Francis David: Faith and Freedom By Rev. Steven A. Protzman February 7th, 2016 February, 2016 First Reading: The Edict of Torda 1 Second Reading: dive for dreams by ee cummings 2 Sermon Unitarianism has existed in Romania for more than 350 years. Among its heroes is Francis David, court preacher for the only Unitarian king in history, John Sigismund. As we honor our Partner Church this weekend with the Festival of the First Bread and begin our month of Unitarian Universalist history, we will learn about the legacy of David and Unitarianism in Transylvania, which includes some of our fundamental UU values: freedom, reason and tolerance. Part I Today as begin our month of UU history, we celebrate the Festival of the First Bread and our relationship with a small Unitarian village in Romania, Janosfalva. Today we will tell a story about the beginnings of Unitarianism almost 450 years ago in Eastern Europe and Francis David, one of our Unitarian heroes. Of the many remarkable parts of this story, perhaps the most amazing part is that a tiny kingdom on the eastern edge of Europe, Transylvania, had freedom of religion in an age where, as UU minister Frank Schulman said, " the Inquisition was crushing religious freedom, John Calvin and his cohorts burned heretics like Michael Servetus at the stake for daring to question doctrine, when Luther wrote, Let heads roll in the streets, and when the massacre of St. Bartholomew killed 30,000 Protestants in France". 3 It was during this tumultuous time when the Reformation and the Radical Reformation were underway and the first information age, created by the invention of the printing press, was changing the world radically and rapidly that Francis David was born in 1510 in Kolosvar, Transylvania, the son of a shoemaker. As a young man, David received a scholarship to study in Wittenberg, Germany, became fluent in German, Hungarian and Latin, and was ordained a Catholic priest. While in Wittenberg, David met Martin Luther, and was strongly influenced by the spirit of the Reformation which encouraged questioning doctrines and beliefs and studying the Bible to discover truth about God and faith and salvation. David returned to Koloscvar where he served as the rector, or priest in charge, of a Catholic school. When Lutheranism found its way to Transylvania, David, who had met Luther while studying in Wittenberg, converted to the Lutheran faith and was appointed Bishop in Koloscvar in 1557. As the Reformation spread, Calvinism, another Protestant denomination led by John Calvin, found its way to Transylvania. Francis David engaged in debates with Peter Melius, who was the leader of the Transylvanian Calvinists, known as the Reformed Church. David was so impressed by Melius that once again he converted, joining the 1
Reformed Church as their bishop. Melius then convinced King John Sigismund to appoint David as court preacher. David met Giorgio Biandrata, a Unitarian who was court physician to Queen Isabella and her son, John Sigismund. It was Dr. Biandrata who converted the Queen to Unitarianism and persuaded her to issue the first Edict of Religious Toleration in 1557, in which she declared that: "each person maintain whatever religious faith he wishes, with old or new rituals, while We at the same time leave it to their judgment to do as they please in the matter of faith, just so long, however, as they bring no harm to bear on anyone at all, lest the followers of a new religion be a source of irritation to the old profession of faith or become in some way injurious to its followers." With the stroke of a pen, Transylvania had both freedom of religion and freedom of the pulpit. Under the leadership of King John, the decree was renewed in 1563, prompting David to say that: "Faith is the gift of God. Those who have been enlightened by God's spirit must not cease to speak nor can they suppress the truth. Such is the power of the spirit, that the mind of man - putting aside every false artifice - strives only to add to the glory of God, let the whole world rage and oppose it." As David continued to study and to read and to explore questions concerning the doctrine of the Trinity and the divinity of Jesus, he became convinced of the unity or oneness of God and converted to the Unitarian faith. He was appointed the Unitarian Bishop of Transylvania and became known for his eloquent preaching and debating skills. In those days there was great disagreement about Christian doctrine and such matters were resolved in Transylvania with formal debates known as Diets. In 1568, King John convened a Diet at Torda and invited believers in the Unity of God, or Unitarians, to debate the Trinitarians, those who believed the doctrine of