Paris, the city of lovers,
the city of eternal spring,
00:00:37.47\00:00:42.40
the city of light,
00:00:42.44\00:00:44.11
the most romantic
city in all the world.
00:00:44.14\00:00:47.98
Paris has all but
exhausted the superlatives
00:00:48.01\00:00:50.88
that can be applied to any city.
00:00:50.91\00:00:53.18
It's the world's most
popular city destination.
00:00:53.21\00:00:56.89
Forty two million
tourists visit Paris each year.
00:00:56.92\00:01:01.92
As you walk down
its elegant boulevards,
00:01:09.96\00:01:12.90
pass its majestic cathedrals
00:01:12.93\00:01:15.54
and beside its
graceful fountains,
00:01:15.57\00:01:18.47
it's hard to
believe that this grand city
00:01:18.51\00:01:22.51
was once the most
dangerous place in all the world
00:01:22.54\00:01:26.35
for anyone who read,
00:01:26.38\00:01:28.12
believed and
practiced what the Bible says.
00:01:28.15\00:01:31.55
Have you ever wondered
00:01:59.01\00:02:00.45
what it would be like if
we didn't have the Bible?
00:02:00.48\00:02:04.02
Nothing but public
opinion to guide us,
00:02:04.05\00:02:06.62
telling us what to
do and what not to do?
00:02:06.65\00:02:10.23
No higher
authority than our own ideas,
00:02:10.26\00:02:13.70
or our own self-made religion.
00:02:13.73\00:02:16.63
Someone said that the
Bible is just a collection
00:02:16.67\00:02:18.63
of myths and legends,
00:02:18.67\00:02:20.80
that it isn't
sophisticated enough
00:02:20.84\00:02:23.54
for our modern generation.
00:02:23.57\00:02:26.14
They think we're
better off without it.
00:02:26.17\00:02:29.24
But wouldn't we?
00:02:29.28\00:02:31.15
Did you know that
France tried it once
00:02:31.18\00:02:33.72
for three and a half years?
00:02:33.75\00:02:35.15
Remember the French Revolution,
00:02:39.32\00:02:41.72
some of the famous events
that took place here in France
00:02:41.76\00:02:45.23
in the decade
between 1789 and 1799.
00:02:45.26\00:02:49.56
We're all familiar
00:02:49.60\00:02:51.40
with the proclaiming
of the National Assembly,
00:02:51.43\00:02:53.64
the Tennis Court Oath,
the Storming of the Bastille,
00:02:53.67\00:02:57.44
the end of feudalism,
00:02:57.47\00:02:59.17
the Declaration
of the Rights of Man,
00:02:59.21\00:03:01.44
the Revolution motto,
00:03:01.48\00:03:02.94
"Liberty, Equality, Fraternity."
00:03:02.98\00:03:08.25
The French Revolution
introduced these grand ideas,
00:03:08.28\00:03:11.69
and they were
certainly important milestones
00:03:11.72\00:03:14.36
on the road to
freedom and equality for all.
00:03:14.39\00:03:17.03
This famous Paris monument
00:03:22.80\00:03:25.03
La Republique
honors men and women
00:03:25.07\00:03:27.94
who struggled to bring about
00:03:27.97\00:03:29.60
Europe's first
democratic republic,
00:03:29.64\00:03:33.01
those who rose up
to claim the rights
00:03:33.04\00:03:35.91
of the common man.
00:03:35.94\00:03:37.81
However, there's another
side to the French Revolution.
00:03:37.85\00:03:41.58
There's a
little-known event that happened
00:03:41.62\00:03:43.62
during this period
that we should never forget.
00:03:43.65\00:03:47.09
It happened right here in Paris
in the middle of the night.
00:03:51.79\00:03:55.00
At 1:30 am, August 24, 1572,
00:03:55.03\00:03:59.53
a bell began to
ring in the church tower
00:03:59.57\00:04:02.30
of Saint Germain l'Auxerrois.
00:04:02.34\00:04:05.77
The tolling bell sent the
signal throughout the city,
00:04:05.81\00:04:09.34
death to all Bible
believing Christians.
