Chapter XVIII: Book I: Chap. I (13)

Three youths in particular were strongly moved. One of them, named Martin Bucer, was a Dominican, of about twenty-seven years of age, who, notwithstanding of the prejudices of his order, seemed unwilling to lose a single word which fell from the doctor. Born in a little town of Alsace, he had entered a convent at sixteen, and soon displayed such talents that the monks entertained the highest hopes of him.[465] "He will one day be an ornament to our order," said they. His superiors had sent him to Heidelberg that he might devote himself to the study of philosophy, theology, Greek, and Hebrew. At this period Erasmus having published several of his works, Bucer read them with avidity.

[465] "Prudentioribus monachis spem de se præclaram excitavit;"
(Melch. Adam. Vita Buceri, p. 211.)

Shortly after, the first works of Luther appeared, and the Alsatian student hastened to compare the Reformer's doctrine with the holy Scriptures. Some doubt as to the truth of the popish religion arose in his mind.[466] This was the way in which light was diffused in those days. The Elector Palatine took notice of the young man. His strong and sonorous voice, his pleasing address, his eloquence, and the freedom with which he attacked prevailing vices, made him a distinguished preacher. He was appointed chaplain to the court, and was acting in this capacity when Luther's journey to Heidelberg was announced. Bucer was greatly delighted; nobody repaired with greater eagerness to the hall of the Augustin convent. He had provided himself with paper, pens, and ink, wishing to write down whatever the doctor should say. But while his hand was rapidly tracing the words of Luther, the hand of God was writing the great truths which he heard in more ineffaceable characters on his heart. The rays of the doctrine of grace beamed upon his soul on this memorable occasion.[467] The Dominican was gained over to Christ.

[466] "Cum doctrinam in eis traditam cum sacris litteris contullisset
quædam in pontificia religione suspecta habere cœpit." (Ibid.) When he
had compared the doctrine delivered in them with the Sacred
Scriptures, he began to have some suspicions of the pope's religion.

[467] "Primam lucem purioris sententiæ de justificatione in suo
pectore sensit." (Melch. Adam. Vita Buceri, p. 211.) He felt the first
dawn of a purer opinion on justification rising in his breast.

Not far from Bucer sat John Brentz or Brentius, then about nineteen years of age. Brentz, who was the son of a magistrate of a town in Swabia, had, at thirteen, been enrolled among the students of Heidelberg. None of them showed such application. As soon as the hour of midnight struck, Brentz rose and commenced his labours. This practice became so habitual to him, that, during the rest of his life, he could never sleep beyond that hour. At a later period he devoted these still moments to meditation on the Scriptures. Brentz was one of the first to perceive the new light which then rose on Germany, and he received it into his soul in the full love of it.[468] He read the writings of Luther with avidity, and must have been overjoyed at the prospect of hearing him personally at Heidelberg. Young Brentz was particularly struck with one of the doctor's propositions, viz., "Not he who does many works is justified before God, but he who, without works, believes much in Jesus Christ."

[468] "Ingens Dei beneficium lætus Brentius agnovit, et grata mente
amplexus est." (Ibid.) Brentius joyfully recognised the inestimable
gift of God, and with grateful mind embraced it.

A pious woman of Heilbronn, on the Necker, wife of a councillor of that town, named Snepf, had, after the example of Hannah, dedicated her first born to the Lord, earnestly desiring to see him devote himself to theology. The young man, who was born in 1495, made rapid progress in literature, but whether from taste or ambition, or compliance with his father's wishes, he devoted himself to the study of law. The pious mother was grieved when she saw her son Ehrhard following another course than that to which she had dedicated him; she warned and urged him, and always concluded by reminding him of the vow which she had made at his birth.[469] At length, overcome by his mother's perseverance, Ehrhard Snepf yielded, and soon felt such delight in his new studies, that nothing in the world could have diverted him from them.

[469] "Crebris interpellationibus eum voti quod de nato ipso fecerat,
admoneret; et a studio juris ad theologiam quasi conviciis avocaret."
(Melch. Adami, Snepfii Vita.) She frequently interposed to remind him
of the vow which she had made at his birth, and, as it were, by her
reproaches drew him off from the study of law to theology.

He was in terms of intimacy with Bucer and Brentz, and they remained friends all their lives; "for," says one of their biographers, "friendships founded on the love of literature and virtue are never extinguished." He was present with his two friends at the Heidelberg discussion. The Paradoxes and the bold struggle of the Wittemberg doctor gave Snepf a new impulse. Rejecting the vain dogma of human merit, he embraced the doctrine of free justification.

The next day Bucer paid a visit to Luther. "I conversed with him," says he, "and without witnesses; and had a most exquisite repast, not from the viands, but from the truths which were set before me. Whatever objections I stated, were readily answered by the doctor, who explained every thing with the utmost clearness. O! that I had time to write you more about it."[470] Luther himself was touched with the sentiments of Bucer. "He is the only friar of his order," wrote he to Spalatin, "who is in good faith. He is a young man of great promise; he received me with simplicity, and conversed with me with earnestness; he is deserving of our confidence and our love."[471]

[470] Gerdesius, Monument. Antiq., etc.

[471] Luth. Ep. i, p. 412.

Brentz, Snepf, and others also, urged by the new truths which began to dawn upon their minds, in like manner visited Luther, speaking and conferring with him, and asking explanations of any thing which they might not have comprehended. The Reformer, in his answers, founded upon the Bible. At every word that fell from him fresh light arose, and his visitors saw a new world opening before them.

