JO H N H USS

HIS LIFE , TEACHING S A ND DEAT H

 THE C H U R CH
By JOHN HUSS
T r l t
a ns a ed , n i th I n tr o d u c ti o n and N o t es
B y D AVI D S . S C HA F F , D D . .

Th i r t t l ti
is t he fi s
s r a ns a o n i t
n o E ng is h o f J oh nl
’
t w wr
H u ss s b e s kn o n -
o k t he. ea s e in tr ti
hic h h e w
rt
m a d e a n e la b o a e d ef e n se o f hi s v e s a n d f ro m iw
w hic h wr t
e e ak e n t h e c h a rg es on w
h ich t h e C o un c i l
t r
of Co n s t a n ce se n e n c e d h im as a h e e tic a n d f or hich w
h e was b ur n e d a t t h e s t a ke J u y 6 , 1 4 1 5
, l .

P UB LI S H E D BY

C HA R L E S S C R I B N E R S S ON S
’

ne t
 J O HN HU S S
—
HI S LI FE , TEACHING S A N D DEATH

A F T E R FIV E H U N D R E D YE A R S

D A V ID s .

SC H A F F , D D . .

P R O F E S S OR OF C H UR C H HI S TO R Y , TH E W E S TE RN TH E OLOG I C A L S E M I N A RY

N on d e b em u s con s u el ud in em s eq m s ed
’

C hr isl i
ex e m pl u m et ver it a te m

f
N o t u sa g e a r e we t o o ll o w b u t t h e e x am pl e
of C hri s t an d t h e tr u th

-
’
H uss s l et te r writt
. en f r
om p ri s on ,

C on s t a nce , J u ne 2 1 , 1415

N E W YO R K ’

C H A RLE S S ON S
’
S C RI B N E R S
1915
 C OP Y RI G H T , 1 915 BY

C H A R LE S S C R I B N E R S S ON S
’

P ub li sh e d Ma y , 1 91 5
 P RE FA C E

J OHN H U S S b elongs not to B ohemia alone He has a .

place in the religious history of Europe and the West For .

the three communions Of Christendom his career has an in

t er e s t
. As for the Greek church some of its historians fin d
,

in hi s preaching and the preaching of h is predecessors a

remini scence O f the original typ e Of Christianity prevalent in
B ohemia which they hold was Of Oriental origin The R oman
, ,
.

Catho l ic commu n ion canno t forget that his personality and

teachings o ccupied the attention of the famous council of
Constance and was the concern O f the great theologians and
churchmen Of his age and that his sentence to death as a
,

heretic threatened the permanent alienation of B ohemia

from the apostolic see and also involved that country in
some of the most lamentable religious wars Europe has seen .

Individual Catholics may followB ishop H e f el e and admire

’
Huss s moral heroism in the face of death bu t no Offi cial ,

proposition has been made to remove the Opprobrium which

was cas t upon his name by the council of Constance as the
church has done in the case of from whom it
has no t only r em ov e ti t h e t onal ence of a con
temporary ecclesiastical c ourt b u t ; W h om i t has even b eat ifi e d
!
.

T O Protestants H u ssi ap p rza rs as a f forerunner of the

’
’ '
o

gfi
R eformation by his ass ertio n: b f t l xe uth or it y Of the S crip
’

tures and his de finitio n Of th e ch urch Moreover to all

)
.
,

who foll ow with interest the progress Of toleration in mat

ters Of religious Opinion and general though t he occupies th e ,

place of a martyr to the sacred rights O f con s cience A .

modern circle whose bounds canno t b e well de fined may

, ,

fin d in him an advocate of the pri n ciple that in the religiou s

vi P R EFACE

d omai n , so far as huma n j udgment goes the criterio n O f a ,

n i n
—
Chri s tia n profe s s io s daily co duct a crit e rion expr e ss ed
in the m a xim O ft e n q uot e d by Hu ss : B y th e ir fruit s ye shall
,
”
k n ow them .

Some will be attracted to Hu s s chiefly by the fidelity to

con v ictio n which he mai n tai n ed even in the pre s e n ce of a
horribl e death ; o ther s by tho s e pri n ciple s which he defin ed
with more or le ss cl e arne ss and which were O ppo s ed to the
s y s tem built up duri n g the Middle Ages and abhorred by
’
the churchm e n and theologia n s O f Huss s own age .

From whatever standpoint he may b e regarded as a ,

heretic or a s a n advocate of forgotten S crip tural truth as a ,

contumacious rebel agains t constituted church authority or

a s an advocate O f the ju s t rights of con s cience the fiv e hun ,
-

d r e d t h an n iversary O f h is death at Con s tance July 6 1 9 1 5 , , ,

will again ca l l attention to h is per s o n ality an d his teachi n g s

an d ,
a s is hoped promote the study O f the foundations of
,

church authority in s uch an irenic spirit that the cau s e O f

the mutual recog n ition Of Chri s tia n s one of the o ther may
, ,

b e advanced Is it too much to hope that the solemn study

.

’
of thi s ma n s Chri s tian aim s and death may promote the d is
po s itio n to regard with tolerance doctri n al error s whe n the
per s o n s who hold them are moved with devotion to the per
s on O f Christ a n d the promotion of good will among men ?

This biography is int ende d n ot only to set forth the teach

!

i n gs and activity df t u Hus s a nd fi il é: circum s tance s of h is

.
‘
.
‘

death but al s o to sho w t h e p erp t uat i on Of h is i n fl uence upon

e

the centurie s that ha v e e lapsed sinc e he su ffered at the stake .

“
He being dead yet s peak e th
w
'

In departing from Hus s 5 O n spelling O f his name—H u s

: ’

—which 15 the usage in B ohemia I am influenced by the fact

,

that the form Huss is more familiar to our eye s and agree
able to our general usage in spellin g It is to b e n oted that
.

L os e r t h the author O f the volume Wicl if a n d B u s h a s

, , ,

adopted the form Huss in his article in the H erz og E n cycl o

 P R EFACE vii

p edia , and Karl M uller also in his Chu r ch H isl ory As for .

the spelling O f B ohemian names written with an accent a s ,

Pale e they are given in thi s volume as P al e cz — this spelli n g

,

representi n g the pronunciation in the Czech to n gue The .

name O f the king co n temporary with Huss is given a s Wenzel

rather than Wenceslaus the Latin form or Vakl av the , , ,
‘

B ohemian form although there is an in con sis t en cy fwh e n th e

,

saint is called S t Wenceslaus . .

The author is no t acquainted with B ohemian Such a .

knowledge so far as h e is able to make out is no t neces s ary

, ,

to a just and full s tudy Of Huss His B ohemian writing s .

,

which are no t translated are of a homileti c and devotio n al ,

character and add nothing to our knowledge O f his teachi n gs

and only a few facts in his career His chief works are all .

in Latin into which his letters so far as they were written

, ,

in Czech h ave b een translated M oreover most O f the work s

,
.
,

of B ohemian authors on the subj ect of Huss are found in

German a s by P al acky or in English as the two recent works
, , ,

b y Liit z ow All the Latin writings have b een consulted

. .

Moreover I h ave used the chief Life of Huss written in B 0

,

hemian th at of D octor Fl aj sh an s in a translation made for my

, ,

private use by one Of the B ohemian students O f the Western

Theological S eminary M r Alois Husak ,
. .

The following is a list of original authori ties upon which

the life of Hu ss must b e based and also a li s t of most of the
secondary works b earing on the subj ect All h ave b een used .

in the preparation Of this volume excep t the Czech work s

of Hus s which have no t b een translated into Latin and the ,

writings of T om ek .

H U S S S LA TI N
’
W RI T I N GS
H is tor ic ci M on u m eh ta J q H ier on ymi P r a gen s z s C onf essor u m
'

. B u s at u e

C hr is ti N iir n b , 1 5 5 8 v o l s R e p r i n t e d F r a n k i 1 7 1 5 2 v ol s p p
2
—
. . . . .
,
. . .
,

c o n t a i n i n g t h e b u l k o f H u s s s t r e a t i se s a n d l e t t e r s a n d
’
627, 54 2 ,

l
a so se r m on s w i t h L u t h e r s p r e f ac e s O f t h e t h r e e e d i t i o n s o f c e r
,
’

t ai n of H us s s wr i t i n gs
’
W i t t e n b e r g 1 5 3 6 1 5 3 7 ac t s a n d d o c u
, , , ,
v iii P RE FACE

C o n s t a n c e , t h e s h o rt e r
’
me nts o f t h e co u n c il o f accou n t of H u ss s

li fe b y M l a d e n o w icz a ,
li f e o f J e r o m e o f P r a g u e , e tc . I h a v e ci t e d
t h e F r an kf u r t e d i t i o n ,
a l th o u g h b o t h e d i t i on s have b e e n on m y
t a b l e a n d u se d .

Docu me n ta Ma g J H usE d F R A N C I S P A L A C K Y P r ag u e ,
. . .
1 4 03
—
1 41 8 . . .

1 860 p p t a i n s H u s s s l e t t e r s , M l a d e n owicz s f u l l ac co u n t
’ ’

75 , 5 C o n . .

o f H u ss f r o m h is j o u r n e y t o C o n s t a n c e t o h is d e a th , t h e d i ff e r e n t

li s t s o f c h a r g e s m a d e a g a i n s t H u ss a n d o n e h u n d r e d a n d t we n t y
o t h e r o ffi c i a l d oc u m e n t s w i t h s o m e a d d e d m a t t e r t r a n sl a t e d f r om ,

t he B o h e m i a n H u ss s a ll e g e d c a t e c h i s m , e t c I t wo u l d b e d i ffi c u l t
’
.
,

to fin d suc h a f u ll an d we ll
r g a n iz e d c o ll e c t i on
-

o Of m a t e ri al s b ea rin g
on li f e o f a n y
t he o t h e r h i s t o ri c c h a r a c t e r .

T h e e di ti o n s e d i t e d by W E N Z E L F L A J S H A N s—E x p os itio D eeal ogi ,

P r agu e 1 9 0 3 p p , 5 1 ; d e C or p or e C hr is ti, P a g u e , 1 9 0 4 , p p 3 5 ;
,
. r .

d e S a n gu in e C hr is t i, P r a g u e , 1 9 0 4 , p p 4 2 ; s u p e r I V S en ten tiar u m . .

P etr i L om b ar d i, in c o n n e c t i o n w i t h D o c t o r M K o m in k o v a , P a g u e , . r
1 90 5 ,
pp .

772 r m one s d e S a n ctis

. S e ,
P r ag u e , 1 90 7 , pp .
40 5 . A ll
p r e fa ce d wi t h e l ab o r a t e i n t r od u c t i on s in G e r m an .

H US S S
’
CZ E C H W RI TI N G S
K .
J E.R B E N : 3 v o l s ,
1 8 6 —
5 1 86 8 V ol I c on t a i n s E x p os i t i on s of
. . .

t h e D e c al o g u e , A p p C re ed e t c V ol I I , t h e P o s t i ll a H u s s B oh .
,
. . .

s e r m on s Vo l I I I , a C o m o n t h e S o n g o f S o l o m o n an d l e t t e r s
. . . .

F . Z I L KA : unde r t he ti t l e Th e S p ir it f
o H zt s s
’
W or ks , 3 v ol s .
,
1 90 1 .

M A KE S : L etter s of B us, P r ag u e , 1 89 1 . 2 d cd .
,
1 90 1 .

T R A N S LA T I ON S

L ette r s o f J oh n Hus, t r sl . wi t h i n t r o d u c t i on s by H . B . \VORK MA N an d

R . M A R TI N P OP E , L on d o n , 1 90 4 p p 2 86
,
. .

H u s s : Tr e a tise on th e C h u r ch , d e E ecl es ia , t r sl . wi t h n o es, t D A VI D S .

S C HA F F , N e w Y o r k , 1 915 .

G e rman t rsl . of S er mon s b y W . V ON LA N G S D ORF F , L e i pzi g , 1 8 94,

pp . 1 50 .

C . K U G E L G E N : D ie Gef a n ge n sch af ts b r z ej e d es J
V ON
' '

. B us, a rep rin t

of t he W i t t e n b e r g e d 1 53 6 , L e ip z , 1 0 2 pp 30
9 ,
. . . .

OT H E R A U T H ORI TI E S
VA N DE R H A RD T : M a g n u m C on s ta n tie n s e C on c zl iu m
v ol s F r kf ’

,
6 .
, .

a n d L e ip z 1 7 00 A n i n v a l u a b l e c o ll e c t i o n o f d oc u m e n t s a t h e r e d
g
.
, .

w i t h v a s t i n d u s t r y b u t t h r o w n t o g e t h e r w i t h o u t r e a r d f o r c h r on o
g
lo gi c al o r l og i c a l o r d e r b e a ri n g u p o n H u s s a n d t h e c ou n c il J e r om e ,
,

of P r ag u e etc C o n t a i n s a l s o w o r k s O f G e r so n C l e m a n is N ie
,
g
.

, ,

h e im a n d L i v e s o f G e r s o n d A il ly e t c I l l u s t r a t e d wi t h m an y
, ,
’

, .
 P R EFA CE ix

rt r a i t s of dis t i n gu i sh e d p e rson ag e s t w e n t y f ou r p ag e s g i vi n g t h e
po ,
-

c o a t s of a r m s of p ri n c e s car d i n al s b i s h o p s ab b o t s a n d o t h e r , , , ,

dig nit ar i e s .

MA N S I : C on cil ia v ol s XXVI I XX V I I I
—4
. .
, ,

U L R I CH V ON R I C H E N TA L : C hr on ik d es C on s ta n z er C on cits , 1 41 4 1 18 .

E d B u ck , T ii b in g e n , 1 88 2
—4
. .

F I NKE : A cta C on cil ii C on s tan cien s is , 1 41 0 1 1 4, Mu n st er ,

1 89 6 .

M I RB T Q u elten z ur G esek d es P a p s ttu ms 3 d ed , 1 9 1 1

. . . .

ZE N E A S S Y LVI U S : d e B oh emor u m or igin e ac ges tis h is tor ic . C ol og n e ,

1 523 .

J . C OCH LE US ( D OB N E C K ) : H istor ice H u ssitar u m M a i nz , ,

1 54 9 .

M OD E R N W OR K S
F . P A LA C K Y ( d a d e sc e n d an t of t h e B oh e m i a n B r e t h r e n a n d
.

r o y a l his t o r i og r a p h e r O f B o h e m i a : G es ch ichte oon B oh men , P r a g ,

1 8 3 6 , s qq 3 d e d , 1 8 6 4 , s qq , 5 v o l s , t o 1 5 2 6 P u t u p on t h e I n d e x ,
—
. . . . .

t r sl i n t o G e r m a n 1 8 4 6 b y J P J o r d an D ie Vor l auj er d es H u si
'
'

—
. . .

te n thu m s in B o men , h n e w e d ,
P r g,
'

a 1 8 6 9 Ur ku n d l ich e B e itr age .

'

z ur Gesek d es H u siten kr iegs , . 1 8 73 , 2 v ol s . B es t au t h or i t y on

B o h e m i a n h i s t or y .

H E F E L E : C on cil ien gesch ichte , v ol . VI I , 1 8 74 .

J . A H E LF E R T : H u s
.
33 2 und H ier on ymu s , P r ag , 1 8 53 , p p . .

J B S CH W A B : J Ger s on W iir z b u r g 1 8 5 8
. . .
, ,
.

C A H OF LE R : M a g J B u s u n d d er A b z u g d er d eu tsch S tu d en ten u n d
. . . . .

P r of ess or en au s P r og 1 40 9 1 86 4 p p 3 2 5 , , , . .

W B E R G E R : J B u s u n d K on ig S igmu n d A u gsb g 1 8 7 1
. . A car e f u l ,
.
,
.

t
s u dy .

P T S CH A C K E RT : P eter
. oon A ill i, G o t h a , 1 87 7 .

F V ONB E Z O LD : K on ig S igis mu n d u n d '

d ie R eich skr iege gegen die

—
.

H u siten 3 v o l s M u n i c
,
h 1 8 7 2 1 87 5 .
, ,
.

B . H G I L L E TT : T h e Lif e a n d Tim e s of J ohn B u s s ,

. or the B oh emian
R ef or ma tion of th e F if teen th C en tu r y, B o s t o n , 1 86 4 . 2 v ol s .
, 3d ed .

1 871 B ase d on t h e sou r c e s

. .

G . V . H is E n gl ish P r ecu r s or s , L on d ,
L E CH L E R : J . W ycl if an d . 1 884 .

A H W RA TI S L A W : J ohn H u s , L on d , 1 88 2
. . A l so N a tl L it . . . .
f
o Bo
hemia in th e F ou r te en th C en tu r y , L on d , 1 8 7 8 . .

J L O S E RTH , P ro f at G r az : W icl if a n d B u s , t r sl f r om t h e G e r m an ,
—
. . .

L on d , 1 88 4 , p p . . 6
3 6 Al so H u
. ss ,
A r t in H er z og, 8 47 2 4 89 . .

VA C LA V F LA J S H A N S : Mistr J an R ecen y B u s 2 B u sin ce ( M as t e r J o h n ,

c a ll e d H u s of H u s in e cz ) p p 4 8 6 P r ag 1 9 0 4 T h e m os t e l ab o r a t e ,
.
, ,
.

b iogr ap h y in C z e ch b y a l i b e r al C a t h o l i c ,
.
 P R EFAC E

C O U N T L u r z o w : L if e a n d T im e s f Ma s ter
o J H u s , L on d 1 90 9, pp
—
.
,
. .

39 8 a l s o H u s s ite W a r s , L o n d , . 1 9 14 .

OS C A R K U H N S : J oh n H u ss , th e W it n es s N ,
. Y .
, Cin ti .
, no date .

01 1 0 S C H A C H I N G : J a n H u s u n d s e in e Z e it , R e g e n s b , 1 9 1 4 , p p
v ON . .

F o l l o w s H e l f e rt , t h o u g h l ac k i n g H e li e r t s a b i li t y , in p ro
’
272 .

n o u n c in g H u s s t h e fi r s t o f m o d e r n r e v o l u t i o n i s t s .

N H A U RI : J Hus, a h r h e its z e u ge , C o n s t a n ce , pp
'

. . e in ll 1 9 1 5, . 63 .

A l so J . F OX E : A c te s and M on u m e n ts , 3 40
—
5 579 . S ub s ant t i all y
accu rat e .

A r t H uss .
,
in S ch afl—H er z og an d the C a t! t E n cycl op ed ia
. .

H R A D S H A L L : Th e U n iv e r s it ies
. o f E u r op e , O x f o r d , 1 89 5, v ol . II .

M C R E I G H T O N : L a s t P op es of th e M A
. V ol I . . . .

J H W YL I E : The C ou n cil of C on s ta n ce to th e D ea th of J H u s L on d
. . .
,
.
,

1 9 00 .

L E A : H is tor y of th e I n q u is it ion ,
2 46 2 s qq .

W O R K MA N A ge of H u s L on d , ,
.
,
1 90 2 .

S C H A F F : C h u r ch H is tor y , v ol . V pt 2 ,
. .

T h e W o r k s Of W y cl i f ,
1 88 5 s qq e s p e c i a lly
.
, the d e E ccl e s ia , w i t h i n t r o d .

b y L os e r t h an d t h e d e D om in io d ioin o a n d d e civ il i D om in io, w i t h

i n t r o d u c t i on s b y P oo l e .

W W . . T O ME K : T h e w ri t i n g s t h i s C z e c h au th o r on t h e u n i v e r s i t y
Of

of P r a gu e , 1 8 49 , an d the c i t y o f P r a gu e 1 8 5 5 I k n ow o n ly t h r o u g h , ,

q u o t a t i on s .
T E S T I MONY O F T H E UN I V E RS I TY O F P RA G U E
TO J OHN H U S S
M ay 2 3, 1 41 6, M on u m e n t a , I : 103

O v ir u m in ejf a bil e m , ven er a n d ce pr cef u l gen tem s p ecu l o s a n ctita tis . O

v ir u m h u m il e m m a g n ce p ie ta tis r a dio c or u sca n te m , q u i con te m p tor

d ivitiar u m u s q u e a d excu ss u m s in u m p a u p er ib u s m in is tr a b a t ; q u i
gen u a p r on u s fle cter e a d egen or u m l ectos n on r ecu s a b a t ; q u i l a chr ym is
d u r os a d p ce n iten tia m pr ov oca b a t, a n im os q u e f er oces in efia b il i d u l
ced in e m u l c e n d o m itiga b a t ; q u i oitia g en e r a l iter cu n ctor u m , p r a s er tim ,

s u p er b i c u p idi e t op u l e n tis Cl er i, a n tiq u is et ob litis s cr ip tu r ar u m

r e med iis q u a s i n ooo q u od a m e t in au d ito in cen tioo ex m a g n a ch ar ita te

f u n d itn s ex ur eb a t, a p os tol icis q u e in n ix u s v es tigiis tota su a cu r a

pr im ceoce E ccl es iae m or es in Cl er o r es ta u r a b a t e t p op u l o ; q u i e tia m in
v er b i f or titu d in e ci s a p ien t ia ca ter os su p er a b a t , in om n ib u s om n ia

e x er cen s op er a ch a r ita t is , p u r ee fi d ei e t in v iol a b il is oer ita tis ut

in om n ib u s fi er et M a gis ter vita s in e p ar i .

O m a t c h l e ss m an S h i n i n g a b o v e al l b y t h e e x a m p l e o f sp l e n d i d s a n c
t i t y O h u m b l e m an flas h i n g w i t h t h e r a y Of g r e a t p i e t y , wh o
.

c on t e m n e d ri c h es a n d m i n i s t e r e d t o t h e p oo r e v e n t o t h e O p e n i n g

ou t of h is b o s o m , -

wh o d id n o t r e f u s e t o b e n d his k n e e a t t h e b e d s
O f t h e S i c k ,
— w h o b r ou g h t w i t h t e a r s t h e h a r d e n e d t o r e p e n t a n ce ,
a n d c o m p ose d a n d s of t e n e d u n t a m e d m i n d s b y h is u n s p e a k a b l e

s we e t n e ss , — wh o b u r n e d a g a i n s t t h e V i c e s of al l m e n a n d es p e c i a lly
t h e r i c h a n d p r ou d c l e r g y , b as i n g h is ap p e a l s u p on t h e o l d a n d f or

g o t t e n r e m e d i e s O i t h e S c ri p t u r e s a s b y a n e w an d u n h e a r d O f
m o t i v e , co n c e i v e d in g r e a t l o v e , a n d wh o f oll ow i n g in t h e s t e p s Of
t h e A p os t l e s b y h is p as t o r al c a r e r e v i v e d in c l e r g y a n d p eo p l e t h e
r i g h t e ou s l i v i n g of t h e e ar l y c h u r c h , —wh o b y b r a v e n e ss a n d w i s d o m
in u t t e r a n c e e x ce ll e d t h e r e s t , S h ow i n g in all t h i n g s t h e wo r k s o f
lo v e , p u r e f a i t h , an d u n d e v i a t i n g t r u t h t h a t in all t h i n g s h e
m i g h t b e a M a s t e r of l if e w i t h ou t co m p ar e .
 C ON T E N T S

T HE A G E WHI CH HU S S LI VE D
IN

G e e ral ti m a t e f H s—Th e p ri d 3 —5 — B i f ce
VI I I —Th e U m s t m—T h m d i v l p p cy—T h m as
n es o us e o ,
1 00 1 00 on a

d t h e p p c y—T r t m e t
na an c a e e

f h r s y—A tt k s
a
e a a a o

A q i asu n an a a ea n O e e ac

ag i sta n th p p c y D a t e M a igli s of P d —Th e

e a a

G e r m a m y ti s—Th e H m ni t s— D i ipli
n rs u a ua
-

n s c ry r efo r m e r s
u a s na

R e f rm e r b e f r e t h e R f r m ti —Th e A vi gn
sc

e il e a d
hi sm —H u ss
o s o e o a on on x n

papa l sc in t h e m i d s t of th e se m o v e m en t s .

HU S S A ND B E THLE HE M CH A P E L
THE

H u ss
’
s b irth a d s h o l li fe —
n A t t he iv e r ity—R e c t o r—
c o O
i e d pri t—P r e a h e r a t B thl h m — P r g u s a i n t l
un s r

l e c t u a l a n d r e li g i ou s c e n tr e —
da n es c e e e a e a n e

C h a rl e s I V P e tr a r c h ! E n e as
S ylvi u s— c h a p e l—B o h e m i a n
, ,

T h e B e thl e h e m pr e a ch e r s
K on r ad o f W a l dh a u s e n —M ili c z o f K r e m s i e r—M a tthi as o f
J a n o w — H u ss s se rm o
’
n s
— P r e ac hi n g b e f o r e t h e sy n o d — The
B e thl e h e m c h a p e l p u lpi t—H ss s C hri s t m as m ed it a ti on
’
u

P a l a ck y on H u ss as a pr ea c h e r .

’
HU S S S DE B T TO WYC LI F
Th e v e r s ity of P r agu e
u ni —IVy
c l if s writi n g s ca rri e d t o B o h e m i a
’ ’

—W yc li f s t e ac hi n g s—H is tr e a t m e n t i E n g l an d —H is d e fin i
’
n

ti on O f t h e c h u r ch—H is i n fl u e c e a t t h e u iv e r sity O f P r a gu e
—I t s d e ci si on on t h e Wy c lifi t e A rti c l es—W a l d en s es
n n

HU S S AS A NA T1ON A 1 LE A D E R
rr e n t s in P r agu e —
.

T hr e e A r c h b i s h o p Z b y n e k— H u ss as
pr e a ch e r—A tt acks C l e ri c a l V i c e —
cu
s yn o d a l T h e b l oo d O f
h e p a rt s o f C hri s t s b o d y—R e li cs—D o c m e n t
’
IVy l sn a c k u

fr om O fo r d ab ou t W y c li f—P a l e cz a d S t a n i s l au s of Z a i m
—Z b y n ek s m m on ed b y t h e p op e t o se a r ch f or W yc lifit e
x n n

h e r e s y—I n di c t m e n t ag a i n s t H u ss—Th e d oc tri n e O f r e m a

u

n e n c e— Z b yn e k s r e ply— N O h e r esy i B 0 h e m i a —C a ll Of
’ “ ”

t h e co u n c il o f P i s a—B r e a c h b e t we e n W e n z e l an d Z b y n ek
n

IVe n z e l s w ith d r a wa l f r om t h e R o m an O b e d i e n c e — S i g i sm u n d
’

—W en z e l s sym p a thi es for H u ss—G e r m an s an d C z e ch s at t h e

’

u n iv e r s ity— W e n z e l c h an g es t h e ch a rt e r — S e cess i on of t h e
G e r m an s—H u ss s r e sp on si b ili ty
’
.

IN OP E N R E V O LT A GA I N S T THE AR CHB I S H OP
— —
C ou n c il
a t R om e
of
—
P i sa H u ss su pp o rt s A l e xa n d e r V H u s s i n d i c t e d
A l e x a n d e r o r d e r s c h a p e l s f or pr ea c hi n g c l o s e d a n d
—
Wy clifism p u n i sh ed Z b yn ek d e c r e es t h e b u rn i n g of W y c
x iii
xi v C ONTENTS

pp e l—S e r m on o f d e fi e—T h e
C H \ PT L R P AG E
li f w riti n g s —H u ss
’ ’
s s a a an c
w ri ti g s b u r d —H mm i t e d —W y li f d e fe d e d in
p b li c d d r s—H s a ss rti
n e ne u ss xco u n ca c n

f fr e d o m o f i n q iry
’
u a es s e u ss e on O e u

R i h r d W y h — H ss pp l s t J o h XX I I I — K i g d
—
e
—
c a c u a ea o n n an

n i t r d H pr r t r H u s s it e d t o R o m e
’

b y—I d i g i ti s t Z b y e k—F o r m l tt m pt t o
q uee ne es s ce s us ocu a o c

R f s to

d H s —
e use O e n n e o n a a e

r c il Zby k Z b y n e k s w ith d r w l f r o m
’

P r g e— d —Z b y n e k s d e a th
e co n e ne an us a a

T r s t o S i g i sm
’
a u u n un .

H U S S R E S I S TS TH E P OP E
H u ss s cas e a E u r o p e a n a ff a ir—J o h n
S t o k e s s vi s i t t o P r a g u e
’ ’
h

H u ss s r e ply t o S t o k e s—T h e s a l e O f i n d u l g e n c e s—L a d i s l a u s

’

— —
J o h n XX I I I S t w o b u ll s H u s s s r e s i s t a n c e T r e a ti se
’ ’
—
agai n st —
i n d u l g e n ce s A c r u s a d e f or k illi n g C hri s’ti a n s
—
J e r o m e O f P r ag u e P a r od y o’n t h e b u r n i n g O f W y c li s b ook s f
— R i o t e r s e x e c u t e d —W y c li s X LV A rti c l e s s ti g m a tiz e d b y f
P alecz — H u s s s r e ply t o t h e e i g h t d oc t or s—P o p e h a s n o
’

b u s i n e s s wi th t h e m a t e ri a l s wo r d .

W I TH D R A W A L F R OM PR A G U E .

H u ss
’
s agg a r va te d i ti on —I t e r d i c t pro ou n ce d
e x co m m u n c a n n

o v e r P r a g e — H ss s a pp e a l t C hri s t — E ff e c t O f t h e i t e r
’

d i c t —W e z e l c a ll s on H s t o with d r a w f r o m P r a g e—H ss
u u o n

a r c h b i h o p o f P f g e—
n us u u

a t A s t i— K on r a d I ll fa m e o f B 0
S ript r e—W y li f s
u s a u

h e m ia—H ss s l e tt e r s— H is
,
’ ’
u se of u c u c

b oo k s b r n e d a t R o m e — C o m m i s i on a pp o i n t e d t o s ttl e t h e
d i sse n s i on —P l c s pr o t s t a g a i s t t h e d e c i s i on —G e r son s
u s e
’ ’

X X c h a rg e s—T h e O pp osi ti on t o H u ss
a e z e n

VIII . B E F OR E T H E C O U N C I L O F C O N S T A N C E
P u rp os e o f t h e o il— S i gi sm n d pr om i se s t h e s al ons con
d ct us —C e t ifi a t e s t o H s s s o rth o d o y—
c un c u

u r c
~T h e j ou r n e y t o
u
’
x

Co s t — T h il — H rr t — I m pri s o e d t t h e
’

B l a c kf ri a r s—H ss s s i c k n e ss C o rr e s p d e c e—T h e c om
n c e an e c o n s s s a e s u c u n a
’

m i ss i n O i i n q i s iti on —S i g i s m u d s a rriv a l —H is a ttit u d e

u
-
on n
’
n

t o H u ss—J e r o m e s fir s t a rr e s t
o u
’
.

B E F O R E TH E C OU N C I L OF C ON S TA N CE
J o h n XX I I I S fli g h t —
’
P an i c i r e m ov e d t o
n

ttli — r t t f r h i l — D i tri b ti on
—H ss s a ttit d e—T r an sfe rr d t o t he
Go e b e P o n e s s o m B o e m a n o b e s n s u

o f t h e c p in P r a g e
’

fri a ry—H ss s h e a ri n gs J u e 5 7 8—T h e

u u u u e

F r a c i sc a
’

form l c h r ge s—S i g i sm n d s a d d r e ss—d A il l y s co se l

n n u n , ,
’

—
’ ’

—
a a u un

i
S g si m n d s
u l s t w
’
o r d s t
a o H u ss H u s s a n d co n sc i e n c e H u ss
an d t h e cou n c il .

X . C ON D E MN E D B U R N E D A T TH E S TA KE
A ND

i i
S g sm u d s n o fi d
’
e n tic l a d
n d r ss
— L a s t fo u r w e e k s O f H u ss s
a e
’

li fe — C ll e d u p o t b j r e —L t m ti g with P l e c
H s o t h e p o p e —T h e co n c il—L a s t m e s g e s—U se o f t h e
a n o a u as ee n a z

—
s a
—
us n u

Sc ript u r e s D i s tri b u ti on o f t h e c u p H u ss s b ook s co n

’
 J O HN HUSS

CHAPTE R I

T HE AGE I N W HI C H H US S L I VE D

S u mma p hil os op hia est Chr istn s , d en s n oster , q ue m s eguen d o et dis

cen d o s u m u s p hil os op hi .
—
W y c li f , d e Ver S cr ip , I 3 2 . . .

The su pr e m e phil osophy is C hr i s t our G od , ,

an d in foll owi n g him
an d l e a r n i n g fr om him we are phil osoph e r s .

IN John Huss B ohemia has made i ts one notable and

,

permanent contribution to the progress of Western cu l tur e

and religious thought O ther names the general student as
.

sociates wi th i ts people are Jer ome of Prague Charles IV ,

’
and the blin d King John Jerome s name is lin k ed wi th the
.

name of Huss Charles IV acted an important part in the

.

history of his time thr ough the university whi ch he founded

and his patronage of letters which made Pra gue a centre of,

study .The b lind king of B ohemia John of L u xemburg , ,

o ccupies a place in the romance of Engl ish history He fell .

in the thi ck of the fight at Cr ecy 1 3 4 6 and furnished to the , ,

coat of arms of the Prince of Wales the mo tto Ich di en I , ,

serve whi ch the B lack Pr ince appropriated

,
.

S trange to say the honor so freely accorded to Huss in

,

Protestant circles is still denied him by the vast majority of

his own countrymen No t two per cent of the population of
.

B ohemia is Pro testant Outside of that small and respect

.

able circle a change has been taking place in the la s t few year s
in the feelings of B ohemia toward its eminent citizen Once .

the idol of his people his memory was for centuries ob s cured
,

by religious prejudice Every memorial of him where possible

.
, ,

I
 JOHN HUS S

was de s troyed and the B ohemian people were taught to b e

“
lieve that he who s e heart beat S O warmly for h is own
,
” 1
n ation a n d for God s law was it s wor s t e n emy an emi ss ary
’

, ,

of evil n o t of good Thi s cha n ge h a s bee n going on S ince

,
.

1 8 48 ,
when reli gious liberty was gra n ted by the Austrian
gov e rnme n t Hu s s has come to b e looked upon in ever
.

wide n i n g circles as the chief of B ohe m ia n patrio ts and his ,

patrioti s m is celebrated with bon fires in Southern B ohemia

yearly on July 6 the supposed date of h is birth
,
Thi s is .

in spite of the unbroke n attachment whi ch prevails in that

sectio n to the R oman Catholi c Church There is also a group .

of free thinking perso n s in Prague not clo s ely bound to

-

Catho l ic i n s titutions who go further in honoring his memory

,
.

They have b een foremost in making preparations to com

’
memorate the fiv e hundredth anniversary of Huss s birth by
-

the erection of a mo n ume n t on the pub lic square of Prague ,

’
with which Hu ss s own cau s e and the career of his foll owers
are s o closely identified This fif th centenary o ccurring in
.
,

1 9 1 5 will s erve to call attention afresh to the deb t w hi ch the

,

religiou s institutions of the We s t and the cause of religious

tolera t ion owe to the B ohemian reformer I t is doub tful if we .
,

except the suf ferings and death of Jesus Chris t whether the ,

forward movement of religiou s enligh tenment and human free

dom have been advanced as much by the su fi e r in gs and death
of any single man as by the death of Hu s s Augustine B er .
,

—
nard Luther to S peak only of re l igious characters e x e r
,
—
c is e d their influence by their lives and wri tings ; Huss chiefly
’
by his su fferings in prison and the flames Paul s death was .

an incident in h is career In dying Huss accomplished more

.
,

than he did by living .

’
Hu ss s career b elongs to a movement whi ch was going on
during the two centuries separati n g the productive period of
1
F l aj sh a n s , E x p os it io D ecal ogi, p . 1 1 . L u tz o w, Lif e of H us , p 6 3 , s a ys.

H u s wa s t h e i d o l o f t h e B o h e m i a n p e op l e , wh ose g r e a t e s t r e pre se n t a tive in

t h e worl d s s t ory h e r e m a i n s
’ ”
.
 THE A GE -
IN WHICH HUS S LIVED 3

the Middle Ages and the period of the R eformation D uring

the s e two hundred years—1 3 00 to 1 50 0 or from the reign of
.

B o niface VIII to Lu ther s theses 1 5 1 7— a forward impul s e

’
,

of though t mani fested and maintained itself leading away

from the compulsory authority of the church and th e hi er
archy of the Middle Ages and pushing toward the in t e ll ec
,

tual and religious freedom of modern times The mind of .

Europe was striving to get rid of the sacramental fetters with

which i t had b ecome b ound by the papal decrees and the
speculations of the S choolmen and to fin d it s way to the as
sertion of the right of the in dividual to imm ediate communion
wi th God and individual sovereignty in matters of conscience .

The dissa tisfaction wi th the old mediae val order found isolated
but strong expression from indi v iduals here and there and at ,

the same time gleams of the new order about to b e introduced

in the S ixteenth century S hot forth suddenly lik e Northern
lights though they as suddenly di sappeared
,
.

B y the year 1 3 0 0 the faculty for governmental cons true

tion and the theological ingenuity of the medi ae val mind had
exhausted themselves For two hundred years b efore that
.

date th e Crusades had b een actively prosecuted from the con

que s t oi Jerusalem 1 0 99 to the ab andonment of the las t foot
, ,

of soil po s sessed by the Crusaders in the Holy Land 1 3 9 1 a , ,

period which witne s sed the complete development of the me

di aev a l papacy and church D uring the next two h un dred
.

years up to the time of the R eformation S ingle !indi vidual s

, ,

from I taly to England pro tested against these cons tru ctio n s .

In the end they succeeded while the armies of the Crusades

,

failed The former two h u ndred years the period of the Cru
.
,

sades saw the rise of the great M en di cant orders the full
, ,

bloom of the scholastic theolo gy the estab li shment of the papal

,

i n q ui si tion and the perfection of the s acramental system

,

which was regarded a s b eing as essential to salvation as fir e

is to heat a cold body or medicine to cure S ickne s s Th e .

latter period of two hundred years heard protests agains t

 JOHN HUS S

the e xi s ti n g o rder which were b as ed on S cripture reason and ,

hi s t o ry —a n e w tribu n al Th e s e were s ti fl ed one after the

.

o ther till t h e v oic e w a s heard a s from a n oth e r Nazareth the ,

v oic e from the N o rth a r e gion from w hi ch little good was

,

e xp e ct e d to com e Joh n Hu ss w a s one of those who j oined

.

thi s pr o t e s t a gai n s t t h e medi ae val order who helped to dis ,

credit the in fallibl e authority of the papal monarchy and to

a d v a n ce the cau s e of individual rights in matters of be l ief
a n d prac tice .

The three mighty constructions of mediae val thought if ,

w e omi t the univ e r s itie s and the cathedrals were the absolute ,

papacy the sacrame n tal church an d the in q ui sition

,
The .

famou s bull U n a m s on eta m i s sued by B oniface VIII I 3 0 2

, , , ,

co n s titute s an epoch in the history of papal dominion and

the coercive j uri s diction claimed for the church I t gave .

fi n al e xpre s sio n to the theory of the j urisdiction of the papacy .

I n te n ded to break down the oppo sitio n of P hi lip IV of France ,

w h o w a s a sserti n g the indepe n de n t right s of ki n g s i t set forth ,

’
in u n ambiguou s terms the pope s claim to supreme au thority
in all m u ndane a ffairs and made salvation to depend upon
per s o n al s ubmi ssion to him B oniface was giving expression
.

to no new assumption In compact s tateme n t he gathered

.

up the claim s which his predeces s ors had been constantly

making for more than two ce n turie s The s trongest cham
“

pion s of the s e claims had bee n Gregory VII and Inn ocent III .

The se pontiffs a ffi rmed that the papal Ofii ce foun ded in Peter
combi n ed s upreme authority in the church and also over
pri n c e s They compared the eccle sia s tical and the civil
.

pow rs e
— s ace r d otiu —
m and imp er iu m to the sun and gold on
the one hand and to the moon and lead on the o ther hand
, .

—
Gregory 1 0 7 3 1 0 8 5 s olemnly an n ou n ced that the state had
, ,

it s origi n in e v il— greed a n d ambitio n cruelty plunder and , , ,

murder The church is a n i n s titutio n of divi n e appointment

.

“
e s tabli shed wh e n Chri s t s aid to Peter : Thou art Peter and
upon this rock I will build my church Matt 1 6 1 8 This ,
. .
 T H E A GE I N WHICH HUS S LIVE D 5
’
masterful ruler fo u nd the pop e s right to set up and depose
kings authorized in the Old Testament q uo t ing with peculi ar ,
“
delight the words of the prophet Jeremiah 1 1 0 : S ee I , ,

have this day set thee over the nation and over the kingdom ,

to pluck up and to break down and to destroy and to over

,
”
throw to b ui ld and to plant
,
In hi s co n flict wi th the em
.

p e r or Henry IV he no t only deposed that monarch the heir

, ,

of Charlemagne bu t released his subj ect s from a l legiance

,

and had a rival emperor elected to take his place Gregory .

died in exile not defeated and not a V i ctor

,
.

—
Innocent III 1 1 98 1 2 1 6 who died in the f ul l possession
, ,

of hi s power declared that a s P eter alone went to Je s us on

, ,

the water so the pope has the unique pri v ilege of r u ling over
,

the nations of the earth A S the moon gets its light from the
.

superior orb the sun S O the emperor and pri n ces get their
,

authori ty fro m Chri s t s vicegerent on earth The pope judges .

all and is judged by no man To the tribunal of God alone

.

’
is b e responsible Inno cent s bull p er Ven er a b il em claim n
1

for the pop e the plenitude of power —p l en itu d e potestatis

.
, ,

was quoted in later times as the authori tative statement of

papal ru le over bo th realms T hi s principle was wel l ex
.

pressed by Thomas a B ecket addre s sing the clergy of Eng

land : Who presumes to doub t that the priests of God are
the fathers and masters of kings prin ces and all the faith, ,
”
f ul ? About the same time the monk C aesar of Heisterbach
gave voice to the pop ul ar Opinion when he compared the
church to th e fir m am en t the pop e to the sun the emperor
, ,

to the moon the clergy to the day bishops and abbots to

, ,
’
the stars and the laity to the nigh t Inn oce n t s favorite .

fi gur e for illustratin g th e relation of church and state was

taken from the head and th e body A S the head contains .

all t h e faculties that control the body so the papacy posses s es

all prerogatives neces s ary to rule the church .

The supremacy over b oth realms whi ch the papacy c ov ,

M ir b t ,
1 3 8 sq .
6 JOHN HUS S
’
e ted it go t If Gregory VII S co n flict wi th Henry IV ended in
,
.

a dra w n ba ttle the co n fl ict s of s ub s e q u e n t po n ti ff s wi th s e c

,

ular pri n ce s had a be tter i ssue T h e hou s e of Hohe n staufen .

fough t in vai n agai n s t their supreme j uri sdiction and S O did

Joh n of E n gla n d The valia n t Frederick B arbaros s a was
.

brought to term s by Alexa n der III at the Peace of Ve n ice ,

’
1 1 77 The pai n ti n g in the doge s palace a n d a n other in th e
.

Va tica n d e picti n g thi s eve n t o n large ca n va s e s represent

, ,

’
Alexa n der sitting o n a throne with h is feet on B arbaro ss a s
right S houlder as the emperor li e s prostrate The Ve n etian .

picture contains the words : Thou s halt tread upon the

”
lio n a n d the adder P s alm 9 1 1 3 The able Frederick II
,
.
,

excommunicated agai n and again by two popes and by the ,

decree of I n n ocent IV deprived of the allegiance of his sub

j e c t s died without an army and with his empire in revolt
,
.

Joh n of E n gla n d forced by the i n terdict and the reb e l lion of

,

h is n oble s yielded his crow n as a h e i to I n n ocent III and for

, ,

the pledge of a yearly tribute to be paid by himself and his

succe ss or s receiv e d the crow n b ack agai n .

’
B oniface V I I I S h u ll of 1 3 0 2 exceeded in its arrogan t lan
guage the edict s of h is predece ss or s but not the extravagance ,

of their claim for the apostolic o ffice I t was i s sued at a time .

when the fre sh atmo sphere of a new age was beginning to b e

felt I t wa s a brave retort that the king of Fra n ce made when
.

he bade B oniface remember that the church was made up of

layme n as well as cleric s The Catho li c historian C ardi n al .
,

H e r g e n r Ot h e r accurately presents the case when he say s that

,

B oniface did not de v iate from the paths of his predecessors

n or overstep the legal concep tions of the Middle Ages 1 The .

U n a m s on eta m declared that in the power of the church lay

the two sword s the S piritual and the material ; the spiritual
,

to be u s ed by the church the material for the church and at ,

it s n od The temporal power if it deviate from the right

.
,

l
K ir che n ges c h .
,
2 59 7 . S ch ah ,’
V ,
2 25 —9 giv
2 ,
es t he La ti n t e x t of th e
b u ll wi th Eng li sh tr a sl a ti on
n .
8 JOHN HUS S

dispensatio n of a sacerdotal order receiving i ts authority and

it s grace by ordination s o that n o matter how immoral the
, ,

prie s t may be h is words accomplis h t h e tra n sub s ta n tiatio n

,

of the bread a n d wi n e an d render the o ther sacraments dis

p e n s e d by his act e ffi cient in the recipient .

Thi s impo s i n g construction of the church reared by

dexterou s s chola s tic reaso n ing which ig n ored entirely or ,

mi s i n terpreted a large body of apostoli c teaching was sub ,

j e c t e d to rational doub t and free S criptural i n quiry after the

death of B oniface VIII and the last of the greater S choolmen ,

D un s S cotu s d I 3 0 8 The S choolmen subj ected the rea s on

,
. .

to church au thority They applied to the S crip ture s no in

.

dependent investigation They knew no Hebrew or Greek . .

They pre s e n ted the opinion s of the Father s collecti n g them ,

into an iron clad body of dogma s Their theolo gical soph

-

is t r y threatened to bury the S criptures in the tomb of doc

tri n al tradition but men here and there again b egan to s tudy
,

the sacred text and to mea s ure ecclesia s tical dogmas by it s

plain teachi n g and common sense Thi s is what Wyclif .
,

Hu ss and o ther s did .

Next to the papacy and the church the third great elabora
tion of the period of the S choolmen was the inquisition the ,

machi n ery for the abo l ition of eccle s iastical di ss ent Heretical .

depravity it was called for heresy was not an intellectual ,

Opinio n onl y : i t was depravity Thi s inquisition followed .

from the de fini tion of the prerogatives of the papal o ffice and
the fun ctio n s of the church Here the great S choo l men and .

the great popes again speak To both alike heresy that is — .

, ,

dis s e n t from the dogmatic teachings issued by the church

a n d di s ob edience to the rule of the hierarchy — wa s a crime .

’
Thoma s A q ui n as s S u mma of Theol ogy was in full accord
wi th the decree s of the Fourth Lateran Council pre sided over
by Innocent III 1 2 1 5 A heretic having no right s in the
,
.
,

church ,
h a s al s o no rights whatever on e arth
— not even the
right to live .
 THE A GE IN WHICH HUS S LIVED 9

The church acquired righ ts over the individual by bap

t ism and these rights extended to the d eprivation of life .

’
I n nocent likened heretics to Joel s locu s ts and to the foxes
which spoil the Vines Like clipper s of coin they are to
.
,

b e burned afii r m e d Thomas A q uinas To quote this the

,
.

o l ogian : They are no t only to b e separated from the church

by excommunication but also excluded from th e world by
”
death . Th e S piritual authority migh t consign heretic s to
perpetual impri s onment and a s it was forbidden to execute
, ,

the death penalty it turned them over to the civil tribunal

,

with the full understandi n g that they were to be punished if ,

necessary unto death This penalty it made sure by threat

,
.

e h ing with extreme church punishments civil tribunals which

failed to administer i t The codes of Frederick II and th e
.

law of Lo ui s IX of France enacted that heretics condemned

by the church S hould b e executed ou t of the world 1
.

These three institutions— papal absolutism the church as ,

an organization dispen si n g life and the ab solute right to d is

pose of heretics by death inherited from the age of the great
,

—
popes and the great S choolmen controlled the Ofii cial though t
of Western Europe until attacked by Luther S ix months .

before he nailed up his theses Leo X solemnly reaffirmed the ,

’
pretensions of B oniface VI I I S famous bull B u t in the mean .

time these three institutions were questioned or openly as

sailed by indi viduals who may b e grouped in fiv e different
groups To one Of these groups John Huss b elonged and he
.
,

represented th e attack against all these three insti tution s the ,

papal monarchy the church and the inquisition I n this

, ,
.

opposition there was a movement r un nin g in the direction of

the recogni tion of the supreme authori ty of S crip ture and
the rights of conscience for b oth of whi ch Huss s tood
,
.