00:04:09.38\00:04:13.42
It was one of the
most horrifying massacres
00:04:13.45\00:04:16.38
in European history.
00:04:16.42\00:04:17.85
In the morning,
the citizens of Paris
00:04:45.11\00:04:47.55
were met with an
incredible sight.
00:04:47.58\00:04:50.22
The Seine River which
cuts a lovely green sway
00:04:50.25\00:04:53.52
through the city
of eternal spring
00:04:53.56\00:04:55.92
was littered with
thousands of bodies.
00:04:55.96\00:04:58.86
The Seine flowed red.
00:04:58.89\00:05:01.70
For seven days the
massacre was continued in Paris,
00:05:01.73\00:05:05.00
and throughout France
00:05:05.03\00:05:06.53
the butchery
continued for two months.
00:05:06.57\00:05:09.47
Seventy thousand loyal
00:05:09.50\00:05:11.91
and upright French
citizens were butchered.
00:05:11.94\00:05:14.51
For years, France suffered.
00:05:26.65\00:05:29.52
And then came the revolution
that people had had enough.
00:05:29.56\00:05:34.53
The atrocities of
all their lifetime
00:05:34.56\00:05:37.27
had been done in
the name of religion.
00:05:37.30\00:05:39.87
True, it was a
perverted, distorted religion,
00:05:39.90\00:05:43.00
certainly not the
religion of the Bible.
00:05:43.04\00:05:45.47
But the people,
ignorant and superstitious
00:05:45.51\00:05:49.14
were not able to discriminate
00:05:49.18\00:05:50.68
between the true and the false.
00:05:50.71\00:05:53.82
They blamed the Bible
for all that had happened.
00:05:53.85\00:05:56.89
It was in 1793 that the world
00:06:02.62\00:06:06.83
for the very first time
heard a legislative assembly
00:06:06.86\00:06:11.07
in a civilized
enlightened nation,
00:06:11.10\00:06:13.90
go so far as to officially
00:06:13.94\00:06:16.07
and unanimously
renounce belief in God
00:06:16.10\00:06:19.91
and reject Him completely.
00:06:19.94\00:06:22.34
The leaders of
the French Revolution
00:06:22.38\00:06:24.51
defiantly lifted their fist
in open rebellion against God,
00:06:24.55\00:06:30.19
the Creator of the universe.
00:06:30.22\00:06:31.85
The worship of God
was abolished by law.
00:06:36.19\00:06:39.66
Bibles were collected and
publicly burned with scorn.
00:06:39.69\00:06:44.37
There was a deliberate
attempt to destroy the Bible,
00:06:44.40\00:06:47.44
its message and its influence.
00:06:47.47\00:06:50.21
Here's what one of the
leaders of the New Order said...
00:06:50.24\00:06:54.21
"God if you exists,
avenge Your injured name.
00:06:54.24\00:06:59.08
I bid You defiance.
00:06:59.11\00:07:01.38
You remain silent.
00:07:01.42\00:07:03.22
You dare not
launch Your thunder,
00:07:03.25\00:07:05.75
who after this will
believe in Your existence?"
00:07:05.79\00:07:08.69
France, with a Bible
now abandoned and outlawed,
00:07:12.89\00:07:18.13
with all moral restriction gone,
00:07:18.17\00:07:20.80
soon descended to the basest
of human behavior and idolatry.
00:07:20.84\00:07:26.61
And it actually
happened right here
00:07:26.64\00:07:29.14
in the National Assembly.
00:07:29.18\00:07:32.78
Picture it if you can,
00:07:32.81\00:07:34.55
the doors of the
assembly were open one day,
00:07:34.58\00:07:37.95
and the legislators marched in
00:07:37.99\00:07:39.95
singing a hymn in
praise of liberty.
00:07:39.99\00:07:42.62
They're accompanied
by a band of musicians.
00:07:42.66\00:07:45.36
But listen to this,
00:07:45.39\00:07:46.90
these legislators escorted in
00:07:46.93\00:07:49.23
as the object of their
worship, a veiled woman.
