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If E L A N C T H O N. 
provinces, Eyea - Melsnfthon, ■who 'deservedly occupied 
the fir ft place among the proteftant divines, deprived as 
he now was of the maniy counfels of Luther, was feduced 
into unwarrantable conceflions, by the timidity of his 
temper, and his defire of peace. On this occafion he 
declared it as his opinion, and by his authority and argu¬ 
ments the aflembly was prevailed on to declare, “ that in 
matters cf an indifferent nature, obedience was due to the 
imperial edifts.” But in the clafs of matters indifferent, 
this great man and his affociates placed many things 
which had appeared of the hjgheft importance to Luther: 
fuch as, the doftrine of juftification. by faith alone ; the 
queftion refpefting the neceftity of good works to eternal 
falvation ; the number of the facrarnents; the jurifdiftion 
.claimed by the pope and the bifhops,&c. On this account, 
therefore, the zealous Lutherans exclaimed againft them 
as falfe brethren and apofcates from the true religion ; and 
hence avofe that violent controverfy, commonly called the 
adiciphorijiic controvert)/, which during many years proved 
highly detrimental to the progrefs of the reformation, 
arid was the fruitful fource of other eontroverfies, equally 
injurious in their effects. 
In the year 1551, pope Julius III. having contented 
to the aftembling a council at Trent, the Saxon Pro- 
teflants employed the pen of Melanfthon, and the Wur- 
temburghers that of Bredtius, to draw up confeffions of 
their faith, which were to be laid before the new council, 
doon afterwards the Saxon divines, with Melanfthon at 
their head, received direftions from Maurice to let out 
■towards Trent, but were tecretly inftrufted to flop at 
Nuremberg : for Maurice had no intention to l'ubmit to 
the emperor’s views and the fcliemes which he had long 
been maturing, with the deepell policy, for maintaining 
the rights and liberties of the German empire, and the 
fecurity of the proteftant faith, were on the eve of being- 
carried into execution. While he was frill at Nurem¬ 
berg, in 1552, Melanfthon received intelligence of the 
complete luccefs which had crowned Maurice’s well-pro- 
jefted undertaking, and compelled the emperor to con¬ 
clude the famous treaty of pacification at Paffau, com¬ 
monly called the peace of religion. Upon this glorious 
event, he intended to have returned to Wittemberg; 
but, as that city was then infefted by the plague, the uni- 
verfify was for a time removed to Torgau, where he dif- 
charged the duties of his profefforfhip till Wittemberg 
was purified of that diforder. To thefe duties he fedu- 
loufly devoted the remainder of his life, as well as to the 
eompofition of various works, and the carrying on of 
eontroverfies with his proteftant and catholic opponents, 
excepting when called from them on particular occafions, 
the principal of which we fhall notice 
In the year 1554-, he was required to be prefent at 
Naumburg in Thuringia,when the eleftors of Saxony and 
Brandenburg, and the landgrave of Hefie, folemnly re-, 
mewed the hereditary league between the Saxon, Bran¬ 
denburg, and Heffian, families, which had been formerly 
entered into by their anceftors. In 1557, Melanfthon 
had ids laft conference with the doftors of the Romifh 
communion at Worms, under the prefidence of Pflugius 
bifhop of Naumburg, to whom were added certain affefi- 
fors, forne Catholics, and fome Proteftants. The firft point 
debated, and with great learning on both fides, was con¬ 
cerning the rule of judgment in the church; which the 
Catholics maintained to. be perpetual confent, or cuftom ; 
and the Proteftants, on the other hand, the prophetic 
and apoftclical writings and creeds. In the next place, the 
Catholics demanded the condemnation of the Zuinglians, 
of Ofiander, of Flacius, and others; when the deputies 
from Jena, perceiving the difipofition of the alterably to 
accede to this demand, broke off the conference Iw re¬ 
ceding from the meeting: and thus the objeft of the 
Papifts, to promote a divifion among the Proteftants, was 
efivftuaily gained. From Worms Melanfthon went to 
Heidelberg, at the requeft of Otho Henry, eieftor palatine, 
