Page:Luther's correspondence and other contemporary letters 1507-1521.djvu/541

 ambassador at the court of Charles V. 1521-5 ; agent of Venice at the papal court 1528; made cardinal by Paul IIL on May 21, iS35i and the next year was a leading member of the commission for reform which drew up the Consilium delect orum Cardinalium. In 1541 as papal legate he took part at the Diet and religious conference of Ratisbon. He wrote a good deal against Luther. His biography by F. Dittrich, 1885. Cf, also F. Lauchert: Die italienischen literarischen Gegnfr Luthers (1912), 371S. N. Tiepolo (died 1551), a Venetian senator, diplomatist and scholar.

I have neither seen nor spoken to Brother Martin, although he remained in this city until yesterday morning. Various considerations compelled me to act thus, for he has very active friends and very powerful patrons, and the whole thing is conducted with incredible passion. But I have heard from many that among other follies he teaches that councils have erred; that every layman, if he is in a state of grace, is able to administer the sacrament of the altar; that marriage is dissolvable and fornication no sin, and that everything hap- pens according to the law of necessity. This last I only learned from the Cardinal of Sion. Besides his errors I learned that he is most imprudent, quite unchaste and ignorant of the doctrine [of the Church]. During the last few days he has been requested to recant by the princes here and in the Emperor's name, but nevertheless he remains obstinate, and so his Majesty with his own hand drew up the declara- tion against him, of which I enclose a copy for the Signory.

It is hard to express how much support Luther has here. Things are in such a state that I fear after the departure of the Emperor and the dissolution of the Diet something bad will happen, especially against these German prelates. Truly, if this man had been wise enough to confine himself to his first propositions, and had not become entangled in open er- rors against the faith, he would be, not favored, but adored by the whole of Germany. The Duke of Bavaria* and many others told me this at Augsburg, and now I see it myself.

460. MARTIN REINHARD TO KING CHRISTIAN H. of

DENMARK.

Zeitschrift fur Kirchengeschichte, viii. 289. Worms, April 25, 1521. . . . [The main subject of this letter is the proposal to

^William.

�� �