After Luther's departure these noble-minded men began to teach at Heidelberg. It was necessary to follow out what the man of God had begun, and not allow the torch which he had kindled to be extinguished. The scholars will speak should the masters be silent. Brentz, although he was still so youthful, explained St. Matthew, at first in his own room, and afterwards, when it could not contain his hearers, in the hall of philosophy. The theologians, filled with envy at seeing the great concourse which he drew together, were much offended.

Brentz next took orders, and transferred his lectures to the college of the Canons of the Holy Spirit. In this way the fire which had already been kindled in Saxony was kindled also in Heidelberg. The light radiated from numerous _foci_. This period has been designated the seed-time of the Palatinate.

But the fruits of the Heidelberg discussion were not confined to the Palatinate. These bold friends of the truth soon became luminaries in the Church. They all occupied eminent stations, and took part in the numerous discussions, to which the Reformation gave rise. Strasburg, and at a later period England, were indebted to the labours of Bucer, for a purer knowledge of the truth. Snepf taught first at Marburg, then at Stutgard, Tubingen, and Jena. Brentz, after teaching at Heidelberg, long continued to labour at Halle, in Swabia, and at Tubingen. These three individuals will again come before us.

This discussion caused Luther himself to advance. He grew daily in the knowledge of the truth. "I am one of those," said he, "who have made progress by writing and by instructing others; and not one of those, who, from nothing, become all at once great and learned doctors."

He was delighted at seeing the avidity with which youth in schools received the growing truth; and this consoled him when he saw how deeply the old doctors were rooted in their opinions. "I have the glorious hope," said he, "that, in like manner as Christ, when rejected by the Jews, went to the Gentiles, we will now see true theology, though rejected by these old men of vain and fantastical opinions, welcomed by the rising generation."[472]

[472] Luth. Ep. i, p. 112.

The Chapter being closed, Luther thought of returning to Wittemberg. The Count Palatine gave him a letter to the Elector, in which he said that "Luther had displayed so much ability in the discussion as to reflect great glory on the university of Wittemberg." He was not permitted to return on foot.[473] The Augustins of Nuremberg conducted him as far as Wurzburg, and from thence he proceeded to Erfurt with the friars belonging to it. As soon as he arrived he called on his old master Jodocus. The venerable professor, who had been much concerned and shocked at the career which his pupil had followed, was accustomed to put a theta (θ) before all Luther's sentences,--that being the letter which the Greeks used to express condemnation.[474] He had written to the young doctor, censuring his conduct, and he was anxious to answer by word of mouth. Not having been received, he wrote Jodocus:--"The whole university, with the exception of a single licentiate, thinks as I do. Nay, more; the prince, the bishop, several other prelates, and all our enlightened citizens, declare, with one voice, that hitherto they have neither known nor understood Jesus Christ and his gospel. I am ready to receive your correction, and though it should be harsh I will think it pleasant. Unbosom your heart then without fear, disburden yourself of your anger. I have no wish, I am not able to be angry with you. God and my conscience bear witness."[475]

[473] "Veni autem curru qui ieram pedester." (Ibid., p. 110.) I went
on foot, but returned in a chariot.

[474] "Omnibus placitis meis nigrum theta præfigit." (Luth. Ep. i, p.
111.) He puts a black theta before all my opinions.

[475] Ibid.

The aged doctor was touched by the sentiments of his old pupil, and wished to see if there was no means of removing the condemnatory theta. They had an explanation; but nothing resulted from it. "I have at least," said Luther, "made him understand, that all their sentences are like the beast which is said to eat itself. But it is vain to speak to the deaf. The doctors cling obstinately to their petty distinctions, although they confess that they have nothing to support them but what they term the light of natural reason--a dark chaos to us who proclaim no other light than Jesus Christ, the only true light."[476]

[476] "Nisi dictamine rationis naturalis, quod apud nos idem est, quod
chaos tenebratum, qui non prædicamus aliam lucem, quam Christum Jesum
lucem veram et solam." (Ibid.)

Luther quitted Erfurt in the carriage of the convent. He was thus brought to Eisleben, and from thence the Augustins of the place, proud of a doctor who threw so much lustre on their order and on their town which had given him birth, caused him to be conveyed to Wittemberg with their own horses, and at their own expence. All were desirous to testify affection and esteem for the extraordinary man who was rising at every step.

He arrived on Saturday after the Ascension. The journey had done him good. His friends found him stronger and healthier looking than before his departure,[477] and were delighted with all he told them. Luther reposed for some time from the fatigues of his campaign and the discussion at Heidelberg, but this repose was only a preparation for more severe exertions.

[477] "Ita ut nonnullis videar factus habitior et corpulentior!"
(Ibid.) So that some think me fuller in habit, and more corpulent.

BOOK FOURTH.

CHAP. I.

LUTHER BEFORE THE LEGATE.

MAY-DECEMBER, 1518.

Repentance--The Pope--Leo X--Luther to his Bishop--Luther to
the Pope--Luther to the Vicar-General--Rovere to the
Elector--Discourse on Excommunication--Influence and Power
of Luther.

Truth had at length raised her head in the bosom of Christendom. Victorious over the inferior organs of the papacy, she behoved to have a struggle with its chief. We are going to see Luther at close quarters with Rome.