00:07:49.26\00:07:52.93
Once inside, she was
unveiled with great ceremony
00:07:57.47\00:08:01.24
and placed beside the president.
00:08:01.28\00:08:03.38
Everybody recognized her as
a dancing girl of the opera.
00:08:03.41\00:08:07.25
But this woman was considered
the most appropriate symbol
00:08:07.28\00:08:12.35
of the philosophy of
reason that they now worshiped.
00:08:12.39\00:08:15.66
God was officially replaced
by this goddess of reason
00:08:15.69\00:08:19.89
and this
defiant act was imitated
00:08:19.93\00:08:23.13
over and over throughout France.
00:08:23.16\00:08:25.03
The very people
00:08:39.78\00:08:41.12
who stormed the
Bastille in the name of liberty,
00:08:41.15\00:08:43.85
eventually came to impose
00:08:43.89\00:08:45.55
their own atheistic
religion on the people.
00:08:45.59\00:08:48.62
Little did the leaders
of the revolution foresee
00:08:48.66\00:08:50.73
the result of their
foolish and fateful policy.
00:08:50.76\00:08:55.26
Unhappy France was soon
to reap in blood the harvest
00:08:55.30\00:09:00.47
she had sown.
00:09:00.50\00:09:02.14
The results of
rejecting the Bible
00:09:02.17\00:09:04.01
and dismissing God's law
were immediate and terrible.
00:09:04.04\00:09:09.31
The promise of
liberty, equality and fraternity
00:09:09.34\00:09:12.98
turned into the
rule of the guillotine.
00:09:13.01\00:09:15.85
On the very spot
where the martyrs
00:09:21.69\00:09:23.73
have been burned
in the 16th century,
00:09:23.76\00:09:26.26
the Revolution set
up its first guillotine.
00:09:26.29\00:09:29.50
The war against the Bible
had become the reign of terror.
00:09:29.53\00:09:33.60
No one was secure.
00:09:33.64\00:09:35.80
The person who led
00:09:35.84\00:09:37.17
and triumphed
today was condemned
00:09:37.21\00:09:39.87
and executed tomorrow.
00:09:39.91\00:09:43.65
De Robespierre,
foremost revolutionary leader
00:09:43.68\00:09:47.22
became in effect
an absolute dictator.
00:09:47.25\00:09:50.82
His principal tool of government
00:09:50.85\00:09:52.69
became the guillotine.
00:09:52.72\00:09:55.09
He ordered the execution of
thousands by the guillotine.
00:09:55.12\00:10:00.46
But finally, he himself
fell victim to the guillotine.
00:10:00.50\00:10:05.30
Violence and lust ruled the day.
00:10:05.33\00:10:09.60
The people had
learned cruelty all too well.
00:10:09.64\00:10:12.94
Now, the scaffolds
ran red with blood.
00:10:12.97\00:10:16.68
The galleys and the
prisons were filled.
00:10:16.71\00:10:19.35
Spies lurked on every corner.
00:10:19.38\00:10:21.85
The guillotine worked endlessly.
00:10:21.88\00:10:24.95
But the blade of
the deadly machine
00:10:24.99\00:10:27.69
was too slow for
their work of slaughter,
00:10:27.72\00:10:30.26
that killing must increase.
00:10:30.29\00:10:33.36
So, long rows of captives
were mowed down with grapeshot.
00:10:33.40\00:10:37.97
But even
atheistic France saw that
00:10:42.84\00:10:45.21
she was ruining itself.
00:10:45.24\00:10:47.88
Three and a half godless
years was all she could take.
00:10:47.91\00:10:52.48
Three and a half years
after the French Assembly
00:10:52.51\00:10:54.92
had abolished the
Christian religion
00:10:54.95\00:10:56.58
and banned the Bible,
00:10:56.62\00:10:58.75
a resolution rescinding
00:10:58.79\00:11:00.42
those decrees was
adopted by the same assembly.
00:11:00.46\00:11:05.59
France had had enough
00:11:05.63\00:11:09.20
and the watching
world stood aghast
00:11:09.23\00:11:11.97
at the frightful
result of rejecting the Bible
00:11:12.00\00:11:15.94
and its principles.
