Meet Guido de Bres, a Lesser-Known Reformer

It is well-known in our society that October 31 is Halloween. However, it is also a lesser-known day to many: Reformation Day. It was on October 31, 1517, that Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses to the church door in Wittenburg, Germany which ignited the fire that became known as the Protestant Reformation. So, to those of us who joyfully trace our spiritual heritage through the Reformation, October 31 has a much greater significance than anything Halloween can offer (the excellence of candy notwithstanding).

On this lesser-known day of celebration, I thought I would also introduce you to a lesser-known Reformer. Many are acquainted with names such as Martin Luther, John Calvin, William Tyndale, and John Knox. But, there are many other significant figures involved in the Reformation though we don't hear as much about them. One such figure is Guido de Bres.

de Bres was born in southern Belgium in 1522 and grew up in a staunchly Roman Catholic home. However, when he was a teenager he was converted through reading his Bible and the writings of the Reformers.

Ministry and Martyrdom

After years of study and training (much of which occurred in England which was safe at the time for Protestants), de Bres became a minister and went back to Belgium in 1552. At the time, Belgium was part of the Spanish Netherlands under the Spanish (Roman Catholic) crown which made it very unsafe for Protestants. de Bres was careful, but persecution followed him throughout his life, forcing him to flee a number of times for safety and to restart in new cities.

As the Spanish inquisition heated up, de Bres was eventually caught and sentenced to death. Even while in a dank dungeon awaiting death, he continued serving the Lord by writing letters to family and friends. In one remarkable letter, he consoles his wife as he bids her farewell, knowing his time is up. He begins the letter,

Catherine Ramon, my dear and beloved wife and sister in our Lord Jesus Christ: your anguish and sadness disturbs somewhat my joy and the happiness of my heart, so I am writing this for the consolation of both of us, and especially for your consolation, since you have always loved me with an ardent affection, and because it pleases the Lord to separate us from each other. I feel your sorrow over this separation more keenly than mine. I pray you not to be troubled too much over this, for fear of offending God. You knew when you married me that you were taking a mortal husband, who was uncertain of life, and yet it has pleased God to permit us to live together for seven years, giving us five children. If the Lord had wished us to live together longer, he would have provided the way. But it did not please him to do this and may his will be done.

On May 31, 1567, de Bres and a fellow-worker in Christ were hung while they testified to the crowd concerning the goodness and grace of God.

The Belgic Confession

During his life, de Bres had another accomplishment that was remarkable. He penned a confession that has become known as the Belgic Confession. During his own lifetime, the confession was accepted by Reformed Churches in the Netherlands with slight revisions (to the text, not the doctrine). It was revised again (wording, not contents) at the Synod of Dort in 1618-19. While de Bres wrote the initial confession, it wasn't simply a private understanding of doctrine; it was capturing the essence of the Reformation which is why the broader church in the Netherlands adopted it.

Today, it remains one of the "Three Forms of Unity" which many Reformed Churches around the world hold as their doctrinal standards. de Bres' work has had a lasting significance, even while many of us have never heard his name. It is very fitting, in many ways since de Bres was merely a servant of His great Master.

While I do not affirm everything found in the confession (I'm not a paedobaptist, after all), I have immense regard for this lesser-known Reformer. It is surreal to me to be able to read the work of a faithful brother like this who gave his life for Christ. Consider the section of the confession entitled, "The Justice and Mercy of God in Christ."

We believe that God, who is perfectly merciful and just, sent his Son to assume that nature, in which disobedience had been committed (Rom 8:3), to make satisfaction in that same nature, and to bear the punishment of sin by his most bitter passion and death (Heb 2:14). God therefore manifested his justice against his Son when he laid our iniquity on him (Rom 3:25, 26; 8:32), and poured out his goodness and mercy on us, who were guilty and worthy of damnation. Out of a most perfect love he gave his Son to die for us and he raised him for our justification (Rom 4:25) that through him we might obtain immortality and life eternal.

It was conviction about this sort of truth that made men and women ready to give their lives. At its root, the Reformation was not about power, ivory tower academics, nor silly arguments over secondary matters; it was about recovering the true teaching of the Scriptures which tell us how sinful people can be justified before our Holy Creator. It was about glorifying the Triune God through the recovery of Scripture's authority and the exaltation of the gracious saving work of Christ. Guido de Bres was one man who understood this and gave his life for the truth of the gospel.

Happy Reformation Day, friends!
  

For more, here is R. Scott Clark giving an overview of de Bres' life: