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ANABAPTISTS: 
 
 BEING AN 
 
 ACCOUNT OF THE PROGRESS 
 
 OF THE 
 
 FROM THE DIET OF ^VORBIS 
 
 TO THE DEATH OF FREDERIC, ELECTOR OP SAXONY: 
 
 COMPRISING THE HISTORY OF THE 
 
 ^S^ikBiLPTISTS, OR MEKS^OWITES : 
 
 WITH 
 
 REMARKS ON FANATICISM, RIOTS, WAR, OATHS, 
 
 BAPTISM, THE SABBATH, AND 
 
 OTHER SUBJECTS. 
 
 [The Twelfth Volume of the S. S. Church History.] 
 BY HARVEY NEWCOMB. 
 
 Written for the Massachusetts Sabbath School Society, and revised 
 by the Committee of Publication. 
 
 BOSTON : 
 
 MASSACHUSETTS SABBATH SCHOOL SOCIETY. 
 Depository, No. 25, Cornhill. 
 
 1836. 
 
Entered according to act of Congress, in the year 1836, 
 
 By Christopher C. Dean, 
 
 in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of Massachusetts. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 CONVERSATION I. 
 
 Page. 
 
 LiTTHER IN THE CASTLE.—He wntcs tracts and translates the 
 New Testament, — is censured by the divines of Lou- 
 vain and Paris, — Henry VIII. writes a book against 
 him, - - - - - - - a 
 
 CONVERSATION II. 
 
 Carolstadt, — regulations about abolisliing private masses, — 
 
 the Anabaptists,— Luther returns to Wittemberg, 2S 
 
 CONVERSATION III. 
 
 Luther preaches at Wittemberg,— he detects the imposture of 
 the Anabaptist Prophets,— Publishes his New Testa- 
 ment,— Progress of the Reformation, - - 58 
 
 CONVERSATION IV. 
 
 New Pope,— Diet of Nuremberg,— Death of Adrian VI., 80 
 
 CONVERSATION V. 
 
 Critical state of the Reformation, after the Diet of Nurem- 
 berg, — persecution of the Queen of Denmark, — perse- 
 cution in Flanders,— martyrdom of Voes and Esch, 9T 
 
IV CONTENTS. 
 
 CONVERSATION VI. 
 
 Luther's Letter to the Duke of Savoy,— Election of Clement 
 VII., — Diet of Nuremberg,— Confederacy of Ralisbon, 
 — Convention of Spires, — Persecution, — Martyrdom of 
 Henry Muller, ------ US- 
 CONVERSATION VII. 
 
 The Anabaptists,— their War,— Death of the Elector Fred- 
 
 eric, 
 
 147 
 

 
 
 CONVERSATION I. 
 
 LUTHER IN THE CASTLE. 
 
 He writes Tracts and translates the New Testament— is censureii 
 by the divines of Louvain and Paris— Henry VIII. writes a 
 book against him. 
 
 Caroline. My dear mother, I want to hear 
 more about Luther. How did he like to live in 
 the castle, shut up so ?* I should not like to be 
 shut up. 
 
 Elizabeth. I think all the world would be 
 wondering what had become of him. 
 
 Samuel. And I suppose some would think he 
 had been murdered by the Papists, and others 
 would think he had run away ; and so it would 
 make a great talk all over the country. 
 
 Peter. And I suppose the Papists would be 
 very glad, if they thought he was dead. 
 
 Mother. Yes, my dear children ; the sudden 
 
 *See « TheDaw7i." 
 
b THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 disappearance of Luther made a great noise, all 
 over Germany. It was reported and generally 
 believed, that he had been murdered on the way. 
 Caroline. I suppose that made the good peo- 
 ple feel very sorry. 
 
 Mother. Yes, my dear ; the friends of the 
 Reformation were very much cast down, with the 
 loss of their leader. But the Papists boasted 
 about it, and hoped it would prove true. How- 
 ever, many of his friends thought that he had 
 shut himself up at Wittemberg. But you asked 
 me, my dear Caroline, how Luther liked to be^ 
 shut up in the castle. He was not pleased with 
 it ; and I suppose he would not have been satis- 
 fied to stay, if he had not thought it was his duty. 
 He was an active man, and he did not like to be 
 shut up. He was bold and courageous, and he 
 did not like to run away from danger. He was 
 anxious to be with his friends, helping forward 
 the cause of truth. His living, too, was too rich 
 ibr him. It injured his health. He complains of 
 sickness, and says his mind grew feeble, and his 
 prayers lifeless. 
 
 Samuel. Well, I think he ought to have been 
 willing to be any where, if it was God's will. 
 
 Mother. Yes, and I suppose he was. He 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 7 
 
 called the name of the place where he was shut 
 up, his Patmos, after the name of the Island 
 where the Apostle John was banished.* 
 
 Elizabeth. What did he do there, mother ? 
 
 Mother. He did not give himself up to idle- 
 ness, because he could not labor among the peo- 
 ple as he wished to do. But he spent his time in 
 writing books and translating the Bible. He had 
 not been there long before he wrote a tract 
 against the abuses of private confession. t In this 
 little book, he exposed the wicked practices of 
 the priests. 
 
 Elizabeth. Mother, I have read what is said 
 about confession in the Great Apostasy ; but I 
 wish you* would tell me a little more about how 
 the priests managed it. 
 
 Mother. According to the laws of the church 
 of Rome, the people must tell the priest every 
 thing they have done, and all their secret thoughts 
 and feelings. 
 
 Elizabeth. I should not like to do that. I 
 should rather confess my sins to God. 
 
 Mother. It is much better, my dear. If you 
 confess your sins to God, he can forgive them ; 
 
 * See History of First Christians, p. 164. Also, Rev. 1 : 9. 
 t See Great Apostasy, p. 147. 
 
8 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 but the priests have no power to forgive sins, as 
 they pretend. But this is one of the pillars of the 
 church of Rome. It gives a wonderful influence 
 to the priests. The Papists are taught, from 
 childhood, to believe that they will lose their 
 souls if they keep back any thing from their con- 
 fessors. By this means, the priests become ac- 
 quainted with the secrets of all the people ; and 
 these they hold over them as a rod, to make them 
 do what they say. Besides this, if they will not 
 mind them, they can refuse to pardon their sins. 
 The monks, in Luther's time, lived in the houses 
 of rich people, and by becoming acquainted with 
 their secrets, they acquired a great influence over 
 them. Then they would contrive to be with 
 them when they were dying, and make them give 
 great sums to the monasteries, in their wills. 
 And I suppose they do this now, wherever Popery 
 prevails. But far worse is the effect which this 
 practice of confession has upon the morals both 
 of the priests and the people. When the priests 
 are all the time listening to the details of evil 
 thoughts and wicked actions, they become so fa- 
 miliar with crime, that their hearts are hardened, 
 and their own minds polluted. It is almost im- 
 possible that it should not be so. And then, in 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 9 
 
 return, they pollute the minds of the young, who 
 are obliged to disclose all their thoughts to them. 
 This they do in a very artful manner, when they 
 have young girls before them. They will ask 
 them indecent questions about their thoughts and 
 feelings, till their minds are polluted, and they 
 are prepared to become a prey to the wicked pas- 
 sions of the priests. In those countries where 
 Popery generally prevails, the abominable licen- 
 tiousness of the priests is no secret ; and the rea- 
 son why their wickedness, in this way, is not gen- 
 erally known in this country, is, that it is kept 
 .secret, because they are afraid of public opinion. 
 
 Samuel. But it seems to me that a worse 
 ihing than all this is, that the people will trust in 
 their confessions,^ and the absolution of the priest, 
 instead of the merits of Christ. 
 
 Mother. Yes, my son, you are right ; for this 
 leads to the ruin of their souls. And this was 
 the principal reason why Luther wrote against 
 private confessions. 
 
 Samuel. Well, I suppose the wicked priests 
 did not like Luther's tract. 
 
 Mother. No ; although he touched lightly up- 
 on the licentiousness of the clergy, they were up 
 in arms against him. 
 
10 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 Peter. But what could they do, mother, 
 when they could not find him ? 
 
 Mother. They could only rage, and vent their 
 spite against his books and his followers. 
 
 Elizabeth. And did the Reformation go ou^ 
 mother, while Luther was confined? 
 
 Mother. Yes; through the influence of his 
 preaching and of his writings, the truth had taken 
 deep root throughout many parts of Germany ; 
 and there were many zealous men engaged in 
 promoting the cause. More than a year before, 
 Luther had published a tract against the abomi- 
 nable doctrine of the Mass.* The Augustine 
 friars at Wittemberg now ventured openly to 
 abolish the practice of celebrating pnt7«^e masses. 
 
 Peter. What is private mass, mother ? 
 
 Mother. You will see in the Great Apostasy, 
 that the Papists hold that the ceremony of cele- 
 brating mass, is a real sacrifice of the body and 
 blood of Christ; and they had introduced the 
 practice of saying mass for all who desired it, to 
 enable them, as they supposed, to obtain whatev- 
 er they wished. And this was done by the priests, 
 without asking what the people wanted. So if 
 a man had lost money, or any thing else, he 
 
 *See Great Apostasy, p. 142. 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 11 
 
 would go to the priest, and get him to say mass, 
 to enable him to find it. And if a man wished 
 to be successful in any enterprise, good or bad, 
 he would get the priest to say mass for him. So, 
 according to their own doctrine, they would 
 sacrifice the Lord Jesus Christ to help people get 
 money, or even to aid them in acts of wicked- 
 ness ; for a man might get the priest to say mass, 
 for the death of an enemy, or for success in steal- 
 ing, or in cheating or robbing his neighbor. 
 
 Samuel. What abominable blasphemy, moth- 
 er ! How could the priests make the people be- 
 lieve that God would help them do wickedly ? 
 And how could they be so wicked ? 
 
 Mother. When people are under the inflaence 
 of superstition, they may be made to believe any 
 thing, no matter how ridiculous and absurd. 
 And we may easily see why the priests would 
 encourage such an abominable practice. They 
 were always well paid for the private masses, and 
 it brought them an immense revenue. It was 
 one of the chains which riveted upon the people 
 the tyranny of the church of Rome. 
 
 Peter. I think Luther would be very glad to 
 hear that the monks had put a stop to this prac- 
 tice at Witteraberg. 
 
1:2 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 Mother. Yes, he was; and he wrote another 
 book, in favor of abolishing private masses. And, 
 soon after, he wrote another book, on Monastic 
 Lwws,^ in which he maintained that, when the 
 monks and nuns promise that they will never 
 marry, such promises are not binding. 
 
 .Elizabeth. Was he right, mother? I thought 
 it was always wrong to break a promise. But the 
 promise of the monks and nuns is a solemn oath 
 or vow, made in the presence of God. 
 
 Mother. Yes, my dear Elizabeth. But we 
 have no right to make a promise or take an oath 
 to do any thing wrong. If we do, we sin in 
 making the promise or taking the oath, but not in 
 breaking it. Marriage is an ordinance of God. 
 He made mail and woman to live together : the 
 whole system of monkery is opposed to the ordi- 
 nance of God. The monastic vow becomes a 
 snare to the consciences of the monks and nuns, 
 leading them into sin. It is taken under false 
 views of duty. Therefore, when their minds be- 
 come enlightened, it cannot be wrong to break it. 
 
 Peter. Then, mother, if I promise to do any 
 tiling wrong, I am not bound to do it. 
 
 Mother. No, my son ; you cannot bind your- 
 
 *See Great Apostasy, p. 164. 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 13 
 
 self to do what God has forbidden. But it is very 
 wicked for you to make a had promise. 
 
 Caroline. How did the Papists like this book, 
 mother 1 
 
 Mother. They clamored against it very much. 
 But that was to be expected, for monkery has al- 
 ways been one of the pillars of Popery.* While 
 Luther was in the castle of Wartburgh, the di- 
 vines of the College of Louvain condemned his 
 writings, and one of them, named James Latomus, 
 wrote a book to defend their sentence. To this 
 book, Luther wrote a very able and spirited re- 
 ply. But the most important work in which he 
 was engaged, during his confinement in the cas- 
 tle, was the translation of the Bible. He had a 
 great reverence and love for the Scriptures. It 
 was God's word which had opened his eyes to see 
 the abominations of Popery; and he saw that the 
 Bible was what was wanted to open the eyes of 
 the people. But that blessed book had never been 
 translated into the German language. It was for 
 the interests of Popery, that the common people 
 should not read the Bible ; and so its blessed 
 truths were kept locked up in the Hebrew, Greek, 
 and Latin languages. But Luther determined to 
 
 * See Great Apostasy, p. 95. 
 
14 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 open this precious treasure to the common peo- 
 ple; and, during the summer of the year 1521, 
 while shut out from the world, he translated the 
 whole of the New Testament into the Grerman 
 language. He also took great pains to improve 
 his knowledge of Hebrew and Greek, so that he 
 might be the better prepared to translate the 
 whole Bible. 
 
 Peter. How long did Luther stay in the cas- 
 tle, mother ? 
 
 Mother. About nine months. 
 
 Samuel. I think he was very industrious, 
 mother, to write so much, and translate the New 
 Testament, in that time. 
 
 Mother. Yes ; but besides this, he wrote a^ 
 great many letters to his intimate friends. These 
 letters express the feelings of his heart. They 
 show his strong confidence in God, his love to the 
 cause of Christ, and his determination to hazard 
 every thing for the truth. While in the castle, 
 he let his beard grow long, changed his dress, 
 and passed for a country gentleman, under the 
 name of Yonker George. And he sometimes 
 amused himself with hunting, in company with 
 the people who lived in the castle. That you may 
 know something about his feelings, while there, 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 15 
 
 I will read you a few lines that he wrote to his 
 friend Melancthon : "I sit here in my Patmos," 
 says he, " thinking all the day of the wretched 
 condition of the church. And I mourn over the 
 hardness of my heart, that I am not dissolved in 
 tears on this account. May God have mercy up- 
 on us. For the glory of the word of God, and 
 for the mutual confirmation of myself and others, 
 I would much rather burn on the Hve coals, than 
 live here alone, half alive and useless. If I per- 
 ish, it is God's will ; neither will the Gospel suf- 
 fer in any degree." 
 
 Elizabeth. O that was a noble spirit. How 
 I admire the man ! 
 
 Mother. Rather, my Elizabeth, admire the 
 grace of God, which raised up just such a man 
 as was needed at that critical time. 
 
 Samuel. Mother, I should like to hear more 
 of what Luther's followers were doing, all this 
 time. 
 
 Mother. The friends of the Reformation at 
 Wittemberg, were very much discouraged during 
 this summer. Their great leader was absent; 
 and the Elector Frederic and his court were so 
 cautious that they could do very little to advance 
 the cause of truth. He would not allow them tlie 
 
16 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 full privilege of publishing Luther's writings, nor 
 of disputing publicly upon questions which were 
 likely to offend the Papists. Luther was very 
 careful to obey his rulers, when they did not re- 
 quire him to do wrong. But when he was satis- 
 lied that they required him to do any thing di- 
 rectly contrary to the will of God, he made no 
 scruple of disobeying them. 
 
 Samuel. Well, I think that was right ; for the 
 Apostles would not obey their rulers when they 
 forbade them to preach Christ. They said it was 
 better to obey God than man. 
 
 Mother. Yes ; there is no doubt on this sub- 
 ject. In things which are not absolutely wrong, 
 we are in duty bound to obey the laws of our 
 country ; and when we refuse, we disobey God. 
 But when those laws require us to do what God 
 has forbidden, or neglect what he has required, 
 it is plain that we ought to disobey them. For 
 instance, the laws of the United States require 
 that the post office should be open every day in 
 the week. But, when the postmasters open their 
 offices on the Sabbath day, they break God's 
 commandment, though they obey the command- 
 ments of men. They do wrong. No human law 
 will justify us in breaking the law of God. So 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 17 
 
 when Luther saw that the policy of the Elector's 
 court was doing injury to the cause of truth, he 
 wrote to his Christian friends at the University 
 not to follow the advice of the court, but to take 
 the lead themselves. At the same time, when he 
 saw any disposition on the part of the people to 
 rise up and maintain their rights by force, in op- 
 position to the laws, they met with his stern re- 
 proof. The students at Erfurt, with the common 
 people, joined in a riot against the clergy, on 
 account of the abuses practised by them. But 
 Luther wrote to them, saying, " It is very proper 
 that the clergy, who prove themselves to be in- 
 curably profligate, should be checked and dis- 
 couraged ; but by no means in this way. This 
 manner of doing it is a just disgrace upon our 
 Gospel, and hinders its success. This way of 
 showing kindness to us afflicts me exceedingly ; 
 for it shows that we are not yet worthy of being 
 esteemed before God as faithful ministers of his 
 word ; and that Satan makes a mock of all our 
 labors." 
 
 Elizabeth. I like that, mother. It strikes at 
 the root of fjiob Imv. 
 
 Mother. Yes, my dear ; and there is scarcely 
 any principle more important to be embraced by 
 
18 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 young people, than that oi respect for the laws of 
 the country. Within a year past, the people, in 
 many places, have taken the law into their own 
 hands. When they have supposed individuals 
 have deserved to be punished, they have gather- 
 ed together in mobs, and taken vengeance upon 
 them, without the form of a trial. If this princi- 
 ple continues to be acted upon, it will leave us 
 only the name of liberty. Our good constitutions 
 and laws will be worth nothing. We shall be at 
 the mercy of a lawless mob, and have no securi- 
 ty for our lives or property. I wish you, there- 
 fore, firmly to adopt this principle : never tO" do 
 
 ANY THING CONTRARY TO THE LAWS OF THE COUN- 
 TRY, UNLESS THEY REQUIRE YOU TO VIOLATE THE 
 
 LAW OF God. 
 
 Samuel, But, mother, there are some evils 
 that the law cannot reach. Is it not better for 
 people to rise up and remove them by force, than 
 to suffer great injury to be done to society? I 
 have thought a great many times that it would be 
 a good thing, if the people in this city would meet 
 and tear down all the grog-shops ; for they are 
 doing more than any thing else to destroy the 
 comfort and ruin the morals of the people. 
 
 Mother. No, my son ; the grog-shops are a 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 19 
 
 great evil ; and it would be a very great benefit 
 to society if they were removed. But there is no 
 evil so great as the prostration of the laws. 
 When the people of this country have lost their 
 respect for the laws, our government will be at 
 an end ; and a despotism will rise upon its ruins. 
 It is better, then, to bear with any evil in society, 
 than to undertake to redress it by force, contrary 
 to law. 
 
 Elizabeth. Mother, I think Luther's people 
 were very sorry that he was taken away from 
 them, so that they could not enjoy his preaching. 
 
 Mother. I have no doubt they were ; but he 
 wrote them a long letter, full of pious sentiments, 
 and affectionate feeling. He told them that he 
 was sorry he was not yet found worthy to suffer 
 any thing for Christ's sake, but hatred and re- 
 proach ; though, if the Lord had not been on his 
 side, he says he should long ago have been torn 
 in pieces. He praised God for his goodness in 
 supporting him, and confounding the enemies of 
 the truth. — I have often told you that, though the 
 Papists had such a multitude of priests, the preach- 
 ing of the Gospel was almost wholly neglected. 
 Luther felt very much the importance of regular 
 preaching. He had seen the advantages of it 
 
20 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 among his own people ; and now in his absence 
 they were thirsting for the word of God. To sup- 
 ply their wants, he wrote a number of familiar 
 explanations of the Gospels and Epistles, and sent 
 them to Wittemberg, to be printed for their use. 
 He also requested Melancthon to preach to them, 
 while he was absent. Preaching and publishing 
 the truth, and exhorting the people to the dili- 
 gent study of God's holy word, were the means 
 upon which Luther depended for delivering the 
 people from the darkness of Popery ; and he had 
 the consolation of seeing his labors more and 
 more blessed. The Augustine monks, at Wit- 
 temberg, left off the celebration of private masses, 
 and new preachers of the Gospel rose up, in dif- 
 ferent parts of the country. Though some per- 
 sons of the higher ranks were frightened at the 
 edict of Worms ; yet the common people gladly 
 listened to the pure doctrines of the Gospel. 
 
 Samuel. Mother, 1 think the common people 
 are always more willing to receive the truth than 
 the rulers and great men. When Christ was in 
 the world, the common people heard him gladly : 
 but the priests and rulers would not believe in 
 him. 
 
 Mother. Yes, my son ; the rulers are gener- 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 21 
 
 ally afraid of losing their authority, if any new 
 thing is introduced ; and priests, who get their 
 jiving by supporting a false religion, will always 
 be opposed to a reformation. And the great and 
 the fashionable, the rich and the worldly, do not 
 like the humbling doctrines of the Gospel, which 
 place all men on a level, as lost sinners, in the 
 sight of God. But the Gospel is just suited to 
 the wants of the poor ; and though their hearts 
 are by nature opposed to it, they are much more 
 likely to receive it than the rich and the great. 
 
 In the course of this year, Nicholas Hausman 
 began to preach the Gospel at Zwickau. This 
 town was greatly blessed of the Lord. From the 
 very first, the sentiments of Luther were received 
 and taught there, in private. And there, too, 
 Frederic Myconius, Luther's intimate friend^ 
 preached to the people. He w^as a distinguished 
 reformer. When he was sixteen years old, he 
 entered the monastery at Annaberg. 
 
 Peter. Why, mother, he was very young to 
 be a monk. 
 
 *" Mother. Yes ; but he was very zealous in re- 
 ligion. For honest people, Popery is a hard mas- 
 ter. It lays heavy burdens upon men's con- 
 sciences, grievous to be borne. The monks and 
 
•22 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 nuns, and the priests, are obliged to go througli 
 so many ceremonies, and to endure so many 
 hardships, that it very soon wears them out, if 
 they are honest in doing what their rules require. 
 Myconius suffered so much from the practice of 
 Popish austerities, and from hard study, while in 
 the monastery, that he became very weak in body. 
 When Tetzel came along with his indulgences, 
 he asked him to give him one for nothing, as he 
 was poor, and unable to pay for it. But Tetzel 
 would not do it ; and he was led to examine the 
 subject of selling indulgences. He was confirm- 
 ed in the truth by Luther's writings, and became 
 a zealous opposer of the corruptions of Popery. 
 At Freyburg, also, the people began to embrace 
 the truth. John, can you find Freyburg on the 
 map ? 
 
 John. Yes, here it is, in Thuringia. Who 
 governed this place, mother 1 
 
 Mother. It was governed by Henry, duke of 
 Saxony, and brother of duke George. 
 
 Elizabeth. Then I suppose the reformers got 
 no peace there ; for his brother was such a bit-' 
 ter persecutor. 
 
 Mother. My dear, we must not judge people 
 by their relations. A very good man may have 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 23 
 
 a very wicked brother. Before the diet of Worms, 
 Henry began to show some regard for the truth. 
 He was displeased with the Pope's bull, and wrote 
 to Luther for instruction in the truth. But 
 through fear of the edict of Worms, and of his 
 brother George, he was prevented from doing any 
 thing more for the good cause. However, his 
 wife Catharine was a faithful Christian. She 
 was in great danger of being persecuted ; but she 
 put her trust in God. She said, in one of her 
 letters, that she was ready to suffer any thing 
 that might happen to her for obeying the Scrip- 
 tures. So, you see, the good seed of the word 
 of God was springing up in almost every corner 
 of Germany. 
 
 Samuel. I suppose Luther rejoiced in his con- 
 finement, when he heard that the good cause 
 was going on. 
 
 Mother. Yes; but several things took place, 
 while he was there, which were not very agreea- 
 ble to his feelings. He learned that things were 
 not well managed at Wittemberg. Many of the 
 canons of that place disgraced the cause of the 
 Reformation, by the practice of Popish super- 
 stitions, and by their vicious, profligate conduct. 
 
 Caroline. What is a canon, mother? 
 
24 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 Mother. A canon, generally, means a law or 
 rule of the church. But, it is also a title given 
 to a person appointed to perform divine service 
 in a cathedral, or in a college church.— But, be- 
 sides this, Carolstadt began to make disturbance 
 among the Reformers themselves. 
 
 Elizabeth. Was that the same man that dis- 
 puted with Eckius at Leipsic ?* 
 
 Mother. Yes, my dear, he was the same. He 
 was a troublesome man, as we shall see before 
 iong. When these things came to Luther's ears, 
 he left the castle, privately, and went to Wittem- 
 berg to see if he could not set matters right. 
 
 Peter, I should think he would have been 
 afraid to do that, mother, when the Catholics 
 wanted so much to kill him. 
 
 Mother. My son, he did not stay in the cas- 
 tle because he was afraid of losing his life ; but 
 he was kept there by the Elector Frederic. He 
 would no doubt have cheerfully given up his 
 life, for the sake of the truth. 
 
 Samuel. How did Luther find his affairs at 
 Wittemberg, mother ? 
 
 Mother. In general, he says what he saw gave 
 him the highest satisfaction. But he was quite 
 vexed w^ith the restless spirit of Carolstadt, and 
 
 * See " The Dawn,'' p. . 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. "25 
 
 some other friends of the Reformation ; and when 
 he returned to the castle, he wrote and published 
 an exhortation to them, suited to the circum- 
 stances. But, besides these troubles, the uni- 
 versity of Paris passed a solemn censure upon 
 Luther's writings, and condemned his doctrine 
 as "erroneous both in faith and manners, and 
 proper only to deceive simple people." This was 
 the oldest and most respectable university in Eu- 
 rope. In 1517, they had ventured to deny the 
 infallibility of the Pope ; and Luther had before 
 appealed to them, 
 
 Samuel. I suppose, then, he was disappointed 
 and mortified that they should decide against 
 him. 
 
 Mother. Yes, I suppose he was. But Melanc- 
 thon wrote a book, defending Luther against their 
 decision. Luther, in one of his letters, says, " I 
 have seen the decree of the Parisian sophists, 
 and the apology of my friend, Philip Melancthon. 
 From my heart I rejoice. Christ would never 
 have so completely blinded their eyes, if he had 
 not determined to take care of his own cause, 
 and put an end to the despotism of his enemies." 
 But Luther's patience was also tried, during his 
 confinement, by an attack made upon him by 
 
26 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 Henry VIII. king of England. Henry was a 
 worldly, ambitious, and wicked prince; and he 
 had been for some time trying to get the Pope to 
 give him some honorable title. I suppose his 
 chief object in writing this book was to gain the 
 favor of the Pope; though he v/as a man of 
 learning, and probably hoped to gain some fame 
 by writing a book. It was presented to the Pon- 
 tiff with great formality; and in return for it he 
 received the title of Defender of the Faith. 
 
 Elizabeth. Why, mother, that is what the 
 king of England is called now. I should not 
 think a Protestant king would hold a title that 
 was given by the Pope. 
 
 Mother. Worldly and ambitious men are not 
 very scrupulous about such things. If they get 
 honor, they are not very anxious where it comes 
 from. 
 
 Caroline. Did Luther answer the king, mother ? 
 
 Mother. Yes, my dear ; but he did it in such 
 a way as to do himself no honor. He treated 
 him very roughly ; and answered his book in a 
 severe and angry manner. This was Luther's 
 great fault. He was very irritable; and, in his 
 controversies, he was greatly wanting in meek- 
 ness. In his writings of this kind, he did not 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 27 
 
 show a gentle, Christian spirit. The Bible says, 
 " A soft answer turneth away wrath ; but grievous 
 words stir up anger." 
 
 Samuel. But, mother, is it not right to oppose 
 those who teach false doctrines ? 
 
 Mother. Yes, my son ; but it should be done 
 in a spirit of kindness and Christian meekness. 
 Resentment is contrary to the spirit of the Gos- 
 pel ; and when men use angry words, and abuse 
 one another, while disputing about religion, they 
 do great injury to the cause of Christ. 
 
 In the month of December of this year. Pope 
 Leo X. died. He was a man of abandoned and 
 vicious character, though he pretended to be the 
 representative of Christ upon earth. H^ sent out 
 his bulls against heretics, while he was profaning 
 the highest seat in the church, with his profligacy 
 and impiety. But we have talked long enough 
 this evening. 
 
 QUESTIONS. 
 What effect had the sudden disappearance of Luther.-' What 
 did he do, In his confinement t Can you give an explanation of the 
 private mass? What was the most important work in which Lu- 
 ther was engaged, while confined in the castle of Wartburg ? What 
 is said of the fiiends of the Reformation at W^ittemberg? What hap. 
 pened at Erfurt? What did Luther write to the students about it? 
 What happened at Zwickau ? What is said of Frederic Myconius ? 
 Wliat did the University of Paris do ? What did Henry VIIT., king 
 of England, do? How did Luther answer him? 
 
CONVERSATION II. 
 
 Carolstadt— regulations about abolishing private masses— the Ana- 
 baptists—Luther returns to Witteniberg. 
 
 Peter. Mother, you told us that we should 
 see, before long, that Carolstadt was a trouble- 
 some man. I thought he showed a good deal of 
 courage in coming out in favor of the Reforma- 
 tion, before any body else dared to favor Luther's 
 opinions. 
 
 Mother. Yes, my son ; I admire his courage ; 
 but he was a man of violent passions, of a turbu- 
 lent disposition, and determined to have his own 
 way. I have seen people of such dispositions; 
 and I find it very uncomfortable to have any thi^ng 
 to do with them. They seem to care more about 
 gratifying their own wills, thaa they do about 
 glorifying God and doing his will. If any thing 
 is done without consulting them, and putting them 
 forward, they are always finding fault. They 
 will run headlong in their own way ; always get- 
 ting into difliiculty ; but if they cannot do a thing 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 29 
 
 just in the way they think best, they will do noth- 
 ing at all. I wish to impress deeply upon your 
 minds, that such a disposition is entirely contrary 
 to the spirit of the Gospel, and disgraceful to the 
 Christian name. But such you will find to be 
 the disposition of Carolstadt ; and that is the rea- 
 son that he made disturbance among the Re- 
 formers. 
 
 Caroline. What did he do, mother ? 
 
 Mother. While Luther was confined in his 
 " Patmos^' and the cause of the rising Reforma- 
 tion was in a most critical condition, Carolstadt 
 was impatient with its slow progress. Mistaking 
 the mild and peaceful spirit of the Gospel, he un- 
 dertook to carry things by force. He collected 
 together a company of hot-headed young men, 
 and after inflaming their minds by a violent 
 speech, he led them into the gi'eat church, called 
 All Saints, broke the images and crosses in 
 pieces, and threw down the altars. 
 
 Peter. Well, mother, as it is wicked to wor- 
 ship images, what harm was there in that ? 
 
 Mother. My son, if he had been the pastor of 
 the church, there would have been no harm in 
 his ordering the images to be removed, in a quiet 
 way. But this was a church in which he had no 
 
30 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 authority ; and the images and crosses and altars 
 were placed there by law. His proceedings, 
 therefore, were a riotous violation of law and or- 
 der, like the mobs in this country ; and very un- 
 becoming a minister of the Gospel of peace, 
 
 Samuel. Mother, I would like to know what 
 it was that led him to these proceedings. 
 
