History of Protestantism in the Netherlands - James Aitken Wylie

ecome Romanists. Their desire to solve the
difficulty by this issue introduced still another
element of disorganisation and danger. There came
a sudden outburst of propagandist zeal on the part
of the priests, and of miraculous virtue on the part
of statues and relics. Images began to exude blood,
and from the bones of the dead a healing power
went forth to cure the diseases of the living. These
prodigies greatly edified the piety of the Roman
Catholics, but they inflamed their passions against
their Protestant fellow subjects, and they rendered
them decidedly hostile to the cause of their
country's emancipation. The prince had always
stood up for the full toleration of their worship, but
he now began to perceive that what the Flemish
Romanists called worship was what other men
called political agitation; and though still holding
by the truth of his great maxim, and as ready to
tolerate all religions as ever, he did not hold
himself bound to tolerate charlatanry, especially
when practiced for the overthrow of Netherland
liberty. He had proclaimed toleration for the
Roman worship, but he had not bound himself to
tolerate everything which the Romanist might
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