  night,"  says  the  Diary.  Towards  morning  the 
suffering  abated ;  the  last  resistance  of  the  body  was 
vanquished.  The  doctors  permitted  him  to  be  given  any- 
thing he  fancied.  In  the  course  of  the  day,  wishing  to 
gauge  his  condition,  he  asked  for  a  book  and  his  glasses. 
Seeing  that  he  could  not  read,  he  said  to  his  wife, — 

"  I  am  worse  .  .   .,  or  rather,  better." 


It 


24  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


"  As  lona  as  there  continues  a  breath  of  life  I  shall 
continue  to  hope,"  she  replied.  "But  I  have  confided 
you  to  the  Saviour.  May  He  do  with  you  as  He  thinks 
best." 

"  That  is  a  good  word,"  answered.  Vinet. 

Many  of  his  friends  being  gathered  together  in  the 
house,  Vinet  called  three  of  them, — M.  Marquis,  M. 
Chappuis,  and  Charles  Secretan, — and  dictated  to  the  last- 
named  his  last  wishes.  He  left  to  his  wife  the  use  of  all 
that  they  possessed,  on  condition  that  it  should  be  dis- 
posed of  in  accordance  with  the  laws  of  justice  and 
equity.  He  begged  his  friends  to  serve  as  fathers  to  his 
invalid  son,  mentioning  specially  M.  Marquis  and  M. 
Alexis  Forel.     He  added : — 

"  I  place  my  confidence  in  Him  who  does  not  reject 
bruised  hearts.  My  tenderest  wishes  are  for  those  who 
have  sought  to  help  me,  and  they  extend  to  all  their 
interests  and  embrace  eternity." 

He  terminated   by  expressing  his  deep  affection  for  his 

family. 

When  the  written  words  were  read  over  to  him,  he 
took  a  pen  and  traced  with  his  own  hand  at  the  foot  of 
the  page,  "These  are  my  wishes  and  thoughts." 

Madame  Vinet  desired  to  send  some  message  to  two 
friends  with  whom  he  had  ceased  to  correspond  on  account 
of  some  diversity  of  opinion. 

"  What  do  you  wish  me  to  say  ?  "  she  asked. 

"  That  I  love  them,"  was  Vinet's  reply. 

One  of  them,  on  reading  these  words,  exclaimed, — 

"  I  should  have  liked  it  better  if  he  had  said,  '  1 
pardon  him." 

His  son  Auguste  arrived  in  the  afternoon.  The  re- 
membrance of  all  the  trouble  that  he  had  given  his  father 
by    his    waywardness  —  which    aggravated    his    natural 


ALEXANDER  VINET. 


325 


infirmities— was  extremely  painful  to   him.      He  flung 

himself  on  his  knees  by  the  bedside  and  implored  forgive- 
ness.    His  father  blessed  him,  adding,  "  I  have  pardoned 
everything,— if  there  has  been  anything  to  pardon." 
Later,  Vinet  asked  for  his  sister  and  for  an  old  family 

servant. 

When  all  were  gathered  around  his  bed  he  tried  to 

speak. 

"  Listen  to  me,"  he  said  in  a  broken  voice.  .  .  .  "  I  ask 
pardon  of  God  and  of  men  for  the  scandal  I  have  caused 
by  my  impatience  and  my  intolerance.  Tell  my  son  to 
remain  united  to  the  Saviour  he  has  found,  and  that, 
although  he  loses  a  father,  he  still  possesses  three  mothers. 
Keep  together— all  united.  .  .  .  Sophie,  tell  them     .  .  . 

He  paused  suddenly,  perceiving  that  his  wife  was 
writing  down  his  words  for  the  benefit  of  Auguste,  whose 
deafne°ss  prevented  him  from  hearing  his  father's  voice. 

"  It  is  enough,"  said  Vinet,  "  I  will  say  no  more." 
From  this  moment  he  was  silent,  either  on  account  of 
weakness  or  because  he  feared  that  his  utterances  would 

be  spread  abroad. 