 Mother. Caroline, my dear, you may read the 
 25th verse of the 11th chapter of Matthew. 
 
 Caroline. At that time Jesus answered and 
 said, "I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven 
 and earth, because thou hast hid these things 
 from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed 
 them unto babes." 
 
 Mother. Well, Carolstadt thought this passage 
 meant that learning was not only useless, but in- 
 jurious to any one who wished to understand the 
 Bible. 
 
 Peter. Well, mother, if God will hide these 
 things from the wise, would it not be better for 
 them to have no learning? 
 
 Mother. Jesus was speaking about the Scribes 
 and Pharisees, and the priests and rulers of the 
 Jews, who thought themselves very wise. When 
 people think too much of themselves, God will 
 humble them. And I suppose he did not hide 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 31 
 
 these things from them because they were learn- 
 ed and wise ; but because they were so proud of 
 their knowledge, and supposed themselves to be 
 so wise. Therefore, God revealed the knowledge 
 of the Gospel to the poor and ignorant rather 
 than to them. And so he will always do. A 
 learned and self-righteous man, who is proud of 
 his knowledge, and unwilling to be taught, will 
 be much less likely to embrace the Gospel, than 
 a poor ignorant man, v/ho feels sensible of his ig- 
 norance. But that does not show that learning 
 is in itself bad, or necessarily injurious to those 
 who possess it. But Carolstadt was so much car- 
 ried away with this notion, that he went round 
 to the poorest and most ignorant people, to con- 
 sult them about the meaning of the Scriptures. 
 He lived in a village, and employed himself as a 
 laborer, maintaining that thinking persons had 
 no need of learning, and that they had better be 
 at work than at study. 
 
 Samuel. Paul did not think so, mother. He 
 told Timothy to "give attendance to reading;" 
 to " meditate upon these things, and give himself 
 wholly unto them." 
 
 Mother. Yes; and Paul was a learned man 
 himself. But he never wishes that he had no 
 
32 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 learning; and I suppose if Christ had thought 
 learning a bad thing, he would not have called 
 Paul to be a missionary to the heathen. It is 
 only when we abuse learning, and feel proud of 
 it, that it becomes a bad thing for us. But as 
 Carolstadt was one of the first leaders of the 
 Reformation, and a man of some importance at 
 Wittemberg, his example led many of the young 
 men to quit their studies and leave the universi- 
 ty ; and even the boys in the schools were affect- 
 ed by it. 
 
 Samuel. I think such things would injure the 
 Reformation, mother. 
 
 Mother. They were calculated to do much 
 injury. They produced the first beginning of di- 
 vision in the ranks of the Reformers. I have al- 
 ready told you that the monks at Wittemberg 
 had begun to abolish the private masses, and that 
 Luther was pleased with it. But the Elector 
 Frederic was alarmed at it, and sent a man to 
 tell them that he did not like to have any altera- 
 tions made in the established customs of the 
 church. The Reformers appointed Justus Jo- 
 nas, Philip Melancthon, Nicholas Amsdorf, John 
 Doltz, Jerome Schurf, and Andrew Carolstadt, 
 to examine the matter. They made a written re- 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 33 
 
 port, approving what had been done, and exhort- 
 ing the Elector to put an end to the Popish profa- 
 nation of the Lord's Supper, throughout his do- 
 minions. They told him, that, as a Christian 
 prince, it became him to act with dignity and 
 spirit in such an affair, and not mind being call- 
 ed Heretic or Hussite. Whoever faithfully sup- 
 ported the cause of the Gospel, must expect re- 
 proach and abuse. And, as God had been pleased 
 to enlighten his mind with a knowledge of the 
 truth, more than any of the rest of the princes^ 
 they told him that he would be called to account, 
 in the day of Judgment, for the talents given him, 
 
 Peter. I think they were very bold, to talk 
 so to their prince. What did he say to them ? 
 
 Mother. He sent Professor Beyer to give them 
 his answer ; in which he told them that he wish- 
 ed, in every thing, to conduct himself like a 
 Christian prince. He did not wish to leave any 
 thing undone, which might promote the glory of 
 God, and help the cause of truth. But he thought 
 the alteration proposed, was of too much impor- 
 tance to be decided by a few. It required the 
 mature deliberation of the whole church. If their 
 advice was sound, he said it would be followed 
 by others, and then he might begin to make the 
 
34 
 
 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 change with some prospect of success. But, as 
 many churches and monasteries had been found- 
 ed only for the purpose of saying masses, it would 
 be a question whether their revenues should not 
 be stopped, when the masses were abolished. 
 But, finally, as they did not seem to be inclined 
 to take his advice, he owned that he was only a 
 layman, and not skilled in the Scriptures ; and 
 therefore he entreated them calmly to consult 
 their brethren, the rulers of the church and the 
 University, and so to settle the business that no 
 tumults or seditions might follow. 
 
 Samuel. I can't help admiring the tender- 
 ness of conscience a:nd humility of this prince. 
 I think he was very anxious to know and do what 
 was right ; and I like him because he was not 
 inclined to interfere with things that did not be- 
 long to him. 
 
 Mother. Yes, my son; although this prince, 
 on many occasions, appears too timid and cau- 
 tious ; yet, it is very probable that his extraordi- 
 nary prudence did as much for the cause of the 
 Reformation as the boldness and courage of Lu- 
 ther ; for it prevented it from being nipped in the 
 bud, before it had strength or root to endure. 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 35 
 
 And I suppose it was for this very purpose that 
 God raised him up. 
 
 Elizabeth. What did the Wittemberg Re- 
 formers say to his answer, mother ? 
 
 Mother. They told him that they were still of 
 the opinion that the private masses ought to be 
 abolished. This, they thought, might be done 
 without tumult or danger. But, if it could not, 
 they said the evil was so great that it ought to be 
 removed, without regard to consequences. Al- 
 though the Reformers were but a small part of 
 the church, yet they had the word of God on 
 their side; and to this, all ought to bow. From 
 the beginning of the world, they said only a very 
 small part of mankind had acknowledged the 
 truth. 
 
 Samuel. Is not that true, mother 1 Is it not 
 generally the case, that the majority are on the 
 wrong side 1 
 
 Mother. In regard to moral principles, and 
 practical questions of duty, it has generally been 
 the case, that the majority of mankind are on the 
 wrong side ; and I suppose it will be so till the 
 millennium, when the principles of the Bible will 
 be generally embraced, throughout the world. — 
 
36 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 The Reformers went on with a long argument 
 against the mass ; and then told the prince that 
 if any tumults should arise in consequence of 
 abolishing the mass, they were not to be charged 
 upon them, but upon those persons who, for the 
 sake of keeping up their dignity, their income, 
 and their luxurious tables, continued to hide the 
 light of the truth, and cruelly to wage war against 
 the altars of God. But, if their rulers would only 
 allow the word of God to be freely preached, 
 heard, and read; even though they opposed it 
 with all the arguments in their power ; yet, if 
 they did not inflict cruel punishments upon their 
 adversaries, there would be no tumults. How- 
 ever, the Christian rule was, neither to regard 
 the madness of the enemy, nor the greatness of 
 the danger. Christ and his apostles did not re- 
 main silent, though they knew the preaching of 
 the Gospel would be attended with discords, se- 
 ditions, and revolutions. And they concluded 
 with seriously reminding the Elector of the words 
 of Christ : " Whosoever loveth father or mother 
 more than me, is not worthy of me." 
 
 Elizabeth. What effect did this have upon 
 the Elector ? 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 37 
 
 Mother. I have no doubt his serious mind 
 was much affected by it ; for he let them go on 
 with their proceedings, though he did not sanc- 
 tion them. But it wae just at this critical time, 
 when great prudence and caution were necessa- 
 ry, that the violent spirit of Carolstadt broke out 
 in the way that I was telling you. He had done 
 all he could to bring learning into disgrace at 
 Wittemberg, where Luther and Melancthon had 
 labored so hard to advance it. He now ventured 
 to administer the sacrament publicly, in both 
 kinds, to all who chose to partake of it, without 
 any regard to their fitness. The senate and uni- 
 versity of Wittemberg complained of these things 
 to the Elector ; and he sent Commissioners to 
 settle the matter, and with the consent of all par- 
 ties, to make such regulations as the circum- 
 stances seemed to require. But they went much 
 farther than he intended ; and he told them they 
 must not make him responsible for what they had 
 done. 
 
 Peter. What did they do, mother ? 
 
 Mother. They ordered, 1. That all persons, 
 who gave evidence of repentance, should be ad- 
 mitted to the sacrament ; 2. The Popish notion 
 
 4 
 
38 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 that the mass is a sacrifice was rejected ; and, 3. 
 The images were to be removed out of the great 
 church. 
 
 Samuel. These were no very small steps in the 
 Reformation, mother. As undecided and doubt- 
 ful as Frederic was, I do not wonder that he was 
 alarmed. 
 
 Mother. It is not to be wondered at, especial- 
 ly as he was a prince of little power, who had to 
 contend with the Pope, the emperor, and the 
 neighboring princes. 
 
 Elizabeth. Well, I suppose Carolstadt was 
 satisfied with these regulations. 
 
 Mother. No, my dear, he was far from being 
 satisfied. 
 
 Samuel. But I don't see how he could com- 
 plain of them. 
 
 Mother. There is too much reason to believe 
 that his ruling motives were pride and self-will ; 
 and I hope you will hold up the conduct of this 
 man as a warning against indulging the same 
 disposition yourself He even told Melancthon 
 that he wished to be as great and as much thought 
 of as Luther. Melancthon told him that was the 
 language of pride, envy, and unchristian ambition. 
 But Carolstadt said he did not care for any body. 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 39 
 
 Peter. Mother, they say " Don't care, was 
 Harry's undoing T 
 
 Motlier. Although that is a homely proverb, 
 ray son, yet, nothing was ever nearer the truth; 
 and you will find that this spirit was the ruin of 
 this unhappy man. He said he would stick close 
 to the Scriptures, and no man could be a Chris- 
 tian, who found fault with what he did. 
 
 EUzahetli. Well, did he not do right in stick- 
 ing close to the Scriptures ? 
 
 Mother. That was a safe rule, my dear, so far 
 as he understood them. But for him to say that 
 no one could be a Christian, who found fault with 
 what he did, was to make himself infallible, like 
 the Pope. When any one begins to think that 
 he is so guided by the Bible or the Spirit of God 
 that he cannot do wrong, he is sure to run into 
 extravagant notions, and bring disgrace upon true 
 religion. It would not be profitable to us, to 
 spend our time in following out ^the history of 
 Carolstadt. It is sufficient to say that his bad 
 temper and his violent measures brought him in- 
 to difficulty, wherever he went. He raised tu- 
 mults among the people, and became so trouble- 
 some, at last, that the Elector banished him from 
 his dominions. He wandered from one place to 
 
40 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 another, till, in the time of the war of the peasants, 
 his character for raising tumults made him sus- 
 pected of being concerned with them ; and he 
 was reduced to great extremities. But through 
 the entreaties of Luther, with w^om he had quar- 
 relled, he was allowed to return, and live in a 
 little village near Wittemberg. He made a pub- 
 lic recantation of his sentiments, and lived in pri- 
 vate. In the history of this man, you see the con- 
 sequences of a bad temper. If you wish to do 
 any good in the world, or to make yourselves 
 agreeable to others, subdue the first risings of 
 stubbornness, self-will, impatience, and anger. 
 Watch against a headstrong, overbearing spirit. 
 Cultivate a patient, meek, quiet, kind, forbearing, 
 orderly disposition. On this, greatly, depends 
 your usefulness and comfort. Especially, my 
 dear Samuel, if you intend to be a missionary to 
 the heathen, you will need all these qualities ; 
 and nothing \\i\\ make you so unfit for a mission- 
 ary as a BAD TEMPER. 
 
 Samuel. Did Luther know what was going on 
 at Wittemberg, mother ? 
 
 Mother. He soon heard of it, and wrote to the 
 Elector of Saxony about it. " There is no rea- 
 son," said he, "to be frightened. Rather give 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS, 41 
 
 praise to God, and rejoice in the certainty that 
 all will end well. Things of this kind al- 
 ways happen to those who undertake to spread 
 the Gospel. We must not only expect Annas 
 and Caiaphas to rage against us; but even a Ju- 
 das to appear among the apostles, and Satan him- 
 self among the sons of God. Be wdse, and look 
 deeper than to the outward appearances. Don't 
 be afraid ; but be prepared for more events of 
 this sort. Satan means to carry things much 
 farther yet. Let the world clamor against* us. 
 Be not so much concerned at the falling away of 
 particular Christians. Even Peter fell. As Paul 
 says, we must now ' approve ourselves, as the 
 ministers of God, in much patience, in imprison- 
 ments, in tumults, in labors.' " 
 
 Elizabeth. O, mother, I can see the spirit of 
 Luther there. 
 
 Mother. Yes ; his bold and persevering spir- 
 it, and his strong faith, are manifest in this let- 
 ter. He concluded with an earnest request for 
 leave to print and circulate his own writings ; 
 and told the Elector that he would soon be at 
 Wittemberg. 
 
 John. How did Frederic feel when he read 
 this letter, mother ? 
 
42 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 Mother. He was deeply affected ; and imme- 
 diately sent a trusty person to tell him all that 
 had happened at Wittemberg : how the students 
 dwindled in number, how anxious the prince was, 
 and how much in doubt about what he ought to 
 do. He said that nothinor was so distressing to 
 his mind, as the prospect of seditious tumults : 
 and that the Emperor had tied up his hands, so 
 that he could not do what he would for the cause 
 of truth. The bishops had also promised that 
 they would preach the Gospel themselves, and ap- 
 point missionaries to do the same ; and it was im- 
 possible for him to oppose them. He wished 
 very much to have Luther's advice, at such a 
 critical time, but told him not to think of coming 
 to Wittemberg ; for the Pope and Emperor would 
 insist on his being delivered up to them, and the 
 Elector could not prevent it. That would be the 
 severest stroke that could happen to the prince. 
 He had never undertaken to do any more for Lu- 
 ther, he said, than to give him a fair hearing; 
 and that was all that was in his power to do. But 
 one thing he was determined : If he could but 
 find what was the will of God, he would doit, 
 let it cost what it might. He remembered that 
 Christ had said, "My yoke is easy and my bur- 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 43 
 
 den is light;" and he would willingly bear, 
 through the divine strength and help, the cross 
 that God should lay upon him. New sects, he 
 said, arose at Wittemberg, every day ; and it was 
 hard to tell what might happen. The Diet was 
 soon to meet at Nuremberg, when it w^as expect- 
 ed that much would be said and done about Lu- 
 ther's case. The prince thought he had better 
 remain in secret for the present. There were 
 revolutions at hand; and if it should turn out 
 that the Gospel should be hindered, it would be 
 a great grief to him. Finally, the Elector gave 
 Luther the most kind, faithful, and affectionate 
 assurances of his friendship. 
 
 Elizabeth. Mother, I like Frederic better and 
 better, the more I hear of him. He seems to 
 have such a tender conscience, and to be so 
 much afraid of doing wrong. 
 
 MotTier. Yes; I admire his character very 
 much; though I think he did not trust in God 
 enough, and was influenced too much by the fear 
 of man. However, he v/as placed in difficult 
 circumstances, just at the dawn of the Reforma- 
 tion, when the cause was weak, and opinions 
 were unsettled, and he found it no very easy 
 matter to determine what he ought to do. But, 
 
44 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 now, a new sect arose, which threatened still 
 more serious injury to the infant cause of the 
 Reformation, than any thing that had happened 
 before. 
 
 Caroline. What were they called, mother? 
 
 Mother. They were called Anabaptists ; which 
 signifies that those who have been baptized in in- 
 fancy, ought to be baptized over again. 
 
 Peter. Were they Baptists, then ? 
 
 Mother. They held the same views of bap- 
 tism as the Baptists of the present day ; but they 
 were not like them in any thing else. This sect 
 sprung up, about the same time, in various parts 
 of Europe. Their principal leaders, in Saxony, 
 were Nicholas Stork, Mark Stubner, Martin Cel- 
 lary, and Thomas Munzer. Stork was a baker, 
 of Zwickau. He chose twelve persons from 
 among his acquaintances, of the same trade, call- 
 ing them apostles ; and also, seventy disciples, in 
 imitation of Christ.. The other three, in a dis- 
 orderly and tumultuous manner, spoke to the peo- 
 ple in the church. Nicholas Hausman, the pious 
 pastor of the church, opposed them ; but they 
 would have their own way. They said they had 
 a divine commission, and that they were inspired, 
 and saw visions. Melancthon wrote to the Elector 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 45 
 
 about them. He says, '' three of them have come 
 to Wittemberg. Two of them are ignorant me- 
 chanics. The other is a man of learning. I 
 have given them a hearing. They say they are 
 positively sent of God to teach ; that they talk 
 with him face to face ; that they can foretell fu- 
 ture events ; and that they are on a footing with 
 prophets and apostles. I cannot, tell how I am 
 moved by these lofty pretensions. I see strong 
 reasons for not despising these men: for it is 
 clear to me there is something more in them than 
 a mere human spirit : but whether the spirit be 
 of God or not, none but Martin can easily judge. 
 Therefore, for the peace of the church, I think 
 Martin should, by all means, have an opportuni- 
 ty of examining them ; especially as they appeal 
 to him." 
 
 Elizabeth. It is very strange, mother, that 
 Melancthon did not see through th^ir pretensions. 
 What did the Elector say to his letter ? 
 
 Mother. You have often seen that Frederic 
 did not think himself capable of deciding, in such 
 cases. He was very careful, however, never to 
 act hastily ; for he was afraid of doing wrong. 
 And in that respect, his conduct is well worthy 
 of imitation. He called in some of his most 
 
46 
 
 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 learned friends, and asked their advice. But 
 they could come to no decision. They felt the 
 same doubts which Melanct.hon had expressed. 
 They were afraid of sinning against God, by con- 
 demning his best servants. But now Frederic 
 astonished them all. " This is a most weighty 
 and difficult case," said he, " which I, as a lay- 
 man, do not comprehend. If I could clearly see 
 my duty, most certainly I would not knowingly 
 resist the will of Almighty God: no; rather than 
 do that, though God hath given me and my broth- 
 er a considerable share of power and wealth, I 
 would take jny staff and quit every thing I pos- 
 sess." 
 
 Samuel. Was not that a pious feeling, mother ? 
 
 MotJiei'. Yes, my son ; that is the state of feel- 
 ing we ought always to maintain ; and I think 
 the evidences of pious feeling, in the heart of 
 Frederic, grow stronger, as he grows older. 
 
 Elizabeth. Still, mother, 1 think it strange 
 that he should be so much in doubt about the 
 character of these pretended prophets. 
 
 Mothei'. We must consider, my dear, the cir- 
 cumstances of the times. Most men were ig- 
 norant of the true principles of the Gospel ; and 
 the church of Rome holds the opinion that mira- 
 
THE ANABAPTIST?. 47 
 
 cles, and the spirit of inspiration and prophecy, 
 still continue in the church. It is not then to be 
 wondered at, that a man of Frederic's cautious 
 spirit, should have been in doubt about these men. 
 
 Elizabeth. But, I am at a loss to think how 
 the doctrines Luther preached, could be the 
 means of starting up such a wild sect as that ; 
 for the great thing for which he contended, was 
 that every thing should be decided by the word 
 of God. 
 
 3IotIier. Here you may learn a very important 
 principle, which I hope you will remember : 
 The propagation of correct principles, and the 
 progress of a good cause, may, through the loeak- 
 ness of human nature, and the wicked passions of 
 men, become the occasion of much evil. Before 
 the Reformation, the minds of men were torpid 
 and inactive, under the load of spiritual tyranny 
 with which they were oppressed. But when the 
 true principles of Reform began to take root, 
 they were roused to action. They shook off the 
 superstitious fear which had prevented them from 
 thinking upon religious subjects ; yet they were 
 too ignorant fully to understand the doctrines of 
 the Gospel. In the midst of these agitations, it 
 is not surprising that some men should run out 
 
48 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 into wild and extravagant notions. There is in 
 the human mind a strong tendency to extremes. 
 And when it shakes off the bondage of super- 
 stition in which it has long been held, and yet 
 is not restrained by the principles of true religion, 
 it is like a ship on the ocean tossed by the waves, 
 without any thing to guide it. 
 
 Elizabeth. Then, mother, I should think 
 reformations would be dangerous. 
 
 Mother. But, my dear, the mischiefs of this 
 kind, which attend Reformations and revolutions, 
 are not to be compared with the evils of error 
 and superstition, tyranny and oppression. When 
 efforts are made to reform society, and overcome 
 great moral evils, as soon as there is any excite- 
 ment, and the angry passions of men are stirred 
 up to opposition, many are ready to cry out 
 against those who are making these efforts, as dis- 
 turbers of the peace ; and to condemn the cause 
 in which they are engaged, as chargeable with 
 all the excesses committed by wild enthusiasts in 
 supporting it, or wicked men in opposing it. 
 Even Revivals of Religion are by some con- 
 demned, as false and spurious, because there 
 have been some excesses connected with them, 
 or because the passions of wicked men may have 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 49 
 
 been roused by them to more open and hardened 
 opposition to the truth. But, on the same prin- 
 ciple, they might condemn the conduct of Luther 
 and the other Reformers, and charge them with 
 all the turbulence of Carolstadt, with the wild 
 fanaticism of the Anabaptists, and even with the 
 persecution of the Papists. 
 
 Samuel. Yes, mother ; and on the same prin- 
 ciple, we must charge the Lord Jesus Christ with 
 the anger and blasphemy of the Jews, stirred up 
 by his preaching ; or even with his own murder. 
 
 Mother. Yes; and Paul might be charged 
 with the great tumult at Ephesus. Indeed, there 
 is no end to the absurdities involved in carrying 
 out this principle. 
 
 Elizabeth. But when we are talking about 
 the persecutions of the Papist^, you charge it all 
 upon the church of Rome. How can that be 
 right, if we are not to make men responsible for 
 the consequences of their principles and actions ? 
 
 Mother. Here, my dear, you discover a want 
 of discrimination. When we can show that any 
 system is wrong in itself, and that the natural 
 and necessary effect of its principles is to produce 
 mischief in society, then we may safely charge 
 the consequences which follow, upon the system 
 
50 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 itself. This is the case with tlie principles of the 
 church of Rome. Their necessary tendency is 
 to enslave the mind, and produce tyranny and 
 persecution. But it is not so with tlie doctrines 
 of the Reformation. Their tendency was good; 
 it was their abuse, only, that produced mischief 
 And so it is with Revivals of Religion. Their 
 tendency is to bring about a thorough reforma- 
 tion in the characters of men ; and because Sa- 
 tan sometimes takes the advantage of the excite- 
 ment in which they are produced, to lead men 
 into excesses and extravagances, we are not to 
 conclude that they are wrong in themselves; nor 
 are we to condemn particular Revivals as spurious 
 and false, because these things attend them. 
 This would lead us, on the same principle, to 
 condemn the Reformation, because the Anabap- 
 tists sprung up in the midst of it; and even to 
 condemn the excitement on the day of Pentecost, 
 because some men mocked. 
 
 Petej'. Well, mother, what was done with 
 these prophets, at last? 
 
 Mother, Melancthon told the Elector, again, 
 that no person could manage this business so 
 well as Luther ; and urged him to call in the aid 
 of his judgment. But Frederic pursued his usual 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 51 
 
 cautious course. He told Melancthon to avoid 
 disputes with these men ; but to use every means 
 in his power to prevent such tumults as had hap- 
 pened at Zwickau. He said he was himself no 
 interpreter of the Holy Scriptures ; and he did 
 not know whom he ought to appoint to examine 
 this matter ; but it was impossible to bring Lu- 
 ther to Wittemberg without grea.t danger to his 
 person. But in regard to the Anabaptists, if he 
 could but see clearly what justice required, he 
 was ready to do his duty, at every hazard. 
 While things remained in this state of doubt and 
 uncertainty, Melancthon employed persons to get 
 all the information they could about the new 
 sect; but at the same time, he entertained Stub- 
 ner, who was a man of learning, and treated him 
 with kindness. 
 
 Caroline. Did Luther hear about the proph- 
 ets, mother 1 
 
 Mother. Yes ; and he wrote to Melancthon, 
 and told him that he was too timid in regard to 
 the prophets. He ought to try the spirits, ac- 
 cording to John's advice. " I hear of nothing 
 said or done by them," said he, " more than Sa- 
 tan could do. I wish you would examine and 
 see whether they can give any proof of a divine 
 
52 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 commission. God never sent any prophet, who 
 was not either called by proper pe^ons, or au- 
 thorized by special miracles. For them to say 
 that they have the spirit of God is not enough. 
 Then I wish you to sift their private spirit See 
 whether they have had any inward distresses of 
 soul, sorrow for sin, and the comforts of the new 
 birth. If you hear nothing from them but smooth, 
 tranquil, religious contemplations, be sure there 
 is wanting the Cross, the only touch-stone of 
 Christians. Would you know the place, the 
 time, the manner, of divine conferences and com- 
 munications? Hear the written word; *^ As a 
 lion will he break all my bones."* The* majesty 
 of the Divine Being speaks not immediately, in a 
 way that men should see Him. None can see 
 Him and live. 
 
 Samuel. Mother, it seems to me, if I had 
 been Luther, I would have come to Wittemberg, 
 at the risk of my life ; for the cause of the Refor- 
 mation was suffering so much for want of him. 
 
 Mother. Well, my son, Luther thought so; 
 and he determined, at once, to leave his castle, 
 and go where he was so much needed. While 
 on the road to Wittemberg, he wrote to the 
 
 * Isa. 3&: 13. 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 53 
 
 Elector, and told him that what he had heard 
 from Wittemberg brought him almost to a state 
 of despair. He had not yet suffered any thing 
 worth speaking of He could not lament enough 
 the tumultuous proceedings which had taken 
 place. The Gospel was in great danger of being 
 disgraced from this cause. With regard to him- 
 self, he said all his hope and confidence rested 
 entirely upon the justice of his cause. The Gos- 
 pel which he preached was not a device of his 
 own. It was a heavenly gift, from Jesus Christ 
 our Lord. He was therefore a servant of Christ, 
 and a teacher of the Gospel ; and he intended, in 
 future, to go by no other name. In returning to 
 Wittemberg, he considered himself to be under 
 a far more powerful protection than the Elector 
 of Saxony could afford him. He did not wish to 
 be protected by the prince. He thought, rather, 
 that Frederic would receive support and protec- 
 tion from the progress of Luther, and the good 
 cause in which he was engaged. " It is a cause," 
 said he, " which does not call for the help of the 
 sword. God himself will take cere of it. If I 
 knew your highness intended to defend me by the 
 sword, I positively declare I would not return to 
 
 Wittemberg. This is a case vvdiere God alone 
 
 5 
 
54 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 should direct. Men should stand still and wait 
 the event without anxiety. And that man will 
 be found to defend himself and others most brave- 
 ly, who has the firmest confidence in God. Your 
 highness has but a very feeble reliance on God; 
 and for that reason I cannot think of resting my 
 defence and hopes of deliverance on you. Still, 
 you wish to know what your duty is in this busi- 
 ness ; and you fear that you have not been suf- 
 ficiently active. My answer is, that you have al- 
 ready done TOO much, and that, at present, you 
 ought to do nothing. God does not allow that 
 
 EITHER YOUR HIGHNESS OR MYSELF SHOULD DE- 
 FEND THE CAUSE OF TRUTH BY FORCE." 
 
 Samuel. I am glad to hear that, mother ; for 
 I have often heard the Reformers accused of per- 
 secuting those who differed from them, as bad as 
 the Papists did. 
 
 blather. I know they are often accused of it ; 
 and it is true, that in some instances, they were 
 guilty of persecution. But, in relation to these 
 few cases, several things are to be considered : 
 1. They are exceptions to the general conduct of 
 the Protestants. No one can say that they have 
 generally manifested a persecuting spirit. 2. It 
 was a long time after the commencement of the . 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 55 
 
 Reformation before the subject of religious liber- 
 ty began to be understood ; and longer still be- 
 fore the Protestants began to see the evils of the 
 Union of Church and State ; or the establishing 
 of religion by law. The fact is, where religion 
 is established by law, it is impossible that there 
 should not be persecution. Where there is an 
 established religion, the confession of faith, and 
 the form of government, and ceremonies of ^vor- 
 ship, must be established by law ; and then it 
 follows, of course, that those who presume to 
 think and act for themselves, must be punished ; 
 or, at least, they must be deprived of some privi- 
 leges, and contribute to the support of principles 
 which they cannot adopt. Religious liberty 
 
 CANNOT BE ENJOYED WHERE ANY RELIGION IS 
 
 established by LAW. 3. Although the Pro- 
 testants have, in some instances, been guilty of 
 persecution, it cannot be shown that the general 
 principles of the Reformation justify persecution. 
 It was the remains of Popery, which led the Re- 
 formers sometimes to persecute those who differ- 
 ed from them. But they do not lay claim to in- 
 fallibility ; and most Protestant denominations, 
 now, disapprove the use of force in religious mat- 
 ters. But Popery, you know, is and must be, 
 
56 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 always the same ; because the Church of Rome 
 claims to be infallible, and incapable of doing 
 wrong ; and as they have always been a perse- 
 cuting church, wherever they have had the pow- 
 er, it must follow that persecution, or making m.en 
 Papists by force, is one of the unalterable princi- 
 ples of that church. But, although Luther was 
 a man of violent feelings, and bitter towards 
 those who differed from him ; yet, he always spoke 
 and wrote against the use of force to advance the 
 cause of religion. 
 
 Elizabeth. I want to hear the rest of Luther's 
 letter to Frederic, mother. 
 
 3Iother. Luther said that, if he should be 
 taken, or even put to death, the Elector could 
 not be blamed, because Luther had not followed 
 his advice. " Do not think," said he, " of op- 
 posing the Emperor by force. Let him do what 
 he pleases with the lives and property of your 
 subjects." And many other things this bold re- 
 former said, in the same tone, to his prince. 
 
 Peter. How did he dare talk so to his prince ? 
 Was not Frederic angry with him? 
 
 3Iother. Frederic was astonished at Luther's 
 boldness ; but he was too good a man to be angry 
 with the Reformer's plainness. He sent Jerome 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. U / 
 
 Schurf, to assure him of his kindness and good 
 will ; and to ask him to write another letter, in a 
 little different style from the last, which he might 
 show to his friends, and to the other German 
 princes. He wished him to give his reasons, at 
 length, for returning to Wittemberg, and to say 
 that he had taken this step without the orders of 
 the prince. This Luther did ; but at the same 
 time told Frederic that there was nothing in his 
 othfer letter which he would be unwilling to have 
 seen. He did not wish to do any thing that would 
 not bear the light. But now we have talked 
 long enough for once. 
 
 aUESTIONS. 
 
 What is said of Carolstadt ? What did Frederic do, when he 
 heard the Reformers had abolished private masses ? What answer 
 did the Reformers give ? Can you give an account of the first appear- 
 ance of the Anabaptists, and of their religious sentiments? What 
 did Luther write to Melancthon about the prophets ? What bold 
 £jep did Luther take, at this time ? 
 