The first of these groups was the group of pamphleteers

1
D olli n g e r R e u sch , Ca r d B ell ar m in , s a y s th a t at t h e d e m an d of G r e go ry
-
.

IX t h e R o m an se n a t o r t ook a n o a th t o se iz e h e r e ti cs p o i n t e d o u t b y t h e ia
q u isi t ion a n d t o p u t th e m t o d e a th w ithi n e i g ht d a y s of th e ir e cc l e s i a s ti c a l

t
s e n e n ce .
10 JOHN HUS S

who flouri shed in the fir s t half of t h e fourteenth century and

a ss ail e d fir s t the t e mporal claim s of the papacy a n d then its
s piritual claim s I t s mo s t emi n e n t repre s e n tative w a s D a n te
.
,

d 1 3 2 1 who in h is tract e n titled lil on a r chy and in o ther

.
, ,

wri ti n g s wro te in favor of the i n d e pende n t authority of

,

t h e empir e a n d t h e s upremacy of it s j uri s diction wi thi n the

ci v il s phere H e accepted th e accuracy of the tradi tio n that
.

Co n s ta n ti n e in reward for h is bapti s m by Sylvester and h is

,

’
recovery from leprosy by that pope s cure be s towed upon the ,

pope the governme n t of R ome a n d all the regio n s o f the West .

Thi s fal s ehood w a s di s tributed through Europe about 8 5 0

by the S puriou s I sidorian D ecretal s and was for centuries b e
l ie v e d to be as true as the Gospel s themsel v e s I t wa s no t .

until the clo s e of the fi ftee n th century that Laurentius Valla

proved the whole s tory a fraud D ante we n t n o further than .

to pronounce Co n s ta n ti n e i n compete n t to be s tow s uch power

upo n a pope That right belonged to God alone who had
.
,

made the two S pheres distinct He rej ected the figure com .

pari n g the two powers re spectively to the sun and the moon .

H is famous line s might well have been quoted by Hus s in his

Tr ea tise on the C hu r ch where b e empha s ized the ills which
,
’
had come to i t through Constan t ine s fi ctitious gift .

Oh ! C o n s t an ti n e , h ow much ill w as cau se

N o t t h y co n v e r si on , b u t tho se rich do m a i n s
Which the firs t we althy p op e r e ce i v e d o f th e e
—I nf er n o
.

,
19 z 1 1 5 .

D ante freely put popes in hell including the S imoniac ,

B o n iface VIII .

I n Fra n ce moved by the controversy which Philip IV

,

was havi n g with B o n iface the D omi n ican John of Paris, ,

(1 1 306
.
,
a n d j uri s co n s ult s like Peter D ub oi s d after 1 3 2 1 .
, ,

s truck the s ame n ote The s e publici s t s i n si s ted the church

.

“ ” 1 ’
S hould keep itself clear of Herod s old error and follow
1
S c h olz , P u b l iz ist ik, e tc .
,
p .
3 15 .
 THE A GE IN WHI CH HUS S LIVED 1 1

Christ who in his earthly career disclaimed worldly author

, ,

ity John refuted forty two reasons given for the pop e s
.
-
’

omnipotence in temporal a ffair s The pope is the repre s e n ta .

tive of the church no t it s lord appoi n ted to be the moral

, ,
’
teacher of mankind and the overseer of me n s spiritual con
cern s The contrary view the view of Innoce n t III wa s
.
, ,

repre s ented by o ther pub lici s ts who were concerned to de

’
fend B oniface s b ull and memory Amongst those who went .

far t he s t were Alexander T r iu m p h u s and A l v ar u s P elayo who ,

ascrib ed i n fallibili ty to the pope and extended his j u r isd ic

tion b eyond the con fines of Chri s tendom and over the heathen .

Along the line of this contention was the action of the coun
cil of Vienne 1 3 1 2 which forb ade sovereign s to allow their
, ,

M ohammedan subjects to exercise the ritual of their religion 1

.

H e r gen r Ot h e r and Pa s tor complain that Alexander T r iu m p h u s

carried matters beyond the li m its of truth makin g the pope ,

a se mi god the ab s olu te ruler of the world

-

,
.

The attack upon the theocratic preten sions of the papacy

was followed by an assaul t upon the supreme spiritual fu n c
tions claimed for i t and the priesthood Thi s group of pam .

h l e t e e r s had its chief representatives in M a r sigl iu s of Padua

p
and John of Jandun In part Ock am also agreed with them
. .

These all supported the claims of Lewi s th e B avarian in hi s

’
conflict with John XXII and John s two succe s sors M ar .

sigliu s has b een called by eminent C atholi c historians D OI ,

linger Pastor and Funk a foreru nner of Luther and Calvin

, ,
.

With great clearness he asserted some of the essentials of the

Pro testant R eformation and in some respects he went b eyond
,

th e R eformers as when he declared that the people them

—
,

selves are the source of authority and select their own rulers .

—
His tract D ef en sor p a cis D efender of th e P eace is a bold
manifesto against the hierarchi cal organization of the church .

’
The pope s claim of ple n itude of power contradicts the true
nature and idea of the church The highest earthly tribunal .

1
S ch afi , V ,
1 51 9 .
1 2 JOHN HUS S

in church matters is the general council Laymen h ave the .

right to S it in i t a s well a s cleric s The order s of bi shop prie s t .

,

and deaco n are of huma n origi n The function of bi n di n g .

a n d loo si n g is declarative no t j udicial The right to i n fl ict

,
.

pe n altie s lie s with the Chri s tian congregation the body of ,

Chri s tian b eliever s The S crip tures are the ultimate s eat of
.

authority John XXII 1 3 2 7 condemned the tract a s con

.
, ,

t r a r y to apo s tolic truth and declared its reputed j oint author s ,

M ar sigl iu s a n d John of Jan dun son s of per di tio n sons of , ,

B elial pe s tiferous men bea s t s from the abyss

, ,
1
M a r sigliu s .

was equal to the pope in fi nding forcible epithet s and de

n ou n ce d John as the great dragon the old serpent I t is ,
.

remarkable how S hort a time had elapsed b etween Thomas

Aquinas the great architect of the medi aeval sy s tem of the
,

church and papacy and these violent democrati c a ss aults

,
.

The second group the German mystics disparaged the

, ,

medi ae val system by their habits of piety rather tha n by their

writings They breathed a di ff erent atmo sphere from the
.

S choolmen a n d l ived apart from the conflict over worldly

authority This remarkable body of men preaching and
.
,

S preading by example the precepts of practical Chri s tia n ity ,

did no t open ly attack a s i n gle do gma of the church They .

had nothi n g to say abou t it s outward con s titution or the sacra

ments Nevertheless in the person O f M eister E ckart they
.
, ,

brought upon themselves condemnation from the pope hi m

self and in the per s on s of Hugo de Groote and o ther leaders
, ,

of the moveme n t from th e Lowlands they called forth su s ,

p i ci o n and attacks from the Franciscan order The move .

ment was in the interest of personal piety an d every day -

Chri s tiani ty These men walked in secluded path s of S piritual

.

devotion They preached in the ver n acular tongue They

. .

taugh t schools They wrote tracts on the immediate com

.

munion of the soul with Chri s t They copied ma n u s cripts . .

Their teachings were oppo s ed to the dogmati c method of

1
F or J oh n
’
s b u ll , s ee M ir b t ,
1 66 .
 THE A GE I N WHI CH HUS S LIVED 13

the S choolmen The li ttle book called The Ger man Theol ogy
.

’
and also Tauler s sermons influenced Luther Godlin e s s .

is more than a do ctrine more than a ritual I t is a s tate , .

of the soul a habit of daily conduct In the soul religion is

,
.

to b e sought not in outward sacramental confor mi ties Th e

, .

word conversion — K e hr
— was coined anew and the thing i t ,

represented was in fact though no t professedl y opposed to , ,

sacramentarianism They insisted upon separation from the

.

world in contrast to separation from society upon the son ,

S hip of b elievers upon love and S imple faith upon walking

, ,
“ ”
wi th God . Wisdom said Tauler is not studied in P aris
, ,

but in the su fferings of the Lord The great masters of P ari s .

read large b ooks and that is well ; b ut people who dwell in

the inner kingdom of the so ul read the true book of life A .

pure hear t is the throne of the supreme judge a lamp b earing ,

”
eternal ligh t the sanctuary of the only b egotten Son
,
-
.

Glorifying all honest daily occupations he says : One can spin , ,

ano ther make S hoes and all these are the gif ts of th e Holy
,

Ghos t I tell you if I were no t a priest I S hould esteem i t a

.
, ,

great gift to b e able to mend S hoes and I woul d t r y to make ,

them well S O as to b e a pattern to a ll I t was b etter one .

,

of them said to have S imple faith than to pry into the secrets
,

of God Whi tti er makes known their spiri t in the lines

.

G od h as s e n t t h e m an
Long sought , t o t e ach m e , by his S impl e faith
”
Wi sdom t h e we ary Scho olme n n e v e r knew .

As Loofs has well said : German mys ti cism emphasized ab ove

” 1
all dogmas and external acts the necessity of the new birth .

Their names have no place in the records of councils but the ,

soil on w hi ch they labored and built their schools was the soil
on whi ch German Protestan tism sprang up .

A third group of m en who flourished in this p eriod of two ,

hundred years were the Humanists In I taly first they broke

,
.

1
D ogmen geschichte, p . 63 1 .
14 JOHN HUS S

a n e w pa th for intell e ctual culture a n d freedom The cla ss ic .

lit e r a tur e of Gr e e c e a n d R ome t h e church follo wing the b an , ,

o f S t J e rom e
. had taugh t for nearly a thou s and years was
, ,

a n uncl e a n thi n g All Chri s tia n s were to keep away from the
.

i n f e ctio n U n d e r the impul s e of D a n te P etrarch and B o c

.
,

caccio oth e r s tudie s than the s tudy of theology came i n to

v ogu e S cholar s turned with deligh t to the arti s tic and
.

literary trea s ure s of the Old World to it s mythology a n d ,

hi s tory They dis cover e d agai n the wonder s and beautie s

.

of the earth around them They made the Italian the ave n ue .

of their thought and prepared the way for the breaking up of

the mo n opoly of eccle sia s tical Lati n Nichola s V an d o ther .

pope s joi n ed with the M edici s of Florence and o ther noble

familie s in patronizing the new culture and collecting li
b r a r ie s and trea s ure s of art The North learning from I taly .
, ,

added s ome new e leme n t s a n d R euchli n a n d Era s mus s tarted

,

Hebrew and Greek s cholar ship on it s modern path s and en

gaged in the s tudy of the B ible as the Southern Humani s ts ,

had not .

A fourth group of men produced in the latter half of the ,

fourteenth century i n cluded the eccle s iastical and d is cip li

,

n ary reformers They are a ss ociated with the great R eforma

.

n —
tory cou n cil s Pi s a Con s tance a d B a s el 1 40 9 1 449 With .
, , ,

the aid of di s cipline and law they s ought to correct abu s es

which pre v ailed in the church I n i n ci sive pamphlets they .

s e t forth the ill s of Chri s te n dom and agreed upon a general

cou n cil a s the mea n s for curi n g them Th e pri n ciple that s uch .

council r e pre s e n ti n g the whol e church is above the pope

, , ,

advocated by Oekam was taken up a n d pre s ented with ,

conci s e n e s s a n d clearnes s by Ko n rad of Gel n hau s en He .

w a s followed in the s ame path by s uch men as He n ry of L a n

’

g e n s t e in Ger
,
s o n d A ill y and Nieheim
,
The discu ssion .

ce n tred in the u n i v er sity of Paris whi ch b ecame the influ en ,

tial spo n sor of t h e supremacy of cou n cils With this group of .

e ccle s ia s tical reformer s the

q ue s tion wa s one of the a d m in is
1 6 JOHN HUS S

they contested the propo sition that what the vi s ible church
teache s mu s t b e believed becau s e the church teaches it They .

turned away from a n i n fallible pope a n d an infallible V isible

church to the livi n g Christ who rules perso n ally in the h earts
,

of believer s a n d in the S crip tures Th e y q ue s tioned or de n ied.

’
the church s right to punish heretics a n d s chi smatics with
phy s ical pu n i shments .

’
D uri n g the narrower period of Huss s life two movements
of unu s ual importan ce were going on in the hi s tory of Latin
Christendom the Avigno n exile and the papal s chi s m B o th
,
.

threate n ed the continuation of the papacy and the unity of the

We s ter n church Huss wa s born during the Avignon e x ile
.
,

and he lived through the entire period of the papal schism ,

—
1 3 77 1 41 7 Two years after the death of B oniface VIII
.
,

1 303 ,
the transfer of the papacy from R ome to Avignon was
accomplished The bitter confli ct b etween B oniface and
.

Philip the Fair a con fl ict which Philip continued to wage

,
’ ’
again s t B oniface s memory after the pope s death was the ,

o ccasion of the removal of the papal residence to the b anks

of the R h one D uring the seventy years that the papacy con
.

tinned there the popes were all Frenchmen and li ttle more
,

than French court bi shops Frenchmen con s tituted the large

-
.

majority in the sacred college The venali ty that wa s prae .

t is e d in the papal household at Avignon and the moral cor

ruption of the place won for i t from contemporaries the name
of the third B abylon Chur ch o ffices were set for sale and
.

lucrative li v ings were fil led before their incumbents were

dead two or even three ecclesia s tics paying for the right of
,

succe ssion and standi n g as i t were in line until the living in

, ,

cumbent died and the others one by one fi lled ou t their , ,

turns . These provi sions and reservations as they were ,

called and the con s tant appeal of all sorts of ca s e s from every
,

q uarter to the apostolic se e made the Avignon court the

scene of constant intrigue and bribery The turbule n t state .

of Italy and the fear that papal terri tory might b e lost to
 THE A GE IN WHICH HUS S LIVED 1 7

the patrimony of S t Peter even more than the appeals of

.
,

P etrarch and the prophetic voices of B rigi tta of Sweden and

Catherine of Siena induced the last Avignon pope Gregory
, ,

“
XI to vi s it R ome Gregory the pope whom Wyclif called a
,
.
,
”
terrible devil died unwillingly at R ome and while he was
,

contemplating a return to France .

The papal schi s m w hi ch followed upon Gregory s death

,
’
,

was a far greater misfortun e than the Avig n on exile Follow .

ing the rule that the papal election take place where the pope
dies and overawed by the threats of the R oman populace
, ,

which demanded an I talian pope the curia elected the arch ,

bishop of B ari known as Urb an VI Of the twenty cardinals

,
.

at that time in R ome S ixteen were Frenchmen and only four

I tal ians Urb an was incapable of rising to his great op p or
.

t u n it y and by his self will and disregard O f every dictate of

,
-

prudence he hi mself became a refugee and exile The French

,
.

cardinals refusing to acquie s ce in his election chose the no

, ,

t or iou s R ob ert of Geneva who assumed the name of Clement

,

VI I and continued the papal court at Avignon The two

one on the Tiber and one on the R h one—hurled the
.

popes —
anathema one at the other and Western Europe for forty years
,

witne s sed the scandal of two earthl y heads of the church and
“ ”
was divided b etween two Ob ediences As a result many .

dioceses were divided in their allegiance and had rival bishops ,

as was the case with M ainz Li ege B asel Constance Chur , , , , ,

“
and o ther dio ceses P astor has said : The papal schism was
.

”
the greatest misfortune whi ch could h ave b efallen the church .

The best talent of the age as already intimated was devoted, ,

to the di scussion of methods for th e aboli tion of the schism

and the reunion of Christendom B ohemia to which Huss .
,

b elo n ged was true to the R oman line b ut an element of u m

, ,

certainty in its religious affairs re s ulted from the constant ~

e fforts of the Avignon popes to attract the allegiance of its
ki n g to themselves With the example of the univer s ities of
.

Paris and Oxford b efore it the new university of Prague was

,
18 JOHN HUS S

compelled to inve s tigate the foundatio n s of th e papal offi ce

a n d the place which the s upreme ponti ff occupied in the

church .

D uri n g this mos t critical period of the papal schi sm Huss

w a s a stude n t at the u n iver sity a n d an active participant in
the church a ff air s of h is people With the proposition s which
.

came from the u n iver s ity of Paris and from individual s in

tended to heal the schism he must have been thoroughly
familiar The R eformatory council of Pisa summoned 1 40 9
.
, , ,

to accomplish t hi s result wa s held when he was in the full

,

tide of h is activi ty and i ts deb ates he must have followed

wi th intense interes t In the presence of the second R eforma
.

tory cou n cil the council of Constance which brough t ab ou t

, ,

the depo s itio n of three popes and elected a fourth he him s elf
,

stood ; however as a prisoner under trial for his life

, .
 C H APTE R II

HUS S A ND TH E B E T HL E H E M C HAP E L

J ohan n es H u ss l in gu a p oten s cl mu n d ior is v itae opin ion e cl a r u s

—
.

! E n e as S ylvi u s , H is t B oh , c h a p 3 5 . . . .

H u ss , for c i b l e of s p e ech an d d i s ti n g u i sh e d b y t h e r e p u t a ti on of a

p ur e lif e .
1

J OH N H U S S was born in H u sin ecz a village in Sou thern ,

B ohemi a near the B avarian frontier about the year 1 3 7 3

, , ,

and died at the stake in Constance July 6 1 4 1 5 The year , ,

.

1 3 6 9 w hi ch has sometimes b een given a s the year of Hu s s s

’
,
’
birth seems to b e too early for i t would necessitate Huss s
, ,

bein g thi rty two years old at the tim eof his ordination to the
-

priesthood the cano ni cal age b eing twenty fiv e

,
2
The exact -
.

’
day of Huss s birth we have no means of determining and the ,

S ixth of July obse r ved by the Catholi c population in parts

,

of B ohemia seems to have b een suggested by the day on

,

whi ch his death occurred Usually he signed h is name John .

Hus In o ffi cial documents it was given as M agister or even

.

D octor Johann es of H u sin e cz The custom of associating .

the place of birth wi th th e Chri s tian name was common as ,

in the cases of John Wyclif John Gerson and John R ok yz an ,

.

The Czech word ha s means goo se and it was made the o c

casion of many a p un by Huss himself as we l l as by his friends .

A friend writing about him from Constance said that the

Goose was no t yet cooked and not afraid of b eing cooked and ,

T h e com p a r a tiv e , mu nd ior is s ee m s t o i n d i c a t e an a d v an c e u po n H u ss s

1 ’

f or c e of s p e ec h f
A d i s ti n gu i s h e d pr o es s o r o f L a ti n su gg es t s t h e t r s l
. a sin .

g u l ar l y p u r e l if e , c i ti n g C i c e r o , C a to M aj or , wh o sp e ak s of ol d ag e as toqu acior ,
p arti cu l a rly t a lk a tiv e .

2
P a l a cky an d T o m e k a cce pt 1 3 6 9 , b u t L ose r t h , W icl if a n d H u s , p 6 7 , .

G ill e tt an d L utz o w, 1 3 7 3 Fl aj s h an s , p 1 2 , i n c li n e s t o 1 3 7 3 , a lth o u g h h e s a y s

. .

t h e d a t e m ay h a v e b e e n as l a t e a s 1 3 7 6 H u ss was b a c c a l a u r e u s , 1 3 9 3 , t h e t e
.

q u ir e d a g e b e i n g Si x t e en F l aj sh a n s , p 4 2 , g ivi n g t h e d ifi e r e n t ol d sp e ll i n g s o f
. .

H u ss s n a m e sa y s h e is c a ll e d J H u ss d e H u ss in ecz in a co u rt d ocu m e n t , J u n e
’
.
20 JOHN HUS S

Hu s s wro te : If you love your poor Goose see to i t that the ,

” 1
ki n g s ends him guard s .

Of Hu ss s boyhood and h is univer sity career our kn owl

’

edge is s can t H is parents were poor bu t no t in n ece s sitou s

.

circumstances 2
H is father who s e name wa s Joh n di ed when
.
, ,

he w a s a child a n d according to F l aj sh an s the s on wa s called

, , ,

in his youth after his father Jan M ich al u v His mother ,

.

’
seem s to have devoted much attention to her son s care and
wa s wont to accompany him to school Later S h e we n t wi th .

him to Prague when he entered upon hi s uni ver s ity career

,
.

He had bro ther s whom he recalled with a ffection in his la s t

days and one of the s e brothers had s on s whom Hu s s wri t ing
, ,

S hortly before his death commended for a trade as they , ,

seemed to him no t to b e fi tted for the S piritual o ffi ce Of .

h is school life at P r ach a t icz a neighboring town to h is birth ,

place we know no detail s wi th certai n ty The exact date of

,
.

hi s entra n ce upon his s tudies in the univer s ity of Prague is

uncertain though i t was probably 1 3 8 9 There he studied in
,
.

the department of the arts and philo s ophy and al s o theology .

From thi s time on we fin d h is name S pelled Jan of H u sin e cz .

To use the technical language of the time he was promoted ,

to the degree of B A 1 3 93 B D 1 3 94 and M A 1 3 9 6 Huss .

,
. .
,
. .

never reached the do ctorate of theology and until the e n d , ,

called himself bachelor of s acred theology or a s in hi s let

ters Magi s ter J Hus He helped to support hi m s elf by S ing
. .

ing on the street s and in churches a s Luther did a hundred ,

year s later H is piety and his poverty are alik e attested by

.

hi s purcha s e of a pardon at the sale of indulgences at the

W ys se h r a d in the Prague j ubilee year 1 3 93 He says that .

he spe n t his last four pen nie s in purchasi n g the certificate of

forgive n e s s R eferri n g probably to the year s before hi s ma
.

t r ic u l a t ion at the u ni ver s ity he n o tes in h is B ohemia n C om ,

1
D oc , 8 0 , 1 0 0
. .

2
P a l a ck y , Oesch , 3 191 A c co r d i n g t o F l aj sh a n s , H u sin e cz h a d a p op u
. .

l a ti on of F or t h e scan ty l e ge n d s o f H uss s li e , s e e thi s a u th o r s L if e ,

’ ’
f
p . 22 .
 HUS S AND THE B ETHLEHEM CHAPEL 21

me n tar y on the D eca l ogu e

that when he was a hungry li ttle
studen t he made a spoon out of bread and ate the peas with
i t and then ate the spoon also .

I t would seem that Hus s was no t a remarkable stude n t ,

as the univer s ity lis t s pu t him midway in the groups receiving

degrees A s tatement in one of hi s letters report s that b e
.
,

fore he entered the priesthood he was fond o f playi n g chess

, ,

and he thought it necessary to confess that he had frittered

away time and provoked both hi mself and o thers to anger over
the game Univer s ity s tudents at Prague had to run the
.

gau ntlet I t was a comm on thing for loose women to frequent

.

the hou s es where students roomed and eve n to take permane n t

’
lod gin gs in them 1
I t is fair to a s sume that Hus s s private
.

life was ab ove reproach Even down to th e last moments in

.

Constance no charge was ever b rought against his character .

The wi therin g pub lic attacks he made agains t vicious cleric s

from the earlies t period of his pub l ic activity failed to call
forth a sin gle charge against hi s personal purity This judg .

ment is al s o b orne out by the warm per s onal friend ship of

people of all cla s ses whi ch he enjoyed from the mechani c to
,

the highes t nobles of the real m men b efore whom his life ,

was a s an Open b ook ZE n e a S Sylvius afterward Pius II in

.
,
“

’
de s cribing Huss s death S poke of h im as disti n guished for the
,

reputation of a life of purity— a remarkable testimony from a

man whose record was marked by illici t amours and who was ,
’
severe upon Huss s heresy and the Hus s ites .

In 1 40 1 we fin d Hus s lecturing on the Sentences of P eter

the Lomb ard A proof of the re spect in whi ch he was held
.

was his election the same year as dean of the faculty of phi
l os op h y and a sti l l greater proof was his election in 1 40 2 to
, , ,

the Office of rector of the un iversity a position he at that ,

tim e fil led for S ix months The quali ties Of eloquence moral

.
,

elevation and per s onal magneti s m ascrib ed to him at a later

period must a l ready have had prominent exerci s e to explain
1
T om e k , as q uo ted b y L u tz o w , p . 69 .
22 JOHN HUS S

thi s gift of the highe s t univer s ity di s tinction He was a .

mark e d man in the eye s of s tude n t s a n d faculties .

Hu ss was ordained to the prie s thood in 1 40 1 His own .

statement that in prepari n g for the clerical o ffice he had had

in mi n d the s afe S helter and goodly apparel a comfortable
livi n g would bring him mu s t n o t be taken to exclude higher
motive s His first sermons so far a s we k n ow were delivered
.
, ,
’
in S t Michael s church
. B ernard it s i n cumbent Huss at a
.
, ,

later date pro n ounced a very great enemy of the Word of

God . At times he di n ed with B ernard and a remark made ,

on on e of these occa s ions wa s made the subj ect of a charge

again s t him at Constance that he held to the remanence of the
,

substance of the bread and wine after the words of in s t it u

’
tion at the Lord s Supper .

’
In the year 1 40 2 Huss s career as a preacher began with
h is appointment to the pulpi t of the Holy Innocents at
B ethlehem The yo u ng priest no t thirty years old was
.
, ,

s oon one of the most noted popular preacher s of his ce n tury

and the chief ecclesiastical figure of his own country The .

Holy I n nocents b ecame the con spicuous religious centre in

’
the city of Prague Huss s voice reached men of all classe s
.
,

from the king to the b eggar cleric and lay He exalted his ,
.

o fii c e and in u s i n g the ti tle bachelor of divinity often coupled

, ,
“
with it the title rector and preacher of the chapel of the
,

Holy Innocents of B ethl ehem in the old and large city of

”1
Prague
~
.

—
P r a gu e P r ah a in the Czech with which Huss s name
’

is as closely associated as S avonarola with Florence Calvin ,

with Ge n eva or Knox with E di n burgh has from time im

, ,

memorial b een the metropolis and capital city of B ohemia .

This land with nearly seven millions of people almo s t su r

, ,

rounded by mountai n ra n ges a n d watered by the river ,

Moldau and other streams is a part of the Au s trian empire , .

The national Slavic feeli n g of the peopl e is bound up with

1
D oc .
, 3 8 7 , 4 66 , etc .
24 JOHN HUS S

Charles IV wa s elected ki n g by the B ohemians This

,
.

dyna s ty became extinct in Sigi s mu n d who occupie s a place of ,

’
great promi n e n ce in Hu ss s last fortunes at Co n s ta n ce From .

the date of h is death 1 43 7 except at S hort i n terval s the king

, , ,

dom has bee n s ubj ect to the house of Hap sburg .

The B ohemian ruler in whose reign Huss was born , ,

—
Charles IV 1 3 46 1 3 7 8 wa s the most conspicuous poli ti cal
, ,
’
figure of his age and B ohemia s chief pri n cely benefactor His .

reig n is looked back to as the golden era of his country Never .

before or S ince has its pro sperity b een more generally ackn owl
edged or its i n fluence in Europe so appreciable Seven year s .

of residence at the court of his uncle the king of France gave , ,

the prince opportunity to become acquainted wi th the cul

ture Of Western Europe A s R oman emperor he issued the.

famous Golden B ull 1 3 5 6 which dete r mi n ed the rules for

, ,

the election to the imperial crown The document impo s ed .

the duty of summoning the seven electors and presiding over

their de l iberation s upon the archbi shop of Mainz and the ,

right to crown the emperor on the archbi shop of Colog n e .

The elections were to take place at Frankfurt Of the four .

lay elector s the king of B ohemia was made cupb earer an d the
, ,

Count Palatine the duke Of Saxony and the margrave of

, ,

B randenburg respectively seneschal marshal and chamber , ,

lain of the empire 1

.

’
D uring Charle s s reign Prague was transformed into one ,

of the notable capitals o f Europe That sovereign e n c ou r .

aged literature and the arts and laid the foundations of the
—
ma s sive palace on the Hradcany hill Hrad s chi n He built .

convents and churches and constructed the bridge across the

Moldau one of the architectural wo n ders of the age which
, ,

still remains after the pas s age of fiv e centurie s the chief

, ,

medium of commerce between t h e two parts of the city .

Early in his reig n Charle s wa s in correspondence with Petrarch ,

1
B ry ce , H oly Roma n E mp ire, p . 23 1 ,
wh o q u o t e s f r om M ar sigl iu s an d

S c hill e r .
 HUS S AND THE B ETHL EHEM CHAPEL 25

the lea d ing li terary figure of his times and on his visit to ,

I taly 1 3 54 met the poet P etrarch who applauded Charles

, ,
.
,

a s the Augustus and patron of lear ni ng looked to him for the ,

liberation of Italy He paid the emperor the high compli .

”
ment of sayi n g : We look upon you as an Ital ian As a .

commissioner from Milan 1 3 5 6 he visited the B ohemian cap , ,

ital call ing it the extreme limi t of the barbarians

,
Charles .

invi ted the Italian man of letters to make the city h is home ,

and Petrarch wa s ab out to accep t and go North when he was

stopped by wars and the b ad roads 1
.

Further evidence of the prominence of B ohemia at this

time is fur ni shed in the H istor y of B ohemia th e volume ,

written by ! Eneas Sylvius afterward Pope Pius II This , .

description written wi th elegant li terary taste covers the

, ,

natural features and resources of the country as well as the

origin and ann als of the people ZE n e as dwells upon the .

archi tecture of the stone bridge across the M oldau and

prai s e s Charles as a builder the patron of letters the founder , ,

of religious estab li s hments and the giver of peace He also ,

.

gives a valuable characterization of Huss and the Hussites ,

by whose madnes s he declared the name of B ohemia was as , ,

much tarnished as it had b een i l luminated by the constancy

of b rave men 2
.

In the days of Huss as ZE n eas says Prague was divided , ,

into three parts The oldest portion known as the W yss eh r ad

.
, ,

was b uilt aroun d a castle the ancient B ohemian acropolis , ,

on the righ t b a nk of th e Moldau I t was al s o the site of an .

extensive monastery The castle was destroyed in the Hussite .

’
wars The old town was close down on the river s b ank and
.

included the b uildings of the u ni versity the churches of S t ,

.

’
Michael s and S t Gal lus and the famous Teyn church whi ch .
, ,

1
J H . . R ob rtson
e , P etr a r ch , the F irst M od er n S chol ar a nd M an of L etter s ,
N Y. .
,
1 8 99 , d e vote s a c h a pt e r pp
,
. to the r e l a ti on b e t we en C h a rl es
an d P e tr a r c h .

2
I n tr odS icu t H u ss itar u m in s a n ia B ohemicu m
.
, no men l a b ef acta vit ita et

f or tiu m vir or u m con s tan tia ill us tr av it .

26 JOHN HUS S

was the church of the Utraquis t wi n g of the Hussites until

1 6 2 1 a n d is still one of the memorable monuments of the city
,
.

Here is the famou s Old town s q uare with the old tow n hall , ,

built 1 3 8 1 a portion of which s till remains In on e of the

,
.

council chamber s hang pictures repre s enti n g John Huss b e

-

fore the cou n cil of Co n stance and the election of Joh n Podie
b rad a s ki n g M arch 1 4 58 In thi s part of the city are S itu
, ,
.

ated the old Jewi sh cemetery and syn agogue among the very ,

olde s t on European soil and the un iver s ity b uildin gs 1

,
.

On the left b an k of the Moldau is the Hradcan y con ,

tain i n g the palace of Charles IV and buil din gs erected by

the Hap sburg kings as well as the hi s toric palaces of the ,

Wallen s tein and the S ch war t z en b e r g princes Here also is .

, ,

the great cathedral of S t Vite b egun in 1 3 44 and contai n i n g .

, ,

the relic s of S t Wence slaus and S t John N e p om u k In the

. . .

’
construction of the latter s shrine three thousand seven h u n
dred pou n d s of S ilver were used .

The B ethlehem chapel whi ch was in the busy and con ,

gested old town is as closely asso ciated wi th Hu s s as the

,

— —
Anasta sia the church of the R esurrection a t Constanti
n op l e was associated with Gregory N az ian z en who preached ,

withi n its wall s his famous discourses on the Trin ity B oth .

build ings have b een completely destroyed the chapel in ,

Prague by the Jesuits in 1 7 8 6 It was founded in 1 3 9 1 a s a .

place for preachin g in the Czech language The founders .

were two laymen the merchant Kriz who gave the S ite and
, , ,

the nobleman John M uhlheim of P ar d u b icz one of Kin g ,

’
Wenzel s coun s ellors who erected the buildin g and endowed
,

—
it It was called B ethlehem House of B read
.
— “
b ecau s e t h e
common people and the faithful of Christ migh t there b e
”
refreshed through preaching In his letter giving h is apos .

tolic benediction to the chapel 1 40 8 Gregory XII repeated , ,

1
ZE n e as , wh o s p e ak s of the old town as magn ificis op er ib u s r
o n a ta , r e p ort s
on e o f t r
t h e o u b e ak s a g a i s t t h e J e ws
n in whi c h on e th o u san d we r e Sl a i n with
ou t r r
e g a d t o ag e or s e x , ch ap 3 3. .
 HUS S AND THE B ETHL EHEM CHAPEL 2
7

that it was foun ded for the preaching of the Word of God
su p r edica tion is Ver b i D ei Provision was made that
1
p r o u .

two sermons S hould b e delivered every S abbath and festival

day excep t during the Advent and Lenten s easo n s when the
, ,

numb er was reduced to one The chapel wa s not the centre .

of a di s ti n ct parish but was withi n th e bound s of th e parish

of S t Philip and S t James and its i n cumb ent had no inde
. .
,

pendent j uris di ction over a district although he celebrated ,

’
the mass and performed other church ofiice s The right of .

appointment i n hered in the M tilh e im family Later pro .

,

vision was made for an associate preacher and a house was ,

b uilt for the priest adjoining the chapel I t was stipulated .

that the o fferi n gs should b e appli ed to the maintenance of

poor s tudents at the un iversity .

The first preacher at B ethlehem John P r ot iv a was fol , ,

lowed in 1 3 9 6 by S tephen of Kolin a memb er also of the

, , ,

univer s ity faculty With the latter was associated John of .

S t iekn a a noted preacher

’
,
At the time of Huss s appoi n t .

ment Nicholas Z e isel m eist e r was the pari s h priest a man ,

whom Huss first accounted a friend and then a foe 2

.

From the time Huss entered upon h is dutie s M arch 1 4 , ,

1 40 2 the B ethlehem pulpit was the chi ef ce n tre of religious

,
“
attraction in Pragu e ! Eneas pronounced Huss a powerful .

”
speaker His power of eloquence however could not a c
.
, ,

count for the lasting impression he made on the religious con

v ic t ion of his generation and hi s b ecoming th e chief prophet of

his people No preacher was ever more attached to his pulpit

.

than Huss was to his chapel In the dark hours of hi s im .

prisonment he recalled it with wa r m aff ection and i ts servi ces ,

even o ccupied hi s dreams Among his last mes s ages were .

letters addressed to the congregation accustomed to worship

within its walls Th e dignity of the preaching fun ction Hu s s
.

asserted with much emphasis as did Wyclif b efore him , ,

’
insisting as in his Tr ea tise on the Chu r ch upon the priest s
, ,

1
Doc .
, 3 40 sq .
, 3 94 . M on .
,
1 11 5 .
2
S er mon es d e S anctis , p iii
. .
28 JOHN HUS S

right to preach as b eing conferred on him in his ordi n ation ,

a n d to b e taken away from him by an ecclesia s tical s uperior

only when the preacher subverted his offi ce by advocati n g

opinio n s evide n tly injuriou s or heretical Although the chapel .

was devoted to preachi n g through the medium of the Czech

’
language the mo s t of Hu ss s exta n t sermons are not in
,
’
Czech the explanation o f wh ich is that the outline s were
,

prepared in Latin and the discourses freely delivered in the

native to n gue .

Popular preaching as has b een said was no new thing in , ,

’
Prague For half a century before Hus s s appearance
.

preachers had s tirred the ci ty by sermons in German a n d

’
Czech The mos t notable of Huss s foreru n n ers in the B 0
.

hemi an pulpit were Ko n rad of Waldhau s en Milicz of Kremsier ,

a n d M att hi a s of Janow Konrad of Waldhausen an Aus

1
.
,

trian belonging to the Augu s tinian order s ettled in Prague ,

at the invi tation of Charles IV 1 3 60 Here he preached ,

.

until his death in 1 3 6 9 fi rst in S t Gallus church and then

, ,
.

in the Teyn His sermons were a popular sensation They

. .

soon emptied the churches of the M endicant order s Of the .

di s courses of the Men di cants he used the following words :

“
A S soon as I came to Prague the ma ss of the people forsook
the C hurches of the friar preachers with their fawning dis
— —
cour s e s b l on d is s er mon ib u s an d have followed me to t hi s
day and that in spite of the V igor wi th whi ch I have rebuked
,
”
and punished them On one o ccasion when he was preac hi ng
.

at S aaz in 1 3 6 5 Franciscans s ought to drown the preacher s

, ,
’

voice and break up the s ervice s by ri n ging the b ell but ,

Konr ad di smissed the co n gregation from the church and

preached in the open air So great were the throng s w hi ch .

pres s ed to hear him that he was at times obliged to leave the

Teyn church an d set up his pulpit in front O f it on the publi c
square He preached both in German and in Latin
. .

1
F or th e se pr e a ch e r s an d o th e r s
P a l a ck y , Vor l auf er d es H ns s ite n thu ms
, s ee
’

in B ohm en a n d Gesek B ohme n s I I I , 1 1 5 8 s qq A l so L o s e r t h , W icl if an d

' ’

. .
,

H u s , 3 8 s qq , 3 0 1 s qq , a n d F l aj sh an s , I n tr o d t o t h e S er mon es d e S a n ctis
. . . .
 HUS S AND THE B ETHLEHEM CHAPEL 29

Waldh auser as he was also called was a preacher of r e

, ,

en t an c e and righteou sn e ss and attacked piritual pride

p s , ,

avarice luxury u s ury and o ther sin s The e ffect of hi s

, , ,
.

sermons wa s S hown in changed l ives Women i t is reported .

, ,

laid aside their j ewelry and their rich ga r ments influenced by ,

his warnin gs The more he condemned Vice and unnece s sary

.

adornment the more he s aid di d the attachm ent to him grow

, , .

Konrad also used as he h imself inf orms u S th e S harp thorn

, ,

of the Word agains t the S imony of the cler gy and especially ,

of the mo nks and arraigned them for commen ding spurious

,
“ ” “
re l ics I t is folly he exclaimed to ru n after th e head of
.
, ,

”1
S t B arb ara when i t is found no t in Prague but in Pru s sia
. .

To the complaints he made again s t the monk s the arch ,

bishop replied that they were outside his j uris di ction and
had their own superiors to whom they were ame n able .

’
Irritated by Konrad s cen s ures and popularity the D O ,

minicams formulated against h im eighteen cha r ges to w hi ch ,

the Augustin i ans added S ix more Four of them ran as .

fo l lows : Those who receive b oy s or girl s into convents for

money are eternally damned N 0 one in Prague preaches the .

whole truth Monks are fat with goods and need no money
. .

Memb ers of orders had b een comm issioned to kill him .

In reply the preacher pub licly declared that the friars were
so little like the fir st memb ers of their orders that they would
no t o nl y b e diso wned by them b u t b e stoned In this al s o .

th ey had changed In the early days they had b een in con

.

stant rivalry and strife ; now they were united in the effort to
break down his usef ul ness and the influence of the Word of
God . A contemporary Adalb ert R an coni s e u logized Kon
, ,

’
rad as a defender of Chri s t s truth an example of religion ,
”
and sobriety the mi rror of virtue and preacher of the Gospel
, ,
.

1
S t B arb a r a ,
. a m a rtyr , is sah a v e b e e n a b ea u ti fu l m a i d e n wh o m h e r
id to
h e a th en f a th e r g a v e o v e r t o t h e au th oriti e s an d wh om th e y p u n i sh e d with
t ort ur e an d b ur n i n g H e l e g e d is v e ry u n ce rt a i n b o th as t o pl a ce a d t h e
. r n n

ti m e of h e r d e a th S h e is t h e p a tr on s ain t of t h e artill e ry an d was i n voke d

.

a g a i n s t t h e r a v ag e s of t e m p e s t an d fir e .
3 0 JOHN HUS S
’
At Konrad s death a preacher of equal or greater fame
was made his s ucce ss or in the Teyn church Milicz of Krem s ier , , ,

a town in Moravia 1
For fiv e years u n til h is death in 1 3 7 4
.
, ,
’
he carried on Konrad s work In 1 3 63 he s uddenly gave up .

po s ition s of honor and emolument in the imperial chan cery

and as canon of S t Vi te and archdeacon of Prague to devote
.

himself to poverty and preaching After serving for a few .

months in the parish of B i shop Teinitz he returned to ,

Prague and preached successively in the churches of S t .

Nicholas and S t ! Egidius b efore b eing tran s ferred to th e

.

church of Teyn Here his popularity wa s so great that on

.
,

o ccasion he was forced to preach three times a day

,
Yea .
,

we know of his preaching fiv e sermons on a si n gle day once ,

in Latin once in German and three time s in B ohemian

, , .

The last was his vernacular and by u s ing it he strengthened , ,

the national fee l i n g of the Czech s M ilicz s indictments .

’

against vice and corrup tion were directed against all clas s es ,

lay and cleric even to the hierarchy S O e ff ective were his

,
.

appeals that the part of the city known for its houses of ill
—
fame as Venice B enatky that is dedica ted to Ve n us u n — ,

derwent such a transformation that it came to b e known as

—
New Jerusalem S core s of fallen women Janow reported two
.

—
hundred did penance and renounced their former mode of
life New building s were erected in the neighborhood under
.

the patronage of Charles IV where peni tents were housed and ,

a semi mona s tic community maintained

-
.

M il icz s mind b ecame fir ed with the prophecies of anti

’

christ and the last days and he dwel t frequently as later did , ,

“
Huss on the abomination of desolation which was spoken
,
”
of through D aniel the prophet standing in the holy place ,

M att 2 4 1 5 . He announced the coming O f an tichrist in

.

—
the period 1 3 63 1 3 6 7 wrote a special treati s e on the sub
,

j e c t and explained as of antichri s t every thought and ac t

,

1 “
N och gr osser en N a men u nd R u hm al s K on r ad er wa r b s ich M il icz u nd ha tte
d af u r au ch n och v iel gr oss er e A nf echtu n gen rtr agen al s se in Vor gctn ger ,
’

K on
—
zu e

r ad
”
. P l a a cky , Vor l auf er , 18 p . .
3 2 JOHN HUS S

Konrad and M ilicz was M atthias of Janow The s on of a .

B ohemian knight he studied S ix years in Paris S O that he was

, ,

known in B ohemia as the P ari s ian mas ter He spent some .

time in R ome and on h is return to Prague was appoi n ted to a

’ ’
canon s stall in S t Vite s and to the po s ition of confessor there
. .

At his death 1 3 94 he wa s buried in the cathedral Janow

, ,
.

exerci s ed his in fl ue n ce as e ffectively outs ide the pulpi t as in

i t In a volume entitled The Ru l es of the Ol d an d N ew
.

Testa men t—D e r ega lis v eter is e t n ov i tes ta men ti—h e applied
the precept s of Chri s tianity to the conditions of h is age 1
.

His O bservations based on the s tudy of the B ible were given

, ,

to him as he asserted in answer to prayer The B ib le he

, ,
.

emphasized as the su ffi cient text book of religious conduct -

and the twelve fundamental articles he drew from i t con

cerned the imitation of Chri s t in daily life rather than c c
c l e s ias t ical dogmas drawn from the Fathers On every page .

the author S hows his interest in the religious welfare of the

laity .

His own religious awakening Janow compared to a r e

l igiou s fi r e which had entered his heart and whose flames ,

burned brighter as he lifted up h is soul in prayer to God

and to Je s us Chri s t the crucified The B ible had b een his ,
.

friend and bride from his youth up It was to him the mother .

“ ”
O f love and knowledge I have used in my wri tings he .
,
“
s ays ,
the B ible above all else and in les s degree the s ayings
of the doctors b ecause the S criptures o ccur to me quickly
,

and copiously and b ecause the most divine truths are there
s e t forth mo s t lucidly and self evidently I have always -
.

found in and through them sati s factory explanation s for every

question and consolation for my soul in all my persecution s ,

trouble and sadness I always flee for refuge to the B ible

,
.
,

P l a ky V r l f r 5 8—
1
a c 8 g iv e e e rpt s
o au e N ea d r C h H i t E g l t s
0, s xc n e s n r
—2 3 5
. . . . .
, , , , ,

5 1 91 iv e s l a r ge Sp ace t o M a tthi as a d ad voc a t e s t h e V i e w firs t p r e

, g n

s e n t e d in a p a p e r r e a d b e fo r e t h e A c a d e m y o f S c i e n c e s B e rli n 1 8 4 7 th a t H u ss
, , ,

was s tr o g ly i n fl u e c e d b y M a tthi s i n d e p en d e n tly o f W y c li f

n n a T hi s V i e w .

h a s b ee n m ad e i m p o ss i b l e b y l a t e r s t u d i es .
 HUS S AND THE B ETHL EHEM C H APEL 33

which is my dearest friend He chose i t as his compa n ion .

even on his travels W hi le o thers took wi th them relic s He

, .

contra s ted the mandatory arrogance of papal b ulls with the

invitation s of the Go spel His teaching which gave the mo s t .

o ffen s e was the recommendation of fre q uen t communion for

the laity He deplored the idea that a co mmu n ion once a
.

year was su ffi cient for the soul Even as the eye needs the .

su n co n stantly so does the soul need the b read of the altar

, .

These views b rough t him into con fl ict with the church
authorities Synodal decrees forb ade the communion to the
.

laity oftener than once a month and e n j oined laymen to a d

dress prayers to images In 1 3 8 9 Janow S ign ed a formula of .
,

retraction and in fiv e article s a fli r m e d h is b elief as follow s

,

1 . That sacred images are no cause of idolatry 2 That . .

images S hould b e adored 3 That relics i n cludi n g the . .

,

bones of saints and the garments of Chris t and the Virgin

M ary are to b e worshipped and the saints in glory pro fi t us
, ,

more than the living on earth 4 That by partaki n g of the . .

,

b read of the altar we are made mystical memb er s of Chri s t

,
.

5 That the laity is to b e exhorted to take the communion

.

daily 1
A S a punishment for propagating the s e errors Janow
.

was inhibited for half a year from preaching and performing

priestly functions out side his own pari s h .

These three preachers and reformers prepared the minds

of low and high for the messages of Hu ss They preceded him .

in emphasizing the au thority of the S crip tures though in this ,

re spect they did no t go to the le n gth that he went and in ,

publicly reb uking the worldline s s of the clergy Wi thout .

doub t Huss was influenced by their example but for h is

, ,

guiding principles he did n ot look to them For thes e h e .

leaned not upon a B ohemian b ut upon John Wyclif .

1
The t e x t in D oc 6 9 9 s qq A cco r d i n g t o R okyz a n s s t a t e m e n t a t t h e co
.
, .
’
un

c il o f B a se l 4 3 3 J a o w a l s o r e co m m e n d e d t h e g ivi g o f t h e cu p t o t h e
,
1 ,
n n

l aity a r e com m e n d ti o n f r om w hi h h e pr om i s d t o d e s i s t I t is pr o b ab l e
, a c e .

h e n e v e r h e l d thi s V i e w T hro gh J a cob e l l u s o f M i es an d o th e r s J an o w e xe rt e d

. u ,

a n i n fl u en c e u p o n t h e H u ss i t e s .
34 JOHN HUS S

O ther preachers combined to give lustre to the Prague

’
pulpit and preached in the Slavic at the time of Hu ss s stu dies
in the univer s ity a n d later Amo n g them were John of .

“
S t ie k n a d 1 40 5 W hom Hu ss called
,
. the excellent preacher
,

”
with a voice like a trumpet P eter of S tupna and S tephen of ,

Kolin Indeed Prague was the metropolis of popular preach

.
,

in g in the latter half of the fourte enth a n d the b eginning of

the fi fteenth centuries And in this re spect we cannot help .

but compare a n d co n trast B ohemia with England b efore the

R eformatio n as depicted by Hugh Latimer In h is s ermon .

“
preached b efore E dward VI M arch 2 2 1 549 he s aid : If , , ,

there was ever a man that preached in Engla n d in times past ,

’
in the pope s time s a s peradventure there were two or three
, ,

straightway he was taken and nipped in the b ud wi th the ti tle

of a heretic .

The u s e of the Czech as a vehicle for religious though t and

literary e ffort was greatly advanced by Thomas S t it n y a ,

cla ssical B ohemian author who died about 1 40 0 and used the
n ative tongue no t only in devotional works b ut for learned

di s cussions H is style is said to b e a model to thi s day The

. .

use of the Czech in the pulpit and on the written page s trength
e n ed the natio n al S pirit With this movement Hu s s was .

in full sympathy and these sympathie s with the Czech ih

,

s t it u t ion s combined with h is high aims and elo q uence to give

him the position of a leader of his people And to say the .

,

least none of his predece ss ors in the pulpit an d none of his

,

co n temporarie s excelled him in the s e re spects .

’
At least nine collections Of Hu ss s sermons in Latin are
e xta n t in addition to h is B ohemian s ermon s
,
1
The S crip .

’
tural element abou n ds Hu ss s expo s ition is clear and the .