In  the  night  he  became  agitated,  and  one  of  his  friends, 
after  reading  the  farewell  prayer,  John  xvii.,  proposed 
to  pray  with  him.  Vinet  murmured,  "  Pray  for  the  most 
elementary  graces."  A  little  before  he  had  said  to  Ins 
friend  Leresche,  "  Pray  for  me  as  for  the  most  unworthy 
of  men."  Another  time  he  said,  "Ask  God  that  I  may 
live  in  order  to  be  converted."  Vinet  did  not  regard 
conversion  as  an  act  which  could  be  performed  once  for 
all  It  needed  to  be  continued  by  sanctification  ;  so  that 
the  completion  of  conversion  could  be  nothing  short  of 

holiness  of  life. 

He  accepted  with  gratitude  and  tenderness  all  the  care 
which   his   nurses   bestowed   on   him   during  the   night. 


Q 


2G  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


Towards  the  morning  he  felt  his  strength  diminishing. 
"  I  can  no  longer  think,"  he  said  to  his  wife.  Many 
times  he  murmured,  "  0  God,  have  pity  on  me  ! "  His 
wife  asked  him  if  he  could  hear  her  voice.  He  made  a 
sign  in  the  affirmative.  She  embraced  him,  saying,  "  I 
give  you  into  the  arms  of  Jesus  Christ."  He  made  a 
feeble  movement  of  assent,  and,  a  few  moments  later,  his 
great  spirit  passed  away — 

5  a.m.,  May  4,  1847. 

His  remains  were  laid  to  rest  in  the  little  cemetery  of 
Clarens,  within  view  of  the  Alps,  and  of  the  blue  waters 
of  Leman  he  loved  so  well. 

On  the  monument  placed  over  his  grave  his  friends 
engraved  the  words  : — 

"  And  they  that  be  wise  shall  shine  as  the  brightness  of 
the  firmament ;  and  they  that  turn  many  to  righteousness 
as  the  stars  for  ever  and  ever,"  Dan.  xii.  3. 

His  widow,  knowing  the  pain  such  homage  would  have 
caused  to  his  humble  spirit,  begged  that  the  following 
verse  might  be  added  : — 

"  My  life  is  hid  with  Christ  in  God." 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  327 


CHAPTEE  XXXIX. 

CONCLUSION. 

It  is  hoped  that  the  foregoing  pages  will  have  enabled 
readers  to  grasp,  not  only  the  charm  of  Vinet's  person- 
ality, hut  the  importance  of  the  conception  of  Christianity 
which  he  presented  to  the  world. 

It  was  his  mission  to  give  a  new  impulse  to  the 
religious  movement  of  his  time  by  insisting  on  the  pro- 
foundly human  character  of  Christianity,  and  on  its 
marvellous  adaptation  to  the  most  elevated  needs  of  our 
nature.1  He  believed  that  the  cause  of  religion  could 
not  be  better  served  than  by  "  causing  sermons  to  abound 
with  the  morality  which  abounds  in  the  gospel  itself." 
lie  wished  to  humanize  the  Revival,  to  reconcile  it  with 
science,  with  reason,  and  with  art,  and  to  put  an  end  to 
the  dry  scholastic  theology  of  the  seventeenth  century.3 
The  keynote  of  Vinet's  teaching  is  to  be  found  in  the 
words:  "If  any  man  will  do  His  will,  he  shall  know  «»f 
the  doctrine  whether  it  be  of  God." 

In  spite  of  the  self-distrust  and  exaggerated  modesty 
which  characterize  Yinet,  it  is  easy  to  see  that  Ik;  was 
conscious  of  the  greatness  of  the  work  he  had  been  called 
to  perform.4  He  did  not  hesitate  to  declare  that  the 
Christian  Church  was  on  the  eve  of  both  a  religious 
and  a  theological  revolution,  more  profound  and  more 
extensive  than  that  of  the  sixteenth  century.  "The 
1  See  p.  301.         *  See  p.  177.  e  pp.  8,  177.         •  See  p.  250. 


