That I have mentioned Leipzig, no one should consider an affront to the honorable city and University. I was forced to it by the vaunted, arrogant, fictitious title of this Romanist, who boasts that he is a public teacher of ail the Holy Scriptures at Leipzig,[82] which titles have never before been used in Christendom, and by his dedication[83] to the city and its Council. If the jackanapes had not issued his book in German, in order to poison the defenceless laity, he would have been too small for me to bother with. For this clumsy ass cannot yet sing his hee-haw, and quite uncalled, he meddles in things which the Roman chair itself, together with all the bishops and scholars, has not been able to establish in a thousand years.

I should have thought, too, that Leipzig ought to have been too precious in his eyes, for him to smear his drivel and snivel on so honorable and famous a city; but in his own imagination he is no ordinary man. I perceive that if I permit the petulance of all these thick-heads, even the bath-maids will finally write against me.

But I pray that whoever would come at me arm himself with the

Scriptures. What helpeth it, that a poor frog puffeth himself up?

Even if he should burst, he is no ox.

I would gladly be out of this business, and they force themselves into it. May God grant both of us our prayers,—help me out of it, and let them stick in it Amen.

All glory be to God on high

And praise to all eternity. Amen.

FOOTNOTES

[1] Augustin Alveld, so named from the town of his birth, Alveld in Saxony, a Franciscan monk, Lector of his order at Leipzig. It is said of him that what he lacked in learning he made up for in scurrility, so that he himself complains that his own brother-monks wanted to forbid his writing. John Lonicerus, a friend of Luther, published a small book, Biblia nova Alveldensis, Wittenberg, 1520, in which he gathered a long list of Alveld's terms of reproach used against Luther. To him has been attributed the origin of the undignified style adopted by so many since 1520 on both sides of the controversy about Luther's teachings. Vid. H. A. Erhard, in Ersch und Gruber, Encyclopaedia, iii, 277; Algemeine Deutsche Biographi, I, 375.

[2] Cf., Augustine's Confessions, III, vii: "Just as if in armor, a man being ignorant what piece were appointed for what part, should clap a greave upon his head and draw a headpiece upon his leg…"

[3] The four chief literary opponents of Luther in the earlier years of the Reformation—Sylvester Mazolini, usually called Prierias, after the city of his birth, a papal official (Magister sacri palatii) who had published three books against Luther prior to 1520; Thomas of Gaëtano, Cardinal, and papal legate at the Diet of Augsburg, 1518; John Eck, professor in the University of Ingolstadt, who had been Luther's opponent at the Leipzig Disputation in 1519; Jerome Emser, also active at the Leipzig Disputation, whom Luther was to make the laughing-stock of Germany under the name of "the Leipzig goat," an appellation suggested by his coat-of-arms.

[4] The Theological Faculties of Cologne and Louvaine officially condemned Luther's writings; the former August 30th, the latter November 7th, 1519. The text of their resolutions was reprinted by Luther with a reply, Responsio ad condemnationem donctrinalem, etc. (1520); Weimar Ed., VI, 174 ff; Erl. Ed., op. var. arg., IV, 172 ff.

[5] Neidhart.

[6] The views which Luther expounds in this treatise had already been expressed in a Latin work, Resolutiones super Propositione XIII. de protestate Papae, 1519 (Erl. Ed., op. var. arg., III, 293 ff; Weimar Ed., II, 180 ff). The present work is written in German "for the laity."

[7] Christenheit. Luther carefully avoids the use of the word "Church" (Kirche). The reason will appear in the argument which follows. In many places, however, the word "Christendom" would not Luther's meaning, and there is, for the modern reader, no such technical restriction to the term "Church" as obtained among Luther's readers. Where the word Christenheit is rendered otherwise than "Christendom" it is so indicated in a foot-note.

[8] The chief point argued at the Leipzig Disputation, whether the power of the pope is jure divino or jure humano.

[9] Das feine barfüssische Büchlein—i. e., a book written by a bare-footed friar. See below, p. 345.

[10] A comment explanatory of a passage of Scripture or of the Canon Law.

[11] Pallium, a scarf made of sheep's wool, which the pope is privileged to wear at all times, and others only on specified occasions; conferred by the pope on persons of the rank of archbishops; on its bestowal depended the assumption of the title and functions of the office. The granting of pallis became a rich source of revenue for the pope since each new incumbent of a prelacy had to apply for his own pallium in person, or by special representative, and to pay for the privilege of receiving it. At the appointment of Uriel as bishop of Mainz in 1508, even the emperor urged a reduction of one-half the usual fees, especially since the previous incumbent had paid the full price but four years previous. The request was denied. See Art Mainz in PRE 1, 2.

[12] Zur Halfte, so nicht mehr, geistlich. See below, page 356, No. 2.

[13] Is this an allusion to the papal title, servus servorum Dei, "the servant of the servants of God"?

[14] Alveld's German treatise described itself in the title as a "fruitful, useful little book."

[15] Alveld's Latin treatise especially abounds in these appellations.

