The Waldenses

The mingling of Paganism with Christianity in the form instigated by the established Church sparked a revolution in Christendom. In the 12^th century it led those who desired to preserve the purity of true Bible religion to coalesce into a single organized system, geographically spanning northern Italy and south-western France. This group was known as the Waldenses.

The Waldenses were a group of people that formed a resistance against the moral corruption and physically damaging practices advocated by the system of monasticism that blossomed under the papacy.

Many chose to walk away from a religious system that relied on the traditions and dictates of men to stand under the banner of God’s word. One of the earliest known names of these believers was insabbati, demonstrating that they were Sabbath-keepers, being named after the day on which they worshiped.

The Waldenses became the vanguard of a powerful resistance movement that quietly and unobtrusively began to work to educate people about Bible truth and expose the errors and fallacies propagated by Rome. They were known for taking great pains to preserve the Bible, transcribing copies by hand for distribution throughout Europe. They didn’t see themselves as reformers because many of them had rejected the advances of the Roman Catholic Church from the outset. Instead, they saw themselves as champions and curators of biblical truth in the midst of a reign of spiritual darkness and apostasy.

For this they paid dearly, being slaughtered by the thousands and relegated to living in the caves of the alpine wilderness. Their story has been told and retold by countless writers and poets of the Renaissance who witnessed the terrible persecutions they faced. Yet in the face of such ruthlessness, they still clung unwaveringly to their faith in God and His Word, as firm and unyielding as the mighty mountains that had become their home.

One thing that the Waldenses did have in common with the Roman Catholic church was that they both saw the barbarian tribes that occupied Europe as a mission field. The fundamental difference, however, was that while the Roman Catholic Church used the power of the state, the terror of the sword and the inducement of political gain to advance their cause, the Waldenses put their faith in the strength of God’s Word.

They kept a low profile, making the rugged regions of the alpine valleys their homes and moving quietly among those who lived in the great cities of Europe. Eventually, facing relentless persecution in the lower valleys, the Waldenses moved into the higher alpine regions. Here they settled themselves and focused on evangelizing papal Europe, and to this end, they built training schools that covered the rugged mountainous region of the Piedmont Valley. Their children were trained to memorize scripture and painstakingly copy the Bible by hand. They were equipped for missionary work in Europe.

Once they had completed their training, Waldensian youth were sent to the best universities in Europe and wherever they went they took the word of God with them. Having committed large portions of scripture to memory they had ready access to the truth as the need arose. In addition, they sewed portions of scripture into the folds and hems of their clothing, thus enabling them to distribute the truth as discreetly as possible.

As they went about gaining an education they mingled with a wide variety of people and would make an effort to befriend them.  As time went by and they discerned genuine spiritual interest, they would share the Bible either verbally or in the form of small handwritten rolls of parchment.  In this way, the light of God’s word spread slowly and unobtrusively throughout a European continent that was teeming with tradition and superstition.

Other Waldenses would learn a trade or sell goods from door to door, and as they bought and sold, traded, and repaired, they would watch for the moving of God’s Spirit on the hearts of their listeners. When they discerned spiritual interest they would share the truth, either from memory or by handing out those precious portions of hand-copied scripture. Thus, the ultimate focus of the Waldensian way of life was to share the truth with others. They worked, studied and raised families but in the midst of this, their focus was clear and unwavering.

In times of intense persecution, these people of the valleys would gather together in their mountain hideouts, huddling for shelter in the dim and dank caves that crisscrossed the mountains. These caves were not only a place of refuge, but a place of worship as well, where, shut in by the cold stone walls, there was a place of perfect peace and silence. Here they sang their hymns and praises to God and spent time in simple but earnest congregational worship and prayer.

The Waldensian motto was Lux Lucet in Tenebris, ‘light shining in the darkness’ and theirs was a light that burned steadily without waxing or waning for centuries, even in the face of terrible persecution. They chose to fiercely guard their commitment to the word of God and were willing to bear the cost that came with that commitment. Often that cost was to leave behind their homes and livelihoods to flee into the wild and rugged regions of the Alpine valleys.

From a young age, their children were trained in the scriptures, trained to endure privation and hardship to the end that they might be able missionaries for God amidst people held fast in the fetters of falsehood.

Tomorrow’s story tells of a poignant example of their persecution.

Even in the face of such strong persecution the Waldensian people refused to bow their knees to the darkness and error of the Roman Catholic Church, they refused to be bullied into submission.

Why were they so vehemently hated? Because they chose to stand for what was right, to stand against a religiopolitical machine that was oppressing the lives of so many innocent people. They were hated because they were unafraid and unashamed of holding up the torch of truth to expose the terrible secrets of darkness. They stood like Daniel in Babylon and weathered the worst storms of persecution, and their example is a challenge to us today.