Luther expresses his opinion about sacred plays, which some Anhaltian clergymen rejected, but which he defends.
Handwritten in Cod. Jen. Bos. 24. q., fol. 123. Printed by Strobel-Ranner, p. 309 and by De Wette, vol. V, p. 553. German by Walch, vol. XXI, 1501 with the caption: "An D. M. G. Z. Forchheim".
3) Cf. No. 1963. Georg Held had been a teacher of Prince Georg von Anhalt. (De Wette.)
To the highly famous and very learned man, Mr. M. G[eorg] H[eld] from Forchheim, his highly admired lord and patron.
Grace and peace from our Lord! Our Joachim has asked for my judgment and opinion about the depictions of the sacred histories, which some of your church servants disapprove of. In short, this is my opinion. All men are commanded to promote and spread the word of God the Father, in whatever way this can be done, not only with the voice, but also with writings, paintings, pictures, psalms, songs and musical instruments, as the Psalm says [Ps.150,4.]: "Praise him with timbrels and choruses, praise him with strings and pipes." And Moses says [Deut. 6:8, 9.], "And thou shalt bind them [the commandments] for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be a memorial unto thee before thine eyes; and thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and upon the gates." Moses wants the word of God to be considered and brought before the eyes. In what way could this be done more conveniently and clearly than by such presentations? which, however, must be serious and moderate, not actor-like, as they used to be in the papacy. For such presentations catch the eyes of the common people, and sometimes make more of an impression than public sermons. I know that in Lower Germany, where the public confession of the gospel is forbidden, many have been converted by presentations of the law and the gospel and have accepted the pure doctrine. Since such presentations, serious and moderate I say, are organized with good intentions and out of zeal to promote the evangelical truth, they are by no means to be condemned. Be well with the worthy princes, whom God may preserve unharmed for His Church for a long time. April 5, 1543.
No. 3007.