[16] Alveld belonged to the branch of the Franciscan Order known as the "Observants" (fratres reglaris observatiae), from their strict observance of the Franciscan Rule. See the title of the Latin treatise in Weimar Ed., VI, 277.

[17] Christenheit.

[18] Gemeinde—the German equivalent for the Latin communio, communitas, or congregatio. In Luther's use of the term it means sometimes "community," sometimes "congregation," sometimes even "the Church" (Gemeinde der Heiligen). In this case it translates Alveld's civilitas (Weimar Ed., VI, 278).

[19] Christenheit.

[20] Luther quotes, in German, the reading of the Latin Vulgate.

[21] Christenheit.

[22] Gemeinde. A play on the word. On the second use of the term, compare the similar employment of the English word "parish."

[23] Christenheit.

[24] From Veni Sancte Spiritus, an antiphon for Whitsuntide dating from the eleventh century.

[25] Christenheit.

[26] Es ist erlogen und erstunken.

[27] Gemeinde.

[28] Christenheit.

[29] Versammlung.

[30] Gemeinde.

[31] Versammlung.

[32] Einigkeit oder Gemeinde.

[33] A quaint interpretation of the passage: "The disciples were called Christians first in Antioch."

[34] Christenheit.

[35] Nun bitten wir den heiligen Geist, a popular pre-Reformation hymn, of one stanza, for Whitsuntide, dating from the middle of the thirteenth century; quoted in a sermon by Berthold, the Franciscan, a celebrated German preacher in the Middle Ages, who died in Regesburg in 1272. Published by Luther, with three stanzas of his own added, in his hymn-book of 1524. Vid. Wackernage, Kirchenlied, ii, 44; Koca, Geachicte des Kirchenlieds, i, 185; Julian, Dict. of Hymnology, 821. Also Miss Winkworth's Christian Singers, 38.

[36] Christenheit.

[37] Gemeinde.

[38] Christenheit.

[39] Christenheit.

[40] All sources from which the Church or the clergy derived an income were called in the broader sense, "spiritual" possessions. A further distinction was drawn between two kinds of ecclesiastical income—the spiritualia in this sense being the fees, tithes, etc., and the temporalia the income from endowments of land and the like.

[41] The followers of John Huss.

[42] Zwölfbote, a popular appellation for the apostles, meaning one of the twelve messengers.

[43] See page 351.

[44] Christenheit.

[45] Literally, "Rastrume better than malvoisie." "Rastrum" was a Leipzig beer reported to be extraordinarily bad; "malvoisie," a highly prized, imported wine, known in England as "malmsey."

[46] In the German treatise Alveld says: "It is not enough to have Christ for a shepherd or a head; if that were sufficient, all the heathen, all the Jews, all the errorists, all the heretics would be true Christians. Christ is a lord, a guardian, a shepherd, a head of the whole world, whether we want him or not." (Weimar Ed., VI, 301) In the Latin he says: "No community or assembly (civilitars seu pluralitas) of men can be rightly administered except in the unity of the head, under the Head Jesus Christ." This proposition he develops in detail, saying that "No brothel (contubernium meretricum), no band of thieves, plunderers and robbers, no company of soldiers can be ruled or held together, or long exist without a governor, chief and lord, that is to say, without one head." (Weimar Ed., VI, 278).

[47] See above, p. 358.

[48] Jerome Emser, De disputatione Lipsicense and A venatione Luteriana aegocerotia assertio.

[49] Augustine, In Joannia Ev., 12, 3, 11. (Migne Ed., 35 149 ff.)

[50] Cf. Augustine, De unitate ecclesiae, 5, 8. (Migne Ed., 43, 396 f.)

[51] In his Sermon von Sacrament des Leichnams Christi of 1519 (Weimar Ed., II, 742 ff.) Luther had made a plea for the restoration of the cup to the laity. At the request of Duke George of Saxony, the bishop of Meissen (Jan. 20th, 1520) forbade the circulation of this tract in his diocese (Weimar Ed., VI, 76; Hauerbath, Luther, I, 316). The controversy, to which Luther contributed is Verklärung etlicher Artikel, etc. (Weimar Ed., VI, 78 ff.), was bitterest in the Leipzig circle to which Alved belonged.

[52] See pp. 373 and 380.

[53] A reference to Emser's De disputatione Lipsicense, and A ventione Luteriana aegocerotis assertio, see above, p. 363.

[54] Luther's greeting to a forthcoming and much heralded work of Eck's, which appeared under the title De primatu Petri.

[55] This statement cannot be substantiated. But see commentaries on Acts 26:10 f.

[56] The memory of the warlike and avaricious pope Julius II. was still fresh in the mind of Luther and his contemporaries.

[57] Alveld so announced himself in the title of his Latin treatise. In order go gain the necessary leisure for its composition he had obtained a dispensation from all the capel services of his monastery. See Weimar Ed., VI, 277.

[58] In a similar vein of satire Shakespeare uses this very phrase in "Merry Wives of Windsor," III, 5.

[59] Gemeinde.