28 December 1524 A.D. Johann von
Staupitz Dies—Martin Luther’s Confessor
Graves, Dan. “Johann von Staupitz, Luther’s
Confessor.” Christianity.com. Jun
2007. http://www.christianity.com/church/church-history/timeline/1501-1600/johann-von-staupitz-luthers-confessor-11629932.html. Accessed
23 Jun 2014.
If it had not been for Dr. Staupitz, I should have
sunk in hell," said Martin Luther.
Johann von Staupitz was the vicar of the
Augustinian order at the University of Wittenberg when Luther responded to an
invitation by Frederick the Wise by coming there to teach. At the time Luther
was struggling with the need to confess completely everything he had ever done
wrong. He wore Johann von Staupitz out, trying to remember every sin that his
mind would try to cover up. On at least one occasion, he confessed for six
hours straight.
Johann tried to explain God's
grace to Luther. Surrender to the love of God, he counseled. Luther should lose
himself in God, he said. He was making religion too difficult. All he needed to do was love God.
But Luther was tormented by
fears and doubts. "I was myself more than once driven to the very abyss of
despair so that I wished I had never been created. Love God? I hated him!"
"I don't understand
it!" replied the longsuffering Johann when Luther reported this latest
line of reasoning to him. He reminded Luther that Christ died to remit our
sins. However, Luther was so afraid of Christ, the judge, that he could not
turn to him for relief.
In a daring move, Johann resigned
as Bible teacher and appointed Luther in his place. Now Luther had to study the
Bible for himself and counsel others from it. Luther had not dealt much with
the Bible; the theology courses he attended
emphasized writings other than the scriptures. Lecturing on Romans and
Galatians, Luther arrived at his world-changing insights on faith.
In the end, Luther broke with
the Roman confessional system which had been of no help to him. He renounced
penances and indulgences. The teachings of the Bible became his guides in place
of church fathers, confessors, or popes.
Johann never left the Roman
Church. However, he remained friendly toward Luther. He was present when
Cajetan ordered Luther to recant. Shortly afterward, he released Luther from
his Augustinian vows. Still, he wrote words of encouragement to Luther.
"The world hates the truth. By such hate Christ was crucified, and what
there is in store for you today if not the cross I do not know."
At one point, Johann relayed
Luther's position to Rome for the reformer. Pressure was put on Johann to shut
Luther up. Johann resigned rather than attempt it. Rome ordered him to recant.
He hesitated. He had never taught the things he was told to abjure (renounce). In
the end, he accepted the pope as his judge.
In his last letter to Luther,
Johann told him he still loved him dearly. But he implored him to remember the
weak. "Do not denounce points of indifference which can be held in
sincerity," he advised, adding, "We owe much to you, Martin."
Johann died at Salzburg on this day, December 28,
1524. He had written
books on predestination, faith and love. Pope Paul IV placed these on the Index
of Prohibited Books in 1559.
Bibliography:
Bainton, Roland. Here I Stand; a Life of Martin Luther.
New American Library, 1950.
Loffler, Clemens. "Johann von Staupitz." Catholic
Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton, 1914.
Steinmetz, David C. "Johann von
Staupitz." Oxford Encyclopedia of the Christian Church.
Steinmetz, David Curtis. Misericordia
Dei; the theology of Johannes von Staupitz in its late Medieval setting.
Leiden: Brill, 1968.
Last updated June,
2007
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