Henry Clay Vedder

“ Infant baptism, hitherto reckoned the true baptism, is no baptism, and it is a groundless complaint against us that we practice rebaptism. Baptism as practiced by the apostles was the remission of sins. Those who think children should be baptised as future believers make a mock of Christ's command, to teach all peoples and to baptise them then, not before. No one can tell what a child's will may be later; to baptise a child as a future believer is like hanging out a hoop as a sign of future wine. But now, says Hübmaier, they take a fresh hold and call infant baptism "a sign of beginning." ”

“ To read an average pamphlet of Luther's, written to confute some adversary,—Wider Hans Wurst, for instance, or Contra Henricum Regem,—and then to turn to any writing of Hübmaier's, is like escaping from the mephitic odours of a slum into a garden of spices. It is not merely that scurrilous abuse has been exchanged for courteous speech,—the whole atmosphere is different. There is a "sweet reasonableness" in Hübmaier's attitude toward men and truth, a confident belief that he is right, but a genuine willingness to be instructed, which is rare in any age and was unique in his. ”

“ Let every man be subject to the magistrate and power, for there is no power apart from God. But the power everywhere is ordained by God; so that he who sets himself against the power strives against the ordinance of God. But he who strives will receive condemnation of himself. For the rulers do not make the good work fear but the evil. Wilt thou not fear? then do good, so shalt thou have praise from the same. But if thou doest evil, then fear, for authority bears not the sword in vain. He is God's servant, a judge for punishment over him that does evil. ”

“ Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour and hate thine enemy, but I say unto you, Love your enemy, speak well of those who speak ill of you, do well to them that hate you, pray for those who injure and persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in Heaven, For he letteth his sun shine upon the evil and the good, and giveth rain to the just and the unjust. For if ye love those that love you, what have you for a reward? ”

“ Besides, here we have houses and farms, the property that we have gained by the sweat of our brow, which in the sight of God and men are our just possession: to sell them we need time and delay. Of this property we have urgent need in order to support our wives, widows, orphans and children, of whom we have a great number, lest they die of hunger. Now we lie in the broad forest, and if God will, without hurt. Let but our own be restored to us, and we will live as we have hitherto done, in peace and tranquillity. We desire to molest no one; not to prejudice our foes, not even King Ferdinand. ”

“ As man I may very well err, but will be no heretic. I am conscious that in the whole two years past I have not preached a single letter that is not grounded in God's word. I herewith further pledge myself, where the necessity of this my defence presses me, here at Schaffhausen, I will before the court give and receive justice. Only one should not offer violence, either to me or to the pious city of Waldshut. Moreover, I beg you to permit neither me nor other Christian teachers to be urged and compelled, but hear me in the face of my opponents, who accuse me so shamefully. ”

“ If Christians wish to go to law over affairs, that is, over temporal goods, which is quite wrong, they should yet seek to be judged by a Christian and not by an unbeliever. Mark here, brothers, you have skipped over that. If Christians wish to go to law and not to be at peace with each other, they sin yet more, yea, they doubly sin, if they take their case before an unbelieving judge and not before a Christian. Therefore Paul mocks the Corinthians and says, "If ye will go to law, ye should choose the most despised among you to judge." ”

“ They know well that a single woman—such as the pious Christian woman, Argula von Stauff [3] —knows more of the divine word than such red-capped ones will ever see and lay hold of. Yield yourselves to God, trust him, build on his word, and he will not forsake you. Whether he gives a short life or a long, you will have eternal life yonder. And should men call you heretics, be joyful, for your reward will be great in heaven. The sophist-heads at once called us heretics, but since they make us heretics in their writings, they let the stone lie there. ”

“ There was a mystical element in their doctrines, the foundation stone of which was the conviction that to be a Christian is to be united by faith to the Son of God, so as to be a partaker of his nature. This cannot be, save by a complete change of nature, character, life. One cannot be a Christian, therefore, by inheritance, by education, by sacraments; repentance, faith, regeneration, are necessary to produce this intimate personal relation with Christ. Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom: to enter it one must be born again. ”

“ You must, must, must always confess that a Christian magistrate will strive much more earnestly to do it than one who is not a Christian, who has at heart neither Christ, God, nor godliness, but only thinks how he may remain in his power, pomp and ceremony. You have examples of David, Hezekiah, and Josiah, as contrasted with Saul, Jeroboam and Rehoboam. Therefore get thee behind us Satan, and cease to mislead simple men; under thine appearance of great patience and spirituality, we know thee by thine old conceit. ”

“ I may err—I am a man—but a heretic I cannot be, because I ask constantly for instruction in the word of God. But never has any one come to me and pointed out a single word, but one single man and his followers —against his own previous preaching, word and print, whose name I spare for the sake of God's word—who against common justice and appeal in behalf of his own government, the confederacy, and also the Emperor, by capture, imprisonment, sufferings and the hangman, tried to teach me the faith. ”

“ Grace comes to us, not from us, so that no one can boast except of the merits of our Lord Jesus Christ. Whoever maintains that God will have sin, does not know what sin is. If any one says, 'If God did not will it, I would not sin,' I affirm, on the contrary, that God does not will that we sin. We set ourselves in opposition to his revealed will. We ought not to sin in order that the mercy of God may be more richly displayed, but we ought not to sin that we may not make ourselves unworthy of mercy, and expose ourselves to the penalties of divine justice. ”

“ How does this attitude of Waldshut and of Hübmaier agree with his later assertions that the only grievance of Austria against the town and him was on account of the gospel?
"With us neither tax nor tithes has ever been spoken against with the least word, but it has been sought to force us from the word of God by violence and against all right. That has been our only complaint. Here I defy all men on earth and all devils in hell, that there was no other occasion against Waldshut but alone, alone, alone the word of God. ”

