Newly translated from the Latin.
[to the godly and tren brothers in Christa].
That these sentences of Philipp Melanchthon are published and preserved is useful, especially in these exceedingly bad and ungrateful times, so that the godly and faithful brothers in Christ may have after us, as it were, a small souvenir or, as they say, a breviary and bundle of the things which in these times of ours, now almost twenty years, have been taught, disputed, and acted upon, with all our strength and with the utmost diligence, against
2) "Philipp Melanchthon's" is missing in the original. - Similarly, the words in brackets above are only in the Wittenberg.
the greatest and indomitable abominations and the shameful nature of the most godless worshippers, which Satan has introduced into the church against the gospel of Christ by powerful errors and lying miracles (as Paul [2 Thess. 2, 9. 11.) all too truly predicted) and flooded it with them, as a punishment on the unbelieving and ungrateful. Perhaps our posterity, warned, mindful of their blessedness, and more grateful to God than we have been, can henceforth be made more careful and diligent in watching out for the persecutions of the devil, our adversary, who neither sleeps nor lets up, but rages with incredible fury, making the last worse than the first,
*The book to which this preface by Luther refers has the title: Theologicae propositiones Vite- bergae disputatae. Cum praefatione Mart. Luth. M.D.XXXIIII. octav. On the oak: Imprint Vite- bergae per Josephum Klug, anno M.D.XXXIIII. In this original edition, Melanchthon's name is not mentioned on the title or in the preface, but it is above the writing itself, and in the Wittenberg edition, in which the same tom. I, toi. 419, his name is also placed in the preface. The preface is also found (printed as a note) in the Erlangen edition, oxp. vur. arZ., tom. IV, p. 324. We have retranslated according to the Wittenberg.
as the present state of affairs sufficiently testifies. Or, if she does not want to be warned and rushes to her doom with her will, then we are without blame; her blood be on her head.
For we, who today are and are called servants of the church and confessors of the gospel of Christ, have omitted nothing in our work, watch, service, care, prayer, etc., which serves to instruct, preserve and defend the church, of which we certainly boast in the Lord, whose gift is all that we have done, are doing and have. This must also be confessed by the adversaries, whether they like it or not, the matter itself bears witness to us, and their unending hatred and persistent raging, only that they do not want to be called the church, what we call the church (we will not argue about that now), But still they must confess that we have done everything for the assembly which we call the church (may they call it a synagogue of Satan or any other name), have tolerated everything, and for its sake have aroused the hatred of the whole world against us.
This testimony of the enemies is sufficient for us to remind our descendants, namely, that they should know that we have stood tirelessly, bravely and unconquerably for our church (which they call the synagogue of Satan), which we, who will perhaps die in a short time, leave behind, not of marble or silver, of course, but firmly formed, instructed and fortified in Christ. They may see to it that they receive the same. Not as if we doubted that Christ would preserve his bride, whom he has preserved miraculously and omnipotently until our times, but lest (as if Satan were dead) some should become too sure, who make themselves believe that they have promoted the church most when they have corrupted it with their best counsels (as they thought), and so have not
(which will remain to her bridegroom for eternity, insurmountable against the gates of hell), but also drag many others with them to their doom before they mean it, as has happened to great men in this decade to our great sorrow, and by letting us lament it in vain.
It is a serious matter with which we are concerned, indeed, it is an eternal matter, either to death or to life, which is treated in these theses, which must also be attacked in the highest fear of God. And though they may seem small compared with other things previously written by us, yet they are evangelical lumps, which, as Christ speaks, must be gathered up, lest they perish, for there are in these theses the principal articles of the Gospel drawn together into a summa, without which, if they be not rightly understood and purely treated, the Church of Christ cannot stand. And if it had not existed and been preserved by the power of the almighty Son of God, who is also man, through them, they would not have come to us in any way, but would have been extinguished a thousand years ago through the gates of hell.
Therefore, let the Church of God (which it will gladly do) take these theses of Philipp Melanchthon 1) as a command, and also the remaining descendants (if they want), even if it is only for the sake of history. But he who hates them, let him hate them anyway; he who perishes, let him perish anyway. Christ lives and will reign for all eternity, who will give to those who believe in him what he has promised, and to the unbelievers what he has threatened. To him be glory, amen.
Given at Wittenberg, January 1, 1534. 2)
1) "Philipp Melanchthon's" is missing in the original.
2) This is missing in the original.