1
S e e t h e li s t in Fl a j sh a n s , D e S a n ctis , I n tr o d , pp iv — vi , an d t h e se r m on s
. .

pri n t e d in t h e M on I I , wh e r e n i n e se r m on s a r e d e si gn a t e d a s S y n o d a l se r
—
.

m o n s , pp 3 5 84 , an d t we n ty e i g ht as pr e a c h e d a ga i n s t a n ti c hri s t
.
-
F l aj s h a n s .

c a ll s in q u e s ti on t h e g e n u i n e n e ss o f p a rt s o f th e s e s e r m o n s or se r m on s a s a

wh o l e , with ou t , h o we v e r , g o i n g i n t o p a rti cu l a r s H is co ll e c ti on , D e S a n ctis ,

.

wa s d i s co v e r e d in 1 8 9 7 in a M S in t h e li b r a ry o f P r a g u e
. .
 HUS S A ND THE B ETHL EHEM CHAPEL 35

message app l ied wi th directne s s and S impli ci ty There is .

nothing in them the wayfaring man canno t understand The .

doctrinal element is no t mis sing b ut chief s tress is laid upon ,

moral conduct and e d ific a t ion We miss in them the illus .

’
t r a t iv e element w hi ch makes Luther s sermons so real and
vivid The needs and righ ts of the lay folk are always in
.
-

’
Huss s mind and he has no mercy on the faithless prie s t who
o ffends again s t hi s vow of chasti ty practises S imony or W i th , ,

h old S S p iri tual b ene fi ts from those who do no t pay hi m money .

After the period of hi s struggle with the ecclesia s tical author

i ties of Prague had fairly b egun the references to the s tage s ,

of the struggle are frequent and elaborate Long quotations .

are introduced into the sermons from Augustine Gregory the ,

Great B ernard Thomas Aquinas and o ther ecclesias tical

, , ,

wri ters .

Looking through his seventy seven sermons on the church -

festivals we fin d di s cour s es on M atthew John the B ap tist

, , ,

M ary M agdale n e S tephen and o ther characters of th e New

, ,

Te s tament and also on B ohemian saints such as Adalbert

, ,

S t Ludmilla and S t Wenceslaus There are no le s s than

.
,
. .

twenty fiv e sermons on the Virgin M ary and her festivals

-
.

These sermons preached in 1 40 3 are free from the atmos

, ,

p h er e engendered by the later struggles in which Huss was

engaged There is no departure from the usual dogmatic
.

teaching of the church For example the as s ump tion of .

,

M ary is accep ted as well as the ann u nciation and her vir
ginit y Follo wi n g the style of the medi aeval theology he
.
,

refers to her pa s sage after passage of the Canticles She is .

the star that arose ou t of Jacob and the rod out of I s rael ,

Num 2 4 1 7 A S a star is no t aff ected by foreign impre s

. .

sions so she was withou t corrup tion in the conception and

,

birth of Christ and in her contact with the world ; nor was there
“
any corporal putrefaction at her death She is a s fair a s .

the moon as clear a s the su n terrible as an army with b a n

, ,
” ’
ner s Can t 6 1 0 She trod on the serpent s head A p a s
,
. .
36 JOHN HUS S

s age to which Huss returns again and again in elaborating

“
her merit s is Luke 1 0 3 8 He entered i n to a certai n village
,

— ca s tel l u m The village or forti fied town wa s M ary into

.
,

whom Jesu s entered when the Word was made fl e sh M ary is .

’
full of pity and most gracious who stands in God s pre s ence
,

making i n terces s ion for us poor sinners and e specially for

tho s e who seriou s ly seek her aid She is to b e imitated in .

her humility as agains t the devil in her poverty as against ,

the lusts of the world and in her cha s tity as agai n s t the t emp
,

t a t ion s of the flesh .A S for her assump tio n Hu s s told his ,

hearer s that the a n gel s looked on with the s ame wonder wi th

which they looked on at the ascension of Christ I t is a matter .

of uncertai n ty W hether M ary ascended in s oul only or e u

v e l op e d with her body Upon the whole the argu ment seems
.
,

to b e that she ascended with her body as did Mo s es .

At thi s early period Hu ss took the grou n d he afterward

assumed in his Tr ea tise on the C hu r ch that no t Peter bu t , ,

Chri s t is the rock on which the church is built In favor of

,
.

thi s interpretatio n he quoted the famou s pa ss age from Augus

,
’ “
tine s Retr acta tion s and co n firmed it from I C O1 3 O ther . .

foundation can no man lay than that is laid which is Chri s t ,

” 1
Je sus . He refers to the abuse of the power of the keys and
claims for all the Apo s tle s equally the right of loosing and
bi n ding In these sermons the church is de fined as the whole
.

—
number of the elect totu s n u me r u s p red es tin a tor u m .

At the meetings of the synod of Prague before which he ,

was appointed several time s to deliver the Opening sermo n ,

a s well as in the B ethlehem pulpit Huss seemed to have b een ,

without fear in denouncing the vices of the clergy and the

hierarchy and their indi fference to the S piritual needs of the
people Hirelin g mi n isters called forth his sca thi n g rebuke
. .

—
Preaching from John 1 0 1 2 1 6 he said : S uch a mini s ter,

is known from three thing s He doe s not concern himself for

.

his offi ce as a shepherd ; he fl ee s whe n persecution ari s es ; he

1
D e S a n ctis , 80 —84 .
 HUS S AN D THE B ETHLEHEM CHAPEL 37

seeks after hire rather than to follow Chri s t s command s ’

.

He invent s all sorts of precep ts a n d rule s in order to plunder

the people Such mi n ister s S peak evil in high places call
.
,

in g out that all who di s ob ey them are heretic s and that th e y

have the power to condemn to hell Yea they claim power .
,

to control heaven with their tongues preachi n g that they ,

have authori ty to open it to whom they will and to relea s e

from pain those who pay money They open the door of .

heaven to persons immediately upon their death The s e .

hireling priests are wolves preying upon the flock a n d are of

a n tichrist the great wolf Jer 5 6 They are now so many
, ,
. .

in numb er and S O i n fluential that they seize faithful shepherds

’
who feed their flocks on the pastures of God s Word and put ,
”
them to death as heretics .

The following excerp ts from his sermons will su ffi ciently

’
illus trate his homiletical me thod Preaching on Chri s t s .

“ ’
words Wi s t ye no t that I must b e about my Father s bu s i
,
” “
ness ? Huss said : This means that fi rst of all and chiefly I , ,

b e engaged in that which concerns my Father and no t in the

s ervice of any creature whatsoever And why did Chris t give
.

t h is answer ? B ecause he came into the world for the purpo s e

of b earing W i tness to the truth And let thi s b e an a d m on i
.

tion to fathers and mothers that they pu t no stumb ling block -

in the way of their children servi n g God If chi ldren follow .

their own wills parents S hould at once seek after the cau s e of
,

their doing S O and study how they may properly admo n i sh

their children and set them in the right path And Children .

S hould take their lessons from th e conduct of Jesus no t to ,

withstand their parents and b e angry against them For .

Jesus spoke in humble to n e when he asked his father and

mo ther Wh y do ye seek me ? S o every man and especially
,
‘ ’
,

prelates S hould take Jesu s treatme n t Of his parents as an

,
’

example that they may fir st of all seek the pro fi t of the church
and have re spect to God more than to a n y mortal man .

For Jesus setting aside the will of h is earthly father a n d

,
38 JOHN HUS S

mother and doing the will of God has taugh t us that every ,

m a n should do the will of God when he perceive s that what

,

God re q uire s is s omethi n g el s e than what our pare n t s wi s h .

M ary and Jo s eph did not wa n t Jesu s to remai n in the temple

bu t God wanted him to remain Therefore Je s us said to .
,

h is father and mother that i t b ehooved him to remain in the

temple to in s truct the doctors as the Father had commanded .

Again s t thi s instruction prie s t s very frequently o ffe n d who

’ ’
e s teem men s precep t s more highly than God s command s an d
obey man rather than God And priests lead m e n to a fal s e
.

a n d S inful ob edience for many of them preach that th e peo

,

ple S hould hearken to all the pope commands and Ob ey him ,

i n asmuch as the pope canno t err They do n ot s eem to know

.

that many popes have b een heretics O ther priests preach .

that laymen should yield O b edience even whe n a bi shop or a

pop e command s s omethi n g that is e v il for in ob eying they ,

commit no sin and o n ly h e commit s sin who i ss ue s the evil

’
command That is the devil s yoke for the devil seeks to
.
,

lead men into evil and does no t concern himself upon whom
the guilt of S in rests Neither the one who command s nor
.

the one who ob ey s is without S in as s aid the S av i our M att

, ,
.

15 14: When a blind man lead s the b li n d bo th fall into

‘

’
th e ditch . Here the S aviour was S peaking of those prelate s
who l ike the scribes and Phari s ee s lead the people by their
, ,

precepts to tran sgress the command s of God .

In a sermon on M att 1 3 2 4—3 0 concernin g the tare s

.

which were n o t to b e pulled up le s t the wheat al s o b e pulled

up with them the interesti n g line of remark is followed that
,

the f a r e s are also in a certai n degree useful to the wheat .

They pro tect the wheat agai n st the wind s o that i t can stand
upright At fir s t i t is not pos s ible to di s tingui sh the two an d
.
,

in pulling up the tares the wheat is ap t to b e trodden under

,

foo t or its growth in a mea s ure hindered In like mann er .

b ad men if they are spar s ely scattered amo n g s t the good are
, ,

helpful to the good unto their lasti n g s alvatio n for they help ,
40 JOHN HUS S

so that they may no t read or understan d them and know how ,

men ought to live ; that they may no t k n ow how to punish

the prie s t s for their S in s or through k n owledge of the S crip
,

ture s may not i n s i s t that the prie s t s b ecome b etter i n structed

in them A n d again the prie s t s keep the knowledge of the
.

S cripture s from the people b ecause the prie s t s fear they will
no t receive the same amount of honor if the people are taught
”
to read the B ible .

The followi n g is a Chri s tma s meditation Huss wrote to h is

congregation of B ethlehem chapel duri n g the period of his
semi— voluntary exile from Prague D ecember 2 5 1 4 1 2 , ,

D e ar e s t fri e n d s : T 0 d ay a s it we r e an an ge l is sayi n g to t h e
-

, ,

S h eph e rd s : I b ri n g y ou g o od ti din gs of g r e a t j oy that S hall b e t o

all p eopl e A n d su d de n ly a multitude of t h e an g e l s e x claim
.
,

s ayi n g : G l ory t o G o d in t h e high e s t an d on e a rth p e a c e t o m en o f

g oo d —
will A .s y ou c o m m e m o r a t e th e se thi n gs d e ar e s t fri e n d s , ,

r e j oice th a t t o d ay G od is b or n a m an th a t th e r e m ay b e gl o ry t o
-

G o d in t h e high e s t an d on e a rth p e ac e t o m en o f g oo d will Re -

.

j oic e th a t t od ay t h e i n fi n it e ly Gr e a t On e is b orn a child th a t th e r e ,

m ay b e glory t o G o d in t h e high e s t e t c R e j oic e that to day a

,
.
-

R e con cil e r is b or n t o r e c on cil e m an t o G o d th a t th e r e m ay b e gl o ry

,

to G od in t h e hi gh e s t e t c R e j oic e th a t t o d ay H e is born to
,
.
-

cl e an se S i n n e r s from th e ir S in t o d e li v e r th e m fr om t h e d e v il s
,
’

pow e r t o l e a d th e m fr om e t e rn al p e r di tion t o bri n g th e m to e t e r

, ,

n al j oy th at th e r e m ay b e gl or y t o G o d in t h e high e s t e t c
, ,
.

R e j oic e with g r e a t j oy that to d ay is b o rn u n t o u s a K i n g t o b e

-

s t ow in it s ful n e ss u p on u s t h e h e a v e n ly ki n g dom a B i shop t o ,

g r an t H is e t e r n a l b e n e dicti on a F a th e r o f t h e ag e s t o c ome t o
, ,

k e ep u s as H is chi l d r en by H is side for e v e r : y e a th e r e is b or n a ,

B r o th e r b e l o v e d a wi se M a s t e r a s ur e L e ad e r a j us t Judg e to
, , , ,

t h e e n d th a t th e r e m ay b e glo r y t o G o d in t h e high e s t e t c Re , .

j oic e y e wick e d that G o d is b orn as a Pri es t wh o h a th gran t e d

, , ,

to e v e ry p e n it e n t ab solution fr om all si n s th a t th e r e may b e ,

—
g lo ry e t c
,
R e j oic e th a t to d ay t h e B r e a d of An g e l s th a t is God
.
, ,

is m a d e t h e B r e a d o f m en t o r e v i v e t h e hu n g ry with H is b o dy th a t
, ,

th e r e m ay b e p e a c e a m on g th em a n d 0 11 e a rth e t c R e j oice that

, ,
.

G o d i m m ort al is b orn th a t m ort al m an may li v e f o r e v e r

, Re .

j oic e that t h e rich L ord Of t h e u n i v e rs e li e s in a m an ge r li ke a ,

 HUS S AND THE B ETHLEHEM CHAPEL 41

p oor m an th a t H e m ay m ak e u s n e e dy o n e s rich R e j oic e mo s t

,
.
,

de arly b e l o v e d that wh a t t h e pr oph e t s pr oph e s ie d h as b e e n ful

,

fill e d that th e r e may b e gl ory t o G o d in t h e high e s t e t c R e j oice

, ,
.

that th e r e is b orn to u s a C hild al l p owe rful a n d that a S on is gi v e n

t o u s full of wi s d om a n d g r a c e th a t th e r e m a y b e glory to God in
,

t h e hi gh e s t e t c Oh d e a r e s t fri e n ds ought th e r e t o b e o n ly a
,
.
, ,

mo de r a t e r e j o ici n g o v e r th e s e thi n gs ? N ay a mi ghty j oy ! F or ,

“
i n de e d t h e an g e l s aith : I bri n g you good ti din gs of gr e a t j oy f or ,

that th e r e is b or n a R e de e m e r fr om all mi se ry a S a v i ou r from ,

sin a G o v e r n or of H is f a ithful on e s ; th e r e is b o r n a C omf ort e r f or

,

th os e in sorrow an d th e r e is gi v e n to u s t h e S on of G od that we
,

may ha v e g r e at j oy an d that th e r e may b e gl o ry t o G o d in t h e

high e s t a n d on e arth p e ac e t o m e n o f g oo d will M ay it pl e a se
God b o rn this day to gran t to u s His good—
-
.

will H is p e ace an d , ,

withal H is j oy
,
.

I t is no wonder that B ethlehem chapel was thronged .

I ts pulpit deal t in no theological ab s tractions The sword of .

’
the Spiri t which is the Word of God was in th e preacher s
, ,

hand a sharp weapon wielded dexterously to lay open the ,

sins and sub terfuges of the conscience I t was the Word of .

Life o ffering the comforts of saving grace Hus s was a preacher .

to the age in which he lived to the congregations which pressed ,

to hear him His messages burn wi th zeal for pure religion

.

and with sympathy for men With his whole heart he was a .

’
preacher Christ s chief co mm and as he reminded the arch
.
,

b ishop of Prague was to preach the Gospel to every creature

, ,

and when he was forbidden by archbishop and pope to longer

o ccupy his pulpit he solemnly declared in a letter to the chief ,

civil offi cials of B ohemia that he dared no t ob ey the com ,

mands for to do so would b e to o f fend agains t God and his

,
”1 ’
own salvation Preaching was the priest s primary duty
. .

Huss followed worthily in the footsteps of h is great pred

e ce ssor s and went b eyond them in the extent of his infl uence

and in the novelty of h is message .

The following judgment is passed by the B ohemian h is

1
D oc .
, 4, 24 .
42 J OHN HUS S

torian P a l a cky upon Hu ss a s a preacher whi ch is given u n ,

1

abridged although we dissent from the la s t word s di sparaging

, ,
’ “
in a degree Hu ss s moral purpo s e : H is sermons preached ,

through a number of year s b elong to the chief events of h is age

,
.

Le s s coar s e in h is addre ss e s than K onrad of Waldhau s e n les s ,

e n thusiastic in his views than Milicz he made upon his hearer s ,

no t s o stormy an impression as his predecessors bu t on the ,

o ther ha n d a far more permanent impre ss ion He addre ss ed

,
.

him s elf to th e u n der s tan ding aroused reflection taught a n d

, ,

per s uaded and at the same time was no t lacking in punge n t

,

u tterance The kee n n e ss an d clearness of his mi n d the tact

.
,

with which he go t at the very heart of s ubj ects under di s cus

’
sion the ease with which he prese n ted a ca s e b efore his hearers
,

eye s h is wide reading e specially in the S crip tures the de

, , ,

c is ion and the logical con s equences with which he pressed

home a whole system of teachings secured for hi m great

superiority over his colleagues and contemporaries To t hi s .

were added moral earne s tnes s of character a pious mind a , ,

daily life in which enemies could fin d no stain glowi n g de ,

v o t ion for the moral uplift of h is people and the reformation

of the church but also inconsiderate boldn e ss ob s ti n acy and

, , ,

unyieldi n g conceit noticeable ambition for populari ty and

, ,
’
an ambition which looked upon a martyr s crown a s the
highest aim of human life .

1
Gesek .
,
III, 1 214 .
 C H APTE R III

H U S S S D E B T T O W Y CLI F
’

W y cli f t h e m as ter of d eep th ou g ht s —H u ss , A p p C r eed

. .

’
D OU B TLE S S Huss s experiences as a preacher would have
b een a repetition of the exp erience s of his predece ss ors in the
pulpit of P rague had no t a new element of religious though t
,

b een introduced into B ohemia from abroad Large and sym .

pathetic audiences wo u ld have hung upon his words and

perhaps rival prie s ts and monks would have resented his
strictures upon their clerical habits and spied ou t s u spiciou s
or heretical passages in his di scourses and formulated them
in charges Like M atthi as of Janow he migh t have yielded
.
,

to authority or as did M il icz have gone to R ome a n d s ought

, ,

to explain his u tterances Instead of this hi s career ended

.
,

in the awful penalty visited upon heretics The explanation .

is o ffered in the foreign in fluence w hi ch moved him at the

very foun dation of his con v i ctions and also stirred up the
university of Prague as few universities have b een stirred by
,

influences from without Thi s i nfl uence was the per s onality

.

and teaching of John Wyclif who di ed 1 3 84 several years , ,

b efore Huss entered upon his stu di es in th e univer sity and ,

nearly twenty years b efore he was called to B ethlehem

’
chapel B y the Englishman s writings Huss wa s fed and by
.

the memory of his personality made morally strong .

In the controversies over the English master s teachings ’

,

in which the university of Prague was i n volved Hu s s stood ,

ou t as th e chi ef fi gure No t b ecause h e had preached against

.

the abuses of the cler gy was h e excommunicated s o one well ,

acquainted with him Andrew of B roda said 1 4 1 4 B e

, , ,
.

cause he wa s the advocate an d defender of Wyclif he went

43
44 JOHN HUS S

to the s take A s important as the in fl uence of Paul upon

.
l

t h e mind of Lu ther a n d more important than the in fl ue n ce of

Calvin upo n Joh n K n ox was the influe n ce of Wyclif upon

,

the opi n io n s a n d the career of Hu s s Wyclif wa s the original .

a n d bolder mind
— the path finder Hu ss came after was r e .
,

c e p t iv e but a s i t proved made a deeper impre ss ion upon his

, , ,

people A s moral per s onali ties impelled by the truth they

.

stand out with equal promi n e n ce in their ge n erations The .

fir s t year of h is pa s torate at B ethlehem had no t passed b e

fore Hu s s was publicly identi fi ed with the W ycl ifi t e discus
s io n s w hi ch were to agitate the u ni ver s ity keep in turmoil ,

the body of it s profe ss ors for more than a decade and also
s hake the ecclesia s tical foundations of the B ohemia n n ation .

’
I n M ay 1 40 3 Wyclif s teachings were brought to the o ffi cial
, ,

atte n tion of the u n iver sity by two memb er s of the cathedral

chapter as containi n g it was charged the seed s of heretical
, ,

error .

The u ni versity of Prague founded by a double charter ,

—
from the pope an d Charles IV 1 3 4 7 1 3 48 at o n ce b ecame the , ,

chief orn ament of the B ohemi an capital a n d made it famous

throughout Europe a s a seat of study I t was the fir s t uni .

versity north of the Alps in Ce n tral and Northeastern Europe .

The universities of B ologna Paris and Oxford alone were , ,

more famous Soon after their origin the universitie s of

.

Europe b ecame the re s tless centre s of intell ectual and li terary

life D emocratic in their constitution they fostered free
.
,

i n q uiry and were adapted to unsettle inquiring mi n ds in the

i n herited institution s of church and society They owed .

their b egin n in gs to the enthusiasm of single teachers but ,

Innocent III a n d o ther popes quick to di s cern their impor ,

tance and their menace early took hold of them and in the
, ,

ca s e of P ari s pre s crib ed it s curriculum However they had

,
.
,

a hard task in keepi n g their s tudie s within s afe limit s I n fact .

,

ma s ter s and students—who together were called the univer

1
D oc .
,
p .
5 20 .
 ’
HUS S S D EB T TO WYCLIF 45

s it y
— constituted a world by themselves a distinct corpora ,

tion I t is true that ou t of B ologna the seat of the study of

.
,

canon law wen t forth the great pope s Alexander III and I n
, ,

nocent III B ut P aris issued some of the s everes t attacks

.

against the theory of papal ab solutism With that in s t it u .

’
tion Gerson and d A il l y were co nn ected Wyclif s teaching .
’

made Oxford a s eat of heresy Wi ttenb erg the las t of the .

,

medi ae val u ni versities protected and fostered Luther Hus , .

sit is m was bego tten at the university of Prague .

The numb ers given as attendi n g the universities seem to

have b een greatly exaggerated P ari s is reported to have .

had 2 students and Oxford or accor di ng to Wyclif , ,

prior to his time though for his own day he gives the
reasonable figure of Prague likewi s e was reported to
have had in 1 40 8 by one who l ived but a short time later
with 2 0 0 masters and 50 0 b achelors a numb er alto , ,

gether extravagant accor ding to P al ack y 1

,
F l aj sh an s give s .

the numb er at from to a numb er which includes

retain ers The population of the city was then —
.

The university of Prague which had b een precede d b y a ,

number of grammar schools conn ected with the parish -

—
churches of the city had the four faculties theology law , , ,

medicine and p hi losophy In 1 3 7 2 the faculty of law was

,
.

made a distinct body with a rector of it s own German ,

.

s tudents who had flocked to B ologna and P ari s in the absence ,

of o ther u niversitie s in the North now turned to Prague ,

.

The u niver s ities of Vienna and Heidelb erg were no t founded

till 1 3 6 5 and 1 3 8 5 P artial provi sion was made at Prague
.

for the suppor t of professors by gifts from the royal ex

chequer and contributions from the revenues of mona s teries
and chapter rights S everal special foundations were e n dowed
.

for the aid of poor student s .

Oxford is mentioned in th e annals of the B ohemian u n i

1
Ges ch .
, III , 1 1 83 . R a sh d a ll , 2 5 84 s qq .
, m ak e s to the
m ax i m u m n u mb e r at Oxfo r d . F l aj sh an s , M isir J . H u s , p 46 . .
46 JOHN HUS S

ver sity in 1 3 6 7 whe n the faculty of p hi losophy and the arts

ordered it s b achelor s to u se for their comment s the writings
—scr ip ta cl dicta —of it s profe ssor s and the profe ssor s of Pari s
as well a s the writi n gs of memb ers of the Prague faculties .
1

The master s or doctors were allowed to give original lectures

—
of their own p r op r ia dicta d are .

The Germa n eleme n t in the Prague facultie s and student

body followed the principles of the N om in a lis t s which had ,

been adopted at P ari s and taught that general concepts are

m e re names and are derived from i n dividual existences .

Followi n g Wyclif and Oxford Hu s s and the Czech element ,

fed on R ea l i s m which taugh t that ge n eral co n cept s have a

,
’
real exi s tence Hu s s s realism was brough t agains t him at
.

his trial in Constance .

’
The transmi ssion of Wyclif s wri tings and i n fluence to
B ohemia w a s furthered by the marriage of R ichard II of
England in 1 3 8 2 to Anne of Lux emburg s i s ter of the B 0
, , ,

hemian king Wen zel Anne who died in 1 3 94 was a woman

,
.
, ,

of culture and carried with her to England copie s of the

’
B ible in Latin Czech and German R eferri n g to the queen s
,
.

interest in the S crip tures Huss said that to make her out a ,

heretic for having the B ible in translatio n would have been a

satanic folly 2
Among the B ohemians who followed Anne to
.

E n gland were s tudent s who went to Oxford for study B y .

the teachings of Wyclif Oxford had b ecome no toriou s as a , .

seat of adva n ced and even heretical thought and young men ,

predi spo s ed to freedom of inquiry would easily b e attracted

there .

’ ’
At any rate in Anne s reign Wyclif s writing s were carried
,

to Prague where they were s tudied in the u n iver s ity Thi s

,
.

’
is clear from Hu ss s own te s timo n y He wrote to the E n gli sh .

Carmelite Joh n S toke s in 1 4 1 1 that Prague had po ss essed

, , ,

1
R a sh d a l l , 2 2 23 . P a l a c ky , Gesch , I I I , . 1 1 88 , g iv e s q uo t a ti on s fr om
th e M on H is t U n iv
. . . P r a g , r e co r d i n g t h e r u l e
. .

2
M on 1 1 3 6 .
,
.
48 JOHN HUS S

teachi n g s as they al s o used his translation of the B ib le

,
.

B ut h is leadi n g s ympathizers recanted I n B ohe m ia the very .

name s W yc l ifi t e a n d W y c lifis t were given to di ss enters to

, ,

i n dicate the exte n t of hi s in fl uence I n B ohemia Wyclif wa s .

called the fi fth eva n geli s t Hu ss him s elf in 1 4 1 2 w a s call e d

.
, ,

“
by s ome of the Prague clergy in an appeal to the pope a son
of iniquity a W yclifis t the two expre ssions b ei n g practically
,
”
,
’
synonymou s 1
Gradually after Hus s s death the de signa
.
, ,

tion Hus s ite superseded that of Wy cl ifist .

No m an of the Middle Ages if we excep t M a r sigliu s of ,

P adua was so independent in his thought or qui te so fearle s s

,

in his u tterance s a s John Wyclif and no churchman in the

2
,

hi s tory of Christendom no t even Luther h a s been more , ,

mercile s s in his attack s upon the exi s ting church order or more
uncompromi s i n g in h is assaults upon the faili n gs of popes .

’
He had none of Luther s good humor but his pen was as keen ,

and mordant as a D amas cus blade Wyclif was a S choolman .

and professor at Oxford B ut he was more than a s chola s tic . .

He was a patriot a popular preacher and the champion of

, ,

practical religious as well as theological reform S tran ge to .

say it was no t until the closing decades of the nineteenth cen

,
'

tury that an e fi or t wa s carried through to publish his work s

and no t un til the mi ddle of that century did his translation
of the B ible appear in print Through the labors of the .

Wyclif society a s tately array of his Latin work s have b een

set b efore the pub li c as al s o his English treatise s tra ct s and ,

s ermons through the editorial care of Arnold and M athews .

H is tract s form a di s tinct chapter in the rich hi s tory of E n g

li s h tractarian literature They di ffer from the tracts of th e .

Puritan age and the Oxford movement in thi s that they had ,

practically no oppone n t s who replied with the pen They and .

’
Wyclif s followers were met by the methods of the i n q ui s ition
and with fire .

1
D oc p 46 0 S ee Los e r t h , p 8 3 s qq , an d b e l o w
—
. . . . . .
,

W y c li f se e S c h a ff s Ch u r ch H is tor y , V , 2
’
2
F or , 3 4 3 58
1 .
 ’
HUS S S D EB T TO WY CLIF 49

As a patriot Wyclif gave hi s voice and pen to the Good

,

Parliament of 1 3 7 6 which repudiated the papal righ t to col

,

lect the ann ual tribute pledged by King John when he yielded
England up as a fie f to the apostoli c see The popular feel .

ing again s t the usurpations and exactions of R ome and the

monks found popular expression through Piers Ploughman ,
“
who exclaimed : Take her lands ye lords and let her l ive by , ,
”
domes tithes The mu tterings of the nation against foreign
-
.

ecclesiastical j uris di ction which had b een heard s in ce the

,

reign of William the Conqueror foun d in Wyclif a more cul

,

t u r e d and no less deter mined mouthpiece than t h e Plough

man With a frank ness whi ch is startling he preached and
.
,

wro te agains t the friars their idleness and good li v ing and
, ,
’
against the pop e s secular authority The Ol d chro ni cler por .

trays him as runni ng about from place to place and b arking

against the church He contended that the lords in ca s e of
.
,

nece s sity might seize the possessions of the clergy and the
, ,

pope he styled the antichrist the proud and worldly pries t

,

of R ome the most cursed of clippers and cut purses

,
-
.

I t was no t until the last year of his life that Wyclif a t

tacked systemati cally the s trictly dogmati c tenets brought to
perfection by the me di aeval church As early as 1 3 7 7 he was .

under the condemnation of the church au thorities Sum .

m on e d in that year b efore Courtenay bishop of London he , ,

was pro tected by the duk e of Lancaster bu t the pope Gregory , ,

XI took up his ca s e and issued a b atch of at lea s t fiv e bulls

,

agains t him addressed to the king to the univer sity of Ox ,

ford the archbishop of Canterbury and the bishop of London

, ,
.

These bulls condemned nineteen ar ti cles taken from h is writ

ing s as dangerous to state and church Gregory called upon .

Archbishop Sudbury to imprison Wyclif u n til fi nal sentence

s hould b e passed by the papal court and addre ss ing the
1
,

chancellor of Oxford he charged Wycl if wi th vomiting out

,

from the filthy du n geon of his heart mo s t wicked and dam

Gee an d H a r d y , D ocu men ts , 1 0 5 s qq .
50 JOHN HUS S

nable here sies by which he propo s ed to bring destru ction upon

,

church and s tate alike The po n ti ff pu t him into the s ame

.

category wi th tho s e arch de s troyer s and heretics M ar sigliu s

-

of Padua a n d John of Ja n dun .

Among the n i n eteen condemned articles were the proposi

tion s that prie s tly and papal excommu n ication is of no avail
if no t in accord with the law of Chri s t and that even a pop e
may b e lawfully impeached by laymen In spite of the papal .

edict they were pronoun ced by the Oxford masters true al

, ,

though to the ear they s ounded ill .

Wyclif saw the papal schi sm established and l ived six

years after its incep tio n a period fully long enough for him
,

to di s cern the e v ils arisi n g from a dual papal government

and to have forced upon his mi nd the que s tion of the origin
and authority of the papacy and the que s tion of th e nature
and functio n s of the church In pointing ou t abu s e s in
.

church administration and do ctrine he went b eyond M ar ,

sigl iu s of Padua and u n dertook the po s itive work of c on

struction Like John Wesley and General B ooth of the S al

.
,

vation Army he undertook to relieve the spiri tual destitution

,
”
of England by s endin g out a body of pore prie s t s as they ,

were call ed and laymen who should preach the Gospel up and
,

—
down the land men whom B ishop Courtenay arraigned as
itinerant preachers who teach erroneous yea heretical asser , ,

tio n s publi cly no t o n ly in churches but also in pub l ic s quare s

, ,

and o ther profane place s and who do this under the guise of
,

great holiness bu t wi thout having ob tained a n y episcopal or

,
”
papal authority .

“
In so Walden reports Wyclif began to determine ,
”
matters upon the sacrament of the altar The deni al of .

tra n sub stantiation constituted the subj ect of the fi r s t three

of the twenty four articles listed against him by the Earth
-

q uake council whi ch met in 1 3 8 2 under the pre sidency of

,

Courtenay Christ Wyclif as s erted is not in the s acrament

.
, ,

o f the altar essentially truly and really in his own corporal

,
 ’
HUS S S D EB T TO WYCLIF 51

presence The o ther more important heresies ascrib ed to him

.

were that a bishop or priest in mor tal s in canno t ordain con ,

’
secrate or b ap tize ; that after Urb an VI s death the English
,

church should ackn owledge no pope b ut b ecome independent

like the Greeks and that it is contrary to S crip ture for e c
c l e s ia s t ic s to hold temporal po ss es s ions Wyclif wa s inhibited .

from preaching at Oxford and wa s thenceforth con fin ed to his

parish of Lu tterworth .

The ch roni cler Wals ingham no doub t represented the

, ,

O ffi cial clerical opi ni on when he characterized the death of

“
Wyclif as the death of that instrument of the devil that ,

enemy of the church that author of confu s ion to the common

,

people that image of hyp ocrites that idol of heretics that

, , ,

maker of schism that sower of hatred that coiner of lies who

, , , ,

when h e di ed breathed out hi s malicious spirit into the abodes

,

of darkness . The dead was no t left in peace B y Archbi shop .

’ ’
A r u n d e l s bidding Wyclif s writings were suppressed and by
,

the Lateran decree of 1 4 1 4 were ordered b urned And again s t .

hi s followers the Eng l ish P arli ament in 1 4 0 1 issued the law , ,

that heretics should b e b urned The list of nineteen errors .

ascrib ed to him by Gregory XI grew enormously The .

council of Constance accep ted forty fiv e Netter of Walden -

.

increased the numb er to more than threescore An Oxford .

doctor of divinity the B ohemian John Lucke enlarged it to

, ,

two hundred and s ixty — six and C o ch l mu s in his work again s t

, ,

the Hu ss ites to three hundred and three heresies a weigh t

, ,

heavy enough it would seem to crush the most callous of

, ,

heretics and appall ing enough to frighten away any good

church man .

Al most all the distinctive do ctrines elaborated by the

mediaeval theology were either questioned or flatly denied by
Wyclif He insisted that the B ible should b e put into the
.

—
ha n d s of the people I t is the B ook of Life l ib er v itae the —
Chri s tian Faith—fides Chr istian a —the whole tru th the im
.

maculate law Its authority is supreme and its precep ts to

.
52 JOHN HUS S

b e ob eyed no matter what the church may s e t up as command

,
’
ments The priesthood s chief duty is to make known its
.

content s Every Christia n s hould have it in h is native

.

tongue that he may follow Chri s t and come to heaven

,
.

’
Hu ss knew of Wyclif s tran slation and in his reply to John
S toke s made the statement that Wyclif had tran s lated the
—
whole B ible out of the Latin into Anglo S axon 1
.

In taking this po s ition in regard to translations of the

B ible a n d their popular circulation as well a s in regard to it s ,

s upreme authority to which every i n dividual has the right to

appeal Wycl if was out of accord with his times In 1 40 8 the

,
.

s ynod of Oxford forb ade translations in the absence of church

“
au thority The complement of the wickedne ss of John
.

”
Wyclif that pestilent wri ter of damnable memory Arch
, ,

bi shop Arundel pronounced to b e that he prepared a new ,

”
translation of the S criptures into his mother tongue And .

’
the year b efore Huss s death the English Parliament forb ade
“
the reading O f the Engli s h S crip tures upon forfeiture of land ,

cattle life and goods

,
.

’
Wyclif s de fin ition of the church as the body of the elect
was opposed to the current tenet that the church is the cor
p or a t ion of the b ap tized presided over by the pope and hier
archy and the popular idea that the church is the pope and
the cardinals As for the papacy Wyclif u ttered far more
.
,

vigorous words about individual popes than di d Huss He .

put ponti ffs into hell as freely as did D ante He declared not .

only that the papacy is no t infallible but likewise that it is

not nece ss ary to the church Obedience to i t is alway s to b e
.

determined by the agreement of the papal command s with

the teachings of the S criptures B asing his doctri n e of the .

keys and h is attack upon the worldly dominion of the papacy

upon his i n terpretation of Matt 1 6 Wyclif also wa s the .
,

forerunner of Huss B ut in one vital re spect Huss held back

.

— ’
from the Englishman s views the doctrine of the eucharist .

on zmz en to , 1
1
fll 1 36 .
 ’
HUS S S D EB T TO WY CLIF 53

Not wi thou t uncertainty at one time in hi s career a s it would

,

appear from the testimony of o thers Huss held to the old ,

V iew
.

The charge of holding to the remanence of the material

elements continued to b e made again s t him to his dying
breath However his writi n gs s tand for the doctrine of tran
.
,

subs tantiation In one of hi s B ohemian sermons on the

.

’ “
Apostles Creed he set forth thi s view when he said : The
h u mble prie s t doth no t exalt himself above the Virgin Mary
or say that he is the creator of Christ the Son of God bu t , ,

that the Lord Christ by his power and word through him , ,

causes that w hi ch is bread to b e his b ody ; not that at that

time it b egan to b e his but that there on the altar begi n s to
b e sacramentally in the form of the bread what previously
”1 ’
was not there and therein Further reference to Huss s
.

po si tion in this matter will b e made later .

The English reformer abando ning the do ctrine of trans

,

mutation pronounced it a novelty taught by the modern

church —n ov ell a eccl esia He praised God for hav ing b een de
,

!
. .

l ivered from the laughable and scandalous errors taught in

regard to it I t is a l ying fable and idolatry Christ is in
. .

the elements v irtually and potentially as a king is in his

do minion and the sunligh t in the glass and in no other way ,
.

In breaking the glass you do not break the sunb eam The .

impossibili ty of an elemental transub st antiation Wyclif based

upon the philosophi cal consideration that the sub stance of
a thing canno t b e separated from its accidents or property .

Transub stantiation necessitates transaccidentation He also .

’
laid stress upon the fig u rative meaning of Christ s language
instituting the S upper The theory that the substance is
.

“
changed while the accidents remain he pronounced grounded
nether in Holy W r itt n e r e son n e wit but only t au gh t e by
newe h yp o cr it is and cursed h e r e t ik is that m agn yfyen there
”
own fantasies and d r e m e s .

1
E r b en , q u o t e d b y W r a t isl aw , p .
3 52 .
 54 JOHN HUS S

These and o ther teachings carried from the older uni ,

versity acro ss the channel to B ohemia took roo t no t only ,

amo n g certain of the clergy bu t also among the nobili ty ,

and threatened the old religious order B efore the fi rst clash .

occurred in the halls of the university of Prague it s eemed ,

as if the entire theological faculty were going over to Wyclif .

B ut the facultie s soon b ecame divided into two antagonistic

factions Among those who imbibed the W y cl ifi t e principles
.

before Huss were h is teachers and warm friend s S tani s laus ,

of Znaim and Peter P a l e cz ; and the s ayi n g went abou t that

Wyclif b egat S tanislaus of Z n aim S ta n i s laus of Znaim begat ,

P eter of Znaim P eter of Znaim b egat P al ecz and P al e cz

, ,

begat Huss 1
W hen the church b egan to proceed in earnes t
.

against W ycl ifism all but Huss ab andoned their views and
,

b ecame willing subj ects to the church authori ties .

The formal breaki n g out of the di ss en s ion over Wyclif is -

set by the chronicle of the university on S ep tember 2 8 1 40 3 , ,

the date on which the articles presented by the two mem ,

b ers of the cathedral chapter were appoi n ted to b e read , ,

di s cussed and finally determined They consi s ted of the .

twe n ty — four articles condemned at the Earthquake cou n cil ,

1 382 ,
and twenty one o thers extracted or alleged to b e ex
-

,
’
tracted from Wyclif s writings by John H ubner a Pole and
, ,

a master in the Prague university 2

The main propo s itions .

were as follows : The sub stance of bread remai n s in the sac

rament after the words of institution and Chris t is not cor
—
,

p o r all y present A bishop or prie s.t living in mortal sin can

no t ordain consecrate at the Lord s S upper or b ap tiz e — I t
,
’
,

is heresy to as s ert that i t is of the e ss e n ce of the Go spel

that Christ ordained the mas s —Where there is true contri

H u ss s Repl y to P a l ecz , M on , 1 3 1 8
1 ’
. .

A D 1 40 3 in ce p it n ota bilis d issen s io in cl er o r egm B ohe mice , m agis tr is ,

'
2
. .

s acer d otib u s et pr el a t is , p r op ter q u os d a m ar ticu l os ex J Wycl efi d octor is A n gl ici

'

l ib r is n on b en e extr actos P al ac k y , I I I , 1
. 1 96 S e e a l s o B e r g e r , XXXV ,
.

X XX VI D oc , p 3 2 8—3 3 1 , g iv e s all t h e X LV A rti c l e s an d G ee an d H a r d y ,

. . .

D ocu men ts , p 1 0 8 s qq , g iv e s t h e t we n ty ou r
. .
-
f .
5 6 JOHN HUS S

Our record has come down to us certified by the s eal of an

imperial no tary who wa s pre s ent The presidi n g o fficer on .

the occa s io n was the B avaria n Walter Hara ss er who suc

, ,

c e e d e d Hu ss as university rector Instead of healing dif

.

f e r e n c e s as h a s bee n s aid this decisio n was the real s tarti n g

, ,

point of the religious co n troversy which raged in Prague for

a dozen years or more M any of the article s concern ed que s
.

tions about which there wa s wide spread unrest in the church

-

s uch as the nature of the eucharistic sacrament the valid ,

i ty of prelatical ful m inations an d the liabili ty of clerics to

,

depo sition even by the civil power for unworthy conduct

, ,
.

The charge was made and properly that some of the article s ,
’
mi ss tated Wyclif s opi n ion and Hu s s wanted to k n ow whether
’
the f a l sifie r s of a man s teachings were no t as deserving of
puni shment as were two men who a short time before had
bee n bur n ed in Prague for adulterating saff ron S tani slaus of .

Znaim went to such le n gths in defe n ding the article s that

some of the ma s ters refused to li s ten and left the room .

’
Throwing a copy of one of Wyclif s writi n gs on the table ,

P a l e cz announced h is readines s to defend i t in the face of

a n y one who dared to say a single word agai n st i t .

The ob ligation which Huss was under to Wyclif for large ,

paragraphs in his writings will b e referred to further on

,
.

It is en ough here to say again that Huss was considered to

’
b e Wyclif s faithful disciple The Engli s hman S toke s rep
.

re s ented this opinion a t the council of Co n s tan ce when he ,

“
said to him : Why do you glory in these wri tings fal s ely ,

labelli n g them a s your own since after all they b elong n ot

, , ,

”
to you b ut to Wyclif in whose s teps you are following ?
,

Certain it is that Huss was deeply i n fected with Wyclif

,

ism a n d i t was chie fl y for his attachment to Wyclif that he

,

got i n to trouble at Prague a n d was burned at Constance .

There is no evide n ce to bear out the s tatement made by ,

! Eneas Sylviu s in h is H is tor y of B ohem ia that Hu ss had de ,

rived h is views from the Walde s e s n z E n e as who spe n t

z
.
,
 ’
HUS S S D EB T TO WYCLIF 57

some time in B ohemia and calls the Walde n sian sect wicked ,

a n in s a n ity a n d a leprosy me n tion s among s t its dogma s , ,

that bi shop s are e q ual to the R oman po n ti ff there is no dif ,

ference b etween prie s ts the live s and n ot the s acerdotal dig

,

n it y of prie s t s are of avail there is n o purgatorial fire prayer s

, ,

for the dead are usele s s an d the inve n tion of prie s tly avarice ,

images of the saints are to b e de s troyed priest s s hould r e ,

main poor an d b e content with alm s every on e is free to ,

preach the Word of God auricular co n fes sion is of n o avail , ,

prayers to the saints are useless for they cannot help us a n d

i t is enough to confess our s i n s in secret .

The followers of P eter Waldo very early carried their

doctri n es across the Alps and planted them in the dioce s e of
P a s sau j us t b eyond the frontier of B ohemia and to o ther
, ,

parts of Austria In the early part of the fourteenth century

.

a bishop estimated their numb ers at eighty fiv e thou s an d and -

D omini can and Franciscan inquisi tors were despatched to

P a ss au to pu t the heresy down .

Nowhere does Hu ss make the slightest intimation that he

wa s in an y way depe n de n t upon the Walden s es for h is teach
i n gs The fact that h e laid s tre ss upon the primary principle
.

“
in vogue among them expres s ed in the words : We ough t
”
to ob ey God rather than man is prob ably only a coincide n ce .

The B ohemian B rethren who were follower s Of Hu s s drew , ,

from the Walden s e s Gerso n and o ther writers at the time

.

of the council of Constance joined together the Walde n s es

and the W yclifi st s a s flagran t copartners in heretical de
pravity Hu ss explicitly denied all dependence upon the
.

Waldensian here s y 1
.

G e r s on , D u P i n s c d , 2
1 ’
. 2 2 7 , et c . D oc .
, 32 . M on .
,
I 3 7 1 , 3 79 . S ch a ff ,
Ch H is t , V , p a rt 1 , p 4 93
. . . s qq . F l aj sh an s , 3 7 , 3 8 .
 CHAPTE R IV

H US S A S A N A T I O N A L L E A D E R

S u p er omn ia v in cit v er itas : v in c it , q u i occid itu r , q u ia ci n u l l a h acet

ad oer s ita s , si n ull a ei d omin a tu r in iqu itas .
— r
Lette r to C h is tia n of
P r acha ticz , 1 41 3 .

Ab o ve l tru th con q u e r s
a ll e s e , . He con q u e s r wh o is p u t t o d e ath
b e c a u se n o a d v e r s ity h a r m s h im if no i n i q u i ty h as r u l e ove r h im .

TH R E E mighty currents were running through the life of

Prague The fir st a moral movement involved the moral
.
, ,

improvement and e fficiency of the clergy ; the second a ,

movement of do ctrinal reform centering in the views of ,

Wyclif ; the third a patriotic movemen t in w hi ch the Czech

,

population were seeking supremacy over the German ele

ment and the management of all B ohemian a ffairs .

In all three as a preacher of righteousness as a religious

, ,

reformer and as a patriot Hu s s was the acknowledged leader ,

.

He had the elements of popularity and leadership H is sin .

c e r it y of purpose was evident his devotion con s tant his e n , ,

e r gy u n flaggin g his courage fearles s his daily life lifted above

, ,

reproach His moral earnestness and power of u tterance at

.

fir s t attracted the con fi dence and then aroused the ho s tility

of the archbi s hop of Prague Z b yn ek of Hasenberg but bound , ,

a large constituency of the people fir mly to hi mself and won

the friendship if no t the determined support o f the cour t
, ,

with the king Wenzel and his consort Sophia L ike Atha
, ,
.

n a siu s as i t would seem he was by nature shrinking and hi s

, , ,

boldness was the product of a moral conviction strong as

s teel
. The temper of his thoughts was not in ac cord wi th
the general principles which the church had learned from
the S choolmen and the great popes Hu ss did no t go as far .

as Wyclif in the expression of dissent and like Luther at the ,

58
 HUS S AS A NATIONAL LEAD E R 59

fir st , he though t himself to b e in full agreement with the

’
church s teachings In this he was mistaken but his mental
.
,

temper was antagonisti c to the attitude of the S choo l men im ,

posed by them and the popes upon their times He was .

consciously a reformer of church disciplin e and moral s u n ,

consciously a reformer O f its do ctrinal position upon the basi s

of S cripture as he understood it and as the supreme con s ti
, ,

t u t ion o f the church .

’
In 1 40 3 after a year s vacancy the see of Prague was
, ,

filled by the appoin tment of Z b yn e k Z a j ik of Ha s enb erg ,

whom we shall know here as Archbi s hop Z b yn ek He wa s .

the fif th incumbent of the see Two of his predecessors .

,

Arnest of P ar d u b icz and John of J e n z e n s t e in were men of more ,

than ordinary abili ty as administrators One of them Ocko .

,

of Wl aschi m was the firs t B ohemian to b e made a cardinal

, ,

1 3 79 Arnest was b ent upon church reform and his pro

.

v in cial statutes were long referred to as a code fi tted to

correct clerical remissness and vi ce On occasion Huss who , ,

called Arnes t the holy archbishop referred to the s e s tat ,

u tes as to the article ordering fornicating clergymen to b e

,

deprived of their living and expelled from the diocese a n d ,

archdeacons and parish priests who conn ived at such vice

to b e condemned as though they were guilty of the same
crime 1 —
Z b yn ek was a soldier as well as a pries t no scholar
—and the rumor went that he was unable to read He is
.

said to have b een the last of the B ohemian archbishops to

wield the sword and go at the head of armies In 1 40 4 lead .
,

’
in g the king s troops he dislodged the robber C hieftain Nicholas
,

Zul and two years later engaged in campaigns in B avaria

,
.

To Zul Huss became spiritual advi s er accompanyi n g him

, ,

to the gallows Such an influence did Hu s s exercise that

.

the brigand asked the throng who stood by to pray to God

that he might b e forgiven .

An early distinction which Huss received from the arch

1
E xp ositio D ecal ogi, ed . F l aj sh an s , p . 2 7 .
60 JOHN HUS S

bi shop was his appointment as synodal preacher 1 40 4 a , ,

di s tinction which he received a number of times thereafter .

