The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1885, Page 39

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The Lutheran Pioneer.

39

A Romish Procession.

That is a queer procession which you see in
our picture. It is called by the pope’s people
Auto da Fe, which means Act of Faith. In
the procession you see men wearing high caps,
which are made of pasteboard, pointed like
sugar loaves, covered over with devils and
flames of fire. These men are taken out by
the Romish priests, in order to be burned, be-
cause they would not subject themselves to the
pope of Rome. And this infernal_v:urderous
act the pope’s church calls an act of faith.

In those countries in which the Romish
people had the power to do as they pleased,
they persecuted all those who would not adopt
their false doctrines. They had a tribunal which
was called the Inquisition. The members of
this dread tribunal sought out all those whom
they suspected of what they
called heresy. These persons
were thrown into secret prisons,
where ai] communication with
the outer world was entirely

cut off from them. In these
secret prisons they were tor-
tured in the most cruel man-
ner, in order to extort a con-
fession and to force them to
accept the doctrines of the
Romish church. If these hor-
rible tortures were of no avail,
the poor victims were con-
demned by the Inquisition and
were made the centre of such
a procession as you see in our
picture. They were handed
over to the secular arm for
burning. Many witnesses for
Jesus were thus murdered by
the Romish church, which be-
came “‘drunken with the blood
of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs
of Jesus.’’ (Rev. 17, 6.)

A Lurueran Martyr.

One of those martyrs was Don Carlos de
Seso, a nobleman of high rank, who had served
his country well during the reign of Charles
the Fifth. By reading the Bible and Lutheran
writings he came to the knowledge of the truth.
He was convinced that the Lutheran doctrines
are the doctrines of God’s Word. In Valladolid,
Spain, he earnestly labored for the spread of
that Gospel in which he had found peace and sal-
vation. Henow, of course, becamea conspicuous
mark for the bloodhounds of the Inquisition.
He was thrown into prison, and for fifteen
dreary months he languished in its gloomy
cells, cut off from all human sympathy and
support.- But the grace of God held him, and
his constancy remained unshaken in spite of
all the threatenings and tortures of the Romish
priests.

On the evening of the seventh of October,
1559, it was announced to him that on the
next day an Auto da Fe would be celebrated

and he would then be burned if he did not
recant. He called for writing materials, and
it was thought he would recant his doctrines in
writing. But his writing was of another kind.
He wrote a confession of his faith and handing
it over to the priests, he said, ‘‘ This is the true
doctrine of the Gospel over against the doctrine
of the Romish church, which has been corrupted
for centuries. Confessing this doctrine I shall
die, and with a living faith in the sufferings of
Jesus Christ I shall deliver my now broken
body up to God.’’ On the next day he marched
in the procession of the Auto da Fe and was
led out to the place of execution, in order to
be burned. When tied to the stake he showed
the same unshaken constancy, bearing his
testimony to the truth of the Gospel for which
he gave up his life. As the flames crept slowly
around him, he called on his executioners to

NN nists

heap up the fagots. Indignant at the heroism | for many a day.

“Lord, keep us steadfast in Thy word,

And break the Pope’s and Turk’s fell sword,
Who fain would hurl from off Thy throne
Christ Jesus, Thy beloved Son,”’ etc.

This General, a second Herod, enraged at
the singing of the Lutheran children, ordered
them all to be slain. From that moment,
history tells us, all success departed from him.
Haunted by this terrible slaughter of innocents
he passed to his last account a few months
afterwards.

>} 20g

Jesus Shining In.

A visitor went one cold day last spring to
see a poor young girl, kept at home by a lame
hip. The room was on the north side of a
bleak house. It was not a pleasant prospect
without, nor was there much that was pleasant
or cheerful within. Poor girl!
what a cheerless life she has
of it, I thought, as I saw how
she was situated; aud I im-
mediately thought what a pity
it was her room was on the
north side of the house.

“You never have any sun,’’
I said; ‘‘not a ray comes in
at these windows. That I call
a misfortune. Sunshine is
everything; I love the sun.’’

“‘Qh,”’ she answered, with
a sweet sililé, “iy sui pours
in at every window and even
through the cracks.’ I am
sure I looked surprised. ‘The
Sun of Righteousness,’’ she
said softly —‘‘Jesus. He shines
in here and makes everything
bright to me.’? I could not
doubt her. She looked hap-
— pier than any oue I had seen
Yes! Jesus shining in at the

of the noble Lutheran martyr, they were not }-window can make any spot beautiful and any

slow in obeying his commands.

to Jesus whom he so nobly confessed.

Thank God that through the Reformation of
Dr. Luther the pope’s power has been broken.

May He soon destroy the Antichrist ‘‘with the

The flames| home happy.
soon enveloped him, and his soul passed away

+ ote ee

Luther’s Trust in God.

Martin Luther wrote to his wife, Catharine,
from Kisleben, in reply to a letter in which

brightness of His coming,’’ (2 Thess. 2, 8).} 4, expressed great anxiety for his safety:

And may we all, my dear reader, be found

“Dear Kare: Read John’s Gospel and the

faithful to that Gospel of grace which Luther ;S,,511 Catechism, of which you once said:

preached from the Bible and which has been
sealed by the blood of so many noble martyrs!

+ +o or oe -
.

A Second Herod.

In the year 1631, the Roman Catholic Gen-
eral Tilly stormed the Lutheran city of Magde-

fangels are. He lies in the manger at the

‘breast of His mother, but at the same time is

‘Everything in this book is said of you.’’
You are so anxious about your God, just as
if He were not Almighty. He can create ten
Dr. Luthers, if the old one were drowned in
the Saale, or put out of the way in any other
fashion. Do not bother me with your anxieties;
- have a better protector than you and all the

burg and destroyed 30,000 of the anbebitad eats d at the right-hand of God the Almighty
by fire and sword. When the massacre had’ FR [hari Elen Ga betnoE uneasy Saw mone

begun and no escape was possible, the school-"
children formed in procession and marched ;
over the market-place singing Luther's hymn: ;

— o-oo

Men of prayer are men of power.