CONVERSATION III. 
 
 Luther preaches at Wittemberg — He detects the imposture of the 
 Anabaptist Prophets— Publishes his New Testament— Progress 
 of the Reformation. 
 
 Peter. Mother, what did Luther do, when he 
 came back to Wittemberg ? 
 
 Mother. In order to calm the minds of the 
 people, and to prevent any farther disturbance, 
 he immediately appeared in public, in his favorite 
 employment of preaching. And his discourses 
 were admirably adapted to the state of feeling 
 which prevailed among the people. He preached 
 seven sermons, upon the great questions which 
 agitated the church, in as short a time as he 
 could. In these discourses, he showed his hear- 
 ers how tenderly they ought to treat the con- 
 sciences of their weaker brethren. He told them 
 that many inconveniences, in the outward state 
 of the church, should be borne with, till the 
 minds of men were sufficiently enlightened to ad- 
 mit of more improvement. Communion in both 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 59 
 
 kinds, he said, ought not to be introduced by 
 force ; but that the people should be persuaded to 
 it by arguments. Those vAio pleased might still 
 receive it as they had been used to, till they were 
 convinced of their error. Images might be tolera- 
 ted in the church for the present, though he wish- 
 ed to see them wholly abolished ; but they must 
 by no means be worshipped. He condemned the 
 practice of admitting people to the communion 
 without preparation, and insisted on a lively faith 
 in the Redeemer, without whiclr the sacrament 
 was nothing. 
 
 Caroline. I think the people were very glad 
 to hear him preach again, mother. 
 
 Mother. I have no doubt they were, my dear. 
 And the first time he went into the pulpit, he 
 said to them, " Once more I am allowed to sound 
 the Gospel in your ears; once more you may de- 
 rive benefit from my exhortation. By and by 
 death will come, and then we can do one another 
 no good. How necessary, therefore, is it, that 
 every one should be furnished with the principles 
 which are to support him at that awful moment ! 
 These principles are the great doctrines of Chris- 
 tianity." He then went on to speak of these 
 doctrines: 1. That we are by nature the children 
 
60 
 
 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 of wrath, and that all our own thoughts, affec- 
 tions, and works, can do us no good ; 2. That 
 we can only be saved by faith in Christ ; 3. That 
 we must do good to each other in love. " With- 
 out love," said he, " faith is a cold speculation. 
 In this, dear friends, ye are, as yet, greatly de- 
 fective. Nay, not a single vestige of love can I 
 discover among you — a plain proof that ye are 
 not grateful to God for his rich mercies." 
 
 Elizabeth. That was plain preaching, mother. 
 
 Mother. Yes, my dear Elizabeth ; but it is 
 just the kind of preaching that will do good. 
 " But," said he, " we have also need of patience. 
 There must be persecution. Satan never sleeps ; 
 but is constantly contriving something which will 
 try our patience. Now patience begets hope. 
 The Christian learns to commit his cause to God; 
 his faith increases more and more, and he grows 
 stronger every day. The heart, furnished with 
 these spiritual gifts, thinks little of itself; but 
 overflows with good will to his brother ; ^and for 
 his sake forbears to do many things, which, oth- 
 erwise, he might be allowed to do. To be plain, 
 we ought to bear with the infirmities of our breth- 
 ren, and to feed them with milk ; and not be so 
 selfish as to think of going to heaven alone ; but 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 61 
 
 rather try to gain our brethren by kindness, and . 
 make them our companions in the road to the 
 mansions of the blessed, though now they may be 
 our enemies. If I had been with you, lately, 
 while ye were abolishing the masses, I should 
 have tried to moderate your heat. Your cause 
 was good, but you managed it with too much vio- 
 lence. Among those opposed to us, I trust there 
 are many brothers and sisters who belong to us, 
 and must be drawn to us with the cords of love. 
 Let your faith be firm as a rock ; but let your 
 charity be pliable, and accommodated to the cir- 
 cumstances of your neighbor. Some can only 
 creep, others can walk briskly, and others again 
 are so swift that they can almost fly. That the 
 private masses ought to be abolished, is as clear 
 as that God is to be worshipped ; and with my 
 voice and my pen I would strenuously maintain 
 that they are a most horrid abomination. Yet I 
 would not pull one person by force away from the 
 mass. It does not become me to drag them away 
 by the hair of the head, or to use any other vio- 
 lence ; but rather to leave the word of God to its 
 own operation, and to pray for them. By acting 
 in this manner, the force of Scripture will pene- 
 trate the hearts of men, and produce an effectual 
 
62 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 and durable change of sentiment; and when men 
 are become in general of the same mind, then 
 the J will agree in laying aside their erroneous 
 forms and ceremonies. In all this, I am far from 
 wishing to restore the use of the mass. All I 
 mean is, that faith, in its very nature, is incapa- 
 ple of restraint or coercion." 
 
 SamueL What a pity, mother, that the whole 
 Christian world haA^e not acted upon this princi- 
 ple. If men had never tried to force others to 
 believe contrary to their own judgment, it would 
 have saved a great deal of strife, as well as rivers 
 of blood. 
 
 Mother. Yes ; but that is what men have been 
 slow to learn. Hov/ever, the use of force, in re- 
 ligious matters, is not to be charged upon the 
 Christian religion. It is a relic of Paganism. In 
 every heathen land, idolatry has been established 
 by law. Our Savior expressly told his disciples, 
 that his kingdom was not of this world, and for- 
 bade them to attempt establishing it by force of 
 arms. But when Christians became so numerous 
 as to form the strength of the Roman empire, the 
 government called in its aid, and gave it the 
 same footing which Paganism had before it. So, 
 you see that church establishments are no part 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 63 
 
 of the Christian system ; but they were grafted 
 upon it from Paganism. The union, however, 
 has proved most disastrous to the cause of truth 
 and Christianity; and so it will ever prove, 
 wherever it is adopted. But, though the princi- 
 ple of forcing men, by the sword, to believe as 
 the church believes, has been generally abandon- 
 ed in this country; yet, there is much spiritual 
 despotism remaining in the church. But Luther 
 goes on to say, " I preached, I wrote, I pressed 
 on men's consciences, with the greatest earnest- 
 ness, the word of God ; but I used no force. And 
 what has been the consequence? The word of 
 God has given such a blow to Papal despotism as 
 not one of the German princes, no, not even the 
 emperor himself, could have done. It is not 1 — 
 it is the divine word , which has done every thing. 
 If it had been right to have sought a reform by 
 violence and tumults, it would have been easy for 
 me to have deluged Germany with blood. Had I 
 been the least inclined to promote sedition, it was 
 in my power, while I was at Worms, to have en- 
 dangered the safety even of the emperor himself 
 The devil smiles in secret, when men pretend to 
 support religion by seditious tumults ; but he is 
 
64 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 cut to the heart, when he sees them, in faith and 
 patience, rely on the written w^ord." 
 
 Samuel. I think such preaching must have 
 put an end to the tumults in Wittemberg. 
 
 3IotJier. Yes, my son ; the people heard their 
 beloved pastor with the greatest delight; and 
 peace and harmony were restored to the church. 
 
 Elizabeth. Well, mother, what did Luther do 
 with the prophets ? 
 
 Blother. The associates of Stubner urged him 
 to defend his pretensions openly before Luther. 
 Luther met him and Cellary, and another man 
 of their party, in the presence of Melancthon. 
 He listened, patiently, till Stubner had finished 
 relating his visions ; and then, remembering that 
 nonsense was incapable of being confuted, he 
 told him to take care what he did ; for he had 
 said nothing that had the least warrant from 
 Scripture. It all appeared to him to be either 
 the work of his own imagination, or of an evil 
 spirit, 
 
 Peter. How. did the prophets like that ? 
 
 Mother. Cellary flew into a great rage, stamp- 
 ed on the floor, and struck the table with his 
 hands ; being filled with resentment that Luther 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 65 
 
 should dare to say such things of so divine a per- 
 son. But Stubner told Luther he would give him 
 a proof that he was influenced by the Spirit of 
 God; "for," said he, " I will reveal your own 
 thoughts at this moment. You are inclined, af- 
 ter alj, to believe my doctrine true." 
 
 Peter. Was that so, mother ? 
 
 Mother. No ; Luther was then thinking of 
 the test, " The Lord rebuke thee, Satan." But 
 they boasted and threatened, in the most extrava- 
 gant manner, what they would do to establish 
 their commission. But Luther sent them away 
 with these words : "■ The God whom I serve and 
 adore will confound your vanities." That very 
 day they left the town. 
 
 Elizabeth. And now, mother, I suppose the 
 Reformation went on finely. 
 
 Mother. It was not to be expected, my dear 
 Elizabeth, that people just coming out from the 
 midnight darkness of Popery, would, at once, be- 
 come thorough and consistent Christians. Lu- 
 ther had to mourn over the inconsistencies of 
 many of his followers, who abused their Christian 
 liberty. He had written against Monkery, and 
 in favor of the marriage of the clergy. Many of 
 the monks, who had no piety, took advantage of 
 
66 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 this, arxd flocked to Wittemberg and married, 
 without any other motive than to gratify them- 
 selves. However, some of those who deserted 
 the monasteries were shining examples of piety, 
 and devoted themselves to the preaching of the 
 gospel; and through their labors, with those of 
 Luther and others, many souls were converted. 
 But the Reformer complained that wickedness 
 still abounded, even among those that professed 
 to abhor Popery. 
 
 Peter. But, mother, if I had been Luther, I 
 should have been afraid to stay at Wittemberg. 
 Did not the Papists try to kill him ? 
 
 Mother. My son, he valued the cause of Christ 
 more than his own life. I will read part of a let- 
 ter he wrote to one of his friends, about this time, 
 which will show the dangerous condition in which 
 he was placed : *' I live," said he, " in the midst 
 of enemies, who have a right, according to law, 
 to kill me, every hour." 
 
 Elizabeth. How was that, mother 1 how could 
 his enemies have a right to murder him? 
 
 Mother. You recollect, my dear, about the 
 Edict of Worms.* By that Luther was in a 
 
 * See " The Davm,'' p. — 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 67 
 
 measure outlawed, so that any good Catholic 
 might kill him. 
 
 Samuel. And I suppose there were thousands 
 who were ready to do it, if they could get a 
 chance. 
 
 Mother. I have no doubt of it. But, in the 
 midst of these dangers, he says, " I know that 
 Christ is Lord of all, that the Father hath put all 
 things under his feet, and among the rest, the 
 wrath of the emperor and all evil spirits. If it 
 please Christ that I should be slain, let me die in 
 his name ; if it do not please him, who shall slay 
 me ?" And then he goes on to ask the prayers 
 of his friend, and to mourn that there was so lit- 
 tle heart-religion, even among the friends of the 
 Reformation. 
 
 Elizahetli. That was a noble spirit, mother. 
 But how could he do any thing, while in such 
 danger of his life ? 
 
 Mother. He kept at his work, and trusted in 
 God to take care of him. In the course of this 
 year, 1522, he published the New Testament, 
 which he had translated during his confinement. 
 He then went on with the translation of the Old 
 Testament, publishing the books, from time to 
 time, until he completed the whole in the year 
 
6S THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 1530. But ill this work he was assisted by 
 Justus Jonas and Philip Melancthon. 
 
 Samuel. I suppose this was a great help to 
 the Reformation. 
 
 Mother. Yes; the effects were soon felt in 
 Germany. Great numbers now read the precious 
 word of God in their own language, and saw, 
 with their own eyes, the truth of the doctrines 
 preached by the Reformers. 
 
 Peter. Well, I suppose the Papists were very 
 angry with him for this; for they hate the Bible 
 above all things. 
 
 3Iother. Yes ; and well they may ; for it point- 
 edly condemns the abominable doctrines and 
 practices of the church of Rome. The Popish 
 princes ordered Luther's Bible to be burnt ; and 
 they were enraged still more, when he advised 
 the people patiently to bear their sufferings, with- 
 out resisting their governors, but not to come for- 
 ward of their own accord and give up their Bi- 
 bles, nor to do any thing to approve the conduct 
 of their rulers. 
 
 Elizabeth. I suppose Luther's Bible must 
 have put duke George in a great rage. 
 
 Mother. Yes ; and he was very angry with 
 Frederic for suffering the principles of the Re- 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. XAf 
 
 formation to grow so much ; and he encouraged 
 the bishop of Misnia to visit the churches in the 
 Elector's dominions. But, as Frederic would not 
 allow the bishop to use any force against his sub- 
 jects, his visit was of little use to Popery. He 
 preached and warned the people ; but his argu- 
 ments in favor of masses, of the Pope's infallibil- 
 ity, and of other absurdities, appeared too ridic- 
 ulous to the people to have any effect upon their 
 minds. 
 
 Samuel. Mother, why did not the Reformers, 
 before this time, come out from the Church of 
 Rome, and form themselves into a separate 
 church 1 I don't see how they could stay in such 
 a corrupt church. 
 
 Mother. Luther had bent all his efforts, by 
 preaching and writing, to inform the minds of 
 the people, and draw them away from those false 
 grounds of dependence, which were ruining their 
 souls. This bethought was of the first impor- 
 tance. But now, as the Reformers multiplied, 
 they began to feel serious inconvenience from the 
 want of a separate form of church government, 
 by which they would be freed from the super- 
 stitions and tyranny of the church of Rome. Se- 
 rious inquirers after truth, were greatly harrassed 
 
 6 
 
70 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 by the Popish party ; and without some plan of 
 union among themselves, they could not provide 
 the people with faithful preaching and pastoral 
 instruction. Under these circumstances, the pas- 
 tors of several of the principal towns in Saxony, 
 applied to Luther, to see if some plan could not 
 be contrived, suited to the necessities of the case. 
 In consequence of this, he published a little book 
 on the subject, in which he recommended other 
 churches to make such improvements as had been 
 introduced at Wittemberg. Luther saw also 
 that, as many of the monasteries and Popish col- 
 leges were deserted in consequence of the Re- 
 formation, the revenues by which they were sup- 
 ported would be liable to be abused. He there- 
 fore recommended that these revenues should be 
 collected into a sort of common treasury, and ap- 
 plied to the support of schools and hospitals, and 
 to maintain preachers of the Gospel; 
 
 Peter. I think the people would like that, 
 mother ? 
 
 Mother. But it gave great offence to the 
 Popish clergy. Nothing touches them to the 
 quick, like taking away their money. But, all 
 this time, the bigoted duke George was not in- 
 active. During Luther's confinement, he had 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 71 
 
 got a severe edict passed against the Reformers, 
 by the Emperor's government at Nuremberg. 
 And now, he was doing all in his power to carry 
 it into effect. He persecuted those who favored 
 the doctrines of the Reformation, in his own do- 
 minions, with great cruelty. He also wrote to 
 the Elector Frederic, and to his brother John, 
 Duke of Saxony, trying to persuade them to fol- 
 low his example. 
 
 Elizabeth. I hope they did not do it. I am 
 sure the Elector would not. 
 
 Mother. No ; nor his brother John, neither ; 
 for he was a friend of the Reformation. But 
 duke George carried on his persecutions with 
 great cruelty. He called all the students within 
 his power or influence away from the colleges 
 where he suspected the principles of the Reforma- 
 tion were taught. The clergy, within his do- 
 minions, who favored Lutheranism, found no fa- 
 vor at his hands. And, in order to destroy Lu- 
 ther's Bible, he bought all the copies he could 
 find, and severely punished all who refused to 
 give it up. The Popish clergy, emboldened by 
 the duke's proceedings, raged with increased 
 violence. In their visits through the country, the 
 bishops threatened the most cruel punishments 
 
72 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 against all who should dare to read Luther's 
 translation of the Bible, or go into the dominions 
 of the Elector of Saxony to hear the Reformers 
 preach. 
 
 Samuel. Did they think they could stop the 
 Reformation in that way, mother ? 
 
 Mother. No people are so blind as tyrants, 
 who oppose the progress of truth by force. These 
 blind persecutors defeated their own object, by 
 their cruelties. The schools and colleges at 
 Leipsic were more and more deserted. As they 
 were not allowed the privilege of inquiring after 
 the truth at Leipsic, they went to Wittemberg, 
 atid there many of them became famous for ra- 
 tional inquiry and Christian liberty. But all the 
 opposition of the Papists could not prevent the 
 people from reading Luther's translation of the 
 Bible. It was read by almost every body through- 
 out Germany. Women of rank studied it with 
 great diligence, so that they were able to defend 
 the doctrines of the Reformation against bishops, 
 monks, and Catholic doctors. 
 
 Elizabeth. That must have made the Papists 
 more angry still. What did they do now? 
 
 Mother. They saw that, as they could not 
 prevent the people from reading the Bible, they 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 73 
 
 must try to discredit Luther's translation; and 
 Jerome Emser, a Leipsic doctor, and a counsel- 
 lor of duke George, was employed for this pur- 
 pose. He first published his " Notes on Luther's 
 Neic Testament ;'^ in which he abused the Re- 
 former and quarrelled with the truth. After that, 
 he published what he called ^' A correct transla- 
 tion of the New Testament into German.'^ But 
 this was only a copy of Luther's translation, with 
 such alterations as to make it favor the doctrines 
 of the church of Rome. 
 
 Samuel. How did he dare alter the Bible, 
 mother? I should think he would have been 
 afraid of the punishments which God threatens 
 against those M'ho take from the Bible or add to 
 it.* 
 
 Mother. The Papists stop at nothing which 
 they think necessary to maintain their cause. 
 But as soon as Emser's Testament was publish- 
 ed, duke George issued a proclamation in its fa- 
 vor, in which he abused Luther and his follow- 
 ers; but especially his translation of the New 
 Testament. But Emser, after speaking of his 
 translation of the New Testament, in connexion 
 with Luther's, said that he was by no means con- 
 
 * Rev. 22 : 18, 19. 
 
74 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 vinced of the expediency of trusting the Scrip- 
 tures with the ignorant multitude. 
 
 Samuel. And then the Papists are careful to 
 keep the multitude in ignorance ; for they never 
 encourage learning among the common people, 
 I think their object must be to maintain their own 
 tyranny over both the minds and bodies of the 
 people. 
 
 Mother. Yes ; that is doubtless the reason. 
 They know that where the common people can 
 read, and have the Bible, they will soon see that 
 their priests are imposing upon them. And so 
 it is every where. If we see men, who have the 
 power over their fellow creatures, preventing 
 them from learning to read, we may be sure they 
 fear that they will see the injustice and oppres- 
 sion which is exercised towards them, and revolt 
 against it. But duke George was not the only 
 prince who persecuted the Reformers. Henry, 
 duke of Brunswick, and Ferdinand, archduke of 
 Austria, the Emperor's brother, followed his ex- 
 ample. Ferdinand issued a severe edict against 
 the publication of Luther's translation of the Bi- 
 ble ; and forbade the people to have any copies 
 either of that, or of any other of Luther's books. 
 In Flanders many were put to death, or deprived 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. ' % 75 
 
 of their property, in the most tyrannical manner. 
 At Antwerp, the monks were remarkably favora- 
 ble to the Reformation. Many of them suffered 
 death, with patience and firmness. Others were 
 compelhid to recant, and then severely punished. 
 
 Elizabeth. What, mother, did they punish 
 them after they had recanted? That was very 
 cruel, I think. God is merciful, and forgives 
 sinners ; but it seems to me the church of Rome 
 has no mercy at all. 
 
 Mother. The church of Rome, my dear, for- 
 gives all sins but heresy. A man may commit 
 any other crime, and be forgiven for a little 
 money. But if he calls in question any of the 
 doctrines, or rites and ceremonies of the church, 
 there is no mercy for him. 
 
 Caroline. Did it not make Luther feel very 
 bad, mother, to see how his followers were per- 
 secuted ? 
 
 Mother. Yes ; and if he had been disposed to 
 fight his enemies with their own weapons, he 
 might easily have persuaded the leading charac- 
 ters in Germany, as well as the common people, 
 to take up arras against them. But he contented 
 himself by exposing the unreasonableness, igno- 
 rance, and blasphemy of the Papists. The Bible 
 
76 p THE ANABArTISTS. 
 
 requires submission to our rulers ; and this, Lu- 
 ther preached. But he made use of a more 
 powerful weapon than the sword, against Popery. 
 He used the sword of truth. In the course of 
 the year 1522, he published several tracts ; otie 
 of which was entitled, " Martin Luther against 
 • the order falsely called the ecclesiastical order 
 of pope and bishops." In this work, he calls 
 himself the preacher. The Pope's bulls, he 
 said, had stripped him of the titles of priest and 
 doctor ; but he willingly resigned them, having 
 no desire for any mark of distinction which was 
 given him by Papal authority. He thtm goes on 
 to expose the corruptions of the Romish hierarchy, 
 and insists that it ought to be overthrown. But 
 he is careful to say that this should not be done 
 by force ; but only by the operation of the word 
 of God, by which the whole system would be un- 
 dermined. 
 
 While all these things were going on, the word 
 of God was every where taking deeper root. 
 It was preached with much success, in various 
 parts of Germany, particularly at Nuremberg, at 
 Francfort on the Maine, at Ulm, and at Halle in 
 Swabia. At Mil berg, the Gospel was preached 
 by John Drace, a learned Reformer. At Bremen 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. *77 
 
 and Magdeburg, it was preached by two monks, 
 one of whom had escaped from prison at Ant- 
 werp. At Zerbst, the finest city in the princi- 
 pality of Anhalt, Luther himself preached to 
 a crowded assembly, with great effect on the 
 minds of the people. The Reformation also be- 
 gan at Stettin and Sunda, two great market towns 
 in Pomerania. The inhabitants of Stettin sent to 
 Wittemberg for two pious ministers. But at Sun- 
 da, the people, in a disorderly and riotous man- 
 ner, took the Reformation into their own hands, 
 broke in pieces the images of the saints, and 
 drove the monks from the monastery. 
 
 Peter. Well, mother, I think they did just 
 right. They had borne long enough with these 
 things ; and I don't wonder that they took it in- 
 to their own hands. 
 
 Mother. It will never do for Christians, my 
 son, to adopt such sentiments. We must lead a 
 quiet and peaceable life. And if the government 
 which God has placed over us is tyrannical and 
 oppressive, we must not rise up in arms against 
 it; but patiently wait for Providence to bring 
 about a reformation. Riots and seditions and 
 tumults are opposed to every principle of the 
 
78 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 gospel. — A man went from Wittemberg to Stol- 
 pen, in Pomerania, and spread a knowledge of 
 the truth there. 
 
 Caroline. Was he a minister, mother ? 
 
 Mother, No, my dear; he was a poor man 
 who had been at work for Luther. You see how 
 much one faithful Christian can do. Here was 
 a poor laboring man, who introduced the Gospel 
 into a great city. Cnophius and Bugenhagen 
 were schoolmasters, of great note, at Treptow. 
 Pupils from all quarters flocked to that place, to 
 hear their instructions. Many came even from 
 Livonia and Westphalia. But they were so per- 
 secuted, on account of favoring the Reformation, 
 that they had to leave the place. Bugenhagen 
 went to Wittemberg ; and Cnophius, with his Li- 
 vonian scholars, travelled to Riga, Revel, and 
 Dolpat, preaching the Gospel, and exposing the 
 corruptions of Popery. The government of Ham- 
 burg openly renounced the authority of the church 
 of Rome; and the inhabitants ofFriesland sent 
 to Wittemberg for ministers to preach the Gos- 
 pel. The Reformation had also spread in Swit- 
 zerland and Alsace. 
 
 Samuel. O, I am glad to hear that the truth 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 79 
 
 was making such rapid progress. Can't you tell 
 us more particulars about what took place in the 
 different places you have mentioned 1 
 
 Mother. In most of the places I have men- 
 tioned in Germany, no farther particulars are 
 known. But there are many interesting things 
 about the Reformation in Switzerland ; which I 
 mean to tell you, after I get through with Ger- 
 many. — At Hartmuth, near Francfort, also, the 
 truth took fast hold upon the hearts of the peo- 
 ple. All Luther's books were publicly exposed 
 for sale, in defiance of the imperial edict. At 
 Delft, also, in Holland, there was much inquiry 
 on the subject of religion. The principal of an 
 academy, at that place, writing to some of the 
 Reformers, says, " Our adversaries are daily 
 meditating mischief against the church ; but if 
 we were but allowed to preach once, in public, 
 there would be an end of their whole institution, 
 the pillars of which are already undermined, by 
 a few little discourses of mine, in my own acade- 
 my." But it is now growing late, my dear 
 children. It is time for us to prepare for sleep. 
 
 aUESTIONS. 
 What did Luther do, whe.T he leturned to Wittemberg ? What 
 was the effect of hid preaching? What passed between Luther 
 and the prophets ? What particulars can you relate of the progress 
 of the Reformation, and the persecution of the Reformers.? 
 
CONVERSATION IV. 
 
 New Pope— Diet of Nuremberg— Death of Adiian Vf. 
 
 Peter. Mother, you told us about the death 
 of Leo; but you did not tell us who was made 
 Pope after him. 
 
 Mother. Adrian VI. was elected Pope, after 
 the death of Leo. He had been the teacher of 
 Charles V. before he was made Emperor. 
 
 Samuel. Then I suppose he could make the 
 Emperor do any thing he pleased for Popery. 
 But what sort of a man was he 1 
 
 Mother. He gave more evidence of sincerity 
 than any man that had filled the papal chair, for 
 a long time ; and his manners and morals were 
 better. He professed, also, really to desire a 
 Reformation in the church. He was a learned 
 man, and one of the best theologians among the 
 Roman Catholics. The more honest part of the 
 Papists were pleased with his election. But the 
 Italian clergy did not like it. In the first place, 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 81 
 
 he was a Frenchman ; and they did not like to 
 have a foreigner set over them. And then, he 
 was anxious for a reformation, and they did not 
 desire it. The court of Rome was too corrupt 
 to wish for any reform. Besides all this, he had 
 been known to maintain that a pope might err, 
 in a matter of faith. 
 
 Caroline. Did he reform the church, mother ? 
 
 Mother. He did not see that the whole sys- 
 tem of Popery was wrong ; and that the abuses 
 which were so loudly complained of, were the 
 natural and necessary fruits of bad principles. 
 All his efforts to reform the church must there- 
 fore fail, because they could not reach the root 
 of the evil. 
 
 Peter, What did he do, mother 1 
 
 Mother. The first thing he did, Vv^as, to send 
 his legate to the imperial diet, assembled at Nu- 
 remberg, with a letter to the German princes. 
 This letter, or brieve, as it was called, was full 
 of the most violent abuse of Luther, and of the 
 Reformation. Although the sentence of Leo X. ■ 
 against him, was ordered by the Diet of Yv'orms 
 to be executed immediately, yet, the Pope said, 
 he continued to teach the same errors, and to 
 corrupt the morals of the people. 
 
82 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 Peter. Mother, I thought Luther's object was 
 to reform the morals of the people, and to make 
 them pious. But I don't see how he could cor- 
 rupt them, for Popery had made them as bad as 
 they could be. 
 
 Mother. True, my son ; but we shall see 
 what the Pope called the morals of the people. 
 He says, the worst part of the mischief was, that 
 he was not only supported by the vulgar, but 
 several persons of distinction had begun to shake 
 off their obedience to the clergy. 
 
 Samuel. Then, I suppose, in the eyes of this 
 good Pope, the chief point, in the morals of the 
 people, was, obedience to the clergy. 
 
 Mother. Yes ; if they would but obey the 
 clergy, they might get drunk, and be guilty of all 
 manner of licentious conduct. All this could be 
 pardoned by the priest. But if they refused to 
 obey the clergy and believe just what (he church 
 tells them, they must be persecuted, and hunted 
 like wild beasts, and burnt at the stake, — In the 
 conclusion of the Pope's brieve, he exhorted the 
 Diet to endeavor to bring back to a sense of duty 
 this arch-heretic and his followers. " But," said 
 he, **if the ulcerations and extent of the cancer 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 83 
 
 appear to be such as to leave no place for mild 
 remedies, the knife must be used." 
 
 Elizabeth. I suppose, mother, this was what 
 he called reforming the church. 
 
 Mother. I suppose it was a part of the Re- 
 formation he desired, to put down Luther and his 
 followers. He told his legate to inform the Diet 
 how much the Pope was troubled on account of 
 the progress of Lutheranism ; and how necessary 
 it was to take vigorous measures to put it down. 
 But then the legate was to own that all the con- 
 fusions introduced by Luther, were the effects of 
 men's sins ; and particularly the sins of the cler- 
 gy and prelates. For some years past, he said, 
 many abuses, abominations, and excesses, had 
 been committed in the court of Rome, and even 
 in the Holy See itself; and it was no wonder if 
 the evil had passed from the head to the mem- 
 bers, from the Popes to the bishops and other 
 -clergy. " We have long," said the Pope, '' every 
 one of us, turned to his own way, and for a long 
 time, none have done good, no not one. Nothing 
 shall be wanting, on my part, to reform the court 
 of Rome, whence perhaps all the mischief hath 
 originated ; that, as this court hath been the 
 source of the corruptions which have thence 
 
84 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 spread among the lower orders, so from the same 
 a sound reformation may proceed." 
 
 Samuel. Why, mother, I think the Pope was 
 as great a heretic as Luther ; for this great Re- 
 former never said any thing worse than that, of 
 the court of Rome. 
 
 Mother. This acknowledgment is of great 
 value, because it places the charges of corrup- 
 tion, made by the Reformers against the court of 
 Rome and the Popish clergy in general, beyond 
 dispute. It shows, by the confession of the Pope 
 himself, that there was need of just the Reforma- 
 tion for which Luther was contending. 
 
 Samuel. I should think the Popish clergy 
 would not have liked such confessions, mother. 
 
 3Iother. It is said that the cardinals at Rome 
 were much displeased with him on this account. 
 However, some writers doubt whether Adrian was 
 really sincere in his professions about reforming 
 the church. After all these acknowledgments, 
 his legate told the princes that they must not won- 
 der if all these abuses could not be soon correct- 
 ed. The disease, he said, was complicated and 
 inveterate, and the cure must proceed step by 
 step, lest, by attempting to do all at once, every 
 thincr should be thrown into confusion. Of this, 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 85 
 
 Luther says, *' You are to understand these words 
 to mean, that there must be an interval q^ some 
 ages between every step." 
 
 Samuel. Mother, that is just the way people 
 now talk, when they want to quiet their con- 
 sciences, while living in sin. 
 
 3Iother. Yes, my son ; while people are still 
 living in sin, they are ready to think it impossible 
 for them to break off at once. And when we 
 tell them there is no other way, they will get an-^ 
 gry, and call us imprudent and overzealous. Thfs 
 appears to have been the only difference between 
 this pontiff and Luther. The Pope was for a 
 gradual reform ; but Luther for an immediate 
 one. And it is true, no reformation was ever 
 brought about by telling men that they must re- 
 form hereafter. They will bear to be told that 
 they are great sinners, provided they are allowed 
 to sleep on in their sins for the present. But 
 when we tell them that they must repent and 
 break off their sins now% they will either obey the 
 truth, or be roused to opposition. However, I 
 suppose we ought to give Adrian some credit for 
 his sincerity, for he told the German Diet that he 
 would not have accepted the office of Pope, for 
 any other purpose than to reform the church, to 
 
86 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 prefer and reward neglected men of merit and 
 virtue, and to do all the duties of a lawful suc- 
 cessor of St. Peter. 
 
