Part 15 (2/2)

He knew himself too weak to be able to think of strenuous church-political propaganda any s at Rome were sincere There had been so the cardinals ere to be nominated with a view to the Council; a considerable benefice connected with the church of Deventer was already offered hied the Roman friends ere thus active in his behalf to cease their kind offices; he would accept nothing, he a man who lived fro for it, who could hardly ever leave his rooate _him_ to hunt for deaneries and cardinals'

hats! He had subsistence enough to last him He wanted to die independent

Yet his pen did not rest The _Ecclesiastes_ had been printed and published and _Origenes_ was still to follow Instead of the important and brilliant task to which Roth to a simple deed of friendly cordiality The friend to whose share the honour fell to receive from the old, death-sick author a last composition prepared expressly for him, amidst the most terrible pains, was the most modest of the number who had not lost their faith in hireat wit or admired divine, but Christopher Eschenfelder, custoe in 1518 Eraslad surprise, found him to be a reader of his work and aone

Eschenfelder had asked Erasmus to dedicate the interpretation of some psalm to him (a form of composition often preferred by Erasmus of late)

About the close of 1535 he reotten whether Eschenfelder had indicated a particular psal the treatise 'On the purity of the Christian Church' He expressly dedicated it to 'the publican' in January 1536 It is not res as to contents and form, but it was to be his last

On 12 February 1536, Erasmus made his final preparations In 1527 he had alreadyof his complete works by Froben In 1534 he drew up an accurate inventory of his belongings He sold his library to the Polish noblees which had played an important part in his life: his relations with the house of Froben and his need of friendshi+p Boniface Amerbach is his heir Hieronyers of the business, are his executors To each of the good friends left to him he bequeathed one of the trinkets which spoke of his fareat ones of the earth, in the first place to Louis Ber and Beatus Rhenanus The poor and the sick were not forgotten, and he reirls about to marry and youths of promise The details of this charity he left to A for Burgundy Moneynew friends, for the old ones leave hi to Beatus Rhenanus, the Brabant plan stood foreary, did not cease to urge him to return to the Netherlands Erasmus's own last utterance leaves us in doubt whether he hadhere with the , I should yet, on account of the differences of doctrine, prefer to end my life elsewhere If only Brabant were nearer'

This he writes on 28 June 1536 He had felt so poorly for some days that he had not even been able to read In the letter we again trace the delusion that Aleander persecutes hiainst him, and even lays snares for his friends Did his ive way too?

On 12 July the end caroan incessantly: 'O Jesu, misericordia; Domine libera me; Domine miserere mei!' And at last in Dutch: 'Lieve God'

FOOTNOTES:

[20] See Erasmus's letter, p 224

CHAPTER XXI

CONCLUSION

Conclusion--Erasmus and the spirit of the sixteenth century--His weak points--A thorough idealist and yet a htener of a century--He anticipates tendencies of two centuries later--His influence affects both Protestantism and Catholic refor back on the life of Erasreat? For ostensibly his endeavours ended in failure He withdraws in alaredy; the sixteenth century, bold and vehe his ideal of moderation and tolerance Latin literary erudition, which to hione out as such Erass, is aer read He has become a name But why does that naarding us, as if he still knew a littleto utter?

What has he been to his age, and as he to be for later generations? Has he been rightly called a precursor of the arded as a child of the sixteenth century, he does see those veheetic and violent natures of the great ones of his day, Erasmus stands as the man of too few prejudices, with a little too h not, indeed, in every department, of that _stultitia_ which he had praised as a necessary constituent of life Erasmus is the man who is too sensible anddifference there is between the _accent_ of Erasmus and that of Luther, Calvin, and Saint Teresa! What a difference, also, between his accent, that is, the accent of huelo, or of Shakespeare

Erash for his age

In that robust sixteenth century it seeth of Luther was necessary, the steely edge of Calvin, the white heat of Loyola; not the velvet softness of Erasmus Not only were their force and their fervour necessary, but also their depth, their unsparing, undaunted consistency, sincerity and outspokenness

They cannot bear that s out of Erasmus's features His piety is too even for the of the _Enchiridion militis Christiani_ relaxed his fervour and row cold

He saw that warrior of Christ differently, in the glowing colours of the Spanish-Christian, medieval ideal of chivalry

Erash those depths of self-reprobation and that consciousness of sin which Luther had traversed with toil; he saw no devil to fight with, and tears were not faether unaware of the deepest mystery? Or did it rest in him too deep for utterance?

Let us not suppose too quickly that we are ures appeal to us ain to the ardently pious, and to spiritual extre sti up our adant, and for many this requires a certain effort at present It is extremely easy to break the staff over Erasmus