taught us, that you first incited the minds of men with the^ j love of liberty, and that we are all your followers. . . . For by so long flattering and praising the Pope you have deserved the mortal hatred of Aleander who will wish to destroy you, especially when he sees his fury resisted by arms. We would have done this before had not Sickingen advised first to try the mind of the Emperor, hoping that he would do something or at least allow us to do it. And we will do it unless that wicked Slav [Aleander] subverts all things and seizes the Emperor's crown, the reward of which deed Luther and I demand.
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��^yj* LUTHER TO LAZARUS SPENGLER AT NUREMBERG. Enders, ii. 527. De Wettc, i. 525. German.
Wittenberg, November 17, 1520.
My service, etc. Honorable, wise, dear Sir and Friend! I have read your letter and learned your great courage for the Christian truth with especial joy ; God strengthen you and all of us with his grace ! I thank you heartily for your great, friendly care for me and for all Wittenbergers. You must certainly believe that Dr. Carlstadt and Melanchthon are en- tirely at one ; for a while one spoke to his classes in a different way from the other, from which circumstance perhaps this rumor grew. By God's grace Philip is minded to have no quarrel with him. Neither did it ever occur to me to harbor annoyance or dislike of Erasmus. It pleased me well that he desired me not to mention him.* I wrote to him about it and promised not to speak of him any more, nor of any other good friends if it displeased them. People have many such false rumors to write about me, but don't let their gossip deceive you. If God will, Erasmus and I will remain at one. It is true that I sometimes privately discuss with Melanch- thon how near or far Erasmus is from the way ; he and every- one can do the same about me with impunity and in friend- ship. I will attack no one first; it is sufficient to me to de- fend myself when attacked.
^Erasmus wu offended by Luther's reference to him in the Answer to the Condemnation of Louvain, and made this request, in a letter to Melanchthon: cf, supra, no. 258. Luther's letter is lost. Cf. Smith, 2oif.
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