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A61701
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The religion of the Dutch represented in several letters from a Protestant officer in the French army to a pastor and professor of divinity at Berne in Switserland ; out of the French.; Religion des Hollandois. English
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Stoppa, Giovanni Battista.; Davies, John, 1625-1693.
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1680
(1680)
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Wing S5769; ESTC R8262
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51,056
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72
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us of the weakness of our little Flock and discover the great number of Enemies whom we should have to do withal I am satisfy'd That a great number of good Soldiers might be got out of your Canton and the other Protestant Cantons But I humbly conceive you will not be offended if I tell you That if Jesus Christ himself were upon Earth and had occasion for the assistance of your Forces you would not let him have any unless he would be sure to see you well paid for them and that he should not prevail so far with you as that for his sake you would abolish the Proverb which you have brâ—ught into Vogue Point dâ—argent point de Suisse Mo Money no Swisse or as the English Saying has it 'T is Money makes the Mare to go And that it thus happen'd is well known when the Chimerical Ambassador of the Dutch had under-hand sollicited your Cantons and had afterwards been admitted into your Assembly Conjuring and beseeching you by the love you ought to have for your dear Brethren not to abandon them in their Necessities and to maintain their Cause which was that of Jesus Christ You know very well that all he could get of you in your Diet was That you had resolved one should be assembled for their sakes that you would spare some few repâ—sts observe a Fast and pray for their Preservation and Prosperity That if it were a Warre upon the score of Religion whatever Zeal you might have for ours the Catholick Cantons having no less â—or theirs we should find more Soldiers running out of the Catholick Cantons to maintain the Party of their Religion than there wâ—uld be Protestants ready to defend the Interests of ours And as to the quality of the Soldiers of Swisserland if a computation may bâ— made of it by the Success of two Wars one wherâ—oâ— you had about 140 years ago and the other about 18 yâ—â—rs since I am conâ—ident you cannot deny but that the Catholick Soldiers are much better than all those of your Protestant Cantons Nay the Catholicks would have this advantage that their Pay would easily come out of the Exchequers of Kings and Princes if the Dispute were about the defence of their Religion Whereas yours not finding any Protestant-Prince who were able to bear the charge of them should be forc'd to keep in your own Country and content themselves with the making of Vows for the preservation of our Religion Nay I do not think that all the Princes or States of the Reformed Religion in Europe would be able all together and do their utmost to keep up an Army of Ten Thousand men when the safety of our Religion lay at stake I do not speak of the Lutherans because the greatest part amongst them have such an animosity against us as loudly to affirm That they would rather enter into the Communion of the Catholicks than into Ours If again on the other side you consider how many Kings Sovereign Princes Republicks and States there are in Europe who all profess the Romish Religion you may all imagine That as we are but a small handful in comparison of them so there is not any likelihood that we should be able to resist them if they were once engag'd in a War against us Nay if it were an open and declar'd War upon the account of Religion you would soon find the Emperour and the King of Spain deserting the party of the Dutch and siding with that of their own Religion The Catholicks have yet another most considerable advantage which would extreamly corroboratâ— their Party against ours They have the Pope whom they all acknowledg to be the visible Head of the Church upon Earth who reunites them all for their Common Interest and would with much more Zeal publish a Croisado against us then ever he did any against the Turks And indeed he has reason to have a greater animosity against us than against all the unbelieving people in the World As he pretends to be the Spiritual Head of all Christians so he considers those who do not acknowledg him as revolted Subjects and Rebels to his Empire whereas he looks on the Turks and Heathens as Strangers who are out of his Jurisdiction and not within the extent of his Superintendency And as a King is more incens'd against his Subjects who have revolted from the obedience they owe him then against forreign Enemies who are not within the Verge of his Dominions So the Pope suffers the Jews in his Territories and would never permit any of the Reformed Persuasion to harbour in them His Pontifical Dignity will not suffer him ever to be reconcil'd to those who directly shock the authority which he pretends to have over all Christians You may see by this the great danger into which those of our Religion would be reduc'd if your Zeal could enflame them so far as to make a Party in favour of the Dutch Nay I leave it to your own Judgment whether it is any fault of yours if your inconsiderate Zeal has not excited the Catholicks to fall upon those of our Reformed Religion in those places where they lye expos'd to their mercy and that they have not made it their business to exterminate them But if your Zeal without Knowledg be injurious to all those of the Reformed Religion in general it is also very prejudicial to all your own Protestant-Cantons and to your Allies in particular Assoon as ever you saw the first breaking out of this War You your self Reverend Sir in the City of Berne and all your Ministers within the Extent of your Government were continually cajoling the people by their Seditious Sermons to make an Insurrection against those of your Magistrates who had given their judgment That there should be a Regiment of men granted to the most Christian King out of your Canton If men would have believ'd you and all the Ministers of your Country-Villages it must have been accounted a very horrid Crime in you to suffer your Soldiers to be employ'd in a War against your beloved Brethren in Jesus Christ the Dutch 'T was this gave occasion to your Magistrate distracted by your Pulpit-bawling and by the clamours of the multitude whom you had inflam'd into an Insurrection to write unseasonable Letters upon Letters to the Officers of your Regiment fraught with terrible menaces if they sâ—rv'd in this War against the Vnited Provinces Nay you thought it not enough to put in a Charge against your own Canton upon the account of its having granted Forces to his most Christian Majesty and his not preventing their being employ'd against the Dutch but you must also Panegyrically celebrate the Cantons of Zurick and Schaffouse for their refusal to give him any I cannot comprehend any reason you should have to name Schaffouse which being a poor little Canton has but one half-Company in the Service but a hands-breadth of ground within its Jurisdiction and can raise but Two Companies at the most