THE FIRST PERSECUTION

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fiction. Of modern writers Palacky and Jirecek maintain the truth of the ancient record of the Unity. What that Rokycan's part in these however, certain events has been misrepresented. Political reasons at that moment rendered advisable for King George to appear as the enemy of the extreme antagonists of Rome. Rokycan's influence on the king was then very slight, but such as induced George after time to was, liberate Brother Gregory from prison. Difficulties had meanwhile arisen in the small community, of which first Kunwald and then the neighbouring small town of Reichenau (Rychnov) on the KnSina was the centre. Gregory was indeed the intellectual leader as well as the founder of the community, but the priests Michael and Martin seem, probably in consequence of their having been ordained as priests, certain superiority over the other to have claimed To obviate these difficulties, Gregory rebrethren. sorted to what must then have appeared most ventureHe decided that his followers should, in some step. accordance with the example of the Apostles, elect priests from among their number. The doctrine of the necessity of the apostolic derivation of the clergy was then held even by sects that were strongly opposed to no doubt the reason why, according to Rome. This most accounts, the new priests were subsequently conWaldensian priest or bishop. secrated by must be added that the part played by the Waldensian in the first ordination of the clergy of the Unity becomes much more prominent in the works of later writers than Dr. Lechler has rewas in those of contemporaries. cently expressed doubts as to whether the intervention Waldensian at the first ordination that took place of