B y the appoi n tment of the fi rst archbishop Arnest the s ynod

, ,

of Prague met twice a year for the discussion of the religious

condition of the diocese and the promotion of the e fficiency
of the clergy S o much con fi dence had Z b yn ek in Huss s
.
’

purity of purpose that he instructed him to bring to h is

atte n tion any irregularities in the lives of the clergy of which
‘
he might become cognizant Huss took his appointment se
.

r io u sl y
,
and in a letter addressed to the archbishop in 1 40 8
spoke of the responsibili ty which the charge had imposed ,

and at the same time complained that criminal priests were

indulgin g vices without rebuke while priest s in lowly positions
and faithful in the performance of their duties were b eing
impri s o n ed or exiled as though they were heretics Z b yn ek .

supported the progre s sive movement and the intellectual

freedom which were b eing furthered by Huss P al e cz and , ,

o ther preachers Thi s favor was open ly given until 1 40 7

.
,

when Hu s s delivered the last of the synodal discourses In .

these di s courses he proceeded from attack s on the in d iff e r

e n ce and laxness of the priest s of Prague to attacks upon the
archbi shop and the pope him s elf .

In spite of the e fforts of the fi rst archbishop of Prague to

advan ce clerical purity and efficiency the vi s itation records
,
’
of Huss s time show that prie s ts kept concubi n es in separate
hou s es had sons and daughters were guilty of pro m iscuous
, ,

fornication and adultery and entered into taverns and par

,

t icip a t e d in the conv i vialities Huss charged them not only

.

with u n chastity but with simony and avarice making e c cl e si

,

as t ic al acts the means of per s onal gain and self indulgence -

.

In his B ohemian sermons he says the present b acksliding

,

priests have s o fenced themselves with antichristian ordi

nances that if any on e take s aught from a priest even justly , ,

or if a priest is s eized in the commission of adultery or rob

bery a stop is immediately put to the di v ine services esp e
, ,
 HUS S AS A NATIONAL LEAD E R 61

c ia ll yif the priestly adulterer or robb er is imprisoned If .

,

again a box on the ear is given to a priest in a quarrel in a

,

tavern and there is a dispute about di ce or wome n cita

, ,

tions and excommu ni cations are i s sued If however a .

, ,

priest s blood b e drawn they put a s top to di vine s ervices

’
,

and compel the guilty person to go to R ome sayi n g that ,

’
none save the pope can ab s olve a man who draws a priest s
’
blood B ut if a pries t cuts off a person s foo t or hand or
.
,

kills an inn ocent person neither is the prie s t put un der the
,

b an nor a stop pu t to divine services Wh y s o ? B ecause .

’
one dev il doe s no t pick out another devil s eye 1
Huss s .
’

reference to the exemp tion of priests from punishment r e

m inds u s of what Lu ther said in his addre s s to the German
“
nobi l ity : If a priest is killed the whole country is laid ,
”
under the interdict Why no t al s o if a peasant is killed ?
.

“
Agai n Hu s s s aid from the pulpit : Our bishops and prie s ts
,

of to day and especially our cathedral canons and lazy mass

-

, ,

celebrators hardly wait for the close of the service to hurry

,

ou t of church one part to the tavern and the o ther part

,

hither and thither to engage in amu s ements unworthy of a

prie s t yea even to dance The monks prepare dances and
, ,
.

entertainments in the pub li c house s in the hope of winning

the people and b eing intrusted with masses and the s e ras ,

cally ministers of the devil never f or a moment think that .

’
at the celebration of the Lord s Supper Christ gives to the
dis ciples his o wn body and b lood Lik e Judas who .
,

went away to the high priest to sell Christ many of our ,

priests p r ofliga t e in their lives lik e b easts run away from the
, ,

table of God the one to serve mammon the o ther wanton

, ,

ness the one to the gaming table the other to the dance or
,
-

chase all of which are forbidden to prie s ts And these very

,
.

ones who ough t to b e leaders in imitating Christ are his

chief enemi es .

In another sermon he exclaimed : ,

Has a church no
L a g d orfi p 5 7
1
n F or q u o t a ti on s fr om t h e p a ri sh r e g i s t e r s se e L o e t h
s ,
. .
,
s r ,

295 -

30 1 .
62 JOHN H Uss

vested property then i t h a s no prie s ts Whence arise simony

,
.

and the haughty pride of prie s ts over the people ? Whence

their adul terou s live s ? Whence war s and prie s tly cur s ings
and quarrels amo n g popes bi shop s a n d priests ? The dog s , ,

snap at and bi te one another becau s e of the bo n e Take the .

bone away a n d they will cea s e fighti n g All this comes from .

the poisonous love of money the unrigh teous mammon con ,

” 1
d e m n e d by Chri s t .

I n the first of h is sermons b efore the synod on John 1 5 2 7 ,

h e cited as personal qualitie s of true bi s hops and priests h u ,

“ ”
m ilit y chastity and poverty
,
There are many of you .
,

h e s aid who by wine drinking and drunk enness are much

,
-

more tainted than laymen As laymen walk with their canes .

to the churche s so the s e clerics go to the b eer hall wi th canes

,
-

and when they return they can hardly walk much less talk , ,

an d least of all do they know what is demanded of the

, ,

priestly o ffi ce The richer among them go to entertainments

.

provided out of the charitable fu n d s where food and drink ,

are served more abun dant in quantity and more rich and
,

dainty than citizens and even noble s are accu s tomed to

have and where Chri s t wi th his passion is b ann ed When
,
.

the blood b ecome s heated they talk of women and acts of ,

lust in most wanton language They fail to attend ve spers .

or cut th e ve sper servi ce short and even during the celebra ,

tion of the ma ss they do no t cease to walk to and fro in th e

church and pa s s unb ecoming and uncha s te remarks They .

ought like dogs to b e turned out of the hou s e of God where ,

they give such reproach and scandal to th e hearts of simple

”
laymen .

Hu s s might have reminded his hearers that even a former

archbi shop of Prague John of J e n z e n s t e in attended b alls but
, , ,

moved by a large lo s s of life which o ccurred in an accident

at one of them he turned to act s of pe n an ce
,
3
.

1
L an g sd or fi , 2 , 24 .
1’
M on u men ta ,
2 35 s qq .

3
P a l a c ky , Gesch .
, 34 .
J e n st e i n r e si g n e d in f vo r
a of his ne ph e w , 1 3 86 .
64 JOHN HUS S

men priests no matter how wicked their lives may b e M ay .

they s hrink back le s t they get the lepro sy of Gehazi who took ,
’
pay for dispe n s i n g God s grace M ay they s hri n k b ack who .

follow Juda s I s cario t who b artered away what was holy and
,

for whom Christ said it had been b etter if he had no t b een

”
born .

The popular strength of the movement in the direction of

the reform of church abuses found hopeful expression in the
archbishop s act appointing a commission of which Huss was
’
,

a member to inve s tigate the alleged miraculous qual ities of

,

the holy blood of Christ exhibited at W yl sn a ck W yl sn ack

,
.

wa s a town in B ra n denburg northwest of B erlin The reli c,

.

was fi r s t shown in 1 3 8 3 and attracted throngs of pilgrims from

B ohemia Hungary and o ther parts of Europe In i ts day it
, ,
.

was probably the most famous obj ect of devotion in Cen tral
Europe Among the more notable miracle s ascrib ed to its
.

agency was the s ucce ss given to a knight who after having ,

vowed to devote his armor to the holy blood killed his op ,

ponent Frederick in a duel Another much talked —

, ,
o f case .
-

was that of a certain robb er P eter who was impri s oned for his, ,

crimes M aking a vow to the relic he was able to b reak his

.
,

fetters and escape the prison walls The case which attracted .

most attention in B ohemia and prob ably precipitated the

’
archbishop s investigation was the case of Peter of Cachy .

This citizen of Prague had a withered ha n d and going to ,

W yl sn ack carried with him a silver duplicate which he laid

, ,

on the altar as the price of the hoped for cure His hope was -

not realized but to h is amazement a priest announced in the

,

church when Peter happened to b e present that a miracle

, ,
’
had b een done and the P r agu e r s hand healed Lifting up .

“
his in firm arm P eter cried out : 0 prie s t what a liar thou
, ,

art ! S ee my hand is still as much withered as it was b e

fore .

The commission which included besides Huss S tanis

, , ,

laus of Z n aim and prob ably P a l e cz reported that the re l ic ,

 HUS S A S A NATIONAL LE A D E R 65

was a fraud and the archbishop followed up the report with a

decree forbidding all pilgrimages to W yl sn ack 1 .

The investigation was followed by a heated discussion in

’
the university as to whether all of Christ s blood wa s glori fi ed
or no t And for the moment i t seemed a s if thi s que s tion
.

had obscured the importance of all o ther theological deb a te

and e ff ort at ch u rch reform in the city I t called forth from .

Hu ss s pen a treatise enti tled The B l ood of C hr ist—dc san gu in e

’

C hr is ti ?

Here the author s tates the claim made for the miraculous
“
relic justi fi ed the archbishop who had acted as a true shep
herd in ordering the inves tigation and makes an argument ,

to prove the liquid a fraud The argument is b ased upon .

S crip ture the authority of the church and reason For th e

, ,
.

s tatement that the entire body of Chris t

—
hair b eard and .

, ,

—
blood yea all the parts of Christ s earthly body are glo ri
, ,
’

fi e d and no one of them exists on the earth he adduced such ,

S crip ture texts as I Cor 1 5 1 9 I t is sown a natural body .

,

“
and raised a s piritual body and L uk e 2 1 1 8 No t a hair of , ,
”
your head shall perish as also the words revealed to D avi d,

Thou shalt no t suff er thy Holy One to see corrup tion ,

Psalms 1 6 1 0 In regard to the red spots sho wn on gar

.

ments alleged to have b een worn by the Virgin and on th e

’
cross and thorns from Christ s crown these were only an ap ,
’
p e a r an ce ; the sub stance was no t there Chri s t s foreskin .
,

whi ch was reported to b e in R ome was not genuine in spite , ,

of the fact that the numb er deceived thereby was large Like .

’ ’
wise Christ s beard and the milk from M ary s breast shown ,

in Prague were frauds even though the worshippers b elieving

, ,
’
them genuine were many I t was fi t t ing that none of Christ s .

1
D ocu men ta , 3 3 2
—
.

2
M on u men ta , 1 191 2
02 . i, 3 9 , w ith lit e r a t u r e in
F l aj sh an s cd .
, pp . xv

I n tr od uc ti on F l a j sh a n s , p x v i, pr on o u n ce s t h e v a l u e o f t h e tr ac t hi s t o ri c a l
. .

a n d n o t d ogm a ti c , i n a sm u c h as t h e C a th o li cs d e n y H u ss s c o n c l u s i on a s t o
’

f
r e li cs of C hri s t , b e c au se H u ss l e t o u t on e o f t h e c on s i d e r a ti on s a d v an c e d b y
T h om as A q u i n as ; an d P r o t e s t a n t s , o n t h e o th e r h an d , d o n o t fin d e n ou g h r e e r f
e n c e s t o S c ript u r e or e l se fin d t h e S c ript u r e t e x t s i n a pp os it e .
66 JOHN HUS S

blood b e annihilated or p u t r e fie d and that all the blood which

he shed b e glorified wi th h is body .

The seco n d argume n t proved that the alleged miracles

performed at W yl s n a ck were decep tions upon the basis of th e
te s timo n y of persons reported to have bee n cured The relic .

was said to have re s tored sight to the b li n d and to have helped

the pri s oner to escape from j ail B u t the commi ss ion d is .

covered that two women who were reported to have received

,

their s ight swore b efore a notary that they had never been
,

blind a n d a boy reported as having had a foot healed was

, , ,

wor s e off after h is vi s it to W yl sn a ck than he was when he went

there .

’ ’
In spite of the commission s report Huss s tract and ,
’
Z b yn e k s decree the relic continued doing its mi ss io n of de
, ,

c e iv in g the unwary for more than a century B u t the d is .

cu s sion ,
started in the univer s ity over the question whether
’
any of Christ s blood is on the earth excited interest b eyond ,

Prague I t was made the subj ect of di s cussion in the uni

.

ver si ty of Vienna received special notice in the u n iversities

,

of Leipzig an d Erfurt and a synod held in M agdeburg 1 4 1 2

, , ,

called upon the bishop of Havelberg in whose dioce s e W yl s ,

nack was located to put an end to the decep tion Hus s de

,
.

c l ar e d that at W yl sn ack they did no t k n ow what they adored ,

“ ’
but that we adore Christ s body and blood extant at the ,
”
right hand of God and hidden in the venerable s acr ament .

W yl sn a ck was still a place of pilgrimage in Luther s d a y as ’

,

Luther tells us in his A ddress to the Ger man N ob il ity In .

1 5 5 2 the pyx was b roken in which the reli c wa s held and th e

relic i t s elf thrown into the fir e .

’
The most notable case of Christ s blood was the relic
which reached E n gland in 1 2 4 7 Its arrival was celebrated.

with di s ti n gui shed solemnity The king of E n gland Henry

.
,

III after fa s ti n g and keeping watch all night accompanied

, ,

by the prie s t s of Lo n don in full canonical s and with tapers

burning carried the vase containing the holy li q uid from S t
,
.
 HUS S As A NATIONAL LEAD E R 67

’
Paul s to Westminster and aroun d the church and the palace
, .

The king b areheaded pro ceeded on foot hol din g the s acred
, , ,

relic above his head The bishop of Norwi ch preached the

.

sermon on the o cca sion and at a later date R ob ert Gros s e , ,

te s te preached another defending the genuine n es s of the blood

,

by reasoning which displayed great schola s tic ingenuity .

M atthew Paris who give s a detailed description of the relic

, ,
“ ”1
called i t a holy b ene fi t from heaven .

Among the cases of bloody hosts was the one reported by

C a sar of Hei s terb ach two centuries earlier at S t Trond .
,

B elgium He had seen it hi mself and spoke of it as a miracle

.

to b e recorded for the b ene fi t of the generations that were

to come after The fragments of the cro s s w hi ch the piety
.
,

of the Middle Age s revered as genuine came to b e so numerous ,

that Clement V solemnly pro claimed the dogma of the mul

t ip l ica t ion of the wood of the sacred tree .

’
The decision issued agains t the use of Wycl if s writings
by the university of Prague in 1 40 3 had the result of in , ,
’
creasing the curiosity to k now what Wyclif s views were .

In fact clerical and scholarly opinion in Prague was in a fer

,

1
A m on g t h e m o s t n o t ab l e co ll e c ti on s o f r e li cs it h a s b e e n m y privil e g e t o
se e wa s t h e c o ll e c ti on s h o wn b y t h e c a th e d r a l of A a c h e n in S e pt e m b e r , 1 9 0 9 .

I t is e x hi b i t e d e v e ry se v e n y e a r s I wa s t o l d th a t t h e d ay b e o r e m y vi s it
. f
p e opl e h ad p a i d th e ir m a r k f or ad m i ssi on in ad d iti on t o t h e p oor , wh o
a r e a d m itt e d w ith o u t f e e H a n g i n g u p a g a i n s t t h e w a ll o f t h e p a ss a g e wa y
.

thr ou g h whi c h we p a s se d we r e n o ti c e s , B e wa r e of pi ck p o cke t s, so th a t t h e ”

a n c i e n t r e li c s o f S t e ph e n , p a rt o f t h e s p on g e h an d e d t o C hri s t o n t h e c r o s s , t wo

of t h e A p o s tl e T h om a s s t e e th an d o th e r s sc a r c e ly l e s s r e m a r ka b l e , d i s pl a y e d a
’
,

f
f e w ee t a wa y , we r e n ot s u ffi c i e n t t o wa r d off th e s e m o d e r n s i n n e r s T h e m os t
—
.

f
n o t a b l e s p e c i m e n s in t h e c o ll e c ti on a r e t h e o u r g r e a t e r r e li c s t h e un d e rg a r m e n t
whi c h M a ry wo r e wh e n C hri s t was b o r n , C hri s t s s wa d d li n g c l o th e s , t h e g a r m e n t
’

h e wo r e a r o u n d h is l o i n s o n t h e c r oss , a n d t h e s h ee t o n whi c h t h e h e a d o f J o h n
f
t h e B a pti s t wa s l a i d a t e r h e w as p u t t o d e a th T h e t wo l a tt e r , i t is s a i d ,
.

c on t a i n b l ood s t a i n s b u t , th o u g h pl a c e d wh e r e t h e m a t e ri a l wa s se e n , we r e n o t
-

f
u n ol d e d .
’ ’
f
M ar y s g ar m e n t was d i s pl a y e d in it s u ll pr o p orti on s wi thi n a g l a ss
c as e , a t e i th e r e n d of whi c h a pri e s t s a t wh o , r e c e ivi n g r os a ri e s i n tr u s t e d t o

h im b y wo r s hipp e r s , thr u s t th e m i n s i d e t h e c a se a n d , t o u c hi n g th e m a g a i n s t
t h e s a c r e d g a r m e n t , r e t u r n e d t h e b e ad s t o t h e o wn e r s S i n c e 1 2 0 0 , so t h e
.

ofli c ia l a cc o u n t of t h e c a th e d r a l s t a t e s t h e se pt e n n i a l e x hi b i ti on h as o cc u rr e d
,

an d t h e pil g ri m a g e s h a v e b e en g o i n g on .
68 JOHN HUS S

ment over the English S choolme n Z b yn ek was forced into .

the di s cu ss ion by a s ummons from Innocent VII 1 40 5 call , ,

ing upo n him to extirpate the errors of Wyclif sown in his

dio ce s e The papal document wa s issued in answer to an
.

appeal which reached the pope from Prague .

A synod convened in 1 40 6 reaffi rmed the action taken by

, ,

the university three years b efore and threatened wi th the

penalty of excommunication all who denied that the bread
and wine after the consecration were the real body and blood
of Christ A numb er of laymen as well as clerics were cited
1
.

’
before the archbi s hop s court charged with holding the Eng
lish m a n s V iew but were dismissed— a n issue largely due t o
’
,
’
Hu ss s pre s ence .

The same year a document reached Prague b earing th e

seal of Oxford univer s ity and purporting to have b een is
sued by i ts chancellor and it s masters ?
The b earer Nicholas ,
’
F au l fis ch al s o had with him a piece of Wyclif s tombstone
,

whi ch he had broken off at Lutterworth The document .

’
atte s ted the excellency of Wyclif s life the profundity of his ,

teachings and the sweetness of his memory a s matters known

,

to all He knew how to study the b est interests of the ch u rch

. .

H is conversation to the day of his death was so excellent and

pure that i t exposed no t a single dark corner to su spicion .

In his lectures preaching and discussions he was a strong

, ,

defender of the faith and as a writer on all subjects p h il os o , ,

p h ic a l theological and practical he disposed of by considera

, ,

tions drawn from S cripture and in a catholic manner all who

’
blasphemed Christ s religion ; Oxford had no t had his equal .

Nor was he convicted of heretical depravity nor wa s his ,

body given over to the flames Far b e i t from our prelates .

that they should have condemn ed a man of such probity as a

heretic .

1
P al a cky , Gosch , . 213 . No t e , q u o ti n g t h e Chron Un iv P r ag Doc
. . . .
, 33 2
-

5,
f or t h e s y n od a l a c t s .

2
M on u men ta , 2 54 2 .
 HUS S As A NATIONAL LEAD E R 69

This eulogy fanned the flames of controversy in Prague .

Already B ohemia had go t the ill fame of being heretical

on account of the prevalence of W ycl ifi t e s and errori s t s ”

within i ts borders 1
The B ohemian element at the univer
.

sit y ,
if no t exclusively concerned abou t W y clifi sm was far ,

more concerned abou t i t than all o ther elements combined .

“
This element or nation offi cially took up the matter May
, ,

2 0 1 40 8 in an assembly consisting of sixty four doctors a n d

, ,
-

masters one hundred and fi fty b achelors and nearly one

, ,

thousand students ?
Among the profe s sors were Peter a n d
S tanislaus Zna im S tephen P al e cz Jacob of Mies and Huss
, , ,
.

Huss pro tested against the uncon di tional conde m nation of

the XLV Articles and the assembly wen t so far as to modify
th e decree issued by the whole univer s ity in 1 40 3 and con
tented itself with ordering that the articles s ho u ld no t b e
taugh t in a way to give a heretical or erroneou s sense Fur .

’
ther i t was agreed that Wyclif s statements should no t b e
,

taken up at public disputations and that b achelors of the

’
ology should avoid lecturing on Wyclif s three tractates the ,

D ia l oga s Tr ial ogn s and d e E n char istia

,
.

Immediately b efore as well as after thi s convention ,

clergymen including Nicholas W e l em owicz and M aster M at

,

thias of K ni n were indicted b efore the tribunal of the inquisi

,

tion in Prague at the head of which stood the Franciscan

, ,

J ar osl oy titular bishop of S arep ta This trib unal had been

,
.

e s tablished in the ci ty in 1 3 1 5 and early in its history pu t to

,

death in a single year fourteen B eghards 3

W e l e m owicz .
,

called Abraham was charged wi th b eing a Waldensian He

,
.

decl ared laymen migh t preach as well as priests When bid .

den to take the oath upon the Gospels and the cruci fix Huss , ,

who defended him quo ted Chry s o s tom to show that an oath
,

is not to b e required by any created thing but only by God .

1
D oc .
54 , 3 3 3 . e t c
. 1
2
F or t h e n u m b e r s , s e e P a l a cky , Oesch .
, 2 2 1 sq .

1
W e t z er W e lt e , 1 0 2 8 7
-
.
76 JOHN HUS S

The vicar general Kbel turning upon him exclaimed wi th

-

, , ,

pas sio n that he was there o t to argue but as a spectator

n
1
.

Huss complai n ed that wicked a n d i n ce s tuous prie s ts were

left untouched while s ome of the b est were b ei n g indicted .

’
I n spite of Huss s intercession the accused was kep t in prison ,

a n d later b anished by the archbi shop .

Pre s sed by a summons from Gregory XII M ay 1 5 1 40 8 , , ,

’ “
and at the king s i n stance the archbi s hop instituted a ,
”
dilige n t and searching inve s tigation in h is diocese for proof
whether B ohemia was W ycl ifi t e and heretical or not The r e .

sult was such that at a general synod made up of the clergy

and the constituency of the universi ty held two months ,

later July 1 7 1 40 8 the archbishop felt justi fied in a n n ou n c

, , ,

ing that no t a single person could b e found in the diocese of

Prague h olding heresy or addicted to error and he i n formed the ,

pope that B oh emia was true to the Catholic faith all through ?

S O prominently identi fi ed wa s Hu ss with the new doc

trines that his attitude called forth from certain of the clergy
,

in 1 40 8 an indictment against him addres s ed to the archbishop .

The charges were that in the B ethlehem chapel before a large ,

audience made up of men and women he had declared at , ,

variance with the teaching of the Father s that i t was a sin ,

for the priests to take money for burials and celebrati n g the
sacraments He made the clergy odious in th e sight of the
.

people by announci n g that he wished his soul to b e where the

—
soul of Wyclif was v ell et a n ima m sn a m ibi f ore n b i est a n ima
3—
Wycl efi and following Wyclif he held to th e remanence of
the bread and wine after the words of insti tution While he .

’
was dining with the rector of S t Clement s he had struck .

“
the table with h is fi s t and exclaimed : What is the R oman
church ? There antichrist has planted h is foo t He was .

also charged with preaching often and abusively agains t

the clergy so a s to bring i t into disrepute with the people as
it had never b efore been up to that time It is po ss ible that .

1
D c 84 sq
o .
,
M on 1
1 09
—4
. D c 1 5 3 s qq 1 7 3 —
2
.
,
11 84 11 .
3
o .
, .
, .
72 JOHN HUS S

ab s olutely deni ed it declaring that he had con s tantly afi rm e d

,

that what the people saw at the elevatio n of the ho s t in the

form of bread and wine was the body of Christ and this they ,

saw by faith .

As for the charge of extravagance in dwelling upon the

live s of th e clergy h e quo ted the Old and New Testament s
,

to show that he had followed the example s set forth therei n .

The Master had exposed the si n s of both people and clergy ,

a n d i n s tead of fl attering the Pharisees and scribes called them

, ,

a wicked generation and pronounced the devil their father .

’
Hu ss s R eply which was elaborate is written in a spirit o f
, ,

stro n g as s urance .

The advocacy of the new views was no t confined to ser

mons an d tract s and university discussions As the Flagellants .

a n d the Lollards had their popular song s s o at Prague at t hi s ,

time a new hymnody came into bein g and popular songs were
sung embodying views expressing the religious sentiment of
the people bu t also ridiculing the bishops an d the inquisitorial
,

party All of them with the exception of four were forbidden

.
, ,

to b e sung by the archbishop ?

’
The next s tep on the archbi shop s part was to prevent
the worki n g of W yclifit e infection by de s troyi n g all copie s of
’ ’
Wyclif s writing s Th e action of the univer s ity and Hu s s s
.

attitude toward Wyclif indicated plai nl y enough that W ycl ifi t e

’
teachi ngs were current Huss s R eply did not sati s fy the
.

conservative wing of the clergy They foll owed him in hi s .

walks and attended his chapel to catch heretical sentences

and to put them down for use agai n st him Nothing bu t .

the complete humiliation of the B ethlehem preacher would

satisfy some of these sleepless guardians of the truth and
orthodox teachi n g s Z b yn ek had to choos e b etween thi s
.

wing and the popular preacher and in choo si n g the latter he ,

would risk the censure of his superior the pope The con ,
.

d it ion s forced him to b ecome a W y cl ifis t himself and j e op a r

1
D ocu men ta , 3 3 3 .
 HUS S AS A NATIONAL LEAD E R 73

dize his own good standing or to treat Huss with suspicio n

and deal wi th hi m according to the stri ct usage of th e church .

The air was fil led with di s turbing rumor s but it was e v i ,

d e n t ly no t wi thou t much reluctance that the archbishop took

the latter atti tude In the settlement of the i ss ue the king
.
,

and the memb ers of his court were to b e involved The peo .

ple were predominantly wi th Huss as were al s o many of th e ,

clergy The queen had made hi m her confes s or and in com

.
,

pany wi th the ladies of her suite attended B ethlehem ,

’
chapel The kin g s sym pathies also seemed to lean in that
.

direction b ut policy made i t exp edient for him to preserve

the pope s favor and to prevent if possible the appearance
, ,

of any divi sion among his people on religious que s tions .

The si tuation in P rague was un exp ectedl y complicated by

two contemporary events th e settlement of the papal schi s m
,

and a change in the constitution of the u ni ver sity of the city .

The scandal of the rent in Chri s tendom wi th two con

tendin g popes one at Avignon and one at R ome was drawing
, ,

to a close I t had now continued for thirty years The la s t

popes in each l in e—Angelo Correr cardinal of Venice known
. .

, ,

a s Gregory XII elected 1 40 6 and Peter de Luna known as

, , ,

B enedi ct XIII elected 1 3 94— were men of ability and te

,

n a ciou s of power each equally convin ced of the justice of his

,

claims B oth of them uttered the most pious laments over

.

th e rift in the Christian world of the We s t and the evils of

“
th e double papacy B oth pon ti ffs called themselves servant
.

”
of the serv ants of God I t wa s a serious cri si s Not only
. .

th e university of P aris bu t indi v iduals all over Eur ope had

,

worked in the interest of its solution The ponti ffs profes s ed .

to b e ready to do almost anything to bri n g the di vi s ion to an

—
end everything except resign and thus open the way for an
,

other election or submit their claims to an im partial umpire

,
.

Gregory wrote to his rival on the R h one that lik e the ,

woman who was ready to renou n ce her child rather than s e e

i t cu t asunder each of them should b e willing to cede h is
,
74 JOHN HUSS

authority rather than b e re spo n s ible for a continuance of

“
s chi s m .He q uoted the word s : Who soever a b a se t h himself
shall b e exalted a n d who s o exalteth him s elf shall b e brough t
low . B e n edict replied pronouncing the schi s m abominable
, ,

—
detestable dreadful ex ecr a n d a d etes ta n d a dir a qu e divis io .
, , ,

Gregory a n nou n ced him s elf a s pa ssio n ately in favor of uni

fi ca t ion so pa ss ionately that he was willi n g to cross by lan d
,

—
or by sea b y land wi th a pilgrim s s ta ff or by s ea in a fishin g ’

—
smack to meet B enedict and to arrange for union “
Time .

“
is s hort We are both old m e n
. wrote b ack B en edict ,
Has .

ten and do no t delay in thi s good cause Let u s both embrace .

”
the way s of salvation and peace Nothi n g could have been .

finer ; the sentime n ts were b eyond prai s e the language was ,

pathetic The one lame n ted that the division was pitiable
.
,

the other that it was most de s tructive Had they proved by .

act the s incerity of their word s they bo th would have de s erved

ca n o n ization The Catholic hi s toria n Pastor has s aid that
.
, ,

n o n e of the pope s were big e n ough of s oul to pu t an end to the

schism .

It remained for thirteen cardinals for s aking the two ,

obediences to take the fir s t practical step leading to the

,

de s ired reu n ion They met at Livorno a n d called the oecu

.

m e n ica l synod which convened at Pi s a 1 40 9 for the purpose

, , ,

of healing the schism an d as the formula ran reforming the

, ,

“
church in head and memb er s which meant from the papal ,

chair down .

The ki n g of B ohemia Wenzel following h is father Charle s

, , ,

IV had consiste n tly ackn owledged the obedience of the

,

R oman line and mai n tained his loyalty to it in spite of the

attempt s made by Clement VII to win Charles to the A v ig
non ob edience The call of the Pi s an council gave a well
.

grounded hope for a settlement of the papal question and ,

Wenzel withdrew from the O bedience of Gregory XII to as

s ume a neutral attitude The ki n g called upon the univer
.

sit y of Prague a n d the clergy to decide for neutrality In .

 H Uss A s A NATIONAL LEAD E R 75

doing so they would b e imi tating the action of the clergy of

,
’
France Z b yn e k re sisted the ki n g s wishe s and co n tinued for
.

the time bei n g to acknowledge Gregory Followin g the a d .

vice oi its rector Hen n i n g of B al t e n h agen the un iver s ity

, ,

decided not to proceed to a vote on the que s tion for it was ,

found that the B ohemian student body or natio n supported

the king and the three other nations were opposed to the
,

proposi tion to adop t an attitude of neutrality This diver .

gence of v i ew constituted a new element in the co n trover s y

b etween Huss and the church authorities by drawing the
court into sym pathy with him and developing the b reach with
the archbishop .

The cleft b etween the king and the archbi shop was widened
’
by the king s order January 2 2 1 40 9 forbiddi n g his subj ects
1
, , ,

to render ob edience to Gregory XII The cardinals he a d .

“
dre ss ed as our most dear friends zealous for peace and the ,
”
universal church of the most true God He al s o forbade .

the B ohemian clergy to receive briefs from Gregory until

the council had rendered i ts decision He s ent a delegation .

to th e cardinals which included P al e cz and S ta n isla u s of

,

Znaim both of whom were seized by B althasar Cossa the

, ,

cardinal of B ologna afterward Jo h n XXIII B althasar r e

,
.

leased them from prison only after urgent protests from the
univer sity of Prague and the cardinals ?
I t has b een surmi s ed
that B althasar s pretext was the supposed W yclifi t e leanings
’

of these two men bu t the release was no t procured without

,
’
the payment of money The king s wi thdrawal from the .

O b edience of Gregory XII was no doub t due in part to that

’
ponti ff s reluctance to crown Wenzel emperor He was hop .

ing that the council would provide for his recogni tion as
against h is rival R uprech t ,
.

At the death of h is father Charle s IV Wenzel who was , , ,

only fi fteen at the time received as h is domi n ion B ohemia

, ,

Silesia and parts of B avaria and S axo n y He proved to b e a .

1
D oc .
, 3 4 8 s qq .
2
S ee t h e l e tt e r s ,
D oc .
, 3 45 sq .
, 3 63 sq .
76 J OHN HUSS

vacillating prince given to pleasure and deb auchery His ,

.

lack of decision and habitual indolence won for him the title
“ ”
the Lazy In 1 3 9 5 he parted with the dukedom of Milan
.

and o ther po ss e ss ions in Lomb ardy to the Visco n ti for one

hundred thousand flor in s and in a fi t of drunkenness at ,

R heim s ceded Genoa to France He had a passion for hunt .

ing— dogs His fi rst wife Joann a so i t was rumored died

.
, , , ,

1 3 8 6 from the bite of a monster dog which the king kep t in

,

his bedroom and which flew at her throat as she arose one
n ight from b ed His second wife Sophia a B avarian prin
.
, ,

cess wa s faithful and devo ted to her husb and in all his changes
,

of fortune ? We n zel had a stormy reign I t was a series of .

conflicts b etween him and his b arons and him and Sigismund ,

his bro ther who had b een endowed by Charles with B randen
,

b urg and through marriage ob tained the crown of Hungary

, ,

1 3 87 He held the Hungarian crown for more than half a

.

century .

More than once Wenzel was seized by a faction of his

nobles who resented the favorites through whom he ruled
,
.

On one occasion he was released by his youngest bro ther ,

John of G orlitz who died at the age of twenty fiv e in 1 3 96

,
-
.

In V iew of his incapacity Sigismund in 1 3 9 6 was cal led in to , ,

’
his help as vicar of the kingdom to which by Wenzel s child ,

lessness and later by pact he was heir On the pretext of his .

neglect of the empire and his abuse of the church , Wenzel

was deposed from his offi ce of king of the R omans by a
majority of the electors led by Count John archbishop of , ,

M ainz and R uprecht wa s elected in h is place 1 40 0 In s tead

, ,
.

’
of b eing concerned for his brother s interests Sigismund was ,

continually seeking his own advantage and in 1 40 2 put ,

Wenzel under the guard of the duke of Austria at Vien n a .

The king made h is e s cap e from pri s o n again won the support ,

ZE e as S ylvi s c h a p 3 3 s ay s
1
n W e z l was m o t u li ke h i fa th e r a
u ,
.
, : n e s n s ,

f ll we r of pl e re s a d a v oi d i n g work P e tr r h ll h im n at ”

—h
o o a su n b t . a c ca s ve or r o u s u s

a a rd y h u n t e r . Of S ophi a ZE n ea s sa ys : “
S h e wa s b y f ar t h e su p e ri o r of

he r h u sb an d .
”
 HUS S AS A NATIONAL LEAD E R 77

of hi s nobles and resumed his throne Later amicable relation s .

’
were res tored and in 1 4 1 1 after R uprech t s death and with
, ,
’
Wenzel s a s sent Sigismun d was crowned king of the R omans
, .

P ersonal sympathies the luk ewarm support given him by

,

Gregory XII and the continued devotion of Z b yn ek to

,
’
Gregory s ob edience all these considerations were adap ted
,
’
to draw the king s favor to Huss and so they did The dele ,
.

g a t ion sent by the king appeared at Pisa M arch 1 40 9 and

, , , , ,
’
anno u nced the king s allegiance to the pope elected by th e
coun cil Alexander V On the other hand Z b yn ek remained
,
.
,

true to Gregory until S ep temb er 1 40 9 when he too trans , , , ,

ferred his a l legiance to Alexander The Pisan council r e .

,

garded as oecumenical by Gerson and B ossuet and so declared

by the council of Constance has in these latter days fall en ,

under the universal condemn ation of Catholic his torians .

— “
H e r g en r Ot h e r Kirsch in a tone of irony ca l ls it the unblessed
”—
Pisan synod segen l ose P isan er S yn od e An d Pastor pro .

“ ”—
n ou n c e s it the essential ly revolutionary convention we
s en tl ich r evol u tion are Ver sa mml u n g .

When Huss announced himself fully on the side of the

king in the matter of papal all egiance the archbishop turned ,

against him He hi mself as he wrote to the college of car

.
,

din al s had urged the duty of loyalty to it

,
The archbishop .

inhibited him from exercising priestly fu nctions and preach

in g. I n his remonstrance Huss expressed his pain that for ,

the fir s t time the archbishop should feel called upon to pro

nounce him disob e dient but at the same time he reaffir med his
,
’
allegiance to th e Pisan council and to the archbi shop s author ,

ity so far as it was lawful He also replied that he had not

,
.

cens u red the clergy b ut had rebuked their vices and their
,

failure to serve the people ?

Hus s in t imates that his attitude
o f n eutrality was construed by Z b yn ek as though i t had b een
a complete renunciation of Gregory XII which he denied ,
.

When Z b yn ek censured Huss he also censured all the masters

1
D oc .
, 5 sq .
, 1 66 sq .
78 JOHN HUS S

of the university for their loyalty to the council but Huss ,

was the only one singled out by name He was the foremost .

man in adop ting the new order of thing s Thi s condemnation .

by Z b yn e k as Hu ss him s elf wrote to the cardinals 1 4 1 1 was

, , ,

—
the starting point of all hi s troubles ?

The di fference of Opinion withi n the facultie s and student

body of the u n iver s ity on the question of papal obedience
’
which We n zel s demand revealed was the immediate o cca s ion
of a revolutio n ary change in it s charter B y this change the .

preponderance of power in the government of the insti tution

was taken away from the foreign nations and tran s ferred to
the Czech nation The chan ge wa s a revolution in which .

Czech patrioti s m fought for the mastery Here again Hu s s .

w a s the leading fi gure The trouble s which followed had as .

their result to identify him still more closely with the B 0

hemian cause and al s o with the court bu t on the other hand , , ,

the part he took in securing a change of the charter aroused

the embittered ho s tili ty of the German element in Pra g ue .

The governme n t of a m e d iee v a l univer s ity such as B ologna ,

and Pari s was in the hand s of the body of professors and

,
“ ”
students who were grouped in nations that is the aggrega , ,

tion of persons coming from one or more countries The .

system was recognized at Prague from the b egin ning and the ,

rivalry b etween the B ohemian natio n and the three foreign

nations had b een of long standing Each of these nations had .

a vo te ; namely B ohemia i n cluding Czechs Hungarians and

, , , ,

Moravians ; B avaria including Austrians Swabians Franco , , ,

n ian s and dweller s on the Rhi ne ; Poland includi n g Poles

, , ,

Lithuani an s and R us sians ; and S axony includi n g S axons

, , ,

Swedes and D anes ?

,
The four faculties of theology medi ,

cine law and the liberal art s were at fi rst under a single
,

rector with the archbi shop of Prague as chancellor the arch

, ,

1
D oc , . 21 . M on .
, 1 11 7 . E cce a ccu sation is m ece ac gr a v a m in is ex or d iu m

pr in cip a l e .

2
S e e R a shd all , 2 212 . P a l a cky , Gesch .
, 2 2 8 sq q .
, wi th h is q u o t a ti on s f r om
t h e C hr on . U n iv P r ag . .
80 JO H N HUSS

for a dog defends the couch on whi ch he l ies and if ano ther ,

dog drives him away he figh ts bu t we let the Germans op ,

”
press us and o ccupy all o ffi ce s wi thout complaint .

The j ealou sy had several times found heated expression ,

e specially in 1 3 90 in a case involving the dis tribution of b ene

fi ce s and s cholar ships This dispute called forth interference
.

from the king Now that the feeling again ran high over the
.

subj ect of W yclifism and universals and also in the matter of

papal allegiance the racial suspicions were aroused to an u n
,

exampled pitch A commi ssion presented the case to the kin g

.

—
at Kuttenb erg Ku tna Hora Wenzel promised to protec t .

the Germans and turning upon Huss who was pre s ent r e
, , ,

proved him with such vehemence for having introduced

here s y into the kingdom that Hu s s s ickened and took to bed .

B ut Hu ss had gained the favor of Nicholas of L ab k owicz who ,

’
s tood high in the king s favor and helped to bring about in

the king a change of mind in regard to th e a ffairs of the

university To this re s ul t no doub t a commission from
.
, ,
’
France contrib uted which at the time was visiting the king s
,

court and reminded him that at the u niver sity of P aris the
,

Fren ch had three vo tes while the foreign elements or nations

had together only one vote The three vo tes corresponded .

to the Gallic nations Picard Norman and French

, , ,
.

’
The king s fi nal state of m ind was set forth in a document
is s ued by him January 1 8 1 40 9 and read b efore the univer
, ,

sit y a week later I t set aside the stipulation of the original

.

charter and gave the B ohemian nation three votes and r e

d u c e d the vote s of the foreign nations from three to one ?

R eferri n g to the rule in force in the univer s ity of P aris the ,

decree pronounced it highly unseemly and unjust for foreigners

to have larger vo ting power at Prague than the native B o
h e m ian s .The three nations were s tirred to the very dep th s
by this deci s io n They regarded the change as a breach of
.

faith In vain did they pro te s t to the ki n g i n si s ting upon the

.
,

1
T he pap ers are g iv en , D oc .
, 3 4 7 3 63
-
.
 HUS S AS A NATIONAL LEAD E R 81

rights pledged at the foundation of the university They .

pre di cted that th e new law would mean the de s tru ctio n of
the i n s titution and the loss of the three nations A compromi s e .

which they propo s ed provided that the B ohemians should

have elections and examin ations of their own .

At the same time th e three nations agreed to stand to

gether and bound themselve s by a solemn oath that they would
quit Prague and no t return unless they were reinstated in all
the O ld privileges .

’
The news of the king s action was taken to Huss on his
sick b ed On his recovery h e publicly prai s ed the ki n g for
-
.

his goodness to the people and from the pulpit of B ethlehem,

c hapel ,
as was charged called upon the congregation to
,

thank God that the power O f the Teutons was reduced and th e
B ohemian appeal had won .

Forcible measures were necessary for carrying out th e

new order In M ay 1 40 9 Wenz el through h is mes s enger
.
, , , ,

appeared at the university demanded the resign ation of the ,

German rector Henn ing von B al t e n h ag en and installed his

, ,

secretary a Czech Zdenek of L ab au m in his place and

, , ,

Simon of T issn ow as dean of the faculty of p hi lo s ophy Th e .

’
king s action was defended on th e ground that the B ohemians
had multiplied greatly during the fi fty years since th e uni
“
ver s ity was estab lished and had risen above the foreigners
in every science and faculty The original reason for the dis.

crimination therefore no longer held The B ohemian nation

, ,
.

s hould rule in its own territory The Teutonic nation would .

not give up to th e B ohemians the s upremacy at Vienna or

Heidelb erg The prin ciple of Luke 6 : 3 1 should prevail :
.

“
As ye would that men should do to you do you also to ,

”
them likewise The B ohemian nation should b e at the head
.

and not at the foo t in its own univer si ty To the king b elonged .

the prerogative of regulating th e affairs of a B ohemian in

s t it u t ion . The passage in regard to the trib ute money a n d -

the passage bearing on ob edience to the king in th e fi rs t

82 JOHN HUS S

Epi s tle of P eter were quoted to show that the German nation
’
s hould yield obedience to the ki n g s mandate The canon law .

a n d the civil law agreed in giving to the inhabitant s of a land

the rule over foreigners who might happen to b e withi n its

borders .

True to their oath the foreign professors and scholars ,

seceded in a body with b ag and baggage On a s ingle day

,
.

two thou s and withdrew from Prague a n d according to ! Eneas , ,

Sylviu s fiv e thousand altogether ? M any of them went to

,

Leipzig where that university took it s s tart from this se ce s

,

sion 1 40 9 ,
Cambridge owed its origin to a seces sion of
.

s tudents from Oxford and P aris university had also wi tnessed ,

s eces s ions The u n iversity of Pragu e whi ch was at once r e

.
,

d u ce d to fiv e hundred students was eulogized by the council ,

of Constance 1 4 1 6 as havi n g b een origi n ally that noble

, ,

— —
univer s ity stu diu m P r agen se which was numb ered amongst
the greatest j ewels of our world From b eing without doub t .
, ,

the chief s chool among the Germans i t had b een turned by ,

”2
parti s an envy into a desert and solitude Since the emi .

g r a t ion of the Germans the i n stitution has remained a B 0

hemian school with a separate faculty for German students
,
.

With the sece s sion the city also los t its importance as a Ger
,

man centre of trade .

The honor or the stigma of b eing the chief author of

, ,

this change fell upon Huss although he de nied the charge of ,

ZE n e a s S ylvi u s , c h a p 3 5
1
U n o d ie s u pr a d u o mill ia P r aga m r el iq ue re ;
. .

n ec d iu p os t cir cit er tr ia m ill ia s eca t i, a p ud L ip s ica r n M is n az civ it a te rn

u n iv ers al e s tu d i u m er ex er e P r o co pi u s , a c hr on i c l e r o f t h e fi t e e n th c e n t ur y
. f ,

fo ll ows t h e fi g u r e s o f ZE n e as S o B e rg e r , p 6 4 , wh o i n c l u d e s in t h e n u m b e r
. .

the de pe
d e n t s o f t h e e m i g r an t s t u d en t s , an d K iig e l g e n , Gef a n gen schaf ts b r ,
n .

p ix C o ch l a u s , H ist H u ss , p 1 1 4 , sp e ak s of
. . . .s t u d e n t s a t P r ag u e .

XXX mill io s tud en tu m a n te H u ss p estem T wo th ou sa n d , h e s a y s , e m i g r a t e d

. .

t o L e ipzi g a n d t o E r u rt f
H ofle r , p 2 4 7 , g iv e s t h e n u m b e r o f th o s e wh o
. .

f
l e t P r ag u e a s a t l e a s t T h e m a tri cu l a ti on r o ll s o f t h e u n iv e r s ity o f
L e ipzi g s h o w l e s s th a n s t u d e n t s t h e fir s t y e a r , b u t thi s n um b e r c a nn o t

b e t ak e n as d e c i s iv e f or t h e s iz e of t h e se ce ssi on S om e of t h e s t u d e n ts we n t .

to o th e r un iv e r si ti e s .

2
D oc .
,
p 6 49
. .
84 JOHN HUS S

whether the y had supported his W y clifi t e views or

only as regard s the admini s tration of the in s ti tu tion On
.

the o ther ha n d the younger member s followed him In 1 4 1 7

,
.

the cou n cil of Co n stance su spended the pri v ileges of the

s chool but i t we n t on supporting the practice of communion
,
’
in bo th kinds which it adopted soon after Huss s death
, .
 CHAPTE R V

I N O P E N R E VOLT A G A I N S T T H E A R C H B I S H OP

S i hic p r o hazr etico ha b en d u s est, ha u d f a cil e q u is q u a m omn iu m q u os

u n q u a m s ol v id it , v er e C hr is tian u s h a b er i p oter it —L u th e r , P r ef
. to .

’
H u ss s L etter s , 1 5 3 7 .

I f H uss is t o b e r e g a r d e d a s a h e r e ti c , th e n m ay sca r c e ly a n y
on e o f all u p on wh om t h e sun h as l ook e d d own b e tr u ly h e l d t o b e a

C hri s ti a n .

THE change in the management of the university bei n g

made Huss was the chief popular force in the city as well
,

as the leader in the university i t s elf As B erger has well put .

“ ”
i t : The B ethlehem chapel ob s cured the cathedral The .

j u s tice of thi s s tatement was put to the test in the open

struggle b etween the preacher and the archbi shop The in .

t e r e s t B ohemia felt in the Pisan council and the election of a

new pop e almo s t completely receded b efore the intere s t in
the me asure s abou t to b e taken for the extermination of the
s o called W y c lifi t e heresy in Prague
-
The public burni n g .

’
of the English teacher s b ooks by the archbishop Z b yn ek in , ,
’
1 41 0 ,
is the most notable act of that prelate s episcopate
and his culminating blow directed against the new party .

Thi s spectacular event marks a crisis in the religious troubles

’
in Pragu e and Hu ss s career .

The council of Pisa whi ch received with distinction

,
’
Wenzel s deputation decided in favor of his claim to the crown
,

of the R omans again s t his rival R uprecht who died within , ,

’
a year thereafter Led by d Ail l y and o thers the council
.
,

proceeded courageou sly to carry out one part of its programme ,

Ju n e 2 6 1 40 9 by the election of the Cretan P h il a r gi car

, , , ,

dinal archbishop of Milan to the papal dignity He as sumed

-

,
.

85
86 JOHN HUS S

the name of Alexander V His election he is supposed to have .

owed to B altha s ar Co ssa who s aw in the pope s advanced ,

’

years a prob abili ty of h is early death a n d the po ss ibi l ity of

hi s own election as hi s s uccessor I n neither hope w a s he di s .

appointed Alexander wore the tiara less than a year dying

.
,

M ay 1 4 1 0
,
.

There were now three popes each having hi s own college ,

of cardi n als And the s pectacle was seen at Prague of two

.

li n es bei n g acknowledged the Pi s an line by the king and ,

Gregory XII of the R oman line by the ar chbishop Threat .

ened by a mob Z b yn ek put the city under inter di ct and r e

,

— —
tired for a season to R u d n icz R aud n itz carr ying with him
’
treasures from the crypt of S t Wence slau s in S t Vite s . .

’
cathedral Wiser coun s els prevailed and following the king s
.
,
’
example he acknowledged Alexander s claims September 2 ,

The announcement was celebrated in the capital city

by the ringing of the great b ell s on the city hall the celebra ,

tio n of the mass and the singing of Te D eu m s in the churches

,

and convents Six hundred bonfire s were li t in fro n t of a s

.

ma n y buil dings and a proces sion headed by the mayor pro , ,

c e e d e d through the street s .

Huss had b een on the side of the king and hi s sermo n s ,

in B ethlehem chapel were such as to increase the Oppo sition

’
of the archbi shop s party S tatements taken down from h is .

sermon s and alleged to b e heretical and abusive were embodied

by priest s in a new complai n t to Z yb n ek ?
The charge s were
the old charges dres s ed up in part in new clothe s They ac , ,
.

cu se d Huss of calling R ome the seat of antichri s t and every

priest taking money for sacramen tal acts a heretic I t was

, ,
.

also charged that he was no t onl y not a shamed to prai s e

Wyclif but that he openly proclaimed his per s onal attach
,

ment to him Among the sign ers of this document wa s

.

