Recommendation of a poor person. Complaining about the lack of charity.
The original is in Dessau. Handwritten in Cod. Jen. a, fol. 229. Printed by Buddeus, p. 254 and by De Wette, vol. V, p. 23. German by Walch, vol. XXI, 1275.
To the highly famous man, Magister Georg Spalatin, pastor and bishop of the churches at Altenburg, his extremely dear [friend] in the Lord.
Grace and peace in Christ! I ask you, my dearest Spalatin, as soon as M. Brisger has returned, to see to it that he faithfully helps you so that poor Elsa von Reinsberg is recommended and fed by you in any case, and that you also do not
1) Seymour.
Allow it to be afflicted with harsh or hard words. Who knows in which person the poor and begging Christ will be honored. I see things everywhere that torment me, so that I fear that in a short time the word of grace will be taken away from us because of the incredible ingratitude and contempt. Almost all congregations think this way: we want to get rid of the poor and send them to Wittenberg; we experience this daily. "No one wants to do good and help the poor anymore," meanwhile we seek what is ours to the point of frenzy. "Well," fate drives the world. Farewell and pray for me. On the Sunday after Matthew [Sept. 24] 1536.
Your Martin Luther, D.
No. 2290.