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 ANABAPTISTS 449 baptism, not as repeating the sacred rite, but as a valid baptism, in place of one whicb was im- perfect or void. Thus, the Baptists repel the name Anabaptists, not, as some suppose, for the mere purpose of repudiating an alleged connection with the fanatics of the reforma- tion, but because it does not represent correct- ly their practice. They baptize, as they allege, according to the original institution of the rite, and therefore claim to be Baptists ; they never repeat baptism in the case of any who, in their judgment, have been so baptized ; and they therefore deny that they are Anabaptists. It may be doubted whether the word, as now applied to Baptists, is not always intended as a reproach ; certainly it should be excluded in that application from respectable modern liter- ature, as giving an unnecessary offence. The title belongs historically to large classes of peo- ple who sprung up in various countries of Europe during the period of the reformation. Though applied to them against their remon- strances, it has become fixed in literature as a historical term, and is too convenient for prac- tical purposes to be expelled by any considera- tions of critical justice. Whether these vari- ous classes agreed or not in things more essen- tial ; whether they were furious and fanatical, or gentle and pious ; whether setting up mock kingdoms by force of arms, or conscientiously abstaining from the use of arms altogether, they were alike in the visible thing of repeat- ing baptism, and hence were designated by a common name, and too often visited with com- mon penalties and maledictions. It is the busi- ness of the historian to discriminate between these classes, to look beyond names for histor- ical facts, and to redeem from the reproach of many generations great numbers of people whose faith was in essential harmony with the faith of Protestantism, whose lives were pure, and whose deaths were a rare and honorable martyrdom. In this historical discrimination something has been already effected. Illustra- tions generally accessible may be found in Burnet's " History of the Reformation in Eng- land," Brandt's " History of the Reformation in the Netherlands," Mosheim's "Institutes of Ecclesiastical History," and especially in the "Dutch Martyrology," published by the Han- serd Knollys society, London, under the edi- torial care of Edward B. Underbill. Precisely when or where the Anabaptists of the refor- mation period first appeared, whether in Ger- many or Switzerland, it is difficult if not im- possible to determine. They sprung up like rank vegetation, under sudden and refreshing rains, after drought and sterility. The solu- tion of the problem is found in the fact that the seeds were in the soil. The better classes of them claimed a descent from the Waldenses, the Wycliffites, and the Hussites, who had struggled for a church separated from the world and distinguished by the holiness of its members. Consciously or unconsciously, ideas like these must have been working in the 80 VOL. i. 30 minds of multitudes in various countries. When, therefore, the reformation came, open- ing the Bible to the people, announcing its revelations as the highest law, and inviting the human mind to freedom of thought, these prin- ciples acquired sudden and prodigious force. Ardent minds, bent in the direction of a prim- itive Christianity, and of a social order corre- sponding thereto, were dissatisfied with the partial reformation which contented Luther and Zwingli, and demanded more. This de- mand, sharpened by discussion, became a pop- ular movement, and, pushed to its last develop- ment, took the opposite directions, on the one hand, of a wild, ungovernable, and licentious fanaticism, subversive of all social order, and on the other, of a mystical though sincere and gen- uine piety, characterized by some harmless ec- centricities of faith arid by separation from the world. These parties, so diverse in character and tendencies, went under the common name of Anabaptists, because they were distinguished by the common, visible badge of rebaptism. The usual references in illustration of the charac- ter of the furious Anabaptists are the following : In 1521 they made their appearance at Zwick- au, and, accepting as their leader Thomas Munzer, took part in the peasants' war, and shared its sanguinary results. Munzer and his associates are represented as having claimed a divine commission not only to establish a com- munity of holy persons, but also to extirpate magistrates by the sword. He excited his fol- lowers to revolt against the civil authorities, and assured them of the immediate deliver- ance of Christendom from the grievous oppres- sions of its rulers. They were totally defeated, May 15, 1525, near Miihlhausen, and the leaders were put to death. Itinerant prophets still, however, spread the principles of the sect. They declaimed against the wickedness of the times, and demanded a community of saints, without distinction of rank or office. They claimed an internal light, which was of more value than learning in interpreting divine revelation. No Christian might exercise the functions of a magistrate or take an oath. Property was to be shared in common among the faithful. In 1533 they began to concen- trate their operations at Munster. John Mat- thias of Haarlem and John Boccold of Ley- den were their leaders. They had gained over to their cause Rothmann, the preacher who introduced the reformation into that city, and Knipperdolling, a leading citi- zen. Seizing the arsenal and the senate house % they placed Matthias at the head of affairs, and his authority became arbitrary and complete. The inhabitants were trained to military duty, the fortifications were strengthened, and the faithful were invited to come from every quarter to aid the struggles and share the triumphs of Mount Zion, from which they were to proceed to the conquest of the world. Count Waldeck, prince and bishop of Munster, surrounded the city with an army. Matthias sallied out and