Dear Howellings, THIS is Martin Luther & YOU ARE NOT!!! -- Christian Theology Discussion Group

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Date Posted: 23:12:50 12/05/02 Thu
Author: Sola
Subject: Dear Howellings, THIS is Martin Luther & YOU ARE NOT!!!
In reply to: Sola Scriptura 's message, "Now Jack Howell Thinks He Can Pass Himself Off As Martin Luther!" on 23:08:13 12/05/02 Thu

Letter to the Archbishop Albrecht of Mainz_
by Dr. Martin Luther,
October 31, 1517
Published in:
_Works of Martin Luther_
Adolph Spaeth, L.D. Reed, Henry Eyster Jacobs, et Al., Trans. & Eds.
(Philadelphia: A. J. Holman Company, 1915),
Volume 1, pp. 25-28

LETTER TO THE ARCHBISHOP ALBRECHT
OF MAINZ

OCTOBER 31, 1517

To the Most Reverend Father in Christ and Most Illustrious
Lord, Albrecht of Magdeburg and Mainz, Archbishop and Primate
of the Church, Margrave of Brandenburg, etc., his own lord and
pastor in Christ, worthy of reverence and fear, and most
gracious.

JESUS

The grace of God be with you in all its fulness and power!

Spare me, Most Reverend Father in Christ and Most Illustrious
Prince, that I, the dregs of humanity, have so much boldness
that I have dared to think of a letter to the height of your
Sublimity. The Lord Jesus is my witness that, conscious of my
smallness and baseness, I have long deferred what I am now
shameless enough to do, -- moved thereto most of all by the
duty of fidelity which I acknowledge that I owe to your most
Reverend Fatherhood in Christ. Meanwhile, therefore, may your
Highness deign to cast an eye upon one speck of dust, and for
the sake of your pontifical clemency to heed my prayer.

Papal indulgences for the building of St. Peter's are
circulating under your most distinguished name, and as regards
them, I do not bring accusation against the outcries of the
preachers, which I have not heard, so much as I grieve over
the wholly false impressions which the people have conceived
from them; to wit, -- the unhappy souls believe that if they
have purchased letters of indulgence they are sure of their
salvation; again, that so soon as they cast their
contributions into the money-box, souls fly out of purgatory;
furthermore, that these graces [i.e., the graces conferred in
the indulgences] are so great that there is no sin too great
to be absolved, even, as they say -- though the thing is
impossible -- if one had violated the Mother of God; again,
that a man is free, through these indulgences, from all
penalty and guilt.

O God, most good! Thus souls committed to your care, good
Father, are taught to their death, and the strict account,
which you must render for all such, grows and increases. For
this reason I have no longer been able to keep quiet about
this matter, for it is by no gift of a bishop that man becomes
sure of salvation, since he gains this certainty not even by
the "inpoured grace" of God, but the Apostle bids us always
"work out our own salvation in fear and trembling," and Peter
says, "the righteous scarcely shall be saved." Finally, so
narrow is the way that leads to life, that the Lord, through
the prophets Amos and Zechariah, calls those who shall be
saved "brands plucked from the burning," and everywhere
declares the difficulty of salvation.

Why, then, do the preachers of pardons, by these false fables
and promises, make the people careless and fearless? Whereas
indulgences confer on us no good gift, either for salvation or
for sanctity, but only take away the external penalty, which
it was formerly the custom to impose according to the canons.

Finally, works of piety and love are infinitely better than
indulgences, and yet these are not preached with such ceremony
or such zeal; nay, for the sake of preaching the indulgences
they are kept quiet, though it is the first and the sole duty
of all bishops that the people should learn the Gospel and the
love of Christ, for Christ never taught that indulgences
should be preached. How great then is the horror, how great
the peril of a bishop, if he permits the Gospel to be kept
quiet, and nothing but the noise of indulgences to be spread
among his people! Will not Christ say to them, "straining at a
gnat and swallowing a camel"?

In addition to this, Most Reverend Father in the Lord, it is
said in the Instruction to the Commissaries which is issued
under your name, Most Reverend Father (doubtless without your
knowledge and consent), that one of the chief graces of
indulgence is that inestimable gift of God by which man is
reconciled to God, and all the penalties of purgatory are
destroyed. Again, it is said that contrition is not necessary
in those who purchase souls [out of purgatory] or buy
confessionalia.

But what can I do, good Primate and Most Illustrious Prince,
except pray your Most Reverend Fatherhood by the Lord Jesus
Christ that you would deign to look [on this matter] with the
eye of fatherly care, and do away entirely with that treatise
and impose upon the preachers of pardons another form of
preaching; lest, perchance, one may some time arise, who will
publish writings in which he will confute both them and that
treatise, to the shame of your Most Illustrious Sublimity. I
shrink very much from thinking that this will be done, and yet
I fear that it will come to pass, unless there is some speedy
remedy.

These faithful offices of my insignificance I beg that your
Most Illustrious Grace may deign to accept in the spirit of a
Prince and a Bishop, i.e., with the greatest clemency, as I
offer them out of a faithful heart, altogether devoted to you,
Most Reverend Father, since I too am a part of your flock.

May the Lord Jesus have your Most Reverend Fatherhood
eternally in His keeping. Amen.

From Wittenberg on the Vigil of All Saints, MDXVII.

If it please the Most Reverend Father he may see these my
Disputations, and learn how doubtful a thing is the opinion of
indulgences which those men spread as though it were most
certain.

To the Most Reverend Father,
BROTHER MARTIN LUTHER.

_________________________________________________________________

This text was converted to ascii format for Project Wittenberg by
Allen Mulvey and is in the public domain. You may freely
distribute, copy or print this text. Please direct any comments
or suggestions to: Rev. Robert E. Smith of the Walther Library at
Concordia Theological Seminary.

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