Q 


28  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 


Reformation  as  a  principle  is  as  permanent  in  the 
Church  as  Christianity,"  wrote  Yinet.  "  It  is  nothing 
less  than  Christianity  restoring  itself  spontaneously  and 
by  its  proper  strength.  The  Eeformation  is  something 
which  has  yet  to  be  accomplished,  something  which  has  to 
be  done  over  and  over  again,  and  for  which  Luther  and 
Calvin  have  only  prepared  a  wider  field  of  action.  They 
have  not  once  for  all  reformed  the  Church,  but  they  have 
strengthened  the  great  principle  and  posed  the  condition 
of  all  future  reform."  l 

Let  us  weigh  well  the  meaning  of  these  words. 
Eeformation,  according  to  Vinet,  is  a  living  principle, 
the  principle  of  healthy  growth.  Every  scribe  instructed 
in  the  kingdom  of  heaven  must  bring  out  of  his  treasure- 
house  things  that  are  new  as  well  as  things  that  are  old. 
And,  if  Pentecost  has  any  meaning,  we  are  bound  to 
believe  that  the  Spirit  of  God  is  able  to  guide  even  this 
restless  nineteenth  century  into  "  all  truth."  Vinet  was 
pre-eminently  a  seeker  after  truth,  and  he  followed  the 
heavenly  guide  whithersoever  she  led  him.  Had  his  life 
been  prolonged,  we  should  doubtless  have  seen  proceed 
from  his  pen  fresh  vindications  of  the  rights  of  the 
individual  conscience  to  "  manifest  its  convictions  "  by  the 
adoption  of  a  new  and  living  conception  of  Christianity. 

We  have  already  seen  by  one  of  Vinet's  later  utter- 
ances that  he  had  ceased  to  hold  the  popular  doctrine  of 
substitution — that  crude  debtor  and  creditor  view  of  the 
transcendent  manifestation  of  God's  love  to  the  world.2 
He  has  never  clearly  explained  his  views  on  the  subject 
of  the  Bible,  but  he  furnishes  us  with  many  indications 
that  it  is  no  longer  in  his  eyes  a  code  of  doctrines  impos- 
ing itself  with  the  authority  of  a  creed.  He  even 
"thanks  God  that  one  is  not  compelled  to  understand  it, 
so  that  a  place  is  left  to  our  activity  in  the  acquisition  of 

1  P.  191.  2  See  letter  to  Erskine,  p.  243. 


ALEXANDER  VL.NET.  329 

truth."  The  Kevival  had  taken  its  departure  from  the 
external  authority  of  Scripture.  Vinet,  on  the  contrary, 
declares  that  it  is  not  to  the  Scriptures,  but  to  Jesus 
Christ,  that  one  must  go.  "I  do  not  believe  in  Christ 
because  I  have  believed  in  the  Scriptures ;  but  I  believe 
in  the  Scriptures  because  there  I  have  found  Christ."  1 
And  again,  "  "We  must  not  go  from  the  Scriptures  to 
Christ,  but  from  Christ  to  the  Scriptures." 

Humanity  cannot  be  delivered  from  the  burden  of  its 
sins  by  belief  in  a  book,  or  in  a  code  of  doctrines  which 
are  only  human,  and  changeful  conceptions  of  eternal 
truth;  but  by  union  with  Him  who  is  the  Way,  the 
Truth,  and  the  Life ;  Who  reveals  Himself  to  the  con- 
science, and  Who  holds  before  our  ravished  eyes  the  vision 
of  moral  beauty. 

Yinet's  conception  of  Christianity  embraced  two  facts 
— the  human  conscience  and  the  person  of  Christ.  The 
person  of  Christ  was  the  centre  of  the  gospel, — regarding 
Him  neither  as  the  expiatory  victim  of  orthodoxy, 
nor  as  the  human  ideal  of  modern  thought,  but  as  God 
manifest  under  the  veil  of  the  incarnation.  This  is  why 
Vinet  represents  faith  as  a  look  turned  upon  One  who 
had  said  :  "  He  that  hath  seen  Me  hath  seen  the  Father." 
This  faith  is  not  intellectual  belief:  it  is  a  moral  fact. 

Although  Vinet  attributed  the  new  life  to  the  grace  of 
God,  lie  did  not  hesitate  to  place  side  by  side  with  it 
man's  personal  activity,  being  persuaded  that  human 
liberty  has  its  part  in  the  appropriation  of  the  salvation 
procured  through  Jesus  Christ,  and  he  attached  supreme 
importance  to  the  witness  of  conscience  and  of  experience. 
The  important  point  was  to  put  truth,  concentrated  in  the 
person  of  Christ,  in  immediate  relation  with  the  soul  of 
man. 