00:11:15.97\00:11:17.31
Let me bring you
another story from France.
00:11:24.15\00:11:27.18
Because in those dark centuries,
00:11:27.22\00:11:29.48
when millions of
martyrs died for their faith,
00:11:29.52\00:11:33.02
the light of God's Word
was never wholly extinguished.
00:11:33.05\00:11:37.43
It was always burning some way.
00:11:37.46\00:11:40.46
Listen to what the
Gospel of John says.
00:11:40.50\00:11:42.70
In John 1:5,
00:11:42.73\00:11:45.97
"The light still
shines in the darkness,
00:11:46.00\00:11:49.00
and the darkness
has never put it out."
00:11:49.04\00:11:52.37
There is no more
inspiring chapter
00:11:58.48\00:12:00.28
here in France than
the story of Marie Durand,
00:12:00.32\00:12:03.89
a brave young woman who
remained faithful to God
00:12:03.92\00:12:07.42
and the teachings of the Bible,
00:12:07.46\00:12:09.49
through the most
devastating persecution
00:12:09.52\00:12:12.53
and hardship.
00:12:12.56\00:12:13.96
Here's what happened.
00:12:14.00\00:12:15.46
For centuries, the
Bible had been locked up
00:12:20.77\00:12:24.11
in languages
00:12:24.14\00:12:25.47
known only to
the learned scholars,
00:12:25.51\00:12:27.48
but this changed
with the invention
00:12:27.51\00:12:29.24
of the printing press,
00:12:29.28\00:12:30.85
and the translation of the Bible
00:12:30.88\00:12:32.31
in different countries
00:12:32.35\00:12:34.02
into the language
of the common people.
00:12:34.05\00:12:36.75
The first complete
French Bible was translated
00:12:36.79\00:12:39.92
by Jacques Lefèvre d'Etaples,
00:12:39.95\00:12:42.59
a professor here at
the Saint-Germain-des-Prés,
00:12:42.62\00:12:46.03
and later it moved and
published in the year 1530.
00:12:46.06\00:12:50.47
He placed in the
hands of the French people,
00:12:50.50\00:12:53.74
a light that would
never be extinguished.
00:12:53.77\00:12:57.31
The availability of the
Bible in the local language,
00:12:57.34\00:13:00.58
allowed the ordinary
French people to read
00:13:00.61\00:13:04.08
and study the
scriptures for themselves.
00:13:04.11\00:13:08.48
Many of them decided
00:13:08.52\00:13:09.98
to base all of
their religious beliefs
00:13:10.02\00:13:12.59
and practices on what
they read in the Bible
00:13:12.62\00:13:16.66
rather than the rituals
00:13:16.69\00:13:18.59
and traditions
of the state church.
00:13:18.63\00:13:22.56
These French Bible
believing Christians
00:13:22.60\00:13:25.73
came to be
commonly known as Huguenots.
00:13:25.77\00:13:30.07
These Huguenots lived a
life of simple faith in God,
00:13:30.11\00:13:35.54
that believed
that the Bible alone
00:13:35.58\00:13:38.78
is the source of all
religious belief in practice.
00:13:38.81\00:13:41.88
As the Huguenots
gained influence,
00:14:00.60\00:14:03.20
and openly displayed their faith
00:14:03.24\00:14:05.17
and belief in the Bible,
00:14:05.21\00:14:07.34
they encountered
growing hostility
00:14:07.38\00:14:09.24
and persecution from the church
00:14:09.28\00:14:11.41
and the monarchy.
00:14:11.45\00:14:12.91
They were branded
heretics and outlaws
00:14:12.95\00:14:15.85
simply because
they desired to live
00:14:15.88\00:14:18.19
and worship
according to their conscience
00:14:18.22\00:14:21.29
and the Bible.
00:14:21.32\00:14:22.66
The persecution
increased across France
00:14:27.53\00:14:30.47
until these Bible believing
Christians lost all freedom.
00:14:30.50\00:14:34.87
Their houses and
churches were destroyed.
