A church dictionary

by Walter Farquhar Hook

In the year 1518, Eckius, professor of divinity at Ingolstadt, and Silvester Prierius, a Dominican, and master of the sacred palace, wrote against Luther’s Theses, who answered them in a tract, which he sent to the pope and the bishop of Brandenburg, his diocesan, offering to submit to the Holy See in the points contested. But Prierius having published a discourse full of extravagant amplifications of the pope’s power, Luther took occasion from thence to make the papal authority appear odious to the Germans. In the mean time, the process against Luther going on at Rome, the pope summoned him to appear there within sixty days: but, at the instance of the duke of Saxony, his Holiness consented that the cause should be examined in Germany, and delegated his legate, Cardinal Cajetan, to try it. This cardinal gave Luther a peremptory order to recant, and not to appear any more before him unless he complied; upon which Luther, in the night-time, posted up an appeal to the pope, and retired to Wittemberg. Afterwards, fearing he should be condemned at Rome, he published a protestation in form of law, and appealed to a general council.

In the beginning of the next year, 1519, the emperor Maximilian dying, and the Elector of Saxony, who protected Luther, being vicar of the empire during the interregnum, that reformer’s interest and character were greatly raised, and he was generally looked upon as a man sent from God to correct the abuses which had crept into the Roman Church. In June, the same year, there was a famous conference between Luther, Eckius, and Carolostadius, at Leipsic; in which they agreed to refer themselves to the universities of Erfurt and Paris. The points debated upon were, free-will, purgatory, indulgences, penance, and the pope’s supremacy.

In 1520, Luther sent his book De Libertate Christianâ to the pope; in which he grounds justification upon faith alone, without the assistance of good works; and asserts, that Christian liberty rescues us from the bondage of human traditions, and particularly the slavery of papal impositions. Afterwards, in a remonstrance written in High Dutch, he proceeded to deny the authority of the Church of Rome.

In June the same year, the pope resolved to apply the last remedies which the Church makes use of against her enemies, and began with condemning in writing forty-one propositions extracted from Luther’s writings, giving him sixty days to recant: but Luther refusing to comply, the pope declared him excommunicated, and sent the bull by Eckius to the Elector of Saxony and the university of Wittemberg, who agreed to defer the publication of it. In the mean time Luther wrote against the bull with great warmth and freedom, and appealed once more from the pope to a general council. Besides which, he caused a large bonfire to be made without the walls of Wittemberg, and threw into it with his own hands the pope’s bull, together with the decretals, extravagants, and Clementines. This example was followed by his disciples in several other towns.

The emperor Charles V. declared against Luther, and ordered his books to be burnt. Upon the opening of the Diet of Worms, in 1521, Luther, with the emperor’s permission, appeared there, and made a speech in defence of himself and his opinions. But, when the diet found that he would neither stand to the decisions of councils nor the decrees of popes, the emperor gave him twenty days to retire to a place of security, and, a month after, published his imperial edict, by which Luther was put under the ban of the empire, as an heretic and schismatic. But the duke of Saxony gave private orders to convey Luther to the castle of Wartburg, where he was concealed three quarters of a year. He worked hard in this retirement, which he called his Isle of Patmos, and kept up the spirit of his party by writing new books; among which were his “Tracts” against auricular confession, private masses, monastic vows, and the celibacy of the clergy. About this time the university of Paris, to which he had appealed, condemned a hundred propositions extracted out of his books; and King Henry VIII. of England wrote against him in defence of the seven sacraments. Luther replied both to the Sorbonne and to the king of England, but in a very rude and unmannerly way.

Soon after he broke out of his retirement, and was so hardy as to publish a bull against the pope’s bull In cœna Domini, calling it the Bull and Reformation of Doctor Luther. About this time he published part of his translation of the Bible, in which he departed from the Vulgate, so long authorized and received by the Church.

The Elector of Saxony, who all along favoured and protected Luther, now gave him leave to reform the churches of Wirtemberg as he thought fit. The reformer proposed likewise a regulation concerning the patrimony of the Church; which was, that the bishops, abbots, and monks should be expelled, and all the lands and revenues of the bishoprics, abbeys, and monasteries, should escheat to the respective princes; and that all the convents of Mendicant friars should be turned into public schools or hospitals. This project pleased the princes and magistrates, who began to relish Luther’s doctrine extremely; insomuch that, at the Diet of Wirtemberg in 1523, when Pope Adrian VI. insisted upon the bull of Leo X. and the Edict of Worms against Luther, he could not prevail with the princes to put them in execution, but was answered, that a general council ought to be called, and that there ought to be a reformation of the ecclesiastics, and especially of the court of Rome. This year, Luther had the satisfaction to see a league contracted between Gustavus, king of Sweden, and Frederick, king of Denmark, who both agreed to establish Lutheranism in their dominions. And now Luther’s persuasion, which, from the Upper Saxony, had spread itself into the northern provinces, began to be perfectly settled in the duchies of Lunenburg, Brunswick, Mecklenburg, and Pomerania; and in the archbishoprics of Magdeburg and Bremen; and in the towns of Hamburg, Wismar, Rostock; and all along the Baltic, as far as Livonia and Prussia.

About this time Luther left off the habit of a monk, and dressed himself like a doctor, refusing to be saluted with the title of reverend father. Erasmus having written a book concerning free-will, (De Libero Arbitrio,) Luther answered it in another, entitled De Servo Arbitrio. In 1525, Thomas Münzer and Nicholas Storc, taking their leave of Luther, put themselves at the head of the Anabaptists and Fanatics. About this time Luther married a nun, called Catharine Boren, exhorting all the ecclesiastics and monks to follow his example. In 1526, Philip, Landgrave of Hesse, turned Lutheran, who gave great life and spirit to that party.

In March, 1529, the Diet of Spire decreed that the Catholics should not have the liberty to change their religion; that the Lutherans should be tolerated till the meeting of a council, but not allowed to molest the Catholics; and that the preachers should deliver nothing in their sermons contrary to the received doctrines of the Church. The Lutheran princes entered a solemn protestation against this decree, from whence came the name of Protestants, taken up first by the Lutherans, and afterwards received among the Calvinists.

The beginning of October, this year, was held at Marburg the conference between Luther and Zwinglius, in relation to the eucharist; the latter affirming that there is nothing more than bread and wine in the Lord’s supper, which elements are the figure and representation of his body and blood; and Luther asserting that his body and blood are really present, but under the substance of bread and wine, and that only in the act of receiving the sacrament; after which he did not acknowledge the continuance of this presence. This conference broke up without coming to any accommodation.