1. A solemn declaration of opinion, commonly against some act; appropriately, a formal and solemn declaration in writing of dissent from the proceedings of a legislative body; as the protest of lords in parliament, or a like declaration of dissent of any minority against the proceedings of a majority of a body of men.
2. In commerce, a formal declaration made by a notary public, under hand and seal, at the request of the payee or holder of a bill of exchange, for non-acceptance or non-payment of the same, protesting against the drawer and others concerned, for the exchange, charges, damages and interest. This protest is written on a copy of the bill, and notice given to the indorser of the same, by which he becomes liable to pay the amount of the bill, with charges, damages and interest; also, a like declaration against the drawer of a note of hand for non-payment to a banking corporation, and of the master of a vessel against seizure, etc. A protest is also a writing attested by a justice of the peace or consul, drawn by the master of a vessel, stating the severity of the voyage by which the ship has suffered, and showing that the damage suffered was not owing to the neglect or misconduct of the master.
1. To affirm with solemnity; to make a solemn declaration of a fact or opinion; as, I protest to you, I have no knowledge of the transaction.
2. To make a solemn declaration expressive of opposition; with against; as, he protests against your votes.
3. The conscience has power to protest against the exorbitancies of the passions.
4. To make a formal declaration in writing against a public law or measure. It is the privilege of any lord in parliament to protest against a law or resolution.
5. To prove; to show; to give evidence of. [Not in use.]
6. In commerce, to protest a bill of exchange, is for a notary public, at the request of the payee, to make a formal declaration under hand and seal, against the drawer of the bill, on account of non-acceptance or non-payment, for exchange, cost, commissions, damages and interest; of which act the indorser must be notified within such time as the law or custom prescribes. In like manner, notes of hand given to a banking corporation are protested for non-payment.
1. A solemn declaration of opinion, commonly a formal objection against some act; especially, a formal and solemn declaration, in writing, of dissent from the proceedings of a legislative body; as, the protest of lords in Parliament.
2. A solemn declaration in writing, in due form, made by a notary public, usually under his notarial seal, on behalf of the holder of a bill or note, protesting against all parties liable for any loss or damage by the nonacceptance or nonpayment of the bill, or by the nonpayment of the note, as the case may be.
3. A declaration made by the master of a vessel before a notary, consul, or other authorized officer, upon his arrival in port after a disaster, stating the particulars of it, and showing that any damage or loss sustained was not owing to the fault of the vessel, her officers or crew, but to the perils of the sea, etc., ads the case may be, and protesting against them.
4. A declaration made by a party, before or while paying a tax, duty, or the like, demanded of him, which he deems illegal, denying the justice of the demand, and asserting his rights and claims, in order to show that the payment was not voluntary.
PROTEST ANTEN VEREIN is the name of a society in Germany the general object of which is to promote the union and the progress of the various established Protestant churches of the country in harmony with the advance of culture and on the basis of Christianity. It was founded at Frankfort-on-the-Main in 1863 by a number of distinguished clergymen and laymen of liberal tendencies, representing the freer parties of the Lutheran and Reformed churches of the various German states, amongst whom were the statesmen Bluntschli and Von Bennigsen and the professors Rothe, Ewald, Schenkel, Hilgenfeld, and Hitzig. The more special objects of the association are the following :—the development of the churches on the basis of a representative parochial and synodal system of government in which the laity shall enjoy their full rights; the promotion of a federation of all the churches in one national church; resistance to all hierarchical tendencies both within and without the Protestant churches; the promotion of Christian toleration and mutual respect amongst the various confessions; the rousing and nurture of the Christian life and of all Christian works necessary for the moral strength and prosperity of the nation. These objects include opposition to the claims of Rome and to autocratic interference with the church on the part of either political or ecclesiastical authorities, efforts to induce the laity to claim and exercise their privileges as members of the church, the assertion of the right of the clergy, laity, and both lay and clerical professors to search for and proclaim freely the truth in independence of the creeds and the letter of Scripture. When the association was first formed the necessity for it was felt to be great. The separation between the Calvinistic and the ...Lutheran churches on the one hand, and between the churches of the various states on the other, even when the former separation had been bridged over by the Prussian Union; the entire absence of any satisfactory system of church government, the autocratic authority of either the monarch or his ministers, or of the clergy, being supreme; the