00:14:34.90\00:14:37.94
Their precious
Bibles were burned,
00:14:37.97\00:14:40.98
their marriages
weren't recognized.
00:14:41.01\00:14:43.04
Their children were
considered illegitimate.
00:14:43.08\00:14:46.45
They were unable to work.
00:14:46.48\00:14:48.52
Their dead weren't
allowed to be buried,
00:14:48.55\00:14:51.25
but were thrown
on rubbish dumps.
00:14:51.29\00:14:54.79
They had to meet in secret,
hiding and worshiping in caves,
00:15:08.87\00:15:13.31
in forests and
in isolated areas.
00:15:13.34\00:15:16.85
Many Huguenots who
stayed true to the Bible
00:15:16.88\00:15:19.21
and its teachings
were tortured here
00:15:19.25\00:15:21.68
at the Tower of Quest,
00:15:21.72\00:15:23.25
a notorious prison
00:15:23.28\00:15:25.09
where many
Huguenots were imprisoned.
00:15:25.12\00:15:27.69
The tower
dominates the landscape.
00:15:27.72\00:15:30.33
It's 52 meters high,
00:15:30.36\00:15:32.33
and is the tallest
prison tower in France,
00:15:32.36\00:15:35.50
and was called
the Southern Bastille.
00:15:35.53\00:15:38.10
Bible believing Christians
were imprisoned in a room
00:15:47.81\00:15:51.01
called The Birdcage,
00:15:51.05\00:15:53.11
which was cut
into the solid rock,
00:15:53.15\00:15:55.82
making escape impossible.
00:15:55.85\00:15:58.05
Six large iron hooks a
little below the windows
00:16:00.92\00:16:03.93
on the outside of the tower
00:16:03.96\00:16:05.86
were used to suspend
the bodies of the tortured
00:16:05.89\00:16:08.73
and executed Huguenots.
00:16:08.76\00:16:10.93
They were hung there
in public as a warning
00:16:10.97\00:16:13.77
to anyone who dared
read and study the Bible.
00:16:13.80\00:16:19.64
Many of the Huguenots
who survived these tortures
00:16:19.67\00:16:22.11
and imprisonment were forced
00:16:22.14\00:16:23.81
to flee to foreign countries
where they could worship God
00:16:23.85\00:16:27.32
according to their conscience
and the teaching of the Bible.
00:16:27.35\00:16:30.79
Life was
difficult and dangerous.
00:16:39.06\00:16:42.40
Huguenot families that
chose to stay on in France
00:16:42.43\00:16:46.23
lived a life of secrecy.
00:16:46.27\00:16:48.20
In their homes,
00:16:48.24\00:16:49.57
they built special hiding places
00:16:49.60\00:16:51.27
for the family Bible,
and even family members.
00:16:51.31\00:16:55.28
They raised their
children with constant danger
00:16:55.31\00:16:58.01
and uncertainty
hanging over them
00:16:58.05\00:17:00.18
and threatening their future.
00:17:00.22\00:17:02.28
The church and
the king of France
00:17:02.32\00:17:04.65
were determined to destroy them.
00:17:04.69\00:17:07.16
It was into this dangerous time
00:17:17.30\00:17:19.57
that Marie
Durand was born in 1711
00:17:19.60\00:17:23.41
here in this small
village of Bouschet de Pranles.
00:17:23.44\00:17:29.14
This is a childhood home.
00:17:29.18\00:17:31.51
Marie's family chose to
remain true to the Bible
00:17:31.55\00:17:34.05
and its teachings,
even if it meant practicing
00:17:34.08\00:17:36.92
their religion in secret
and living in constant danger.
00:17:36.95\00:17:41.09
When Marie was a young
girl, her mother Claudine
00:17:41.12\00:17:44.66
was arrested after
attending a secret Bible service
00:17:44.69\00:17:47.86
and died soon after.
00:17:47.90\00:17:49.80
Marie's older brother Pierre
00:17:49.83\00:17:52.03
became one of
the Huguenot leaders.