1
D oc .
, 3 6 8—
ive W en z e l s pr ofe ss i o
3 73 , g
’
n of l oy a lty i
t o t h e P s an cou n c il
Z b yn e k s t o A l e an d e r V t
’
an d S e e P a l ac ky
x Gesch 2 46 , n o e
—6 9
. . .
, ,
2
Doc .
,
1 64 1 .
88 JOHN HUS S
’
Wyclif s b ooks gathered up and burned and forbidding all ,

preachi n g excep t in the cathedral coll egiate paro chi al and , ,

conventual churches The docume n t repeatedly called W y

.

c l if heresiarch and condemned as containing heretical s tate

me n t s seventeen of h is writings includi n g the Tr ial ogu s , ,

D ia l ogu s the d e cor p or e C hr is ti and a volume of his s ermon s

, , ,

and ordered all copie s of them brought to the archbishop s ’

palace wi thi n six days A ll who retained in their posse ss ion

.

books of Wyclif were to b e solemnly excommu ni cated in the

churches of Prague with the ri n ging of bell s and the dashin g
of lighted candles to the ground A ll communi cation with .

—
su ch persons was forbidden in meat and drink in talk and ,

conver s ation in buying and selling on the s treet and market

—
, ,

place at the fir e or b ath cib o p otu or a tion e l ocu tion e e mp

, , , , ,

tion e ven dition e v ia f or o ign e b al n eo

, , ,
S o li ttle s u spicion did
, ,
.

Huss have that he was in error that he carried his own copies
of Wyclif to Z b yn ek a sking him to point out the errors in
,

them .

These fulminations were met by Huss in an appeal to the

pope on the ground that the pope had been fal s ely and badly
informed and in a similar appeal to the archbi s hop on the
s ame ground The excitement in the city was intense and
?

a dis tinct party was d eveloped w hi ch stood by Huss Within .

’
fiv e day s of the publication of Z b yn ek s decree the rector and ,

the community of teachers and scholar s of the univer s ity

’
joi n ed in a solemn refu s al to comply wi th the archbi shop s
demands on the ground that the royal and papal charter gave
the archbishop no authority over the un iversity in the matter
of teachings and book s The latter came un der the juri s .

dictio n of the civil not the eccle siastical authoritie s The

, ,
.

u n iversity appealed to the king for protection a n d the ki n g

went so far a s to per s uade the archbishop to withhold the
execution of his decree un til M argrave Jo s t of Moravia a man ,

1
A l e xan d e r an d Z b yn e k
’
b u ll s, D oc ,
s .
—
3 74 3 86 . H u ss
’
s d e s c ripti o n of thi s
b eg i n n i n g of pr oce sse s a g a in s t h im , D oc , . 1 88 s qq . M ou .
,
1 1 09 ,
293 .
 R EVOLT A GAINST THE A R CHB ISHOP 89

wi th some scholarly reputation should reach Prague and ,

pa s s the condemn ed books under re v iew Hu s s had sent to .

the prin ce a copy of a transla tion of the Tr ia l ogu s ?

On June 2 2 whi ch wa s the S abb ath Hus s preached to

, ,

an immense throng He referred to the decree calling for the

.

’
burning of Wyclif s writings and ch ar g e d that Alexander V had
been mi si n formed with regard to the re ligious condi tions in
B ohemia Alexander he said had also b een impo s ed upon
.
, ,

to b elieve that the B ohemians held do ctrines of Wyclif which

were contrary to th e faith bu t h e thanked God that he him ,

self had not found a single B ohemian who was a heretic .

“ ”
At thi s the congregation exclaimed : They lie they li e ! ,
“ “
B ehold Huss went on I have appealed against the arch
, ,
’ ”
bishop s decree and do now appeal Will you stand by me ? .

“
The people then called ou t in Cze ch : We will and do stand
”
by you . Continuing Huss declared i t was his duty to preach ,

and he would go on preaching or b e exp elled from the land or

die in prison b ecause popes could lie and had li ed but God ,

cannot li e He then called upon the co n gregation to b e stead

.

fast and no t intimidated by the decree of excommuni cation ?

A few days later June 2 5 1 4 1 0 Huss who called hi mself

, , , ,

R ector and Preacher of the Chapel of the Innocents sup ,

ported by seven other teachers and students made an elabo ,

rate and vigorous protes t against the decree 3

The name s of .

S tan islaus of Znaim and S tephen P al e cz are mi ssin g among

those who signed the pro test The action of Z b yn ek is con .

d e m n e d who as chancellor of the un iver s ity had dema n ded

, , ,

the giving up of the writings which had b een purchased or

copied at great cost of lab or and money Only one ignorant .

of the B ible and canon law would think of burn i n g books on

logi c philosophy and mathematics containin g no theologi cal
,

errors but on the contrary wholesome truth s If they con

, ,
.

t ain e d errors it was important for the masters and b achelor s

,

1
P al a cky , Ges ch
—
251
—6
. .
,
2
D oc , 4 0 5
. .
3
D oc .
, 3 86 3 9 7 . M on .
,
1 : 1 11 11 .
96 JOHN HUS S

to possess the books in order to refute them Paul had .

quo ted from Ge n tile writi n g s Nor did the New Te s tament .

co n demn all book s of paga n author s to the fl ame s Ari s totle .

,

A v e r r h oe s a n d o ther philo s opher s were s tudied though they

,

might hold error s B y such a rule a s Z b yn ek laid down even

.
,

the work s of the M aster of S e n te n ce s Peter the Lomb ard all , ,

of who s e s ayi n gs were no t accep ted by the doctor s and the ,

work s of Origen and other do ctors would have to b e con

d e mn e d .

In prote s ting against the closing of chapels to preaching ,

Hu ss e n tered into the hi s tory of B ethlehem chapel founded ,

by Cou n t John M iih lh e im and the terms of the gift includ

, ,

ing the s tipulation con fi rmed by the pope and We n zel that
, ,

the preaching should b ite in the B ohemian language The pro

. .

h ib it ion was again s t the example and teaching of Christ as

well a s the papal letter s s anctioni n g the chapel Chri s t had .

preached on the lake and on the mountain in the s treet a n d ,

on the highway as well as in the synagogues and had com ,

m an d e d hi s di sciples to go into all the world and preach the

’
Go spel Z b yn ek s sentence setting aside the S crip tures and
.
,

the decrees of the holy Father s denied to the priest his in ,

here n t righ t to exerci s e the offi ce of preaching the Word of

’
God Hu s s again charged Alexa n der s h u l l was go tten up
.

under mendacious and crooked information an d therefore ,

’
Z b yn e k s bull with it s i n hibitio n was null The case was .

pending at R ome Huss and his a ss ociate s a ffir med that they
.

had no purpose of advo cating any error s in b ook s co n dem n ed

by Z b yn ek an d for the reason s give n they intended to d is
, , ,

— ’
regard a n d di sobey Z b yn ek s bull p ar er e et ob edir e n on in
ten d im u s ?
In those things which pertai n to s alvation and
the preaching of the Word of God they mu s t obey God rather
than man and they appealed to John XXIII I n a lett e r
,
.

written to the cardinal s 1 4 1 1 and a s tatement made in Con

, ,

stance 1 4 1 4 Hu s s declared that there were many chapels

, ,

1
D oc .
,
p .
39 1 .
92 JOHN HUS S

of T yn d a l e s New Testament which B ish OD T on st all could

’

seize or purcha s e .

’
The flam e s in the archbi shop s courtyard o n ly served to
i n te n s ify the religiou s feeli n g in Prague I n popular s ong s .

Z b yn ek was lampooned as the A B C bishop

Z b yn ek , B i shop A B C
B urn e d t h e b ook s but n e v e r k n ew he
,

What was in th e m wr itte n ”

.

Finding i t expedient to seek safety from threatened violence ,

the archbi shop withdrew to R audnitz .

Two days after the burning July 1 8 h e pronounced the , ,

b an of exco mmuni cation against Huss and seve n other master s

and students mentioned by name and their a d herent s who
, , ,
”
on frivolou s grou n ds had sent the frivolous appeal to R ome .

They were pronounced rebels and di sob edient to the Catholi c

faith The sentence was ordered announced in churches with
.

the usual solemn ceremonies the ringing of b ell s and the,

da shing of lighted t apers to the floor ?

The anathema which had so often silenced Opposition and

secured sub mi ssion from kings and nations was in this ca s e
disregarded I t was looked upon as setting aside the cor
.

p or a t e right s of the un iver s ity as well a s all right of b eing

heard b efore the law The party passion was so heated that
.

even homicide was committed on the streets On the Sabb ath .

’
following Z b yn ek s decree the prie s ts announced the ex com
,

m u n ica t ion amidst violent disturb ances in many of the

churches In the cathedral itself July 2 2 when high mass
.
, ,

was bei n g celebrated the priest was forced by the uproar to

,
’
leave the church and on the same day in S t S tephen s six
,
.

men ru shed o n the prie s t wi th drawn swords threaten ing his ,

life when he b egan to speak agai n s t Huss The other party .

practised repri s al and p u ni shed all Hussite s ympath izer s

venturing within the cathedral precinct s The public o ffi cial s .

D c 3 9 7—
1
3 99 o .
,
 R EVOLT A GAINST THE A R CHB ISHOP 93

of the city forma l ly declared that the prohibi tion of preaching

“
in the chapels and the cremation had roused strife and
hatred among faithful Catholics started fi res an d resulted in , ,
”1
ho mi cide .

Huss and o ther defenders of Wyclif carried the matter to

the pub li c platform D ivi ding several of Wyclif s writings
.
’

among themselves Huss and fiv e o thers af ter giving pub li c

, ,

noti ce defended them in addre s se s in the churches duri n g the

,

la s t days of July and the 6 t h of Augu st ?

Simon of T issn ow
declared that the only excuse that could b e given for the
’ “ ’
burning of Wyclif s books was Z b yn ek s ignorance There .

” “ ”
fore he s aid let him b e spared and prayed for
, ,
D efend .

ing the tract on the D ecalogu e Jacob of Mies fo u nd in i t ,

“
vi tal truth and evange l i cal doctrine w hi ch i t b ehooved ev ery ,

Christian to defend even to th e death yea agains t princi , ,

p a l it ie s and powers and the rulers of the darkness of t hi s world

”
w hi ch had risen up aga ins t them For his good life and con .

versation Wyclif s o Pro copius assured his hearers deserved

, ,

to b e regarded as the evangelical do ctor Only the wanton .

,

the rich in th e things of thi s world and luxurious livers called ,

’
him a heretic He wi shed that Gamal iel s coun sel had b een
.

b orne in mind when th e que s tion of condemnin g th e b ooks

’
was un der consideration Z dis lav called Z b yn ek s b on fi re .

’
a silly spectacle Wyclif s wri ti n gs were indeed mos t useful
.

and if they deserved to b e burned for containing alleged

heresie s then why should no t th e whole earth b e b urned up ,

for i t was ful l of heresie s and why no t all Jews and lib erti n es
,

who openly deny Christ as Lord The conde m nation and .

’
cremation in the archbi s hop s courtyard were no t o nl y a d e
fi ance O f God and ju s tice b ut a damage to the whole kingdom ,

of B ohemia by threateni ng the freedom of the u ni versi ty .

1
P a l acky , Ges ch , 2 5 3
. D oc , 4 1 5
. . .

2
Lo s er t h , A pp e n d i x 3 0 8— 3 3 6 , g iv e s t h e add r e ss es o f S i m on o f T issn ow a n d
,

f
P r oc o pi u s o f P i l s e n in u ll an d th os e o f J ac ob of M i e s , Z d i s l a v o f Z wier z e t icz
a n d G icz in in p a rt f f
H u ss s d e en se o f W y c li s tr e a ti se on t h e T ri n ity
’ ’
M on
—3 5
. . .

1 131 1 .
94 JOHN HUS S
’
In the defen s e of Wyclif s tract on the Holy Trini ty based
“
upo n the spuriou s pas s age There were three that b ear
,

record in heaven the Father the Word and the Holy Ghost
, , , ,
”
a n d these three are one I John 5 7 Huss ann ounced him
, ,

s elf ready to s tand again s t all who favored the burn ing
’
of the books That act de s troyed sin in no man s heart but
.
,

did de s troy many b eautiful and profound thought s found in

’
Wyclif s work s and multiplied di s turb ance s envies and r e
, , ,

criminations and provoked ho m icide in the city L ike th e

,
.

“
Apostles he could no t help b ut speak the things he had heard
,

a n d seen . He was in duty bou n d to speak in the B ethlehem

chapel though forbidden by the apo s tolic s e e and his dioce s an .

The condemnatio n and the cremation had worked ill for the
kingdom of B ohemia and as for the prohibition of preaching
, ,

—ev a n gel iz a tio—it savored no t of the way of Chri s t who com ,

m an d e d that h is Go spel should b e preached in the whole

’
world . Even if Wyclif s writings were found to contain her
e sie s they ough t no more to b e burned than are good people
,

to b e burned who mingle wi th heretics or the wheat which is

mixed with the chaff D id no t God promi s e to sp are Sodom
.

if even ten righteous men should b e found therein ? Huss then

quoted Jerome Augu s tine and Amb rose in favor of the read
,

in g of heretical book s in order that heresie s might b e an

s we r e d and con fidence in the S crip tures established Chrys .

o s t om s u ffered excommuni cation from h is bishop rather

’
than join in the condemnation of Origen s works Chri s t .

him s elf condescended to di spute wi th th e S adducean and

o ther heretic s .

’
Hu ss s treatise is far above the treatments of the other
writers in the high religious tone it a s sumes as well as its
matter It s hows a warm devotion to the English master and
.

’
ann ounces Hu s s s readine ss to su ffer for his conviction s H is .

attitude was that of the Open mind to dismiss old opi n io n s

for new ones which his conscience might determi n e to b e b et
ter opinions This attitude of mind he set s forth in a noble
.
 96 JOHN HUS S

village or cas tle throngs welcomed the preacher of the sacred

,
“
truth B u t gen tly had he touched the tail of B ehemo th
.
,

which is S ata n a n d B ehemo th had opened h is j aw s to s wallow

,

up both him and his brethren H e is furious and charge s .

with lyi n g to n gue many with here s y blow s up the fl ame of ,

church cen sure a n d s end s h is threat s to neighboring r e gio n s

, ,

and yet at home B ehemo th had no t dared to touch his own

” “
neck . Huss closed his letter by sending greeti n gs from the
Church of Chri s t in B ohemia to the Church of Christ in Eng
” “
land and saying that the kin g a n d his entire cabinet the
, ,
’
queen s b arons and the common people were for the Word of
,
”
Jesus Christ .

If we are to judge by the statements of thi s letter and the

s tatements made in the appeal of the ma s ter s to the pope ,

June 2 5 1 4 1 0 the pressure to hear the preaching of the truth

, ,

from the lips of Huss and by o ther preachers in Prague mu s t

have b een very great In the twe n ty fir s t chapter of his .
-

Treati s e on the Church Huss exp resses hi mself as feel ing that
,

the time was one of religious awakening in which God in an

unusual manner was reveali n g His t r uth to the people of
Prague and e n d u ein g them with special power to endure
under persecution The party he represented was in some
.

” ”1
quarter s called the evangeli cal party .

The king gave proof of his favor for Huss by requesting

’
that the archbishop reimburse the owners of Wyclif s writings
for their lo s s and when he refu s ed Wenzel sequestrated the
, ,

incomes of the clergy who were taking part in the pro ceed
ing s of excommunica tion Wh en two doctors of B ologna .

arrived in Prague to announce John XX I I I S election Wenzel ’

,

and S ophia and a group of nobles interceded with them to

’
use their influence in having Alexander s bull w ithdr awn .

“
B u t Huss had ope n ly re s isted church authori ty He was .

under excommunication and the b an of the archbi shop had

behind it papal authority No longer was it simply a q ue s .

1
D oc .
,
12 —4
1 , 3 94 . Mon .
, 1 3 06, 3 3 1 .
 R EVOLT A GAINST THE A R CHB ISHOP 97

’
tion of Wyclif s heresy Huss him s elf if he was no t a heretic
.
, ,

was insubordinate to the church authorities Wri ter s u s ually .

’
repre s ent Hus s s case at thi s time as b ei n g a revol t agai n s t
church di s cipline and that only and no t again s t the accredi ted ,

dogm ati c teachings of the church There is some ground for .

’
this View At the same time Hu ss s teachi n g was too free to
.
,

b e wi thin the limits prescrib ed by the church He wa s a l .

ready in Opposition to th e dogma of the s upremacy of the

church as against the supremacy of the S criptures A l .

though he had taken the ground that Alexander V had i ss ued

his decision upon the b asis of false information Huss had in ,

e ff ect exposed hi mself to the jus t charge of contumacy when

h e declared in B ethlehem chapel that it was his in tention to
O b ey God rather than man Wyclif had b een condemn ed .

in E n gland and by Gregory XI and the public defen s e which ,

’
Hu s s and his colleagues made of Wyclif s writings wa s a
most hazardous exercise of the righ t of private judgment a ,

righ t abhorrent to the ecclesiastical sys tem b uilt up in th e

M iddl e Ages .

John XXIII to whom Huss had appealed from the arch

,
’ ’
bishop s mandate pu t Hus s s appeal into th e hands of
,
’
four cardin als who had Wyclif s books examined by theo
,

logical doctors of B ologna The maj ority of these do ctors.

,

after consulting wi th P aris and Oxford masters who were in

B ologna failed to fin d anything in them to call for their
,

b eing b urned or taken from the hands of students On the .

contrary they contained many good things However there

,
.
,

were certain articles drawn from the D ia l ogu s and Tr ia l ogu s

whi ch should no t b e taugh t The archbishop s party wa s al s o
.
’

active at the papal court and John placed the case in th e

hands of Car di nal O ddo of Colonna afterward Pop e M artin ,

V wi th the result that Huss was cited to appear in person in

,

R ome to b e e x arm n e d on the charges made against him ?

In the meantime in personal communications addressed to

,

1
D oc .
,
1 9 0 , 40 6 . M on .
,
1 1 09 .
98 JOHN HUS S

the cardi n al s the king and queen were interceding for Huss
,
.

’
They prote s ted again s t the archbi shop s decree burning
Wyclif s books and the closi n g of B ethlehem chapel to preach
’

’
in g . The king pronounced Alexander s bull precipitate and ,

a sk e d that the edi ct agai n s t free preachin g in the chapels

might b e withdrawn I t was b ased on the unfo unded sus
.

p ic io n that the heart s of the people of Pragu e were infected

“ ” “
w ith here sy . How he wro te could the vin e of Engedi
, ,

b e expected to flourish if the s ta l k of the Word of God were

”
cut off at the root that is if preachi n g were stopped ? In
, ,

three letter s to the pope the queen spoke wi th warm a ffection

of B ethlehem chapel and the pro fi t it had been to her and
memb ers of her court as the centre where the Word of God
was preached The decree prohibiting preaching would im
.

p ede the flow of salvation for the people and herself She .

—
b egged the pope for freedom of preaching l ib er ta tio pr cedica
tion is evan gelicce Helfert speaks of the undue interference of
.

S ophia in the aff airs of Hu ss He s ays righ tly that sh e had a

.

co n siderable i n fl uence in promoting the growth of Hus s itism .

Other memb ers of th e court also addressed the pope in

’
Hu ss s interest Thousand s had heard Huss at the B e t hl e
.

hem chapel so wro te B aron Lacek of K r a wa r to the pope

,
.

The people were confo u nded and indignant at the silencing of

’
Hu ss s voice and of b ei g deprived of the Word of God v er
n —
b u m D omin i p r iv a r i .

To the s e intercessions and o thers lik e them the magis

trates of Pragu e added their petition b egging John XXIII ,

that he migh t grant relief from the inhibitio n of preaching

in the chapels declaring at the same time that i t woul d b e the
,
“
s alvation of our communi ty for the Word of God to b e
preached more freely a n d copiou sly as they had had proof
in the good infl uence of a single preacher at B ethlehem
ch a p e L

In order to s ecur e a withdrawal of th e citation to appear

per s onally b efore the papal cour t Huss de spatched a cele
,
16 6 JOHN HUS S

1 41 he announced that trap s were set for him all along the
1 ,

road with the intention that he should no t return to B ohemia .

In another letter he a ss erted that his procurators had advi s ed

him no t to go as it would involve the giving up of his work in
,

Prague and if he started he would b e fooli shly exposi n g his

,

’
life At the s ame time he affi rmed he wa s ready with Christ s
.
,

help to appear at R ome if thereby or even by h is death he , ,

could pro fi t some to salvation Again in his appeal from the .

,

’
pope s fin al decision 1 4 1 2 he referred to these traps and , ,

he j usti fied himself by referri n g to the impri s onment and

spoliation to which P a l e cz and S ta n i s lau s had b een subj ected

in B ologna 1 40 9 He also alleged the co s t O f the jour n ey to

,
.

R ome 3 0 0 miles away and demanded trial in Prague the

, ,

place where the a s sumed Of fense was committed ?

Neither the letters from the queen and the king and
o ther p ersons high in position nor the solicitations of the
’
king s personal representatives at the papal court John Naa s , ,

a doctor of both law s and Jo hn of R ein s tein were suf ficient ,

to procure a wi thdrawal or modi fi cation of the summons of

citation In the proceeding s w hi ch led to th e refu s al of the
.
,

cardinals to make any change Z b yn ek was reported to have ,

spent large sums at R ome ?

The nex t s tep was inevitable For h is contumacy Car .

,

dinal Colonn a in Feb ruary 1 4 1 1 placed Huss together wi th , ,

all his followers and sympathizers under excommunication .

Much as such a use of eccle siastical prerogative is at variance

wi th Pro te s tant Opinion in the twentieth century the methods ,
’
in vogue in that age left no su fli cie n t groun d for Hu ss s com
plaint that h e was excommunicated withou t a hear ing and
without being guilty of here sy ?

For a rea s on unk nown to us the case was taken out of

’
C ol on n a s hands and transferred again to a commi ssion of

1
D oc , 2 4 , 3 2 ,
. M on .
,
1 3 0 4, 3 24, et c .

2
C hr on U n iv P r a g . .
,
as q uo ted b y P a l a cky , Gesch .
,
p . 2 64 . L o s e rt h , 1 70 .

3
D oc , 1 9 1 , 2 0 2
. .
 R EVOLT A GAINST THE A R CHB IS HOP 101

cardinals in cluding the enl ightened car di nal Z ab a r e l l a of

,

Florence who was to have a large part in th e investigation

,
’
of Huss s case at Constance Again a change was made and .
,

the case wa s pu t into the hands of Cardinal B rancas who ,

s eems to have taken no further action for more than a year .

’
A n noun cement was made of C ol on n a s excommunicatio n ,

March 1 5 1 4 1 1 in all the churches of Prague excep t two

, , ,
’
S t Michael s whose rector was Chri s tian of P r ach a t icz and
.
, ,
’
S t B enedict s
. .

In Pra gue the archbishop and his clergy were su ffer ing
’
indignities with the king s connivance if n ot at his exp re s s
command The city authoritie s took part in opposing the
.

curia by withholdin g or diverting tithes and u s ufructs .

Z b yn ek defend ed himself by the use of h is ju di cial prerogative ,

launching the b an agains t the civil authorities of Pragu e

and th e W yss eh r a d and pronoun cing the interdi ct over the
,

city of Prague ?
B ut the preachi n g went on and the insults
to th e clergy who remained faithful to the archbi shop did
’
not ab ate In spite of the king s order the streets co n tinued
.
,

to resound with the deri sive songs Some of the turbulent .

priests were expe l led by the king from the ci ty and prob ably , ,
’
in view of the archbishop s di spo s ition of the reli cs of S t .

Wence s laus a few years b efore Wenzel appeared in person ,

in the cathedral and ordered the canons to produ ce th e trea

sures hid in its vaults and shr ines and b ade hi s civil servants
remove them to Karlstein .

The position w hi ch the court and mu ni cipal authorities

had assumed would have made useless an appeal on the part
of the archbishop for th e enforcement of hi s ecclesiastical
censures The king went so far as to forbid any one to carry
.

a civil case b efore the ecclesiastical court on pain of losin g

the perquisites of his ofli ce or the very Off ice itself Here .

’
we may b e inclined to discern Wyclif s infl uence .

A seriou s e ff ort was now made by the contending parties

1
D oc .
, 429 s qq .
102 JOHN HUS S

to heal the dispute and took the form of a pact signed by the
archbishop and the universi ty July 3 1 4 1 1 by which the, , ,

entire controversy was referred to the king and his councillor s

for arbitration both parties declaring that they entered into
,

it of their own free will and agreeing to abide by the decision ?

The university had petitioned Z b yn ek to remove the decree

of excommunication from Huss and P a l e cz set forth con ,

siderations which would j ustify the archbi shop in lifting the

interdict from the city One of the considerations put forth
.

by the signers of this pact was the labor and expense that
would b e incurred in arguing the case at R ome The docu .

ment was signed in the presence of a company of noblemen

and attested by the public no tary Nicholas of P r ach a t icz ,
.

Among the signers were Simon of T issn ow the rector of the ,

university S tephen P a l e cz John of R einstein and Huss

, ,
.

The commission of arbitration consi s ting of Wenceslaus , ,

patriarch of Jerusalem and the bishop of Ol m iit z and D u ke ,

R udolph of S axony Lacek of K r awa r and other leadi n g noble

, ,

men acted promptly Their report which was ready in three

,
.
,

days called upo n th e archbishop to submit to the authority

,

o f the king as his lord and to inform his holiness the pope , ,

that so far as he the archbishop knew no errors were current

, , ,

in B ohemia and that the di fference b etween himself and the

,

’
magistrates had b een amicably brought to the king s court .

He was to intercede wi th the pop e to relax the ban of ex

communication for all persons upon whom it had b een laid
by the curia The archbi shop was also to lift the bans of
.

excommuni cation and interdict which he had issued On .

h is part the king was to see to it that any heresy that might
,

b e detected be pu t down and that the deprived clergy were

reinstated in their livings and their goods restored The .

u n iversity was assured of pro tection in all the privileges and

rights conceded to i t up to that time by popes Charles IV ,

and Wenzel .

D oe 43 4—
4 43
1
.
16 4 JOHN HUS S

As Thomas a B ecket soon forgo t h is promise of assent to the

Co n s titutio n s of Clare n don a n d repe n ted of his act on r e
turni n g to Canterbury so Z b yn e k quickly receded from his ,

oath to s tand by the action of the royal commissio n Even a .

pope P a s cal II on the ground of coercion had receded from

, , ,

a s olemn agreement with the emperor Henry V over in v e s

t it u r e s o soon as the pri n ce was well on the northern s ide of
the Alp s Z b yn ek went so far as to addre ss the promi s ed
.

letter to Joh n XXIII I t is still extan t b ut i t was never sent

?
,
.

I n thi s communicatio n he expre ss ed the hope that his sanctity ,

“
moved by h is bowel s of compas sion might dismiss and ,

a n n ul the excommunication and ce n sure s pronounced upon

the honorable ma s ter John Huss and ab solve him from , ,

per s onal appeara n ce at R ome .

The archbi s hop had deter m ined to pursue a di fferent

course and now turned to Sigi s mund hoping to win him to ,

his side a n d in view of the accession of i n fl uence which had

,

accrued to Sigismund by hi s rece n t election a s ki n g of the R o

man s and heir of the empire to break down the Oppo s ition of ,

h is bro ther Wenzel ? We would b e o ffered a puzzling dilemma

if the s e two princes were propo s ed for ruler and we were
obliged to choo s e b etween them If Wenzel was fi ckle and .

weak of will he was at least under the powerful co n trol of

,

a devoted wife who had the respect of the court Sigi s mund .

was as p r ofliga t e as his b rother though his p r ofliga cy did not ,

break out in such coarse deb aucheries and he was also a m ,

1
D oc .
, 44 1 sq . M on .
,
1 : 1 1 1 sq .

2
At Ru pr e c ht s d e a th 1 4 1 0 t h e C ou n t P a l a ti n e an d t h e a r ch b i sh op of
’
, ,

T r e v e s b o th o f wh o m s till a ck n o wl e d ge d G r e go ry X I I w e r e f or S i g i s m u n d as
, ,

k i n g o f t h e R om a S i g i s m u n d s c o u s i n J o s t m a rg r a v e o f M o r a vi a r e
’
ns .
, , ,

c e i e d t h e v o t e s o f t h e a r c h b i s h o p s o f C o l ogn e a n d M a i n z
v On S e pt e m b e r .

20, 14 S i g i s m u n d wa s e l e c t e d b y thr ee v o t e s o f t h e e l e c t o r a l c o ll e g e a n d
10 , ,

t e n d a y s l a t e r J os t b y t h e f ou r o th e r v o t e s i n c l u d i n g t h e v o t e o f B o h e m i a
, ,

c as t b y W e n ze l T h e riv a lry b e t we e n t h e c l a i m an t s c a m e t o a n e d b y J o st s
’
. n

d e a th J a n u a ry 1 4 1 1
,
T h e ch a r ge wa s m a d e th a t h e wa s p o i son e d a d t h e
,
. n

r e a l or su pp ose d m r d e r e r wa s q u a rt e r e d a li ve J ost s t e rri t o ry o f M o ra vi a

u .
’

wa s g iv e t o W e n z e l a n d s i n ce th a t ti m e it h a s b e e n a p a rt o f B oh e m i a
n ,
Pa .

l acky , Gesek .
,
2 6 0 s qq .
 R EVOLT A GAINST THE A R CHB ISHOP 105

’
b it iou sand ready to weaken his bro ther s hold upon his
subjects by every available mea n s .

In turnin g to Sigismund Z b yn ek neglec ted no t the cour

,

te s y of writing to Wenzel and gave as a reason for hi s course

of action that Wenzel had refused to give him an audience
and that the provisions of the pact had no t b een complied
with Those who remai n ed faithful to him were still deprived
.

of their u s ufructs their vi n eyards and o ther lawful po ss e s

,

sions A priest was no t handed over to h is pri s on who for

.

two years had lived wi th a nun The pari s h pries t of S t . .

Nicholas had b een seized and deprived of h is good s although

guilty of no wrong M any priests had been forced into fligh t
. .

In one word limits had b een placed to the fu l l and u n

,

hindered admi n i s tration of h is o ffi ce The civil au thori ties .

had even neglected to re s train mob violence whi ch prevented ,

his execution of acts of discipline I t had b ecome impos sib le

.

for him to pre s erve his honor and certify to the pope that
the persons under excommunication were guil tless of heresy .

At the time this letter was written S ep temb er 5 1 4 1 1 , , ,

the archbishop was at L e it om ysl already well on his way to,

Hungary to meet Sigismund D eath struck him on the jour

.

ney three weeks afterward at Pressbur g I t is prob able that

,
.
,

had Z b yn ek continued to live the outcome of the struggl e

,

b etween Huss and the church authoritie s would have b een

no dif ferent from what i t was Huss would have foun d no
.

more reason for retracing his steps and the archbishop could ,

no t have maintained his position in the church wi thout r e

ceding from the promi s e he made in the pact of July 3 1 4 1 1 , ,

and w hi ch on reflection h e must have b een convinced he

, ,

had entered into in haste M oreover that Huss and his fol
.
,

lowers had no t si n n ed Z b yn ek as he wrote to Wenzel could

, , ,

no t force hi s conscience to b elieve The only way for peace .

in B ohemia was for the innovator to undergo a radi cal change

of conviction and chan ge front or for the archbishop to fall
, ,

in wi th the reforming party and renouncing papal alle

, ,
16 6 JOHN HUS S

g ian ce ,
join wi th Wenzel a s later Cranmer joined with Henry
,

VIII in promoting a s chism in the church B u t Wenzel

,
.

was a weak sovereign where Henry VIII was s trong and ,

Z b yn ek had little zeal for religiou s reform while Cranmer

had much .
108 JOHN HUS S

A t this time S eptember 1 4 1 1 o ccurred a pictures q ue

, , ,

epi s ode in th e vi s it of two E n glis hmen Joh n S tokes a n d ,

H er t on k van Gl u x I t b ecame the occa s ion of ide n tifyi n g

.

Hu ss in the public min d more clo s ely if possible with Wyclif , ,

than b efore The E n gli shmen had b ee n sent to Ofen by

.

Henry IV to form a league with Sigi smu n d Henry IV had .

,

met Sigi s mund on the conti n ent and Henry V in the will , ,

which he made b efore starting for H a rfleu r left a j ewell e d ,

“
sword to Sigi s mund his most dear brother a s the s toute s t
, ,
” 1
defender the church had In 1 40 8 Sigi s mund had founded .

the Order of the Golden D ragon to fight against a ll pagans

.

and heretics S toke s wa s a licentiate of law of the university

.

of Cambridge and Gl u x later wa s s ent on another mi ss ion to

Sigi s mund by Henry V prob ably 1 4 1 4 ,
.

The commis s io n ers were invited by the masters of the

u niver s ity to a b anquet but decli n ed the honor from a pur , ,

po s e as it would seem to keep aloof from the religious d is ,

eu ssions which were rife a t Prague However they were no t .

,

succes s ful John S toke s who seems for the moment to have
.
,

forgotte n the methods of diplomacy in answer to a question ,

gave i t as hi s advice to every one wishing to retain his ortho

’
d ox opinions to avoid reading or studyi n g Wyclif s b ooks .

Thi s advice he s aid he gave out of love to God and the love
, ,

whi ch a man ough t to have to his neighb or for he continued , , ,

he k n ew well from exp erience the many evils arising from such
study .

Such a s tatement though falling unadvi s edly from an,

E n gli shman of po si tion Hu ss co ul d not let go u n a n swered,

.

I t was too damagi n g for tho s e who had supported Wyclif in

Prague a n d for tho s e who did not su flficie n t l y un der s tan d how
far Wyclif was under condem n ation in h is own land Hu s s .

’
caused a notice to b e affix ed to the ambas s ador s lodgi n g
challenging S toke s to public deb ate in the un iversity an d
“
quoti n g the commi ssio n er as hav i n g s aid that no man , ,

1
W yli e ,
pp 9 —1
. 1 . On G l u x an d S t ok e s , se e a so l Le n z , K on ig S igis mu nd
'

.
 HUS S R E SISTS THE P OPE 109

no matter how well di sposed he migh t b e and however well ,

rooted he migh t b e in sound doctrine could read Wyc l if ,

”
without b ecomi n g involved in here sy In a placard posted
.

against the door s of the cathedral S tokes dis o wned t his form
,

of statement and refused to enter into publi c de b ate at

Pra g ue on the ground that he was there as a memb er of an
emb assy and the au di ence would b e partisan At the same .

time he signifi ed his readines s to accep t the challe n ge pro

, ,

v id e d the di scussion was s e t for P aris or any o ther u ni versity ,

or appointed to b e held in the presence of th e curia at R ome .

He also announced h is willi n gness to meet the travelling ex

penses of any di sputant provided he were unable to meet
,

the exp ense himself He further s tated that when he was

.
,

asked in regard to the opi ni on held of Wyclif in E n gland he ,

had replied that h e was looked upon there as a heretic that ,

hi s works had b een burned wherever hands could b e laid upon

them and that his opinions had b een o fficially pronounced
,

heretical .

Once again John S tokes and John Huss met face to face ,

during the coun cil at Constance when Huss disavowed the ,

statement made by th e Engli s hman that he had seen in ,

Prague a tract ascrib ed to th e B ohemian master teachi ng

the remanence of th e b read .

’
The matter was no t at an end wi th S tokes s departure .

After he left Hu s s made an elaborate reply at the u niversity ?

,

’
After detailing the circumsta n ces under whi ch S toke s s state
ment had b ee n made he s tated that no t only did the honor
,
’
of his own universi ty which had b een using Wyclif s works
,

for twenty years demand a formal rejoinder bu t also the

, ,

honor of Oxford and the honor of K ing Wenzel He gave .

reasons for his hop e that Wyclif was among the saved The .

argument was false that b ecause Wyclif was held to b e a

h eretic by many prelates and prie s t s in Engla n d Fra n ce , ,

—
and B ohemia therefore he was a heretic a s fal s e as the
R epl ic co tr A glicu m J S t kes
1
a n a n M n .
—
35 39
o . o .
,
1 1 1 .
1 10 JOHN HUS S

argu me n t that b ecause the Turks Tartars and S aracens di d , ,

not accept Chri s t as God therefore he wa s no t the Son of God

, .

The burning of a m a n di d not make h is b ook s heretical any

more than the crucifix ion made Chri s t a heretic He chal .

lenged his adversary to S how that Wyclif had held a single

dogma at variance wi th the S crip tures For thirty years .
,

the English ma s ter had b een read and studied in Oxford so ,

’
that S tokes s s tatement that no one had read and studied his
books wi thout being s educed into heretical paths was no t
true I t wa s no t likely that his philosophical books would
.

’
contain a b reath of here s y but even if some of Wyclif s books
, ,

were found to contain heresies this was no suffi cient reason ,

why they should b e burned Ariu s and S ab ell iu s i t was true

.
, ,

drew their fal s e tenets from the S crip tures but in so doing ,

they had misunderstood the S crip tures .

If for no o ther rea s on thi s rejoinder would b e important

,

for the three historical s tatements i t contains and which have

already b een adduced that members of the university of
,

Prague had b een reading Wyclif for twenty years that ,

Wyclif tran s lated the e n tire B ible into English and that ,

Anne of Lux emburg wi fe of R i chard II had taken wi th her

, ,

to E n glan d the S criptures in Latin B ohemian a n d German , .

’
Hus s s words imply his b elief that Wyclif was called heretical
for having given the S crip ture s in English To accuse Ann e .

“
of here sy for having tran s lation s he pronounced a L u cif e r a n
’
s illine ss . Altogether Huss s di s cussion with th e Englishman
, ,

John S tokes was a most interes ting episode in the literary

,

hi s tory of the times

We now come to Jo h n XXI I I S sale of indulgences in ’

’
Prague and Hu s s s opposition which i t aroused As Luther .

one hundred years later so Huss was forced into a n atti tude
,

of ope n defiance of the pope by the sale of pardo n for sin .

’
No name of vender stands out prominently in Hu s s s ex
p e r ie n ce a s does the name of Tetzel in the ca s e of the Witten -

b erg monk On the other hand Huss at thi s point personally

.
,
1 1 2 JOHN HUS S

j urer blasphemer s chi s matic and relapsed hereti c the friend

, , ,

of heretic s a con spirator agai n s t the papal s e e a n d the church

,

a n d the s upporter of that son of maledictio n Angelo Correr ,

Gregory XII— heretic and schi smatic M en of every class and

.

s tatio n from the ki n g a n d cardi n als down were adj ured to gird
, ,
“
o n the s word again s t the refractory prince B y the grace of
.

”
God a n d the authori ty O f the Apo s tle s Peter and P au l John
pro mi s ed to all who took the cross b ei n g peni te n t pardon
, ,

a n d augmentatio n of eternal salvatio n a n d al s o to those

,

unable to go on the campaign who provi ded for substitutes

or contributed to the cost of the sacred undertaki n g The .

participants in thi s new cru s ade were to have the same in

d u l ge n ce as tho s e who went across the sea to rescue the Holy
“
Land Th e cru s ade was pronounced a campaign to protect
.

the church the mother and teacher of all the faithful a n d

, ,

to defend the city in which D ivi n i ty wi shed to dwell —s eeing

God had made i t the foundation for th e militant chur ch even
through the shed blood of the saint s and al s o the seat of
P eter .

The crusade was the we l l tried instrument employed by

-

pope s against heretics and di sob edient princes war by the—

s word for spiritual o ff en s es S O I nn ocent III s ummo n ed
.

C h ri s tendom against the Albigen s e s of S outhern France and

called upon the king of France to b rin g the refractory John
of Engla n d to submiss ion S O Inn ocent IV spread the flames
.

of sedition against Frederick II and sum moned Germany and

Sicily to revolt again s t him their soverei gn S O Urb an IV
,
.

appealed to Charles of Anjou to proceed agains t C on r a din the ,

“
la s t of the Hohenstaufen the young s cion of the poisonou s
,

” ’
brood of a drago n of poi so n ou s race And s o after Hu s s s
.
,

death pope s were to invoke bloody war s again s t the Huss

,

ite s them s elves .

I n re si s tin g John XX I I I S appeal Huss had before him

’
,

the example of \Vy c l if who resisted the cru s ade of Chri s tian
,

in conflict with Christian proclaimed by Urb an VI agai n s t

 HUS S R E SIST S T H E P OPE H 5

Clement VII of Avignon and preached in England by Henry

de Spen s er bishop of Norwi ch I n thi s ca s e the pontiff of
,
.
,

the R oman line pro mised indulgence for a year to all who
would e n list The dead as well as the livi n g were included
.

’
in the b ene fi ts w hi ch were to accrue Wyclif s burning words .

were laun ched against the enterprise in hi s Cruciata one of ,

h is la s t tracts ?
He pronou n ced it an exp edition for worldly
mastery and s tigm atized the promised indulgence the abomina
tion of desolatio n in the holy place No t from this tract bu t .
,
’
from Wyclif s Tr ea tise on the C hu r ch in th e portion treatin g ,

of indulgences di d Hu s s draw copiou s extracts for his attack

,
.

In M ay 1 4 1 2 Wenzel of Tiem dean of P as s au b rough t

, , , ,
’
John s b ul l s to P rague and at the same time th e p allium to
,

A l b ik
. To avoid as far as possible th e scandals which a t
t a c h e d to the sale of indulgences in Prague in 1 3 93 the ar ch , ,

bishop stipulated that the amounts paid which on the fo rmer ,

o ccasion were graduated according to the co n di tion of the

suppliants shoul d in this case b e left to the Option of each
,

individual Tiem reserved Pragu e for him s elf and placed the
.

money chests in three places the cathedr al th e Teyn Church , ,

and the W ysse h r a d Th e b eating of drums aroused the in

.

di f ferent to s ymp athy with the holy traffi c The o ther parts .

of B ohe mi a were farm ed out to deans and rectors .

In order to fores tall any opposition Huss migh t b e pro

posing to mak e Al b ik sum moned him to his pre s ence to
,

meet the papal delegates Asked whether h e intended to .

ob ey th e papal s ummons he replied that h e would wi th all

,

his heart ob ey the Apostolic mandate s Interpreting Apo s .

toli c mandates and papal mandates to b e convertible terms ,

the legates exclaimed : S ee lord archbi shop h e will ob ey the

, ,
”
mandate s of o u r Lord To this Hu s s replied : My lords
.
,

understand me ; I said that with my whole heart I am minded

to ob ey the Apostolic mandates a n d to ob ey them in all poin t s ,

but what I call the Apo s tolic ma n dat e s are the do ctrines of
1
L a tinW or ks , 2 577 s qq .
H 4 JOHN HUS S
’
Christ s Apostles and so far as the mandates of the R oman
,

pontiff are in accord with the Aposto l ic mandates and doctrine ,

that is according to the rule of Christ so far I intend mos t

, ,

certainly to ob ey them B ut if I fin d them to b e at variance .

, ,

I will no t ob ey them even if you pu t b efore my eyes fir e for

”1
the burni n g of my body .

The excitement over the b ulls in Prague ran high The .

’
peddlin g of pardons for money s tirred Huss s soul within him ,

and in the pulpit b efore the university and in a document ,

which he joined o thers in signing in the B ethlehem chapel ,

M arch 3 1 4 1 2 he gave no faltering expression to his high

, ,

wrough t indig n ation .

The do cument took up three questions The fir st in .

,

quiring whether the pope is to b e b elieved in he an swered ,

by denying that he is to b e b elieved in in the sense in whi ch

we b elieve in God although we may b eli eve what the pope ,

says and b elieve that he is pope The second ques tion .

,

whether confes s ion to the priest is essential to salvation was ,

an swered in the negative Here Huss quoted P eter the .

’
Lomb ard s s tatement and also employed the case of th e
pub lican who did no t appear b efore a priest and yet was
j usti fied Likewi s e he referred to the cases of the patriarchs
.
,

under the old law young children the dumb and to thos e , , ,

living in deserts or languishing in cap tivi ty all of whom ,

“
confess no t to a priest and yet he said i t would b e an , , ,
”2
awful and diabo l ical piety to condemn them .

1
M on .
,
1 367 .

I n t h e m a e o f en an ce a
2
tt r p
pl e t e c h an ge t ook pl a ce in t h e t e ac hi n g
com

of the c u c h r h t lf h
in t h e we t c e n t u ry T h e th e ory of t h e e a rly ch ur c h e l ab o
.

r a t e d b y T e rt u lli an was th a t a l m s pr aye r s an d o th e r w or k s o f p e n an ce a r e

, ,

e ffic i e t t o r e m o v e t h e p e a lty of s i s c o mm itt e d a f t e r b a pti sm

n n n B e g i nn in g .

w ith Al e x an d e r o f H a l e s d 1 4 5 con fe ss i on t o t h e pri e s t wa s m a d e r e q i s it e

,
. 2 ,
u

t o s a lv a ti on P e t e r t h e L o m b a r d wh o liv e d a c e n t u ry e a rli e r h a d t ak e n t h e
.
, ,

o pp os it e vie w co n tri ti on o f h e a rt an d c o fe ss i on t o G o d w e r e su fli c ien t

,
n B ut .

T h o m a s A q u i a s fo ll owe d A l e a n d e r an d f r o m th a t d a t e fou r thi n g s we r e

m ad e n e c e ssa ry t o p e n an c e—
n x ,

c on triti on o f h e a rt c on fe s s i on t o t h e pri e s t wo rk s , ,

o f s a ti s fac ti on a d t h e pri e s tly a b so l u ti o

n T h e R h e i m s v e r s i on o f t h e N ew
n .

”
T e st am e n t tr a n sl a t e s t h e G r ee k wo rd meta n aeo u su a lly d o p e n an ce “
58 ,
1 2, , ,
1 I 6 JOHN HUS S
’
archbi shop to prohibi t the discus s ion Huss s s tateme n t .

about antichrist was ascribed to h is dependence upon Wyclif .

The W ycl ifi t e article s had led to bitter di spute and di s cord s

no t only in the univer s ity but among the people The peti .

tion laid down the principle that the pope has the righ t to
—
give full remi s sion of all s ins and that he might call upon
the people to defend the R oman city again s t heretic s and
s chismatics The document also forb ade b achelor s of theology
.

to di s cuss the papal bulls S tephen P a l e c z dean of the .

,

faculty was one of the s igners

,
.

In spite of this resistance of the theological faculty the ,

di s cu s sion wa s held in the univer s ity June 7 1 4 1 2 Th e , ,

.

attendance was large The rector M arcus of K on iggratz

'

.
, ,
’
pre sided Huss s treatment was embodied in one of his mo s t
.

elaborate writing s and is equal to any of them in clearne ss and

force of statement I t is declared by L os e r t h to stand as the
.

pre — emi n ent work among h is writings and to b e in it s style

a model of acute and telling argument This judgment how
?
,
’
ever is no t to b e taken as inconsi s tent with the author s
,

estimate of the Tr ea tise on the C hu r ch which L ose r t h says , , ,

“ ’
has alway s b een regarded a s Hu ss s most important piece
”
of writi n g by friends and foes alike Here are set forth at .

’
length Hus s s views on indulgences and the temporal authority
of the pope .

In his opening word s he declares that the honor of God

—
,

the good of the church and h is own con s cience p rop r ia con
s cien tia
— were involved in h is attitude to the tran s action
of John XXIII He pro tested that he wished to say nothing
.

contrary to the law of Chri s t which was the narrow way of ,

life and the truth Against the fallacy of givi n g ob edience

.

’
to John s bull s he brough t consideratio n s from the limited
,

authori ty of the p apal Offi ce from the wrong of u s i n g b ad ,

mea s ure s for the defe n s e of the church and from the error ,

that gift s of mo n ey co n s titute no valid claim to ple n ary ah

1
Wicl if and H us , p . 1 41 . H uss
’
s T r e a ti se , M on . 1 z 21 5
-
23 5 .
 H U ss R E SISTS T H E POPE 11 7

—
solution from the penalty and guilt of sin a b s ol u tio p l en a r ia
a cu l p a et p ce n a Acts no t done from love of man canno t
.

’
have God s approval and i t is prob able that a decree r e
, , ,

su l tin g in th e killing of human b eings does no t pro ceed from

the love of Chri s t nor can the impoveri shment of a people

,

to provide the means for such killi n g b e consonan t wi th

’
God s will .

As for th e pardon of s ins the Chri s tian pries t enjoys th e

,

right to absolve from penalty and guilt bu t he can actually ,

absolve only with the aid of a S p ecial revelation Wise priest s .

ab solve only on condi tion that the sinner feels sorrow for
h is sin promises to sin no more and put s his con fi dence in
, ,
’
God s mercy Ezek 1 8 : 2 1 2 2 N 0 one is capab le of r e ceiv
,
.
,
.

’
ing indulgence unless he b e disposed thereto by God s grace .

P ardon God alone can grant .