the Trinity, or God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The debate lasted ten days, beginning at 5 a.m. each day and was conducted entirely in Latin. The Calvinists appealed to the authority of the Bible, the creeds, the church Fathers, and the orthodox theologians. David appealed to the Bible alone. The debate began with heat and got hotter. Bishop Melius said in his opening statement, "If I win this debate you will be executed." David replied, with the love of freedom and touch of arrogance of a classic Unitarian, "If I win, I shall defend to the death your right to be wrong." On the ninth day the Calvinists asked not to be forced to listen further but King John refused them. The debate ended the next day with victory for the Unitarians". 4 King John became a Unitarian and issued the Edict of Torda: "His Majesty, in what manner he together with his realm legislated in the matter of religion at the previous Diets, in the same manner now, in this Diet, he reaffirms that in every place the preachers shall preach and explain the Gospel each according to his understanding of it, and if the congregation like it, well, if not, no one shall compel them for their souls would not be satisfied, but they shall be permitted to keep a preacher whose teaching they approve." David returned to Kolozsvar in complete triumph. Crowds received him and because there was not enough room in the cathedral for the crowds they made him stand on a large boulder at a street corner to speak to them. The boulder is preserved as a sacred relic inside the Unitarian cathedral in Kolozsvar. David spoke so eloquently that the whole city became Unitarian. The remaining Lutherans left Kolozsvar in utter disgust. 2
By 1571, Unitarianism was given legal recognition in what would turn out to be King John Sigismund's last public act. He died two months later as a result of an accident, and left no heir to the throne. Stephen Bathory, a Catholic, became king. While Bathory reaffirmed a policy of toleration for the four established religions of Transylvania; Catholicism, Lutheranism, Calvinism and Unitarianism, he declared that there would be no further religious innovation, no questioning, challenging or changing religious doctrine. But David was still driven toward reform of doctrine rather than development of church organization. He explored questions having to do with the doctrine of the Lord's Supper, infant baptism, predestination and the worship of Jesus, questioning doctrine in all four areas. He began to preach his heretical ideas from the pulpit. In spite of being ordered to stop, David continued to preach and was arrested and tried for the crime of innovation. During the trial he was so sick and weak he had to be carried from place to place. He was found guilty and condemned to prison for the remainder of his life. He died in the royal dungeon in the castle at Deva on November 15, 1579, and was buried in an unmarked grave. Third Reading: Past-Present-Future by Rev. Matthew Johnson-Doyle 5 Part II Francis David's Unitarian legacy continues to inform our liberal faith today. David proclaimed the highest values of Unitarianism- freedom, reason, and tolerance, the supremacy of individual conscience in matters of faith- value we still cherish and practice today. First Parish in Weymouth, Massachusetts once had a sign out front that said: "Unitarian Universalism: the religion to have when you're having more than one." This humor reveals part of our core values as Unitarian Universalists. We affirm a free and responsible search for truth and meaning, our fourth principle, because there is no one truth and it is possible for different understandings of Ultimate meaning to exist side by side. We take for granted the freedom to explore different traditions as well as to speak freely of our journey and to share our beliefs. For much of human history, this freedom didn't exist. The story of Unitarian Universalism is about the men and women through history, including Francis David, Michael Servetus, James Reeb and many others who worked and struggled and sometimes even gave their lives for the radical idea that each person should be free to choose what they believe, that as the Edict of Torda says, " no one shall compel them for their souls would not be satisfied". Along with freedom of belief, tolerance is a core concept of Unitarianism. There is no reason to fight or be divided because we don't all believe the same things. Our third principle asks us to accept one another and to encourage the innovations of spiritual growth and exploration. Francis David said: "In this world, there have always been many opinions about faith and salvation. You need not think alike to love alike." The third main concept of Unitarianism is the use of reason in the search for truth and meaning. David wrote: "There must be knowledge in faith also. Sanctified reason is the lantern of faith". David also believed that individual conscience is the highest source of truth. Centuries before our first and most trustworthy source of spiritual wisdom was affirmed, personal experience of God, of the divine, of mystery and wonder, David said: "The most important spiritual function is conscience, the source of all spiritual joy and happiness. 3