00:17:52.07\00:17:54.37
He preached in open fields,
00:17:54.40\00:17:56.17
caves and secret
locations to people
00:17:56.20\00:17:59.47
who loved the
Bible and its teachings.
00:17:59.51\00:18:02.14
He was branded an outlaw
00:18:05.88\00:18:07.62
because of his
so-called subversive activities.
00:18:07.65\00:18:11.52
But the cruel officials
were unable to capture him.
00:18:11.55\00:18:15.62
And so they arrested
Marie's father instead,
00:18:15.66\00:18:19.13
before he was imprisoned
00:18:19.16\00:18:20.90
Etienne Durand
married his young daughter
00:18:20.93\00:18:23.70
to Matthew Serres,
00:18:23.73\00:18:25.23
hoping that he would
be able to care for her
00:18:25.27\00:18:28.50
and protect her.
00:18:28.54\00:18:29.87
But the plan failed.
00:18:36.64\00:18:38.55
When in 1730, at
the age of just 19,
00:18:38.58\00:18:43.18
Marie Durand was
arrested and taken from a home
00:18:43.22\00:18:46.82
and imprisoned in the
dreaded Tower of Constance
00:18:46.86\00:18:50.03
in Aigues-Mortes.
00:18:50.06\00:18:52.63
She never saw her husband again.
00:18:52.66\00:18:55.80
She was to be used as bait
00:18:55.83\00:18:58.13
to capture her
Bible preaching brother.
00:18:58.17\00:19:01.34
The husband Matthew
00:19:01.37\00:19:02.84
was soon imprisoned
along with a father.
00:19:02.87\00:19:06.37
Pierre was told
that if he surrendered,
00:19:06.41\00:19:09.14
his sister and
father would be freed.
00:19:09.18\00:19:12.58
In 1732, Pierre was
captured and hanged.
00:19:12.61\00:19:18.42
Their only crime, they read
00:19:18.45\00:19:20.86
and believed the
teachings of the Bible.
00:19:20.89\00:19:23.66
Marie Durand was 19
00:19:29.03\00:19:30.57
when she crossed the moat
and into the tower prison.
00:19:30.60\00:19:35.80
She was commanded to
deny her Huguenot belief,
00:19:35.84\00:19:39.11
her faith in the
Bible and its teachings.
00:19:39.14\00:19:42.28
Marie was promised a freedom,
00:19:42.31\00:19:44.75
she only had to
say J'abjure, I deny.
00:19:44.78\00:19:48.68
But Marie would not deny
Christ and His Word, the Bible.
00:20:07.34\00:20:12.24
So she was imprisoned
00:20:12.27\00:20:13.61
in the terrible
tower by the sea.
00:20:13.64\00:20:16.38
The prisoners were kept
00:20:16.41\00:20:17.75
in the upper level of the tower.
00:20:17.78\00:20:20.38
Very little light and air
00:20:20.42\00:20:22.72
came through the narrow windows.
00:20:22.75\00:20:25.05
The prison was always
freezing cold in winter,
00:20:25.09\00:20:28.82
and extremely hot in summer.
00:20:28.86\00:20:30.83
Just saying one word J'abjure
00:20:36.56\00:20:39.93
would have
secured Marie's freedom.
00:20:39.97\00:20:42.54
It's not a lot to say.
00:20:42.57\00:20:44.64
Such a seemingly small
price to pay for a freedom,
00:20:44.67\00:20:48.64
deny her faith, deny the Bible,
00:20:48.68\00:20:51.78
and she could be free.
00:20:51.81\00:20:53.68
She could have been
back home in a village,
00:20:53.72\00:20:56.72
out in the
sunshine and fresh air,
00:20:56.75\00:20:59.95
enjoying better food,
activity and friendship,
00:20:59.99\00:21:04.56
and possibly a new marriage
and a family of her own.
00:21:04.59\00:21:09.13
But for 38 long years,
00:21:09.16\00:21:13.40
she continued to
refuse to utter that
00:21:13.44\00:21:15.40
one short word J'abjure.
