This post is divided into three sections:
the physical place,
the Biblical prophecy from Daniel in the 6th century BC and Revelations ( Greek meaning unveiling) written by the apostle John,
The period between 538 AD and 1798 long after this prophecy known as the Dark Ages.
The town of Pellice.
Val Pellice.
The valleys and mountains are thickly forested. This is a common view from the town.
The Biblical prophecy.
First Daniel
A power that will ‘ wear out the saints of the Most High’ and ‘change times and laws.’ ‘And this will happen for a time and times and a dividing of times.’
Daniel 7:25 ( This is often referred to as the papacy and its claim to authority over religious matters in the Dark Ages.)
Then
John writing Revelations 12
This passage is about a woman who flees into the wilderness ‘ and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, where she will be given food for 1,260 days. ( a day for a year in prophecy as seen in the Bible. Numbers 14: 1-38 For their unbelief, they were kept out of the land for 40 years, a year for every day they spied. Then Ezekiel4:4,5 )
And
Revelation 13: 5-7
This passage describes a beast that is given authority to make war with the Saints and overcome them for 42 months ( 1260 days). This is linked with the same period of papal dominance.
It has helped many logical thinkers to accept Christ.
A useful book is:
The Great Controversy by EG White. There are different chapters on these people the Waldensians, Martin Luther, and Huss, etc it is interesting religious history if that is what you like.
Before I enter the Waldensian Museum and briefly tell their story it is right to say that they have freedom of worship all over Europe and do not dwell on this past. They love and follow the Bible as their main source of spiritual food.
But this is what happened. In Lyon, there was a man Waldo. He was very wealthy went through a crisis and gave up all he had to follow Christ. He had 15 passages from the Bible translated into the vernacular and started preaching. Here are five points that annoyed the Roman Catholic church about Waldo and his Waldensian followers:
1 He denied the existence of purgatory, and that in life there are only two alternatives: one of sin and the other of grace.
2 He refused to accept prayers to the saints and masses for the dead,
3 From the donation of Constantine onwards, the Church of Rome began to make compromises with political power and claimed the right to exercise not only spiritual but also temporal/ political power. The Waldensians saw this as a betrayal of the apostolic mission of the church, which dominated the poor rather than served them.
4 They refused to take oaths or bear witness.
They emphasised, solidarity, community spirit and manual work. In the valleys of the Piedmont right to the 17th century, there were short periods of peace and then brutal repression particularly by the court of Savoy and the Inquisition. The Repeal of the Edict of Nantes (1685) denied the French Huguenots their right to exist. As a result the Duke of Savoy, who was an ally of the Sun King, forced the Waldensians to make a tragic choice:
Reject their faith
Or
Die
Or
Go into exile.
Thousands of Waldensians were put into prison in this area, the Piedmont area, or chose to go into exile.
Three years later thanks to alliances in international politics they returned to their land with 900 men.
By Silvivs Allason
( This is a copy of the one in Turin.)
A few wall charts of information in the museum.
Their motto: ‘ Lux Lucet in Tenbris’ Light shining in the darkness. Their light shone for centuries even in terrible persecution.
A place of profound beauty.
Take care,
Sandy 🙂
Wonderfully told history of this people of faith. ✨
Ah, thank you!
How very interesting Sandy! Wow you are exploring and visit historic places🙏
Yes, learning every day. Who said you had to do it at school?! 🤭Thank you that you found it interesting!