Church History, Volume 2 (of 3)Kurtz, J. H. (Johann Heinrich)
History
Church History, Volume 2 (of 3)
Kurtz, J. H. (Johann Heinrich)
Church history
to Strassburg, with the intention of there ending his days
in peace. But soon after his arrival he was apprehended,
and in A.D. 1458, along with his faithful follower, Anna
Weiler, put to death at the stake.--On the Waldensians
in German Switzerland, and the Inquisition’s oft repeated
interference with them, Ochsenbein gives a full report,
drawn from original documents, specially full in regard
to the great Inquisition trial at Freiburg, in A.D. 1430,
consisting of ninety-nine wearisome and detailed examinations.
Subsequently terrible persecutions, aiming at their
extermination, became still more frequent in Switzerland.
Also the Swiss Waldensians already bore unmistakable
marks of having been influenced by the Hussites. Finally,
Wattenbach has made interesting communications regarding
the Waldensians in Pomerania and Brandenburg, based
upon a manuscript once in the possession of Flacius, but
afterwards supposed to have been lost, discovered again
in the Wolfenbüttel library in A.D. 1884, though in a
very defective form, which contains the original reports
of 443 prosecutions for heresy in Pomerania, Brandenburg,
and Thuringia. By far the greatest number of these trials
were conducted between A.D. 1373 and 1394, by the Cœlestine
provincial Peter, appointed inquisitor by the pope. From
A.D. 1383 Stettin was the centre of his inquisitorial
activity, and on the conclusion of his work he could boast
that during the last two years he had converted to the
Catholic faith more than 1,000 Waldensians. The victims of
the Inquisition belonged almost exclusively to the peasant
and artisan classes. Their objectionable doctrines and
opinions are essentially almost the same as those of their
ancestors of the 13th century. Although equally with their
predecessors they abhorred the practice of the Catholic
church, and declared all swearing and slaughter to be
mortal sin, they yet in great part, and as it seems even
without the application of torture, were persuaded to
abjure their heresy, and incurred nothing more than a
light penance. They did this, perhaps, only in the hope
that their indulgent confessors would absolve them from
their sin. The last protocols bring us down to A.D. 1458.
Since a great number of these heretics were found again
in Brandenburg, the elector caused one of their most
distinguished leaders, the tailor Matthew Hagen, and
three of his disciples to be taken prisoners to Berlin,
and commissioned the Bishop of Brandenburg to investigate
the case; but owing to his sickness this duty devolved
upon John Cannemann, professor and doctor of theology. The
elector was himself present at the trial. The investigation
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account