25. Before this august body the Reformer appeared to make answer to the two questions: First, if the books which he had written, the titles of which were read to him, were his; second, if he was prepared to retract those books and their contents, or if he persisted in the opinions he had advanced in them. He acknowledged the books to be his, and in a speech of some length he explained his motives in writing his books, and refused to retract them. He thus concluded his speech:
26. I cannot submit my faith either to the pope or to the council, because it is as clear as the day that they have frequently erred and contradicted each other. Unless, therefore, I am convinced by the testimony of scripture, or by the clearest reasoning—unless I am persuaded by means of the passages I have quoted,—and unless they thus render my conscience bound, by the word of God, I can not and will not retract, for it is unsafe for a Christian to speak against his conscience. HERE I STAND, I CAN DO NO OTHER, MAY GOD HELP ME! AMEN!
27. Luther was protected by a safe conduct from the emperor—a written guarantee pledging the faith and honor of the empire for his safety for a limited length of time—or doubtless he would have been burned at the stake for his adherence to his doctrines and his defiance of the pope. Indeed, some members of the diet advised the violation of the safe conduct, as the word of honor given to an heretic, according to the morals of the age, was not binding. Charles V, however, would not listen to such perfidy. He dismissed Luther to return to Wittenberg in accordance with the terms of his safe conduct; at the same time condemning him as an heretic misled by his own folly. He forbade him on his return to Wittenberg to cause the least disorder among the people, and then promised the representatives of the pope that he would proceed against him and his adherents as contumacious heretics, by excommunication, by interdict and by every means calculated to destroy them.
28. Luther's Confinement at Wartburg.—Prince Frederic, the Wise, fearing that Luther would fall a prey to his enemies, in the storm which he saw gathering about him, had him intercepted on his way back to Wittenberg, by persons in disguise, who carried him to the castle of Wartburg [Wart-berg], where he was concealed ten months. The extremes into which some of his followers went, both in doctrine and in opposition to the Catholics, at last called him from his place of retirement, in order to restrain them and correct the abuses to which some of his doctrines gave birth.
29. Death of Leo X—Demands for a General Council.—The year following the diet at Worms, Leo X died and was succeeded by Hadrian VI. This pontiff, while renewing the demand that the edict of the diet of Worms against Luther and his adherents should be executed, acknowledged the church to be in a lamentable condition, and promised a general reformation. The assembled princes at the diet of Nuremberg, before which the demands of Hadrian were presented, thought the time propitious—the emperor Charles was absent in Spain—to insist upon a free council to be held in Germany, to deliberate in the ancient manner on a general reformation of the church. This Hadrian promised to grant, but before it could be assembled he died, having occupied the papal chair but two years and eight months. He was succeeded by Clement VII, who reproved the German princes for neglecting to proceed against Luther and his adherents. The emperor seconded the demands of the pope, and a number of the princes, awed by the united demands of the pope and the emperor, promised to enforce the edict to the extent of their power.
30. Death of Frederic—Distinct Church Founded.—In 1525, Prince Frederic, the Wise, Elector of Saxony, and friend of Luther, died. He was succeeded by his brother John. Frederic had ever been an ardent admirer of Luther, but was extremely cautions in giving him any direct assistance. John was of a different temperament. He believed the principles which the Reformer taught, but saw quite clearly that they must either be abandoned or the authority of the pope discarded. He resolved upon the latter; and taking matters in his own hands, determined to organize a church altogether distinct from that of Rome. To accomplish this he called upon Luther and Philip Melancthon [Me-lanc-thon] to draw up a formula for public worship, and draft a form of church government in harmony with their principles, fixing the salaries of the clergy, defining their official duties, etc. This the Reformers gladly undertook, and shortly afterwards had the pleasure of seeing other German princes pursue the same course that John had taken, and adopt the system of worship they had formulated.
31. The Rupture Between the Pope and the Emperor.—This bold step threatened for a time to disrupt the German empire; for the princes who remained true to the old religion openly consulted together upon the advisability of taking up arms against the Lutherans; and the princes favoring the Reformers met to consider the necessity of forming an alliance to resist their enemies. In the midst of these threatening prospects an event happened which was of great advantage to the Lutheran cause, and prevented for the moment any action against them. The Emperor Charles V and Pope Clement VII became open enemies. The pontiff, fearing the increasing power of Charles, had formed an alliance with Francis I, king of France, against him. This so incensed Charles that he abolished the authority of the pope in Spain, made war upon him in Italy, captured the cities of Rome, besieged the pontiff in his castle of St. Angelo, and subjected him to great indignities.
32. The Diet at Spire—1529.—The difficulties between Charles and the pope were finally settled, however, and a diet was called at Spire in 1529, in which a majority voted to deprive the princes of Germany of the right to regulate religious matters within their respective territories—a right which a diet held three years before at Spire had granted. That is, such power was granted pending the settlement of religious difficulties by a free general council.[[15]] The diet also declared all changes made in the public religion unlawful. This action was considered a hardship by those princes who had made such changes, and they protested against the action of the diet and appealed to the emperor.[[16]] It was this protest which gave to the dissenting princes, and the followers of Luther generally, the name Protestants.
33. The envoys of the dissenting princes sent to inform Charles of the stand they had taken in relation to the religious controversy in Germany were imprisoned by him, a circumstance which threatened hostility, and the Protestant princes at once took counsel for their safety and sought to form closer alliances with each other for mutual defense. Unfortunately, however, the would-be reformers of religion were not united in doctrine, and the efforts of the princes at union were rendered vain by the disputes of the theologians.
34. Diet at Augsburg—Protestant Confession of Faith.—The emperor finally determined to settle this religious controversy within his empire, and appointed a diet to be assembled at Augsburg for that purpose. In order that the faith of the Protestants might be clearly set forth, together with their reasons for separation from the Roman church, Luther and Melancthon, at the instance of the princes who favored their doctrines, drew up a confession of faith, known as the Augsburg Confession. It consisted of twenty-eight articles, twenty-one of which stated the doctrines of the Reformers, and the other seven stated their reason for withdrawing from the Roman church. These in brief were—communion in one kind; by which the sacramental cup was denied the laity; imposing celibacy on the clergy; private masses; auricular confession; legendary traditions; monastic vows; and lastly, the excessive power of the church. In respect to this last "abuse," as these several above things are called, they discriminate between civil and ecclesiastical power, and insist that neither should infringe upon the domain of the other.