Conscience will not be quieted by anything less than truth and justice. There is no greater mindlessness and absurdity than to force conscience and the spirit with external power, when only their creator has authority for them." After Francis David's death, a poem was found written on the wall of his cell. The last lines of the poem are: "Nor lightning, nor cross, nor sword of the Pope, nor death's visible face, No power whatever can stay the progress of Truth. What I have felt I have written, with faithful heart I have spoken. After my death the dogmas of untruth shall fall." David never lost hope that religious truth as he saw it would one day be seen by all. Many years later, Thomas Jefferson, author of Virginia s Statute for Religious Freedom, echoed David by writing that he expected all Americans would one day be Unitarian. We haven't achieved that goal yet, but like the possibility of another Unitarian king, we can keep hoping. David's battle cry for Unitarianism "Egy Az Isten" (Edge Oz Eeshten), "God is one" still echoes through Transylvania. His words are inscribed on the walls of of and spoken inside its Unitarian churches. The Transylvanian Unitarian Church has struggled since the time of Francis David but its spirit is strong and it continues onward faithfully. Rev. Frank Shulman says that: "In Transylvania Unitarianism has, in the face of cruel and almost continuous oppression, maintained an unbroken and heroic existence for more than four centuries. There are about 85,000 Unitarians there today. They elect bishops to oversee their spiritual needs. The churches are crowded and the young are devoted to the religion of their ancestors. The Unitarian peasant, sitting in his home high in the Carpathian Mountains, after his day s work planting and plowing, reads his Bible, teaches doctrine and scripture to his children. He remembers to them the great saints of their religion: Francis David, Giorgio Biandrata, and King John Sigismund and hopes that some time there will arise another champion to lead once more to a day when no one will be afraid." 6 Matthew Johnson Doyle says in the third reading: "I speak of the great cloud of witnesses that have gone before us and what is asked of us: It s left to you and me to further their legacy. Our foremothers and our forefathers dreamed large dreams, they took bold risks. They put their lives on the line for this faith, for the faith of freedom and hope, the unity of God and the power of Love, they put their lives on the line, and some gave their lives." 7 In the second reading ee cummings tells us to: dive for dreams trust your heart if the seas catch fire and live by love though the stars walk backward honor the past but welcome the future 8 4
Francis David dived for his dreams of religious freedom and trusted his heart, even in the face of persecution and oppression. He gave his life for the religious freedom we enjoy today. Would we be willing to do the same? Is this a faith worth dying for, but more importantly, is this a faith worth living for? How will you live out your faith this week? How will we as a diverse spiritual community live out our faith in the weeks and months and years to come? As we celebrate our heritage of Unitarians and Universalists through the centuries, may we pledge our lives anew this day to follow their example by trusting in the power of love and proclaiming the truth that makes us free. May we move boldly forward in faith, seeking to touch hearts, change lives and transform the world as we walk together boldly toward the dawning future. References 1 Parke, David B., The Epic of Unitarianism: Original Writings from the History of Liberal Religion, 1957, pp. 19-20. 2 ee cummings, "dive for dreams", poem, http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poetrymagazine/browse/80/3#!/20591780 3 Schulman, Rev. Frank, "God is One! 400 Years of Unitarianism", sermon, Sept. 28, 2003. http://www.uuff.org/sermons/schulman-early-unitarian-history/#more-2320 4 Schulman, Rev. Frank, Ibid. 5 Johnson-Doyle, Rev. Matthew, "Past-Present-Future", 6 Schulman, Rev. Frank, Ibid. 7 Johnson-Doyle, Rev. Matthew, Ibid. 8 ee cummings, Ibid. 5