 Elizabeth. Well, mother, what effect had 
 these things upon the Diet ? 
 
 Mother. At first, the Pope's brieve and the 
 legate's explanations . seemed to have made a 
 strong impression upon the Diet. Among other 
 things, the legate accused the clergy of Nurem- 
 berg of preaching impious doctrines, and insisted 
 on their being imprisoned ; and the bishops and 
 other great men among the Popish clergy, rose 
 up, and in a clamorous manner, called out, " Lu- 
 ther must he taken off, and those who spread . his 
 sentiments must be imprisoned." But the Ger- 
 man princes were not to be satisfied with the 
 empty professions of the Pope, nor carried away 
 with the rage of the priests. They told the Pope's 
 legate that he had been misinformed about the 
 clergy of Nuremberg; for they were highly es- 
 teemed by the people ; and if any harsh measures 
 were taken against them, it might lead to sedition 
 and civil commotions. As to the Pope's com- 
 plaint against Luther, they said they were always 
 ready to do all they could to root out heresies of 
 every kind. But they had good reason for not 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 8T 
 
 carrying into eifect the Edict of AVorms. All 
 ranks and orders of the people, they said, made 
 heavy complaints against the court of Rome ; and 
 they were now, through Luther's writings, so well 
 convinced of the truth of these charges, that any 
 attempt to execute the sentence of the Pope 
 against him would be attended with dangerous 
 consequences. The people would look upon it 
 as an attempt to oppress the truth and maintain 
 those abuses and impieties which could no longer 
 be borne. In this way, they said, Germany would 
 soon be involved in tumults, rebellion, and civil 
 wars. They thought, therefore, that some milder 
 measures ought to be tried. They praised the 
 Pope's pious intention to reform the court of 
 Rome, which he had owned to be the source of 
 all the mischief But they said there were par- 
 ticular grievances and abuses, which they would 
 distinctly set forth. If these were not corrected, 
 it would be in vain to expect the removal of the 
 evils which agitated Germany. As the Pope had 
 asked their advice, they said they would give it 
 freely. He was not to suppose that they had their 
 ■eyes solely on the business of Luther, but on a 
 multitude of other evils, which had taken deep 
 root, by long usage. The best remedy they could 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 advise, for- all these evils, was, that the Pope, with 
 the consent of the Emperor, should appoint a 
 council, to be held in some convenient part of 
 Germany, and that every member of it should 
 have liberty to speak freely, and give their ad- 
 vice, for the glory of God and the salvation of 
 souls. Finally, they said they would request the 
 Elector of Saxony to prevent the Lutheran party 
 from printing books or preaching sermons on sub- 
 jects of a seditious tendency ; and, in general, 
 they would do all they could to confine the preach- 
 ers, for the present, to plain practical preaching, 
 and make them wait for the determination of the 
 council, in regard to disputed points. As to the 
 priests who had married wives, or the monks who 
 had left their convents, they said the civil laws 
 had made no provision for such cases ; but if they 
 should be guilty of crimes of a different nature, 
 they would take care to have them punished. 
 This answer was delivered in writing to Cheregato, 
 the Pope's legate. 
 
 Samuel. I suppose he did not relish such an 
 answer very much. 
 
 Mother. No; he was quite displeased. He 
 said that neither the Pope, nor the Emperor, nor 
 any Christian prince, had ever expected to hear 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 09 
 
 such language from the Diet. Since Luther was 
 condemned, he had not only persevered in his old 
 errors, but had been guilty of new transgressions. 
 He ought therefore to have been punished more 
 severely. The negligence of the princes, he said, 
 was offensive to God, the Pope, and the Emperor ; 
 and their reasons for not executing the sentence 
 of the Pope, were by no means satisfactory. Men 
 ought, he said, to suffer any inconveniences rath- 
 er than to endanger the Catholic unity and the 
 salvation of souls. He was also displeased with 
 their manner of requesting a general council. It 
 would give offence to his holy master, the Pope ; 
 for they had required that it should be with the 
 consent of the Emperor, that it should be free, 
 and that it should be held in Germany. All this, 
 he said, was tying up the hands of the Pope. He 
 was also very much displeased with their promise 
 to prevent, as much as they could, the circulation 
 of heretical books. "The sentences of the Pope 
 and the Emperor," said he, ''ought to be im- 
 plicitly obeyed. The books should be burnt, and 
 the printers and venders of them duly punished. 
 There is no other way to put down this pernicious 
 sect. It is from the reading of their books t^at 
 all these evils have arisen," 
 
90 
 
 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 Samuel. There is the difficulty, mother, witl 
 all who wish to support false principles, and main- 
 tain power against right. They are afraid of the 
 light. But truth is not afraid of being overturn- 
 ed by error. 
 
 Mother. That is true, my son. But the legate 
 was particularly displeased with what the princes 
 said about the married clergy ; because they had 
 spoken about their being tried by the civil laws ; 
 while the church of Rome hold that the magis- 
 trates have no authority over the clergy and re- 
 ligious orders. He entreated the Diet to correct 
 this part of their answer, because it was opposed 
 to the rights of the church. 
 
 Elizahetli. I should not think the princes 
 would have been pleased with such a haughty, 
 domineering answer. 
 
 Mother. No ; his answer gave great offence to 
 the Diet. They said he had shown a quick sense 
 to every thing that might appear to diminish the 
 authority of the church of Rome, but little dis- 
 position to relieve Germany from the oppressions 
 under which it groaned. But they would not 
 multiply words al^out the matter, for they had 
 other business to do, of still greater importance. 
 So they told Cheregato to be content with their 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 91 
 
 former answer, till they could send a national 
 memorial to the Pope, and leceive an answer, re- 
 specting all their grievances. 
 
 Peter. I suppose he was very angry at that, 
 mother. 
 
 Mother. Yes ; he was so much offended, that 
 he left the Diet, and went away from Nuremberg. 
 This was considered as disrespectful to the Diet. 
 But they went on with their business, and made 
 out a memorial to the Pope, setting forth one 
 hundred grievances, which they wished to have 
 corrected; and telling him that if they were not 
 redressed speedily, the burden of them, would be- 
 come so oppressive and insupportable that the 
 princes and people in general neither could nor 
 would endure them any longer. Necessity would, 
 therefore, compel them to use every means in 
 their power to deliver themselves from the tyran- 
 ny of the clergy. 
 
 Samuel. I think they were growing very bold, or 
 they would not have dared to speak so to the Pope. 
 
 Mother. Yes ; and this showed that the power 
 of the Pope was declining, and that the German 
 princes were beginning to understand their rights. 
 
 Elizabeth. Mother, what were the hundred 
 grievances of which they complained ? 
 
92 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 Mother. I need not mention every one by it- 
 self; but I will tell you the substance of them all. 
 They complained of the large sums of money 
 which were extorted from the Germans by dis- 
 pensations, absolutions, and indulgencies, and 
 spent by the Popes in maintaining their relations ; 
 at the same time that it opened a door for all 
 sorts of crimes. 
 
 Caroline. What was a dispensation, mother? 
 
 Mother. The Pope claims the authority of 
 setting aside both the laws of God and the lav/s 
 of the church, in particular cases. And when he 
 does it, his act is called a dispensation. 
 
 Samuel. Is it possible that the Pope claims 
 such authority as that! What abominations it 
 must lead to. 
 
 Mother. Again, the Diet complained that the 
 Pope directed cases, where religion was concern- 
 ed, to be carried to Rome, instead of being tried 
 in Germany ; and that the priests were not aK 
 lowed to be tried before the civil magistrates for 
 their crimes. By this means, the priests could 
 commit all manner of wickedness, without being 
 punished. 
 
 Elizabeth. Why, mother, I should think, if 
 there was any difference^ the priests ought to be 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 93 
 
 punished more than the common people, for the 
 same crimes. 
 
 Mother. We should think so ; but it was very 
 convenient for the priests, who were the most 
 licentious of all the people, to be exempted from 
 the jurisdiction of the civil rulers ; and then, as 
 they would always be tried hy priests, they could 
 be sure of getting clear. But another grievance 
 of which the princes complained, was the money 
 that the priests made the people pay for admin- 
 istering the sacraments, celebrating the mass, 
 burying the dead, and for licences to keep con- 
 cubines. And many other things they mention- 
 ed, which you would not understand. 
 
 Samuel. Was good prince Frederic at this 
 Diet, mother 1 
 
 ' Mother. No, ray son ; he was getting old and 
 infirm, and he expected there would bef stormy 
 times about Luther, and he did not go to the 
 Diet. But the Pope sent him two most abusive 
 letters by Cheregato, which offended him very 
 much, 
 
 Elizabeth. I think the minds of the German 
 princes were much changed since the Diet of 
 Worms, if they would do all this when Frederic 
 was not there. 
 
94 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 Mother. But there was one part of their reply 
 with which Frederic was much displeased. They 
 said they would not allow ministers to preach, 
 nor the Reformers to print books on disputed 
 points. This, the Elector saw, would harrass 
 and perplex those faithful ministers, who wished 
 to preach the Gospel, and that it would hinder 
 the truth. He therefore directed a formal pro- 
 test to be entered, in his name, on the records of 
 the Diet, against this part of their proceedings. 
 The proceedings of this Diet, with the Pope's 
 brieve, and their answers, with their hundred 
 grievances, were published throughout Germany, 
 and did much good to the cause of the Reforma- 
 tion. Luther took advantage of this, and ad- 
 dressed a very interesting letter to the German 
 princes, on the affairs of the church and the Em- 
 pire. In the conclusion, he says, " By this de- 
 cree, I do maintain that Martin Luther stands 
 absolved from all the consequences of the former 
 sentence of the Pope and Emperor, until a future 
 council shall have tried his cause." 
 
 Samuel. But I suppose the Pope did not like 
 this Edict, did he mother ? 
 
 Mother. No ; the proceedings of the Diet pro- 
 duced much discontent at Rome. The cardinals 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 95 
 
 were quite out of humor with Adrian, for ac- 
 knowledging the corruptions of the church, which 
 they said he ought to have concealed ; and they 
 were very angry with Cheregato, on account of 
 his haughty answer to the German princes. They 
 said he ought to have given up all little matters, 
 and strained every nerve to get Luther con- 
 demned. But by the course he had pursued, he 
 had increased the ill-humor of the Germans, and 
 effected nothing for the church of Rome. The 
 authority of the church, they said, was weakened, 
 and the sources of its w^ealth stopped ; and the 
 heretics v/ould become more daring and pre- 
 sumptuous than ever. 
 
 Samuel. Well, it seems to me that the Pope 
 and his legate could not have done any thing bet- 
 ter for the cause of the Reformers. It is strange 
 they did not see that they were putting weapons 
 into the hands of their opposers. 
 
 Mother. When wicked men undertake to op- 
 pose the cause of God, he often blinds their eyes, 
 so that they run on heedlessly to their own de- 
 struction. This was the case with Pharaoh, and 
 with the Jews who rejected Christ ; and so it has 
 been in many other cases. After this, the Re- 
 formers appealed to the confessions of Adrian 
 
96 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 and to the hundred grievances of the Diet of Nu- 
 remberg, to support their charges against the 
 church of Rome. Poor Adrian was placed be- 
 tween two fires. On the one hand, he was as- 
 tonished at what he considered the obstinacy of 
 the Reformers ; and on the other hand, he was 
 disgusted with the dissolute manners of the court 
 of Rome. And not being able to correct either 
 the one or the other, he wished himself back at 
 Louvain. But soon after receiving from his le- 
 gate an account of the proceedings of the Diet at 
 Nuremberg, he died; and over his tomb was 
 placed this remarkable epitaph : " Here lies Adri- 
 an VI. who esteemed the Papal government to be 
 the greatest misfortune of his life." 
 
 QUESTIONS. 
 
 Who was made Pope, after the death of Leo X ? What sort of a 
 man was he? What was the first thing he did ? What confessions 
 did the Pope make, and what did he ask the Diet of Nuremberg to 
 do? What did the princes answer, and what did the Pope's legate 
 reply? What followed? 
 
CONVERSATION V. 
 
 Critical state of the Reformation, after the Diet of Nuremberg— Per^ 
 secution of the Glueen of Denmark — Persecution in Flanders- 
 Martyrdom of Voes and Esch. 
 
 Peter. Mother, I want to hear more about 
 the Reformation. Will you tell us how things 
 went on, after the Diet of Nuremberg? 
 
 Mother. ' The cause of truth was still sur- 
 rounded with difficulty and danger. Although 
 the Diet had boldly withstood the Pope, yet they 
 appointed the Vicar of Constance to oppose Lu- 
 theranism, as they called it, throughout Germany. 
 
 Elizabeth. I suppose that brought Luther into 
 great danger. 
 
 3Iother. The Elector and his court were so 
 fearful about Luther, that they tried to persuade 
 him to return to the castle. But, that you may 
 see how God supports his servants, in trying cir- 
 cumstances, I will read to you a part of a letter 
 he sent to his friend Spalatinus : "No, no," says 
 he, " do not think that I will again hide myself 
 
yS THE AXABArTISTS. 
 
 in a corner, however madly the monsters may 
 rage. You must see now that the hand of God 
 is in this business. This is the second year that 
 my life has been preserved, beyond the expecta- 
 tion of every one. I am yet alive, and the Elector 
 is not only safe, but the fury of the German 
 princes is less violent than it was last year. It is 
 by the providence of God that our prince finds 
 himself concerned in this religious contest; and 
 Jesus Christ will have no difficulty to defend him.- 
 However, if I could, without actually disgracing 
 the Gospel, find a way of separating him from my 
 difficulties and dangers, I would not hesitate to 
 give up my life. I had expected and lioped that, 
 within this year, I should have been dragged to 
 death. But it appears very plain that, at present, 
 we are not able to comprehend the designs of 
 God, in this matter ; therefore it will be safest for 
 us to say, in the spirit of humble resignation, 
 * Thy will be done.' '' 
 
 Samuel. O, mother, Luther had great faith. 
 If Christians now trusted in God, with such strong 
 confidence, don't you think Christ's kingdom 
 would be built up a great deal faster than it now is 1 
 
 3Iothei\ Yes, my son : if Christians generally 
 would stop depending upon the means that are em- 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 99 
 
 ployed to build up Christ's kingdom, and look to 
 God aloi>e, to carry on his own work, they would 
 see wonders. Yet there are some, I have no 
 doubt, who trust in God, with as strong confi- 
 dence as Luther did. And wherever such men 
 go, the hand of the Lord is with them, and Re- 
 vivals of Religion follow their labors. 
 
 Peter. Well, I suppose the Reformation went 
 on bravely, now. 
 
 Mother. This, my son, w^as a most critical 
 period in the progress of that great cause. Both 
 Luther and the Elector of Saxony w^ere in great 
 danger. Duke George had tried to persuade the 
 Regency at Nuremberg to force Frederic to pun- 
 ish Luther. 
 
 Caroline. I don't know what Regency means, 
 mother. 
 
 3Iot]ier. When a king or an Emperor dies, 
 before his son or heir is old enough to take his 
 place, some one or more persons are employed to 
 manage the affairs of the government in his name. 
 This is called a Regency. 
 
 Peter. Was the Emperor dead, mother ? 
 
 Mother. No; but he was absent from Ger- 
 many, carrying on a war ; and it was necessary 
 
iOO . THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 that there should be a Regency to manage the 
 affairs of the Empire. 
 
 Elizabeth. Did the Regency do as Duke 
 George wished them to] 
 
 3IotJie?\ No ; they told him that, as he was 
 the one that was offended, it would be more 
 proper for him to apply to the Elector for redress. 
 But there is strong reason to believe that Duke 
 George was trying to get possession of the domin- 
 ions of his nephews, the Elector Frederic and 
 Duke John. 
 
 Samuel. Is it possible, mother, that he could 
 be such a hypocrite, as to be pretending so much 
 regard to religion, while he was only trying to 
 enrich himself, at the expense of his relations? 
 
 Mother. He no doubt persuaded himself that 
 he should be doing a service to the church ; be- 
 cause, if he had possession of his nephews' do- 
 minions, he could put down Lutheranism by the 
 sword. And with the Papists, any thing is law- 
 ful, which promotes the interests of the church of 
 Rome. 
 
 Peter. Did Frederic know this, mother ? I 
 should not think he woald let them take away 
 his government peaceably. 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 101 
 
 Mother. Frederic was a wise man; and he 
 was not ignorant of the designs of his enemies. 
 He saw the conspiracy that was forming between 
 the Pope, the Emperor, and several of the most 
 bigoted German princes, to crush the infant 
 Reformation, and every prince that was friendly 
 to it. 
 
 Peter. Well, if he was wise^ I think he had 
 not much courage ; or he would not have been 
 easy, while he saw others trying to rob him of his 
 rights. 
 
 Mother. We have already seen that Frederic 
 was a very conscientious man. And, in this re- 
 spect, I would hold him up as a pattern. When 
 he was sure what was duty, he never wanted cour- 
 age to do it. But when there was any doubt 
 <kbout it, he was afraid to act, lest he^ should do 
 wrong. This is a very good principle. If you 
 have any doubt whether any action is right, the 
 safest way always is, not to do it. In the year 
 1523, this good prince thought very much of de- 
 fending his persecuted subjects by force. But, 
 as he was subject to the emperor in one sense, 
 and to the Pope in another, he was afraid it 
 would be wrong to resist their authority. In this 
 
 state of mind, he required Luther, Bugenhagius, 
 
 8 
 
102 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 and Melancthon to give him, in writing, their de- 
 liberate opinion upon the question, "In case any 
 of his subjects should suffer violence from the 
 Emperor or from any of the German princes, on 
 account of their religion, would it be right for the 
 Elector of Saxony to protect them by force of 
 arms ?" 
 
 Elizabeth. That was a hard question, mother, 
 when it so much concerned themselves and their 
 cause. If they say no, I shall think them very 
 honest. 
 
 Mother. Yes; the answer of these men shows 
 most clearly, that their object was not to excite 
 sedition and tumults, as they had been accus- 
 ed. They told him it would not be right for him 
 to go to war, on their account, for several rea- 
 sons : 1.^^' The princes were not fully convincedXif 
 the truth of the doctrines preached by the Re- 
 formers ; 2. Their subjects had not asked their 
 protection against violence and persecution ; 3. 
 The several states had not deliberated on the 
 point ; 4. Those who take up arms in their own 
 defence, ought, before all things, to be sure of the 
 justice of their cause. 
 
 Sa?imel. I think these men could not have 
 given a better evidence of the honesty of their 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 103 
 
 hearts and the purity of their motives. But, it 
 seems to me the affairs of the Reformation were 
 becoming very critical. 
 
 Mother. Yes, my son ; but the Lord soon clear- 
 ed away the dark clouds that hung over this ris- 
 ing cause. The Emperor was so much engaged 
 in other matters, that he found it impossible to 
 give much attention to these affairs, in Germany ; 
 without him the rest of the enemies of the truth, 
 could do very little. 
 
 Peter. How was the hand of the Lord in that, 
 mother 1 
 
 Mother. The hand of the Lord is in every 
 thing, my son. 
 
 Peter. How then can we be to blame for do- 
 ing \^;rong, if we are doing what he wants to have 
 done 1 I don't see how that can be. 
 
 Mother. Mr. Smith wanted to have his dog 
 Trim killed, because he worried the sheep. Yet 
 he did not like to do at himselv' But one day 
 Tom Jones got angry with Mr. Smith, and killed 
 old Trim. Now, did not Tom Jones do what 
 Mr. Smith wished to have done ? 
 
 Peter. Yes, mother, he did. 
 
 Mother. But, was it not as bad for him to kill 
 
104 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 thp dog, as if Mr. Smith had not wished to have 
 him killed? 
 
 Peter. Yes, I think it was ; for he did it out 
 of spite. 
 
 Mother. Well, now you see how it is that God 
 employs wicked men to do what he wishes to have 
 done. He does not force men .to do wickedly, 
 against their own wills. But he lets them goon, 
 in their own way, according to their own choice ; 
 and yet he overrules their actions to accomplish 
 his own purposes. When he wanted to punish 
 the Israelites, he sent against them the king of 
 Assyria,, wbo carried them away to another land. 
 But this wicked man did not think he was doing 
 the will of God. He was acting out the disposi- 
 tion of his own proud and ambitious heart.*. And 
 the Lord appears, to have so ordered the affairs of 
 Europe, as to find employment for the Emperor in 
 defending his ^, dominions from foreign invasion, 
 and.ya.promotiiA^^his owh ambitious, designs, in 
 order to divert his attention from the state of re- 
 ligion in Germany, until the rising cause of reform 
 had taken too deep root to be overturned. Yet, 
 the Lord surrounds his faithful servants with diffi- 
 culties .enough to try their patience, and give 
 
 *2d Kings 18.— Isa. 10 : 5, 6, 7. 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 105 
 
 them an opportunity of trusting the promises of 
 his word. If every thing went on smdothly, arid 
 we had no difficuUies to overcome, we should have 
 no chance to exercise faith in God. There were 
 many cruel men in power, who greatly harrassed 
 the church of God: and from them, many indi- 
 viduals suffered persecution. Among the former, 
 Ferdinand, arch-duke of Austria, and brother of 
 the Emperor, distinguished himself His sistex 
 was the wife of Christiern II., King of Denmark, 
 who was driven from his country, because the ^ 
 people did not like him. She had read Luther's 
 books, and openly professed the reformed reli- 
 gion. As they were leaving their country, with 
 twenty ships, they were overtaken with a storm, 
 and reduced to the last extremity. At length, 
 however, they landed in Zealand. From that 
 place, he sent to his brotlier-in-lav/, Charles V., 
 hoping that he would help him in recovering his 
 dominions. The queen also came to Nuremberg 
 to ask the aid of her brother Ferdinand. 
 
 Elizabeth. Well, mother, he surely would 
 pity her, in her trouble, if she did not think just 
 as he did about religion. 
 
 Motlier. You remember Christ tells us, that 
 the preaching of the Gospel shall separate friends, 
 
106 
 
 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 SO that a man's foes shall be among his own re- 
 lations. So it was in this case. Ferdinand ha- 
 ted the truth more than he loved his sister. He 
 told her he heartily wished she was not his sis- 
 ter ; and said he would rather she had been sunk 
 in the sea, than that she should have become ac- 
 quainted with the doctrines of the Reformer. 
 
 Elizahetli. O how cruel and unfeeling that 
 was. In her trouble, I should think it would 
 have broken her heart. What did she say to 
 him ? 
 
 3Iother. She said, " Certainly we are descend- 
 ed from the same mother ; yet I must adhere 
 closely to the word of God, and to that only, 
 without the least respect of persons. In all other 
 matters, I am ready to obey my brother's pleas- 
 ure. But if, on that account, he refuses to own 
 me for his sister, I shall try to bear the cross pa- 
 tiently." — She related her situation to the prin- 
 ces at Nuremberg, in such a feeling manner, 
 that every one of them shed tears. Yet, they 
 would do nothing for her, because she had em- 
 braced the Reformation. And she died soon af- 
 ter ; her death being hastened, as was supposed, 
 by the unkind treatment of her relations. Great 
 pains were taken, by persons of distinction, to 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 107 
 
 pursuade her to return to Popery ; but she re- 
 mained firm to the last, and'died in peace, trust- 
 ing in Jesus. 
 
 Caroline. O, mother ! I don't see how any 
 man could be so cruel towards his own sister.—^ 
 Why could he not let her think for herself about 
 religion, and love her too ? 
 
 Blotlier. My dear, human nature is the same 
 every where. And proud and haughty people, 
 who are rich and great in this world, hate noth- 
 ing worse than true religion. They cannot bear 
 its humbling truths ; and they will disown their 
 nearest relations, rather than see them the hum- 
 ble followers of Jesus. Cases of persecution like 
 this are frequent, even at this day. 
 
 Samuel. I am glad to hear, mother, that the 
 Reformation had begun so early in Denmark. 
 
 Blother. Yes ; it is always gratifying to see 
 the progress of the truth. About this time, the 
 Reformation began in Denmark, Sweden, Hun- 
 gary, Bohemia and Silesia; but I will not now 
 mention any particulars of its progress in these 
 places, because I mean to take some of them up 
 separately, after we get through with Germany. 
 But nowhere did the enemies of the truth rage 
 50 fiercely as in Flanders. It was carried on by 
 
108 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 the bigoted and furious Alexander* He was 
 armed with the authority of the Pope, and sup- 
 ported by the united power of the inquisition and 
 civil government; and he exercised vengeance 
 without mercy. The writings of Luther were 
 read by the Augustine monks at Antwerp, and 
 many of them embraced his sentiments. Some 
 of them were shut up in prison, till they recant- 
 ed ; but three of them remained firm, in spite of 
 persuasion, threats, and long confinement. 
 
 Samuel. And I suppose they were brought to 
 the stake. 
 
 Mother. Yes, they were condemned to suffer 
 death ; and on the day fixed for their execution, 
 the youngest of the three was brought out into 
 the market place. There, he was directed to 
 kneel down before a table, covered like a com- 
 munion table. Every body fixed their eyes upon 
 him ; but he was perfectly calm, not showing the 
 least sigh of fear. 
 
 Caroline. O how could he feel so, mother, 
 when he knew they were going to burn him 
 alive? 
 
 Mother. Death had no terrors to him. He 
 looked forward to the glories of heaven, which 
 
 *See "The Dawn." 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. IC^ 
 
 were before him. Jesus has taken away the sting 
 of death, so that those who trust in him, have 
 nothing to fear. 
 
 Peter. But, mother, it is so painful to be 
 burnt alive ; I should not like to die so, if I was 
 prepared to die. 
 
 Mother. My son, if you are not willing to 
 suffer for Christ's sake, Ite will not own you as 
 one of his followers. Think what he suffered for 
 us, of his own accord. For he had all power in 
 his hands, and he might have destroyed his per- 
 secutors with a word. But he meekly bore it 
 all. He suffered far i^re than these men did. — 
 But while they wf;re stl-ipping this young man of 
 the clothes worn by the priests, in order to take 
 away his office, his countenance appeared com- 
 posed and cheerful, and he seemed to be absorb- 
 ed in prayer and holy meditation. He did every 
 thing they told him rto, with perfect readiness. 
 Then the two others came forward, and passed 
 through the same ceremonies. Soon after, two of 
 them, named Henry Voes and John Esch, were 
 led to the stake. 
 
 Elizabeth. How did they bear the fire, moth- 
 er? I should think, after all, when they come to 
 
110 
 
 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 suffer the pain of burning, they would shrink 
 from it. 
 
 Blother. No, my dear ; they bore it with cheer- 
 fulness and joy. The fire vias slow in kindUng, 
 and they stood almost naked; but they showed 
 not the least symptom of irapEtience. But when 
 the fire broke out, there appeared in their coun- 
 tenances a cheerfulne^ not o be described. — 
 Many persons thought they sav them smile in the 
 fire ; and they sung praises to God, till their 
 mouths were stopped by the flames. 
 
 Caroline. How ct)uld they feel so, mother, 
 while scorched in the fire^^ 
 
 Mother. The Lord was' with them, my dear, 
 and made them so happy in tli?ir souls, that it 
 overcame the pain of their bodies. 
 
 Caroline. Mother, if I am ^; Christian, will 
 Jesus make me so happy when I iie ? 
 
 Motlier. He will, my dear, if you trust in him. 
 I have just heard a story of a litth girl not quite 
 four vears old, who died not lonor icro. She had 
 pious parents, who had told her about Jesus; and 
 she had been to the Infant Sal^bath School^ 
 where she had heard about death, and hell, and 
 about Jesus and heaven. Tiiere, she had heard 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. Ill 
 
 the teacher tell her about the " Valley of the 
 Shadow of Death." She knew that this meant 
 death ; but she thought it was passing through a 
 dark and dismal Valley. But on Monday morn- 
 ing, she was taken with the scarlet fever, and 
 died on Wednesday. On the morning of the day 
 she died, she was told that she would not get 
 well; and she said to her mother, "Mother, I 
 am going through the Valley of the sJiaduw of 
 death; I don't want to go alone. Won't you go 
 with me ?" " No, ray darling," said her mother ; 
 *' the Lord is not ready to take me yet ; I cannot 
 go with you now." This grieved her very much; 
 but she turned to her father, and said, " My dear' 
 father, won't you go with me, through the Valley 
 of the shadow of death?" But he gave her the. 
 same answer that her mother did. Then she 
 was almost broken-hearted, to think that neither 
 her father nor mother* would go with her through 
 the dark' valley. So she turned away her head 
 to the wall, and cried as if she would break her 
 heart, for fifteen or twenty minutes. Then she 
 turned round, with a sweet smile, and said, " O 
 I have found somebody that will go with me 
 through the Valley of the Shadow of death. — 
 Jesus will go with me." From that time, she 
 
112 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 gave bright evidence of faith in Christ, till she 
 died in the sweet expectation of heaven and eter- 
 nal joy. 
 
 Cai^Une. O, mother, I'll not wait till I am 
 sick and ready to die, before I go to Jesus. I will 
 go to him now. I will give him my heart, and 
 love him and serve him and trust in him while I 
 live ; and then, when I die, he will go with me 
 through the dark valley of the shadow of death, 
 and be with me in glory forever. 
 
 Mother. Yes, my dear ; although people some- 
 times find Jesus on their death-beds ; yet, it is a 
 dangerous thing to trust in the prospect of death- 
 bed repentance. Many people die suddenly, 
 without having time to think of their souls. — 
 And generally, when people are sick, they are in 
 such pain, and are so weak that they can't think 
 about God and eternity. But, supposing you 
 could be sure of repenting and coming to Christ, 
 on your death-bed, it would be treating God very 
 ill. It would be saying to him, "I will live for 
 myself, as long as life is worth any thing ; but 
 just before I die, I will give myself to thee." 
 
 Peter. No, mother, I won't be so mean as 
 that. I will give God my best days ; and when 
 I come to die, I can die in peace. 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. llB 
 
 Mother. I never heard of any body that was 
 sorry for being religious while young; and I nev- 
 er heard of any one that came to Christ, after he 
 got to be old, or on a death-bed, that was not 
 very sorry he did not come to him before. Re- 
 member, my children, every hour you remain in 
 sin, you are making bitter work for yourselves. 
 You are at enmity against God, and every mo- 
 ment increasing, at a fearful rate, your sins. If 
 you ever come to Christ, you will have all this to 
 repent of. The Bible says that sinners are lost. 
 Did you ever get lost, any of you ? 
 