increasing encroachments of the papal power upon the rights of the individual and the state; the growing estrangement of the educated classes from the church on the one hand, with the manifestation of either ignorance of the fact or a determination to meet it with bitter denunciation on the part of the orthodox clergy on the other, were regarded as urgent calls to action by the liberals. Membership in the association is open to all Germans who are Protestants and declare their willingness to cooperate in promoting its objects. To facilitate its operations, the general association is broken up into a few groups or societies confined to certain geographical areas. Every second year (at first every year) general meetings of the entire association are held at some convenient place. At first the governing committee had its permanent seat at Heidelberg, but in 1874 Berlin, as. the new capital of the empire, was chosen. The means used to promote the objects aimed at are mainly (1) the formation of local branch associations throughout the country, the duty of which is by lectures, meetings, and the distribution of suitable literature to make known and advocate its principles, and (2) the holding of great annual or biennial meetings of the whole association, at which its objects and principles are expounded and applied to the circumstances of the church at the moment. The “theses” accepted by the general meetings of the association as the result of the discussions on the papers read indicate the theological position of its members. The following may serve as illustrations :—
The creeds of the Protestant church shut the doors on the past only, hut open them for advance in the future; it is immoral and contrary to true Protestantism to require subscription to them. The limits of the freedom of teaching are not prescribed by the letter of Scripture, but a fundamental requirement of Protestantism is free inquiry in and about the Scriptures. The attempt to limit the freedom of theological inquiry and teaching in the universities is a violation of the vital principle of Protestantism. Only such conceptions of the person of Jesus can satisfy the religious necessities of this age as fully recognize the idea of his humanity and place in history. The higher reason only has unconditional authority, and the Bible must justify itself before its tribunal; we find the history of divine revelation and its fulfilment in the Bible alone, and reason bids us regard the Bible as the only authority and canon in matters-of religious belief.
The formation of the association at once provoked fierce and determined opposition on the part of the orthodox sections of the church, particularly in Berlin. Attempts more or less successful have been made from the first to excludeclergymen and professors identified with it from the pulpits and chairs of Berlin and elsewhere, though membership in it involves no legal disqualification for either. One of the objects of the association was to some extent obtained by the reorganization of the Prussian Church when Dr Falk was cultus minister, on the basis of parochial and synodal representation, which came into full operation in 1879. But the election for the general synod turned out very unfavourable to the liberal party, and the large orthodox majority endeavoured to use their power against the principles and the members of the association. The members of the association elected to the general synod were nine only, while the party of the decidedly orthodox numbered upwards of seventy. In 1882 the position of the association was rendered still more difficult by the agitation in Berlin of Dr Kalthoff and other members of it in favour of a “people’s church” on purely dissenting and extremely advanced theological principles. The turn of the political tide in the direction of conservatism in Berlin indicated by the retirement of the cultus minister Dr Falk increased the difficulties and the work of the association, far as Dr Falk was from sanctioning its theological principles. Moreover, it had sustained severe losses in its membership by death and other causes.
At the end of the twelfth year of its existence (1877) the association had 7500 members, its annual income was nearly £350, and it had distributed in the same year 10,000 copies of its publications. In 1880 the number of members had risen to 26,000, and of local associations to 80.
See Schenkel, Der Deutsche Protestantenverein und seine Bedeutung für die Gegenwart (Wiesbaden, 1868, 2d ed. 1871); Der Deutsche Protestantenverein in seinen Statuten und den Thesen seiner Hauptversammlungen, 1865-82 (Berlin, 1883), and the annual reports in the Allgemeine Kirchliche Kronit, 1865-82, and Theological Review, July 1869, pp. 289-96.
9th ed. Encyclopædia Britannica, vol. 19, p. 825 [1,133 words — estimated reading time: 7 minutes]
Pertaining to those who, at the reformation of religion, protested against a decree of Charles V. and the diet of Spires; pertaining to the adherents of Luther, or others of the reformed churches; as the protestant religion.
One of the party who adhered to Luther at the reformation in 1529, and protested, or made a solemn declaration of dissent from a decree of the emperor Charles V. and the diet of Spires, and appealed to a general council. This name was afterwards extended to the followers of Calvin, and Protestants is the denomination now given to all who belong to the reformed churches. The king of Prussia has, however, interdicted the use of this name in his dominions.