As for getting money for wars i t b ehooves the spiritual ,

powers to employ spiritual weapons no t carnal ; Of fer prayer , ,

i s sue wri tings to convince the heart and if necessary su ff er , , ,

“ ”
death . Vengeance is mine I will repay saith the Lord , ,
.

Oh that the R oman ponti ff migh t accep t and follow in

,
’
humility this rule o f P aul ! Authority is no t given Peter s
vicar and bi shops to dr aw th e material sword Their weapons .

should b e tears and prayers Nor should the pop e authoriz e

.

war for what seems to b e to his own advantage in securing

and con firming secular power These positions Huss proved .

from S crip ture and quota tions drawn from Au gustine Jerome , ,

Gregory and S t B ernard Conce di ng that the church which

is the body of the faithful—u n iv ersitas fidel iu m h a s the
.
,
.

two swords the spiri tual and the material he insists tha t
, ,

—
the church consists of three parts th e soldiery the clergy
and the peopl e —and that the material sword is to b e wi elded
, ,

by that part of th e church which is made up of the soldiery .

’
And a s the church s spiritual sword is no t to b e used by th e
soldi ery of this world in th e same way as it is u s ed by the
priests so in like manner th e material sword is no t to b e used
,
1 18 JOHN HUS S

by the spiritual leaders of the church to figh t against the

bodies of men bu t by the secular s oldiery who s e chief bu si,

n es s i t is to defend the law of Chri s t a n d his church The

—
.

—
di s ti n ction b etween the soldiery m il itia and the clergy
is clearly made as also the distinction b etween the two
,

sword s The spiri tual sword is the Word of God Eph 6

.
,
. .

The material sword is referred to in R omans 1 3 : 4 He .

beareth not the sword in vain : for he is a minister of God an ,

”
avenger for wrath to him that doeth evil He who use s .

the spiri tual sword does no t draw the blood of the sinner .

From D eut 1 7 8 the people in their ignorance have the

.

idea that all commands emanating from the pope are to b e

ob eyed They are certainly wrong The pop e is no t to b e
. .

ob eyed when he calls for a crusade for the extermination of

his enemies whom he has b efore damned As s uredly Chri s t
,
.

did no t proceed upon this principle He rebuked James and

.

John for wanti n g to call down fir e from heaven upon his

e n emies Let the pope ask him s elf why he summons Chris
.

tians to extermi n ate no t S amaritans but fellow Chri s tia n s

,
.

Would that the clergy might make the life of Christ and the
Apo s tle s their example and by patience and forb earan ce
,

follow the Lamb who taketh away the sin of the world ! It
b ehooves no t the prie s t to s trive or enter into litigation .

The b arter of pardons is contrary to the S crip tures Peter .

did not sell Simon M agus the forgive n e s s of si n s The sale .

of remissions for sin by the papal commi ss ioners is simony .

Si n s are to b e remitted wi thout money and without price .

Prayer fasting and o ther good work s the bulls make no men
, ,

—
tion o f only mo n ey Why does the pope not have refuge
.

in prayer rather than in gold and silver ? Chri s t prayed

for P eter that his faith fail no t And i t is clear that he taught
.

Peter and through him his vicars to have recourse in time s

, ,

of necessi ty to God by prayer and no t to depe n d on mo n ey

or corporal battle Would that the pope followed Chri s t in
.

i n terceding for his enemies saying in the name of the church

, ,
1 20 JOHN HUS S

t r it ion ,provided he gave money for this crusade— on hi m

the pope would co n fer i n dulgence from guilt and penalty .

On the o ther ha n d a man no t appri s ed of the bull though

, ,
’
he keep God s command s and have only ve ni al s ins if he ,

b e co n trite and confe s s and yet does no t give money he will ,

no t receive i n dulge n ce or pardon A t death the former .

,

goes at once to heaven b ecause h e is absolved from the

p e n alty of purgatory and from guilt ; the other into purga
t or ia l pains .

’
A s for a pope s giving indulgence to the dead he might , ,

if he had thi s power abolish purgatory itself For he migh t ,

.

ab s olve all in purgatory and confer perpetual p ardon and

grace There would b e nothing to prevent thi s re s ult bu t
.

perchance his own envy and neglect In fact he migh t keep .

,

all from goi n g to purgatory and in that case make of no , ,

’
e ffect the church s prayers and i ts o ther o ffi ce s for the dead .

At death every one would immediately fly to heaven ha v in g ,

’
no n eed of the church s su ff rages ?

’
The pope s bull s ab solve equally all no matter what their ,

—
sins may b e In u r d e r or veni al faults I t is m arvellou s that .

the pope doe s no t i n sert in his bull the quali ty and degree
of the s ins to b e forgiven a s he in s erts the amou n t of mo n ey to ,

b e paid If on e should u n j ustly put a thou s and men to death

.
,

a n d another sin only ve ni ally bo th b eing contrite would ,

b e released from pe n alty and guilt And the latter if he .

,

had more money than the o ther would b e expected by the ,

commi s s io n to give more than the former and for no o ther ,

imaginary reason than the appetite for money Thi s whole .

1
M on .
,
1 2 28 . W y c li f d e E ccl es ia
, ,
. p
5 7 0 sq , s e a k s o f c an on s s a n d i t
th eo l og i an s wh o h e l d th a t t h e p op e h s p r
“
r ti l a o we t o g an n d u g e n c e s t o a n in

fi it e u m b e r o i p e r son s f or a i fi i t e p ri
n n nti n th t th r f r
n e od o f m e an d a e e o e h is

p owe r is i n fi n it e ly g r e a t e r th an t h e p o we r of a b i sh op wh o c a g iv e i d u l ,
n n

g en c e s o ly f n fo rty d a ys
or H a vi n g su c h p o we r
. wh a t e c u s e h as h e th a t h e ,
“
x

d o e s n o t r e l e a se f r o m e t e r n a l d a m a ti o h is n e i gh b o r wh o m h e ou g ht t o l o v e
n n ,

a s hi m se l f an d y e t w ith ou t s fli c ie t g r ou n d s o m it s s o t o d o S h a ll a m an ? ”
,
u n

b e e c se d wh o is c o m m d e d e v e n t o p ll h is b r o th e r s o o t h e S a b b a th
’
x u an u x n

d ay o t o f t h e pit if h e n e gl e c t s t o f r e e h is b r o th e r s so u l f r o m h e ll ?
’
u
 HUS S R E SISTS THE POPE 1 21

sale re m it t ing from penalty and guilt savors of a deluge of

s atisfaction for off enses ; so that the more people a man
might put to death the more would God and m an b e under
ob l igatio n to pardon The man enlisting in the cru s ade .

migh t ki l l prie s ts and even papal commissioners themselve s

and appropriate their money and yet he would come u n der ,

the terms of the indulgence However Hu ss doe s not know .

,

whether in the las t case th e pope would a l low the validity

of the indulgence unles s the moneys were restored .

The pope s cal l to a cru s ade involving the killin g of Chris

’
,

tians under Ladislaus s rule a n d their spoliation is plainly ’

’
against Christ s word to P eter to pu t up his sword and
the rebuk e of the disciples who called for vengeance upon
the S amaritan villag e Therefore it deserves no ob edience .
,
.

“
The S criptures give no t a si n gle case of a sain t saying : I
”
have forgiven thy sin I have ab solved thee Nor can th e ,
.

case of a s aint b e discovered who gave indulgence for a given

n umb er of years or days from the penalty and g u il t of

Hu s s closes hi s fi ery tract by comparing a p on t ifl who

uses the S criptural power in an un warranted way to a tyrant .

One is to b e disob eyed as well as the other If the papal u t .

t e r an c e s agree with the law of Chri s t they are to b e ob eyed ,

.

’
If they are at variance wi th it then Christ s di sciples must ,

s tand loyally and manfully wi th Christ agai n s t all papal bulls

whatsoever and b e ready if necessary to endure malediction , ,

a n d death Wh en the pop e uses his power in an unscrip tural

.

way to resist him is no t a sin it is a mandate

,
?
,

Mo 1
34 H ss m k s l r g e u s
n .
,
1 f W y li f i thi tr ac t b t it is an
2 . u a e a e o c n s ,
u

r ti on wh e Lo se t h p 1 4 1 sa ys F r om t h e d e fin iti o o f t h e in d l
e x a gg e a n r ,
.
,
:
“
n u

g e c e on wa r d e v e rythi n g is t h e pr o p e rty o f \Vy c lif

n T h e m os t we i g hty p a rt s a r e .

d e riv e d f r o m th a t c h a pt e r o f W y c li f s d e E ccl es ia whi c h tr e a t s o f i n d u l g e n ce s ’

a n d is t ak e n wo r d f or wo r d H u ss s d e fi iti on o f an i n d u l g e n ce is v e r b a lly
’
. n

t h e s am e as W y c li f s with so m e a d d e d wo r d s s i m pli f yi n g M on a l so
’
1 216 ,
.
, ,

p 3 7 7 ; d e E ccl esia p 5 49 ; a n d in m an y o f t h e i m p o rt an t p o i n t s t h e tr e a t
.
, .

m en ts ag r e e H u ss h o we v e r h a s m u c h m a t e ri a l o f h is o wn p e rt a i n i n g t o
.
, ,

t h e g e n e r a l su b j e c t as we ll a s b e a ri n g d ir e c tly u p on t h e c on t e n t s o f J o h n
XXI I I S b u ll s H e r e fe r s m o r e f r e q u e n tly t o t h e S c ript u r e s th an d oe s W y li f
’
. c ,

an d m o s t a ptly u s i n g t h e q u o t a ti on s w ith g r e a t e ff e c t in t h e c as e s c it e d a n d
,
1 22 JOHN HUS S

The discussion w hi ch the indulgence campaign called

forth no t only constitutes one of the more important event s
’
in Hu ss s career but is one of the sources from which we
,

derive a s ati s factory concep tion of his real views The i ss ue .

’
was di s tinctly s tated and Huss s exact meaning not clouded
by any of that uncertainty which aro s e from the repeated
charge s whi ch he made at Constance that his writing s were ,

misquoted and his views not accurately stated by his accusers .

From the standpoint of the teaching of the church in that

age he was certainly a heretic He had chosen another
,
.

foundation for his theology than the mediaeval and papal

system He planted himself firml y on the S crip tures as
.

the supreme authority in matters of faith and conduct He .

’
held the teaching of free grace and Christ s immediate for
giv en e ss and thus set hi mself against the medi aeval dogma
,

of penance and the necessity of priestly intervention He .

’
denied the pope s infallibili ty He in s i s ted that pardon for
.

sin was no t to b e bought with money all papal bulls to the ,

contrary He enunciated the principle of the lordship of

.

conscience He asserted preaching to b e the chief f u nction

.

of the priesthood .

’
A mos t important result of the discussion which John s
bulls aroused was the de fini te detachment of old friends at
the university The o ther memb ers of the faculty of theology
.

took sides against him by giving their active support to the

bulls and de finitely repudiating the teach ings of Wyclif .

S tani slaus of Znaim and Michael P al e cz friends of his student ,

day s were from this time on arrayed against Hus s and b e

, ,

came his deter mined accusers b efore the church authoritie s .

’
At fi rst P al e cz had found palpable errors in Tiem s articles of
ab solution but he u nde r went a change of mind P al e cz Huss
,
.
,

the c as e o f the p u b li can . f

T o m an y thi n gs in W y c li s tr ea t m en t h e m ak e s n o
’

f
r e e r e n ce as t o t h e thesau r u s mer itoru m, p 5 7 2 A s I sh a ll h a ve occ as i on t o
. .

f f
s a y u n d e r t h e h e ad o f t h e d e E ccl es ia , H u s s s tr e a t m e n t is r e e r o m t h e b iti n g
’

f
s a r c a s m whi c h r u n s thr ou g h W y c li wh e n h e tr e a t s o f t h e p o p e a n d t h e hi e r a r c hy ,

an d H uss s m e th od is b e tt e r ad a pt e d t o r e a c h a p op u l a r a u d i e n c e
’
.
1 24 JOHN HUS S

me n t s at his feet The procession moved from the cathedral

.

to the Moldau and then across the bridge to the old city .

The book s thrown u n der a gallows were committed to the

, ,

flame s I n this act which was i n te n ded to be a parody of the

.
,
’
burni n g of Wyclif s books Jerome took a prominent part , .

A n account h a s been left by one of the students who took

part M artin Lupac d
, , .

The preachers of pardons had no easy time of i t Pub .

l ie mi n i s trations were interrupted by acts of violence The .

rioter s cleric and laymen men and women were thrown in to

, , ,

pri s on The king many of whose courtiers were in sympathy

.
,

with the disturb ances was forced to take no te of them

.

,
.

When they broke ou t h e was at his summer residence at

Zebrak .Thith er he called the magi s trates of the three
Prague tow n s and ordered them to puni sh with death all
o ffe n ding in any way again s t the papal bulls and tho s e
preachi n g the indulgences In spite of this apparently de .

c isiv e attitude on the part of her royal co n sort the queen ,

continued to attend services at the B ethlehem chapel and

Wok remained unpunished .

The riots culminated in the execu tion of three of the

rioters M artin John and S t a f con written also S t a s ek the
, , , , ,

last a shoemaker from Poland M arti n had cried out in on e .

of the churches that the pope had s hown himself to b e a n ti

chris t by announci n g a cru s ade against Chri s tians John .

threw a vender of indulgences out of a convent S t af con .

had al s o protested in the church against the sale of pardon s .

Vivid accounts of these facts and the scenes that followed

Huss gives in h is Tr ea tise on the C hu r ch and in h is B ohemian
serm ons In the hope of making a lasti n g impressio n the
.
,

magistrates summo n ed the populace to b e present at the

execution set for July 1 1 1 4 1 2 Knowing that the three ,
.

pri s oners were sentenced to su ff er for the views he had pro

m u lg e d Hu s s accompa n ied by other masters and followed
, ,

1
P a l acky , Gesek .
,
2 78.
 HU ss R E SISTS T H E POPE 1 25

by a large b ody of students ha s tened to the city hall pro , ,

tested to the magi s trates in b ehalf of the accu s ed a n d an ,

n ou n c e d himself willing to suff er in their stead whose alleged ,

guilt was more h is than theirs On receiving as s urance .

that they would receive no harm Huss returned to his hou s e ,

.

B ut several hours afterward the unhappy men were dragged

from pri s on and hurried off to their death .

From fear of the growing crowd s the executioner did ,

his work b efore the usual place appointed for criminal exe
cu t ion s was reached and the pub l ic crier called out that all
,

who might b e g uilty of a like o ffense would receive the same

puni s hment A numb er of voices were heard exclaiming
.

that they were willing to su ffer and they were forthwi th

arrested White sheets provided by a woman were thrown
.

over the b odies of the dead and the throng of students , ,

led by John of Gicz in lifted them up and carried them to

,

the B ethlehem chapel chanting the solemn chant ,

The s e ,
”
are holy There they were b uried by Huss In deri sion
. .
,

the chapel was thenceforward called the Chapel of th e Three

M artyrs ?

The tap roo t of these dis turb ances was the Wy clifian
-

s cheme and it was recognized that until it was cut out the
, , ,

restoration of quiet could no t b e looked for in th e city At .

’
the king s order the univer si ty again sat in judg ment July
, ,

10 ,
1 41 2 upon the XLV Articles with the aim of reviewing
, ,

the original decree of 1 40 3 which it will b e rememb ered for , , ,

b ade any one to a flir m in private or in public these W y clifian

principles Now eight of the master s including P al e cz
.
, , ,

S tanis laus and Andrew of B roda pas s ed a sentence s t igm a t iz ,

ing under three head s the article s as heretical fal s e or scandal , ,

ou s .Among the alleged heretical article s were the denial of

transub stantiation a n d that the pope is no t the immediate
vicar of Christ The decree i s s ued in 1 40 3 forb ade an y one
.
, ,

1
P a l a c ky , Ges ch , I I I , pt I , p 2 8 0
. . ZEn e as S ylvi u s , 3 5 , a l so s a y s t h e thr ee
. .

m e n we r e b u ri e d in B e thl e h e m c h a p e l a n d th e i r b o d i e s l oo k e d u p o n as sac r e d
r e li cs F or t h e accou n t in t h e B oh e m i a n se r m on s , D oc , 7 2 5 s q
. . .
1 26 JOHN HUS S

to hold or preach any of the articles on pain of b eing held a

h eretic and called upon the king to execute civil penalties
even to exile from the B ohemian kingdom To these XLV .

Articles were appended six or perhap s ni n e o thers pro

, , ,

n ou n cin g the penalty due heresy upo n all who did no t hold

to the sacraments and the power of the keys in the sense held
by the Holy R oman Church who denied that reverence ,

should b e paid to relics or asserted that the great a n ti

”
christ predicted in Holy Writ had already come The .

same punishment was invoked upon those who affirmed that

customs of the church no t plainly contained in the S criptures
have no binding force that priests do no more than declare
,

the penitent confes s or absolved and that the pope has no ,

righ t to call upon Chri s tians to figh t agains t their fell ow

Christians in defense of the apostolic see and soli cit moneys
for that purpose in return for absolution .

Accep ti n g this sweeping sente n ce the king had the reso ,

l u t ion to order those holding the XLV Articles b anished from

the realm At the s ame time he b ade the doctors attemp t
.

to compose the di fficulty by peaceable measures At th e .

call of the city magi s trates a week later masters of the u n i ,

ver s ity and clergy met at the city hall and rea ffi rmed the
condemnation of the articles At the same time however
.
, ,

other masters b achelors and many students met at th e

, ,

university building and protested the articles had been con

d e mn e d without reasonable examination In an elaborate .

defen s e made at the univer s ity Huss vindicated at leas t fiv e

,

of them .
1
No article he aflir m e d should b e conde m ned
, ,

w hi ch is not exp licitly or by fair implication condemned in

the S crip ture s He contended that tho s e who cease preaching
.

the Word of God or give up hearing it preached out of regard

for a sentence of excommuni cation will b e found traitors at
the day of j udgment that every deacon and priest has the
,

right to preach irrespective of a permis s ion from the apos

M on1
39
—.69 , 1 1 1 .
1 28 JOHN HUS S
’
that the French and Englis h would no t admi t John s bulls
agai n st Ladi slau s The papal legate s who were commissioned
.

to carry them to Apulia did not dare to s how them s elve s

in that territory On the o ther hand the B ohemians less
.
, ,
’
bold than B a l a a m s a ss had admitted the bull s and allowed
,

i n d u lgence s to b e Of fered In the papal sale of indulgence s in

.

1 3 93 under B oniface IX ab s olutio n from the penalty and

, ,

guilt of sin wa s o ffered only for de fini te amounts pre s crib ed

by confessors namely upon the basis of the cost the pur
, ,

chaser or his family would be at to go to R ome on foo t or

on horse duri n g the j ubilee year Certainly any man who .

had any knowledge of the law of Chris t would say that this
practi ce was in co n temp t of this law for Christ plai n ly taught : ,
”
Freely ye have received freely give ,
.

’
The pope s fallibility was proved from the experiences and
word s of the Apos tles On his way to D ama s cus P aul wa s
.
,

s topped and the papers made ou t by the S anhedri n rendered

,

i n valid by revelation The pop e had likewise given letters

.
,

citi n g and excommun icatin g men and women who followed

’
Christ s pure law and deliveri n g them over to the s ecular
arm Such bulls should b e re si s ted no t only by the faculty
.

of the univer s ity bu t by the kin g and his council In their

,
.

mes s ages Peter Paul Jo h n and James sent salutatio n s an d

, , ,

encouragements to the churches not sen ten ces of c on d em ,

nation P eter call ed the R oman see no t R ome bu t B abylon

.
,
.

“ ”
The church t hat is in B abylon s aluteth you he wrote ,
.

“ ”
He di d no t say give me mo n ey ,
He di d no t curse and .

excommuni cate those who preached the Go spel b ut said : ,

“ ” ’
Grace b e with you and peace b e multipli ed Christ s .

me ss age s did n ot s tigmatize those who persecuted him and

crucified him And yet the p apal bull s tigmatized La di s laus
.

and h is friends as perjurer s s chi s matic s bla sphemer s the , , ,

defenders of heretic s and conspirators against the church

and called for their puni shmen t Chri s t taught that men .

should ble s s tho s e that curse them and love their enemies .
 HUS S R E SISTS THE POPE 1 29

The priest indeed can absolve and give indulgence bu t ,

’
only as Go d has ab s olved before and as the prie s t s a b
solution is in accord wi th the law of Chri s t Even laymen .

’
may re mi t sins as appears from the Lord s Prayer In taking
, .

’
this position Huss follows Wyclif s d e E ccl es ia He conde m ns
,
.

the popes for wearing t h e garments of C aesar and a golden

crown P eople wishing to get under the shadow of Pe ter to
.

day pass into the presence of papal pomp and attire P eter .

’ ’
did no t forbid Ananias s and S ap p h ir a s intermen t as the pope
forbids burial for those who refuse to ob ey his bulls S uch .

is the contras t of the lives of popes cardinals and clerics to , ,

th e lives of the Apostles that if they should try to cast ou t

,

demons according to the power given by Chri s t the demo n s ,

“
would reply : Jesus I know and Peter and P aul and the
”
o ther Apostles I kn ow bu t who are you ? ,
A s for here s y ,

nothing is so fatal to the good cause a s hypocrisy Evil that .

is manifest flees from the light and hide s i tself Heresy is .

pernicious in that many are led away by it bu t it is al s o ,

useful b ecause the faithful are tried by i t and are led to

i s olate themselves from the unbe l ieving Here s y is an aping .

of the true do ctrine and the mi n istries of the Gospel and as ,

a monkey has all of th e memb ers of a human b ei n g and in

all things imitates him so heresy has all the rites of the church
,

and yet is no t of the church .

The power to re mi t sin i t was customary to argue Hu s s ,

goes on to say from the rite of bap ti s m in which the prie s t

, ,

gives b ap tismal grace and delivers from all pain of hell and
purgatory so that in cas e the b ap tized child die in curring
, ,
’
no post b ap tismal sin i t goes immediately to heaven Hu ss s
-

,
.

reply is that in case of necessity laym en and even women may

, ,

b aptize bu t that i t would b e mi sleading to conclude fro m

,

thi s practice that laym en al s o have the power to give remi s

“ ”
sion from all S in The form of the statement we ab solve
.

b elongs properly no t to the pope bu t only to God hi m s elf

,
.

The pop e dare use these words o n ly in a condi tional s ense

1 30 JOHN HUS S

We absolve provided the sinner repent and does the works

of repentance .

Hu ss the n takes up again the inhibition of preachin g

in chapel s fi rst pronounced by Alexander V a n d the wagi n g
, ,
’
of ho s tilitie s with the church s s anction legalized by John ,

again s t Ladi s laus The co n tention of the eigh t do ctor s was

.

that b ehi n d him the pope had example s in the New Testament
’
s uch as the I s raelites war agai n s t Amalek bu t for the case in ,

ha n d thi s historic example wa s i n s u fficient for God never au ,

t h or iz e d war against Christians The pope and clergy had no

?

busines s with the material sword Christ b ade Peter pu t .

’
i t into the sheath John s militant bulls were also contrary
.

to the precedents of church practice The canon law laid .

down the rule that no cleric should pronounce a judgment

”
of blood or carry i t ou t or b e present when it is carried out .

I t is inco n sis tent for the pope to wish to put men to death
on the plea that they are not submi ssive to papal au thority
or deprive the pope of temporalities for he does not pu t the ,
’
Jews to death who de n y Chri s t s law The rea s on is ea s ily .

given The Jews did not deprive the pope of temporali ties
.
,

although they were accomplices of Ladi s lau s .

M anifest heretic s are to b e coerced by the church in

matters of the fai th bu t in su ch a way that they may b e
,

i n duced truly to believe in Chri s t and in his law for no on e ,

can be l ieve excep t of his own free will n emo p otest cr ed er e fl

n isi v ol en s Nevertheless a man can b e forced to the out

.
,

ward act s which as the needle carries the thread may entice
, ,
“ ”
to real faith The Lord b ade them to compel them to go
.

to the marriage feas t but to compel is one t hi ng and to ,

1
H u ss d oe s n o t t a k e u p wa r s a g a i n s t t h e S a r acen s I n pr e a c hi n g t h e .

se c on d c r u s a d e , 1 1 4 7 , a n d in h is d e M il itib u s Te mp li B e r n a r d j u s tifi e d su c h

w a r s on t h e g r o u n d th a t t h e S a r a c e n s h e l d t h e H o ly L an d I t w as b e tt e r , h e .

s a i d th a t p a g a n s s h o u l d b e p u t t o d e a th th a n th a t t h e r o d o f t h e wi c k e d Sh ou l d
,

f
r e s t u p on t h e l ot of t h e ri g ht e ou s T h e ri g ht e ou s e a r n o sin in k illi n g t h e e n e m y
.

o f C hri s t . C hri s t s s o l d i e r c a n se cu r e ly k ill a n d m o r e s a e ly d ie

’
W h en h e f .

d i e s , i t pr o fit s hi m se l f
W h e n h e s l a y s , it pr o fit s C hri s t I t se e m s s tr an ge th a t ,
. .

f
s o f ar as I k n o w , H u ss n o wh e r e r e e r s t o t h e p a p a l c r usa d e s a g a i n s t t h e W a l

d e n s es an d C a th a ri .
132 JOHN HUS S

nor le ss than the Word of God The weapons there described.

,

the pope a n d bi s hop S hould use accompanying their u se wi th

,

prayer and tear s A s for the summons of Pope Leo IV to

.

the people to e n lis t against the Saracen s that wa s a summons ,

for the people to defend them s elves again s t their enemie s ,

who were threatening R ome B ut it wa s a very di ff eren t

.

thing for the fai thful to gird them s elves with the s word for
the exterm ination of Chri s tians and for the pope to do the
same for the sake of earthly riches The most a bi s hop has .

the right to do in the case of a righteous war is to consult

, ,

wi th the princes and to exhort them to fight for their subj ect s .

Moreover prince s and the people are under no obligation

,

to ob ey their spiritual superiors except in s o far as the com

’
mand s pro ceed according to God s law Even under such .

circum s tances alone were the Jewish people obligated to ob ey

their rulers the s cribes and Phari s ees
,
.

These fervid writi n gs full of argument S crip ture and

, ,

feeling called forth by John XX I I I s bull s ummoning B o

,
’

h e m ia to war agains t L adislaus S how that Huss had removed

,

far from the m e d iazv a l po sition that the church has an ab

s olute right over those whom i t has b ap tized and to see to
—
i t that heretics are put ou t of the world exterminated to ,
’
u s e Huss s own word The fo u ndations of the church Hu s s
.
,

insisted are spiri tual I ts purpose is to persuade the si n ner

,
.
,

to correct his errors and to heal h is wound s and not to put ,

upon him any physical compulsion unless perchance such , , ,

a mea s ure b e fairly adapted to win him to faith in Chri s t

and the Gospel In the Tr ea tise on the C hu r ch he said as
.
,

plainly as words could state it that the hereti c s hould no t ,

receive capital puni s hment To save t h e body of the fai th

.

ful by putti n g heretics to dea t h is a pri n ciple the church has

no authority to act upon unle ss in such cases she is eviden tly
,

inspired so to do Her duty is to recall the errant and save

.

the s inner by preachi n g Faith to b e acceptable and real

.
,

fai th must b e a voluntary habi t of the soul

,
.
 CHAPTE R VII

HU S S S W I T H D R A W A L F R O M P RA G U E
’

N om en ha r etici p r o: omn ib u s m alis n omin ib u s a b hor r en t iu m —The .

Cou n sel of the E ight D octor s of the U n iv of P r a gu e F eb 6 , 1 4 1 3

.
,
. .

Th e n am e of h e r e ti c is t o b e i t
a b om n a e d ab o ve al l ot h e r e v il
n am e s .

sentence of aggravated excommun ication was awai t

T HE
in g Huss and the papal interdi ct was ab out to b e laid upon
the city of Pragu e ? The ann ouncement of the latter h u l l
’
was followed by Hu s s s retirement from the city and his
absence for a period of two year s O ctob er 1 4 1 2 O ctober 1 4 1 4 , ,
-

,
.

M any supporter s a s Hu s s had the larger part of the clergy ,

s till held back from his movement or ope n ly declared agai n s t

him The Ol d order had b een tried for centurie s and had
.

prevailed against all attacks from heretic s and princes The .

con s ervative habi t of mind clings to approved institutions .

I t is no t so much its guilt that i t does no t appreciate the n e ces

sit y for change or discern the signs of the coming ti me I t is .

given o n ly to a few moved by strong and independent con

,

v ic tion s and endowed wi th prophetic in sight to see b eyond ,

the order whi ch from their earliest kn owledge has b een

around about them Even John the B aptist wavered though
.
,

he was appo inted to b e the forerunner Later another John .

, ,

John of S taupitz halted while Luther went forward To

,
.

those bold leaders who have opened ou t new paths that ,

prove to b e good paths across the o ceans and toward new ,

I n his A dd r es s to the Ger man N ob il ity , V : 1 7 , L u th e r s p e a ks

‘
1
of e cc l e si

a s t ic al s u s p e n s i on s , irr e g u l a ri ti e s , agg r a v a ti on s , r e a g g r a v a t ion s , d ep os i

an d

ti on s th u n d e ri n gs li g htn i n g s cu r s i n gs
, , , ,
— —
d am n in g s , a n d wh a t n o t all th e s e
s h ou l d b e b u ri e d t en fa th om s d e e p th a t ,
th e ir v e ry n am e m ay b e r e m e m b e r e d
n o m or e
’
.
1 34 JOHN HUS S

horizons of thought and feeling human society is under an ,

unspeakable deb t Theirs is the cause of progre ss

. .

To the latter group H u s s belongs In h is case his former .

colleagues no t only failed to approve of the wi s dom of h is

course in threatening to break with the old bu t i t is q uite ,

po s sible they al s o felt a certain amount of jealou s y for the

popular feeli n g in his favor and as Huss charged fear of Oi , ,

fe n di n g their s uperiors In the case of Lu ther the element of

.
,

rivalry does not seem to have b een an appreciable factor in the

opposition to him when he entered upon h is R eformatory
career No intimate friend s turned against him and took a
.

positively hostile attitude toward him .

At the b eginning of the year 1 4 1 2 Huss was attacked ,

“
by one whom he designate s a hidden a ss ailan t of the truth
”
or an inqui s itor In h is spirited reply entitled A ga in st the
.

—
H idd en A d versa r y a writing which played a part in the coun
—
cil of Constance Huss took o ccasion to defend his course in
attacki n g the vice s of the clergy The charge s made by h is .

opponent were fir st that Huss by his preaching had d is

,

credited the law and second that he wa s destroying the

, ,

i n fl uence of the priesthood Huss replied that he was not

.

attempting to di s credit the priesthood bu t to ab ash viciou s

and unfaithful priests In taking thi s course he was follo wi n g
.
,

Christ who wep t over Jerusalem which was later destroyed

, ,

by Titus Christ entered into the temple rebuked tho s e

.
,

who sold doves and cast them ou t Charles IV ki n g of .

,

B ohemia had protected the Word of God by restraining

,

and reprimanding insolent and unfaithful prie s ts It is for .

ki n gs to purge the church as N e b u ch ad n e z z ar released the

three young men from th e fir e There is an order of pries t .

hood which continues in heaven ; it consists of all those who

make an o ff erin g of themselves u n to the Lord This priest .

hood as well as the prie s ts who o ff iciate at the altar in this

,

world do ju s tly in rebuki n g evil and u n faithful priests

,
.

Upon the whole the papal court of the Pi s an line next

, ,
1
36 JOHN HUS S

co n versation in buying and selling They were to refuse him

,
.

all ho spitali ty fi r e and water Should Hus s after twenty

, ,
.

three day s persist in his contumacy then in all churche s , ,

chapel s and convents on all festival days and S unday s by

, , ,

the exti n gui shin g of tapers and casting them to the groun d ,
“
he was to be pronoun ced excommuni cate aggravate an d ,
”1
reaggravate Every locality where he might tarry wa s
.

to be placed under the interdict during the term of his s o

n in
j ou r g there and for one natural day more D ivine servi ce s .

were to be held be hind closed doors and the eucharist dis

tributed only to the sick .

Should Huss happen to die while bound by the censure ,

church sepulture was to b e denied him and if he were already ,

in his grave when the sentence was pronounced his body ,

“
was to b e di s interred on account of his rebellion and con
tempt of the Apostoli c mandates as unworthy of church
”
burial In token of eternal curse three stones were ordered
.

thrown agai n s t the house where he might b e dwelling Thus .

the sentence would b e repeated whi ch God had meted out

to D athan and Abiram who were swallowed up alive of the ,

earth B y speaking or stan ding or rising up by walking or

.
,

riding by salutation or association by eating or drinking

, , ,

by cooking or laboring by bu ying or selling by furnishing ,

clothes or S hoes by givin g dri n k or water or any of the o ther

,

necessities of life by Off ering consolation or any help what

,

s oever all the faithful of Christ were enjoined from having

,

a n y part or lot with the unfortun ate man and any one pre ,

s u m in g to do the s ame was also to share in the anathema

’
t iz a t ion Thus Cain s curse was put upon Hus s a s far as
.

i t was in human power to do it He was a vagabond on .

1
Th e gre a t e r l e sse r an a th e m a acc or d i n g t o G r e go ry I X d ifle r e d b y
an d , ,

t h e ri t u a l so l e m n ity w ith whi c h th e y we r e pr on o u n ce d S e e W e t er a d . z n

W e lt e u n d e r A n athem a A l l writ e r s on can on l aw su c h as P H e r ge n r Ot h e r

.
, .
,

pp 5 66 sq d o n ot m ak e thi s d i s ti n c ti on H u ss d e eccl s c h ap XX I I d e fi es
. .
, .
,
e .
,
.
,
n

t h e m i n o r exc o m m u nic a ti on as t h e d e priv a ti o of t h e s ac r am en t s ; m aj or as t h e

n

s e p a r a ti on f r om t h e c om m u n i on of t h e f a i th fu l .
 ’
HUS S S WITHD R AWA L F R OM P RA GUE 157

the earth deprived of all means of livelihood and of all

,

human aid .

S enten ces as des ti tute of common human mercy and

equall y or more violent in expressio n had been pronounced
before Popes had felt free to invoke the terrors of thi s world
.

and to extend furious execrations to the life that is to

come S o the h u ll of Clement VI against Lewis the B avarian
.

“
in 1 3 46 ran : Let his going ou t and his comin g in b e cursed .

May the Lord strike him low with madness and blindness
and fury of m ind M ay the heavens send forth against him
.

their th u nderbolts An d may the wrath of Go d omnipoten t.

a n d his blessed Apostles Peter and Paul burn itself against , ,

him in t hi s world and the world to come M ay the earth .

fight aga inst him and the ground open and swall ow him up
alive M ay all the elements contend against him and all the
.
,

saints who are at rest put him to confusion and in this world
”
fall upon him wi th their vengeance The b ull blasphemously .

’
damn ed the emperor s house to desolation and his children
to exclusion from their abode and i t invoked upon the father ,

the curse of b ehol ding with his own eyes the destru ction of
his children by their enemies ?
How far di fferent was the
spirit of Huss who putting aside the fearful examples of ,

divin e punishment recorded in the Old Tes tament as of a

’
natur e sui ted exclusively to God s immediate execu t ion ,
’
dwelt upon the mercy of the Gospel Chris t s refusal to grant ,

the petition of the disciples to call do wn fir e from heaven ,

and who again and again quoted as a rul e of conduct for

“
prelati cal action and all daily life the di v ine words : Judge
” 2
not that ye b e not judged .

All evils that co u ld hurt Huss in body and soul were

invoked against him excep t the blow of the sword or con
su m in g fir e a sentence for w hi ch the church was in theory
, ,

at least dependent upon the magistrate Huss wa s a heretic

,
.
,

and in due time the church would fin d opportunity to turn

1
M ir b t , p . 1 67 . S ch afi , V ,
2 98 sq .
2
M on .
, 1 1 39, et c .
1 38 JOHN HUS S

him over to the civil authoritie s for the punishment to w hi ch

the custom of centurie s had con signed heretics S entence s .
,

like thi s one agains t Hus s have been ju s tified on the plea ,

that they are beneficial for the church in preservin g the flock
’
from infection The i n dividual s right s in the s ight of God
.

as the s upreme judge over livi n g and dead are made s ubj ect
to the decision o f an organization call ed the church or rather ,

to a re s tricted o ffi cial group w hi ch is regarded a s its rep

’ ’
r e s en t a t iv e It was Hus s s merit as i t was Wyclif s meri t
.
,
’
before and Luther s one hundred years later to fight again st ,

this fell theory and to hazard his life as they did theirs for , ,

the Christian theory whi ch prevails to day In the works -

.

already cited Huss contended ma n fully for the rights of

,

the indi v idual as we shall also fin d him doing in hi s Tr ea tise

,

on the Chu r ch and in o ther statements to the end of his life .

The time was now at hand for him to as s ert these rights for
himself wi th all his might agains t the powers of the church
which were against him .

From the sentence of aggravated excommuni cation which ,

deprived him of everythi n g but b are exi s tence Huss ap ,

pealed to the supreme judge Jesus Christ a d su p r emu m —

,

j di m l l vi The appeal is introdu ced by a confession

?
u ce a pp e a

of God as one in essence and three in person and of Jesus

Christ who su f fered an unjus t and bitter death to redeem
,

from condemnation those elected from b efore the foundation

—
of the world Jesus Christ who left to his disciples the highest
,

example of su ffering and th e lesson that in memory of him

they should commi t their cause to an omn ipo tent omn is ,

cient and a ll gracious Lord Huss b egged for the divin e

,
-
.

help and compassion in the midst of his enemies who were

speaking and plotting ill again s t hi m and who were declarin g

that God had for s aken him He recalled the examples of .

John Chry s o s tom and An drew of Prague who had appealed ,

from eccle s ia s tical deci s io n s and e specially the example of

,

1
Mo n .
, 3 5 3 5 393
1 0 F ,
t h2t e,
t o.f t h a pp
or l D 9 6 —
4 4 4 66
e x e ea ,
oc .
,
1 2, .
1 40 JOHN HUS S

Ernest of Austria in the church of S t Mary the Virgi n in .

,

v e ig h e d against the five W y cl ifi t e articles defe n ded by Hu s s ;

and in S t Gallus P a l e cz declared Hu ss to be a worse heretic

.
,

than either S ab e ll iu s or Arius for he dared to intrench him ,

self behind the S crip tures P al e c z also used a s an argu

.

ment agai n st the Hus sites their alleged timidity and b oasted
of the co n fide n ce and boldne ss of the o ther party We can .

“
go he s aid wi th our faith wherever we choose but they
, , ,

dare not travel abroad for in Germany or before the R oman

,

curia if they did no t renounce their faith they would b e

, ,

burn ed .

S till another bull was forthcoming whi ch ordered Hus s ,

seized and delivered up to the archbi shop of Prag ue or the

bishop of L e it om ysl to b e condemn ed and put to death The .

B ethlehem chapel was ordered razed to the ground as a ne s t

of heresy A mob of German citizens who had taken side s
.

against Hus s and of Czechs led by a B ohemian C h o t ek

, , ,

furni shed themselves with swords and o ther weapons and

proceeded to the B ethlehem chapel with the purpose of
executing the papal order but their attemp t was foiled by ,

the congregation whi ch at the time was assembled for service

,
?

At a formal meeti n g in the town hall Germans and some ,

’
B ohemi an s voted to execute the pope s ful m ination against
the chapel b ut the majority of the B ohe mians present an
,

n oun ce d thems elves agai n st it On the other hand the .

,

Hu s sites were no t to b e easily subdued They gained the .

victory at the university by the election of Christian of

P r a ch a t icz as rector The election wa s carried through in
.

the face of the combined resistance of the theological masters .

P r a ch a t icz was a devoted friend O f Hu ss and so remained to

’
the end Some of Huss s letters giving the deepest insigh t
.

in to his convictions were addressed to this noble man .

Sop hi a the queen also remained steadfast and continued

, ,

to attend the services at the chapel John of J es en icz who .

,

1
Doc .
, 72 7 sq .
 ’
HUS S S WITHD RAWAL F R OM P R A GUE 1 41

had escaped from his I talian jail was seized and imprisoned ,

on his return to P rag ue R elea s ed through the intervention

.

of the university he held a public dispute in its halls D ecem

, ,

ber 1 8 1 4 1 2 seek ing to prove that t h e sentence s agains t

, ,

Huss were without legal basis Huss reports that bo th .

John XXIII and the cardinals received horses S ilver cups , ,

a n d other gifts as bribes from the party hostile to him and ,

inti mates that on e rea s on the case went against him at R ome
was that J e s e nicz declined to bribe the papal court ?

It was evident that the king was inclined to support th e

excommunicated preacher but to have done so openly would
,

have been to defy the papal power I t would have meant .

for his realm civil war and for hi mself quite prob ably the los s
of his crown Popes were prepared for such emergencies
. .

They had deposed Henry IV Frederick II Jo h n of England , , ,

Lewis the B avarian and later Elizab eth herself and Wenzel
, , , ,

had none of the strength of these strong personalities As .

’
the electors at the pop e s demand had chosen a rival emperor
, ,

in th e pas t so at t hi s juncture they would prob ably again

,

have heeded a papal mandate to supersede the B ohemian

king if one had b een given In fact all that was required was
.
,

for them to recognize his bro ther Sigismund already elected ,

heir to the throne For such an issue that prince was no

.
,

doub t quite ready On a former o ccasion he had s eized hi s

,
.

bro ther at the appeal of the b arons M uch more would he .

b e ready to s eize him in deference to a call from the spiri tual

head of Christendom .

Had Wenzel been as s trong and cautious a character as

was later Frederick the Wise of S axony he migh t have b ecome ,

the patron of a radi cal and permanent reformation as the ,

elector b ecame the patron of the Protes tant movement by

preventing any violence being done Luther by the R oman
party and by insisting that Luther should have a fair heari n g .

I t was a friendly act for Wenzel when he called upon

M on 1 40 8—
1
4 0 Doc 7 2 6
.
,
2 . .
, .
1 42 JOHN HUS S

Huss to withdraw from the city w hi ch was su ff ering from ,

the woes of the interdict From the s tandpoint of expediency

.
,

i t was al s o a wise thing for the king to give Hu ss thi s coun s el .

I t is not to b e supposed that Wenzel had an y very deep

religious convic t ions although he may have felt the ju s tice
,
’
of Hu s s s attacks on local clerical conditions Huss complied .

’
with the king s wishes He left the city O ctober 1 4 1 2 and
.
, , ,

his s emi — volu n tary exile interrupted by o ccasional v isits to

,

Prague continued to O ctober 1 4 1 4 when he started on his

, , ,

journey to Con s tance He found refuge and hospitality in the

.

ca s tle of Kozi hradek belonging to John of A u st i in Southern

, ,

B ohe m ia People were soon asking where Huss was though

.
,

they had no though t that he wa s dead as Albrecht D iir er ,

and o thers thought of Luther after his seizure at the Wartburg .

B y wi thdrawing from Prague Hu s s saved the city from ,

the continued pressure of the interdict I t must b e reca l led .

that this extreme papal b an wa s equivalent to a religiou s

’
starvation Hus s s removal by death or by exile was the
.

in di spensable co n ditio n of its suspen s ion His enemies at .

once took advantage of hi s retirement to make the damag ing

charge that he had been ba ni shed by the ki n g or the still
more damagi n g charge that he had fled from fear In the .

earlier lis t of charges brought agai n s t him at Constance ,

“
1 41 4 ,
was the charge that he was exp elled from Prague
”1
on account of rebellion and disob edience There wa s some .

’
groun d for the charge of ba nishment pro v ided a ki n g s counsel ,

is to b e treated as tantamou n t to law bu t no o fficial order ,

’
wa s i ss ued Hu ss s course afterward b ecame the occasion
.

of much trouble to hi s conscience whether he had done right ,

or not in leaving the ci ty Writing to the P r a gu e r s at the .

close of 1 4 1 2 he declared that he wi thdrew of h is own will an d

, ,

’
in s o doing felt he wa s following Chri s t s example I n j u s t ifi .

“
cation of h is cour s e he quoted the pa ss age s They sought to ,
”
take him and he went forth out of their hands Jo h n 1 0 3 9 , ,

1
D oc .
, 46 , 2 03 .
 1 44 JOHN HUS S

such as the seven sacraments t h e worship of relics and regard ,

’
for indulgences B ohemia s glory had consisted in i ts s trict
,

or t hodoxy B ohemia had always felt and taught as the

.

R oman Church taught and no t o ther wi s e This repu tation .

mu s t b e su s tained and if necessary by recour s e to th e se , ,

v ere s t measures The memorial a ffi rmed that the pope is

.

the head and the college of cardin als the livin g body of the
—
R oman Church cor p u s r oma n a eccl esia They are the su c .

c e ssor s of Peter and the o ther Apostles It is theirs to de fin e .

the theolo gy of the Catholi c Church in all the world and to

purge i t of a ll error s The cau s es of the trouble in Prague .
,

i t asserts were three The fir s t cause was the refusal to

,
.

accep t the condemn ation of th e XLV W y clifit e Ar t icles ,

’
inclu ding Wycl if s views of the seven sacraments No one .

of these articles was Catholic .

The second cause was the dispute in regard to the source

of authority Some made the S crip tures t h e only rule in
.

matters of faith and judi cial deci s ion This v iew set a side .

the ordinance of God who had chosen to appoint the apostoli c ,

see as the tribun al of j udgment The true v i ew Inno cent .

III had laid down in his b ul l per ven er a b il em by hi s in ter , ,

p r e t a t ion of D eut 1 7 8 1 2
?
To con firm thi s in terpretation
.
-

’
as the memorial quo tes Inn o cent adduced the Lord s fi c t i t ious ,

conversa tion wi th Peter outside t h e walls of R ome when ,

Peter was fleeing from t h e holy city The Apostle meeting .

,
“ ”
the Lord said to him : Lord whi ther art thou going ? He ,
”
replied I go again to R ome to b e cruci fied Understandin g
,
.

’
what t h e Lord s meaning was the Apostl e returned again ,

to th e ci ty .

The third cause of the trouble was the denial to the de

c ision s of the holy see fin al ity in cases where what is
purely good is not forbidden and the purely evil not com
1
M irb t . 1 38
-
1 40 . I n n o ce n t l
a so q uo tes I C O1 . 6 : 3 . K n ow y e n ot

th a t ye s h al l j u dg e an g e s l ? H ow m u c h m or e th e thin g s th a t p e rta in to this

li fe ?
 ’
HUS S S WITHD R AWAL F R OM P RA GUE 1 45

as well as in o ther cases Here the memorial quote s

m an d e d , .

‘
M att 2 3 3 Al l things tha t the scribes and Phari s ees bid
.
,
’
you thes e do and observe
,
These two passages from the Old
.

and the New Testaments Huss took up in hi s reply to the ,

memorial and gave to them prolonged dis cussion in his

Tr ea tise on the C hu r ch .

The measures whi ch the theological faculty proposed

for t h e settlement of the controversy were as follows ( I )
That all the do ctors and ma s ters of th e universi ty take an
oath in the presence of the archbishop and the other p r e l
ates denying that they held any Oi t h e XLV Arti cles ( 2 ) .

That they accep ted the seven sacraments and the veneration
of indulgences and r elies in no o ther sense than the R oman
Church taught whose h ead was the pope and whose body
,

was th e cardin als ( 3 ) That sub mission b e made to the

.

decisions of the aposto li c see and prelates in all matters

'

(4) That Wyclif s teachings concerning the

’
whatsoever .

seven sacraments b e declared contrary to R oman do ctrine and

false All refusing to take the oath professors clergy or lay
.
, , ,

men were to b e pun ished with excommuni cation and exile

,
“
from th e rea l m They were to b e treated as here ti cs a name
.
,
”
to b e abhorred above a ll other evil names The odious and .

s candalous songs recently forbidden should b e suppressed

, , ,

by royal command on the streets and in taverns ,

As for .

Huss he sho ul d b e es topped from preaching or in any way

,

impe ding th e pub li c se r vices of religion by his presence in

Pra gue so long as he was under the condemna tion of the
curia Absolution the faculty was willing to intercede with
.

t h e curia to grant provided Huss and his followers subs crib ed

,

to the four con di tions named above .

In his co u nter memorial Huss took the posi tion that the
-

existence of heretics in B ohemia was an assump tion u n

proved and that his own excommuni cation b eing founded ,

upon fal s e information given to the apostolic see was null ,

.

S tanislaus and P al ecz themselves had at one time held and

1 46 JOHN HUS S

defended many of those very W y clifit e articles whi ch were

now reprob ated How the n could they hone s tly pronounce
.
, ,

every one of them uncatho l ic ? He appealed to the sole m n

agreement of July 6 1 4 1 1 entered into by Z b yn ek on the
, ,

one hand an d the masters of the univer s ity and himself on

the o ther an agreement attested by sole mn s eal s He ca l led
,
.

for the observance of the customs and immunitie s of the

kingdom of B ohemia and demanded the right to appear in
a native synod and answer charge s that might be brought
again s t him He also demanded that if the charges were no t
.

proved the author should b e punished according to the

,

l ex ta l ion is The ki n g should issue a decree call i n g for publi c

.

charge s In case no accusers presented themselves then the

.
,

R oman curia should b e i n formed by the ho s tile party that

Prague wa s no t infecte d wi th heresy and that the kingdom
had b een defamed when charged with being heretical The .

interdi ct should b e lifted and also the papal decree against the
free preachi n g of the Word of God .