 Samuel. Yes, mother ; when I was going to 
 uncle Joseph's, the first time, I took the wrong 
 road, and went on in it for two hours, before I 
 found I was wrong. Then, I had to turn about 
 and go back just the way I came ; and when I 
 got back, I found that I was no nearer uncle's 
 house than I was four hours befo^p. . . «»if- 
 
 Mother. Well; just so it is '^Avith sinners.— • 
 They are lost, and going right away from God; 
 and the longer they go on in this way, the further 
 will they have to com.e back. But only think^ 
 how dreadful to suffer the '' vengeance of eternal 
 fire/' with no support from God ; but with a sense 
 
114 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 of his just displeasure, and the reproach of a guil- 
 ty conscience. 
 
 Peter. O, that is dreadful indeed, mother. 
 
 Mother. But it is the portion of all those who 
 do not repent and forsake their sins, and embrace 
 Jesus as their Saviour. 
 
 Samuel. Mother, the case of these men is al- 
 most exactly like that of the early Christian mar- 
 tyrs, who suffered under the Pagan government 
 of Rome. It seems as if the church of Rome 
 had taken the place of Pagan Rome. 
 
 Mother. There is no doubt of it, my son ; and 
 here are a few things I wish you, particularly, to 
 notice: 1. The enmity of the natural heart, 
 against the Gospel of Jesus Christ, is the same in 
 all ages, in whatever different forms it may ap- 
 pear. Formerly, Christians were persecuted by 
 the heathen, who had the power in their hands. 
 r*y|3W,; they wej^, persecuted by men who profess- 
 ed to be Christians, and yet knew* nothing of heart 
 religion. 2. You see the evils of the union of 
 church and state, or of religion with the civil 
 government. It necessarily leads to persecution. 
 Before the days of Constantine the Great, Idola- 
 try was the established religion of the Roman em- 
 pire. Of course. Christians must be persecuted. 
 
THE AXABAPTISTS. 115 
 
 After the Christian religion was established by 
 law, it soon lost its power over men's hearts. 
 They changed its character, so as to suit it to the 
 depraved feelings of woildly and wicked men. 
 Then, when true religion was revived, it was met 
 with the same bitter hatred and persecution, 
 which it had before receiwd from Pagan Rome. 
 3. This case furnishes conclusive evidence, that 
 the spirit of true religion was among the Reform- 
 ers, and not among the Papists. The former 
 stand in the place of the primitive martyrs ; while 
 the latter have stept into the shoes of the heathen 
 persecutors. 4. Wherever there are general re- 
 vivals of religion, the same spirit of opposition 
 and persecution will manifest itself, just in pro- 
 portion to the zeal and holy living of God's peo- 
 ple, and the hardness of heart and obstinacy of 
 his enemies. Unconverted meri: cannot bear to 
 have the claims of God urged upon them ; and 
 when they are, they will oppose, and if they have 
 the power, they will persecute thos%who do so. 
 
 Peter. Mother, what became of the other 
 man, who was not led to the stake ? 
 
 Mother. Luther says he was burned at the 
 stake four days after; but Erasmus says he was 
 taken back to prison, and there privately put to 
 
116 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 death. If this is true, it was done to prevent the 
 effect of the public execution upon the people. — 
 His name was Lambert Thorn ; and while he was 
 in prison, Luther wrote him a letter, full of en- 
 couragement and Christian consolation. 
 
 Elizabeth. Did the burning of these holy men 
 do the cause of Papists any good, mother ? 
 
 Mother. Erasmus says that Brussels had been 
 free from'heretics, before this ; but, immtvdiately 
 afterwards, many of the inhabitants began to favor 
 Lutheranism. 
 
 Samuel. That is always the way with perse- 
 cution, mother. *' The blood of the martyrs is 
 the seed of the church." 
 
 Mother. Yes, nothing- was ever nearer the 
 truth than that saying. The modest behavior 
 and unshaken fortitude of these sufferers made a 
 great impression upon the public mind. Tlie 
 martyrs were considered innocent, and the judges 
 who had condemned them, unjust and cruel. — 
 But we hav» had a long talk this evening. It is 
 time for us to retire. 
 
 aUESTIONS. 
 What was the state of the Reformation, after the Diet of Nurem- 
 berg ? What prevented the enemies of the Reformation, at this crit- 
 ical period, from putting it down ? Can you give an account of the 
 persecution of tlie aueen of Denmark? Can you give an account of 
 the persecution in Flanders, and the martyrdom of Voes and Esch ? 
 What effect had this up on the Reformation ? 
 
CONVERSATION VI. 
 
 Luther's Letter to the Duke of Savoy— Election of Clement VII— 
 Diet of Nuremberg— Confederacy of Ratisbon— Convention of 
 Spires— Persecution— Martyrdom of Henry Muller. 
 
 Caroline. Mother, I want to hear more about 
 good Martin Luther. 
 
 Mother. About this time, a French gentleman 
 informed Luther that Charles, duke of Savoy, 
 was inclined to favor the Reformation. 
 
 Elizabeth. The duke of Savoy, mother? I 
 believe he is an old acquaintance. We had a 
 great deal to say about the duke of Savoy, when 
 we were talking about the Waldenses. 
 
 Mother. Yes, my dear ; and you remember 
 that most of the dukes of Savoy were too mode- 
 rate in their feelings, to allow the Papists to per- 
 secute the poor Waldenses, as they wished, — Lu- 
 ther wrote a letter to the duke, giving him an 
 account of the principles of the Reformation, and 
 exhorting him to promote it in his own dominions. 
 
 8 
 
118 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 I will read some parts of this letter, because it 
 shows the true doctrines of the Reformation. — 
 After introducing the subject, he says, " Our first 
 article is, that we are saved through faith in 
 Christ alone ; who does not blot out our sins on 
 account of our works ; but destroys the power of 
 death. This faith, we say, is the gift of God ; 
 and that it is produced in the heart by the spirit of 
 God. Faith is something that is alive, and pro- 
 duces a change in the whole man. This great 
 truth overturns the whole Popish doctrine of satis- 
 factions and works of merit ; which is truly 
 abominable in the sight of God ; for if sin can be 
 done away, and pardon obtained by our own 
 works, then it is not by the blood of Christ ; and 
 if it is by the blood of Christ, it is not by our 
 own works. To trust in our own works, and 
 seek salvation by them, is in fact to deny the Lord 
 that bought us." 
 
 Elizaheth. Mother, I was talking with Jane 
 Clark, the other day, and she said she was trying 
 to do as well as she could, and she thought if she 
 kept on so, God would have mercy on her, and 
 she should be saved at last. Was not that trust- 
 ing in her own works 1 
 
 Mother. Yes ; as long as she thinks she is 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 119 
 
 doing as well as she can, and that God will save 
 her on that account, she is trusting in her own 
 works. 
 
 Samuel. Well, Mr. Brown says he has never 
 injured any body in his life. He is kind to his 
 neighbors and to the poor ; and he does not think 
 God will punish him in hell forever. 
 
 Mother. He is trusting in his works ; and in 
 order to be saved, he must be perfect. He for- 
 gets that he has any duties towards God. He 
 forgets that God, as his Creator and Preserver, 
 has the first claim to his service. If he would be 
 saved by doing well, he must love God with all 
 Ms heart, and his neighbor as himself. He 
 knows that he does neither ; and when he comes 
 to stand before the bar of God, his own con- 
 science will condemn him. 
 
 Caroline. Mother, I was talking with cousin 
 Mary, the other day, and she said she had a hope. 
 Then I asked her what made her have a hope ; 
 and she said because she prayed every morning 
 and evening ; and when she heard about heaven 
 and hell, and about God, she always cried. But 
 I told her if praying or crying would save us, 
 there was no need of Christ. 
 
 Mother. You were right, my dear. It is im- 
 
120 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 possible to tell how many false hopes are built on 
 such foundations. No matter what we do, if we 
 trust in any thing but the sufferings, death, and 
 grace of Christ, to save us, we shall be disap- 
 pointed at last. 
 
 Samuel. Well, mother, what was Luther's 
 second article of faith ? 
 
 Mother. He says, " In our second article, we 
 maintain that those who are justified by faith, and 
 whose sins and sinful nature are subdued by 
 Christ, must take care to bring forth good fruit 
 in their lives. By this, we do not mean that these 
 good works make us good. The good fruit does 
 not make the tree good ; but when we see good 
 fruit on a tree, we know that the tree is good. — 
 The works, then, which we exhort men to per- 
 form, are such as are of use to mankind, and by 
 no means such as are done with the intention of 
 purchasing heaven for ourselves. This is the ru- 
 inous idea, belonging to the Papel system, which 
 is so opposite to pure Christianity." He then 
 goes on to expose a great many abuses of Popery, 
 and concludes his letter by saying, '^ These, my 
 illustrious prince, are the chief doctrines which I 
 would wish you most strenuously to patronize in 
 public, as you have already begun to do. But let 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 121 
 
 there be no compulsion ; no resort to the sword. 
 In that way, nothing will prosper. All I request 
 is, that, under your government, those who sin- 
 cerely preach the Gospel, may be protected, and 
 known to be in no danger. This is the way in 
 which Christ will destroy Anti-Christ by the 
 breath of his mouth." 
 
 Samuel. I am glad to hear Luther so distinct- 
 ly condemn the use of force in religion. I think 
 it shows that the charge of persecution, so often 
 made against the Reformers, did not apply to him. 
 
 Peter. Mother, it is a great while since you 
 told us of the death of Adrian ; but you have not 
 told us who was Pope after him. 
 
 Mother. Julius de Medicis was elected Pope 
 in November, 1523. He took the name of Clem- 
 ent VII. 
 
 Elizabeth. What sort of a man was he, 
 mother 1 
 
 Mother. He was much superior to Adrian in 
 the arts of government ; but he was not so good a 
 man. He was elected by unfair means ; and was 
 therefore determined, if possible to prevent the 
 calling of a council, lest they should take away 
 his office. In the latter part of this year, the Diet 
 of Germany met at Nuremberg ; and the Pope 
 
123 
 
 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 sent Cardinal Campeggio, an able and cunning 
 man, to represent him at the Diet. The Empe- 
 ror was hindered, by other concerns, from attend- 
 ing this Diet. The Elector Frederic appeared 
 at the beginning of the session j but he was old 
 and infirm, and he found that there would be 
 much violence and confusion in the proceedings 
 of the Diet, and so he went home before any bu- 
 siness of importance was done, and before the 
 Pope's legate had arrived, Campeggio arrived 
 in March, 1524 ; but the princes advised him not 
 to enter Nuremberg with the usual pomp and cer- 
 emony ; for lately, while passing through Augs- 
 burg, the people had treated him with irreverence, 
 and even ridiculed him in such a manner as to 
 make his own people laugh. 
 
 Samuel. I think that shows a great change in 
 the feelings of the people towards Popery. 
 
 Mother. Yes, my son ; but it does not show a 
 corresponding advance of true religion ; for the 
 spirit of Christ never manifests itself in such a 
 way. However, there is no doubt that true re- 
 ligion had made great progress. — On the arrival 
 of the legate, Ferdinand, the Emperor's brother, 
 reproached the senate of Nuremberg for their at- 
 tachment to Lutheranism ; and exhorted them to 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 128 
 
 adhere to the ancient religious system. But they 
 told him, decidedly, that they must not desert the 
 truth. One of the preachers of that city, was 
 bold enough to declare publicly, in his sermon, 
 that Anti-Christ entered Rome on the very day 
 that the Emperor Constantino left it. 
 
 Elizabeth. How durst he preach in that way, 
 mother, when the Popish governors were there. 
 
 Mother. I suppose he felt bound to speak the 
 truth, without regard to the consequences. But 
 the legate was greatly offended. Clement was 
 very artful in his endeavors to gain the good will 
 of the German princes. He wrote a very flatter- 
 ing letter to Frederic, in which he did not even 
 name Luther ; but requested him to confer with 
 Cardinal Campeggio, for the public good, and to 
 do all he could to compose the disturbances in 
 Germany. 
 
 Samuel. But I suppose Frederic was too wise 
 to be deceived by him. 
 
 Mother. Yes ; he had seen enough before, to 
 know how much dependence to place upon the 
 professions of the Pope. And before he left Nu- 
 remberg, he told Feilitch, his representative at 
 the Diet, to have nothing to say to Cardinal Cam- 
 peggio ; and to protest against any concessions 
 which might be made to him, by the Diet. But 
 
124 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 Campeggio was very much disappointed, in not 
 finding the Elector at the Diet. In a letter to 
 this prince, he says, " I have been much vexed 
 and mortified to find your highness unexpectedly 
 gone. My master's letters to you are concise. — 
 But he has directed me to tell you, in his name, 
 a great many things, which cannot be delayed, 
 or properly discussed by letter." He then went 
 on, in an artful strain, to praise the wisdom and 
 piety of the Elector, and to abuse the Reformers. 
 This letter, however, with those from the Pope to 
 the Prince, was a piece of downright hypocrisy, 
 designed to deceive Frederic, and bring him into 
 their measures for putting a stop to all Reforma- 
 tion in the church ; for Campeggio was instruct- 
 ed to use all his endeavors to have the Edict of 
 Worms carried into effect, to prevent the calling 
 of a general Council. 
 
 Samuel. Did the Pope send any answer to the 
 hundred grievances, sent to Rome by the last 
 Diet? 
 
 Mother. The Cardinal labored with all his 
 might, both with individual members, and in the 
 public assemblies of the Diet, to effect the objects 
 of his commission. He addressed the Diet in a 
 most plausible strain, about the compassion of 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 125 
 
 the Pope for the present situation of the country, 
 and his own inclinations to peace and modera- 
 tion. But he said he was astonished that so 
 many great princes could tolerate the mischiev- 
 ous innovations in religion, which had lately ta- 
 ken place in Germany. But after listening to 
 many unmeaning promises and declarations, the 
 Diet asked him what were the Pope's intentions, 
 respecting the methods they had proposed, at the 
 last Diet, for restoring the peace of the country ; 
 and whether he was charged with any satisfacto- 
 ry answer to the memorial of grievances, which 
 they had sent to Rome. 
 
 Samuel. I think it would require all his cun- 
 ning to give a satisfactory answer to these ques- 
 tions. 
 
 Mother. In his answer, were united hypocrisy, 
 cunning, and impudence. He said he knew of 
 no plan contrived by them, for composing the re- 
 ligious differences, but the Edict of Worms, which 
 had not been obeyed ; and which, in his judg- 
 ment, ought to claim their earliest attention. As 
 to the memorial of grievances, he acknowledged 
 that three copies of it had found their way to pri- 
 vate persons, and he had seen one of them him- 
 self; but that the Pope and Cardinals thought it 
 
126 
 
 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 was the production of some private person, but by 
 no means of the German princes. There were 
 articles in it, he said, which even bordered upon 
 heresy ; and the publication of them was highly 
 disrespectful to the Roman See. He had no 
 instructions about it. 
 
 Samuel. That was an impudent answer, in- 
 deed, mother, I think he would not gain much, 
 by treating the hardy German princes in this 
 way. 
 
 Mother. No, my son; though the Emperor 
 was very anxious to gain the Pope to his inter- 
 ests, and therefore, through his brother Ferdinand, 
 warmly seconded the complaints of Campeggio, 
 against the German princes, for their lenity to- 
 wards Luther ; yet, the Papists gained no ground 
 at this Diet. The princes promised to observe 
 the Edict of Worms, as far as they could. 
 
 Samuel. That was a good way to creep out, 
 mother ; for they might very easily say they could 
 not execute it at all. 
 
 Mother. Yes ; and that might be very true, 
 too ; for in the present state of Germany, that 
 Edict could not be executed without producing 
 tumults and civil war. — The Papists did not like 
 it. '' These words were inserted," says one of 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 127 
 
 their writers, " that men might be at full liberty 
 to do nothing in obedience to the Edict of Worms ; 
 and so it actually turned out." The Diet also re- 
 newed their demand of a general council, and 
 appointed a new assembly of the States General 
 to be held at Spires, in November of the same 
 year, to make regulations for the settlement of all 
 matters of dispute, till the council could be called. 
 — The majority of the votes were opposed to the 
 execution of the Edict of Worms in any way. 
 Yet such were the clamors of the prelates, that 
 they carried their points almost by force. The 
 lower orders and states of the Empire protested 
 against these irregular proceedings. The repre- 
 sentative of the Elector of Saxony complained 
 that the Edict of Worms was obtained by a. 
 manoeuvre of the bishops, against the sense of the 
 Diet; and that it had never been officially made 
 known to him or his brother John. But the im- 
 portant resolution at Nuremberg, which enjoined 
 the preaching of the gospel, was the result of ma- 
 ture deliberation, and had been published every 
 where. His master, he said, could not approve 
 of the present silence, in regard to the danger of 
 attempting to execute the Edict of Worms, and 
 the earnest desire of the princes for the free 
 
128 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 propagation of Christian truth ; on which points 
 the former Diet had distinctly explained them- 
 selves to Chevegato. But the proceedings of this 
 Diet were not satisfactory to any body. The Em- 
 peror, in his letters to his brother Ferdinand and 
 tlie princes, expressed his utter indignation at 
 what had passed. But as he knew he was una- 
 ble to make the princes obey his commands, he 
 sent the letters to his brother, telling him not to 
 let the'princes see them, if he thought they would 
 treat him with contempt. But Ferdinand was 
 not prudent enough to keep them to himself; and 
 as the independent spirit of the German princes 
 was not used to such haughty language, they be- 
 gan to resist such encroachments upon their lib- 
 erties ; and so the Emperor's authority, by this 
 folly, was greatly weakened. The Emperor even 
 abused the Elector of Saxony. In writing to him, 
 he said it belonged to himself and the Pope to 
 call councils and to fix on the place where they 
 should meet. He forbade the princes to meet at 
 Spires, and commanded the strictest observance 
 of the Edict of Worms. He called Luther a pro- 
 fane SAVAGE, who, like Mohammed, was aiming 
 at great power by poisoning men's minds by his 
 agreeable doctrines. 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 129 
 
 Samuel. I think he was mistaken there. The 
 doctrines preached by Luther are just what sin- 
 ners hate. But what did the good Frederic say 
 to him 1 
 
 Mother. He remembered the words of Solo- 
 mon, '' A soft answer turneth away wrath." He 
 wrote the Emperor a modest and respectful an- 
 swer ; and sent him a copy of the protest he had 
 made against the decree of the Diet. 
 
 Elizabeth. But how were the proceedings of 
 this Diet received at Rome ? 
 
 Mother. They produced both astonishment 
 and alarm. The Pope was in great fear of the 
 intended assembly at Spires. He immediately 
 called together his Cardinals, to consult about 
 the matter. Campeggio was directed to call to- 
 gether all the princes, bishops, and other great 
 persons in Germany, who were friendly to the 
 church of Rome, and give them fair promises of 
 a future council ; but at the same time to repre- 
 sent to them the difficulty of calling one in time 
 of war. He was directed to tell them that their 
 grievances might be redressed at Rome ; but to 
 request them, by all means, to prevent, if possi- 
 ble, the discussion of religious matters in the as- 
 sembly at Spires. Finally, he was to try, through 
 
130 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 the influence of the Emperor, to prevent or delay 
 the meeting of that assembly. The Pope also re- 
 solved to apply to the kings of England and Por- 
 tugal for aid ; and as he could not gain the vir- 
 tuos Elector of Saxony to his cause, either by 
 flattery or threats, he thought of degrading him 
 from his office, by declaring him a heretic. 
 
 Samuel. Mother, it is distressing to think of 
 the hypocrisy, intrigue, and entire want of prin- 
 ciple,*vi'hich prevailed among those who professed 
 to stand at the head of the church of Christ. 
 But how did Luther himself like the proceed- 
 ings? 
 
 Mother. He was no better satisfied than the 
 Pope and the Emperor. He thought it inconsis- 
 tent that, while his conduct was to be examined 
 by the assembly of Spires, he was still to be subject 
 to the Edict of Worms. If there was any reason 
 for giving him another hearing, he thought that 
 was sufficient for suspending the sentence by 
 which he was already condemned. As soon as 
 he received a copy of the Edict of this last Diet, 
 he had it printed along with the Edict of Worms, 
 with many severe remarks of his own. During 
 the sitting of the Diet, he wrote a letter to Spa- 
 latinus, in which he says, "I wish our simple 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 131 
 
 princes and bishops would, at length, open their 
 eyes, and see that the present revolution in re- 
 ligion, is not brought about by Luther, who is 
 really nobody ; but by the Omnipotence of Christ 
 himself ; and may they have grace afforded them 
 to see, also, that they have hitherto done all they 
 could to oppose and resist his will." 
 
 Elizabeth. Well, mother, what did Cardinal 
 Campeggio do, after this 1 
 
 Mother. Having Cailed to influence the Diet, 
 as he had hoped, his next object was to secure a 
 determined confederacy of the friends of the Pope. 
 So, in July, 1524, he collected togelher, at 
 Ratisbon, the Emperor's brother Ferdinand, 
 the two dukes of Bavaria, the ach-bishop of 
 Saltzburg, and several other bishops. These 
 he persuaded to bind themselves by a new decla- 
 ration, to execute the Edict of Worms, against 
 Luther and his followers ; to adhere to the Po- 
 pish manner of administering the sacrament ; to 
 punish the apostate monks and married priests ; 
 to bring home from Wittemberg all such students 
 as were their own subjects; to allow no Luther- 
 ans, banished from other places, to remain in 
 their dominions ; and in case of rebellion, to pro- 
 tect and assist each other with all their force. 
 
132 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 Samuel. That was a high-handed moveraent, 
 mother. What effect did it have upon the cause 
 of the Reformation? 
 
 Mother. It was one of those desperate move- 
 ments, which the blind supporters of a bad cause 
 generally make. If they had seen what was for 
 their good, they would have done all they could 
 to avoid an open division. But the effect of this 
 measure was to bring it about immediately. 
 Those princes who favored the Reformation, 
 were under the necessity of forming a similar un- 
 ion, in their own defence. Accordingly, those 
 members of the Imperial Diet who had disa- 
 greed with Cardinal Campeggio, met at Spires in 
 the same month of July, and explained the de- 
 crees of Nuremberg in favor of the growing 
 cause of the Reformation. The motives which 
 brought these two conventions together, were di- 
 rectly opposite. The members of the confedera- 
 cy of Ratisbon, all had some personal object to 
 accomplish. The dignity and authority of the 
 Pope was at stake : it was necessary that he 
 should do something to sustain them. The am- 
 bitious schemes of Charles V. made it necessary 
 for him to buy the favor of the Pope, at any price. 
 Ferdinand was trying secretly to obtain his elec- 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 133 
 
 tion, as king of the Romans. The two dukes 
 of Bavaria were bribed into this measure, by 
 one fifth of all the revenues of the higher clergy, 
 in their dominions, for five years ; and these 
 clergy were satisfied for this, by being allowed 
 to escape all reform ; while several laws were 
 passed, bearing severely upon the inferior clergy. 
 
 Elizabeth. O how could men pretend to be 
 acting for the cause of religion, when they were 
 governed by such motives as these ? 
 
 Mother. Ambitious men soon lose all con- 
 science, and stop at no measures to obtain their 
 own ends. 
 
 Samuel. Were the motives of the men that 
 formed the convention at Spires, any better, 
 mother 1 
 
 Mother. We have no reason to believe that 
 they were all influenced by a regard for true re- 
 ligion, and the interests of Christ's kingdom ; yet 
 the motives ofnone of them appear to have been 
 so low and mean as those of the confederacy at 
 Ratisbon. They were defending their own lib- 
 erties ; and many of them were sincerely desirous 
 of establishing a reformed and pure religion. 
 
 Samuel. So it seems the Lord ordered things 
 so as to make the Papists defeat their own ends. 
 10 
 
134 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 Mother. Yes ; this division of Germany into 
 two parties, though in itself a bad thing, was 
 the means of helping the cause of the Reforma- 
 tion. So, you see again, how God can overrule 
 things, in themselves evils to promote his own 
 purposes and glory. About the middle of this 
 year, the Landgrave of Hesse began to profess 
 a decided partiality for the reformed religion. 
 He issued a public proclamation, requiring the 
 preachers in his dominions to confine themselves 
 to the clear and simple doctrines of Christ and 
 his apostles. Upon this, Nicolaus Ferber, a 
 Franciscan monk, put into his hands a book, 
 which he called an approved treatise on religion, 
 and exhorted him to imitate the kings and prin- 
 ces in Italy, France, and Spain, who had agreed 
 to punish the Lutherans. The prince read the 
 monk's book; but told him he found little in it 
 which appeared like the charitable spirit of a 
 true Christian. He said he had no design of 
 changing the ancient customs which were found- 
 ed in Scripture ; but he could not agree with the 
 monk in denying the doctrine of justification by 
 faith, because it was plainly taught in the Bible ; 
 and he highly disapproved of his representing 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 135 
 
 the Virgin Mary as a Mediator between God and 
 man, and the Gospel as a thing that ought not 
 to be preached to the common people. 
 
 Samuel. That was a very sensible answer, 
 mother. 
 
 Mother. About the same time, the Lord rais- 
 ed up another zealous friend of the Reformation, 
 in Albert, Marquis of Brandenburg. He was at 
 the late Diet at Nuremberg, where he heard one 
 of the Reformers preach. He had before seen 
 and conversed with Luther, and read his books 
 with attention. He now became an open and 
 avowed defender of the Reformation. Prussia, 
 soon after, felt the effects of this change. The 
 pagans of that country had long before been 
 converted, by force, to nominal Christianity. 
 Now, under the protection and encouragement 
 of Albert, a substantial change, both in doc- 
 trine and practice, commenced among them, 
 and gained ground very fast. Lutheran minis- 
 ters labored in Prussia with great success. — 
 George de Polentz, bishop of Samland, distin- 
 guished himself in this reformation. He was 
 the first bishop who ventured to recommend to 
 his clergy the study of Luther's writings. In his 
 public advice to his clergy, he laments the ig- 
 
136 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 norance of the people ; and exhorts them to per- 
 form service in their own language, so that it 
 may be understood. 
 
 Elizabeth. That was a great thing for a bish- 
 op to do. 
 
 Mother. Yes ; but the bishop of Ermland, 
 another province of Prussia, published, in the 
 same month, a most violent and abusive decla- 
 ration against Luther and his disciples. In this 
 state of affairs, Luther sent into Prussia an ex- 
 cellent minister, named John Brisman. And, 
 a while after, he sent Paul Sperat, who had been 
 confined in the dungeon of Olmutz, for preach- 
 ing the Gospel in Moravia. He was made bishop 
 of Pomesane, and continued a zealous laborer 
 for about twenty-six years. John Poliander, 
 who had been the clerk of Eckius, at the dis- 
 pute at Leipsic, was now a zealous Reformer. 
 He went to Prussia, and labored in connection 
 with Brisman and Sperat. With these three 
 faithful ministers, under the direction of the 
 good bishop of Samland, the Reformation made 
 rapid progress in Prussia. — About this time, Lu- 
 ther wrote a long letter to this good bishop, full 
 of good feeling, and correct views. 
 
 Samuel. But, mother, I suppose the progress 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 137 
 
 of the Reformation only made the Papists rage 
 the more, where they had the power. 
 
 Mother. Yes ; and I will mention a few cases, 
 that you may see their principles and spirit. — 
 Henry MuIIer had been one of Luther's disciples. 
 He was at the head of the Augustine friars at 
 Antwerp, when he was cast into prison. But some 
 pious women assisted him to escape. He was 
 intending to go to Wittemberg ; but he received 
 a pressing invitation from the Senate and people 
 of Bremen, where he went and preached the 
 Gospel for two years. The hearts of the people 
 of this city were well prepared to receive the 
 Gospel ; but the Popish clergy were so provoked 
 at the success of his preaching, that they en- 
 treated the Senate to send him out of the city. 
 
 Elizabeth. I hope they did not do that, after 
 having sent for him. 
 
 Mother. No; but when the priests found 
 they could not get rid of him in this way, they 
 complained to the bishop. When Henry heard 
 of this, he drew up the articles of his belief, 
 sent them to the bishop, and declared himself 
 ready to recant any thing which could be proved 
 from Scripture to be heretical. But instead of 
 receiving an answer, Jie soon after found the 
 
138 
 
 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 Bull of Leo X. and the Edict of Worms, stuck 
 up on the church door. 
 
 Peter. What did that mean, mother 1 
 
 Mother. I suppose that was meant to be un- 
 derstood as the sentence of the bishop against 
 him. This took place in the year 1524. About 
 two years after this, he was invited to preach the 
 Gospel at Meldorf, in Ditmarsia. The people of 
 Bremen entreated him not to leave them ; but he 
 thought it his duty to go. He said they had had 
 the Gospel two years at Bremen ; but in the 
 place to which he was called, they had never 
 heard it. 
 
 Samuel. Mother, if the ministers in this 
 country were to act from the same principle, 
 would not a great many of them go to the hea- 
 then ? 
 
 Mother. Yes, my son. The people in this 
 country have heard the Gospel a long time ; while 
 there are hundreds of millions of heathen, who 
 have never heard of Jesus. And if all the pas- 
 tors in this country were to leave their churches 
 and go to the heathen, we should still be much 
 better supplied than they ; for we have the Bible 
 and a multitude of religious books, and Sabbath 
 Schools all over the country. 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 139 
 
 Peter. Well, mother, how was Henry receiv- 
 ed at Meldorf? 
 
 Mother. The people received him joyfully. 
 But before he began to preach, Satan stirred up 
 the Papists against him. " What is to be done," 
 said the prior of the monastery, to his clergy. 
 " We shall lose all our authority. We must not 
 do as our friends did at Bremen." So he formed 
 a conspiracy of forty-eight of the principal men 
 of a neighboring town, to murder Henry. 
 
 Samuel. O, mother, it makes me shudder to 
 think, that men who profess to be sent of God to 
 preach the Gospel, could set on foot a project to 
 murder a man for preaching the truths for fear 
 they themselves should lose their authority. 
 
 Mother. Yet, my son, this is the spirit of 
 Popery ; which teaches that any man who mur- 
 ders a heretic, is doing God service. — But, in the 
 first place, these men sent a letter to the people 
 of Meldorf, threatening to fine them five hundred 
 dollars, if they should suffer Henry to preach. 
 
 Elizabeth. I hope they did not mind that, 
 mother 1 
 
 Mother. No ; they treated it with contempt. 
 Henry preached the Gospel, and the people re- 
 ceived the truth with wonder, joy, and thankful- 
 
140 
 
 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 ness. But the prior of the monastery called his 
 monks together, and got the Franciscan monks 
 to help him. Then they went to the magistrates 
 and complained that if Henry was not put to 
 death, the worship of the Virgin Mary and the 
 saints would soon be at an end, and the two mo- 
 nasteries would be pulled down. 
 
 Samuel. O how the Papists are frightened at 
 the truth. 
 
 Samuel. Yes ; Popery cannot stand before 
 that. One of the magistrates said that Henry 
 and those who heard him preach had already 
 been threatened ; and offered to have the same 
 repeated. "No, no," said the prior. "If you 
 admonish the heretic in writing, he will answer 
 you, and you will not get the better of him. — 
 Nay, there is danger that you yourselves will be 
 seized with the heretical contagion." 
 
