Page:A new and general biographical dictionary; containing an historical and critical account of the lives and writings of the most eminent persons in every nation v1.djvu/368

 A R N A U D. tion of the Portraits and Elogies of the illuftrious Men of " the French nation [cj. FG] The book was printed, and the regard to the images of Caffius and Bru- portraits engraved, when the Jefuita tns, which did not appear at the funeral procured an order to be Tent to theduthor of Junia, was often quoted on this occa- and bookff Her, to ftrike out Mr. Avnaud fion : " PraeTulgebant Caffius atque Bru- and Mr. r'afcal, and to fupprefs their " tuseoipfo'quod effigies eorumnon vjj- euloeiums. The faying of Tacitus, in " febantur." Annal. Jib. iii. in fin. ARNDT (JOHN), a famous proteftant divine of Ger- many, born at Ballenftad, in the duchy of Anhalt, 1555. At firft he applied himfelf to phyfic ; but falling : nto a dan- gerous ficknefs, he made a vow to change that for divinity, if he fhould be reftored to health. He was minifter firft at Quedlinburg, and then at Brunfwick. He met with great oppofition in this laft city : his fuccefs as a preacher railed the enmity of his brethren, who, in order to ruin his character, afcribed a variety of errors to him, and perfecuted him to fuch a degree that he was obliged to leav e Brunfwick, and retire to Jfleb, where he was minifter for three years. In 1611, George duke of Lunenburg gave him the church of Zell, and appointed him fuperintendant of all the churches in the duchy of Lunenburg, which office he difcharged for eleven years, and died in 1621. Arndt maintained fome doctrines which embroiled him with thofe of his own communion : he was of opinion, that the irregularity of manners which prevailed among proteftants, was occafioned by their rejecting of good works, and content- ing themfelves with a barren faith, as if it was fufficient for fal- vation to believe in Jefus Chrift, and to apply his merits to ourfelves. He taught that the true fai^ neceflarily exerted itfelf in charity; that a falutary forrow preceded ic ; that it was followed by a perfect renewal of the mind j and that a fanc- tifying faith infallibly produces good works. His adverfaries accufed him of fanaticifm and enthufiafm : they endeavoured to reprefent him as fymbolizing in his opinions with the fol- lowers of Weigelius and the Roficrufian philofophers ; and they imputed to him many of the errors and ablurdities of thofe viiionaries, becaufe in fome lubjects he exprefled himfelf in a manner not very different from theirs, and becaufe he preferred the method of the myftical divines to that of the fcholaftics. The mod famous work of Arndt, is his " Treatife of true 2 printed
 * ' Chriltiarmy," in High Dutch. The firft book of it was