In demanding that regard b e paid to the customs and

immunities of B ohemia Huss no doub t had in mind as , ,

L o se r t h says the practice followed in England

,
The ancient .

rites and customs of England were repeatedly invoked by

the successors of William the Conqueror in their struggles
against the encroachm ent of the papal see When William .

was cal led upon by Gregory VII to do him homage he repli ed : ,

“
F e al t y I have never willed nor wi l l I now I have never .

”
promised i t nor do I fin d that my predece s sors did He .

forb ade papal letters to b e received or publi s hed in the realm

without his consent and no ecclesiastic was to leave the king
’
dom withou t the king s permis s ion ? Of the s e rights Wyclif
was an intrepid defender and he advocated the renunciation
’
of John s contract to pay ann ual tribu te of one thousand
mark s to R ome .

Fair as Huss s demand for an open trial may in this age

’

1
Gee an d H ar d y . D oc .
, 57 .
1 48 JOHN HUS S

the b are ground that they were i ss ued and promulgated

than the devil him s elf is to be ob eyed because our parent s ,

Adam and Eve hearkened to him The kind of rea s oning

,
.

’
applied in Hu ss s ca s e would apply al s o to the action of
Pilate who condemn ed Christ because the priests and people
,

at Jeru s alem condemned him .

The exact i s sue of the synod is not known However .

,

on receiving the memorials the bi s hop of L e it om ysl who

, ,

wa s no t in attendance in a document dated February 1 0

, ,

1 41 3 recommended that a vi ce chancellor be appointed

,
-

for the university to have close watch for heretics and e r

r on eou s teaching and that Huss S hould no t only b e s trictly
,

kep t from preaching b ut also from issuin g wri tings in the

language of the people He should b e forced out of B ethlehem
.

chapel as the ravening wolf should b e forced out of the fold ,

le s t he destroy the flock God is the Lord of peace and no t

.

of dissension What are prelates of the church for if no t to

.
,
’
keep the sheep from attacks from wolve s and foxes ! Z b yn ek s
agreement to which Huss appealed had no val idi ty I t
, ,
.

’
had no t b een approved by the apo s toli c see Huss s demand .

to b e tried in B ohemia and not in R ome wa s against the

example set by Paul who appealed to R ome and purposed
,

to die there rather than prosecute his case anywhere else .

In his demand that the interdict b e annulled and he b e

allowed to preach freely Huss was concealing under his
,

words the laughter of foxes and the howling of wolves who ,

pretend that their voices are evangelical and do lie Huss .

was lying when he pretended that his voice of dissension

and schism was the voice of the Gospel and of charity .

The author of these severe se n timents John B ucka , ,

bishop of L eit om ysl was known as the Iron B i s hop Hu s s

,
.

had no more inveterate enemy than this prelate At the .

synod of Constance he wa s persistent in h is demand for the

’
application of severe mea s ure s and after Hu ss s death he , , ,

was commissioned by the council to put down the Hu ss ite

 ’
HUS S S WITHD RA WAL F R OM P R AGUE 1 49

revolt in B ohemia He belonged to that group of hard e c

.

c l e sia s t ical disciplinarians who insi s t upon the rigorous e n

forcement of the letter of ecclesia s ti cal rules and allow no

room for individual dissent to tradi tion and cu s tom .

’
The s tate of Hus s s min d for this period of his absence
from Prague is revealed in seventeen letters which are pre
served from his pen ?
Here we are admitted to the inner
realm of his feelings in regard to hi s leaving h is work in the
city and also in regard to the pos sible violent death which
persistency in his vi ews might brin g upon him H is con .

s cience as has been said was much exercised as to whether

, ,

he had done righ t or wrong in leaving Prague He was in a .

quandary as to which of the two classes of passages he ought

to have followed the one urging flight in time of danger
, ,

the o ther readiness to su ff er death in the face of i t As b e .

tween these two he did not kn ow which to choose He had

,
.

meditated upon the words : A good shepherd giveth his

life for the sheep bu t an hireling and he who is not the shep
,

herd whose the sheep are not seeth the wolf coming and
, ,

leaveth the S heep and fle e t h and the wolf ravens them and
”
destroys the sheep On the o ther hand he had meditated
.
,
“
upon the words : When they persecute you in one city flee to
”
another He quoted Augustine for the principle t hat if a
—
.

person was sough t out in his individual capacity sin gu l a r i

ter — h e was justi fi ed in fleeing as did Athanasius ,
Huss migh t .

also have recalled the case of Cyp rian who fled on one oc ,

ca s ion from persecution and later surrendered his life .

In being absent from Pra gue Huss wrote he migh t b e , ,

guilty of wi thholding the Word of God from his people .

If indeed i t should b e found that he had fled from the truth

, , ,

then he prayed that the Lord would give him an opportuni ty

to die in the profession of the same truth The interdict .
,

he wrote had led to great unrest and commotion among the

,

people as bap tism and burial of the dead were forbidden

, ,

1
D oc 3 4—
66 W o
. r k
, m an a d P.o p e s E g l tr an s ln8 —
3 138
’
n . .
,
.
1 56 JOHN HUS S

and on that account great disorder was to b e feared should

, , ,
“
he return Wheth e r I did right or wrong in wi thdrawi n g
.
,
”
I hardly know Hu ss vi s ited Prague a number of times
.
,

fir s t at Chri s tma s time 1 4 1 2 ,

.

As for the trial s through which he wa s pa ss i n g he wrote ,

to h is frien d s of B ethlehem chapel that the devil had been

goi n g about roari n g again s t him for several year s but had ,

n o t hurt a hair of h is head On the contrary h is joy a n d .

,

gladness had increa s ed Agai n and again he q uoted p a s .

’
sage s de s cribi n g the su fferi n gs of Chri s t an d Christ s ex
hortatio n s to h is di s ciples to expect tribulation a n d to bear
up under i t tru s ti n g in him If Christ su ff ered at the hands
,
.

“ ”
of prie s ts an d Phari s ee s who s aid This man is no t of God , , ,

why s hould we b e surpri s ed if the mi n i s ters of anti chri s t

speak evil of h is s ervan t s to day excommu n icate them a n d -

, ,

put them to death for they are even more greedy and cruel
,

tha n the Phari s ee s ? Chri s t said : I s end you as s heep amon g

“

wolves B e ye therefore wi s e a s serpen t s and harmle ss as

.
, ,

doves And beware of men les t they deliver you up to coun

.
,
”
cil s He heard that they were going about to destroy B eth
.

lehem chapel and to put an e n d to preachi ng in o ther churches ,

but he believed God They would accompli s h nothing . .

The Goose a tame and dome s tic bird would break through
, ,

the nets S pread for it while other birds exceeding it in power

,

of fligh t would b e caught in the snare s Seei n g the true God .

is with us who is able to separate us from Him ? The chief

,

prie s ts scribes and Phari s ee s Herod and Pilate an d o ther s

, ,

of Jerusalem condemned truth and s entenced Christ to

death Yea they branded him with here sy and e x com
.
,

m u n ica t e d him and outside the walls of the city cru cified
,

him as a malefactor B u t he rose agai n came forth as .

,

conqueror and in his place he s ent forth twelve other preach

, , ,

ers If the true God our most mighty an d righteous Pro

.
,

tector be with us who can prevail agai n st u s in s pite of their

, ,

wicked de sig n s ?
1 5 2 JOHN HUS S

propo s ition even if I knew the fi r e wa s prepared for me and

,

I was standing close to i t I hope that death may take to .

heave n or to hell either myself or the two who have turned

”
from the truth before I give consent to their j udgment .

The two referred to were S tanislaus and P a l e cz as he goes ,

on to s a y men who called Huss and h is fo ll owers W y cl ifis t s

,

and in fid e l s and wanderers from the sound faith of Christ .

’
They had once followed the truth accor ding to Chris t s law ,

but s truck through with fear of punishment had turned and

, ,
’
were flattering the pope He hoped that wi th God s grace .
, ,

if it s hould b ecome necessary he would b e willing to stand ,

“
up agai n st them even to consuming fir e I t is better to die .

well than to live ill One should no t flinch b efore the sentence
.

of death To finis h the present life in grace is to go away

.

from pain and misery He who fears death loses the joy of
.

life Above all else truth triumphs He conquer s who dies

. .

b ecause no adversity can hurt the one over whom i n iquity

holds not sway ”
Here we think both of Wyclif and M el an ch
.

thon— Wyclif who in a solemn moment aft er the coun cil of

, ,
“
London 1 3 8 1 had declared I believe that in the end the
, , ,
”
truth will conquer and M elanchthon who before dying pu t
, , , ,

in parallel column s the b ene fi ts of living and of dying giving ,

the advantage to dying .

At another time he wrote to the rector that he could no t

accep t the statement that the pope is the head of the Holy
R oman Church and the cardinals the body for thus he would ,

be forced to accep t all the deliverances of the Holy R oman

“
Church I n such a statement truly the snake lurks in the
.
,

grass ; for if it were true then the pope and cardinal s would
, ,

co n s ti tute the whole R oman Church even as the body and ,

the head together make up the whole man If the statement .

were true then all the decrees of popes and curia mus t b e
,

ob eyed and if Hu ss does not accep t them all then he is

, ,

an incorrigible here t ic fi t only for the fi r e B oniface had .

s olemnly declared that We n zel was not to b e accepted as

 ’
HUS S S WITHD RAWAL F R OM P RA GUE 1 53

k ing of the R omans or Sigismund kin g of the Hungarians

therefore nei ther of them is now king Liberius was a hereti c .

as well as were o ther popes In the memorial of the theo .

logical faculty P al e cz and S tanislaus did no t even make

mention of Christ If the pop e lives accordin g to the rule of
.

Chr ist th en is h e the head of as much of the Catholic Church

,

as he rules over If he lives contrary to Christ then is he a

.
,
”
thief and a robb er a ravenin g wolf the chief an ti christ
, ,
.

From Huss in exile we turn our attention to scenes bein g ,

enacted at R ome There the authorities were proceedin g

.

’
again st Wyclif s memory and books B y a decree of John .

XXIII February 1 0 1 4 1 3 and the council si tting in the holy

, , ,
“ ” ’
city whi ch John called a general council Wyclif s books
, ,

were branded as contain ing many heretical doctrines and

many errors The mad poison of their teachings—r a b idu m
.

v en en u m
— were prono un ced l ik e the pestiferous leaven of th e
Pharisees corru p ting the true C atholi c eru di tion like th e
, ,

abomination of desolation in the holy place like leprosy in ,

the human body which threatened to turn tru e Chris tians

into S corpions and serpents In accordance wi th the words .
,

that every branch that abideth no t in Christ should b e cut off

’
a n d burned Wyclif s writings were condemn ed to b e publicly
,

commi tted to the flames wherever they were found An .

example was set in R ome i tself where all copies upon which ,

hands could b e laid were bu rned in front of th e doors of S t .

’
P eter s .

Shortly after Eas ter 1 4 1 3 in order to restore tranquilli ty , ,

to his realm the kin g appoin ted a commission consisting o f

,

A l b ik P r ach a t icz and two o thers wi th instru ctions to arbi

, , ,

trate b etween the two parties and to secure their agreement

to some formula of peace R epresentatives of b oth parti es .

were summoned including S tanislaus of Znaim S tephen

, ,

P al e cz John of J e sen icz an d Simon of T is sn ow

,
They met ,
.

’
the commission in the pari s h house of S t M ichael s th e .
,

residence of P r ach a t icz They mutually agreed to abide by .

1 54 JOHN HUS S

the deci s ion of the commis sion and upon default to pay , ,

s ixty thou s a n d s groschen a n d be exiled from the realm .

I n regard to the sacrame n t s a n d s ome other matters ,

the repre s e n tative s agre e d to accep t the de fin ition of the

R oma n Church On the de finition of the church they divided
.
,

P a l e c z a n d h is party i n si s ti n g upon defi n ing the church as

the pope an d the cardi n al s then livi n g The Hussites de fined .

it as the body of which Christ is the head the pope bei n g ,

the vicegere n t Abou t this and o ther que s tio n s the com
.

mi ssion decided to proceed on the as s ump tion that the two

partie s were in sub s tantial accord and i t propo s ed on the ,

next day to bri n g forward matter s of personal di spute between

them and at the same time a deci s ion upon those matters
,
.

Whe n the day came P al e cz and his frien d s o ff ered u n con ,

d it ion al Obj ection to the several clauses incorporating the

’
commission s decision One clause was that the R oman .

“
Church should b e submitted to a s far as a good and faithful
Chri s tian ought to sub mit A second clause stipulated that .

P al e cz and h is party should write to the curia that they

knew of no heresy in B ohe mia and that no hereti c had b een
found Their refu s al to comply with t hi s second clause was
.

in part on the grou n d that such a recommendation would

give the lie to their former statements and in part on the
ground that a proper search for heretics had not been made 1
.

Hereupon the a n ti — Hussites Peter of Znaim and S tanis ,

laus of Z n aim John Elia s and P a l e cz were found con t u m a

, , ,

c io u s a n d were con s igned by royal edict to perpetual ba n i s h

ment Their cano n ries as well a s their o ffices at the university

.

were transferred to their four opponents The Un iv er s ity .

“
Chr on icl e states that the b anished theologians did not vi s it
’
Prague again until after the king s death for that they had ,

precipitated themselve s into the penalty of exile S ta n i s .

A vivi d a c ou t of t h co fe r en e a d t h d i ff e r en ce s b t w e t h e t wo
1
c n e n c n e e e n

p rti s w ritt b y P l hi m l f is g iv e i D c 5 7 —
a e , en a e cz 5 T h e r e is
se , po n n o .
, 0 10 . no s

s ib le d ou b t of P a l e cz d e fi iti on
n of the c h u r ch
H e s a i d with
. pr e c i si on , p er
Roma n a m eccl es ia m in tel l igimu s p ap a m cu m car d in a l ib u s .
1
56 JOHN HUS S

R edeemer was accustomed to do and I do no t know whe t her ,

in the future i t will be a fitti n g excuse that I am not able

”
q uickly to reach di s tant localitie s on foot .

D uring thi s period he fou n d time to write mu ch including ,

h is chief work the T r ea tis e on the C hu r ch and the tract s in

, ,

a n swer to S ta n i slaus and P a l e cz A tract enti tled S ix E r r or s .

to b e A void ed 1
co n tain s in prelimi n ary hea di n g s the words
which were i n s cribed on the walls of the B ethlehem chapel ,

June These headin gs are ( 1 ) On Creation I t .

is n o t true that the priest a s the people are seduced to ,

believe create s at the ma s s the body of Christ so that i t

, ,

is e v ident that he is the creator of his Creator ( 2 ) On .

Faith Faith ca n b e truly exercised in God only and n ot in

.

the bles s ed Virgi n the pope or the saints (3 ) On R emis

, ,
.

sion Priests cann ot remi t s ins and absolve fro m punishment

.

and guilt—a p a n a et cu l p a (4) On Obedience I n ferior s

. .

are no t boun d in all t h in gs to submi t to superior s ( 5) Ex .

communication If unju s t it does no t separate from the

.
,

comm u nion of the fai thful or deprive of th e sacrament s of

the church ( 6) Simony Alas i t taints the larger part of
. .
,

the clergy an d is to b e crushed out .

I n h is elaboration of these principles Huss lays down ,

the proposition s that n either good nor bad angels much le ss ,

m e n can create anything at all and that we ought to ob ey

, ,

God rather than men A ll the principles of this tract are

.

set forth in greater fulness in his Tr ea tis e on the C hu r ch .

In the decision on matters concerning the church a n d its

relation to the nations and society the university of Pari s ,

wa s next to R ome the mo s t important earthly tribunal a n d

, , ,

to the attention of the Pari sia n theological faculty the B 0

hemian matter was o fficially carried by the cardinal s of Pisa
and Rheim s and by o ther prelates and doctor s The allega .

tio n was that the wri ti n gs of a certain Jo h n Huss should b e

examined and judgment pronounced upon them Copies .

D e s x r o ib us Mon
1 —
2 3 7 2 43
e e r r , .
,
1 .
 ’
HUS S S WITHD R AWAL F R OM P RA GUE 1 57

of these wri tings had b een brought to Paris by Peter of Pragu e .

Ger s on th e rector of the univer s ity and dean of it s faculty

,

of sacred theology wrote two letters to Konrad archbishop

, ,

of Pragu e under date of S ep temb er 4 4 in regard to Huss

1 1
?

John Gerson 1 3 63 —
, , ,

1 4 2 9 among t h e illustriou s men in th e

, ,

hi s tory of France was one of the mos t i n fluential leaders of

,

the firs t half of the fourteenth century He labored with .

great zeal to bring the papal s chi sm to an end and the prin ,

cip l e for whi ch he contended he saw recognized

— that a
general council is superior to the pope and may depose popes .

He opposed some of the superstitions of his day i nh erited

from o ther times and emphasized the au thori ty of the sacred
text bu t he stopped short of the principles of t h e R eformation
,

and saw in the organiz a tion of the chur ch a remedy for all its
ills He was a prominent actor at the council of Constance
.

and vo ted again s t Huss In the fir s t of his letters he called

.

Konrad s attention to the per ni cious tares so wn by Wycli f

’
,

which for many years had been infecting the fi eld of the
church Heresies sho u ld b e exterminated wi th the s cythe or
.

hoe of miracles and coun cils and in desperate cases they and , ,

their authors were to b e cu t do wn wi th the axe wielded by the

secular arm and committed to the flam es ex cid en s ha r eses—
cu m a u ctor ib u s s u is e t in ign e m m itten s O ther measures prov .

in g of no avail the rector exhorts the archbishop to resort to

,

the secu lar arm that t h e axe might b e laid at the roo t of th e
,

unfrui tful and corrup t tree ; surely it should b e invoked for

the salva t ion of the sheep les t the pastures corru p ted wi th the
, ,

deadly seed of poisonous do ctr ine breathe ou t death instead ,

of life .

The second comm un ication Gerson accompani ed with

a l ist of twenty errors extracted from Huss s works The ’
.

one whi ch b e pronounced the most ra di cally perni cious was

that a reprobate or one living in mortal sin pope lord or —
—
, ,

prelate had no righ t to exercise authori ty over Christian

D oc 1 88 5 3 —
85 — 1
5 29
.
,
1 ,
2 .
1 58 JOHN H Uss

people an error he a ffi rmed which had often b een condemn ed

, , , ,

as in the ca s e of the Walden s e s and B eghards In his humble .

—
opinio n p a rv ita ti me a
— it s eemed that such a tenet should
be de s troyed by fir e and the sword rather than the attemp t
made to overcome it by a process of sub tle ratiocination .

Power to govern on earth was no t derived from the ti tle of

prede s tinatio n which is manifestly uncertain but from
, ,

eccle s iastical and civil laws Amo n g the o ther tenets con.

d e m n e d by Ger s on were : that those popes only are of the

church who imi tate in their lives Christ and the Apostles ,

an error he a ffir med in faith and morals full to the brim of

, ,

arrogance and temerity ; that the pope should no t b e called

most holy nor are hi s feet ble ss ed and to b e kissed ; that
,

Christ alone and no t the pope is the head of the church ;

, ,

that tithes and gifts to the church and to eccle s iastics are
pure alm s ; that an excommuni cate person is to be spared
if he appeals to Chri s t ; that eccle s iastic s evil in their lives
may and ough t to be coerced by laymen by the withdrawal
of tithes and o ther temporalities ; and that all acts done
without love are sinful .

Some of these errors had been held by the D ona t ists

in the fi fth century and more recently so Gerson declares , ,

by M a r sigliu s of P adua and John of Jandun and had been

’
condemned In regard to Huss s insistence upon the right
.

to preach Gerson insi s ts that there is a zeal against the vices

,

of the clergy which is wi thout knowle dge Vices and errors .

’
ca n n ot be uprooted by vices In B eelzebub s kingdom
.

demons were no t cast ou t by demons No t to set oneself .

against such errors as those cherished by Hus s is to approve

them Princes and prelates are under O b ligation to proceed
.

with diligence against such error s and to punish their as

s e r t e r s with the severest penalties of the law .

John XXIII al s o wrote to Konrad calling upon him ,

to do his duty Simon cardinal of Rh eims reminded t h e

.
, ,

archbishop of the case of Arius and resorting to the well ,

1 60 JOHN HUS S

hap s ano ther course than the one he took in absenting him
s elf from Pragu e might not have proved the mos t prof
it a b l e to the cau s e he was advocating and for which he was
soon to die.
 CHAPTE R VIII

HU S S B E F ORE THE C OU N C I L OF C O N S TAN C E

D eu s m ax imu s et j ustiss imu s j ud ex s it, q u i e rr a r e n on p otest,

Qu u m
ca u sa m ci comm en d av i, n on d ico m ea m s ed ej u s ip s iu s H u ss , D oc , .
— .

726 .

S i n ce G od is t h e su pr e m e an d m os t j u s t j u d ge a n d ne v e r e rr s ,
I h ave
comm itt e d t h e cau s e t o Him ; I d o n o t s ay m in e b ut His o wn .

’
H U S S S appeal to b e heard before a council was never
realized in the way he hoped Neverthele ss his appeara n ce .
,

b efore the general council which met at Constance 1 4 1 4 , ,

1 4 1 8 must b e regarded as one of the mos t no table trials in the

,

hi s tory of church pro cedure The two que s tions of supreme .

importance which this convention was convoked to discuss

, ,

were the healing of the papal schi sm and the reform of the
church in head and members The ca s e of Hus s s carcely .

yielded to these subj ects in the intere s t it exci ted and the
time devo ted to its discussion It was tantamount to the .

’
maintenance of the purity of the church s doctrine So .

also just two centuries before the famous fourth Lateran

, ,

council of 1 2 1 5— the twelfth oecumenical council — under the

presidency of Inn o cent III took measures to maintain the ,
’
church s doctrinal purity by disciplinary decrees and by
measures to exterminate th e heresy which had arisen in
S outhern France .

Of all ecclesiastical assemblies of the Middle Ages the

synod of Constance is at once the most spectacular and the
most imposing I t was a veritable parliame n t of the n atio n s
?

of Western Europe where th e leading i n tellects of the age

,

1
F u n k , K ges ch , 6 t h e d , 4 9 6 , pr on o u n ce s
-
. . it ein e d er g r ossar tigsten K ir ch en
v er s a mml u n gen wel che d ie Gesch icht e ken n t .

1 61
1 62 JOHN HUS S

engaged in di s cussion some of whom felt the spir it of free ,

i n q uiry which wa s then stirring in Latin Christendom As .

in 1 0 4 6 at the instance of Henry III the s yn od of S utri

, ,

d epo s ed three popes all reside n t in R ome and elected a

, ,

fourth s o for the second time this council decided between

,

the claim s of three pontiff s and setting all three aside chose , ,

a fourth Thi s i t did by virtue of the supreme authority i t

.

a s serted for it s elf in the church on earth Gregory XII of .

the R oma n li n e was prevailed upon to resign B enedict XIII .

of the Avig n on li n e and John XXII I of the Pisan succession

,

were deposed M artin V wa s then elected pope and all

.

W e s tern Christendom was reunited under a si n gle earthly

head with the excep tion of a s mall Spanish territory where ,

a few thousand adherents continued to cling to the ob e di ence

’
of B enedict until that vigorous ru ler s death 1 4 2 4 ,
.

’
E ff ective as the council s action was in doing away wi th
the rival popes its deci s ion constituting itself the supreme
,

tribunal in the church was doomed to b e rudely set aside .

The church had b een reading or was about to read stirring , ,

tracts is s ued by Konrad of Ge l nhausen Henry of L angen ,

’
s tein Ger s on D ietrich of N ie h e im Peter d A ill y and Nicholas
, , , ,

of C l e m a n ge s in which were discussed the questions of the

,

supreme earthly seat of authority and the undone condi tion

of the church the result in part of the papal s chism The
,
.

deci s ion of its fi fth session when it placed itself above t h e ,

pope was in accord with the theory of the ancient church

,

but con fl icted with the theory for which Gregory VII I n ,

nocent III and B oniface VIII had s tood

,
.

An oecumenical council so Gerson asserted in a famous ,

s ermon preached at Constance M arch 2 3 1 4 1 5 has au thority , , ,

to punish pope s and set them aside ?

A ponti ff is set over
’
the ch u r ch a s Jo s eph was set over his master s wife not to ,

debauch her bu t to guard her interests A ponti ff may b e .

1
Du P in
’
s ed . of G e r s on
’
s Wor ks ,
2 219 . T he t e r ms c h u r ch an d g en e r al
c ou n c il he u s e d as s y n on y m ou s p , . 1 72 .
1 64 JOHN HUS S

women and mixed up according to popular r umor in thou

, , ,

s a n d s of love intrigue s ? He spent money lavishly a weak ,

ne s s from which h is b rother We n zel was free .

Although to Sigi s mund more than to John the council , ,

wa s due yet to the opinion of the s cholarly guild of Europe

,

i t wa s due more than to both these dignitarie s Pressed by .

the Hu ssite di sputes in B ohemia the ki n g sa w in the cou n cil ,

a fea s ible way for settling them but also a means of d is ,

playing h is own authority at the expense of h is elder bro ther

Wenzel both as a champion of orthodoxy and the protector
of the rights of B ohemia H is initiative in seeking the ap .

pointme n t of the council united with his imperial claims , ,

“
called forth repeatedly from John XXIII the address A d v o
”
cate and D efender of the Church a title Sigi s mund did ,

no t shrink from u si n g hims elf The sack of R ome by Ladis .

’
lau s forced John XXIII into the king s hands A delegation .

’
of two of John s cardinal s met Sigi s mund at Como Octo ,

ber 1 3 1 4 1 3 One of them was Z ab a r e l l a former professor

,
.
,

at Padua and known there as the king of canon law and now
, ,

since his elevation in 1 4 1 0 popularly known as the cardinal , ,

of Florence His commentaries on the D ecretal s and Clemen

.

’
tines were highly prized The legate s s ig n i fi ed the pope s .

readine s s to summon the council The place led to much .

di s cussion B olog n a Genoa Nice R ome and ci ties north

.
, , , ,

of the Alps were suggested Octob er 3 0 Sigi s mund a n .

,

n ou n c e d the coming synod .

The king and John met at Lodi and after in vain a t , ,

tempting to e ffect a change in the place of meeting John ,

a ssented to Constance and attached his seal to the s ummons

of the council Sigismund is said to have rebuked the pon .

1
At fe tiviti
s iv e n S i g i sm u n d a t I n n sb r u ck b y D u ke F r ed e ri ck o f A u s tri a
es g ,

r u l e r o f t h e T yro l t h e d a ght e r of a n o t ab l e c itiz e n was vi o l a t e d an d t h e

,
u

c ri m e c h a r g e d n o w t o on e n o w t o t h e o th e r o f th e se pri c e s b o th o f wh o m
,
n ,

d e i ed i t
n F or a n a c c ou n t o f h is g a ll an tri e s in S tr a s sb u rg s e e W yli e p 2 4
.
, ,
. .

P l ac ky Gesch 3
a , 3 9 sqq . a sc ri b e s t o t h e e m p e r o r s om e o f t h e c hiv a lri c
, 0 .
,

t e m p e r of h is fa th e r C h a rl e s I V , .
 B EFO R E THE COUNCIL OF C ONSTANCE 1 65

tiff s scandalous life and the report went that for a paymen t
’
,

of fi fty thousand gold guldens he promised no t to joi n in

a n y attemp t to unseat John ? Thus the two great luminarie s
of th is mundane sphere as Sigismund wrote to Charles VI ,

of France were side by side pope and emperor appoin ted

—
, , ,

to rule the one over the spiri tual the o ther over the ,

material aff airs of the world

,
.

( Ecumenical councils had decided ques tions of heresy b e

fore b eginning wi th the fir s t council 3 2 5 held at Nice whi ch
, , , ,

punished the heresy of Arius Early in the spring of 1 4 1 4 .

,

while sojourning at Friu l i in Lo mb ardy Sigismund com , ,

mi s sioned Lord Wenzel of D uba Henry Chlum of L a c e m b ok , ,

’
and Henry s nephew John of Chlum on their return to ,

B ohemia to propose to Huss that he refer his case to th e

coun cil for adjudication without delay At the same time .
,

if we follow Peter of M l a d e n owicz s report these noblemen ’

,

brought assurances from the king that he would s end Huss

letters of safe conduct both for the j ourney to Con s tance and
-

’
the return journey to B ohemia Huss s assent which s eems .
,

to have been given with alacrity marked an epoch in his life ,

—
and in troduces it s la s t chap ters his imprisonment and trial
and his death a t the stake There can b e no doub t that .
,

though at times he may have shared the misgivings of friends

for his safety he looked forward to the coun cil with a cour
,

age born of the convi ction that he was innocent and that he
would receive fair treatment .

B efore starting on the journey and with the help of h is ,

friends he made every e ff ort to secure clean papers certifying

,

to his good s tanding in the church in his own country A .

diocesan synod met in Pragu e August 2 7 The day b efore ,

.
,

Huss who was in the city had posted up agai n s t the cathedral
, ,

and the churche s and at the gateways of the palaces of the

,

archbishop and the king notices in Latin German and Czech, ,

1
F i n ke , A cta con c con s t , p
. . . 1 77 . T hi s au th o r g iv es v a l u ab l e d o cu m en t s
b e a ri n g o n t h e con v e n ti o n of t h e cou n c il . S ee a l s o M an s i 2 8 3 s qq
,
.
1 66 JOHN H Uss

that he was ready to defend himself and his orthodoxy b efore

the synod Copies are preserved He was de n ied admittance
.
?

’
to the s ittin gs Interpreti n g however the syn od s silence
.
, ,

a s a co n fe ss io n of his i n n ocence he again po s ted up at the ,

gateway of the royal palace in the Ol d town a notice intended

’
for the king and queen to the e ff ect that in the archbishop s
“ ”
court no one in the whole kingdom of B ohemia had ap
p e a r e d agai n st him He was ready to appear b efore the pope
.

a n d the council as s ured that if accused of here s y he would , ,

receive a verdict of no t guilty B ut s hould he b e pronounced .

,

a heretic he would not shrink from su ff ering the punishment

,

appoi n ted for hereti cs .

From the papal i n quisitor Nicholas bishop of Nazareth , ,

he received a cer t i fi cate of good standing which b ears a ,

’
notary s seal dated August 3 0 1 4 1 4 In an open audience
, ,
.

in which J e s e n icz and other friend s of Huss were present ,

the inquisitor a flir m e d that he had O ften been present when

Hus s preached talked with him over matters of S crip ture
,

and met him many times at the hospitable board and that , ,

far from findi n g him a heretic he had alway s found him to b e ,

“
a true and Catholi c man who had no tai n t of here sy abou t ,
”
him . From thi s depo sition the amiable prelate was afterward
kno wn a s the bi s hop sup with the devil ? - - - -

At still another synod held in October and according to , ,

the sealed attesta t ion of the supreme B urgrave of Prague

and o thers Archbishop Konrad in answer to a que s tion put
, ,
’
by Hu ss s friends a fli r m e d that he knew of no heresy or error
,

of which Huss could b e justly accused .

Writing to Sigismund S ep tember 1 1 4 1 4 Huss an , , ,

n ou n c e d h is purpose of proceeding to Constance under the

’
protection of the king s pas sport providing safety on the ,

—
journey sol vu s con d u ctu s He b egged the king to secur e .

for him a safe hearing in public and expressed his willingness

1
M on .
, 1 2 . D oc , p 6 6. . .

2
M on .
,
1 3 . M l ad e n owicz in D oc .
,
2 3 9 , 2 43 .
1 68 JOHN HUS S

B ohemian friends whom he calls brothers and sisters he

, ,

expres s ed s ome doub t whether he would see them again

alive He called them to witn es s that he had pub licly pre
.

s e n ted the Word of God and presented it without heresy

and wi thou t errors He assured them he was no heretic

. .

He spoke s eriou s ly of the great dangers which lay b efore hi m

a n d the po s s ibility of his being put to death but if by his , ,
’
death he migh t contribute to God s glory and their advantage ,

he interceded that i t might please God to enable him to meet

death withou t sinful fear and if i t should please God to,

bri n g him back they would be all the more j oyf u l at seeing
,

each o ther a n d a ss uredly so if they should not meet until

they met in heaven Cons tance whither he was going held
.
, ,

many and in fl uential enemies and he asked their prayers

,

for the gift of wi s dom and con s tancy by the Holy Spirit that
he migh t b e preserved in the midst of his enemies well remem ,

b eri n g that Christ had left a n example of patient suff ering

under trial imprisonment and even death
, ,
?

As a precautio n ary measure Huss pu t a sealed will int o

,

the hands of his favorite pupil marked with in s truction s ,

that it should not b e opened except in case of his death He .

called upon M artin to b e true to the vow of cha s tity to ,

guard him s elf against all temp tations to incontinence and ,

to recall what he had been taught by Huss from his youth

u p —to act as a servant of Je s u s Christ He reminded M artin .

that he had hated the avarice and the incontinent lives of

the clergy and he warned him against giving away to the
,

de s ire for fin e clothes high po s ition a n d agai n st b ei n g s educed

, ,

by the bad customs of the day Huss also reminded him of .

h is own manner of life before his ordination and b egged

Martin not to imitate him in a n y folly M artin might have
seen in him It is here Hus s mentions h is fondness for chess
.
,

to which reference h as already been made a game he s aid , , ,

at which he had wasted much time and had provoked him s elf
D c 7 —
1
73o .
, 1 .
 B EFO R E THE C OUN CIL OF CONSTANCE 1 69

as well as others to displays of anger For his innumerable .

’
s ins he asked the young man s pardon as he al s o a s ked his
prayers He clo s ed the document by b e q ueathing to M artin
.

a gray cloak if he chose to have it and a white cloak to the

, ,

parish priest In ca s e he did no t care for the gray cloak

.
,

Huss a sked him to give it to his faithful servant George , ,

or in it s ste ad a guinea .

’
Huss s party consisted of thirty persons all mounted ,
.

In addition to the three delegates appoi n ted by Sigismund ,

there were John Cardinal of R einstein who had for a long

, ,
’ ’
time acted as Wenzel s diplomatic agent and John of C hl u m s ,

amanuensis and clerk Peter of M l a d en owicz As he was de

,
.

par ting among the many who expressed fears that he was
,

s tarting on a journey from which he would no t return was

Jerome of Pragu e .

The route led thr ough B ier n au Neus tadt Sulzb ach , , ,

Hersbruck and Lauf to N ii r n b e r g which the party reached ,

O ctob er 1 9 and from thence by way Of B iberach in W iir

,

t e m b e r g and R avensburg on the lake of Cons tance From .

R avensburg they took b oat to the city toward w hi ch their

’
faces were turned Notes left us in Huss s own letters give
.

a chatty account of the experiences by the way Nowhere .

di d he veil his identity In S pi te of warnings that he had .

powers of sorcery given by the bishop of Lebus a canon

, ,

O f Prague who preceded the party from place to place by a

,
’
day s journey he was everyw here kindly received
,
The .

papal interdict was nowhere enforced Teutons as well a s .

Latins Officials and people of all classes everywhere turned

, ,

out to see him as if so he wrote they were going to a fair

,
?
,

Prie s t s and magistrates entertained him .

At B ie rn au the parish pries t received him into his house

and set b efore him a large tankard of wine At N iir n b e r g .
,

where he had a notable reception a few months b efore S igi s ,

mund had gone the round s of the churches and worn the
1
D oc .
, 79 . 83 , 2 4 5 sq
1 7 6 JOHN H Uss

skull of S t Cyprian The prie s t of S t S e b al d u s and o ther

. . .

prie s t s a n d also the city o ffi cial s had a conference with him

,

la s ti n g four hour s In the compa n y was a Carthusian doctor

.

who di sputed wi th him at length but in spite of thi s he , , ,

felt that there wa s no t an e n emy among them all and he ,

was s urprised to fin d amo n g the Germans a s much cordiality

as was s hown by his own people the B ohemian s John ,
.

of Chlum and Wenzel of D ub a were indefatigable in render

in g good service and as Hu ss a s serts acted as herald s of , ,

the truth Farther on in the journ ey at B iberach John

.
, ,

argued so shrewdly with the prie s ts an d o ther men of culture

on the papal prerogative that the rumor spread that he was
a doctor of divinity Us i n g the i n cident Huss playfully
.
,

nicknamed him doctor of P ib e r ach .

At N ii rn b e r g Wenzel of D ub a turned aside and pro

, ,

ce e d e d northward to Spires to secure from the king the

, ,

—
o ffi cial passport sol vu s con d u ctu s Again and again Huss .

refers to the fact that the journey had been made without
pa ssport although h e had received the promi s e of i t from
Sigi s mund The party reached Con s tance on a Sabbath
.
,

November 3 and was met out side the city by a great throng
,
.

The people accompanied him until he came to the house of

a widow Fida who lived near the S ch n e t z t h or where Hus s
, , ,

lodged The hou s e still stands on the street now cal led
.

the H u ssg a sse and bears a bronze table t placed there by

fellow B ohemians 1 8 7 8 containi n g the inscription in German
and Czech—The Lodging of the B ohe mi an R eformer M aster
, ,

J Hu s s 1 4 1 4 The throng was attracted in part by curio s ity

.
,
.

to see the heretic and in part by a parade whi ch i t was an

n ou n c e d the pope cardinals and o ther dignitaries were to
, ,
’
make on that day but which was frustrated by the pope s
sudden illn e s s ?
B aro n s John of Chlum and L ace m b ok
’
went immediately to the bi shop s palace where the pope was ,

’
stopping and laid Hu ss s ca s e b efore him The pope gave
,
.

1
F i n k e , A cta , p . 1 63 .
1 72 JOHN HUS S

hu n dred mou n ted hor s emen the bridles of his horse bei n g ,

held by the cou n t of Mo n tferrat and an Orsi ni The city .

’
magi s trate s fur n i shed the bi shop s palace where the pope ,

lodged with four large cask s of French wi ne four of El s a ss

, , ,

a n d eight of n ative wine s and the citiz ens of Co n s tance made

,

him a gift of a large d r in kin g~cu p made of silver gilded wi th

gold ?
The city attracted people of every rank be n t on all
s ort s of bu s i n es s S uch a scene on so grand a s cale had not
.

b ee n witne ss ed in the West before I t was a golden o cca s ion .

for social and mercantile intercour s e for pride and display ,

as well a s a religious event concerni n g the wel l being of -

Latin Chri s tendom In comparison with this assembly the

.
,

s y n od at Clermont 1 0 9 5 the fourth Lateran

,
1 215 and the, , ,

council s held in Lyons 1 2 4 5 and 1 2 7 4 were provincial s ynod s

, ,
.

Here all Catholi c na t ions were represented by delegations

from B ohemia to S cotland The chief scholarship of the .

age a s well as the leading prelates were there The normal .

population of the city which was u n der six thou s and was , ,

enormously swollen by the fl ood of strangers whose numb er is ,

put at from fi fty thousand to one h un dred and fif ty thousand

by Ri chental a re s ident of the city who twenty years after the
, ,

council adjourned wro te do wn a graphic accoun t of what he

,

had seen He had the interest of a modern reporter went

.
,

everywhere into alley and palace fro m house to hou s e tak

, , ,

ing down notes His busy pen preserved the names of all
.

the vi s iting dignitaries civil a n d religious together with their

, ,

retainers There were t hi rty thou s and bed s for strangers

. .

Five hundred are said to have been drowned in the lake

duri n g the progres s of the council B akers grooms gold .
, ,

s m ith s,
s cribes money cha n gers merchan tmen and s utler s
,
-

, ,

of every s ort even to t r a fli ck e r s from the Orient flocked

, ,

together to mi n i s ter to the need s a n d tastes of princes and

prelate s Accordi n g to the tables of Ri chental there were
.

in attendance 3 3 cardinal s 5 patriarch s 4 7 archbi shop s 1 4 5 , , ,

1
R i ch en ta l ,
25 —2 8 .
 B EFO R E THE COUN CIL OF C ONSTAN CE 1 73

bishop s 9 3 titular bishops 2 1 7 doctors of theology 3 6 1 doc

, , ,

tors of both law s and 1 7 1 doctors of medicine Thirty seven ,

.
-

universities were represented There were 8 3 envoys rep .

resen t ing kings and prince s 3 8 duk es 1 7 3 counts 7 1 b arons , , , ,

more than knigh ts and also 1 4 2 writer s of bull s , ,

bugler s fiddl e r s and other players on musical in s truments

, , .

In addition the chronicler informs us there were 7 0 0

, ,

women of the street who openly practised their trade in

rented rooms while the number who practised i t secretly
,

was no t recorded ?

The arrival of diff erent delegations caused great excite

ment The English and S cotch numb er ing a dozen and
.
,

accompanied by seven or eigh t hun d red mounted men ,

were headed b y fl iers and other musicians as th ey entered

the city January 2 1 1 4 1 5 The representatives of the ,
.

university of P aris who arrived in February awakened , ,

equal interest The entry of John of Nassau archbishop of

.
,

M ai n z attended by 7 00 moun ted followers created a sensa

, ,

tion The archbishop was clad in full armor helmet coat

.
— ,

of mail and greaves January 1 7 1 4 1 5 K ing Sigismund

,
.
, ,

went out to meet D u ke Le wis of B avaria who wa s aecom ,

p an ie d by the bishops of Spires and Treves and a retinue of

40 0 horsemen The s treets presented the spectacle of a
.

merry fair There were tournaments dances acrob atic shows

.
, , ,

pro ce s sions and musical di splays The police regulations were

,
.

precise R i ding and shou ting at night were forbidden After

. .

dark chains were s tretched across some of the streets and

, ,

persons going out after curfew were to carry their own light s .

R e g u lated prices for food and laun dering were intended to

check extortion .

The mos t eminent personages in attendance after Sigis ,

’
mund and the pope were Car din als d A ill y Z ab a r e ll a and , ,

F ill a s t r e Hallum bishop of S ali sbury who died during the

, , ,

1
V a n d er H a r d t , 5 50
—
53 ,
iv e s t h e n u m b e r
g of vi s i t or s as pr e l a t es
an d pri es t s ,
l aym e n ,
i n c l u d i n g 1 500 l oose ,
wom en .
1 74 JOHN HUS S

ses sions and w a s buried at Constance and Jo h n Ger s on of ,

’
Pari s F ill a s t r e left a valuable journal of the coun cil s pro
.

c e e d in g s .

’
Now and then in Huss s letters we catch entertaining
glimp s e s of the function s that were goin g on in the city and
the go ssip that passed from mouth to mou th on it s s treets .

A rumor which he mentioned proved untrue that B enedi ct ,

XIII was on h is way to Constance The asses the cardinals .

rode on he tells u s were scrubs On his arrival he foun d

, ,
.

many B ohemian s already stranded and he wrote reques tin g ,

aid for them He chat s abou t the pri ce of hor s es and how
.

he had se n t h is own horse R ab s t ein b ack to R avensburg

, ,
.

He had kep t it that he migh t b e ready if necessary to ride , ,

out side the city to meet the king who however so the rumor , , ,

went was no t to arrive until Chri s tma s D ay John of Chlum

,
.
,

he s ays wa s pro tecting him righ t manfull y and lik e a true

,

knight and do ing more preaching than he hi m s elf

,
.

’
To Hu ss s mi sfortune even the liberty of his lodging in
,
’
widow F id a s hou s e was quickly to b e taken from hi m and ,

from thenceforth only s uch rumor s reached him as penetrated

through pri s on walls H is hope s of a fair and open audience
.

were doomed to bitter disappoi n tment The orderly procedure .

and sole m n attention to bu sine s s whi ch he had looked forward

to gave away b efore the actual impre ss ion of another sort .

He complained of un fairness for himself and his B ohemian

friend s Of the general conditions prevailing in t h e city he
.

“
wrote that this coun cil is the scene of great foulness for ,

I hear i t s aid by the Swabian s as though it were a proverb ,

that a generation will no t suffice to purge Constance from

”1
the s i n s which i t has commi tted in t h e city His numerous .

enemie s were indefatigable in creating and encouraging an

u n favorable se n timent again s t him insisting that he b e ,

treated as a hereti c Michael de C au sis a s has b een said

.
, ,

wa s t here S o a lso wa s Peter P a l e cz and the Iron B ishop

.
,

1
D oc .
, p . 139.
1 76 JOHN HUS S
’
tainty of Hu ss s here sy Even if i t had been canonical it
.
,

was no t safe to allow him to b e free When he was arrested .

,

the arrest wa s accomplished under the garb of duplicity .

’
On Nov e mber 2 8 less than a month after Hu s s s entry
,

i n to Co n s tance the mayor of the ci ty Hans of B aden and

, , ,
’
the bi shop s o f Tre n t and Augsburg appeared at the widow s
lodgi n g s n ear the S ch n e t z t h or and announced that the pope
and cardi n al s were ready to give Hu ss a hearing a n d that
they were sent to conduct him to their pre s ence Jo h n of .

Chlum saw through the ruse and risi n g to his feet appealed
, , ,

to the ki n g s s afe co n duct and his announcement that it was

’
-

his will that nothing b e do n e to Huss until his arrival He .

’
charged the party with defying the king s honor Addressi n g .

“
the mayor C hl um s aid in German : If the devil came to have
,

”
his ca s e tried he ough t to have a fair and hones t hearing .

When the bishop of Trent remarked that they were there

in the in terest s of peace and to prevent di s turbance Hu s s ,

rose from the table and declared that he had no t come to

pre s ent his case before the pope and the curia bu t b efore ,

the whole council sitting in s e s sion Neverthele s s he was .

,

ready to go b efore the pope and the cardinal s In the mean .

time the soldiery had surrounded the house Giving hims elf .

up and as he was descending the stairway Huss met his

, ,

ho s tess She took leave of him with tears whi le he invoked

.

upon her the divine blessing Then mounted upon a little .

,

horse he was led through a vast and curious crowd to the

,
’
bi shop s palace The language used by the bishop of Tre n t
.

’
points to the unrest in Constance over Hu s s s unrestricted
freedom and it would seem not unreasonable that mob vio
,

lence was feared .

The arrest as a s serted by M l a d en owicz was at the direct

, ,

i n stigation of P a l e cz and M ichael de C a u sis The charge is .

made by R ichental that Huss had attemp ted to fl ee by

co n cealin g him s elf in a wagon loaded wi th hay R i chen tal .
,

as h a s b een said wrote twe n ty years after thi s alleged event

, ,
 B EFO R E THE C OUNCIL OF C ONSTAN CE 1 77

and his s tory is in flat contradiction to M l a d e n owicz s a c ’

coun t As told by him the s tory ran that the wagon was
.
,

discovered by L ace m b ok who called upon the mayor of the ,

city to have all the gates closed an d Hu s s seized Hu s s wa s .

at once delivered up to John XX III and imprisoned by him .

One feature of the tale unlikely upon it s face is that Lacem

, ,

bok a warm friend was respon sible for the detection and
, ,

seizure The date given M arch 3 1 4 1 5 is al s o impo s sible

.
, , , ,

b ein g three months after Huss was pu t in close confin ement ?

I t is possible that a vagu e rumor was afloat that in view of ,

the strong s entiment agains t him Huss had b een attempting ,

to make his escape and i t is also possible that Michael may

,
’
have made use of these rumors in urging Huss s arrest .

From this moment on Huss had no chance He was ,

.

—
treated as a cri mi nal his case wa s prejudged He was in .

’
the position of a g uilty man M uch as d A illy Z a b ar e ll a .
, ,

and o thers may have b een in favor of dealing with him fairly ,

the views accredi ted to him were obnoxious to the age One .

—
course and one only was open to Huss retraction His arre s t .

con firmed him in the fear that he would b e ob liged to retract

or su ffer de ath M l a d e n owicz reports him as having s aid to
.

the bishop of Trent when he was abou t to ob ey the s ummons

,
“
to leave his lodgin gs : I would choose death rather than
deny the truth as I have learned i t from the S crip tures and
” ’
o therwise From now on his position was s imilar to Lu ther s
.

position b efore Cardinal C aj e t an at Augsburg The cardinal .

called upon Luther to retract refusi n g to allow him to argue ,

.

Introduced i n to the presence of the pope and the cardi

n al s Hu s s was told that reports had come from many quarters
,

that he had sown many errors in B ohemia To this Huss .

replied that he would rather die than hold errors Of his .

free will he had come to the council a n d he was willing to

, ,

1
D oc .
, R i ch en t a l , 5 8
24 7 . P a l ac ky , Gesch , p 3 2 2
. .W yli e , pp 1 3 9
. . . s qq .

f
H e l e rt , a R om an C a th o li c writ e r , a l so r e j e c t s t h e t a l e P al a c ky s u gg e s t s
. th ta

f
R i c h e n t a l m a y h a v e! con u s e d H u s s with J e r o m e , wh o m a d e h is e sca p e fr o m
f
C on s t an ce a t e r h is fir s t a rr es t .
1 78 JOHN HUS S

be corrected if he was found to hold errors The cardinals .

pronounc ing the word s well s poken retired for consultation ,

.

