NOTE 1 (see page 7).—There seems a good deal of justification for the statement that " Constantine was a heathen in heart and a Christian only for military motives." His imperial standard, which prominently displayed the symbol of the cross, also bore an image of the emperor in gold and it was intended to be an object of worship for both heathen and Christian soldiers. Furthermore, although recognized as head of the church, he never relinquished his title of "high priest " of the heathen.
NOTE 2 (see page 22).—In order to give the reader some indication of what the papal ban meant in England in the Dark Ages, the following account, taken from Miller, will be serviceable: —" In a moment, all divine offices throughout the kingdom ceased, except the rite of baptism and extreme unction. From Berwick to the British Channel, from Land's End to Dover, the churches were closed, the bells were silent; the only clergy who were seen stealing silently about were those who were to baptize new-born infants, or hear the confession of the dying. The dead were cast out of the towns, buried like dogs in some unconsecrated place, without prayer, without the tolling bell, without funeral rite. Those only can judge the effect of a papal interdict who consider how completely the whole life of all orders was affected by the ritual and daily ordinances of the church. Every important act was done under the counsel of the priest or the monk. The festivals of the church were the only holidays, the processions of the church the only spectacles, the ceremonies of the church the only amusements. To hear no prayer nor chant, to suppose that the world was surrendered to the unrestrained power of the devil and his evil spirits, with no saint to intercede, no sacrifice to avert the wrath of God; when no single image was exposed to view, not a cross unveiled; the intercourse between man and God utterly broken off; souls left to perish, or but reluctantly permitted absolution in the instant of death. And, in order to inspire a deeper gloom and fanaticism, the hair was to be left uncut and the beard unshaven, the use of meat was forbidden and even the ordinary salutation was prohibited." (Miller's Church History, Vol. II, p. 445.)
Note 3 (see page 31).—Luther's entire dependence on God was perhaps never more strikingly seen than during the hours which immediately preceded his making his defense before the Diet of Worms. His prayer at that time, as overheard and recorded by a friend, is quoted here from D'Aubigne: —" O Almighty and Everlasting God! How terrible is this world! Behold, it openeth its mouth to swallow me up, and I have so little trust in Thee!... How weak is the flesh and how powerful is Satan! If it is in the strength of this world only that I must put my trust, all is over!... My last hour is come, my condemnation has been pronounced!... O God! O God!... O God! do Thou help me against all the wisdom of the world! Do this; Thou shouldest do this.... Thou alone .. for this is not my work, but Thine. I have nothing to do here, nothing to contend for with these great ones of the world! I should desire to see my days flow on peaceful and happy. But the cause is Thine... and it is a righteous and eternal cause. O Lord! help me! Faithful and unchangeable God! In no man do I place my trust. It would be vain! All that is of man is uncertain; all that cometh of man fails.... O God! my God, hearest Thou me not?... My God, art Thou dead?... No! Thou canst not die! Thou hidest Thyself only! Thou hast chosen me for this work. I know it well!... Act, then, O God... stand as my side, for the sake of Thy well-beloved Jesus Christ, who is my defense, my shield and my strong tower. Lord! where stayest Thou?... O my God! where art Thou?... Come! come! I am ready!... I am ready to lay down my life for Thy truth... patient as a lamb. For it is the cause of justice—it is Thine!... I will never separate myself from Thee, neither now nor through eternity!... And though the world should be filled with devils,—though my body, which is still the work of Thy hands, should be slain, be stretched upon the pavement, be cut in pieces... reduced to ashes... my soul is Thine! Yes! I have the assurance of Thy word. My soul belongs to Thee! It shall abide forever with Thee.... Amen!... O God! help me!... Amen." (D'Aubigne's History of the Reformation, Vol. II, p. 242.)
NOTE 4 (see page 34).—Luther's own comment on the part played by Melanchthon in the German Reformation is worthy of inclusion. He said: —" I am born to be a rough controversialist; I clear the ground, pull up the weeds, fill up the ditches, and smooth the roads. But to build, to plant, to sow, to water, to adorn the country, belongs, by the grace of God, to Philip Melanchthon."
NOTE 5 (see page 38).—Calvin maintained that Christ's living sufferings went up to God to make righteousness by atonement and that His life as well as His death and even His suffering, as he said, the torments of hell, were needed to complete our righteousness. In writing thus, it is probable that he intended to distinguish the corporal death of the Lord from His suffering what was due to sin and sins in the righteous judgment of God. Calvin also regarded believers as justified before they were born and that faith merely gave them the knowledge of it. Despite these erroneous interpretations of Scripture, J. N. Darby's comments on Calvin are interesting. He said: " I may see a clearness and recognition of the authority of scripture in Calvin, which delivered him and those he taught (yet more than Luther) from the corruptions and superstitions which had overwhelmed Christendom, and through it the minds of most saints."
NOTE 6 (see page 49).—A remarkable feature of the Evangelical revival in the eighteenth century was the large number of hymns which were written about that time, as for example: " When I survey the wondrous cross," by I. Watts, 1707, " Love Divine, all loves excelling," by C. Wesley, 1747, " Rock of Ages," by A. M. Toplady, 1775, " God moves in a mysterious way," by W. Cowper, 1779, and " How sweet the Name of Jesus sounds," by J. Newton, 1779.