The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-07-26


follows in Bulirger's account Of their be-
liefs 1.-THE preachers of the official Reior-
nation, they 1.-THE Anabaptistsl maintained,
mix up the Old Testament with the New,
unmindful of the fact that, for the Chris
tian, the New Testament has superseded
and abolished the Old they Ithe Anabap-
tistsl declare il 10 be untrue. az the lnth-
cram and 2winglian preachers nllege, that
the soul flies from the body straight H
Heaven, for It sleeps until the Last Day
they contend that the preachers rely tco
much on the secular arm; that the attltnoe
Of the Christian toward authority she uln
be that Of submission ard endurance chlyi
that no Christian ought to take { nee OF
any kind: that secular authc rity hhs nc com
Germ with religious belief, that the Christian
resists ne evil, and therefore, needs nc
law courts nor should eyer make use Of the
tribunals that Christians dc ret XII, or
punish with imprisonment or the sword, Out
only with exclusion from the body "f Ie-
LEVERS: that no man Should be &C mpc'ieo
by force 10 believe, nor should any be slain
oil account of his faith; that Christians do
not resist, and, hence. dc not 60 to- war;
that Christians, may not swear; that all
oaths are simple that infant baptism IL
Of the Pope and the Devil; that ret sptisn,,
or better, adult baptism, is the only true
Christian baptism; that, finally, the Luth-
eran and Xwinglian preachers make TO dis
tinction OF persons, allo wing sinners rs well
as others to receive the sacrament, which
should be reserved fer the elect that Is,
for such a. being re-baptized, are received
snHa
Willis these doctrines represent the
common ground Of Anabaptisni, there were.
a. we have said, numerous variations
within the body. Bulinger is evidently
mistaken. however, in describing those
whom he calls the Apostolic Baptists,'
as a sepa rate sect. They were merely the
most enthusiastic, energetic and, 40 to
speak, militant members Of the organiza-
ton. These men. he ays, wander through
the land without staff, shoe, satchel or
money. clarifying their heavenly call TO
thu Office of preacher" Another observer
has recorded: "'rhey wash each others
feet, saying that they would become az
the true children" They literally followed
the precept that he who would be disciple
must leave house and home. wife and
child. An instance IL given of the sud-
denness with which a cali 10 preach would
sometimes affect a new convert. Apeasant,
Hans Ber OF Alien Erlangen rose from his
bed one night and began TO put on his
clothes. Whittier goest thou?" asked his
wife. Il know not, God knoweth. was his
answer. She entreated him to stay with
the words: what evil have l done thee2
Stay here and help ME nolrish my little
children" Dear wife" he replied, "harrv
NE not with the things of time. God bless
thee. will from hence that may learn
the will OF the Lord
Among other scots OF Anabaptists more
properly distinguished by Bulinger was
that of the so-called Free Brothers. 4"
These took the idea Of Christian freedom
in its literal sense. holding il as unchristian
to pay tithes or interest. or even the prin-
cipal of debts. They declared all serf-
dom and villeinage to be abolished, though
there were some who held that these social
relations should not he rejected in their
dealings with the heathen. to the end that
the latter might have no ground or cause
for disappearing the Word" All were
agreed, however, that, among Christians
! villeinage had ceased to exist. Among
; these Free Brethren, according to Bulinger,
there we're those who persuaded credulous
women that Il was impossible for them 10
he. saved without sacrificing their virtue,
for, said they, the Lord hath said that only
ne who was willing to lose all no held dear
might enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Shame
| and disgrace, they argued, must be borne
FOR the sake Of Christ, for had not Christ
! said that the publicans and the harlots
should enter first into the Kingdom OF
Heaven before the righteous by which
! they said, was plainly meant that women
, should become harlots, as, by doing So
; they would rank in Heaven before those
I who were deemed by the world TO he pioue
: women. They insisted that women did
! really sin in having intercourse with their
! husbands, 80 long ~ the latter remained
) heather, but they did not sin when hav-
! ing intercourse with brethren because
! in that case, there was spiritual bone
between them. Those who held these views
, however, were called by many OF their CO.
| religionlsts wild B-others."
q. The tenth sect in Bulinger's enumeration
was that Of the Hutien brothers, that is
the followers Of Johennes Hut. As might
have been expected from Il former admirer
/ OF THONGS Miner, Hut soon abandoned
the original non-resistance doctrine Of
the Anabaptists in favor Of the theory
that they, az the living representatives OF
| the chosen people, we're commissioned
like the Isrpelites Of Old to root out the
hepthen that then ruled the world, rs the
Israelitps had once destroyed tho goddess
Canaanites. The Lord, said Hut, would
show them a proper time when this work
Of his shall be accomplished. He and hii
followers we're untiring in proclaiming the
approaching day Of the Lords vengeance
on the powers of this world. In accordance
with this view, they took no thought fol
property or livelihood. The communicate
tendency Yves strongly represented among
them.
II should here be noted that Sebastian
France, the other chief co ntempOrar1
authority on the doctrines and practicel
of the Anabaptists, though less bitterly
hostile to the new sect than Bulinger. con
firms the latter's statements in almost
every particular. From a collation. oi
both writer's, II is clear that there was II
the Anebaptist organization thorough
going, or extreme, and moderate, or op'
portunist, party. 1t is also plain that the
general arrangements OF the Anabaptis
communities were very simple. Re
baptism, so We have seen, was sign o
reception into the brotherhood OF believers