for the purpofe of giving his advice in forming the con- 
ftitutions of an academical inftitutioli eftablifhed in that 
city. While here, the painful news reached him of the 
death of his wife, after a happy union of thirty-fevem 
years. By her he had two foils, and two daughters: one 
of the latter of whom was married to George Sabinus, one 
of the beft poets of his time; and the other to Jafper 
Peucer, who was an able phyfician, and fuffered much 
perfecution on account of his attachment to the doftrine 
of the facramentarians, as the followers of Zuinglius were 
called. In the year 1559, Melanfthon made an experi¬ 
ment whether the Greek churches might not be perfuaded 
to embrace the doftrine and difeipline of the Lutheran 
church, and live in religious communion with the Pro¬ 
teftants. The ftep which he took was, that of fending to 
the patriarch of Conftantinople a copy of the Confefiiou 
of Augftmrg, tranflated into Greek by Paul Delfcius, 
and accompanied with a letter in which he reprefented 
the proteftant doftrine with the utmoft fimplicity and 
faithfulnefs, hoping to make an imprdfion on the heart 
of the Grecian prelate. His hopes, however, were difap- 
pointed; for the patriarch did not even deign to fend 
him an anfwer. After a life of great labour and ufefulnefs, 
in which regularity and temperance had enabled him to 
maintain a long ltruggle with the infirmities of a very- 
weak and tender conftitution, in 1560 he was attacked by 
fuch violent colicky and hypochondriacal complaints as 
proved incurable, and caufed his death on the 19th of 
April, when he was in the fixty-fourth year of his age. 
Melanfthon was in perfon of the middle ftature, with 
lively eyes, and well-proportioned limbs. Though, as 
we have feen, his conftitution was tender and delicate, 
yet, by the exercife of the moft rigid temperance, he was 
enabled to purfue his ftudies with an intenlenefs of ap¬ 
plication that is almoft incredible. It was his praftice to 
go to bed immediately after an early fupper, and to rife 
at midnight to his labours. When he had laid down, 
he endeavoured to difmifs as much as poflible from his 
mind every thought which could tend to difturb his rej- 
pofe ; on which account he always poftponed the reading', 
of fuch letters as were brought to him in the evening, 
till the next day. Never was any perfon more civil or 
obliging to fuch as came to him for advice or aififtance. 
He was entirely free from all envy, detraftion, jealouiy, 
or diflimulation 5 and poffeffed an unrivalled degree of 
candour and franknefs. In company he was agreeable 
and entertaining, as well as inftruftive; and the prin¬ 
cipal relaxation from his ftudies in which he took delight, 
was the converlation of his friends during his frugal 
meals. He was alfo humble, modeft, and difinterefted 
in the extreme; for he refufed the valuable prefents 
which were offered to him by many great princes, con¬ 
tenting himfelf with living on the Salary of his profeft’or- 
ftiip, which, though final!, he would not fuffer to be 
augmented in his time. And yet he managed his narrow 
income with fuch admirable economy, that he was able 
to indulge his benevolent and charitable difpofition to an 
aftonififing extent. Of his wonderful talents and virtues 
Mofheim has given the following account: “ His greateft 
enemies have borne teftimony to his merit. They have 
been forced to acknowledge, that the annals of antiquity 
exhibit very few worthies that may be compared with 
him ; whether we confider the extent of his knowledge 
in things human and divine, the fertility and elegance of 
his genius, the facility and quicknefs of his comprehen- 
fion, or the uninterrupted induftry that attended his 
learned and theological labours. He rendered to philo- 
fophy and the liberal arts the fame eminent fervice that 
Luther had done to religion, by purging them from the 
drofs with which they had been corrupted, and by re¬ 
commending them in a powerful and perfuafive manner 
to the ffudv of the Germans. He had the rare talent of 
difeerning truth in all its moft intricate conneftions and 
combinations, of comprehending at once the moft ab- 
ftraft notions, and expreffing them with the utmoft per- 
fpecuity and cafe. And he applied this happy talent in 
religious 