One who protests; -- originally applied to those who adhered to Luther, and protested against, or made a solemn declaration of dissent from, a decree of the Emperor Charles V. and the Diet of Spires, in 1529, against the Reformers, and appealed to a general council; -- now used in a popular sense to designate any Christian who does not belong to the Roman Catholic or the Greek Church.
The Emperor Charles V. called a diet at Spire, in 1529, to request aid from the German princes against the Turks, and to devise the most effectual means for allaying the religious disputes which then raged in consequence of Luther’s opposition to the established religion. In this diet it was decreed by Ferdinand, archduke of Austria, and other popish princes, that in the countries which had embraced the new religion it should be lawful to continue in it till the meeting of a council; but that no Roman Catholic should be allowed to turn Lutheran, and that the reformers should deliver nothing in their sermons contrary to the received doctrine of the church. Against this decree, six Lutheran princes, namely, John and George, the electors of Saxony and Brandenburg, Ernest and Francis, the two dukes of Lunenburg, the landgrave of Hesse, and the prince of Anhalt, with the deputies of thirteen imperial towns, namely, Strasburg, Ulm, Nuremberg, Constance, Rottingen, Windsheim, Memmingen, Nortlingen, Lindaw, Kempten, Hailbron, Wissemburg, and St. Gall, formally and solemnly _protested_ and declared that they appealed to a general council; and hence the name of Protestants, by which the followers of Luther have ever since been known. Nor was it confined to them; for it soon after included the Calvinists, and has now of a long time been applied generally to the Christian sects, of whatever denomination, and in whatever country they may be found, which have separated from the see of Rome.
Mr. Chillingworth, addressing himself to a writer in favour of the church of Rome, speaks of the religion of the Protestants in the following excellent terms: “Know then, sir, that when I say the religion of Protestants is in prudence to be preferred before yours, on the one side, I do not ...understand by your religion the doctrine of Bellarmine, or Baronius, or any other private man among you, nor the doctrine of the Sorbonne, of the Jesuits, or of the Dominicans, or of any other particular company among you, but that wherein you all agree, or profess to agree, the doctrine of the council of Trent; so, accordingly, on the other side, by the religion of Protestants, I do not understand the doctrine of Luther, or Calvin, or Melancthon, nor the confession of Augsburg, or Geneva, nor the catechism of Heidelberg, nor the articles of the church of England; no, nor the harmony of Protestant confessions; but that in which they all agree, and which they all subscribe with a greater harmony, as a perfect rule of faith and action; that is, the Bible. The Bible, I say, the Bible only, is the religion of Protestants. Whatsoever else they believe beside it, and the plain, irrefragable, indubitable consequences of it, well may they hold it as a matter of opinion; but as a matter of faith and religion, neither can they with coherence to their own grounds believe it themselves, nor require belief of it of others, without most high and most schismaticalpresumption. I, for my part, after a long, and, as I verily believe and hope, impartial, search of the true way to eternal happiness, do profess plainly that I cannot find any rest for the sole of my foot but upon this rock only. I see plainly, and with my own eyes, that there are popes against popes, and councils against councils; some fathers against other fathers, the same fathers against themselves; a consent of fathers of one age against a consent of fathers of another age; traditive interpretations of Scripture are pretended, but there are few or none to be found; no tradition but that of Scripture can derive itself from the fountain, but may be plainly proved either to have been brought in in such an age after Christ, or that in such an age it was not in. In a word, there is no sufficient certainty but of Scripture only for any considering man to build upon. This, therefore, and this only, I have reason to believe. This I will profess; according to this I will live; and for this, if there be occasion, I will not only willingly, but even gladly, lose my life, though I should be sorry that Christians should take it from me. Propose me any thing out of this book, and require whether I believe or no, and, seem it never so incomprehensible to human reason, I will subscribe it with hand and heart, as knowing no demonstration can be stronger than this, God hath said so, therefore it is true. In other things, I will take no man’s liberty of judging from him; neither shall any man take mine from me.”