This step was taken on his return from Heidelberg. His first theses on indulgences had been misunderstood, and he determined to explain their meaning with greater clearness. The outcry raised by the blind hatred of his enemies had convinced him how important it was to gain the most enlightened part of the nation in favour of truth, and he resolved to appeal to its judgment by calling attention to the foundation on which his convictions rested. It was, indeed, necessary for once to appeal to the decision of Rome; and he hesitates not to send all his explanations. Presenting them with one hand to the enlightened and impartial among his countrymen, he with the other lays them before the throne of the sovereign pontiff.

These explanations of his theses, which he denominated _Solutions_,[478] were written with great moderation. Luther tried to soften the passages which had caused most irritation, and gave proof of genuine modesty. At the same time, he showed that his convictions were immovable; and he courageously defended all the propositions which truth obliged him to maintain. He again repeated, that every Christian who truly repents possesses the remission of sins without indulgence; that the pope, like the humblest of priests, can only declare simply what God has already pardoned; that the treasure of the merits of the saints administered by the pope was a chimera, and that Holy Scripture was the only rule of faith. Let us hear himself on some of these points.

[478] Luth. Op., (Leips.) xvii, pp. 29-113.

He begins with establishing the nature of true penitence, and contrasts the divine act, which renews man, with the mummery of the Romish Church. "The Greek word μετανοειτε," says he, "signifies-- be clothed with a new spirit and new feelings; have a new nature; so that, ceasing to be earthly, you may become heavenly.... Christ is a teacher of the spirit and not of the letter, and his words are spirit and life."[479] He, therefore, inculcates, not those external penances which the proudest sinners can perform without being humbled, but a repentance according to spirit and truth--a repentance which may be fulfilled in all the situations of life, under the purple of kings, the cassock of priests, and the coronet of princes, amid the magnificence of Babylon, where a Daniel lived, as well as under a monk's frock and a beggar's tatters.

[479] On the First Thesis.

Farther on we meet with these bold words, "I give myself no trouble as to what pleases or displeases the pope. He is a man like other men. There have been several popes who loved not only errors and vices, but even things still more extraordinary. I listen to the pope as pope, that is when he speaks in the canons, according to the canons, or when he decides some article with a council, but not when he speaks out of his own head. If I did otherwise, would I not be bound to say with those who know not Jesus Christ, that the horrible massacres of Christians of which Julius II was guilty, were the kind acts of an affectionate shepherd towards the Lord's sheep?"[480]

[480] Thesis 26.

"I cannot but be astonished," continues he, "at the simplicity of those who have said that the two swords of the gospel represent, the one the spiritual power, and the other the temporal. Yes, the pope holds a sword of steel, and so exhibits himself to Christendom, not as a tender father, but as a formidable tyrant. Ah! God in his anger has given us the sword we wished, and withdrawn that which we despised. In no quarter of the world have there been more dreadful wars than among Christians.... Why did the ingenious intellect which discovered this fine commentary, not with equal subtlety interpret the history of the two keys committed to St. Peter, and in that way make it an established dogma of the Church, that the one serves to open the treasures of heaven, and the other the treasures of the world."[481]

[481] Ibid. 80.

"It is impossible," he again says, "that a man can be a Christian without having Christ; and if he has Christ, he at the same time has all that belongs to Christ. The thing which gives peace to our conscience is, that by faith our sins are no longer ours, but Christ's, on whom God has laid them; and that, on the other hand, all the righteousness of Christ is ours, to whom God has given it. Christ puts his hand upon us, and we are cured. He throws his mantle over us and we are covered; for he is the glorious Saviour, blessed for ever and ever."[482]

[482] Thesis 37.

With such views of the riches of salvation by Jesus Christ, there was no need of indulgences.

Luther, while attacking the papacy, speaks honourably of Leo X. "The times in which we live are so bad," says he, "that even the greatest personages cannot come to the help of the Church. We have now a very good pope in Leo X. His sincerity and knowledge fill us with joy. But what can one man, though amiable and agreeable, do by himself alone? He certainly deserved to be pope in better times. We, in our day, deserve only such popes as Julius II, and Alexander VI."

He afterwards comes to the crowning point. "I wish to say the thing in a few words and boldly. The Church stands in need of a reformation; and this cannot be the work either of a single man, like the pope, or of many men, like the cardinals, and fathers of councils; but it must be that of the whole world, or, rather, it is a work which belongs to God only. As to the time in which such a reformation ought to begin, He alone who created time can tell.... The embankment is broken down, and it is no longer in our power to arrest the torrents which are rushing impetuously along."

Such are some of the thoughts and declarations which Luther addressed to the enlightened among his countrymen. The Feast of Pentecost was at hand; and, at this period, when the apostles rendered the first testimony of their faith to the risen Saviour, Luther, a new apostle, published this enlivening book in which he expressed his earnest longings for a resurrection of the Church. Saturday, 22nd May, 1518, being Pentecost eve, he sent his work to his ordinary, the Bishop of Brandenburg, with the following letter:--

"MOST WORTHY FATHER IN GOD,--Some time ago, when a novel and unheard-of doctrine, touching the apostolic indulgences, began to make a noise in these countries, both learned and ignorant felt concerned; and many persons, some of them known to me, and others whom I did not even know by face, urged me to publish, by word of mouth, or by writing, what I thought of the novelty, I am unwilling to say, the impudence of this doctrine. At first I was silent, and kept back. But at length matters came to such a point, that the holiness of the pope was compromised.

"What was I to do? I thought it best neither to approve nor to condemn these doctrines; but to establish a discussion on this important point, until the Holy Church should decide.