 Samuel. What fools they were, mother, to 
 be imposed upon in this way. Only think of 
 magistrates putting a man to death, for fear that 
 he would make them heretics ! 
 
 Mother. Yes, Popery is full of such absurdi- 
 ties. After this speech of the prior, they all 
 agreed that Henry should be taken and burnt ta 
 death in the night. 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 141 
 
 Elizabeth. And did they not even give him a 
 trial ? 
 
 Mother. O no ; they were afraid of that. If 
 he had a trial, he. would have a chance to defend 
 himself, and convince the people of the truth. 
 So, after it was dark, they collected together 
 about five hundred of the lowest of the people 
 from the villages, and gave them several hogs- 
 heads of Hamburg ale. 
 
 Elizabeth. O how shocking, mother, that 
 ministers of the Gospel should make people drunk 
 so as to persuade them to commit murder ! 
 
 Mother. They professed to be ministers of 
 the Gospel ; but they were really the ministers 
 of Satan. And they took the right method to 
 prepare these men to commit any crime. Spirits 
 take away men's reason, and then they can be 
 easily persuaded to do what they would shudder 
 at when sober. Most of the crimes that are 
 committed in this country, are done under the 
 influence of spirits. It is most dangerous to 
 drink any thing that can make a person drunk. 
 It was not ardent spirits, but beer that these men 
 drank, and you will see what they did in the 
 end. 
 
 Peter. But they drank too much, mother. 
 
142 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 Mother. If a person ventures to drink a sin- 
 gle drop of any thing that can make people drunk, 
 he is in danger of getting drunk himself. He 
 will have less resolution to resist the temptation 
 to take it the second time, than he had at first ; 
 and when he once gives way to his appetite, 
 there is no telling how far it may carry him. 
 The only safe rule is to drink none at all, of 
 
 ANY THING THAT CAN INTOXICATE. 
 
 Caroline^ Well, mother, what did they do 
 to Henry ? 
 
 3Iother. The clergy went forward with light- 
 ed torches. About midnight, a body of armed 
 men came to Meldorf, and laid hold of one of 
 Henry's principal supporters, hauled him into 
 street by the hair of his head, and rolled him in 
 the dirt. After this they caught Henry, and 
 dragged him till his feet were cut by the ice, so 
 that he could not walk. One of the magistrates 
 asked him whether he would rather die there, or 
 be sent to the bishop of Bremen. Henry told 
 him, if he had preached any false doctrine, they 
 had him in their power. Then the multitude, 
 who were heated with liquor, cried out *' Burn 
 him ! burn him !" So he was condemned to the 
 flames, without even the form of a trial. 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 143 
 
 Caroline. I think he felt very bad, mother, 
 to be caught so, and burned to death so soon. 
 
 Mother, But the Lord supported him, and 
 enabled him to shame the spirit of his persecutors. 
 When he was brought to the pile of wood, he 
 lifted up his hands towards heaven, and said, 
 *' Forgive them O Lord, they know not the sin 
 they are committing." 
 
 Caroline. O that was like Christ, mother. 
 He prayed so for his murderers. 
 
 Mother. Yes, my dear ; and you can judge 
 which had most of the spirit of Christ, this good 
 man or the Popish priests. 
 
 Peter. I think they showed more of the spir- 
 it of Satan than of Christ. 
 
 Mother. Well, the Bible says, " If any man 
 have not the spirit of Christ, he is none of his." 
 A good lady of Meldorf was so affected with the 
 sight of his sufferings, that she offered to give 
 the mob five hundred dollars if they would put 
 Henry in prison, and allow him a fair trial. But 
 they instantly trampled her under their feet, and 
 fell upon Henry with clubs, and beat him most 
 unmercifully. 
 
 Elizabeth, O what horrid cruelty, mother! 
 
144 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 I am glad we live in a land of liberty, where 
 such things cannot be done. 
 
 Mother. My dear, our security, under God, 
 has heretofore rested in our being governed by 
 laws, which do not allow any person to suifer 
 punishment until he has had a fair trial.; and 
 then he is punished according to law. But if 
 the spirit which has prevailed in our country for 
 some time past, is not checked, we shall all be 
 in danger of suffering in the same way that this 
 good man and this good lady did. Similar mobs 
 have lately undertaken, in many places, in our 
 land, to punish people in the same way. In sev- 
 eral instances, men have been hung without any 
 legal trial. In other cases they have been beat- 
 en and abused, or their property destroyed. Un- 
 less this spirit is speedily checked, we shall have 
 no more security for our lives and property than 
 if we lived under a Popish despotism. 
 
 Caroline. Did they burn this good man, moth- 
 er ? 
 
 Mother. It was almost two hours, before they 
 could make the fire burn. All this time, they 
 continued to beat him, and to stick sharp point- 
 ed instruments into his flesh. At last, they tied 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 145 
 
 his body to a long ladder, and when he began to 
 pray, they forced his neck with a cord so close 
 to one of the steps of the ladder that the blood 
 gushed out of his mouth and nose. 
 
 Samuel. I suppose the priests were afraid to 
 have him speak or pray, for fear the people 
 would hear him, and be convinced of the truth. 
 
 Mother. Yes ; it is evident that their object 
 was to prevent him from being heard either to 
 speak or pray. They now tried to raise up the 
 ladder, with Henry on it. But, in attempting to 
 support it with a sharp pole, they missed their 
 aim, and he fell upon the sharp point of the pole, 
 which ran through his body and put an end to 
 his sufferings. Then they threw his body into 
 the fire ; and one of them snatched a club and 
 beat his breast as long as he could see him 
 breathe. 
 
 Peter. Were there any others put to death 
 for their religion, mother 1 
 
 Mother. Yes ; there was no small persecution 
 about this time, in other countries, where the Re- 
 formation was spreading. But of this I will tell 
 you some other time. I am now telling you 
 about the Reformation in the countries which 
 were included in the Germanic confederacy. In 
 
146 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 Hungary, a bookseller, named George, was put to 
 death, I suppose for selling Luther's books ; and 
 at Prague, in Bohemia, a minister was put to 
 death for marrying a wife. At Antwerp, a min- 
 ister had been in the habit of preaching the Gos- 
 pel on Sundays, to a great many people. But the 
 government issued an order forbidding it. How- 
 ever, the people met in the ship yards ; and as 
 their preacher did not come, a young man placed 
 himself in a boat, near the shore, and spoke to 
 the people in a pious and engaging manner. — 
 But the next day, he was taken and put into a 
 sack and thrown into the river. In general, 
 wherever the Papists had power, they persecu- 
 ted Christians with great severity, during the 
 years 1523 and 1524. 
 
CONVERSATION VII. 
 
 The Anabaptists— their war— Death of the Elector Frederic, 
 
 Elizabeth. Mother, what became of the An- 
 abaptists 1 We have heard nothing of them for 
 a long time. 
 
 Mother. You recollect, my dear, that Lu- 
 ther had put Stubner to silence at Wittemberg. 
 But Munzer could not be persuaded to go there. 
 He staid at Alsted, a town belonging to the Elec- 
 tor of Saxony, near Thuringie. 
 
 Peter. Did he hold the same opinions as 
 Stubner, mother? 
 
 Mother. He said Luther had done more hurt 
 than good ; that his doctrine was not spiritual, 
 but carnal. He said divines should obtain the 
 spirit of prophecy, or their doctrines would not 
 be worth a half penny. 
 
 Peter. Did he tell them how to get the spirit 
 of prophecy, mother 1 
 
148 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 Mother. He said they must fast, look grave, 
 talk little, wear plainclothes, and let their beards 
 grow. This was the cross of Christ, he said, 
 and the true mortification. Then they should 
 leave the crowd, think continually of God, and 
 ask him to give them a sign, so that they might 
 certainly know that he loved them, and that 
 Christ died for them. If the sign did not imme- 
 diately appear, he said they should persevere in 
 prayer, and even argue with him in an angry 
 manner, as though he did not keep his promises. 
 
 Elizabeth. O, mother, how could any one 
 dare teach such doctrines as that ! 
 
 Mother. It is indeed strange that a worm 
 should think of contending with his Maker. 
 But Munzer said this would show their earnest- 
 ness ; and that God would be pleased with it, 
 and give them what they asked. He also main- 
 tained that God revealed himself to men by 
 dreams ; and that it was chiefly in that way that 
 he answered men's prayers. And if any man 
 had a dream, which could be so interpreted as 
 to be supposed to be a revelation from God, he 
 praised the dreamer, and gained him to his in- 
 terests. In this way, he got a number of the in- 
 habitants of Alsted to join him ; and they bound 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 149 
 
 themselves by an oath, for the piirpose of killing 
 all wicked persons, and appointing new magis- 
 trates and princes, so that pious and good people 
 should govern the world. They proposed to 
 level all distinctions among mankind ; to abolish 
 property, and reduce all men to an equality, so 
 that all should receive their living out of one 
 common stock. 
 
 Elizabeth. But how is it possible, mother, 
 that he could make people believe it was right 
 for them to murder all the wicked 1 
 
 Mother. He told them that the plan was ap- 
 proved by the Almighty ; and that God had assur- 
 ed him, in a dream, of its success ; and as it 
 appealed to the selfishness of the poor, who were 
 greatly oppressed, by the prospect of an equal 
 division of property, many of them were easily 
 gained over to his cause. 
 
 Samuel. But it seems strange to me that the 
 princes and rulers should have allowed these 
 things. 
 
 Mother. You know the moderation of the 
 
 Elector ; and how fearful he was of employing 
 
 force against the prophets, lest he should injure 
 
 the people of God. And, so long as Munzer 
 
 confined himself to the interpretation of dreams 
 11 
 
150 
 
 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 and supposed revelations from God, he let him 
 alone. But vvlien he heard of his designs against 
 existing governments, he banished him from his 
 dominions. 
 
 Caroline. Where did he go then, mother? 
 
 Mother. He first went to Nuremberg ; but 
 failing to form a party there, he went to Mul- 
 hausen. There he preached to the common peo- 
 ple, and persuaded them to put down the old 
 magistrates and choose new ones, and to turn 
 the monks out of doors, and seize their houses 
 and property. Munzer himself took possession 
 of the best and richest houses, and was made 
 the chief magistrate and ruler of the new gov- 
 ernment, both in civil and religious matters. He 
 decided every matter by the Bible or by pretend- 
 ed revelation. He taught the doctrine of per- 
 fect equality, and that the people should have all 
 things common. 
 
 Peter. Well, mother, does not our declara- 
 tion of independence teach that all men are born 
 equal ? 
 
 Mother. Yes ; but it does not mean that they 
 are in fact equal ; but only that they are equally 
 entitled to certain natural rights, such as the 
 liberty of doing all things lawful, of enjoying the 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 151 
 
 possession of property, and pursuing happiness. 
 But it does not mean that all men are born 
 equal in regard to natural abilities, wealth, or 
 station in life. This is not true in fact ; and the 
 noiion is evidently contrary to the intentions of 
 Providence. Some people have, naturally, great- 
 er minds than others. There is, in fact, al- 
 most as great a diversity of talents among men, 
 as there is of countenances ; and so the consti- 
 tution of human society leads to the same endless 
 variety of circumstances, in regard to wealth 
 and stations in life. 
 
 Peter. But the first Christians had all things 
 in common. They sold every thing they had, 
 and put it together into one common stock. 
 Ought we not to do as they did ? 
 
 Mother. There is an important principle in- 
 volved in this question, my son ; and for want of 
 attending to it, men are often led into error. 
 We are not required to do every thing that was 
 done hy Christ and the Apostles, and other holy 
 men, mentioned in the Bible. By taking their 
 examples as a perfect rule of conduct, without 
 regard to the difference of circumstances, we 
 shall be led into numerous mistakes. Christ nev- 
 er did any thing wrong ; and we are required to 
 
152 
 
 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 imitate him in the general spirit of his conduct. 
 But, as no man ever can be called to act in the 
 same capacity that he did, so no man can be re- 
 quired to do just as he did. The example of 
 Christ is a perfect rule of conduct, just so far as 
 we are placed in exactly similar circumstances, 
 and no farther. The Apostles did not always 
 do right ; so that their example can be a perfect 
 rule of conduct, no farther than it is found to 
 agree with the general principles of the Bible. 
 But we are not required in all cases, to follow 
 their example, even when they did right. In or- 
 der to know our own duty, we must apply the 
 general principles of the Bible to the particular 
 circumstances in which we are placed. But the 
 circumstances in which the apostles were placed, 
 may have required a course of action very differ- 
 ent from what is required of us. This is the case, 
 particularly, in respect to their having all things 
 common. Our Savior and the Apostles had all 
 things common, and lived as one family. This 
 was natural, considering the life they led, while 
 traveling from place to place, preaching the Gos- 
 pel. It would have been strange if they had not 
 done so. It was the most convenient way of liv- 
 ing ; and it kept them all together, so that the 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 153 
 
 disciples could all have an opportunity of hearing 
 every thing that Jesus said. But Jesus no where 
 commands them to put every thing they have 
 into a common stock ; and it appears that John 
 had some property which he did not put into their 
 common treasury ; for we read that, after the 
 crucifixion, he took the mother of Jesus to Ms 
 own home. If he had not had some private prop- 
 erty, he would not have had a home. — As the 
 apostles had been accustomed to this way of liv- 
 ing, it was perfectly natural that the first converts, 
 in the overflow of grateful feeling and brotherly 
 love, should seek to live in the same way, as one 
 family. But there were peculiar circumstances 
 which rendered it proper at that time, in Jerusa- 
 lem. It was the time of a great feast, when 
 great numbers of strangers, from all parts of the 
 world, were at Jerusalem. Many of these were 
 converted ; and on that account, probably, de- 
 prived of the usual hospitality of their Jewish 
 brethren. There were also multitudes of very 
 poor people, in Jerusalem, many of whom had 
 no doubt embraced Christ. Besides this, those 
 were troublesome times, when the church was 
 exposed to persecution ; and the Christians knew 
 that the temple-worship would be overthrown, 
 
154 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 and the Jews scattered all over the world. Un- 
 der all these circumstances, it was natural that 
 those who had property should throw it into a 
 common stock, to provide for the necessities of 
 all. They felt just as all Christians should feel ; 
 nothing which they had was their own. Acts 4 : 
 32. And they acted upon the same principle 
 upon which all Christians ought to act ; they 
 gave up their property, when they saw that the 
 interests of Christ's kingdom called for it. So 
 we should do now. But it does not follow that 
 we should all live as one family, and have no 
 separate property. This was only adapted to the 
 peculiar circumstances of the Christians at Je- 
 rusalem. There is no evidence that the same 
 course was pursued in other parts of Judea; and 
 it is evident from the directions which the apos- 
 tles give in their epistles, about honesty, and the 
 rights of property in general, Rom. 12: 13, 17. 
 2 Cor. 8: 21, that it was never practised among 
 the Gentile converts ; nor even among the Jews 
 that were scattered abroad, as you will see by 
 reading the second chapter of James. If all 
 things had been in common, there would have 
 been no need of exhorting them to take care of 
 the poor. — Young minds are very apt to be 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 155 
 
 troubled with such questions as this ; and on that 
 account, I wish you to get correct principles fix- 
 ed in your minds, so that you will know how to 
 remove these difficulties. The scheme of living 
 in common, has often been tried, but always 
 failed. It is not adapted to human nature, in its 
 present state ; and it is evident that the Lord 
 never designed that we should live so. This doc- 
 trine, as preached by Munzer, produced its nat- 
 ural effect : the poor left off work, and supplied 
 their wants from the rich by force. The num- 
 ber of his followers increased wonderfully. Mul- 
 titudes flocked to his standard. In all the cities 
 which fell into their hands, they put down the 
 magistrates, seized the lands of' the nobles, and 
 made them put on the clothes of laborers, so as 
 to make all men equal. But Munzer, their lead- 
 er, was not capable of conducting this wild un- 
 dertaking. He had not courage enough to carry 
 it through. He soon collected together eight 
 thousand men ; but he suffered himself to be 
 surrounded by a body of soldiers under the com- 
 mand of the Elector of Saxony, the landgrave of 
 Hesse, and the duke of Brunswick. These 
 princes were unwilling to shed the blood of the 
 people ; and they sent a young nobleman to the 
 
156 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 camp, offering them a free pardon, if they would 
 lay down their arms, and deliver up their leaders. 
 Munzer was alarmed at this, and made a speech, 
 exhorting them not to trust the deceitful promises 
 of their opposers, nor desert the cause of God 
 and Christian liberty. But they saw their dan- 
 ger, and were filled with confusion and terror. 
 However, just at this moment, a rainbow, which 
 was the sign they had painted on their flag, ap- 
 peared in the clouds, and Munzer cried out with 
 a loud voice, " Behold the sign which God has 
 given. There is the pledge of your safety, and 
 the token that the wicked shall be destroyed." 
 Then the ignorant and superstitious multitude 
 set up a shout, as if victory had been certain. 
 They immediately killed the young man who had 
 been sent to offer them pardon, and demanded tc 
 be led against the enemy. But such a rabble 
 was no match for well trained soldiers. The 
 princes, enraged at their barbarity in killing the 
 young nobleman, advanced upon them, and kill* 
 ed five thousand of them. The rest, with their 
 leader, ran away. Munzer was taken the next 
 day, and put to death. 
 
 Caroline. Did he die like a martyr, mother ? 
 
 Mother. No ; he suffered with a mean, cow-. 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 157 
 
 ardly spirit, because he had not the grace of God 
 to support him. 
 
 Samuel. Mother, how could these men raise 
 such tumults, and bring so many people to join 
 them in their wild schemes for reforming the 
 world? 
 
 Mother. It is easy to see how this could be, 
 when we consider the condition of the common 
 people, who were called pe«s«w^s. In Germany, 
 all the lands then belonged to the princes and 
 great men, and the peasants were held in a state 
 but very little removed from absolute slavery. 
 They were so grievously oppressed, that, during 
 the latter end of the fifteenth and the beginning 
 of the sixteenth centuries, they rebelled against 
 their princes in various parts of Germany ; and 
 the spirit of discontent among them was very 
 general. The fanatical leaders of the Anabap- 
 tists, seized upon this state of feeling among the 
 peasants, to accomplish their objects. 
 
 Elizabeth. Did any who had embraced the 
 doctrines of Luther, engage in these tumults ? 
 
 Mother. In other parts of Germany, the re- 
 bellion was of a different character. The pea- 
 sants, generally, only sought for a redress, of 
 their grievances, so that they might enjoy their 
 
158 THE ANABAPTISTS, 
 
 rights. But where Luther's doctrines prevailed 
 most, they had removed the servile and super- 
 stitious reverence of the people for Popery ; but 
 the great mass of the peasants were too ignorant 
 to understand the nature of civil and religious 
 liberty ; and but a small portion of the people 
 had, probably, become true Christians at heart. 
 This left them in a condition to be captivated by 
 any thing that promised relief from the oppres- 
 sion under which they groaned. But these tu- 
 mults can by no means be said to have follow- 
 ed as a necessary consequence of the Reforma- 
 tion. 
 
 Samueh Did Luther do nothing to prevent 
 this, mother ? He had so much influence, I 
 should think he might have done something. 
 
 Mother. Luther plainly saw that this was an 
 attempt of Satan to hinder the Reformation of 
 Religion which was going on in the land ; and 
 as soon as Munzer had made known his wicked 
 designs, so as to leave no room to doubt that he 
 intended to overturn all good government, the 
 Reformer wrote to the Elector Frederic and his 
 brother John, telling them of the danger with 
 which the country was threatened from Munzer 
 and his associates. " My reason," says he, "for 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 159 
 
 addressing your highness at present, is this : 
 These enthusiasts hold it right to propagate their 
 doctrines by force. They made no secret of this 
 at Wittemberg : and their declaration sunk deep 
 into my mind. I saw, plainly, that they intend- 
 ed to overturn the existing governments, though 
 Christ expressly told Pilate that his kingdom was 
 not of this world. I do therefore most sincerely 
 entreat your highnesses, to employ that authori- 
 ty which God has given you, in preventing the 
 schemes of these seditious persons, who would 
 turn every thing upside down. It is not ray wish 
 that any person, no, not even these fanatics, 
 should be hindered from preaching. Let them 
 teach, but keep their hands from violence. Or 
 if they will persist in their ferocious, seditious 
 practices, it will then be your duty to restrain 
 them, and without hesitation, to banish them from 
 your dominions. The warfare of an evangelist 
 is of a spiritual nature. He is to preach and to 
 bear the cross. We no where read that either 
 Christ or his apostles pulled down churches or 
 images. But when the divine word penetrated 
 the hearts of men, the heathen churches and 
 images came to nothing. We are to act in the 
 same manner." 
 
160 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 Samuel. I am glad to hear that, mother. It 
 shows the true principles upon which Luther act- 
 ed. He was not for employing force, to make 
 men religious, or prevent them from teaching 
 heresy ; but he would not allow men, under pre- 
 tence of religion, to stir up the people to engage 
 in mobs and riots and rebellion against their 
 rulers. 
 
 Mother. After Munzer had been banished, 
 Luther wrote to the magistrates of Mulhausen, 
 warning them not to receive him into their city ; 
 and, in the beginningof the year 1525, he pub- 
 lished a book against these visionary fanatics. 
 But when he saw that the spirit of tumult and 
 sedition was increasing, he published a very spir- 
 ited address to all classes of the people. In the 
 first place, he addressed the common people. 
 *' I allow," says he, '' that those rulers who op- 
 press their subjects, and particularly in prevent- 
 ing the preaching of the Gospel among them, are 
 without excuse. Yet, it is at the peril of losing 
 both soul and body, if you do not preserve a 
 good conscience in this matter. Satan has rais- 
 ed up a number of seditious, sanguinary teach- 
 ers. I entreat you not to believe every thing 
 you hear. You call yourselves Christians, and 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 161 
 
 profess to be obedient to the laws of God. In the 
 first place, it is extremely improbable that true 
 Christians should be so numerous as to furnish 
 such large bodies of men as you pretend to have 
 on your side, A true Christian is a scarce bird 
 in the world. Take care that you do not abuse 
 the name of God; for as easily as he drowned 
 the whole world, and rained fire upon Sodom, 
 he can destroy you. Your actions make it very 
 plain to me, that your profession of obedience 
 to the law of God, is a mere pretence. Paul 
 orders all men to obey the magistrate ; but you 
 would snatch the sword from him, and resist the 
 power which is ordained of God. The duty of 
 the Christian is, to suffer and to bear the cross, 
 and not to revenge, or take up arms. What ap- 
 pearance is there, of this humble spirit in your 
 condifct 1 Our Lord forbade Peter to resist ; 
 and when nailed to the cross, he patiently com- 
 mitted his cause to the Father, and prayed for 
 his murderers. Do you imitate his example, or 
 pretend not to the character of Christians. You 
 mean to carry your points by force of arms ; but 
 you will not succeed." Luther then turns to the 
 princes, and says, *' It is to you, rulers, and es- 
 
162 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 pecially the rulers of the church, that the pre- 
 sent disturbances are to be ascribed. The bish- 
 ops, to this very moment, even against their bet- 
 ter knowledge, persecute the Gospel ; and the 
 civil magistrates think of nothing but of draining 
 the wretched poor, to satisfy their own pride and 
 luxury. I have repeatedly warned you of the 
 dreadful evils that await you, but to no purpose. 
 The wrath of God is accumulating over you, and 
 will burst on your heads, if ye repent not. These 
 false prophets, and the rebellion of the common 
 people, are proofs of the divine displeasure. To 
 be plain, such is the state of things, that men 
 neither can nor will, nor indeed should they, 
 bear your government any longer. Listen to the 
 Scriptures, and amend your ways. The people 
 may not succeed at present, and you may kill 
 the greater part of them ; but God will raise up 
 others after them. For it is he himself, who^ for 
 your wickedness, brings these troubles upon you. 
 Some of the demands of the people are so rea- 
 sonable, that you ought to be ashamed for hav- 
 ing reduced your subjects to the necessity of ma- 
 king them. It is the duty of governments not 
 to vex and distress their subjects, but to be the 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 163 
 
 guardians of their fortunes and comforts ; but 
 the oppression of the poor peasants of this coun- 
 try, has become intolerable." 
 
 Peter. He was very bold, mother, and plain, 
 to both parties. 
 
 Motlier. Yes ; he spared neither. In couclu- 
 sion, he exhorted them not to think of fighting 
 one another ; but to settle their disputes in a 
 peaceable way, for the advantage of both par- 
 ties. — This address shows the spirit of Luther ; 
 and proves that he was in no way connected with 
 the tumults that disturbed the country. They 
 owed their origin entirely to the cruel oppression 
 of the rulers. But the general feeling of dis- 
 content that prevailed among the people, was 
 made use of, by these wicked prophets, for pro- 
 moting their cause, and establishing their au- 
 thority. 
 
 Peter. Well, mother, when Munzer was 
 killed, did that put an end to the Anabaptists 1 
 
 Mother. It put an end to the insurrection of 
 the peasants, for that time. But still, there were 
 many persons who held the doctrines of the Ana- 
 baptists, in secret, ready to embrace the first 
 opportunity to put them in practice. In those 
 provinces of Upper Germany, where they had 
 
1^ 
 
 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 already raised tumults, the magistrates watched 
 them so closely, that they had no opportunity of 
 exciting disturbance. But in the Netherlands 
 and Westphalia, where they were less known, 
 they got into several towns, and spread their per- 
 nicious principles. In the year 1534, two Ana- 
 baptist prophets, John Matthias, a baker of 
 Haerleni, and John Boecold, a journeyman tai- 
 lor, of Leyden, settled at Munster. Caroline, 
 can you find Munster on the map ? 
 
 Caroline. Yes, mother, here it is, in the Up- 
 per part of Westphalia. 
 
 3Iother. Yes ; and it was the capital city of a 
 province of the same name. It was subject to the 
 bishop ; but was governed by its own senate and 
 consuls. — Both these men possessed the necessa- 
 ry talents for desperate enterprises. They had 
 great resolution, the appearance of sanctity, and 
 a confident and plausible manner of addressing 
 the people. They also made bold pretensions to 
 inspiration. Considering the unsettled state of 
 men's minds, on the subject of religion, and the 
 grievous opprcsions under which they had long 
 groaned, it is not surprising, that they soon gain- 
 ed many converts. Among these, were a min- 
 ister of the name of Rothman, who had first 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 165 
 
 preached the doctrines of the Reformation at 
 Munster, and Cnipperdoling, a rich man, of 
 some rank in society. 
 
 Elizabeth. It is very strange, mother, that a 
 minister who had embraced the Reformation, 
 should have joined them. 
 
 Mother. No, my dear, it is not strange ; for 
 the true principles of the Christian religion were 
 but imperfectly understood, even by many of the 
 Reformers themselves ; and there is no doubt 
 that many zealously embraced the Reformation, 
 because they saw the corruptions of Popery, 
 without having any very distinct notions of what 
 was to take its place ; and without experiencing 
 the renewing power of the Gospel in their own 
 hearts. Such persons would be ready to embrace 
 any thing new, and to be turned about by every 
 wind. — However, the conversion of such persons 
 emboldened them still more. They taught their 
 opinions publicly, and made several attempts to 
 become the masters of the town. At last, having 
 secretly called in their associates from the neigh- 
 boring country, they took possession of the arsenal 
 and senate house, in the night. Then running 
 through the streets with drawn swords, and hor- 
 12 
 
166 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 t 
 
 rible bowlings, they cried out, '' Repent and be 
 baptised !" and " Depart, ye ungodly !" 
 
 Samuel. Where were the rulers, all this 
 time 1 
 
 Mother. The senators, nobility, and citizens- 
 generally, were so frightened with their threats 
 and outcries that they ran away in confusion, 
 and left the city to the frantic multitude, who- 
 were chiefly strangers. As there was now noth- 
 ing in their way, they set about forming a gov- 
 ernment according to their own wild ideas. At 
 first, they elected senators of their own sect, 
 and appointed Cnipperdoling and another man 
 consuls. But this was mere form, for all their 
 proceedings were directed by Matthias. He gave 
 his commands in the style and with the authori- 
 ty of a prophet ; and it was instant death to diso- 
 bey him. 
 
 Elizabeth. Strange that the people should 
 pacify themselves with the name of liberty, while 
 they submitted to such tyranny as that. 
 
 Mother, But there is no absurdity too great 
 for men to embrace, if they can only be persua- 
 ded that it comes from divine authority. — The 
 prophet began with encouraging the multitude 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 167 
 
 to rob the churches, and tear down their orna- 
 ments. Then he told them to destroy all books ' 
 but the Bible, as useless or impious. 
 
 Samuel. That is like the Mohammedans"^ 
 mother. 
 
 Mother. Yes ; and the peculiar principles 
 which distinguished this sect were more like 
 those of the Mohammedans than of any others. 
 Matthias ordered the land and property of those 
 who had left the city, to be sold to the people 
 in the country around ; and commanded all 
 the people to bring their money and property 
 to him. The whole of this he placed in a public 
 treasury, and appointed deacons to distribute it 
 for the benefit of all. Having reduced the peo- 
 ple all to an equality, according to"^ the notions of 
 the sect, he made them all eat at public tables, 
 and gave orders what dishes should be served up 
 each day. His next care was to provide for the 
 defence of the city. He collected large stores 
 of arms. He repaired the fortifications of the 
 city, obliging every one, without distinction, to 
 work in his turn. He formed such as were able 
 to bear arms, into a standing army. He also 
 sent persons into other parts of Germany, invit- 
 ing he Anabaptists to assemble at Munster, 
 
168 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 which he called Mount Zion, that they might 
 set out from there to bring all the nations of the 
 earth to submit to their authority. 
 
 Samuel. How is it possible that he could 
 bring the people into such ridiculous measures 1 
 
 Mother. We have already seen, in the his- 
 tory of Mohammed, how easy it is for a success- 
 ful impostor, to bring his followers to submit im- 
 plicitly to his will. The history of the Anabap- 
 tists furnishes another instance ; and Matthias 
 accomplished his design much in the same way 
 as Mohammed. He kept up the excitement in 
 their minds by exhortations, revelations, and 
 prophecies, as well as by his own example, so 
 that they seemed ready to suffer any hardships^ 
 in order to maintain their opinions. 
 
 Peter. Mother, why did not the government 
 send an army to punish the rebels 1 
 
 Mother. The bishop of Munster raised an 
 army and besieged the town. As he came to- 
 wards the city, Matthias, at the head of some 
 chosen men, went out, and in a furious manner 
 attacked the bishop's army ; and after killing a 
 great many men, he returned to the city, loaded 
 with spoil. But he was so much intoxicated 
 with his success, that the next day he brandished 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 169 
 
 his spear, and declared that he would go out like 
 Gideon, with a handful of men, and smite the host 
 of the ungodly. Accordingly, he chose thirty men, 
 who followed him without hessitation. They 
 rushed madly upon the enemy ; but every man 
 of them was killed. 
 
 Peter. And the prophet too, mother ? I sup- 
 pose that put an end to the war, then. 
 
