On the Day April 18 1521

Here I Stand, I Cannot Do Otherwise!

The Testimony of Faith of Martin Luther

Khen Lim




Image source: historyvault.ie

“Wenn ich nicht durch Zeugnisse der Schrift und klare Vernunftgründe überzeugt werde; denn weder dem Papst noch den Konzilien allein glaube ich, da es feststeht, daß sie öfter geirrt und sich selbst widersprochen haben, so bin ich durch die Stellen der heiligen Schrift, die ich angeführt habe, überwunden in meinem Gewissen und gefangen in dem Worte Gottes. Daher kann und will ich nichts widerrufen, weil wider das Gewissen etwas zu tun weder sicher noch heilsam ist. Hier stehe ich und kann nicht anders. Gott helfe mir, Amen.”

Translated from the original German text, this is what it says:

“Unless I am convicted by Scripture and plain reason, I do not accept the authority of the popes and councils, for they have contradicted each other; my conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and will not recant anything, for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe. Here I stand, I cannot do otherwise, God help me. Amen.”

On April 18 1521, Martin Luther, the bold young German monk uttered these words (and more) that would define the sharp end of the Reformation movement and forever divide the Roman Catholic Church. Luther said these words in his reply to the Worms Diet when they demanded that he recant.

They were originally made in German but a Latin translation was also available for those who did not understand the local language. It was said that he was sweating even as he said those words and with an expression of victory, he removed himself from the room.

There is, though, a small contentious point about the text. While tradition tells us that it is authentic, the part that says, “Here I stand, I cannot do otherwise” is apparently missing from the actual transcripts of the Worms Diet. Eyewitness accounts including scholarly opinions also cast doubts on whether these words were ever spoken by Luther.

Among the Electors, Frederick the Wise was clearly unsettled. Even as Luther’s most politically strategic and invaluable supporter, he was left wondering if Scripture would condemn him or not.

“He is too daring for me,” he confessed. But he did stay true to Luther by refusing to condemn him even when urged by the emperor and the other four Electors.

The Dispute of Leipzig with Eck (left) debating Luther (right) (Image source: akg-images.de)

The papal official of the Archbishop of Trier, Dr Johanne Maier von der Eck (1486-1543), also a German scholastic theologian and strong defender of the Catholic order, told Luther that he was acting as if a heretic.

He said, “Martin, there is no one of the heresies which have torn the bosom of the Church, which has not derived its origin from the various interpretation of Scripture. The Bible itself is the arsenal whence each innovator has drawn his deceptive arguments. It was with biblical texts that Pelagius and Arius maintained their doctrines. Arius, for instance, found the negation of the eternity of the Word – an eternity which you admit, in this verse of the New Testament – Joseph knew not his wife till she had brought forth her first-born son; and he said, in the same way that you say, that this passage enchained him. When the fathers of the council of Constance condemned this proposition of Jan Hus – the Church of Jesus Christ is only the community of the elect, they condemned an error; for the Church, like a good mother, embraces within her arms, all who bear the name of Christian, all who are called to enjoy the celestial beatitude.”

Frederick’s move, however, did force the emperor to think carefully. In a motion of no confidence against Luther, one friar (meaning Frederick) stood between him and the Church. He felt a strong need to uphold the traditions of his Christian lineage and understood the need to punish Luther because of that but since it was he who guaranteed him safe conduct to Worms in the first place, he felt obligated to ensure he could also depart safely.

However Luther found it impossible to leave Worms immediately – a committee had held him back, pleading with him to not tear the Church apart with his stubbornness. They reasoned and pleaded with him to change tact, expressing deep concerns that war would then inevitably come to Germany if he didn’t. Philippe Melanchthon, his dear friend, they said, could even lose his life.

Luther was so taken aback by all this. He was even emotionally staggered by all these pleas. But in the end, he held sway. To him, God’s word must be adhered to no matter how other people might see things. He had come this far because of what he had experienced in Rome that were an abomination and a complete contradiction against the Word of God. Right at that point, he wasn’t going to settle for a compromise.

His mind was made up and he would walk away, knowing that the only way he would recant was if anyone could use Scripture to prove him wrong. Since no one had done so, he was at peace with his decision to stay the course.

Wartburg Castle in Eisenach (Image source: paulsmit.smugmug.com)

However, despite the safe exit that the emperor guaranteed, Luther’s supporters knew a trap when they saw one. They were all too aware that the moment Luther departed from Worms, he would be arrested and punished for his opposition against the powerful Church. In order to secure his safety, Frederick, with the help of his supporters, organised to have him ‘hijacked’ along the way and then hid him within the Wartburg Castle. And it was there that Luther developed Germany’s first locally translated Bible.

And so the die was cast, the writing was in stone, and fortunes irreversible. With that, the Reformation became unassailable and irrevocable. Luther’s words had now stirred the hearts of men to transform the Christian faith, leaving behind a deep legacy that required no further imagination beyond the words he said.

Luther’s testimony in defence of his faith at the Diet of Worms was the catalyst that turned George, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach (1484-1543) to become the first of German royalty to subscribe to the Reformation movement.

The rest, as they say, is history.

Note: This article is an re-edited early extraction from a far larger work of over 330 pages that will soon be released through this website. Called ‘The Rise of the English Bible – A History of Human Struggle for Truth’ will be published online and available for download in the latter half of 2017.  This portion comes from Chapter VII. The 95 Theses at Wittenberg.