Under such views the Bible is held as the only sure foundation upon which all true Protestants build every article of the faith which they profess, and every point of doctrine which they teach; and all other foundations, whether they be the decisions of councils, the confessions of churches, the prescripts of popes, or the expositions of private men, are considered by them as sandy and unsafe, or as in nowise to be ultimately relied on. Yet, on the other hand, they by no means fastidiouslyreject them as of no use; for while they admit the Bible, or the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament, to be the only infallible rule by which we must measure the truth or falsehood of every religious opinion, they are sensible that all men are not equally fitted to understand or to apply this rule; and that the wisest men want, on many occasions, all the helps afforded by the learning and research of others to enable them to understand its precise nature, and to define its certain extent. These helps are great and numerous, having been supplied, in every age of the church, by the united labours of learned men in every country, and by none in greater abundance than by those in Protestant communions.
PROTESTANTS is the generic term for members of the churches which owe their origin directly or indirectly to the Reformation (γ.v.). The name is derived from the Protest of Spires in 1529 (see Luther, vol. xv. p. 80). Certain small communities of Christians older than the Reformation, but agreeing with it in rejecting the authority of Rome, are generally and quite logically grouped as Protestants; and popularly the name is considered to include all Christians who do not belong to the Greek and Roman Catholic communions, though members of the Anglican Church, for example, frequently protest against such a classification as historically false and personally obnoxious. Protestantism has flourished best among the Teutonic peoples of Northern Europe, and has always found it difficult to make its way among the Latin peoples of the South.
The following table shows approximately the number of Protestants in the world :—
[table]
This totalof 115,000,000 is for obvious reasons considerably within the truth. Making allowance for increase of population since v°∣ π Jιn∩ nnn ξ, en8 ^ 8 re turns, it will probably be not beyond the mark to state the Protestants of Europe at 81,000,000, of America at o4,000,000, of Asia and Australasia at 3,300,000, and of Africa at 850,000, and the total Γn round numbers at 120,000,000. As regards .∣nope, compare Brachelli, Die Staaten Europa’s, 1884. Juraschek in his edition of Otto Hiibner’s Geograph.-statistische Tabellen, öö4, gives 123,000,000 Protestants, or 8 - 5 per cent, of the total population of the world, which he states at 1,435,000,000.
9th ed. Encyclopædia Britannica, vol. 19, p. 826 [270 words — estimated reading time: 2 minutes]
1. A solemn declaration of a fact, opinion or resolution.
2. A solemn declaration of dissent; a protest; as the protestation of certain noblemen against an order of council.
3. In law, a declaration in pleading, by which the party interposes an oblique allegation or denial of some fact, protesting that it does or does not exist. The lord may allege the villenage of the plaintiff by way of protestation and thus deny the demand.
1. The act of making a protest; a public avowal; a solemn declaration, especially of dissent.
2. Formerly, a declaration in common-law pleading, by which the party interposes an oblique allegation or denial of some fact, protesting that it does or does not exist, and at the same time avoiding a direct affirmation or denial.
V. dissent, demur, call in question, differ in opinion, disagree, say no, refuse assent, refuse to admit, cavil, protest, raise one's voice against, repudiate, contradict, have no notion of, differ toto caelo, revolt at, revolt from the idea, shake the head, shrug the shoulders, look askance, look askant, secede, recant
V. assert, make an assertion, have one's say, say, affirm, predicate, declare, state, protest, profess, put forth, put forward, advance, allege, propose, propound, enunciate, broach, set forth, hold out, maintain, contend, pronounce, pretend, depose, depone, aver, avow, avouch, asseverate, swear, make oath, take one's oath, make an affidavit, swear an affidavit, put in an affidavit, take one's bible oath, kiss the book, vow, vitam impendere vero, swear till one is black in the face, swear till one is blue in the face, swear till all's blue, be sworn, call heaven to witness, vouch, warrant, certify, assure, swear by bell book and candle, swear by, insist upon, take one's stand upon, emphasize, lay stress on, assert roundly, assert positively, lay down, lay down the law, raise one's voice, dogmatize, have the last word, rap out, repeat, reassert, reaffirm, announce, acknowledge, attest, adjure