 Mother. No, my son : the death of Matthias, 
 at first, produced great terror among his follow- 
 ers. But Boccold took his place, and soon gain- 
 ed so much credit among the people, that he suc- 
 ceeded Matthias in the absolute direction of their 
 affairs. However, he did not attempt to march 
 out against the enemy, as Matthias had done ; 
 but contented himself with defending the city. 
 But he was wilder in his enthusiasm than Mat- 
 thias. Soon after the death of that prophet, he 
 stripped himself naked, and marching through 
 the streets, proclaimed with aloud voice, "The 
 kingdom of Zion is at hand : whatever is highest 
 on earth shall be brought low, and whatever is 
 lowest shall be exalted." In order to fulfil this, 
 he commanded that the churches, which were 
 the highest buildings in the city, should be lev- 
 eled to the ground. Then he put out of oflice 
 
170 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 the senators chosen by Matthias ; and changed 
 Cnipperdoling from the highest office to the low- 
 est, and made him the common hangman. 
 
 Samuel. I should think they would have re- 
 sisted such arbitrary proceedings. 
 
 Mother. When fanaticism once gets posses- 
 sion of men's minds, it will carry them wherever 
 their leaders choose to have theni go. They sup- 
 posed him to be directed by God himself; and of 
 course, to hesitate to obey him, would be, in their 
 view, rebellion against the Almighty. Cnipper- 
 doling not only agreed to this change without 
 murmuring, but with joy ; though he was called 
 almost every day to take the lives of those who 
 had offended the prophet. In place of the sena- 
 tors, Boccold appointed twelve judges, according^ 
 to the number of the tribes of Israel, reserving to 
 himself the same authority which Moses had 
 among the Israelites. But this did not satisfy 
 him. He persuaded another man, who was ac- 
 knowledged as a prophet, to call the multitude to^ 
 gether and declare that it was the will of God, 
 that John Boccold should be king of Sion, and 
 sit on the throne of David. When this was done, 
 John kneeled down and accepted the heavenly 
 call, declaring that the same thing had been re- 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 171 
 
 vealed to himself. The deluded multitude imme- 
 diately acknowledged him as their king; and a 
 crown of gold was put upon his head, and he was 
 clothed in the richest garments. He carried a 
 Bible in one hand, and a naked sword in the oth- 
 er. 
 
 Samuel. How strange, mother, that he should 
 carry in his hand the very book in which his con- 
 duct was condemned, in the most pointed man- 
 ner. 
 
 Mother. The worst things that ever happened, 
 have been done in the name of God and religion. 
 —But John went on, carrying out his system of 
 royalty. A great body of guards accompanied 
 him, whenever he appeared in public. He coin- 
 ed money, stamped with his own image, and ap- 
 pointed the great officers of his kingdom. Cnip- 
 perdoling was made governor of the city, as a re- 
 ward for his former submission. But now, as 
 Boccold had got to the height of power, he began 
 to show a disposition to gratify himself in another 
 way. He told his prophets to address the people 
 upon the lawfulness and necessity of taking more 
 than one wife. This, they said, was one of the 
 privileges which God had granted to the saints. 
 When the minds of the people were sufficiently 
 
172 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 prepared for it, he set them the example, by mar- 
 rying three wives, one of whom was the widow of 
 Matthias, a very beautiful woman. He after- 
 wards added to the number of his wives, till he 
 had taken fourteen. But the Avidow of Matthias 
 was made queen, and shared with him the splen- 
 dors of royalty. The people followed his exam- 
 ple. No man contented himself with one wife. 
 Not to use their Christian liberty was considered 
 a crime. Persons were appointed to search the 
 houses for young women ; and every one that was 
 found, was forced to marry. Besides this, men 
 were allowed to put away their wives, whenever 
 they pleased. Thus, every excess was commit- 
 ted, of which the passions of men are capable, 
 when restrained neither by the authority of law, 
 nor a sense of decency ; and all this was done in 
 the name of religion. At the same time, similar 
 scenes of violence, tumult, and sedition, were ex- 
 hibited in Holland. King John pretended that 
 God had made him a present of the cities of Am- 
 sterdam, Deventer, and Wesel. So he sent men 
 there to preach to the people. About the begin- 
 ning of the year 1535, twelve Anabaptists, of 
 whom five were women, met at Amsterdam, in a 
 private house, at midnight. One of them, a tailor 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 173 
 
 by profession, fell into a sort of trance : and af- 
 ter having preached and prayed for four hours, 
 he stripped himself entirely naked, threw his 
 clothes in the fire, and commanded the rest, in 
 the name of God, to do the same. They all im- 
 mediately obeyed him ; and then they all followed 
 him through the streets, bawling out, " Wo, wo! 
 the wrath of God ! the wrath of God ! ico to 
 Babylon !" 
 
 Elizabeth. Did they do this in the name of 
 God, too? 
 
 Mother. Yes; and this shows the danger of 
 giving way to enthusiastic notions, and pretended 
 inspirations. When men are fully persuaded that 
 they are guided by a divine impulse, there is no 
 absurdity or abomination too great for them to 
 practise. These fanatics were taken before the 
 magistrates, and clothes were offered them to cov- 
 er their nakedness ; but they would not put them 
 on ; but cried out, " We are the naked truth." 
 
 Caroline^ What was done with them, moth- 
 er? 
 
 Mother. They were put to death. But when 
 led to the scaffold, they sung and danced, with 
 enthusiastic frenzy. Soon after this, a man of 
 
174 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 the name of Van Geelen, who had been sent to 
 that city by the "King ofZion," asBoccold call- 
 ed himself, marched a band of his followers to 
 the town-house, for the purpose of taking posses- 
 sion of the city. But they were surrounded by 
 the city authorities with some soldiers, and after 
 a severe battle, he and his company were put to 
 death. 
 
 Samuel. But what were the princes of Germa- 
 ny doing, all this time 1 
 
 Mother. The bishop of Munster had kept up 
 the seige ; and the princes of Germany met to- 
 gether, and voted to supply him with men and 
 money for putting down the Anabaptists. They 
 were now reduced almost to a state of famine : 
 and several small bodies of their brethren, who 
 had come to their assistance, were killed. Yet, 
 their hopes were as high as ever ; and the prophet 
 succeeded in making them believe that God 
 would, in a miraculous manner, deliver the city. 
 The faith of a few began to be shaken; but they 
 were immediately punished with death, for dis- 
 trusting the power of God. One of the king's 
 wives said something, which showed some doubt 
 about his divine mission; and he instantly called 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 175 
 
 them all together, and commanded the blas- 
 phemer, as he called her, to kneel down, and 
 then cut off her head with his own hands. 
 
 Elizabeth. O mother, did not this strike the 
 rest of them with horror 1 
 
 Mother. No ; they joined him in dancing 
 with joy around her bleeding corpse.— But, at 
 length, the city was taken, and most of the 
 people killed. The king was loaded with 
 chains, and carried from city to city, to gratify 
 the curiosity of the people. 
 
 Peter. How did he bear that, mother? 
 
 Mother. His spirit was not broken nor hum- 
 bled by it ; and he clung to the opinions of his 
 sect to the last. He was finally taken back to 
 Munster, and put to death, with lingering and 
 painful tortures, which he bore with great forti- 
 tude.— This extraordinary man, who had been 
 able to acquire such amazing power over the 
 minds of men, was only twenty-six years old. 
 
 Elizabeth. He must have been a wonderful 
 man, mother, or he could not have deceived the 
 people so, at such an age. 
 
 Mother. The history of the Anabaptists is 
 full of instruction. You see by it, how fond peo- 
 
176 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 pie are of any thing that is marvellous. This is 
 especially so among such ignorant and supersti- 
 tious people as the German peasants. But, it is by 
 no means confined to such. Even in our own 
 country, where intelligence is so generally diffused, 
 there is a wonderful disposition to run after preten- 
 ded prophets. If it were not so, the delusions of 
 the Shakers and the Mormonites, and others of the 
 same class, could never have gained a footing 
 here ; and the Quakers, who believe themselves 
 to be all inspired, would not be so generally es- 
 teemed as a Christian people. 
 
 Samuel. Why, mother, I have always heard 
 the Quakers spoken of as a good Christian peo- 
 ple. 
 
 Mother. I know they are so spoken of, ray 
 son ; but I wish here to give you all a solemn 
 warning against the distinguishing doctrine of 
 of that sect, because it is so bewitching and plau- 
 sible to minds not established in the truth ; and 
 yet, I do not hesitate to pronounce it a soul-de- 
 stroying error. 
 
 Peter. What is it, mother 1 
 
 Mother. They hold that every man has with- 
 in him a principle, which they call inward lights 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 177 
 
 and which they say is sufficient to guide us in 
 every thing. This principle, they hold, is our 
 only rule of faith and practice. 
 
 Caroline. I thought the Bible was the only 
 rule of faith and practice, mother. 
 
 Mother. It is, my dear ; but they put this 
 inward principle above the Bible. They call it 
 inspiration ; and so, having, as they suppose, the 
 same Spirit which dictated the Bible, they claim 
 the right of fixing the meaning of the Scriptures. 
 In this way they fritter away every thing in the 
 Bible, which does not favor their own notions. 
 To adopt this sentiment, is to forsake the sure 
 guide of divine revelation, and follow the light 
 of reason and natural conscience; which is like 
 exchanging the glorious light of the sun for the 
 faint beams of a glimmering taper. 
 
 Samuel. But, mother, they do not call it rea- 
 son. They think that God designed to make 
 miraculous gifts and inspiration permanent in 
 the church : and that this inward principle is 
 nothing less than the inspiration of the Holy Spir- 
 it. I have been very much perplexed to under- 
 stand a great many of the promises of Christ, 
 upon any other ground than that these gifts were 
 to continue. 
 
178 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 Mother. This is a difficulty common to young 
 minds. But it arises from a want of discrimina- 
 tion. In the first place, there is an error in sup- 
 posing that the office of the Apostles was to be 
 permanent in the church. This is the grand er- 
 ror of the church of Rome, which has led to all 
 the abominations arising from the supremacy of 
 the Pope ; and which has been adopted, with 
 some modification, by all those denominations, 
 who hold to different orders of clergy, leading 
 to the establishment of an hierarchy and spiritu- 
 al tyranny. The office of the Apostles was spe- 
 cial. They were commissioned, and clothed 
 with miraculous gifts, for the express purpose of" 
 bringing in and establishing the new dispensa- 
 tion of the Gospel. Now, if you bear this in 
 mind, you will find no difficulty in understanding 
 those promises of Christ, which have so often 
 been brought forward by enthusiasts, to prove 
 that miraculous gifts were to continue in the 
 church. You will see that they were given ex- 
 pressly to the Apostles, when Christ was giving 
 them directions respecting their commission ; and 
 that they were not intended for Chnstians gen- 
 erally. 
 
 Samuel. Still I have some difficulty in prov- 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 179 
 
 ing that miraculous gifts were to cease with the 
 apostolic age ; and I have sometimes been almost 
 ready to conclude that it is only for want of faith 
 in the church, that we do not have them now. 
 
 Mother. Well, my son, I will mention a few 
 considerations, which, I think, will satisfy your 
 mind on this subject. The design of the miracu- 
 lous influences of the Holy Spirit, was, to reveal 
 to man the will of God, and to establish the au- 
 thority of that revelation. In order to reveal the 
 truths necessary for man to know, men were in- 
 spired by the Holy Spirit, in such a manner that 
 what they wrote came from God. And, in order 
 to prove that they were divinely inspired, God 
 gave them the power of working miracles and 
 showing signs to the people. Again, as the 
 Apostles were commissioned to establish the 
 Christian religion, in the midst of unbelief, and 
 the opposing influences of a wicked world, they 
 were clothed with the power of working mira- 
 cles, to prove the truth of the facts and doctrines 
 which they preached ; and with the power of 
 speaking many languages, to enable them rapidly 
 to make known the Gospel message, throughout 
 the world. When this was done, miraculous 
 
180 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 gifts were no longer necessary. Their design 
 was accomplished. 
 
 Samuel. But if ministers could now speak 
 by inspiration, and prove their doctrines by mira- 
 cles, would not men be more likely to believe 
 and embrace the gospel 1 
 
 Mother. I have no reason to believe they 
 would. In Christ's parabfe of the rich man and 
 Lazarus, when the rich man begged Abraham 
 to send Lazarus to preach to his brethren, Abra- 
 ham is represented as saying, " If they hear not 
 Moses and the prophets, neither would they hear, 
 though one rose from the dead." And what 
 multitudes saw the miracles wrought by Christ 
 and his Apostles, and yet believed not. The 
 reason why men do not embrace the Gospel, is 
 not that they are not rationally convinced of its 
 truth, but that their hearts are opposed to it. 
 If men loved the truths of the Bible, there would 
 be no infidels ; for the evidence of the truth of 
 that blessed book is overwhelming. A constant 
 succession of miracles could not make it more 
 so. 
 
 Samuel. But Christ promised the Apostles 
 that the Comforter should abide with the church 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 181 
 
 forever. If the Holy Spirit were present at this 
 day, as he was on the day of Pentecost, when 
 three thousand were converted, would there not 
 be more power in the church ? 
 
 Mother. My son, it was not a miracle that 
 converted the three thousand, on the day of 
 Pentecost. It was the influence of the Holy 
 Spirit upon the heart, turning it to God; and 
 that influence is still felt in the church, and will 
 be to the end of the world. In Revivals of Re- 
 ligion, it is exerted upon multitudes, in the 
 same way that it was on the day of Pentecost. 
 
 Elizabeth. The promise of Christ, then, that 
 the Comforter should abide with us, is still ful- 
 filled ? 
 
 Mother. Yes ; and this influence, which is 
 continued in the Church, is an infinitely greater 
 blessing than the one which is discontinued. 
 Without it, the church could not exist — without 
 it, no one would embrace the Gospel — without 
 it, none would he saved. But the other has an- 
 swered its end, and is therefore no more need- 
 ed. God has revealed all that it is necessary for 
 man to know, in his Holy Word. It is therefore 
 no longer necessary that ministers should be in- 
 spired. Indeed, the Scriptures are a better rule 
 13 
 
182 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 than the inspiration of ministers would be ; and 
 it is evident, from the whole tenor of the Scrip- 
 tures, that God intended his written word to be 
 our ^^ only rule of faith and practice ;" and 
 that he did not intend to continue to reveal it 
 over again to every generation of his people. 
 The Apostle Jude exhorts Christians to **con^ 
 tend earnestly for the faith once delivered to the 
 saints ;"* thus intimating that it would not be 
 again revealed. What sense could there be in 
 this passage, if the same faith were to be deliv- 
 ered anew to every Christian 1 Our Savior ex- 
 pressly declares that he came not to destroy the 
 law and the prophets ; and he constantly appeals 
 to the Scriptures, to settle all matters of dispute, 
 although he was himself greater than the proph- 
 ets. The Bereans are commended, as more no- 
 ble than other converts, because they " searched 
 the Scriptures daily," to see whether the things 
 preached by the Apostles were true. The proph- 
 et Isaiah, speaking of those who should under- 
 take to lead the people, says, *' To the law and 
 to the testimony : if they speak not accord" 
 ing to this word, it is because there is no 
 light in them ;"t and the Apostle Peter, after 
 
 + Jude 3. t Isa. 3 : SO. 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 183 
 
 alluding to the glorious vision which he saw, at 
 the transfiguration of Christ, says, " We have 
 also a more sure word of prophecy, whereunto 
 ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that 
 shineth in a dark place."* This is directly in 
 point. It shows that the apostle himself, who was 
 inspired, and who had seen visions of glory, yet 
 esteemed the written word as a sure guide. 
 
 Samuel. But I don't quite understand, mother, 
 how the written word could be a surer guide 
 than present revelation. 
 
 Mother. It is permanent. It does not appear, 
 for a little while, like a vision, and then vanish 
 away. We have it continually with us. It is 
 also certain. The writers of the Scriptures had 
 things revealed to them in such a manner that 
 there could be no mistake. But at the same time 
 thUe were false prophets, who taught the people 
 lies. And so if the gift of prophecy were perma- 
 nent in the Church, Satan would no doubt take 
 advantage of it, to deceive multitudes with false 
 visions and inspirations. But he cannot change 
 the written word of God. 
 
 Peter. But, mother, it is so difficult to under- 
 stand the Bible, and there are so many opinions 
 
 *2Fet. 1: 19. 
 
184 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 about its meaning, that one don't know what to 
 believe. 
 
 Mother. My son, the great truths that are 
 necessary to salvation are so plain that a little 
 child can understand them. The reason that 
 many people find it so difficult to understand the 
 Bible, iSj that they do not relish the truth, but set 
 themselves to quarreling with it, and trying to 
 make the Bible say what it does not. Such peo- 
 ple would find the same difficulties with imme* 
 diate revelation from God. They would relish it 
 no better ; and if it were accompanied with mira- 
 cles, they would not believe it, unless their hearts 
 were changed by the Holy Spirit. But if any 
 person will come to the Bible with the simple 
 confidence of a child, determined to believe just 
 what it teaches, these difficulties will vanish. If 
 I have proved, as I think 1 have, that the Scrip- 
 tures were intended to be our " only rule of faith 
 and practice," it will follow, of course, that, after 
 these were completed, there would be no need of 
 any further revelation of the will of God. Then 
 we might expect that, when all that was neces- 
 sary had been revealed, the Scriptures would be 
 closed and sealed up. And 1 think I can show 
 that this was done. We have an express intima- 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 185 
 
 tion of this, in the prophecy of Daniel. The an- 
 gel told him that the Lord had appointed seventy 
 weeks from the time that the commandment went 
 forth to rebuild the temple, to bring in and es- 
 tablish the Gospel dispensation. 
 
 Samuel. But, mother, it was more than sev- 
 enty weeks from that time to the coming of Christ. 
 
 Mother. You will recollect that the Jews were 
 taught to observe a week of years ; and that often 
 the Lord, in speaking to them, put a day for a 
 year.* This prophecy of Daniel is generally un- 
 derstood, by learned men, as meaning seventy 
 weeks of years; which would be four hundred 
 and ninety years; and this time is generally un- 
 derstood to extend to the establishment of the 
 gospel dispensation, and the overturning of the 
 temple worship; or to the close of the apostolic 
 age. Elizabeth, you may read the passage in 
 Daniel. 
 
 Elizabeth. "Seventy weeks are determined 
 upon thy people, and upon thy holy city, to finish 
 the transgression, and to make an end of sins, 
 and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to 
 bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal 
 
 * Nura, 14 : 3, 4, Ezek. 4 ; 6,. Lev. 25 : 1—7, 
 
186 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 UP THE VISION AND PROPHECY, and to anoinl the 
 Most Holy." Dan. 9: 24. 
 
 Mother. Here you see one of the things to be 
 done in this period, was, to seal up the vision and 
 prophecy, 
 
 Caroline. What does that mean, mother.? 
 
 Mother. The prophecies of the Old Testa- 
 ment all pointed forward to the coming of Christ. 
 When he came, they were fulfilled ; and when 
 the Scriptures were completed, and all was re- 
 vealed that was necessary for us to know, the 
 revelation was closed, as we seal up a letter that 
 is finished. Now let us see if we can find any 
 evidence that the Scriptures were thus sealed up. 
 In the first place, we will look at the close of the 
 Old Testament. For, when all had been re- 
 vealed that was necessary to be known before the 
 coming of Christ, the Old Testament was sealed 
 up, and there was no more revelation till the 
 coming of John the Baptist, who ushered in the 
 new dispensation. In the last chapter of Mala- 
 chi, the Lord directs the children of Israel to ob- 
 serve the Law of Moses ; and then immediately 
 tells them that he will send them Elijah the 
 prophet, to prepare the way for the coming of the 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 187 
 
 Messiah ; thus intimating that they were not to 
 expect any farther revelation, until the appearing 
 of the forerunner of the new dispensation; and 
 this is true, for no prophet came, and no vision 
 was seen, from that time till the angel appeared 
 to Zacharias, to announce the birth of John the 
 Baptist. It is generally understood that the book 
 of Revelation was written last of all the books of 
 the New Testament. Let us see if we can find 
 any thing in the close of this book, like what we 
 have noticed in Malachi. The Lord Jesus utters 
 a solemn and awful warning against any man 
 that shall presume to add to the prophecy of this 
 book, or take from it; and then immediately af- 
 ter refers to his second coming; as though no 
 more revelation was to be expected till that event.* 
 
 Samuel. But was not that solemn warning 
 spoken particularly with reference to the book of 
 Revelation 1 
 
 Mother. Yes ; I have no doubt that it has a 
 special reference to that book ; but taken in con- 
 nection with the fact that it was the last book o f 
 the Bible, and with the intimation which appears 
 to be contained in it, of the sealing up of Revela- 
 tion, I think it was also intended to apply to the 
 
 * Rev. 22 : 18—21. 
 
188 
 
 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 whole Bible ; and to contain an awful warning 
 to any person who should, before the last coming^ 
 of Christ, presume to appear in the character of 
 a prophet, and add to the truth already revealed, 
 or take from it. And as there is no evidence 
 that any prophet has since appeared, who could 
 prove his inspiration by miracles, I think we have 
 conclusive proof that the miraculous influences of 
 the Holy Spirit were never designed to continue 
 beyond the apostolic age. There is certainly a 
 very marked resemblance between the sealing up 
 of the canon of the Old and New Testaments ; 
 and also, a striking resemblance in the facts that 
 followed ; as miraculous gifts did, in both in- 
 stances, cease with the last inspired writer. 
 And as no vision was again seen, until the time 
 mentioned in the conclusion of the Old Testa- 
 ment ; so we may not expect any farther vision to 
 appear till the time mentioned in the sealing up 
 of the New Testament. The first time mention- 
 ed was the first appearing of the Messiah ; the 
 second time, is his second coming, with power 
 and great glory, to judge the world. 
 
 Samuel I am satisfied now. Your arguments 
 have cleared up some difficulties, which have 
 troubled me very much. But my mind is not 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 189 
 
 quite clear yet, as to the kind of divine influence 
 which we are to expect in this age. The apostle 
 Paul says, " As many as are led hy the Spirit of 
 God, they are the sons of God."* What does 
 this mean, if not, that the Spirit of God is to be 
 our guide 1 
 
 Mother. It is true that the Spirit of God is to 
 be our guide. Christians are led by the Spirit ; 
 but not by direct impulse, independent of the 
 truth. The Holy Spirit is the author of the 
 Scriptures ; and his influences, in the conversion 
 and sanctification of his people, are spoken of in 
 connection with the truth. " Of his own will be- 
 gat he us, with the word of truth.'' " Seeing ye 
 have purified your souls, in obeying the truth, 
 through the Spirit." *' Sanctify them through 
 thy truth: thy word is truth. "t Here, it is 
 all-important that you should not mistake ; for I 
 have no doubt that even many Christians have 
 become a prey to the Adversary, and run into 
 wild extravagances, in consequence of adopting 
 an erroneous opinion upon this point. The office 
 of the Holy Spirit, in the present age of the 
 church, is not to reveal any new truth, but to ap- 
 ply the truth already revealed, and to incline the 
 
 * £om. 8 : 14. f Jam. 1 : 18. Pet. 1 : ^2. John 17 : 17. 
 
190 
 
 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 hearts of men to obey it. And his operations can- 
 not be sensibly felt, separate from the exercises 
 of our own minds. "The wind bloweth where 
 it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but 
 canst not tell whence it cometh nor whither it 
 goeth." This is the description which our Savior 
 has given, of the operations of the Holy Spirit 
 upon the hearts of men. We cannot see the 
 wind ; but we can see its effects : we can see the 
 trees move and the clouds fly before it. So, we 
 cannot tell how it is, that the Spirit operates up- 
 on our minds, so as to produce holy desires and 
 feelings. But when we have these desires and 
 feelings, we know they are produced by the Spirit 
 of God, because he has taught us in his Holy 
 Word, that there is no good in us by nature, and 
 that every good emotion is wrought in us by the 
 Holy Ghost. 
 
 Samuel. But are not the feelings produced by 
 the Holy Spirit so different from all other feelings 
 that I can certainly know that he is the author 
 of them? 
 
 Mother. They are not different in themselves. 
 For example, the emotions o^joy and sorrow are 
 the same, whether true or false ; but they are 
 excited by different objects. A person who has 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 191 
 
 been for some time in great distress of mind, 
 arising from the fear of hell, may suddenly be- 
 come very joyful, from the belief that his sins are 
 pardoned ; and yet this belief may have no ration- 
 al foundation. Multitudes have doubtless settled 
 down upon false hopes, in this vi^ay. And their 
 feelings, both of joy and sorrow, are the same in 
 their nature, as those that are genuine ; and as 
 simple emotions, the one cannot be distinguished 
 from the other. 
 
 Samuel. How then can I tell whether my 
 feelings are right or wrong ? 
 
 Mother. You can only tell by their character ; 
 and you can only determine their character, by 
 comparing them with the word of God. All feel- 
 ing produced by the spirit of God, will agree 
 with his word ; for " he cannot deny himself J' — 
 Godly sorrow, which is the genuine fruit of the 
 Spirit, will flow from a sense of sin ; and " joy in 
 the Holy Ghost," arises less from the prospect of 
 escaping punishment, than from that of deliver- 
 ance from the bondage of sin, and a contempla- 
 tion of the glorious perfections of God, as they 
 are displayed in the great work of redemption. 
 When we rejoice in God, contemplated as a sove- 
 reign, in whom are united Holiness, Justice, 
 
192 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 Goodness, and Truth, then we may be sure that 
 our joy is produced by the Holy Spirit. And so, 
 we may judge of every class of emotions, and de- 
 termine whether they are spiritual or not, by 
 comparing them with the word of God. 
 
 Samuel. Well, mother, if I have a strong im- 
 pression upon my mind, that I ought to do a cer- 
 tain thing, and I cannot get rid of it, but it fol- 
 lows me all the time, day after day, does not that 
 come from the Spirit of God ? And is it not my 
 duty to obey the impulse ? 
 
 Mother. It is not certain that it is your duty 
 to do any thing, because you have a strong im- 
 pression that you ought to do it. This impres- 
 sion may come from the Spirit of God, or it may 
 come from Satan. 
 
 Samuel. But how shall I know from whom it 
 comes ? 
 
 Mother. If it is any thing which the Scrip- 
 tures, taken in connection with the providence 
 of God and your present circumstances, clearly 
 point out as a thing which you ought to do, you 
 may safely conclude that the impression upon 
 your mind, arises from the Spirit of God, stirring 
 up your conscience to a sense of duty. But, if 
 you conclude that it is your duty to do any thing. 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 193 
 
 hecause you have a st?wng impression that you 
 ought to do it, jou bring in a new rule of action ; 
 and there is no end to the extravagances to which 
 it will lead. This is the very starting point of 
 enthusiasm. If you trace up all the wild fire and 
 extravagance that has ever afflicted the church, 
 you will 'find that it has originated here. You 
 see an example of this, in the case of the Ana- 
 baptists. At first they professed to have the spi- 
 rit of prophecy, and to be led by the Holy Ghost ; 
 and there was so much sincerity and sanctity in 
 their appearance, that the learned Melancthon, 
 and even the cautious Frederic, came very near 
 being deceived by them. But their supposed 
 revelation led them to adopt a false guide : and 
 they soon showed themselves to be a set of vis- 
 ionary enthusiasts. Then, their wicked and ma- 
 lignant passions, united with their enthusiastic 
 spirit, converted them into furies. This is the 
 origin of Fanaticism. And now, I wish deeply 
 to impress upon your hearts this sentiment : — 
 There is no safety in departing from the 
 
 SIMPLE meaning OF THE W RITTEN WORD OF GoD. 
 
 If you take this for your standard of right and 
 wrong, and form all your opinions firom it, and 
 
194 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 make it the guide of all your conduct, there is no 
 danger of your going astray. 
 
 Elizabeth. But is there not danger of our 
 mistakinor its meanincr ? 
 
 Mother. There is very little danger of your 
 mistaking its meaning, on any essential point, 
 provided you come to the study of it with a right 
 spirit. If you form your opinions first, and then 
 go to the Bible to prove them, you will be sure 
 to err; you will make it mean just what you wish 
 to have it. But, if you come to it with an hum- 
 ble, teachable spirit, ready to bow your will to 
 the will of God, and to believe just what he has 
 taught, without asking a reason for his conduct, 
 you will find, in general, a very plain book, and 
 easy to be understood. 
 
 Peter. Mother, the Apostle Peter says there 
 are many things in the writings of Paul, which 
 are hard to be understood. 
 
 Mother. Yes, my son, there are many doc- 
 trines taught in the Bible, which it is hard for us 
 fully to comprehend, in all their bearings ; but, 
 upon the great truths of religion, it is generally 
 easy to understand what the sacred writers mean,, 
 and to see that they teach certain facts and doc- 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 195 
 
 trines. And we may believe these doctrines and 
 facts, without ui derstanding why they should be 
 true, or how they exist. It is for us to believe 
 them, because God has revealed them, without 
 inquiring into the reason and the mode of their 
 existence. 
 
 Samuel. But, is there not sometimes a hidden 
 meaning to the Bible. 
 
 Mother. No farther than that there may be 
 prophecies which cannot be fully understood till 
 they are fulfilled, or truths which cannot be real- 
 ized till they are experienced. This is true 
 of every thing that relates to the new hirth. — 
 There is nothing mystical about it. The truths 
 revealed respecting this great moral change, are 
 as "plain as language can make them ; and yet, 
 their full meaning cannot be comprehended till 
 they are experienced in the soul. But nothing 
 has, perhaps, done more mischief to the Church 
 than the attempts which have been made to spi- 
 ritualize the word of God, and fix upon it a mys- 
 tical signification, which does not appear on the 
 face of it. 
 
 Elizabeth. Well, I suppose the defeat of the 
 Anabaptists, at Munster, put an end to the sect. 
 
 Mother. It is but justice to mention that the 
 
196 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 whole body of this sect, were not chargeable with 
 these seditious proceedings. Dr. Mosheim says of 
 them, "It would betray ignorance or want of 
 candor, to deny that there were, every where, per- 
 sons who held, in general, to the same opinions, 
 and yet lived more peaceably ; in whom no fault 
 can be found except their erroneous opinions, 
 and their zeal to spread them. Nor do I fear to 
 add, that, among the followers, not only of these 
 more sober Anabaptists, but even those altogeth- 
 er misguided, there were many persons of honest 
 intentions, and of real piety, whom an unsuspect- 
 ing simplicity, and a laudable desire to reform 
 the church, had led to join the party." Wheth- 
 er the class referred to here, held the opinions 
 which led to the fanatical proceedings already 
 mentioned, it is not easy to determine. But it 
 is not unlikely that there might be many, who ab- 
 horred these mischievous doctrines, but were in- 
 volved in the general odium which these meas- 
 ures brought upon the sect. It is no uncommon 
 thing, in times of such excitement, for all who 
 hold a single prominent sentiment in common, to 
 be charged with all the errors and crimes, which 
 may be held and practised by individuals who 
 hold the common sentiment. This is the gross- 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 197 
 
 est injustice ; and yet, men of the world, as rul- 
 ers generally are, as well as the great mass of 
 the people, are unable to discriminate in such 
 matters ; and so are ever ready to condemn the 
 innocent with the guilty. This appears to have 
 been the case with the Anabaptists. The vio- 
 lent and rebellious spirit of the fanatical portion 
 of them brought a general and bloody persecu- 
 tion upon all who held the common sentiment in 
 regard to baptism. It is said that no less than one 
 hundred thousand perished in this persecution. 
 Very many of these were put to death for holding 
 and teaching opinions calculated to overturn all 
 governments, and civil institutions, and for carry- 
 ing out these opinions in acts of rebellion. These 
 suffered justly, being guilty of treason, which is a 
 capital crime in all governments. But it is also 
 true that many Anabaptists were put to death, 
 not as being bad citizens, but for holding that 
 adults onfy ought to baptized. 
 
