March 28, 1528 (Part 1)

Martin Luther writes to Gregor Brück, Chancellor of Electoral Saxony, [1] sending him Luther’s opinion on whether a preemptive attack on members of the alleged Breslau League [2] could be theologically justified. Luther had returned to Wittenberg from the Electoral court in Altenburg on March 26. Although he had stated his opinion while in Altenburg, the Elector immediately summoned him (by express messenger) to come to the Electoral court in Torgau (about 30 miles southeast of Wittenberg). He arrived in Torgau on the next day and was commissioned to put his opinion in writing. The following day, he addressed his report to the Electoral Chancellor, Gregor Brück. Today’s Quotation is the first part of Luther’s report.

On March 6-9, Landgrave Philipp of Hesse and Elector Johann of Saxony had met in Weimar to discuss how they should respond to the Breslau League, an alliance of Catholic princes alleged in a document provided by Sir Otto von Pack to be preparing to use force to combat blasphemy (i.e., the Lutheran heresy) and restore “good blessed church order and ceremonies.” In a treaty of March 9, Philip and Johann agreed to raise an army of 20,000 infantry and 6,000 cavalry to be deployed in a preemptive war by June 1. Johann, however, insisted on consulting his theologians before initiating the war.

Quotation:

Reverend and learned Lord Chancellor. According to the command of my gracious Lord, given me yesterday, I send you here my opinion in writing. 

First, in order that my gracious Lord may have a good conscience toward the outrages of the opposing princes, in case it shall be necessary for him to defend himself, it is to be remembered — and no one can deny it — that his Grace, as an Elector of the Empire, has no overlord with the right and authority to punish him or pass judgment on him, save only his Imperial Majesty alone. All the other princes and kings are either his equals or his inferiors, and have no power or authority over his Grace. 

Second, it is his Electoral Grace’s duty to protect his subjects against such other princes and so conduct his administration that, as St. Paul teaches in Romans 13, the temporal power may be God’s servant to punish the evil and protect the good. For if it is his duty to protect them against one murderer or murderers of low rank, it is also his duty to protect them against many and great murderers. For there is no difference among murderers, whether they are princes or tramps. 

Third, if these murdering princes pretend to attack his Grace at the command of his Imperial Majesty, his Grace’s conscience may be guided as follows: First, his Grace is not obliged to believe or receive any such commandment, but to interpret it as a false, wicked, and seditious trick, because his Imperial Majesty has promised to be a gracious Lord to his Grace, and to take no measures against him without first notifying him; I hear that this is the reply that has come from Spain. [3] His Grace must firmly and faithfully stand upon this promise of his Imperial Majesty, as he is bound to hold his Imperial Majesty a true and honest man, and not be turned away from it by any commandment until his Imperial Majesty himself revokes the promise. For his Grace is in duty bound to believe his Imperial Majesty himself more than all princes, and especially more than such suspicious enemies, no matter how they boast about commands.

In the second place, it is a fact, and there can be no doubt about it, that the plan of these princely enemies has been made without the knowledge, will, or commandment of his Imperial Majesty, because they themselves testify that they will not produce the imperial mandate until after their plans have been made; by which we must perceive that their undertaking is neither by human nor divine ordinance, but comes only from an envious, rebellious, wicked source, and they wish to use his Imperial Majesty only as a cloak. All true and good subjects of his Imperial Majesty ought to oppose them; for they are not discharging a duty to his Imperial Majesty, but his Imperial Majesty is to be the pretext for their wicked undertaking.  [to be continued in the next post]

Notes

[1] Gregor Brück Henisch (or Heins, 1485-1557) attended the universities of Wittenberg and Frankfurt (an der Oder) (1502-09) and was appointed ducal counselor by Elector Frederick the Wise in 1519. In 1521, he received his doctorate in both civil and canon law and was promoted to chancellor of Frederick’s realms. He played a significant role as a bridge between the Wittenberg reformers and the electoral court and will be the chief author of the “Protastatio” of the evangelical princes at the 1529 Diet of Speyer.

[2] See the introduction to the previous post for additional information on the “Pack Affair.”

[3] Although Charles V (1500-1558) was “Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation” (in addition to being Duke of Austria and King of Spain), he would not set foot on German soil between the Diet of Worms (1521) and the Diet of Augsburg (1530).