"Nobody having come forward to this combat, to which I had invited all the world, and my theses having been considered not as materials for discussion, but positive assertions,[483] I feel myself obliged to publish an explanation of them. Deign, then, most gracious Bishop, to receive these trifles[484] at my hand. And that all the world may see I am not acting presumptuously, I supplicate your reverence to take pen and ink, and blot out, or even throw into the fire and burn, whatever in them displeases you. I know that Jesus Christ has no need of my labours and my services, and that he can very well, without me, publish good tidings to his Church. Not that the bulls and menaces of my enemies deter me; very much the contrary. If they were not so impudent and so shameless, nobody would hear a word from me; I would shut myself up in a corner, and there study by myself for myself. If this affair is not of God, it certainly cannot be my affair, nor that of any man, but a thing of nought. Let the glory and honour be ascribed to Him to whom alone they belong."

[483] "Non ut disputabilia sed asserta acciperentur." (Luth., Ep. i.
214.)

[484] Ineptias.

Luther had still the greatest respect for the head of the Church. He supposed that there was justice in Leo X, and a sincere love of truth. He resolved, therefore, to apply to him also; and eight days after, on Trinity Sunday, 30th May, 1518, addressed him in a letter, of which we give the following extracts:--

"To the Most Blessed Father, LEO X, Sovereign Bishop,
"Friar Martin Luther, Augustin, wishes eternal salvation!

"I learn, most Holy Father, that evil reports are current with regard to me, and that my name is brought into bad odour with your Holiness. I am called heretic, apostate, traitor, and a thousand other opprobrious epithets; what I see astonishes, what I hear amazes me. But the only foundation of my tranquillity remains, and that is a pure and peaceful conscience. Be pleased to listen to me, most Holy Father, to me, who am only an ignorant child."

Luther relates the origin of the whole affair, and continues thus:--

"In all taverns, nothing was heard but complaints of the avarice of priests, and attacks on the power of the keys and the sovereign pontiff. This all Germany can testify. On hearing these things, my zeal for the glory of Christ was moved, (so I thought,) or if they will explain it otherwise, my young and boiling blood was inflamed.

"I warned several of the princes of the Church, but some mocked me, and others turned a deaf ear. All seemed paralysed by the terror of your name. Then I published the discussion,

"And this, most Holy Father! this is the fire which is said to have set the whole world in flames!

"Now, what must I do? I cannot retract, and I see that this publication is subjecting me to inconceivable hatred in all quarters. I love not to stand forth in the midst of the world; for I am without knowledge, without talent, and far too feeble for such great things, especially in this illustrious age, in which Cicero himself, were he alive, would be obliged to hide in some obscure corner.[485]

[485] He adds: "Sed cogit necessitas me anserem strepere inter
olores." (Luth. Ep. i, p. 121.) But necessity forces me, a goose, to
hiss among the swans.

"But in order to appease my adversaries, and respond to numerous solicitations, I here publish my thoughts. I publish them, Holy Father, that I may place myself in safety under the shadow of your wings. All who are willing will thus be able to understand with what simplicity of heart I have asked the ecclesiastical authority to instruct me, and what respect I have shown for the power of the keys.[486] If I had not managed the affair in a becoming manner, it is impossible that the most serene lord Frederick, Duke and Elector of Saxony, who shines among the friends of apostolical and Christian truth, would ever have tolerated in his university of Wittemberg a man so dangerous as I am represented to be.

[486] "Quam pure simpliciterque ecclesiasticam potestatem et
reverentiam clavium quæsierim et coluerim." (Ibid.)

"Wherefore, most Holy Father, I throw myself at the feet of your Holiness, and submit to you with all I have, and all I am. Destroy my cause, or embrace it; decide for me, or decide against me; take my life, or restore it to me, just as you please. I will recognise your voice as the voice of Jesus Christ, who presides and speaks by you. If I have deserved death I refuse not to die.[487] The earth belongs unto the Lord, and all that it contains. Let him be praised to all eternity. Amen. May he sustain you for ever and ever. Amen.

"On the day of the Holy Trinity, in the year 1518.

"FRIAR MARTIN LUTHER, _Augustin_."

[487] "Quarè beatissime Pater, prostratum me pedibus tuæ Beatitudinis
offero, cum omnibus quæ sum et habeo; vivifica, occide voca, revoca,
approba, reproba, ut placuerit. Vocem tuam, vocem Christi in te
præsidentis et loquentis agnoscam; si mortem merui, mori non
recusabo." (Luth. Ep. i, p. 121.)

What humility and truth in this fear, or rather in this confession of Luther, that his young and boiling blood had perhaps been too quickly inflamed! We here recognise the man of sincerity, who, not presuming on himself, fears the influence of passion even in those of his actions which are most conformable to the word of God. There is a wide difference between this language and that of a proud fanatic. We see in Luther an earnest desire to gain over Leo to the cause of truth, to prevent all disruption, and make this reformation, the necessity of which he proclaims, come from the very pinnacle of the Church. Assuredly, he is not the person who ought to be charged with destroying in the West that unity, the loss of which was afterwards so much regretted. He sacrificed every thing in order to maintain it; every thing but truth. It was not he, but his adversaries, who, by refusing to acknowledge the fulness and sufficiency of the salvation wrought out by Jesus Christ, are chargeable with having rent the Saviour's robe at the foot of the cross.

After writing this letter, Luther, the very same day, addressed his friend Staupitz, vicar-general of his order. It was through him he wished his "Solutions" and his epistle to reach Leo.