00:21:15.44\00:21:19.74
Marie refused to
deny her faith in Jesus
00:21:19.77\00:21:22.88
and turn her back on the Bible.
00:21:22.91\00:21:26.95
She refused the liberty
00:21:26.98\00:21:29.18
that came at the
expense of her faith.
00:21:29.22\00:21:32.19
Instead of saying J'abjure,
00:21:45.07\00:21:47.80
Marie scratched
into the cold stone floor
00:21:47.84\00:21:50.31
of her dungeon,
00:21:50.34\00:21:51.67
the word resistor,
which means I resist,
00:21:51.71\00:21:57.35
it's still visible here today.
00:21:57.38\00:21:59.65
I resist.
00:21:59.68\00:22:02.35
Marie never wavered
in her strength or faith.
00:22:02.38\00:22:05.59
Despite a young age,
00:22:17.73\00:22:19.63
Marie became a
source of strength
00:22:19.67\00:22:21.47
and encouragement
to the other prisoners.
00:22:21.50\00:22:24.51
For 38 years,
she served as nurse
00:22:24.54\00:22:27.41
and spiritual
leader in the tower prison.
00:22:27.44\00:22:30.81
She recited songs,
encouraged the dying,
00:22:30.85\00:22:34.65
sang hymns and prayed daily.
00:22:34.68\00:22:37.42
Her faith lightened the darkness
00:22:37.45\00:22:40.66
and despair of the dungeon.
00:22:40.69\00:22:42.82
She also acted as
official correspondent,
00:22:50.00\00:22:53.13
writing letters for
those who couldn't write
00:22:53.17\00:22:55.80
and sending petitions
00:22:55.84\00:22:57.17
to government officials
00:22:57.21\00:22:58.67
pleading for
assistance and release.
00:22:58.71\00:23:00.68
In 1767, the local
governor visited the prison
00:23:07.48\00:23:11.95
and was
horrified by the conditions
00:23:11.99\00:23:15.19
the women endured
inside the Tower of Constance.
00:23:15.22\00:23:18.39
He ordered the prisoners release
00:23:18.43\00:23:20.23
against the will of the king.
00:23:20.26\00:23:23.63
Remember, Marie
Durand was just 19
00:23:23.67\00:23:27.00
when she entered
the tower prison.
00:23:27.04\00:23:29.64
She was 57
00:23:29.67\00:23:31.67
when she walked
out of the tower,
00:23:31.71\00:23:33.71
and back across the moat.
00:23:33.74\00:23:35.84
She had entered as
a young teenage bride,
00:23:35.88\00:23:38.71
she emerged as a
stooped gray-haired woman.
00:23:38.75\00:23:42.72
Marie returned to
her childhood home
00:23:51.39\00:23:53.40
in Bouschet de Pranles.
00:23:53.43\00:23:57.07
She was the sole
survivor of a cruel attack,
00:23:57.10\00:24:00.00
mounted against her
faith and her family.
00:24:00.04\00:24:03.61
Her father spent much
of his life in prison.
00:24:03.64\00:24:06.41
Her brother had
been executed long before
00:24:06.44\00:24:09.74
and her husband disappeared
00:24:09.78\00:24:11.91
while in custody and
sadly, she never saw him again.
00:24:11.95\00:24:16.52
Maria herself died in
1776, after only nine years
00:24:16.55\00:24:21.36
of freedom outside the tower.
00:24:21.39\00:24:26.06
Branded a heretic by
the state and the church,
00:24:26.09\00:24:31.07
Marie simply
wanted to live and worship
00:24:31.10\00:24:33.40
according to her conscience,
and the Bible she loved.
00:24:33.44\00:24:37.64
Her faith was more important
to her than her freedom.
00:24:37.67\00:24:41.51
She gladly forfeited her freedom
00:24:41.54\00:24:44.41
rather than renounce her faith.
00:24:44.45\00:24:46.58
Such is the story of
the French Huguenots,
00:24:54.62\00:24:58.39
Bible truth survived
in the darkest centuries,
00:24:58.43\00:25:01.93
the torch of
truth, even when the winds
00:25:01.96\00:25:04.33
of persecution
blew most fiercely
00:25:04.37\00:25:07.07
was never
completely extinguished.
