Page:Luther's correspondence and other contemporary letters 1507-1521.djvu/135

 good men who refuse to fool with them heretics as they now do for small cause or for no cause at all. . ..

95. LUTHER TO GEORGE SPALATIN AT ALTENBURG. Enders, i. 279. (Wittenberg), November 13, 151&

Greeting. Dear Spalatin, we tried to get some citizen to offer Father John Frosch^ his doctor's banquet,* but we fear^ our efforts are vain. And so, not to turn away a worthy man without honor, we have turned to our monastery, where^« depending on the elector's promise, we will, at our own in — convenience, give him his banquet. For, indeed, we arc-= poor, and there are many of us, so that we cannot do it by ourselves. Wherefore I beg you to ask the elector to pro- vide us with game for November 18, or rather the 17th. If this cannot be, make it next week, Monday [November 22]. And send me an answer by this messenger as quickly as possible what is to be done, so that we may not make vain preparations. Farewell in Christ.

Brother Martin Luther, Augustinian.

96. LUTHER TO JOHN ECK AT INGOLSTADT. Enders, i. 28a (Wittenberg), November 15, 1518.

On the debate planned with Eck, cf. supra, no. 61, and Smith, op. ciL, pp. 58ff.

Greeting. My dear John Eck, Dr. Carlstadt is pleased with what we agreed at Augsburg, namely, that you should meet at Leipsic or Erfurt and debate honorably for the discovery of the truth, that there may be an end of contention and of writing books. He begs, therefore, that you will fix the day for the meeting, and the place, one of the two mentioned. He would have fixed them himself, but thought he ought to defer to you because you live farther away and are perhaps busier than he. Therefore act so that I may not have per-

^Of Bamberg, had studied at Erfurt 1504, taken his baccalaureate of theologie at Toulouse and his licentiate at Wittenberg 1516. He was with Luther at Augsburg, from which he returned to obtain the doctorate as here related. Later he became evangelical preacher at Augsburg, keeping up a desultory corre- spondence with Luther. Enders, i. 275, v. 401.

The taking of the doctorate was always the occasion of a festive meal known as the Doktorschmaus. Luther's diploma to him, dated November 22, 1518, printed in Theologiicht Studien und Kritiken, 1913, p. 120.

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