"I pray you," says he to him, "kindly to accept the miserable things[488] which I send you, and transmit them to the excellent pope, Leo X. Not that I would thereby drag you into the perils to which I am exposed. I wish to take all the danger to myself. Jesus Christ will see whether what I have said comes from him or comes from me--Jesus Christ, without whose will neither the tongue of the pope can move, nor the hearts of kings resolve.

[488] His Solutions.

"To those who threaten me I have no answer to give, unless it be the remark of Reuchlin, 'The poor man has nothing to fear, for he has nothing to lose.'[489] I have neither money nor goods, and I ask none. If I once possessed some honour and some reputation, let him that has begun to strip me of them finish his work. I have nothing left but this miserable body, enfeebled by so many trials; let them kill it by force or fraud, to the glory of God. In this way they will, perhaps, shorten my life an hour or two. Enough for me to have a precious Redeemer, a powerful Priest, Jesus Christ the Lord! I will praise him while I have a breath of life; and if none will praise him with me, how can I help it?"

[489] "Qui pauper est nihil timet, nihil potest perdere." (Ibid., p.
118.)

These words enable us to read Luther's heart.

While he was thus looking with confidence towards Rome, Rome had thoughts of vengeance towards him. On the 3rd of April, Cardinal Raphael De Rovere had written to the Elector Frederick in the pope's name, stating that suspicions were entertained of his faith, and that he ought to beware of protecting Luther.

"Cardinal Raphael," says Luther, "would have had great pleasure in seeing me burned by Duke Frederick."[490] Thus Rome began to whet her arms against Luther, and the first blow which she aimed at him was through the mind of his protector. If she succeeded in destroying the shelter under which the monk of Wittemberg was reposing, he would become an easy prey.

[490] Luth. Op. (W.) xv, p. 339.

The German princes attached much importance to their reputation as Christian princes. The slightest suspicion of heresy filled them with alarm, and the court of Rome had shrewdly availed itself of this feeling. Frederick, moreover, had always been attached to the religion of his fathers, and Raphael's letter made a very strong impression on his mind. But it was a principle with the Elector not to act hastily in any thing. He knew that truth was not always on the side of the strongest. The transactions of the empire with Rome had taught him to distrust the selfish views of that court; and he was aware that in order to be a Christian prince, it was not necessary to be the pope's slave.

"He was not," says Melancthon, "one of those profane spirits who wish to stifle all changes in their first beginnings.[491] Frederick resigned himself to God. He carefully read the writings which were published, and what he judged true he allowed no one to destroy."[492] He had power to do so. Supreme in his own States, he was respected in the empire at least as highly as the emperor himself.

[491] "Nec profana judicia sequens quæ tenera initia omnium mutationum
celerrime opprimi jubent." (Melanc. Vita Luth.)

[492] "Deo cessit, et ea quæ vera esse judicavit, deleri non voluit."
(Ibid.)

It is probable that Luther learned something of this letter of Cardinal Raphael, which was sent to the Elector on the 7th of July. Perhaps it was the prospect of excommunication which this Roman missive seemed to presage, that led him to mount the pulpit of Wittemberg on the 15th of the same month, and on this subject deliver a discourse which made a profound impression. He distinguished between internal and external excommunication; the former excluding from communion with God, and the latter excluding only from the ceremonies of the Church. "Nobody," says he, "can reconcile a lapsed soul with God save God himself. Nobody can separate man from communion with God unless it be man himself by his own sins! Happy he who dies unjustly excommunicated! While for righteousness' sake he endures a heavy infliction on the part of man, he receives the crown of eternal felicity from the hand of God."

Some highly applauded this bold language, while others were more irritated by it. But Luther was no longer alone; and although his faith needed no other support than that of God, a phalanx of defence against his enemies was formed around him. The Germans had heard the voice of the Reformer. His discourses and his writings sent forth flashes which awoke and illumined his contemporaries. The energy of his faith fell in torrents of fire on slumbering hearts. The life which God had infused into this extraordinary soul was imparted to the dead body of the Church; and Christendom, which had for so many ages been motionless, was animated with a religious enthusiasm. The devotedness of the people to the superstitions of Rome diminished every day, and the number of hands which offered money for the purchase of pardon became fewer and fewer,[493] while at the same time Luther's fame continued to increase. People turned towards him, and hailed him with love and respect as the intrepid defender of truth and liberty.[494] No doubt the full depth of the doctrines which he announced was not perceived. It was enough for the greater number to know that the new doctor withstood the pope, and that the empire of priests and monks was shaken by his powerful word. To them the attack of Luther was like one of those fires which are kindled on mountain tops, as the signal for a whole nation to rise and burst its chains. Before the Reformer suspected what he had done, all the generous hearted among his countrymen had already acknowledged him for their leader. To many, however, the appearance of Luther was something more. The word of God, which he wielded with so much power, pierced their minds like a sharp two-edged sword; and their hearts were inflamed with an ardent desire to obtain the assurance of pardon and eternal life. Since primitive times the Church had not known such hungering and thirsting after righteousness. If the preaching of Peter the Hermit and Bernard so aroused the population of the middle ages as to make them take up a perishable cross, the preaching of Luther disposed those of his time to embrace the true cross, the truth which saves. The framework which then lay with all its weight on the Church had smothered everything; the form had destroyed the life. But the powerful word given to Luther caused a quickening breath to circulate over the soil of Christendom. At the first glance the writings of Luther were equally captivating to believers and unbelievers,--to unbelievers, because the positive doctrines afterwards to be established were not yet fully developed in them; and to believers, because they contained the germ of that living faith which they so powerfully express. Hence the influence of these writings was immense; they spread almost instantaneously over Germany and the world. The prevailing impression of men every where was, that they were assisting, not at the establishment of a sect, but at a new birth of the Church and of society. Those who were born of the Spirit of God ranged themselves around him who was its organ. Christendom was divided into two camps,--the one leagued with the spirit against the form, and the other with the form against the spirit. It is true that on the side of the form were all the appearances of strength and grandeur, and on the side of the spirit those of feebleness and insignificance. But the form, devoid of the spirit, is a lifeless body, which the first breath may upset. Its appearance of power only provokes hostility and accelerates its downfall. In this way the simple truth had placed Luther at the head of a mighty army.