The  opposition  of  faith   and  reason  was  without  mean- 

1  See  p.  252. 


O  I 


330  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

ing  in  his  eyes,  because  he  saw  in  reason  one  of  those 
universal  and  immutable  premisses  to  which  all  systems 
appeal,  and  which  furnishes  the  criterion  of  truth.  Christ 
must  be  embraced  by  the  entire  being,  for  He  satisfies 
every  human  need :  love,  reason,  conscience,  and  the 
thirst  for  ideal  truth. 

The  struggle  that  existed  in  Vinet's  mind  between  the 
duty  of  proclaiming  his  convictions  and  the  fear  of  plac- 
ing a  stumbling-block  in  the  path  of  the  weak,  continued 
to  the  end.1 

One  who  knew  him  2  intimately  writes :  "  If  he  kept 
silence,  it  was  from  a  sense  of  duty  ;  but  he  did  not  do 
so  without  suffering.  This  silence  was  one  of  t/ie  sorrows 
of  his  life." 

In  addition  to  the  timidity  engendered  by  a  peculiarly 
sensitive  disposition,  and  accentuated  by  physical  suffer- 
ing, Vinet  imagined  that  he  was  not  well  armed  for  the 
conflict,  on  account  of  the  incompleteness  of  his  theologi- 
cal studies.  It  is  certain  that  he  was  neither  a  savant 
nor  a  great  scholar,  but  it  is  not  improbable  that  he  was 
all  the  better  fitted  for  the  task  he  was  called  to  perform. 
In  the  words  of  E.  Scherer,  "  Vinet  was  more  than  a 
scholar,  he  was  a  thinker ;  he  was  more  than  a  professed 
theologian,  he  was  a  religious  writer  full  of  vivacity  and 
of  originality.  He  lived  the  life  of  his  century  more 
thoroughly  than  a  viere  specialist  could  have  done,  and 
from  the  heights  of  his  intellectual  position  he  spoke  the 
language  of  the  gospel  to  the  world,  and.  of  the  world  to  the 
Church." 

By  proclaiming  the  supremacy  of  conscience,  Vinet 
brought  back  religion  to  its  essence — that  is  to  say,  to 

1  "  Those  who  fear  to  put  a  stumbling-block  in  the  path  of  the  weak,  do 
not  hesitate  to  leave  one  in  the  way  of  the  strong." — Unpublished  MS. 
Henri  Chavannes. 

-  F.  Frossaid. 


ALEXANDER  YIXET.  .°»3l 

communion  with  God.  His  principle  is  the  Protestant 
principle,  and  his  writings  mark  an  important  revolution 
in  Christian  belief.  He  brought  about  a  reformation 
in  the  bosom  of  the  Reformed  Church  by  stripping  it  of 
numberless  elements  to  which  it  clung,  although  unable 
to  assimilate  them.  "  He  has  laboured  at  the  great  work 
which  one  century  bequeaths  to  another,  and  which  will 
not  be  accomplished  till  conscience  and  the  gospel  have 
been  recognised  as  two  planes  which  ought  to  coincide 
exactly."  ! 

It  is  doubtless  true  that  Vinet  did  not  see  the  logical 
result  of  much  of  his  own  teaching ;  but  it  is  no  less  true 
that  the  foremost  champions  of  the  new  theology  have 
closely  followed  the  lines  traced  by  Vinet's  hand. 

More  than  forty  years  have  passed  away  since  the  great 
Vaudois  thinker  was  called  from  the  scene  of  his  earthly 
labours.  Although  his  faith  was  positive  and  ardent,  the 
conception  of  Christianity  which  he  had  formed  was  too 
spiritual  to  find  favour  in  the  eyes  of  the  majority  of 
( Jhristians  who,  like  the  Jews  of  old,  "  seek  after  a  sign," 
to  wit,  the  manifestation  of  a  visible  authority.  Those  who 
have  grasped  the  full  meaning  of  Vinet's  sermons  on  the 
"  Work  of  God  "  and  the  "  Look  of  Faith,"  may  well  inquire 
whether  the  term  faith  is  not  a  misnomer  when  applied 
to  an  intellectual  conception  of  Christianity  which  is 
based  on  the  letter  rather  than  on  the  spirit,  on  a  theory 
lather  than  on  life,  on  a  human  conception  of  divine 
truth,  a  code  of  doctrines,  rather  than  on  Christ  Himself. 

