John Huss
John
Huss (Jan Hus) was born on
July 6, 1369, at Hussinetz (Husinecz; 75 miles
south-south-west of Prague) Bohemia, (now part of the Czech 
Republic)
. He received a master's degree from the University of
Prague in 1396, became a professor of theology in 1398, was ordained to the
priesthood in 1400. He was made rector of Charles University in 1402, and
in 1404 received a bachelor's degree in theology. He preached against the
evils of the Church and gained popular acceptance. He was the confessor
for the Queen of Bohemia. He was a powerful preacher of Roman Catholic doctrine
until he translated some of the sermons of John Wycliffe into the Bohemian
language. These sermons moved him to cry out for reform in the Church and
a return to the authority of the Scriptures as the sole source of faith and
doctrine for the believer. In 1402 he was appointed also preacher
of the Bethlehem Church in Prague, where he preached in the Czech language.
He stayed at Bethlehem Cathedral until 1412.
He presented these four articles and challenged the authority of
the Church:
-
The word of God needs to be preached!
-
The communion sacrament to be administered to the laity!
-
The priest should live a priestly life!
-
Christians should live a Godly life!
Huss maintained that Christ, not
Peter, was the foundation of the Church and that some Popes had been
heretics. At once Huss was branded a heretic, ex-communicated, and his
writings were suppressed. He found refuge outside Prague, where he
continued to preach, write and study. Because of
Wycliffe's writings, he developed his teachings concerning the universal
priesthood of all believers, emphasizing that Christ is the only "Head of
the Church." Because of this, some credit Huss with beginning
the reformation that Martin Luther carried to full bloom one hundred years
later.
In 1414, John was promised safe
conduct by the Pope and Emperor Sigismund to the Council of Constance to present
his views. At this point in time there was actually 3 Popes elected and
the Council of Constance was called to settle the matter. There was an
Italian Pope a French Pope and one other. The Council decided to depose of
them and elected a new Pope. Instead of hearing Huss, the Council had him arrested, gave
him a mock trial without the benefit of an advocate, and condemned him to death
as a heretic. He was kept in prison for seven months before he was put to
death. On the 6th of July 1415, as John Huss stood before the stake where he was to be secured to,
he said, "In the truth of the Gospel which I have written, taught, and
preached, I die willingly and joyfully today." Then the fire was
kindled, and as the red tongues of flame driven by the wind from Lake Boden rose
high around the body of the martyr, Huss sang, "Jesus Christ, the son of
the Living God, have mercy on me." The Pope dismissed his own broken
promise of safe conduct to Huss with, "When dealing with heretics, one is
not obligated to keep his word."
The martyrdom of Huss kept the
"religious pot" boiling for a hundred years so that a century later
Martin Luther was warned against going to Leipzig even when promised a safe
conduct by the Pope. The influence of Huss lived on through his preaching
and the Godly example of his death.
After his death, his followers defeated
several armies sent against them. The followers of John Huss and his
fellow martyr, Jerome of 
Prague became known as the Czech Brethren and later as
the Moravians. They were known as the Hussites. The Moravian Church survives to this day, and has had a
considerable influence on the Lutheran movement. When Luther suddenly
became famous after the publication of his 95 Theses, cartoons and graffiti
began to appear implying that Luther was the spiritual heir of John Huss.
Hus' warm friend and devoted follower, Jerome
of Prague, shared his fate, although he did not suffer death till nearly a year
later.
The city of Constance
Konstanz (or some people may be more familiar with the name
Constance) is a small university town of around 80-90,000 people situated on the
western shore of Bodensee or Lake Constance in the south west corner of Germany
that borders Switzerland.
Boasting the start of the River Rhine, which splits the city in two, Konstanz
is easily divided into three distinct zones. North of the river lies the
residential area and industrial estate; while south of the river is the old
town, which houses the administrative centre and shopping facilities.
Konstanz was the place were the Council of Constance took place, and
where John Huss was burned at the stake in 1415.
A Recap of the Council of Constance
The Council of Constance was summoned by John XXIII, the Pisan
pope, with the support of Emperor Sigismund. It began on November 5,
1414 in the cathedral of Constance, with many bishops from all parts of
Europe in attendance. Business in the council was
transacted in a way that was
largely new for an ecumenical council, namely votes were cast not by Individual
persons but by nations.
The council proposed to deal with the three matters of great importance:
- It proposed to bring unity back to the church. Specifically, to
make an end to the Great Schism which had divided the church since 1378. A
Council held at Pisa in 1409 had not healed this division, but aggravated by
electing Alexander V as a third pope. When the council of Constance
opened, Christians owed obedience to three different popes: some owed
obedience to Gregory XII of the Roman party, others to Benedict
XIII of the Avignon party, and others to John XXIII, who had been
elected after the death of Alexander V. John XXIII and Benedict XIII were
deposed by the council, Gregory XII voluntarily resigned. Martin V
was elected pope on November 11, 1417. He was regarded as the
legitimate pontiff by the church as a whole, and the schism was healed.
- It proposed to eradicate "heresies", especially those
spread by John Wyclif in Britain and by John Hus and Jerome
of Prague in Bohemia.
- It proposed to reform the corrupt morals of the church.
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