Origin of the work:
1635 Leszno
Editions:
No longer extant; the manuscript was destroyed by fire at Lezno in 1656
Contents:
A setting out of the events in Christ’s life according to all four of the Evangelists – SS Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.
In 1628, a group of not only seniors but also thirty priests exiled from their homeland met in exile at Leszno. Not all could be placed in spiritual service, for which reason a select council was employed in work for the common good of the church. Comenius, together with several others, applied himself to the New Testament and in particular the works of the four Evangelists, creating a unified and complete picture of Christ’s life from its beginning to His death on the Cross, His resurrection from the dead and His ascent into Heaven. The text was accompanied by a commentary that ran to 130 chapters. The select council decided that after its completion, the book be carefully examined and issued in print. The work took another year, but it is not known whether the treatise was in fact published. The manuscript was destroyed by fire at Leszno in 1656.
For further study, see also:
Comenius’ letter to Petr Figulus, May 22nd 1656. In: J. Kvačala, Korrespondence J. A. Komenského I. Prague 1897, p206
Comenius, the Epistula ad Montanum. In: J. A. Comenii Opera omnia, vol. 1. Prague 1969, p24(25)
J. V. Novák & J. Hendrich, Jan Amos Komenský, jeho život a spisy. Prague 1932, pp200, 254 & 518