December 21, 1521.
Dear Doctor, I have received and read your letter, which is dated on the Sunday after 1) Catharina, and have accepted it with grace and all good; but I completely understand that the cause has long since been removed, which moved you to write such a letter.
2. and, if God wills, will keep me like this.
1) Thus the Wittenberg edition. In the Jena edition, there would be: "on the day Catharinä". From this it seems to us that copies of the previous letter existed, which were provided with this wrong date "November 25" instead of "December 1", as Walch in the old edition, Vol. XIX, 656, also put this wrong date above it. Since it is clear from Luther's previous letter that it was the third letter he wrote to the Cardinal, there seems to us to be no room for the assumption that Luther wrote another letter to the Cardinal on November 25, 1521. Therefore, it seems to us to be erroneous that Seidemann in De Wette, Vol. VI, p. 37, and Burkhardt p. 43 refer to the same as a "missing letter". The earlier copy had a wrong date, and as it seems, also the wrong year 1522, which Seidemann 1. above has already provided with a question mark.
and show myself as a pious, spiritual and Christian prince is entitled to, as far as God gives me grace, strength and reason; therefore I also ask faithfully, and will let myself ask. For I am not able of myself, and I confess that I am in need of God's grace; how then I am a poor sinful man, who can sin and err, and daily sin and err, I do not deny. I know well that without the grace of God there is nothing good in me, and I am as much a useless stinking muck as any other, if not more.
(3) I did not want to take this into account in response to your gracious letter. For I am more willing than willing to show you mercy and goodness for Christ's sake. I can well suffer brotherly and Christian punishment. I hope that the merciful God will grant me grace, strength and patience to live His will in this and in the other. Date Halle on the day of St. Thomas the Apostle. Anno 1521.
Albertus
manu propria.
*) This answer is found in the editions given in the previous number immediately after Luther's letter, but not in De Wette's and in the Erlangen edition. We give the text according to the Wittenberg edition.