# Der Lutheraner_St. Louis Missouri_1850 07 23_S185
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

Der Lutheraner.
"God's Word and Luther's doctrine pure shall to eternity endure."
Published by the German Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Missouri, Ohio and other States.
Edited by C. F. W. Walther.
Volume 6.  St. Louis, Mo., July 23, 1850.  No. 24.
Terms: Der Lutheraner appears once every two weeks at the yearly subscription price of One Dollar for out-of-town subscribers, who are to pay for it in advance and bear the postage. — In St. Louis each single number is sold for 5 Cents.
Only those letters which contain communications for the paper are to be sent to the editor; all others, however, which contain business matters, orders, cancellations, money, etc., are to be sent here under the address: Mr. F. W. Barthel, care of C. F. W. Walther, St. Louis, Mo.

Dr. Martin Luther's Letter to Two Pastors, concerning Rebaptism. Anno 1528.

Luther hastily composed this writing, as noted above, in the year 1528, and addressed it to two pastors who administered their office in a province subject to a papistic prince, since at that time the Anabaptist sect, in spite of the fact that the papists sought to root it out with fire and sword, was increasing by force and everywhere causing great confusion among Lutherans and papists alike. We communicate this writing to our readers among other reasons also because, alas, the most dangerous sect of the Anabaptists is at present threatening with all its might to press in among the Germans here as well. It has already succeeded in winning the United pastor Rauschenbusch for itself. This unhappy man, uncertain of his faith, as he has always shown himself and as in the bottomless United church he could not be otherwise, has, namely, as we learn, at the Pentecost just past, in this city, had himself rebaptized, and now works with still greater zeal for the Anabaptist sect, as he formerly contended for the United-Evangelical communion here, of whose catechism he was the chief author. May God have mercy upon the poor, unsettled, wandering man, as upon all who have not yet the grace to be built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone, upon which foundation alone the true members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church are built, since this our Church alone has simply founded itself upon the Word of the apostles and prophets, as may be seen from her glorious Confessions.

The Editorial Office.

Martinus Luther to the worthy dear Sirs N. and N., my dear friends in Christ. Grace and peace in Christ our Lord!

I know all too well, dear Sirs, that Balthasar Hübmohr*) among others brings me in by name in his blasphemous little book on rebaptism, as though I also were of his foolish mind. But I have comforted myself with this, that nobody, neither foe nor friend, would believe such public lies of his, since not only does my conscience guard me herein, but my reputation also is sufficiently cleared by so many sermons, and especially by the last Postils, from Epiphany to Easter, wherein I have abundantly made known my faith concerning infant baptism.

*) This Hübmohr or Hubmaier was a head of the Anabaptists and was burned at Vienna by the papists. He had in a writing published by him appealed to Luther and sought therein to make him a patron of Anabaptism. The Baptists here do the same, who in a widely circulated German writing likewise seek to make Luther a witness for their immersion-ism.  Ed.

2. Therefore I have thought it unnecessary to answer such a little book of his. For who can stop the mouths of all people, yea, of all devils? I have hitherto found by experience that when I stop one mouth of the devil, he tears open ten mouths beside it, and grows ever more and more, so that I must (willing or not willing) commit it to God, who afterward, when we have spoken the truth, is a righteous Judge, and knows well how to carry out the matter; as he indeed does daily, so that we may well grasp it. We here in our prince's lands have as yet nothing of the vermin of such preachers, God be praised and thanked forever! nor anything of the sacramentarians**); but are quite quiet and concordant in doctrine, faith and life. May God of his grace henceforth so keep us. Amen.

**) By this Luther means the Zwinglians.  Ed.

3. Therefore I for my part have not had many thoughts against the Anabaptists hitherto, since it has not been needful here. But it serves you papists right indeed (I must call you so, because you must be under your tyrant): because you will not suffer the Gospel, you must have to do with such devilish rabbles, as Christ says, John 5:43: "I am come in my Father's name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive" (that is, those of yours will receive among you). Yet it is not right, and it is truly grievous to me, that such wretched people are so miserably murdered, burned, and horribly put to death: one should let every man believe what he would. If he believes wrongly, he has punishment enough in the everlasting fire in hell. Why then will they also torment them in time? provided they err only in faith, and are not also seditious besides, or otherwise resist the magistracy. Dear God, how soon it is done that one goes astray and falls into the devil's snare! With Scripture and God's Word should one withstand and resist them; with fire one will accomplish little.

4. I do not yet know rightly what cause and ground they have for their faith; and you do not show it me either, and yet desire counsel how one should conduct oneself in such matters. Therefore I can answer nothing certain thereupon. Besides, you yourselves are in part Anabaptists too. For many of yours baptize again in Latin those who have been baptized in German, although your Pope himself neither does nor teaches such a thing. For we know well that the Pope lets those stand as baptized whom the women baptize in necessity, even though they baptize in German. Yet you baptize again when we baptize in German among us, as though our priest's baptizing in German were not so good as the women's baptizing in German: as the coarse blockhead of Leipzig also did lately at Mühlhausen, although the Pope nowhere commands that one should baptize only in Latin and not in other tongues. Therefore it serves you right once more. You want to rebaptize; so you get Anabaptists enough. You will not suffer them, and yet would be such yourselves, against your own teacher and master the Pope.*)

*) Our papists here practice this rebaptizing even to this day, and indeed not only with proselytes