[493] "Rarescebant manus largentium." (Cochlœus, 7.) The hands of
contributors grew few.

[494] "Luthero autem contra augebatur auctoritas, favor, fides
existimatio, fama; quod tam liber acerque videbatur veritatis
assertor." (Ibid.) On the contrary, Luther's authority, influence,
credit, reputation, and fame, increased, because he seemed so free and
bold an assertor of the truth.

CHAP. II.

Diet at Augsburg--The Emperor to the Pope--The Elector to
Rovere--Luther cited to Rome--Luther's Peace--Intercession
of the University--Papal Brief--Luther's Indignation--The
Pope to the Elector.

This army was needed; for the great began to move. Both the empire and the Church were uniting their efforts to rid themselves of this troublesome monk. Had the imperial throne been occupied by a brave and energetic prince, he might have profited by these religious agitations, and, throwing himself on God and the nation, given new force to the former opposition to the papacy. But Maximilian was too old, and was determined, moreover, to sacrifice every thing to what he regarded as the end of his existence,--the aggrandisement of his house, and through it the exaltation of his grandson.

The Emperor Maximilian at this time held a diet at Augsburg, Six Electors attended in person, and all the Germanic States were represented at it, while the kings of France, Hungary, and Poland, sent their ambassadors. All these princes and envoys appeared in great splendour. The war against the Turks was one of the subjects for which the diet had assembled. The legate of Leo X strongly urged the prosecution of it; but the States, instructed by the bad use which had formerly been made of their contributions, and sagely counselled by the Elector Frederick, contented themselves with declaring that they would take the matter into consideration, and at the same time, produced new grievances against Rome. A Latin discourse, published during the Diet, boldly called the attention of the German princes to the true danger. "You wish," said the author, "to put the Turk to flight. This is well; but I am much afraid that you are mistaken as to his person. It is not in Asia, but in Italy, that you ought to seek him."[495]

[495] Schröck, K. Gesch. n. d. R. i, p. 156.

Another affair of no less importance was to occupy the Diet. Maximilian was desirous that his grandson Charles, already king of Spain and Naples, should be proclaimed king of the Romans, and his successors in the imperial dignity. The pope knew his interest too well to wish the imperial throne to be occupied by a prince whose power in Italy might prove formidable to him. The Emperor thought he had already gained the greater part of the electors and states, but he found a strenuous opponent in Frederick. In vain did he solicit him, and in vain did the ministers and best friends of the Elector join their entreaties to those of the Emperor. Frederick was immovable, and proved the truth of what has been said of him, that when once satisfied of the justice of a resolution, he had firmness of soul never to abandon it. The Emperor's design failed.

From this time the Emperor sought to gain the good will of the pope, in order to render him favourable to his plans; and as a special proof of his devotedness, on the 5th August, wrote him the following letter:--"Most Holy Father, we learned some days ago that a friar of the Augustin order, named Martin Luther, has begun to maintain divers propositions as to the commerce in indulgences. Our displeasure is the greater because the said friar finds many protectors, among whom are powerful personages.[496] If your Holiness and the very reverend fathers of the Church, (the Cardinals,) do not forthwith employ their authority to put an end to these scandals, not only will these pernicious doctors seduce the simple, but they will involve great princes in their ruin. We will take care that whatever your Holiness may decide on this matter, for the glory of Almighty God, shall be observed by all in our empire."

[496] "Defensores et patrones etiam potentes quos dictus frater
consecutus est." (Raynald, ad an. 1518.)

This letter must have been written after some rather keen discussion between Maximilian and Frederick. The same day, the Elector wrote to Raphael de Rovere. He had doubtless learned that the Emperer was addressing the Roman pontiff, and to parry the blow he put himself in communication with Rome.

"I can have no other wish," said he, "than to show myself submissive to the universal Church. Accordingly, I have never defended the writings and sermons of Doctor Martin Luther. I understand, moreover, that he has always offered to appear with a safe-conduct before impartial, learned, and Christian judges, in order to defend his doctrine, and submit, in the event of being convinced by Scripture itself."[497]

[497] Luth. Op. (L.) xvii, p. 169.

Leo X, who had hitherto allowed the affair to take its course, aroused by the cries of theologians and monks, instituted an ecclesiastical court, which was to try Luther at Rome, and in which Sylvester Prierio, the great enemy of the Reformer, was at once accuser and judge. The charge was soon drawn up, and Luther was summoned by the court to appear personally in sixty days.

