Page:Luther's correspondence and other contemporary letters 1521-1530.djvu/345

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me, because my letters bring to court so much that is trouble- some and disagreeable, for I get nothing out of it myself ex- cept trouble and annoyance enough. I should be glad to spare your Grace, but because of the position that I hold I cannot act otherwise.

In the first place your Grace will pardon me for having been so insistent upon the reorganization of the tuiiversity,^ for I have learned that your Grace was offended at my per- sistent urging of it, as though I did ;iot place much omfidence in your Grace's promises. Now it is not true that I disbe- lieved your Grace, for if that had been the case my doubts would have caused me to give up my insisting. But because I did not doubt your Grace's promises, I kept on, so that the matter might not be postponed because of the pressure of business, as has happened many times under your Grace's predecessors. For courts have much business, and it is necessary to keep at them, as the saying is. Besides, I was urged by others, because people were leaving the university and the school was breaking up, so that there was need for haste.

However, even though I had mistrusted your Grace, I should not greatly repent of that sin in view of the good results that have followed. They were worth more such sins, and I should be willing to commit more sins of that kind against your Grace, if I could accomplish so much good by them. I would comfort myself in the confidence that your Grace would not only graciously forgive me, but would even be pleased with me; for it is certain — ^indeed it cannot be otherwise — that your Grace must feel in his heart that this work is well pleasing to God; and although your Grace seeks neither merit nor reward by it, still less the world's glory or honor, nevertheless his conscience must be glad and he must be strengthened in the conviction that God has done this great work by your Grace's means, and used you as His tool, and showed His intention to use you yet more in the furtherance of His divine and gracious wiU; all of which we hope and pray from our hearts. Amen.

Therefore, gracious Lord, now that the imiversity is set in

1 Cf, supra, no. 684.

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