00:25:07.10\00:25:09.80
The darkness
couldn't put it out.
00:25:09.84\00:25:15.31
Even atheistic
France would endure
00:25:15.34\00:25:17.78
only three and a half
years without the Bible.
00:25:17.81\00:25:20.62
But millions in all
ages have refused to live
00:25:20.65\00:25:24.22
without it for a single day.
00:25:24.25\00:25:26.89
The Bible has been
ridiculed, it's been forbidden,
00:25:26.92\00:25:30.16
it's been
banned, it's been burned.
00:25:30.19\00:25:33.13
But no enemy or
combination of enemies
00:25:33.16\00:25:36.77
could extinguish its light
in the hearts of the people.
00:25:36.80\00:25:40.37
Have you experienced the peace,
00:25:46.31\00:25:48.14
understanding and hope
that only the Bible can bring?
00:25:48.18\00:25:52.48
If you would like
to know why this book
00:25:52.51\00:25:54.75
has been cherished by so many,
00:25:54.78\00:25:56.99
and what the Bible says about
00:25:57.02\00:25:58.95
what is happening in our world,
00:25:58.99\00:26:00.96
then I'd like to
recommend the free gift
00:26:00.99\00:26:03.53
we have for you today.
00:26:03.56\00:26:05.59
It's a Bible.
00:26:05.63\00:26:07.36
It's the most widely
read book in the world,
00:26:07.40\00:26:09.96
and shares the story
of God's love for us.
00:26:10.00\00:26:13.27
This most loved book
00:26:13.30\00:26:15.24
is our gift to you
and is absolutely free.
00:26:15.27\00:26:18.67
I guarantee there are no
costs or obligations whatsoever.
00:26:18.71\00:26:23.11
So make the most of
this wonderful opportunity
00:26:23.14\00:26:26.61
to receive your very own Bible.
00:26:26.65\00:26:31.49
Phone or text us at
0436 333 555 in Australia,
00:26:31.52\00:26:37.39
or 020 422 2042 in New Zealand,
00:26:37.43\00:26:42.33
or visit our website TiJ.tv
to request today's free offer
00:26:42.36\00:26:48.00
and we'll send it to
you totally free of charge
00:26:48.04\00:26:50.91
and with no obligation.
00:26:50.94\00:26:52.64
Write to us at GPO box 274,
00:26:52.67\00:26:55.74
Sydney, New South
Wales 2001, Australia
00:26:55.78\00:26:59.25
or PO Box 76673,
00:26:59.28\00:27:03.08
Manukau, Auckland
2241, New Zealand.
00:27:03.12\00:27:06.55
Don't delay,
call or text us now.
00:27:06.59\00:27:08.66
If you've enjoyed
our visit to France
00:27:13.29\00:27:15.23
during the 1500s
and our reflections
00:27:15.26\00:27:18.40
on what the Bible meant
to the Huguenot people then
00:27:18.43\00:27:21.37
and what it can
mean to us today.
00:27:21.40\00:27:24.04
Then be sure to
join us again next week,
00:27:24.07\00:27:26.88
when we will share another
of life's journeys together.
00:27:26.91\00:27:30.61
Until then, why
not make a decision
00:27:30.65\00:27:33.68
to read your Bible every
day and see the blessings
00:27:33.72\00:27:37.65
it will bring to you.
00:27:37.69\00:27:39.75
Dear Heavenly Father,
we thank You for the love
00:27:39.79\00:27:42.82
and guidance you
share with us in the Bible.
00:27:42.86\00:27:46.36
We thank You for the
example of the Huguenots
00:27:46.39\00:27:49.03
who treasured their Bibles.
00:27:49.06\00:27:51.33
We want to find out
more about Your love for us
00:27:51.37\00:27:54.47
and Your plans for this world.
00:27:54.50\00:27:57.31
Please guide us in
our search for truth.
00:27:57.34\00:28:00.44
In Jesus' name we pray, amen.
00:28:00.48\00:28:03.35