Luther was at Wittemberg, calmly awaiting the good effect which his humble letter to the pope was, as he imagined, to produce, when, on the 7th of August, only two days after the despatch of the letters of Maximilian and Frederick, he received the citation from the Roman tribunal. "At the moment," says he, "when I was expecting the benediction, I saw the thunder burst upon me. I was the lamb troubling the water to the wolf. Tezel escapes, and I must allow myself to be eaten."

This citation threw Wittemberg into consternation; for whatever course Luther might adopt, he could not avert the danger. If he repaired to Rome he must there become the victim of his enemies. If he refused to go, he would, as a matter of course, be condemned for contumacy, without being able to escape; for it was known that the legate had received orders from the pope to do everything he could do to irritate the Emperor and the German princes against him. His friends were in dismay. Must the teacher of truth go with his life in his hand to that great city, _drunk with the blood of the saints and martyrs of Jesus_? Is it sufficient to ensure any man's destruction that he has raised his head from the bosom of enslaved Christendom? Must this man, whom God appears to have formed for resisting a power which hitherto nothing has been able to resist, be also overthrown? Luther, himself, saw no one who could save him unless it were the Elector, but he would rather die than endanger his prince. His friends at last fell on an expedient which would not compromise Frederick. Let him refuse a safe-conduct, and Luther will have a legitimate cause for refusing to appear at Rome.

On the 8th of August Luther wrote to Spalatin, praying that the Elector would employ his influence to have him cited in Germany. He also wrote to Staupitz, "See what ambuscades they use to ensnare me, and how I am surrounded with thorns. But Christ lives and reigns, to-day, yesterday, and for ever. My conscience assures me that what I have taught is the truth, though it becomes still more odious when I teach it. The Church is like the womb of Rebecca. The children must struggle together so as even to endanger the life of the mother.[498] As to what remains, entreat the Lord that I may not have too much joy in this trial. May God not lay the sin to their charge."

[498] "Uterus Rebecca est; parvulos in eo collidi necesse est, etiam
usque ad periculum matris." (Luth. Ep. i, p. 138.)

The friends of Luther did not confine themselves to consultation and complaint. Spalatin, on the part of the Elector, wrote to Renner, the Emperor's secretary, "Dr. Martin is very willing that his judges shall be all the universities of Germany, with the exception of those of Erfurt, Leipsic, and Frankfort on the Oder, which he has ground to suspect. It is impossible for him to appear personally at Rome."[499]

[499] Luth. Op. (L.) xvii, p. 173.

The university of Wittemberg wrote a letter of intercession to the pope himself, and thus spoke of Luther,--"The feebleness of his body, and the dangers of the journey, make it difficult and even impossible for him to obey the order of your Holiness. His distress and his prayers dispose us to have compassion on him. We, then, as obedient sons, entreat you, most Holy Father, to be pleased to regard him as a man who has never taught doctrines in opposition to the sentiments of the Roman Church." On the same day the university, in its anxiety, addressed Charles de Miltitz, a Saxon gentleman, the chamberlain, and a great favourite of the pope, and bore testimony to Luther in terms still stronger than those which it had ventured to insert in the former letter. "The worthy father, Martin Luther, Augustin, is the noblest and most honourable man of our university. For several years we have seen and known his ability, his knowledge, his high attainments in arts and literature, his irreproachable manners, and his altogether Christian conduct."[500]

[500] Ibid. i, 183, 184; xvii, 171, 172.

This active charity on the part of all who were about Luther is his finest eulogium.

While the issue was anxiously waited for, the affair terminated more easily than might have been supposed. The Legate de Vio, chagrined at not having succeeded in the commission which he had received to prepare a general war against the Turks, was desirous to give lustre to his embassy in Germany by some other brilliant exploit; and thinking that if he extinguished heresy he would reappear at Rome with glory, he asked the pope to remit the affair to him. Leo felt himself under obligation to Frederick, for having so strenuously opposed the election of young Charles, and was aware that he might still want his assistance. Accordingly, without adverting to the citation, he charged his legate by a brief, dated 23rd of August, to examine the affair in Germany. The pope lost nothing by this mode of proceeding; and, at the same time, if Luther could be brought to a retractation, the noise and scandal which his appearance at Rome might have occasioned were avoided.

"We charge you," said he, "to bring personally before you, to pursue and constrain without delay, and as soon as you receive this our letter, the said Luther, who has already been declared heretic by our dear brother, Jerome, Bishop of Asculan."[501]

[501] "Dictum Lutherum hæreticum per prædictum auditorem jàm
declaratum." (Breve Leonis X ad Thomam.)

Then the pope prescribes the severest measures against Luther.

"For this purpose invoke the arm and assistance of our very dear son in Christ, Maximilian, the other princes of Germany, and all its commonalties, universities, and powers ecclesiastical or secular; and if you apprehend him, keep him in safe custody, in order that he may be brought before us."[502]

[502] "Brachio cogas atque compellas, et eo in potestate tua redacto
cum sub fideli custodia retineas, ut coram nobis sistatur." (Ibid.)

We see that this indulgent concession of the pope was little else than a surer method of dragging Luther to Rome. Next follow the gentle measures:--

"If he returns to himself, and asks pardon for his great crime, asks it of himself, and without being urged to do it, we give you power to receive him into the unity of Holy Mother Church."

The pope soon returns to malediction.

"If he persists in his obstinacy, and you cannot make yourself master of his person, we give you power to proscribe him in all parts of Germany, to banish, curse, and excommunicate all who are attached to him, and to order all Christians to shun their presence."