“ Lord, forgive us this evil, and help us home into thy kingdom! Yet such brothers must see and confess the truth, that our kingdom is of this world, which should cause us heartfelt sorrow. But Christ alone could say with truth, "My kingdom is not of this world," since he was conceived and born without sin, a lamb without blemish, in whom is no deceit, but without sin and any spot. He alone with truth might also say, "The prince of this world has come, and has found nothing in me," which we here on earth can nevermore speak with truth. ”

“ John Faber, and Master Max Beckh, bishop in Austria, and Master Salzer, rector of the University of Vienna, have shown me so great grace and favour—may show grace and mercy to me, an imprisoned and afflicted man, who now lies in great sickness, cold and trouble. For with God's help I will so conduct, order and hold myself that your royal majesty shall have pleasure therefrom. The people I will with great earnestness and utmost diligence urge to devotion, fear of God and obedience, wherein I would always bring them. ”

“ All that we know of Hübmaier's life, and the general tenor of his writings, alike point to the conclusion that he was, first of all, a preacher of the gospel, and that his interest in political and social reforms was slight in comparison with his zeal to teach men the true religion of Christ, as he understood it. To him the gospel was the one remedy for all the ills of man. It would not only save men from God's wrath and condemnation, but save them from sin. It would not merely fit men for heaven, but for their life upon earth. ”

“ I believe and confess also an eternal life which thou, my Lord and God, wilt give to thy faithful and elect after this suffering life; that thou wilt endow them with sure, clear and joyous beholding of thy divine countenance, and satisfy them in all their desires with eternal rest, eternal peace and eternal salvation, which joy, delight and bliss no man can express or conceive here on earth. ”

“ I wonder if your preachers now will say, I am now of another disposition than formerly, that I confess and condemn all doctrine and preaching, such as were mine among you and elsewhere, that is not grounded in the divine word. And if they cast at you the holy councils, believe it not; men will deceive you, as they have taunted us a year and a day, by promising to hold a council, but it does not appear. ”

“ With us are many widows, and babes in their cradle, whose parents that most cruel tyrant and enemy of divine righteousness, Ferdinand, gave to the slaughter, and whose property he seized. These widows and orphans and sick children, committed to our charge by God, and whom the Almighty has commanded us to feed, to clothe, to cherish, and to supply all their need, who cannot journey with us, nor, unless otherwise provided for, can long live—these we dare not abandon. We may not overthrow God's law to observe man's law, although it cost gold, and body and life. ”

“ Some were torn to pieces on the rack, some were burned to ashes and powder, some were roasted on pillars, some were torn with red-hot tongs, some were shut up in houses and burned in masses, some were hanged on trees, some were executed with the sword, some were plunged in the water, many had gags put into their mouths so that they could not speak and were thus led away to death. Like sheep and lambs, crowds of them were led away to be slaughtered and butchered. ”

“ The people have learned only two things, without bettering their lives: the first, in that they say, 'We believe, faith saves us'; the second, 'By ourselves we can do no good.' Now both are true. But under the cloak of these half-truths all wickedness, unfaithfulness and unrighteousness has won the upper hand, and brotherly discipline in the meantime has grown more cold in many than before in a thousand years. ”

“ I believe and confess also that thence thou wilt come to judge the quick and the dead on the day of the last judgment, which will be to all godly men a specially longed-for and joyous day. Then shall we see face to face our God and Saviour, in his great glory and majesty coming in the clouds of heaven. ”

“ Woe, woe, unto you, O ye Moravian rulers, who have sworn to that cruel tyrant and enemy of God's truth, Ferdinand, to drive away his pious and faithful servants! Woe, we say to you! who fear more that frail and mortal man than the living, omnipotent and eternal God, and chase from you, suddenly and inhumanely, the children of God, the afflicted widow, the desolate orphan, and scatter them abroad. ”

“ Christ established a memorial of his death in his last Supper, so that we might not forget him. The bread is nothing else than bread, and the wine is as any other wine; yet is the bread the body of Christ, but only as a symbol, while the wine is the blood of Christ, but only as a memorial. ”

“ The commandment is given to the spirit as a help, a witness against sin; to the soul as a light to learn the way of piety, and to the body for the knowledge of sin. But when the body hears the law it is terrified, and from fright all the hair stands on end. The spirit is in a jubilee of joy, and the believing soul thanks God and praises him for giving him a light to its feet. However, if our spirit is to be free and our soul well, and the fall of the body harmless, all this must necessarily be accomplished through the new birth in Christ. ”

“ I believe in God, Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, as my most precious Lord and most merciful Father, who for my sake hast created heaven and earth and all that in them is, and hast made me as thy loved child from thy fatherly grace a lord over it and heir, to remain in it and live eternally. ”

“ Noble, gracious Lord, your Grace well knows that all those who in these last perilous times hold dear and preach the holy gospel, must not only be deprived of goods, but be tortured in body, yea, must even be wounded in honour (which to men is the most precious jewel on earth) and be oppressed by the godless. ”

“ I believe and trust that the Holy Spirit has come in me, and the power of the Most High God has, as with Mary, overshadowed my soul; that I may conceive the new man, and so in thy living, indestructible word and in the Spirit, be born again and see the kingdom of God. ”

“ But faith is a work of God and not of the heretics' tower, in which one sees neither sun nor moon, and lives on nothing but water and bread. But God be praised, who delivered me from this den of lions, where dead and living men lay side by side and perished. ”