Hundreds  of  men  and  women,  brought  up  in  the 
belief  that  God  has  revealed  Himself  to  mankind  by 
means  of  an  infallible  book,  dismayed  by  the  inaccuracies, 
the  contradictions  of  a  collection  of  writings  which, 
although  of  priceless  and  inestimable  value,  are  not 
exempt   from   human  error,  and   bear   the  distinct    trace 

1  K.  Scherer. 


■j'o'l  LIFE  AND  WRITINGS  OF 

of  human  authorship,  reject  in  a  tumult  of  despair  the 
living  God  and  the  revelation  of  His  love  given  us  in 
the  person  of  Jesus  Christ. 

To  such  men  and  women  the  teaching  of  Vinet  will 
best  appeal.  Stripping  Christianity  of  the  accessories 
which  have  gathered  around  it  during  the  progress  of 
centuries,  casting  aside  the  principle  of  authority,  whether 
existing  in  an  infallible  Church,  an  infallible  book,  or  an 
infallible  code  of  doctrines,  he  brings  the  soul  that  hungers 
and  thirsts  after  righteousness  face  to  face  with  the 
living  Christ ;  he  bids  us  contemplate  Him  during  the 
long  passion  which  began  at  Bethlehem  and  ended  upon 
Mount  Calvary ;  he  bids  us  listen  to  His  voice  speaking 
directly  to  our  hearts,  by  means  of  conscience,  of  duty,  of 
the  moral  sense,  and  of  all  the  sweet  charities  of  life. 

Once  brought  in  contact  with  that  divine  personality, 
once  resting  on  the  bosom  of  Christ,  tempests  may  rage, 
systems  "  may  have  their  day,  and  cease  to  be,"  dogmas, 
which  are  but  human  conceptions  of  the  eternal  truth, 
may  rise  and  fall — the  soul  sits  secure,  united  by  the 
bonds  of  personal  trust  and  love  to  its  living  Lord. 

"  It  seems  strange,"  wrote  Erskine  a  few  days  after 
Vinet's  death,  "  that  he  is  no  longer  in  the  world  whom 
I  have  regarded  ever  since  I  knew  him  as  an  instrument 
that  God  had  fashioned  and  fitted  for  a  great  and  much- 
needed  work.  It  seems  strange,  for  he  has  left  his  work 
but  half  finished,  according  to  our  apprehensions  ;  but  God 
knows  His  own  way.  The  work  is  His,  and  He  knows 
best  how  it  is  to  be  accomplished." 

Strange  to  say,  Vinet's  half  -  finished  work  remains 
almost  at  a  standstill  in  his  own  country.  May  we  not 
hope  that  on  the  richer  soil  of  Great  Britain  the  seed 
sown  by  this  great  teacher  may  bring  forth  a  gracious 
harvest,  which  all  earnest  seekers  after  truth  will  gather 
in  with  delight  ? 


ALEXANDER  VINET.  333 

"  Truth,"  says  Vinet,  "  is  stronger  than  its  adversaries, 
for  it  vanquishes  them  ;  and  stronger  than  its  defenders, 
because  it  can  do  without  them.  The  world,  while 
trembling,  ranges  itself  sooner  or  later  on  the  side  of 
truth.  The  memory  of  the  witnesses  of  truth  comes 
sooner  or  later  to  be  honoured,  the  fools  of  the  past  are 
the  sages  of  the  future,  and,  if  their  names  perish,  their 
witness  endures.   .   .   . 

"  Our  force  as  well  as  our  duty  lies  in  hope.  God 
grant  that  we  may  believe  everything  possible,  even  that 
in  our  old  world  the  glory  and  force  of  the  ancient  days 
may  revive." 


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