drawn from D. Martin Luther's book of vows. *)
1. that a life is in vain because it is invented without God's word from the will and thoughts of man alone, as Christ Himself says, Matth. 15, 9: "In vain do they serve me" 2c.
2. that they condemn God's commandment as heresy and make counsel out of it, since Christ teaches Matth. 5, 39, "not to resist evil" 2c.
3. that they give righteousness before God to works against faith, and rely on their lives more than on Christ.
4. that they make sin and conscience contrary to Christian liberty in food, clothing, place, works, where there are none before God.
(5) That they seal up false poverty and obedience against the truth of the gospel, when it is more a laziness and free self-will.
6. that they make a perfect stand of their hypocrisy over the common stand of Christian faith, love and the holy cross.
7. that they force to impossible chastity and dumb sins, against God's creature and word, Gen. 1, 28: "Grow and multiply."
(8) That they have set up their own worship with masses and outward showings, contrary to the first three commandments of God.
9. that they tear apart the parents' authority
and rid the children of obedience, against the fourth commandment.
10. that they do not let their neighbor serve them in need, contrary to the other commandments of God, which command us to love.
11. that they are not subject to any secular authority, contrary to the teachings of St. Paul and St. Peter.
(12) That they may be made a partaker of all the blood shed by the innocent for God's sake, and of all the abominations of the priest and his crowd.
(13) That they themselves have no need of their vows, except chastity, and dispense therein as they will.
14) That the pope himself also makes chastity free, if he wants; that one can well see how their life is not serious, but a wanton game, which they themselves direct and change to their liking.
(15) Not to teach the Word of God within, nor to let it be taught, but to waste time in the works of children.
Summa Summarum:
It is vile lies and blasphemous hypocrisy, by which they disgrace and destroy the Christian life and seduce the world with them.
Praise be to God.
To this section belong two letters which Luther wrote on September 9, 1521, both with reference to his "Schlussreden von den Gelübden und geistlichen Leben der Klöster," No. 172 and No. 173 in this volume, namely: Luther's letter to Melanchthon, No. 18 in the appendix of this volume, and Luther's letter to Amsdorf, Walch, old edition, Vol. XV, appendix, No. 97.
2) This writing is found in the Wittenberg edition, vol. IX, p. 3W H; in the Jena edition (1566), vol. V, p. 11 d; in the Altenburg edition, vol. V, p. 273 and in the Leipzig edition, vol. XX, p. 234. The old editions place it "in" the year 1530. We give the text according to the Jena edition. In the Erlangen edition the [L writing is not found.