se prophets of Baal. Scarcely a sermon was preached in
which they did not figure as Ahab and Jezebel.[4] A single specimen of the
spirited discourses in vogue will suffice. A Franciscan monk--one
Barrier--the same from whose last Easter sermon an extract has already
been given[5]--after reading the royal ordinance in his church of
Sainte-Croix, in Provins, remarked: "Well now, gentlemen of Provins, what
must I, and the other preachers of France, do? Must we obey this order?
What shall we tell you? What shall we preach? 'The Gospel,' Sir Huguenot
will say. And pray, stating that the errors of Calvin, of Martin Luther,
of Beza, Malot, Peter Martyr, and other preachers, with their erroneous
doctrine, condemned by the Church a thousand years ago, and since then by
the holy oecumenical councils, are worthless and damnable--is not this
preaching the Gospel? Bidding you beware of their teaching, bidding you
refuse to listen to them, or read their books; telling you that they only
seek to stir up sedition, murder, and robbery, as they have begun to do in
Paris and numberless places in the realm--is not this preaching 'the
Gospel?' But some one may say: 'Pray, friar, what are you saying? You are
not obeying the king's edict; you are still talking of Calvin and his
companions; you call them and those who hold their sentiments _heretics_
and _Huguenots_; you will be denounced to the courts of justice, you will
be thrown into prison--yes, you will be hung as a seditious person.' I
answer, _that_ is not unlikely, for Ahab and Jezebel put to death the
prophets of God in their time, and gave all freedom to the false prophets
of Baal. 'Stop, friar, you are saying too much, you will be hung.' Very
well, then there will be a gray friar hung! Many others will therefore
have to be hung, for God, by His Holy Spirit, will inspire the pillars of
His church to uphold the edifice, which will never be overthrown until the
end of the world, whatever blows may be struck at it."[6]

[Sidenote: Opposition of the parliaments.]

The parliaments exhibited scarcely less opposition to the edict than did
the pulpits of the Roman Catholic churches. One--the Parliament of
Dijon--never registered it at all;[7] while that of Paris instituted a
long and decided resistance. "_Non possumus, nec debemus," "non possumus,
nec debemus pro conscientia_," were the words in which it replied when
repeatedly pressed to give formal sanction.[8] The counsellors were
equall