Unconditional Faithfulness

Shakespeare asserted, “It is an heretic that makes the fire, not she which burns in’t.”55 This was demonstrated when Cain murdered his own brother, Abel (Genesis 4:1–15), and in many similar cases since (Hebrews 11:30–38), including the slaughter of the Waldenses. Ongoing attempts to force the Waldenses to conform to Catholicism had failed. So, on April 23, 1655, a brutal massacre took the lives of some 1,700 Waldenses in the Piedmont. This genocide generated a strong negative reaction throughout Europe. And, as if that were not enough, on January 31, 1686, the Duke of Savoy “decreed the destruction of all the Vaudois churches and that all inhabitants of the valleys should publicly”56 renounce their heresies under penalty of death and banishment.

Nevertheless, the Waldensian people remained faithful, despite these ongoing threats. Ellen White describes it this way: “Though persecuted and driven from their homes, they conscientiously studied the word of God, and lived up to the light which shone upon them. When their possessions were taken from them, and their houses burned, they fled to the mountains, and there endured hunger, fatigue, cold, and nakedness. And yet the scattered and homeless ones would assemble to unite their voices in singing and praising God, that they were accounted worthy to suffer for Christ’s name.

They encouraged and cheered one another, and were grateful for even their miserable retreat. Many of their children sickened and died through exposure to cold, and the sufferings of hunger; yet the parents did not for a moment think of yielding their faith. They prized the love and favor of God far more than earthly ease or worldly riches. They received consolation from God, and with pleasing anticipations looked forward to the recompense of reward.” Remember, only a religion that is worth dying for is worth living for! Let the amazing Waldensian example of courage and faithfulness to the Lord inspire your own religious life.