 Samuel. How strange it is, mother, that any 
 government should put to death good citizens, 
 for so slight a cause as that. 
 
 Mother, It was for conscience' sake ; and it is 
 very probable that many sincere Christians suf- 
 fered by it. Yet, when we consider the state of 
 14 
 
198 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 the European governments at that time, together 
 with the odium which was attached to the name 
 of 'Anabaptists J on account of the tumults rais- 
 ed by a portion of them, it is not strange that all 
 who bore the name, should be punished as dis* 
 turbers of the peace. But a great change took 
 place in the affairs of this sect about the year 
 1537. A popish priest, of the name of Menno, 
 joined them, and was the means of changing 
 their character, and greatly increasing their num- 
 bers. He was priest of a church in Pinningen, 
 in Friesland. His rector had some learning; 
 with another clergymen under him, he had some 
 knowledge of the Scriptures. But Menno would 
 never read them, for fear they would mislead him. 
 
 Samuel. O how Popery ^degrades the minds 
 of men. What a little mind a man must have, to 
 be afraid to examine any thing, from the fear of 
 having his opinions changed. 
 
 Mother. Yes; such is the abject slavery in 
 which Popery holds the minds of men. But, al- 
 though Menno was afraid of reading the Bible, 
 he was not afraid of spending his time with other 
 priests, in drinking and gambling. But, one 
 time, as he was reading mass, he says a doubt 
 came across his mind, whether it could be the 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 199 
 
 real body and blood of Christ. At first, he sup- 
 posed it was the suggestion of the devil ; and he 
 confessed it, and prayed, but could not get rid of 
 it. But, at length, he began to read the New 
 Testament, and soon found that he had been de- 
 ceived. He went on examining the Scriptures, 
 till he became an evangelical preacher, and the 
 people began to love him. But, at this time, he 
 heard that a man had been put to death, because 
 he had been baptized. He was, at first, surpris- 
 ed to learn that a man had been baptized the 
 second time. But he examined the Scriptures, 
 and could find nothing said about infant baptism. 
 
 Samuel. Well, mother ; I have many difficul- 
 ties in my mind, on that subject. I have been 
 very diligently studying the Bible, to find some- 
 thing to prove that infants should be baptized ; 
 but I can find nothing about it. 
 
 Mother. I see you are laboring under a diffi- 
 culty arising from a fundamental mistake, as to 
 the kind of evidence required to establish the 
 truth. The Baptists say they must have a " TJius 
 saith the Lord," for every thing they believe. 
 
 Samuel. Well, is not that a good rule? The 
 prophet says, '* To the law and to the testimony ; 
 
200 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 if they speak not according to this word, it is be- 
 cause there is no light in them." 
 
 Mother. True, my son ; but there are many 
 things taught in the Bible, which we cannot find 
 there in so many words. Let us apply the prin- 
 ciples of reasoning, adopted by the Baptists, and 
 see where it will lead us. You may read the 
 whole New Testament, from beginning to end, 
 and you will not find any place where permission 
 is given, either directly or indirectly, for females 
 to be admitted to the communion. At the insti- 
 tution of the Lord's Supper, there were none 
 present but the twelve apostles ; and we have no 
 account of its celebration afterwards, where it is 
 expressly said that females partook of the ordi- 
 nance. 
 
 Samuel. I never thought of that, mother. — 
 How then can we show that they ought to be ad- 
 mitted ? 
 
 Mother. Just in the way that we prove that 
 infants ought to be baptized. The passover point- 
 ed forward to the coming of Christ, and repre- 
 sented the great sacrifice which he was to make 
 for our sins. The Lord's Supper now points us 
 hack to his death, representing the same great 
 day of the week, or none at all : for there is no 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 201 
 
 sacrifice. These two feasts, therefore, though 
 different in form, have, in substance, the same 
 meaning. Females partook of this passover, and 
 we infer that they may also partake of the Lord's 
 Supper. Again, females were baptized ;* and if 
 they were entitled to one of the sacraments, we 
 can see no reason why they should not be admit- 
 ted to the other. Besides this, as females were 
 received into the church, on an equal footing 
 with males, we can see no reason why they 
 should not be admitted to the communion table ; 
 and, as the primitive church consisted of both 
 males and females, when it is said the disciples 
 came together to break bread, we may safely 
 conclude that the women were among them. 
 Many other arguments might be mentioned ; but 
 these are sufficient to show upon what kind of 
 evidence this question must be settled. If we 
 look for a direct expression of the will of God, in 
 relation to it, we cannot find it in the Bible; and 
 therefore, if we follow the Baptist rule, we must 
 not admit them to the Lords Supper. And the 
 sanjie kind of reasoning must lead us to reject the 
 Christian Sabbath, and either keep the seventh 
 express direction, in the New Testament, for 
 
 * See Acts 16 : 15. 
 
202 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 changing the Sabbath from the seventh to the 
 first day of the week. Accordingly, in carrying 
 out their mode of reasoning, one sect of Bap- 
 tists* do keep the seventh day of the week. 
 Many others, among the orthodox Baptists, in or- 
 der to be consistent, have been under the neces- 
 sity of adopting the sentiment, that the ten com- 
 mandments stand on the same footing as the cer- 
 emonial law of the Jews; and that none of them 
 are binding upon us, except such as are purely 
 of a moral nature, and not dependent upon the 
 direct command of God for their authority, 
 
 Samuel. But don't they keep the Sabbath at 
 all ? 
 
 Mother. Yes ; they profess to find authority 
 for keeping it as a day for public worship, from 
 the example of the apostles ; but they do not at- 
 tach the same degree of sanctity to the day, 
 which those do, who keep it on the authority of 
 the fourth commandment. And wherever this 
 sentiment is adopted, its effects may be seen in 
 the loose manner in which the day is kept. I do 
 not say, however, that all the Baptists take this 
 ground. I believe a large proportion of them do 
 not. But I do say that their principles of rear 
 * Sabbatarians. 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 203 
 
 soning, in regard to infant baptism, require them 
 to take it, in order to be consistent. 
 
 Samuel Well, mother, I have felt the same 
 difficulty, in regard to the Sabbath. If we are to 
 keep the Sabbath from the authority of the fourth 
 commandment, how can we get rid of keeping 
 the seventh day of the week? How can an im-, 
 mutable command be changed ? 
 
 Mother. Here you discover a want of dis- 
 crimination. You must learn to distinguish 
 between the thing required by law, and the mode 
 or manner of observing it. The former cannot 
 be changed without repealing the law; but the 
 latter may be altered, without defeating the ob- 
 ject of the precept. The design of the fourth 
 commandment is, to secure the kec^ping of one 
 day in seven holy to the Lord. Hence the com- 
 mand is to remember the Sabbath day, to keep it 
 holy. In the explanatory part of the law, the 
 day to be kept is specified. But you will readi- 
 ly see that a change in the day, will not affect 
 the institution itself. 
 
 Samuel. But upon what authority do we 
 change the day 1 There is no command for it in 
 the New Testament. 
 
 3Iother. No ; but the Apostles were commis- 
 
304 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 sioned by the Lord Jesus Christ, to establish the 
 order of worship, under the new dispensation ; 
 and there is abundant evidence that the Apostles 
 and primitive Christians met for public worship, 
 on the first day of the week.* And, as they had 
 always been accustomed to attend public worship 
 on the Sabbath, we infer that they intended to 
 change the day, so as to make the Christian Sab- 
 bath commemorate the resurrection of Christ, in- 
 stead of the creation of the world. And as this 
 is no alteration o^ i\\e substance of the law, but 
 only in the mode of its observance, we consider 
 this change as consistent with the strict ob- 
 servance of the fourth commandment. 
 
 Samuel. But is there any evidence in the Bi- 
 ble to show that the early Christians kept the first 
 day of the week to commemorate the resurrec- 
 tion of Christ? 
 
 Mother. Yes; they began to keep it imme- 
 diately after Christ arose ; and the Apostle John, 
 in the Revelation, calls it the Lord's day : i. e. 
 the day on which the Lord arose. 
 
 Samuel. Well, mother, how would you an- 
 
 * John 20 : 19, 26.— In rerkoning time, tlie Jews included both 
 the first and the last day of a given period; so tliat eight days 
 would bring fhem to the same day of the week. Acts 20: 7. 
 1 Cor. 16 : 2. 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 205 
 
 swer the objection, that the fourth commandment, 
 being a positive institution; and not a moral pre- 
 cept, is not binding upon us? 
 
 Mother. In the first place, I say that the ten 
 commandments were distinguished from that part 
 of the law of Moses which only related to the old 
 dispensation, by being pronounced, by the voice 
 of God himself, to all the people, and by being 
 written with the finger of God, upon the tables 
 of STONE, to show that they were to be perma- 
 nent; while the ceremonial law, which was ful- 
 filled and done away in Christ, was delivered to 
 Moses, in the mount, and by him written in a 
 book. The ten commandments, then, 1 consider 
 not only morally, hui positwely binding upon all 
 mankind. But, independent of this, there is un- 
 questionable evidence that the Sabbath was de- 
 signed for all mankind ; for it was instituted in 
 the garden of Eden ; and the fourth command- 
 ment does not speak of it as a new institution. 
 All the other commandments begin with " Thou 
 shalt;'^ but this one begins with ^^ Remember ^^ 
 showing that it was only calling attention to an 
 institution already in existence. These, howev- 
 er, are only a ie^N of the principal arguments in 
 favor of the Christian Sabbath ; and I have men- 
 
206 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 tioned them, not so much to prove that we ought 
 to observe the first day of the week, as to show 
 that the Christian Sabbath depends on the same 
 kind of proof as Infant Baptism. We can find 
 no direct command for the change of the Sabbath; 
 but we have evidence that satisfies our minds. 
 
 Samuel. Well, how do you prove that infants 
 should be baptized % 
 
 Mother. We think the church of God has 
 been the same in substance, under every dispensa- 
 tion. It was first established in the family of 
 Abraham. Both among the patriarchs, and un* 
 der the law, it consisted of believers and their 
 children. Circumcision was then the rite by 
 which they were admitted into the church; and 
 that was applied to children. We see no reason 
 why the Gospel dispensation should change this 
 feature of the church : why it should not now, as 
 well as then, include the children of believers. 
 And as Baptism is now the rite by which mem- 
 bers are received into the church, we see not 
 why it should not be administered to the children 
 of believers. 
 
 Samuel. Well, can you prove that the children 
 of believers were baptized by the Apostles 1 
 That will satisfy me. 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 207 
 
 Mother. I think I can find all the evidence 
 that the circumstances of the case would lead us 
 to expect ; and that is all that we should ask. 
 When you are reading the Missionary Herald, do 
 yoa find the missionaries giving any account of 
 the baptism of infants ? 
 
 Samuel. Very seldom, mother ; but they of- 
 ten tell of baptizing converts. 
 
 Mother. Well, the accounts in the Missiona- 
 ry Herald are much more particular than the his- 
 tories contained in the Acts of the Apostles ; 
 which is the only history w^e have of the Church 
 in the days of the Apostles. We have twelve 
 Missionary Heralds in a year ; but the book of 
 Acts, which is not much larger than one of 
 them, contains the history of the Church for 
 thirty years. You would not then expect much 
 to be said about the baptism of infants, admit- 
 ting that it was generally practised. 
 
 Samuel. No, I should scarcely expect any 
 thing to be said about it ; and if it was mention- 
 ed at all, I should suppose it would be done in- 
 cidentally, in connection with something else. 
 
 Mother. Well, just such allusions we have. 
 In the sixteenth chapter of Acts, and fourteenth 
 and fifteenth verses, we are told that the Lord 
 
208 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 opened the heart of Lydia to attend to the preach- 
 ing of Paul ; and that she and her household 
 were baptized. And in the same chapter, we 
 have an account of the conversion of the jailer, 
 who is said to have been baptized, " he and all 
 his, straightway." 
 
 Samuel. But in the next verse it is said that 
 he " rejoiced, believing in God, with all his 
 house." Does not this prove that they were all 
 baptized ? 
 
 Mother. If one of our missionaries, who 
 practices infant baptism, were to say in his 
 journal published in the Missionary Herald, that, 
 on a certain occasion, he had baptized a certain 
 lady and her family, and on another occasion, 
 that he had baptized a man of rank, with his 
 family, and that he rejoiced, believing in Christ, 
 with all his family, how should we understand 
 him? 
 
 Samuel. It would strike my mind, at once, 
 that he had baptized the lady and her children 
 and servants, as we often see it done here, when 
 a person with a family joins the church. And 
 the same I should think of the man. 
 
 Mother. Well, would you think that all the 
 man's family were grown up, because the mis- 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 209 
 
 sionary said he believed and rejoiced, with all 
 his family ? 
 
 Samuel. No ; I should suppose when he said 
 the whole family believed and rejoiced, he only 
 meant all who were capable of believing and re- 
 joicing. 
 
 Mother. Now apply the same method of ex- 
 planation to these passages, aud how will you 
 understand them ? On the supposition that in- 
 fant baptism was practised in the primitive 
 churches, no farther reference to the subject was 
 needed, in order to be fully understood by the 
 persons for whom this book was written. — Paul 
 also gives an account of the baptism of another 
 household, in his first epistle to the Corinthians ,* 
 and he evidently alludes to the baptism of infants, 
 in the seventh chapter of the same epistle, and 
 the fourteenth verse : '' For the unbelieving hus- 
 band is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving 
 wife is sanctified by the husband : else were your 
 children unclean ; but now are they holy." 
 
 Elizabeth. Does that mean that the children 
 are born holy, mother 1 
 
 Mother. The word holy sometimes means 
 morally pure, and sometimes set apart or conse- 
 
 * 1 Cor. 1 : 16. 
 
210 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 crated to a sacred use. In this place, it cannot 
 mean morally pure, because that would contra- 
 dict other parts of the Bible, which represent us 
 all as " by nature children of wrath." It must 
 therefore mean consecrated or set apart for the 
 Lord ; and that is just what is meant to be signi- 
 fied by the parent, when he presents his child for 
 baptism : he consecrates it to the Lord. On the 
 supposition that infant baptism was practised by 
 the church to whom Paul was writing, this pas- 
 sage is easily understood ; but on any other sup- 
 position, it seems to me ta be without any mean- 
 ing. 
 
 Samuel. But is it not possible that all the per- 
 sons in these three families that were baptized 
 were grown up, and that they all believed 1' 
 
 Mother. That is possible; but there are two- 
 things about it that are not probable: 1. That 
 there should have been no children in the only 
 three families particularly mentioned ; and 2. 
 That every person in these families, should have- 
 been converted. It might have been so; but this, 
 is not the most natural way of understanding the 
 account. If we knew, positively, that the primi- 
 tive Christians did not baptize infants, then we 
 should be driven to put this forced construction 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 211 
 
 upon these passages. But on the supposition that 
 infant baptism was practised, the explanation is 
 natural and easy. 
 
 Samuel. Well, on the whole, I am satisfied. 
 I see that it will not do to adopt the principle of 
 requiring direct and positive commands for every 
 thing we do ; for then we might throw away half 
 our religion. And when I come to look at the 
 matter fairly, I see that the evidence upon which 
 female communion, the Christian Sabbath, and 
 infant baptism rest, is just the kind that the cir- 
 cumstances of the case would naturally lead us 
 to expect. But if baptized children are mem- 
 bers of the church, why are they not admitted to 
 the communion ? 
 
 Mother. Under the old dispensation, some 
 other qualifications, besides being admitted into 
 the church by circumcision, were required, be- 
 fore persons could be admitted to all the privi- 
 leges of the church. They were required to be 
 ceremonially clean, in order to partake of the 
 passover. So, we find, under the new dispensa- 
 tion, that, in order to be admitted to the Lord's 
 Supper, we must h?ive faith to discern the Lord's 
 body. (See 1 Cor. 11 : 29.) And as soon as bap- 
 tized children give evidence of such faith, they 
 
212 THE ANABAFTISTS. 
 
 are received into full communion, in our church- 
 es. 
 
 Peter. Well, mother, did Menno get over his 
 doubts about infant baptism, at last? 
 
 Mother. No ; he finally gave up the doctrine. 
 Not long after, he was made rector of Witmar- 
 sum, his native village. There he preached much 
 from the Scriptures; but without being made 
 better himself He was greatly troubled with the 
 disturbances at Munster, and preached against 
 them. Yet he was so much affected by the ex- 
 ample of the multitudes who sacrificed themselves 
 for the interests of the party, that he felt more 
 and more distress and shame on account of his 
 own state of mind. He then prayed to God to 
 help him ; and soon, he says, the whole state of 
 his mind became changed. After this, he says 
 he taught Christian piety much more purely and 
 effectually. At length, the discoveries which he 
 had made of the corrupt state of the church of 
 Rome, led him, in the year 1536, utterly to re- 
 nounce both it and his priestly office. This he 
 called his departure from Babylon. He then 
 openly united himself with the Anabaptists. And 
 the next year, he says, there came to him several 
 godly Anabaptists, and entreated him to become 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 213 
 
 the teacher of this despised and persecuted com- 
 pany; which he consented to do. Bat he says 
 he was called to the office of teacher, neither by 
 the rebels of Munster, nor by any other turbu- 
 lent party, but by true professors of Christ and 
 his word, who sought the salvation of all around 
 them, and took up their cross. From this time 
 till his death, which was eighteen years, he dis- 
 charged the duties of his office, in the midst of 
 many perils and discouragements, poverty and 
 want, with his wife and children. He travelled 
 in Friesland, Gelderland, Holland, Brabant, 
 Westphalia, and in many other places, planting 
 and strengthening Anabaptist churches, or re- 
 ducing them to order and union. And from him 
 the sect have since been called Mennonites. 
 
 Elizabeth. Did Menno teach the same doc- 
 trines which the Anabaptists held before ? 
 
 Mother. His system of doctrine was much 
 milder and more tolerable than that of the fanatical 
 portion of the Anabaptists; but somewhat harsh- 
 er than that of the more moderate portion of 
 them. He condemned the notion of a new king- 
 dom of Jesus Christ, to be set up in the world by 
 force of arms; and also the mischievous delusion 
 15 
 
214 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 that miraculous gifts and prophecy were to be 
 restored to the church. 
 
 Samuel. These were the two points of doc- 
 trine which led to all the tumults and mischief 
 raised by the Anabaptists. I suppose then that 
 his preaching produced a great change in the 
 character of the sect. 
 
 Mother. It did; and from being one of the 
 most fanatical and violent sects that ever existed, 
 they have become a peaceable and inoffensive 
 people. He also condemned the licentious opin- 
 ions respecting poligamy and divorce, which had 
 been embraced by the leaders of the fanatical 
 party. 
 
 Elizabeth. What doctrines did he teach, 
 mother ? 
 
 Mother. On the subject of ba.ptism, he taught 
 the doctrine generally received among the Bap- 
 tists, He also taught that Christ would, before 
 the end of the world, descend and reign with 
 his people a thousand years ; that magistrates or 
 civil rulers are not to be received into the 
 church ; that it is wrong to engage in war, or to 
 take an oath, under any circumstances ; and 
 that human learning is not only useless, but mis- 
 chievous. 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 215 
 
 Samuel. Mother, 1 have some difficulties in 
 my mind about the lawfulness of war and oaths, 
 which I should like to have cleared up. Christ 
 tells us not to resist evil ; and if any person 
 strikes us on one cheek, to turn to him the oth- 
 er also. How is that consistent with going to 
 war 1 
 
 Mother. Here, my son, you show your want 
 of discrimination. Christ was here speaking of 
 individuals ; and the general principle taught, is, 
 that we should live quiet and peaceable lives, and 
 not indulge a spirit of resentment of injuries. 
 But he had no reference to the proper authorities 
 of government. In the thirteenth chapter of Ro- 
 mans, we are taught the duty of obedience to the 
 lawful authorities of the government under which 
 we live. The Apostle informs us that govern- 
 ments are ordained of God ; that rulers are his 
 ministers ; and that they bear the sword for the 
 punishment of evil doers. Now if God has or- 
 dained civil governments, and given them the 
 power of punishing those who are subject to 
 them, it must follow that they have the like au- 
 thority of punishing those w^ho come from abroad, 
 to disturb their peace, and reduce them to foreign 
 subjection. If we deny to rulers the right of de- 
 
216 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 fending the government against foreign invasion, 
 and of resisting such invasion, even at the ex- 
 pense of blood, we must also deny their right to 
 punish those of their own people who break the 
 laws of the country. So you see the carrying 
 out of this principle vt^ould overturn all govern- 
 ment, law, and order^ and introduce general an- 
 archy and confusion ; for law, without a penalty, 
 is of no use; and if we deny the right of rulers 
 to take life, in defence of the law, and in execu- 
 tion of its penalties, the punishment of offenders 
 would be out of the question. But at the same 
 time that I believe God has given civil govern- 
 ments the right of maintaining their authority by 
 force, both against foes within and foes without, 
 I freely confess that the spirit of war is entirely 
 at variance with the spirit of Christ ; and just in 
 proportion as the principles of the Gospel take 
 effect in the world, wars and contentions will 
 cease. And I do not hesitate to say, that most 
 of the wars that have prevailed in the world have 
 been made to gratify the ambition or resentment 
 of wicked rulers ; and 1 believe that nearly all 
 wars might be prevented by a little forbearance 
 on the part of the party injured. 
 
 Samuel But if war is contrary to the spirit of 
 
** THE ANABAPTISTS. 217 
 
 the Gospel, how could God authorize rulers to 
 engage in it? 
 
 Mother. You must recollect, my son, that 
 God has adapted his dispensations to the con- 
 dition of a fallen race. If man had continued 
 holy, as God made him, defence and punishment 
 would not have been needed, because every one 
 would have been disposed to do right. But hu- 
 man governments are established to meet the ne- 
 cessities of a wicked world; and are therefore 
 armed with the power to maintain their authori- 
 ty, enforce their laws, and punish the lawless and 
 disobedient. 
 
 Samuel. Well, mother, Christ says *' Swear 
 not at all." How can you get along with that, 
 and maintain the lawfulness of taking oaths, as 
 authorized by law? 
 
 . Mother. The meaning of that passage of 
 Scripture has been strangely mistaken. If you 
 will read the sermon on the mount, you will see 
 that the design of that part of it, from the seven- 
 teenth to the forty-fourth verse, is to condemn the 
 method of explaining away the law, adopted by 
 the Jewish teachers. He begins by telling them 
 that he came not to destroy the law or the proph- 
 ets, and by declaring, with great solemnity, that 
 15* 
 
218 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 not one jot or tittle should pass from the law, till 
 all should be fulfilled. He then goes on to shew 
 the spirituality of the law; that it applied to the 
 thoughts of the heart, as well as to outward ac- 
 tions. He then takes up the perversions of the 
 law, which had been introduced by the Jews; 
 and among others, the subject of swearing. He 
 refers to the law, in which they were forbiddeu 
 to swear falsely ; for that is the meaning of for- 
 swear. 
 
 Elizabeth. Where is the saying to which he 
 refers, mother? 
 
 Mother. In the nineteenth chapter of Leviti- 
 cus, and twelfth verse, the Lord says, '' And ye 
 shall not swear by my name falsely, neither shalt 
 thou profane the name of thy God." In the thir- 
 tieth chapter of Numbers, it is written, " If a 
 man vow a vow unto the Lord, or swear an oath 
 to bind his soul with a bond, he shall not break 
 his word, he shall do according to all that pro- 
 ceedeth out of his mouth." But if there had 
 been no case in which they were allowed to take 
 an oath, instead of forbidding them to swear 
 falsely, he would have forbidden them to swear 
 at all. 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 219 
 
 Samuel. Well, does not Christ forbid them to 
 swear at all? 
 
 Mother. You break off his sentence before he 
 has finished it ; which makes it mean more than 
 he intended. The Jewish Rabbins, or doctors of 
 the law, taught that people might swear by any 
 thing but the name of God, and their oaths would 
 not be binding; and they had, accordingly, in- 
 troduced a number of oaths, in common conversa- 
 tion, such as swearing by the temple, by the 
 head, by heaven, by the earth, &c. This you 
 will see, by reading from the sixteenth to the 
 twenty-third verse of the twenty-third chapter of 
 Matthew. The same fact also appears from the 
 ancient writings of the Jewish rabbins. It was 
 evidently against this practice of profane swear- 
 ing, that our Savior was directing his discourse. 
 And if you will read the whole sentence, you will 
 see that the word all is qualified by what follows : 
 '' Swear not at all : neither by heaven ; for it is 
 God's throne : nor by the earth; for it is his foot- 
 stool," &c. As if he had said, " I not only tell 
 you not to swear falsely ; but I say unto you, 
 swear not at all, by heaven, earth, Jerusalem, or 
 any other such profane oaths as ye are in the 
 
220 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 habit of using ; for this is, in effect, to swear by 
 the name of the Lord." He evidently had no 
 reference here to oaths taken in a court of jus- 
 tice ; but to the foolish and wicked practice of 
 swearing in private conversation. But he did 
 not, himself, refuse to take an oath in a court of 
 justice. When he was on his trial before the 
 Sanhedrim, the high priest said to him, " I ad- 
 jure thee, by the living God, that thou tell us 
 whether thou be the Christ, the Son of God." 
 
 Peter. Was that an oath, mother ? 
 
 Mother. Yes, any form of words, by which 
 we call God to witness the truth of what we say, 
 is an oath. I suppose this was the form by which 
 persons were put under oath among the Jews. 
 But the Lord Jesus did not, like the Quakers, 
 refuse to answer, under oath.* The Apostle 
 Paul, also, often calls God to witness the truth of 
 what he says ; and that is all that is n)eant by an 
 oath.f But if you examine the law of Moses, 
 you will find that judicial oaths were required to 
 be taken :f and we have just seen how solemnly 
 Christ declared that he came not to destroy the 
 law. 
 
 » Mat. 26 : 63, 64. f Eom. 1 : 9. 9 : 1. Gal. 1 : 20. 
 
 JSee Exod. 22: II. Ley. 5:1. Num. 5:19. Deut. 29 : 12, 14. 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 221 
 
 Elizabeth. Was Menno able to convince the 
 Anabaptists that they had been wrong in those 
 doctrines which he rejected? 
 
 Mother. I suppose their defeat, and the dan- 
 gers that threatened them, weakened their con- 
 fidence in those doctrines which had led them to 
 rebel against the government. But however that 
 may be, Menno soon gained over most of the 
 Anabaptists to his views, and greatly increased 
 their numbers. 
 
 Caroline. Are there any Mennonites now, 
 mother 1 
 
 Mother. Yes ; the sect is very numerous in 
 Germany, at the present day ; and I believe there 
 are some settlements of them in this country. 
 They have, at different periods, separated into 
 parties, and there are now several distinct sects 
 of Mennonites. But it is not necessary to follow 
 out their history any farther. — We have now had 
 a long conversation. I will tell you but one 
 thing more, and then we will leave the subject 
 for the present. But what I am going to relate, 
 is a painful event. 
 
 Elizabeth. What is it, mother ? 
 
 Mother. It is the death of the good Elector of 
 Saxony. And after so long an acquain#ince, I 
 
222 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 must confess I shall part with him with a sad 
 heart. 
 
 Elizabeth. O yes, I shall too, mother ; for I 
 do \o\e that prince. When did he die 1 
 
 3Iother. He died on the fifth of May, 1525, 
 about ten days before the defeat of Munzer. 
 Only three days before his death, he wrote a let- 
 ter to his brother John, to do all he could to set- 
 tle the disturbances without shedding blood. He 
 told him to choose persons to decide what should 
 be done, who were good men, and favorites of the 
 people ; and to pardon the multitude, and punish 
 only the leaders of the rebellion. He was strong- 
 ly impressed with the belief that these disturb- 
 ances were the judgments of heaven, on account 
 of the hindrances which had been thrown in the 
 way of the preaching of the Gospel ; and he la- 
 mented the oppression of the people, in various 
 ways. A short time before his death, he called 
 his servants around him, and addressed them in 
 the following manner : " I entreat you, my dear- 
 est children, in the name of God, and for his 
 sake, to forgive me, if I have offended any of you 
 in word or deed ; and to make, in my name, the 
 same request for me to others. We princes are 
 apt to tifeat our poor distressed subjects in a vex- 
 
THE ANABAPTISTS. 223 
 
 atious and unjustifiable manner." His devout 
 and affectionate expressions drew tears from 
 Spalatinus, and all present. Although, at the 
 beginning of the Reformation, he was a zealous 
 Roman Catholic, he appears, before his death, to 
 have been thoroughly weaned from Popery. In 
 his last will, he says, "I beseech Almighty God, 
 through the sacred and unexampled merits of his 
 Son, to pardon all my sins and transgressions^ 
 neither do I doubt but that, by the precious death 
 of my dear Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, I shall 
 obtain forgiveness; and therefore, into his all- 
 powerful hands, and to his eternal, immeasurable, 
 unsearchable, kindness and compassion, I com- 
 mit my soul, to be preserved for the enjoyment of 
 a happy immortality. I freely forgive all who 
 have done me any wrong ; and I beseech them, 
 in the name of God, and for his sake, to pardon, 
 from the heart, and with a true Christian chari- 
 ty, me, in whatever I may have offended them, 
 agreeably to what we every day pray for, the 
 mutual forgiveness of trespasses from God, the 
 Father of Compassion." By the advice of Lu- 
 ther and Melancthon, he was buried without 
 pomp, and without any superstitious ceremonies. 
 Melancthon made an oration in Latin, and Lu- 
 
224 THE ANABAPTISTS. 
 
 ther preached a sermon, at his funeral. Before 
 his death, he invited Luther to meet him, for the 
 purpose of consulting how he might more openly 
 support the reformed religion in Saxony. But 
 this meeting was prevented, By the absence of 
 the Reformer, who was preaching to the rebel- 
 lious peasants in Thuringia, 
 
 aUESTLONS. 
 
 Can you give an account of the proceedings of Rlunzer ? vVhat 
 became of liim at last? Who stirred up sedition again ? Can you 
 give an account of their proceedings at Munster, and of the final 
 overthrow of the " King of Sion ?" What happened at the same 
 time, at Amsterdam ? How came Menno to join the Anabaptists? 
 What service did he do for the sect ? Can you give an account of 
 the death of Frederic ?