Page:Luther's correspondence and other contemporary letters 1521-1530.djvu/226

 that one who has eaten Christ's bread should lift up his foot against Him ; * but Christ lives, and is Lord even of Satan.

Those men who brag about the laws of Moses" are to be despised. We have our civil law under which we live. So, too, neither Naaman the Syrian, nor Job, nor Joseph, nor Daniel, nor any other Jews outside their own land kept their own laws, but the laws of the peoples among whom they were living. The laws of Moses were binding only upon the Jewish people in that place which he had chosen ; now they are a matter of liberty. If these laws are to be kept there is no reason why we should not be circumcised too, and observe the whole ceremonial law. Farewell, and pray for me.

Martin Luther.

615. LUTHER TO THE ELECTOR FREDERIC OF SAXONY. De Wette, 11, 490. German. WrrrENBERc, March 23, 1524.

Grace and peace in Christ. Most serene, high-born Prince ; most gracious Lord! Your Grace doubtless knows that by the favor of God there are fine youths here, hungry for the wholesome Word, coming from abroad and enduring pov- erty to study, so that some of them have nothing but bread to eat and water to drink. Now I have proposed to Melanch- thon to lecture on the Bible, as he is richly endowed by God's special grace, even better than I myself. Although I would willingly give the lectures, I cannot do it because of my work in translating the Bible. I propose that he lecture on the Scriptures instead of on Greek, which is what the whole uni- versity earnestly desires. He avoids it with this excuse only, that he is commanded and paid by your Grace to teach Greek, which he must do accordingly. Therefore I humbly beg for the good of the youth and the furtherance of the Gospel, that' your

pbadcilly refusing to return to Wittenberg. On May 26 the Elector replied thst another pastor would be sent to Orlamunde, but that he hoped Carlstadt would take up his work at Wittenberg. On June 8 Carlstadt sent the Elector his resig- nation to both parish and archidiaconate, refusing to return to Wittenberg on the ground that it was against his conscience to participate in the Lutheran mass. Frederic accepted hit resignations on June lo and informed the university of then on June ii.

^John xiii, i8.

among other things, at the reintroduction of the forms of the Old Testament
 * The radical reformers (Mfinzer, the Zwickau Prophets, even Carlstadt) aimed,

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