Still this is not enough. The pope continues:--

"And in order that this contagion maybe the more easily extirpated, you will excommunicate all prelates, religious orders, communities, counts, dukes, and grandees, except the Emperor Maximilian, who shall refuse to seize the said Martin Luther and his adherents, and send them to you, under due and sufficient guard. And if (which God forbid) the said princes, communities, universities, grandees, or any one belonging to them, offer an asylum to the said Martin and his adherents, in any way, and give him, publicly or in secret, by themselves or others, aid and counsel, we lay under interdict these princes, communities, and grandees, with their towns, burghs, fields, and villages, whither said Martin may flee, as long as he shall remain there, and for three days after he shall have left."

This audacious chair, which pretends to be the representative on earth of Him who has said, _God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved_, continues its anathemas; and, after having denounced penalties against ecclesiastics, proceeds:--

"In regard to the laity, if they do not obey your orders instantly, and without any opposition, we declare them infamous, (with the exception of the most worthy Emperor,) incapable of performing any lawful act, deprived of Christian burial, and stript of all fiefs which they may hold, whether of the apostolic see, or of any other superior whatsoever."[503]

[503] "Infamiæ et inhabilitatis ad omnes actus legitimos ecclesiasticæ
sepulturæ, privationis quoque feudorum." (Breve Leonis X ad Thomam.)

Such was the fate which awaited Luther. The monarch of Rome has leagued for his destruction, and to effect it, spared nothing, not even the peace of the tomb. His ruin seems inevitable. How will he escape this immense conspiracy? But Rome had miscalculated; a movement produced by the Spirit of God was not to be quelled by the decrees of its chancery.

Even the forms of a just and impartial inquest had not been observed. Luther had been declared heretic, not only without having been heard, but even before the expiry of the period named for his compearance. The passions (and nowhere do they show themselves stronger than in religious discussions) overleap all the forms of justice. Strange proceedings, in this respect, occur, not only in the Church of Rome, but in Protestant churches also, which have turned aside from the gospel; in other words, in all places where the truth is not, every thing done against the gospel is deemed lawful. We often see men who, in any other case, would scruple to commit the smallest injustice, not hesitating to trample under foot all forms and all rights when the matter in question is Christianity, and the testimony borne to it.

When Luther was afterwards made acquainted with this brief, he expressed his indignation. "Here," says he, "is the most remarkable part of the whole affair. The brief is dated on the 23rd of August, and I was cited for the 7th of August; so that between the citation and the brief there is an interval of sixteen days. Now, make the calculation, and you will find that my Lord Jerome, Bishop of Asculan, has proceeded against me, given judgment, condemned, and declared me heretic, before the citation could have reached me, or at most sixteen days after it had been despatched to me. Now, I ask, where are the sixty days given me in the citation? They commenced on the 7th August, and were to end on the 7th October. Is it the style and fashion of the court of Rome to cite, admonish, accuse, judge, and pronounce sentence of condemnation, all in one day, against a man who is at such a distance from Rome, that he knows nothing at all of the proceedings? What answer would they give to this? Doubtless, they forgot to purge themselves with hellebore before proceeding to such falsehoods."[504]

[504] Luth. Op. (L.) xvii, p. 176.

But at the same time that Rome was secretly depositing her thunders in the hands of her legate, she was endeavouring, by smooth and flattering words, to detach the prince whose power she most dreaded from Luther's cause. The same day, 25th August 1518, the pope wrote the Elector of Saxony. Recurring to those wiles of ancient policy which we have already pointed out, he endeavoured to flatter the prince's self-love:

"Dear son," said the Roman pontiff, "when we think on your noble and honourable race, and on yourself, its head and ornament; when we recollect how you and your ancestors have always desired to maintain Christian faith, and the honour and dignity of the Holy See, we cannot believe that a man who abandons the faith can trust to the favour of your Highness, in giving loose reins to his wickedness. And yet it is told us from all quarters that a certain friar, Martin Luther, Eremite of the order of St. Augustine, has, like a child of malice, and a contemner of God, forgotten his habit and his order, which consist in humility and obedience, and is boasting that he fears neither the authority nor the punishment of any man, because assured of your favour and protection.

"But, as we know that he is mistaken, we have thought good to write to your Highness, and exhort you, according to the Lord, to be vigilant for the honour of your name as a Christian prince, and to defend yourself from these calumnies--yourself the ornament, the glory, and sweet savour of your noble race--and to guard, not only against a fault so grave as that which is imputed to you, but also against even the suspicion which the insensate hardihood of this friar tends to excite against you."

Leo X, at the same time, announced to Frederick that he had charged Cardinal Saint Sixtus to examine the affair, and he enjoined him to put Luther into the hands of the legate, "lest," added he, returning again to his favourite argument, "lest the pious people of our time, and of future times, may one day lament and say, The most pernicious heresy with which the Church of God has been afflicted was excited by the favour and support of this high and honourable House."[505]

[505] Luth. Op. (L.) xvii, p. 173.

Thus Rome had taken all her measures. With one hand she diffused the perfume of praise, which is always so intoxicating, while the other held terrors and vengeance.

All the powers of the earth, emperor, pope, princes, and legates, began to move against this humble friar of Erfurt, whose internal combats we have already traced. "_The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers took counsel together against the Lord and against his anointed._"

CHAP. III.

The Armourer Schwarzerd--His Wife--Philip--His Genius--His
Studies--The Bible--Call to Wittemberg--Melancthon's
Departure and Journey--Leipsic--Mistake--Luther's
Joy--Parallel--Revolution in Education--Study of Greek.