Adv.affirmatively, in the affirmative, with emphasis, ex-cathedra, without fear of contradiction, as god is my witness, i must say, indeed, i' faith, let me tell you, why, give me leave to say, marry, you may be sure, i'd have you to know, upon my word, upon my honor, by my troth, egad, i assure you, by jingo, by jove, by george, &c, troth, seriously, sadly, in sadness, in sober sadness, in truth, in earnest, of a truth, truly, perdy, in all conscience, upon oath, be assured, yes, i'll warrant, i'll warrant you, i'll engage, i'll answer for it, i'll be bound, i'll venture to say, i'll take my oath, in fact, forsooth, joking apart, so help me god, not to mince the matter
V. deny, contradict, contravene, controvert, give denial to, gainsay, negative, shake the head, disown, disaffirm, disclaim, disavow, recant, revoke, dispute, impugn, traverse, rebut, join issue upon, bring in question, call in question, give (one) the lie in his throat, deny flatly, deny peremptorily, deny emphatically, deny absolutely, deny wholly, deny entirely, give the lie to, belie, repudiate, set aside, ignore, rebut, qualify, refuse, recuse
Adv. no, nay, not, nowise, not a bit, not a whit, not a jot, not at all, nohow, not in the least, not so, negative, negatory, no way, no such thing, nothing of the kind, nothing of the sort, quite the contrary, tout au contraire, far from it, tant s'en faut, on no account, in no respect, by no, by no manner of means, negatively, never, never in a million years, at no time
Phr. there never was a greater mistake, i know better, non haec in faedera, a thousand times no
V. refuse, reject, deny, decline, turn down, nill, negative, refuse one's assent, withhold one's assent, shake the head, close the hand, close the purse, grudge, begrudge, be slow to, hang fire, pass, be deaf to, dismiss, turn a deaf ear to, turn one's back upon, set one's face against, discountenance, not hear of, have nothing to do with, wash one's hands of, stand aloof, forswear, set aside, cast behind one, not yield an inch, resist, cross, not grant, repel, repulse, shut the door in one's face, slam the door in one's face, rebuff, send back, send to the right about, send away with a flea in the ear, deny oneself, not be at home to, discard, spurn, &c. (repudiate) 610, rescind, disclaim, protest, dissent
Adj. refusing, restive, restiff|, recusant, uncomplying, unconsenting, not willing to hear of, deaf to, refused, ungranted, out of the question, not to be thought of, impossible
Adv. no, on no account, not for the world, no thank you, thanks but no thanks
Phr. non possumus, your humble servant, bien oblige, not on your life, no way, not even if you beg on your knees
V. fail, neglect, omit, elude, evade, give the go-by to, set aside, ignore, shut one's eyes to, close one's eyes to, infringe, transgress, violate, pirate, break, trample under foot, do violence to, drive a coach and six through, discard, protest, repudiate, fling to the winds, set at naught, nullify, declare null and void, cancel, retract, go back from, be off, forfeit, go from one's word, palter, stretch a point, strain a point
V. not pay, fail, break, stop payment, become insolvent, become bankrupt, be gazetted, protest, dishonor, repudiate, nullify, refuse payment, pay under protest, button up one's pockets, draw the purse strings, apply the sponge, pay over the left shoulder, get whitewashed, swindle, run up bills, fly kites
Adj. not paying, non-paying, non-performing, in debt, behindhand, in arrear, behind in payments, in arrears, beggared, unable to make both ends meet, minus, worse than nothing, worthless, insolvent, bankrupt, in the gazette, gazetted, unpaid, gratis, unremunerated
And the king sent and called for Shimei, and said unto him, Did I not make thee to swear by the LORD, and protested unto thee, saying, Know for a certain, on the day thou goest out, and walkest abroad any whither, that thou shalt surely die? and thou saidst unto me, The word that I have heard is good.
the king summoned Shimei and said to him, “Did I not make you swear by the LORD and warn you, ‘On the day you leave and go elsewhere, know for sure that you will die’? And you told me, ‘The sentence is fair; I will comply.’
For I earnestly protested unto your fathers in the day that I brought them up out of the land of Egypt, even unto this day, rising early and protesting, saying, Obey my voice.
For from the time I brought your fathers out of the land of Egypt until today, I strongly warned them again and again, saying, ‘Obey My voice.’
And before his long sleep he made protestations in the sight of the Lord and his anointed, I have not taken any man’s goods, so much as a shoe: and no man did accuse him.
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