While Hus s wa s waiti n g for their return a Franci s can who s e ,

name was afterward learn ed to b e D id a cu s entered the room ,

and drew Hu ss into a conversation M l a d e n owicz says he .

was suborned to entrap Huss Pretending to b e an ignorant .

a n d u n learned man seeking instruction he inquired whether ,

Hu s s beli eved that after the words of institution the material

bread remains Huss denied i t and when the monk expressed
.
,

surprise repeated h is denial a second and a third time

,
.

Here John of Chlum interfered and pronounced it an

unheard of insult to call upon a man to repeat his solemn
a ffirmation even to the third time The monk then protested .

that the knigh t must no t fin d faul t with him for he was a

simple and unlearned man and he went on to ask Huss ,

about the hypo s tatical union of the divi ni ty with humani ty

’
in Chris t s person Throwing off a remark in B ohe mi an
.

that his vi sitor was no t after all a simple and unlearned man ,

Huss accused the monk of duplicity and tried to S how i t from

the nature of his que s tions The Franci s can then withdr ew .

with an expression of thank s Huss was informed later by .

the attendant s of John XXIII that D id a cu s was reputed

to b e the most sub tle theologian of Lomb ardy On heari n g .

this he expressed his regre t that he had no t kn own it for he

, ,

would have plied him with the S crip tures and not have
answered as he did ?

When the cardinals reappeared at 4 P M P al e cz and . .

,

Michael and also John of R ein s tein M l a d e n owicz and others , ,

were present P a l e cz an d Michael gave their elation ven t

.

’
in act s and words and piqued John of R einstein on Hus s s
b eing trapped at las t an d be ing in the way of getting his
de s erts He would n ot get o ff until he had paid the utter
.

’
mos t farthing In the evening the pope s Chamb erlain
.
,

1
T hi s i n c i d e n t is on e of th ose p o rti ons cu t ou t of P a l a c ky
’
s H istor y f
o

B ohe mia b y t h e c e n so r in t h e e d i ti on o f 1 8 4 5 .
1 86 JOHN H Uss

a court planted wi th flowers its arche s overgrown with vines

, ,

the s tructure look s out upon the beau tiful lake of Co n s tance .

The wall s of the inner court are pai n ted with fresco s
illu s trati n g hi s torical s cene s in the hi s tory of Con s tance a n d
—
the conve n t it s elf from 6 0 0 to 1 888 the date when the
Emperor William II met with Adolph of Nas s au a n d e ffected
a reconciliation with the two hou s e s they represented s epa ,

rated in 1 8 6 6 One of the smaller picture s repre s ent s Hu ss

.

chai n ed The tower in which he was co n fi n ed s till remain s

. .

A few s tep s away is the R hine re s uming its course to the north .

The pre s e n t cheerful surrou n di n g s brigh t flower s s hady , ,

walk s the group s of duck s and other fowl in the canal s t h e

, ,

s ou n d s of daily mu s ic in the park

— the s e are in strong c on
’
tra s t to Hu ss s grim impri s onment and the har s h method s
of the in q uisition enacted within it s walls fiv e hundred years
ago .

The un s a n i tary condition of the D ominican prison wrought ,

’
in co n junction with the pri s o n er s undone nervous state ,

to bri n g Hu ss to the very verge of death Fever set in and .

,

so de sperate wa s his plight that the pope sent h is own

’
phy s ician to admin i s ter clysters At the pope s order Hus s
.
, ,

Ja n uary 8 1 4 1 5 wa s tran s ferred to another and le s s u n

, ,

whole s ome apar t ment B y January 1 9 he was suffi cie n tly

.
,

recovered to b e writi n g again to h is friends The purpose .

was to shu t him out from the world and by the rigor o f ,

prison di s cipli n e to bri n g him t o repentance Among the .

book s which he had wit h him wa s a copy of h is C ommen tary

’
on P eter the L om b a r d s S en ten ces The s e and even his Vul
.

gate B ible were taken from him He made moving appeal s .

for books and his ca s e easily s uggests John Tyn dale in his
,

pri s o n at Vilvorde begging the ki n g of E n gland to s end him a

Hebrew grammar and B ible to while away the lonesome hour s .

I n February John of Chlum was able to get a B ible into

,

the dungeon Hu ss won the sympathy of h is jailer R obert

.
, ,

and the clerks of the papal household treated him with

 B EFO R E THE C OUNCIL OF C ONSTANCE
'

1 81

’
kind n ess Through R obert s mediation he was kep t in com
.

m u n ica tion with his friends in Con s ta n ce At h is request .

and the instance of h is other guard s Huss wrote short trea ,

’
ti s es on the Lord s Prayer the ten commandment s marriage , , ,
’
and the Lord s Supper ?

A prisoner could hardly have had more tru e and faithful

friends than Huss had in John of Chlum and M l a d en owicz .

To their s ympathy they added the most strenuous e ffort s to

secure for him release and a fair hearing Chlum he called .

the dearest of friends the noble and graciou s lord and guard ,

ian of the faith This nobleman posted an announcement

.

on the cathedral door D ecemb er 1 5 and 2 4 written in , ,

i
’
German and Latin appeal ng to the ki g s passport
n
?
,
On
hearing of the arrest Sigi s mund is said to have broken ou t ,
’
in a rage swearing he would break down the doors of Huss s
,

prison if he were no t released b efore his arrival in Cons tance .

’
His peremptory order for Huss s release wa s disregarded .

’
Hus s s letters written during his captivity of eight months
are among the most aff ecting epistolary collections in existence
and have a character of their own Fifty in numb er they were .
,

s muggled out of the prison through his jailer R obert and , ,

o ther guards They b egin with January 1 9 1 4 1 5 and end

.
, ,

with letters wri tten to John of Chlum Wenzel of D uba and , ,

friends in B ohemi a June 2 9 1 4 1 5 a week before his death

, , ,
.

Workman who has given an excellent translation of them

, ,
“
says : They will appeal to every reader by their tenderness
” 3 ’
and true piety They give us an i n s ight into the writer s
.

i n n ermos t feelings h is a ff ection for his friends his deep in

, ,

f erest in the progress of his case and the events o ccurring at ,

Constance They are full of little detail s b earing upon h is

.

health his need s h is dreams the news from Jerome the

, , , ,

marriage of Wenzel of D uba Now he asks John of Chlum .

1
D oc 8 7 , 9 9 , 2 54
.
,
I t s e e m s c e rt a i n th a t H u ss h a d with h im a copy of h is
.

o wn C om on P eter th e Lomb a r d : F l aj sh a n s , M is tr J a n H u s , p 3 6 0
. . .

2
M on , 1 9 5 E n g tr a n s l of t h e pl a ca r d , G ill e tt , 1 3 9 5 s q
—
. . . . .

3
W or k m an , L etter s , p 1 7 2 T h e L a ti n an d C z e c h t ex t s , D oc , 8 3 1 50
. . . .
1 82 JOHN HUS S

to send him another shirt now he announces that his wr iti n g

,

material is ge tti n g low or has run ou t One of his com m un ica .

tio n s to Joh n of Chlum was written on a ragged three cornered -

piece of paper .

Huss spe n t whole nights scribbling do wn his thoughts in

prose and rhyme and answering the charges of P al e cz and
his examiners ?
He could not sleep or at b est his sleep was ,

broken by dreams One night in M arch he dreamed about

.

B ethlehem chapel and ima gined that all the pictures of

Chri s t that hung on its walls were in danger of being de
s troyed Then he fancied seei n g in their places other and
.

more beautiful pict u res p ain ted by m any painters upon whi ch
, ,
“
he looked wi th delight He heard the people cry out : Let
.

the bishops a n d priests come and destroy these pictures if

”
they will Then there was great rejoicing at B ethlehem
. .

On waking he found himself laughing The interpretation

,
.

that John of Chlum put upon the dream was that the Huss
ite preachers had painted the more beautiful pictures and
that Huss the Goose who was even then laid on the altar
, , ,

would rej oice in heaven as he looked do wn and saw the pictures

painted by the old priests destroyed and replaced by o thers .

B ut above all in his letters we are let into the realm

, ,
’
of Huss s religious feelings D uring his imprisonment as .
,

he takes o ccasion to inform us he came to appreciate for the ,

first time the spiritual comforts hidden in the Psalms t hat ,

book which has b een the chief liturgy of devout so u ls in

hours of penitence and praise in the midst of cares and dis ,

appointments in times of the felt need of aid and consolation

,
.

There as he said he walked with the Go od Shepherd who

, , ,

re s toreth the soul and supplieth all the wants of his people .

The o fficial exa mina tion was conducted through commis

s ion e r s appointed by the council and at the last in the pres , , ,

e n ce of the council a s a whole in the Franci s can refectory .

Hu ss appeared once in the cathedral and once o nl y th e morn ,

1
D oc .
,
89 . 9 1 , 9 6 , 2 55.
1 84 JOHN HUS S

mi ssion with the XLV Articles of Wyclif and forty two articles -

taken from his own Tr ea tise on the Chu rch and o ther writi n gs .

To the s e he was given O pportu n ity to make reply On the .

on e hand he entered a pro test that many of the charge s were

,

fl at mi s repre s en tations an d that others containing extract s

from h is works al s o mi s represe n ted h is view s by taking his
words out of their connection S ome of the charges he pro
.

n ou n ce d to be pure inve n tions of P al e cz and others On .

the other hand he rea ffi rmed others as right as for example

, , , ,

that no one stained with mortal sin belong s to the true church ,

t hat the predestinate have a radical grace from which i t is

not possible for them to fall and that princes have authority
,

to s eque s trate church possessions and expel unworthy pries t s .

In regard to the la s t tenet he b ade John of Chlum to tell

,

Sigismund that if it were condemned as heresy the king

him s elf would b e open to condemn ation as a heretic for
havi n g deprived bishops of their temporal goods as his ,
’
father Charle s IV had done before him The commi ssion s
, ,
.

recommendatio n that his case b e set before a jury of twelve

doctor s Huss rej ected
,
Later on J e s e n icz took the ground
.

that Huss had committed a techn ical error in making any

reply what s oever as a prisoner .

In addition to these charges the formal articles sent by ,

Gerson of whi ch mention has already been made were

, ,

brought in evidence agains t him He promised to reply to .

them if he lived
,
These divers accu s ations were renewed
.

again and again during the progress of the trial with small
modi fi cation .

Many al s o were the in s inuations with whi ch Huss was

vexed For example a bishop accused him of S etting up a
.
,

new law a s well as having preached all the XLV and the
forty two article s Writing to John of Chlum he expressed
-
.
,

t h e opi n io n that the commi s sio n had not much against him
exc e p t that he had preached agai n st t h e cru s ading bulls ,

admi n i s tered the sacrament s while under excommunication ,

 B EFO R E THE COUN CIL OF CONSTANCE 1 85

and had appealed from the pope ? These three charges were
made again st him in committee and extracts from h is ,

treati s e against i n dulgence s and his appeal from the pope s ’

decision were read in his presence H is last letter written .

to his B ohemian frie n d s before leaving Prague was al s o

adduced in evide n ce again s t him Especially damaging were .

the refere n ce s he had made to many and great enemies which

he a flir m e d were awaiting him at Constance the declara ,

tion that the most rele n tless of his enemies were person s of
his own household and that it was not on account of a n y
,

heresy he was going to Constance for he held none A g ,

.

gr av a tin g also were the statements that he was ready to

di e if by his death he might glorify God and that nothing ,

but the help of God could pro tect him against such a sentence .

I n the meantime an event of prime importance in the

,

—
hi s tory of the council had o ccurred the arrival of Sigis
mund This prince had b een crowned in Aachen November
.
,

8 1 4 1 4 and s tarted southward four days later

, ,
On Christ .

mas Eve or rather after midn igh t early Chri s tmas morning
, ,

Sigismu n d made h is entry into Constan ce accompanied by ,

the queen B arb ara and her father the Count of Ci l ley
, ,
.

The cold was intense After changing their garments and

.

warming themselves for an hour they pro ceeded through ,

the wintry streets b etween avenues of torches and u nder

tapestries of gold held by the b urgesses to the cathedral for
the matin servi ces which b egan at cockcrowing The pop e .

in full p on t ifical s received them Clad as a deacon and with

.

the crown on his head the king intoned the servi ce and read
,

the S criptur es ab out the taxing of the world by C aesar Augus

tus and the birth in the manger Mass followed mass no .
,

less than nine or some reports say eleven hours being spent
, ,

in the solemn ser v ices in the cold spaces of the great edifice .

At their close Jo h n conferred on the king a sword with an

,

admonition to protect the church .

1
D oc
.
, 89 , 9 2 .
1 86 JOHN H Uss

B oth on the par t of the council and of Huss and his friends
much wa s expected from Sigismund who was compared to ,

D aniel who had rescued Susa n na and as if he were another , ,

Charlemagne to K i n g D avid B ut he also chi ef prince

,
.
,

though he was of Chri s tendom showed himself unable to ,

resist the hierarchy as John had been unable to resi s t the

’ ’
cardi n al s at the time of Huss s arrest Prior to the king s .

arrival the co u ncillor s had spent much time over the question
, ,
’
whether the king s passport to a suspect of heresy was valid ,

exemp ting him from trial and arrest Their co n clusion was .

in the negative A suspect was to b e dealt wi th according

.

to the law s of the church just as if no such civil passpor t had

,

b een given At fir st Sigi s mund di sputed t hi s position and

.
,

on several occasions wi thdrew from the meetings of the

council in anger He even threatened to ab andon Constance
.

altogether if the council insisted upon i ts interpretation .

Finally when he saw that the council was in danger of break

,
’
ing up the king yielded For such an issue as the council s
,
.

dissolution Sigismun d was no t willing to b e responsible It .

was decided that the trial should at once pro ceed without
further impe di ment on the part of the monarch ?
Without
doub t the principle was fully discussed which the council
,
’
solemnly pronounced after Huss s death namely that word , ,

was no t to b e kep t wi th a heretic .

Though the trial was to proceed strictly accor ding to the

laws of the church Sigismun d continued to b e looked to as
,
’
in a greater or less degree responsible for Huss s protection .

His word had been given and his passport seems to have
been appealed to as if i t meant that Huss was to b e immun e
from all violence until he go t b ack to B ohemia In this .

sense was i t un ders tood by the nobles of B ohe mi a and Moravia

who supported Hu s s Early in 1 4 1 5 Moravian baro n s
.

’
addressed to the king a protes t agains t Huss s arrest and
D e in qu is ition e H a ss it p er Ca sar em plia s imp ed iend a H a rd t , 4
1
n on a m , 32 .

P al a c ky , Gesek , p 3 2 9
. . .
1 88 JOHN HUS S

he would b e able to hear an d understand what Huss had to

say Thi s wa s h is la s t li n geri n g hope and thi s was granted ;
.

but in the s overeig n the pri s oner found a poor protector .

He al s o begged John of Chlum to i n tercede wi th the kin g

that he might be relea s ed from pri s on and have opportu n ity
freely to take coun s el with h is friend s He hoped on that .

he might be allowed to preach before the council With .

thi s in v iew he had prepared three sermons before leaving

,

Prague ; bu t day after day a n d week after week pa ss ed and ,

no citatio n came to appear before it He had been told he .

could not get a heari n g excep t by the payment of two thou

s and ducats ? It was a common charge as has b een intimated , ,

that Hu ss was provided with an abunda n ce of money In .

on e of the examinations held in the D omi n ican conve n t an ,

archbishop remarked that he had seventy thousand flor in s ,

and Michael de C au sis insolently put the question to him ,

how much the b arons in B ohemia held in keepi n g for him ?

’
Huss s expenses were accordi n g to his own statemen t high , ,
.

At least a part of the money with which he met h is expen s e s

were loans from poor as well as rich money it was one of his ,

dying concerns to have refunded ?

In March Hu ss was again low racked wi th the s tone

, ,

a new experience
— and with fever and vomiti n g The lie s .

circulated against him were many He speaks of a bag of .

lie s let loose to hurt him and his cause He was disturbed .

at the relentless hostility of P al e cz an d Michael and the ,

co n stant watch had over him by spie s employed by Michael .

P a l e cz whom Huss now called the ri n gleader amo n g h is

,

— —
enemies omn iu m d u ctor wen t to the extent of propo s ing
~

’
that all Hu ss s B ohemian adherents b e cited b efore the com
mi ion and forced to abjure h s alleged error s
ss i 3
Conversa .

tio n s pa ss ed between the old friends and colleagues behind

the pri s on wall s .

1
D oc .
,
—
88 9 1 . The thr e e se r m on s M on
, .
,
—
55 7 1 .

2
Doc . 2
, 9 , 99 , 101 ,
121 .
3
D oc .
,
88 , 9 0 .
 B EFO R E THE COUN CIL OF C ONSTAN CE 1 89

Af ter all Huss was an unpro tected heretic and here s y

, ,

wa s the crime of crimes the o ff ense above all o thers in this

,

world to b e abhorred The only refuge left was God and

.
,

to him Huss turned with all the tender piety of which he

’
wa s capable . As God had delivered Jo n ah from the whale s
’
b elly and D aniel from the lions den and the three young ,

men from the burning fi ery furnace and Su s anna from her
false accusers so he wrote He was able to deliver him pro
, , ,

v id e d su ch deliverance would b e for H is glory I n His mercy .

,

He could relea s e the Goose though locked up in vilest pri s on ?

With litanies and prayers he helped to fil l out sleepless nights
and in suf fering he kept the passion of the Lord constantly
,

before his eyes He looked forward with regret that he would

.

no t have the privilege of taking the communion at Easter .

He called upon hi s friend s in B ohemia to partake of it worthily .

Consolation was a ff orded him by a vi sit paid him by Pra

c h a ticz in M arch In the presence of this true friend and
.

special b enefactor as he called him he broke down in te ars

, ,
.

At the instance of Michael de C au sis P r a ch a ticz wa s after ,

ward seized but again released upon sig ning a profession

,
’
of faith and by Sigismund s interference .

’
In Huss s opinion i t was no t safe for a B ohemian to venture
near the council and he warned his friend s especially J e s e ni cz
, ,

and Jerome of Prague under no circumstance s to venture

,

to come to Constance O n the 4 t h of April Jerome actually

.
,

dared to enter the ci ty and a ffix ed a no tice on the city gates

,
’
a ffir rnin g Huss s orthodoxy Again in a few days he r e .
, ,

tur n ed and in an ann ouncement written in three lan guages

, ,

posted upon the doors of the cathedral and the K au ffh au s ,

he called upon the king to give hi m a letter of safe conduct -

that he might appear b efore the council with safety and

defend Huss He then retired On the 1 7 th of April the
. .

council promised to protect him again s t violence but doub t , ,

ing i ts word Jerome attempted to flee to B ohemia R ecog

,
.

1
D oc .
, 9 6 , 99 .
 JOHN H Uss

n iz e d
and seized he was sent to Constance He did not see
,
.

Hu ss On heari n g of h is imprisonment Huss expressed the

.
,

O pinion that Jerome would s u f fer death as well a s himself.

Jerome was at once taken to the Franciscan convent and after

,

an examination in s tituted by the council was transferred to a

,

’
dungeo n in the cemetery of S t Paul s chained hand and foo t
.
, .

A sickness followed from which he recovered .

1 92 JOHN HUS S

v iolated nun s and other virgin s and was guilty of sodomy , .

I t was also charged that he had called the future life in que s
tion .

Gradually the opinion gained ground that in order to bring ,

about the reu n io n of the church it was not only necessary ,

to s e t aside Gregory XII and B e n edict but also to get rid ,

of Joh n who s e sign ature had convened the council A tract

,
.
,

writte n by an Italian a n d freely circulated in Cons tance ,

teemed with charge s making John out a mon s ter Sigi s mund ,
.

could no t re s ist the s torm and to avoid a worse fate John , ,

agreed to re s ign The formal announcement of his deci sion

.

wa s made on M arch 2 1 4 1 5 the condition being that both , ,

his pretended rival s of the R oman and Avignon lines b e

gotte n out of the way His proposal was made to give peace .

to the church ?
D uring the announcement John remai n ed ,

in a kneeling posture at the altar apparently in deep de ,

v o t ion and Sigi s mund overjoyed at the rare s pectacle of

, ,

self renunciation removed h is crown and bent low kis sing

-

, ,
’
the pope s feet Five day s later John co n firmed h is an
.
,
“
n ou n c e m e n t in a bull which ran : I John Pope XXIII for , , ,

the peace of Chri s tendom profe s s pron ounce agree swear , , , ,

and vow to God and the church and to the sacred council ,

of my o wn will and freely to re sign for the purpose of giving

’
peace to Christ s church by the way of my unconditional
ce ss ion when and provided Peter de Luna styled B ene ,

dict XIII and Angelo Correr styled Gregory XII and their
, , ,

obedience s either in person or by their representatives r e

, ,
”
nou n ce the papal o ffice to which they falsely lay claim .

Twice before in the his tory of the church had popes ab

d ic a t e d once at the s ynod of Sutri 1 0 4 6 and again in 1 2 94
, , , ,

when C oel e s t in V the hermi t of M u r r h on e after a reign of le s s

, ,

than six months laid down his o ffi ce giving as the reas ons h is
, ,

1
S e e S c h af f ,Ch u r ch H ist , with t h e a u th o riti e s v o l V 1 1 5 4 R i c h en t a l
.
,
.
, .

is p rti cu l rly
a a fu ll in t h e d e t a ils of t h e h a pp e n i n g s in C on s t an ce a t t h e ti m e
o f J o h n s fl i g ht
’
.
 B EFO R E THE COUNCIL OF C ONSTANCE 1 93

’
own bodily weakness and the wickedness of men John s self .

h u rn il ia t ion though he had only made conditio n al an n oun ce

,

ment of his re s ignation was in s tro n g contrast to h is s tately

,

entry i n to the city le ss than s ix months before The city of .

Con s tan ce went wild in rejoici n g over the papal announce

’
men t and the great churchmen d A il l y and Gerson as well
, , ,

as vigorou s pamphleteers lik e Nieheim were exultant over ,

the approaching frui tion of victory in the reu n i fi cation of

Chri s tendom under a single ponti ff John however was a .
, ,

character who s e bond was not to b e relied upon for it s face

value . R umors went from mouth to mou th that he intended
to break up the council and if necessary leave Constance in
, ,

order to accomplish that result He complai n ed to Sigismu n d

.

that the air of the city did not agree with him The ki n g asked .

him no t to leave secretly and John gave h is promi s e not to

,

leave until the council was dissolved B u t Sigismund was .

not fully satis fied and to b e on the safe side ordered the
, ,

gates carefully g uarded and the lake watched S o little .

’
trust was pu t in the ponti f f s oath that Hallum of S ali sbury
is said to have asserted that he de s erved to b e burned .

Taking advantage of the fes tivitie s connected with a tour

n am e n t ,
which drew the throng the wily pope s e t at naugh t
,

the police regulations and escaped in disguise to S cha ffhausen ,

w h ich belonged to Ferdinand duke of Austria John had

,
.

taken the duke into his service by appointing him go n falonier

of the church with a salary at the rate of six thousand
ducats a year whi le engaged in this s ervi ce Well out of .

Con s tance John wrote b ack that h is freedom of action had

,

bee n restricted by the king and complained that the practice

of voti n g by nations which the council had decided upon
, ,

was u n fair As an example he gave E n gland which with a

.
, , ,

few prelates had the same vote as Italy a n d France with

, ,

several hundred prelates In the council of Nice and other

.

early councils the voting was done by the bi shops The .

council of Constance took a radical departure when i t de

I 94 JOHN HUSS

t e r m in e dthat the vo te should b e by nations There were .

four n atio n s the English German I talian and the French

, , , , ,

to which the Spani s h w as later added The repre s e n tatives .

of the s e natio n s met in s eparate ass emblie s and di s cu ss ed

the q ue s tion s before the council and then recorded their ,

vote for u s e in the cathedral .

’
When the news of the pope s fligh t became known a ,

pa n ic s wept through Con s tance Huck s ter s packed up their .

good s or bolted their booths I t was like the breaking up .

of a fair O n ly the prompt action of Sigismund prevented

.

the member s of the cou n cil from hurriedly breaki n g away

The ki n g rode through the streets accompani ed by Lewis ,

of B avaria s eeki n g to allay the excitement and with his

,

own voice pledgi n g s ecurity and order .

’
The noi s e raised by John s flight the prison walls of the ,
’
B lackfriar s could n o t deaden Hu s s s letter s refer to the tre .

m e n d ou s excitement and the co n fu s ion in whi ch the council

was involved the low stock of provisions in Cons tance
, ,

a n d to the wi thdrawal of the ten flor in s s e t apart by John

for h is own weekly s upport I have nothi n g to eat . he ,

“ ’
wrote and I do n t k n ow what is going to happen to me
,

” ’
in prison All h is guards who were John s creatures were
.
, ,

fl eeing Hu s s was even afraid that the master of the papal

.

hou s ehold might carry him off by night .

Their ma s ter fled the jailer s turned the pri s on keys over
,

to the king Following the advice of memb ers of the c oim cil
.
,

he commi tted the pri s oner to the charge of the bishop of

Co n s ta n ce To M l a d e n owicz i t seemed that thi s was a fi tting
.

opportunity for Sigi s mund to have s hown ho n orable re spect

to his s afe conduct a n d given Hus s freedom
-

On the night .

of March 2 4 the bi s hop of Co n s tance co n veyed him bound

, ,

in chain s a n d protected by a strong body guard by boat to -

h is ca s tle Go ttlieben on the Rh ine outside the wall s of the

, ,

city Thi s charmi n gly s ituated castle now owned by B aron

.
,

F ab r ice is less than two miles from the cathedral of Con

,
1 96 JOHN HUS S

r e duced in pri s on that he was in danger of lo s ing his reason .

A n d thi s had occurred while o ther per s o n s accused of here sy ,

at Pi s a were allowed their pers onal liberty The kingdom of

,
.

B ohemia was su ff ering under the u n j u s t a spersion of here s y .

The document pe titio n ed that Huss be at once s e t at liberty .

H is health made delay da n gerou s I t then went on to den y .

the charge that the cup was bei n g freely di s tributed in B 0

bemia In the di s cussion which followed the bi shop of Leito
.
,

m y sl made an addre ss denying the accuracy of the state

ments Very many towns and cities in B ohemia he said
.
, ,

were infected with W y cl ifis m The attempt s to root i t out .

had been in vain W ycl ifism was rank here s y The Wy

. .

c l ifi s t s held that the use of the cup by the laity was essential

to s alvation A woman of Prague of the Wy cl ifis t sect so

.
1
,

he alleged had ruthlessly taken the host from the hands of a

,

priest and eaten it and even B ohemian s hoemaker s were

,

dari n g to distribute the bread and wi n e and to turn con

f e ss or s These s e c t ar is t s pronounced priests guilty of sacrilege
.

who refused to di s tribute the wine A s he had done before .

,

s o again the bishop begged the Fathers to put down the ex

ce s ses in B ohemia .

Two days later M ay 1 6 the bishop of Carcassonne

, ,

made a reply to the petition of the noble s the entire German ,

nation as well as delegates from the other three nations a n d

, ,

also a number of the signers of the petition being present .

The bi shop declared that the B ohemian and Polish nobles

were in error whe n they said that Hu s s had come to Con s tance
under the imperial protection The sa lvu s con du ctu s had .

’
not been given until fi fteen days after Hu s s s arrival As .

for the second point that Hu s s had b een arrested and im,

pri s o n ed without a hearing the fact was that he had been ,

cited to R ome an d had neglected to appear and that in view ,

of his prolonged excommunication he was no longer a S imple ,

1
D oc , 2 5 9
. . T hi s wom a n se e m s to h av e pr e ach e d in t h e c h u rc h in 1 41 6 .

P al a cky , Gesch .
, t p
no e, .
3 34 .
 B EFO R E THE COUN CIL OF C ONSTAN CE 1 97

heretic but a heresiarch the inventor and sower of new ,

errors Moreover as for his having publicly preached in

.
,

Constance thi s wa s a fact as his opponent s declared a fact

, , ,
’
which John of C h l u m s pledged word had not proved untrue .

I n making their reply the noble s declared the suggestion ,

’
that the passport had no t been promised before Huss s arrival
in Co n stan ce gave the lie to the imperial chancery On the .

day of h is arrest in answer to a q ue s tion pu t by John XXIII

, ,

he had stated that as they all knew he had s u ch a p assport

, ,

from the king and on the succeeding days it wa s s hown to

,

many lord s bi s hops and other per s ons in Constance The

, ,
.

nobles continued that Huss had been ready to go to R ome

and had sent procurators to the holy city and that as for the ,

excommunication he had appealed from it to Christ and the

,

council and had come to Con s tance for the very purpose of
,

making a publi c S howing of his faith To this John of Chlum .

added that as for the charge that Huss had publicly preached
,

in Constance no t only had he no t preached but he had not

, ,

even set his foot across the threshold of the house where he
lodged from the time he entered it to the day he was arrested .

In reference to the W yclifi t e practices prevalent in B ohemia ,

as charged by the bi s hop of L e it om ysl the B ohemians and ,

Poles flatly denied the charge I t was a question they said .

, ,

of observation and of veracity as b etween them and the Iron

B ishop In this meeting the deposition of the bishop of
.

— -
—
Nazareth B ishop sup wi th the devil attesting Huss s or
- - -
’

t h o d ox y was read .

A petition signed at B runn by nine high Moravian noble

men and o ther noblemen dated M ay 8 1 4 1 5 was read M ay , , ,

in the council I t was addressed to Sigismu n d and in

3 1 .

t e r c e d e d that Huss might not b e left in a corner but have

a n open hearing called Hus s a good m an and a faithful and
,

hone s t preacher and minister of the Holy S criptures The .

noble s remi n ded the ki n g of h is wri tten public promi s e which

“
he had given to Hu s s although there wa s no need of a
,
1 98 JOHN HUS S

pa ssport for a good and pious man In de fiance of the law .

,

right a n d thi s public promi s e Huss had bee n thrown into ,

a clo s e pri s on Now they heard he had been taken into

.
, ,

custody by the bishop of Co n s tance a n d s ub j ected to even

more rigorou s impri s onment a n d that the bi s hop had cruelly ,

a n d wro n gfully put him in chai n s In beggi n g for his relea s e .

,

“
they pledged their word a word they would not break for ,

”
a n ythi n g in the world that Huss would remain in Constance
,

u n til he had a public heari n g .

To thi s s econd appeal the patriarch of Antioch in the name

’
of the council gave reply that if the assertion of Huss s in ,

nocence were found to b e well made and the excerpts from

h is book extracted by doctors misrepresented him these ,

things would appear in a public hearing which he thereupo n ,

set for June 5 A s for the word of the noble s he declared

.
,

that no t the word of a thousand men should be taken as a

surety for a man who wa s in nowi s e to be believed Certainly .

s uch a flagrant heretic wa s n o t to b e placed in the hand s of

any pers on s givi n g a guarantee whoever they might be ? ,

The most weighty of the s e appeal s dated M ay 1 2 was , ,

s igned by two hundred and fi fty B ohemian and Moravian

nobles and read in the council June 1 2 It was likewi s e ,

.

’
addre s sed to Sigi s mund The signers called the king s atte n
.

tion to the promise which John had given the year before ,

that all even heretic s going to Constance should have safety

, ,

there and b ack Hu s s they pronounced the mo s t hone s t of

.

men and a faithful preacher of the divine Word He had .

gone to Con s tance to rid B ohemia of the ill fame of here s y .

Witne ss e s more in number than h is enemies and more trust

,

worthy than they had bor n e te s timony that he had never

,

preached anything u n s ound or heretical but on the contrary , , ,

only the truth and the divine law as set forth in the s acred
S criptures and explained by the holy Fathers In spite of .

’
law and the ki n g s public promi s e Hu ss had been cast into ,

1
M l ad e n owicz D oc ,
.
,
271 . The B ru nn a pp e a l ,
Doc .
, 54 7 sq .
26 6 JOHN HUS S

This fate Huss feared for himself and i t is quite possible ,

that he owed h is deliverance to the s e appeals by B ohemia

a n d Mora vi a The prote s t of the s igners so many in number
.
,

and of s uch high s ta n ding it would have been audacity

,

i n deed in the council to have ignored .

The di s tribution of the cup to the laity in the city of

Prague to which reference is made in one of these appeals
, ,
’
was re n dering if possible Hu ss s case more d ifli cu l t of sati s
, ,

factory expla n ation Thi s practice introduced a new element

.

of divi s ion Huss had received news of it in prison To us

. .
,

extraordi n ary a s it may seem the with hol din g of the cup
,

from layme n had become a general custom in the West .

The origi n al reason for it may have been either an e ff ort to

empha size the di s tinction of the priesthood and the laity
or to prevent profa n ation of the sacred blood by it s being
s pilled or eructated by the receiver The custom was ju s tified
.

by the shrewdest S op hi s try O f which the medi aeval theologians

were capable from Alexander of Hales d 1 2 4 5 do wn Once
, ,
.
,
.

fix ed by eccle sia s tical con sideration s the attempt was made ,

to j ustify it by S crip tural authority The b est that could .

be done from this s tandpoint wa s done by Thomas Aquinas ,

who recalled that Christ di s tributed bread to the fiv e thou s and

but n o t drink However if the reference were to b e taken
.
,

too seriou s ly i t might have b een argued that fi sh woul d have

,

been a proper if not a neces s ary sub stitute for the wine
, ,
.

B ut the practice was b ased upon other grounds An s elm .

,

a century or two before Aquinas h ad in si s ted that the whole

,

Chri s t wa s in the transmuted wine an d the whole Chri s t

in the transubstantiated bread ; but Anselm did not re s ort
to speculatio n to ju s tify the withdrawal of the cup O ther .

wi s e Alexander Hales who insisted that i t should b e withheld

,

for the purpo s e of teachin g the laity the doctri n e that the
whole Chri s t is in each of the element s that laymen might ,

k n ow that in partakin g of the bread alo n e they are partaki n g

’
of Chri s t s full body It remai n ed for the cou n cil of Constance
.
 B EFO R E THE C OUN CIL OF C ONSTAN CE 20 1

to threaten wi t h excommunication all who distributed the

wine to the laity The e nl ighte n ed churchman Gerson who
.
, ,

voted for this enactme n t referred to Acts 46 as , ,

showing that the breaki n g of bread was alone practised

soon after the incep t ion of the church and urged the da n ger ,

of profanation to th e wine by spilling it or by its coming

in contact with the b eards of laymen There was likewise .
,

b e argued the danger of its being frozen or turning to vi n egar

, ,

and also the danger if both elements were admin i s tered

, ,

of seeming to S how that at the communion pries t and layman

are on an equality Moreover Chri s t had commanded onl y
.
,

the Apostles to partake of both element s The last con .

“ ”
sideration was b ased upon the words : D rink ye all of it .

However we may we l l reply the words of institution in the

, ,

case of the bread migh t wi th equal plau s ibili ty b e applied

to the Apostles alone and their successor s the priest s and , ,

in thi s way the layman be deprived of both of the elements

’
in the Lord s Supper ?

J acob e ll u s of Mies the most prominent theological master

,

left in Prague b egan to practise the double communion soon

,

after the migration of the doctors to the council and seems

’
to have had the support of many of Huss s followers The .

S criptur es b eing taken as authori ty many church rites and ,

cu s toms consecrated by the usage of year s are found to b e of

human authority and vanish away in it s plain light as of no
nece ss ary ob ligation Thi s was the case with the inn ovator s
.

in Prague as al s o wi th Huss and Wyc l if In s everal of the .

Pragu e churches b oth elements were dis tributed The arch .

’
bi s hop s excommuni cation pronounced upon J acob e ll u s seems
to have made li ttle impression .

’
When the news of the inn ovation fir st came to Huss s
ears he was inclined to resent the change b ut he speedily ,

1
S c h wab , J Ger son ,
. pp . 60 4 sq q . F or s tr an g e t
c u s om s in c on n e c ti on w i th
the d i s tri b u ti on of t h e cup , s ee S c h aff , C h H is t . .
, v ol . V , 1 7 26 sq . V ,
2

2 1 1 sq .
202 JOHN HUSS

a ss umed a di ffere n t attitude and wrote a tract in i ts favor .

H is ob j ect in s o doing wa s to unite h is followers and h is a t

t it u d e had the de s ired re s ult He lea n ed upon the plai n
.

teachi n g of S cripture maki n g the use of t h e cup as es s e n tial

,

as the use of the bread ZE n e as Sylvius j oi n ed in spreadin g

.

the charge against J a cob e l lu s that he made the partaki n g

of the wine n ece ss ary to s alvation The use of the cup by .

the laity became the battle grou n d between Hu s siti s m and

-

’
the Catholic authorities after Huss s death The R oman .

practice forbiddi n g it called forth the protests of Luther

and the other R eformers If there were any memb er s of the
.

’
council who had doub t about Hu ss s here s y the innovation ,

co n firmed them in the convictio n that he wa s a dangerous

character a corrup t b ranch to be cut off lest i t infect the vine
,

of the church .

The cou n cil s decree formally condemning Wyclif and h is

’

teachings al s o definitely placed that tribu n al in clo s er array

agai n s t the prisoner On M ay 4 two hundred a n d s ixty error s
.
, ,

a s cribed to the E n gli s h divi n e were pro s crib ed and h is bones

, ,

ordered exhumed from their resti n g — place provided they could ,

be distingui shed from the bone s of the faithful sleepers a n d ,

ordered ca s t at a di s ta n ce from the place of eccle sia s tical

sepulture The decree was not carried out u n til 1 4 2 9 when
.
,
“
M arti n V i s sued a special brief en j oining its execution The .

” “
holy syn od s o ran the decree declare s the s aid John Wyclif
, ,

to have been a n otoriou s heretic excommu n icate s him and , ,

condemn s his memory as of one who died an obsti n ate

”
heretic .

While Hus s was still at Gottlieben John XXIII was ,

checked in h is fl ight arrested and brought b ack to Consta n ce

,

a n d placed as a prisoner in the same ca s tle Whether dur .

,
’
in g his two days con finement in Gottlieben the two men
“

sa w one a n other acro ss the courtyard is not k n own As .

s tra n gely di sparate were the e n d s of thi s pope a n d Hu ss as

were their careers The on e guilty a s the council charged

.
, ,
20 4 JOHN HUS S

the journey to Constance in which he spoke of goi n g to meet

,

i n v eterate foe s and the po ss ibility of h is death I t was evi .

’
de n t that the cou n cil s purpo s e was to sentence Hu ss forth
with without giving him a cha n ce to defend him s elf On e
,
.

who was li s teni n g a n d had seen the tex t of the s ente n ce in

formed Peter M l a d e n owicz of thi s purpose ? R unning to
John of Chlum a n d Wenzel of D ub a M l a d e n owicz apprised ,

them of what was about to b e done They in turn ha s tened .

to the ki n g to inform him a n d handed him autographic copie s

of Hu s s s Tr ea tis e on the C hu r ch and h is tracts against P al e cz
’

a n d Stani slau s of Z n aim .

Without delay the king despatched Lewis count palati n e , ,

a n d Frederick burgrave of N iir n b e r g to inform the council

, ,

that it was the royal will that no condemnation b e pro

n ou n ce d until the king fi r s t had notice of it and that Huss ,

s hould b e give n a patie n t heari n g Th e mes s engers then.

handed the Tr ea tise on the Chu r ch and tho s e against P al e cz

and Znaim to the council with the under s tanding that they
,

should b e returned without erasures or the introduction of

new material B eing a sked whether the three writings were
.

h is Hu ss declared they were and that if a n ythi n g Wa s taught

,

in them which was erroneous or evil he was ready humbly

to recall it A s the thirty articles and the depo s itions of the
.

witnes s es were bei n g read and Huss attempted to reply ,

members of the council strove to drown h is voice by vociferous

“
crie s exclaiming : B e do n e with your S ophistry and s ay y e s
,

”
or no .O ther s laughed at him and when he attempted to
, ,

adduce authoritie s they joined in asserting that they were

,

n o t to the point Findi n g h is e fforts unavaili n g Huss th en

.
,
“
kept silent s o that member s cried out :
,
See thou art ,

s ile n t It is plai n thou give s t a s se n t to the error s

. Hu ss .

was n o t di s appoi n ted in fin di n g that the s ynod was not in

1
F or i m p o rt an t d e t a il s we ar e d e p e n d e n t u p on M l a d e n o wicz , H u ss s
’
fri e nd,

a l on e , a n d it is n o t i m p oss i b l e th a t h e g a v e a p a rti s a n c o l o ri n g t o so m e of h is
s ta te m e n t s.
 B EFO R E THE COUN CIL OF CONSTANCE 20 5

to prove fro m the Fathers and the S criptures that the

c l in e d

charges made again s t him were well taken and that its mind
was made up a n d the verdict virtually decided upon .

Writing of the experien ces of the day he recalled the ,

clamor of the Jews again s t Jesus b efore the cruci fixion Amo n g .

all the clergy he had failed to discover a si n gle friend excep t

“ ”
the father a n d a Poli s h doctor Further he felt that the .
,

councillors had not come to the main point which he regarded ,

as embodied in the teaching s in his small treatise s all of ,

which they would i n sist upon his retracting As he feared .

might b e the case the council was not ready to li s ten to

,

’
Augusti n e s de finition of the church b ased upon the decree ,

of predestination He wrote to Joh n of Chlum that he was

.

expecting death and he would rather have his body consumed

,

in the flames than b e hidden away in the concealment and

darkness of a dungeon forever In the former case Chri s ten .
,

dom would at leas t know what his position really was .

In adjourning the assembly left with Huss the respon s i

,

bilif y of confessing all the article s taken fro m his books as

erroneous As he was being conducted by the bishop of
.

R iga from the refectory to h is prison he noticed hi s friends , ,

“ ”
and giving them his hand said : Have no fear for me
, ,
.

“
When they replied they had no fear he said again : I know ,

i t well I know it well

,
As cending the stairway he turned
.
,

and blessed the people who stood by s miled and seemed to ,

be in good spirits ?

The second hearing on Jun e 7 was delayed until ten

, ,
’
o clock by an almost total ecl ipse of the sun A grim a spect .

was given to the o ccasion by the guard of city soldiers which

surrounded the convent building At this meeting the k ing .

was present and Huss saw him for the fir s t time in Constance
,
.

The proceedings were conducted with some decorum a s the ,

order had gone forth that persons shouting were to be ej ected .

The vivid description given by M l a d e n owi cz is corroborated

1
Doc .
, 101 , 1 0 5 , 2 76 .
20 6 JOHN HUS S
’
and s upplemented by Hu ss s letters wri tten at the clo s e of
the day .

Two articles had been stricken out from the li s t of the

e n
—
charg s of Ju e 5 a gain of le s s importance than Huss fan
,

c ie d it to b e
—
Witne ss e s doctors prelate s pari sh prie s t s
.
, ,

a n d o ther s
— were call e d upon to bear witn e s s to the accu s a
tion that s ince 1 4 1 0 Hu ss had been preachi n g the doctrine s of
Wyclif a n d other erro n eous doctrine s of h is own inventio n .

The XLV W y clifit e Articles were brought in evide n ce a s ,

’ ’
al s o Hu ss s attitude to the burning of Wyclif s b ooks and the ,

trouble at the u n iver s ity with the Germans A charge on .

which great stress was laid was the remanence of the material
bread Thi s charge Huss denied calling God and h is con
.
,

s cie n ce to witnes s ; but in expla n ation of h is u s e of the term

p a n is bread he said that he had u s ed it agai n st the arch

, ,
’
bi shop s prohibition but in co n formi ty wi th John 6 where the ,

Lord spoke of himself again and again as bread and the

bread of angels However he did not u s e the expres sion
.
,

material bread Here a question was interj ected concerni n g

.

Universal s and t heir bearing on the s ubstance of consecrated

bread Thi s wa s intended to be a trap the obj ect being to
.
,

s how that if Huss were a R eali s t he could no t believe in the

tran s ubsta n tiation of the eleme n ts In being a R eali s t Huss .

,

followed Wyclif and depo s ed that he accepted Univers al s

in the s ense used by S t An s elm and o thers ? B y the order of .

the French king R eal ism had been pronounced erroneous

, ,

and all o ther views excep t No minalism expatriated from

France .

The i n troduction of a question philosophical and schola s tic ,

in it s import did no t appeal to all the member s D A ill y

,
.
’
,

who was a Nominali s t an d s eemed to be in ho t temper had , ,

s aid that if Hu ss followed A n s e lm the n after the c on se cr a ,

tion of the eleme n ts the material bread remai n ed Three .

1
T sch ac ke r t , P eter d A il l i, ’
p . 2 26 sq . M la d e n owicz D oc
,
.
,
p . 2 77 . S ee
S c h wab , Gers on , p 5 86 sq . .
26 8 JOHN HUS S
’
Huss : It is all heresy Accor ding to one of Huss s letters
.
,

o n e of t h e E n glish doctor s in a private hearing told hi m that

Wyclif wa s be n t u po n de s troyi n g all learnin g Going over .

the exami n ation in h is pri s on Huss expre ss ed the opinion ,

’
that he had s ilenced d A il ly When he referred to his con .

“
s cie n ce there wa s such a clamor that Hu ss exclaimed : I
thought that there would b e more reverence religion and ,
”
order in this council So great was the dis order that the
.

’
king called for silence At this poi n t d A il ly and Z ab ar ell a
.

interjected that the council could not b a s e i ts verdict

’
upon what was in Hu ss s con s cience but only upon the
’
express s tatements of witnesses and Huss s own admission s
— n os n on p ossu mu s s ecu n d u m
j u d icar e tu a m con s cien tia m .

’
Huss they said had expressed himself against P al e cz s testi
, ,
’
mo n y who had drawn h is charge s from Huss s books and also
, ,

the te s timony of the chancellor of Paris Gerson ; but Ger s on , ,

’ “
d A ill y went on to say was certainly a great authority
,

a great doctor if any could b e found in Christendom

,
.

Huss had written to his friends that he wished God would

give him time to write of the lies invented by the re ctor of
the Paris u niversity who had so unfairly charged him wi th
,

heresy .

Among o ther statements ascribed to Huss were these : That

ti thes are to b e regarded as pure alms and that the rich on
pain of eternal damn ation are un der obligations to do the
six works of mercy M att 2 5 44 With reference to the s e
,
. .

“
charge s the bishop of S alisbury observed that
,
if all
are ob l iged to do the six works of mercy then i t follows ,

that the poor who can give nothing will b e damn ed But .

Hu s s replied that he had limited his statement to a parti cular

class .

Another charge was that he had call ed upon his adherents

to re s i s t his adver s arie s by resort to the material sword ap ,
’
pealing for thi s couns el to Moses example To thi s he replied .

1
M l ad e n owicz , D oc .
,
p . 2 78 .
 B EFO R E THE COUN CIL OF CONSTAN CE 209

t hat the words had b een falsely ascrib ed to him In preaching .

abou t the helmet of salvatio n and the sword of the Spirit ,

he had exhorted that all should gird themselves with the

sword and defend the tru th of the Go spel but in order that , ,

his enemies migh t no t have where wi th to entrap him he had ,

b een careful to add that he spoke no t of the material s word ,

b ut of the sword which is the Word of God At this the .

members of the council cried out twitting him with the ,

’
s trange inconsistency of his reference to Mo s es sword if ,

the e xplanation he was then making was genuine .

As for the charge of having broken up th e university of

Prague he replied that the question of giving three votes to
,

the B ohemians was one of justi ce and conforming to the

charters of Paris and B ologna .

The main Obj ection underl yin g all the accusations was
, ,
’
Huss s ad m iration of Wyclif and his alleged advocacy of
’
Wyclif s teachi ngs no t only in the univer sity but also in the
,

pulpit To this charge Huss replied that he had not defended

.

any erroneous doctrines whi ch in this quarter or that might

,

b e ascrib ed to Wyclif and that he did no t kn ow of any B O

,

hemian who had defended any such erroneous doctrine He .

knew of no B ohemi an who had been a heretic or was a heretic

at that time Wycl if was not his father And as regards
. .
,

the XLV Ar ti cles he persisted in his refusal to assent to their

,

condemn ation on the ground that the doctors themselves

had not decided to whi ch category they severall y belonged
— catholic heretical erroneous or s candalous As for his
, ,
.

’
prote s t again s t Z b yn ek s burning of Wyclif s b ooks Z b yn ek
’
,

wa s not justi fi ed in his action and had no bu siness to bur n

them without fir st reading them and fin ding ou t what were
their contents .

He had said so it was f ur ther witnessed that when the

, ,
’
monk s and clergy failed in S t P aul s Cathedral to convi ct .

’
Wyclif the very heavens had come to Wyclif s help with
,

thunder and lightning and the earth had belched forth its
,
210 JOHN HUS S

protest so that the clergy with di ffi culty escaped the rage

,

of the populace And then to co n fir m his sym p a t h v wi th

.
,
“
Wyclif he had exclaimed : Oh that my soul were there where
, ,
’ ”—
John Wyclif s soul is l u tin a m an ima me a e ss et ib i u bi es t ,

a n ima J oa n n es Wycl if ! To this testimony Huss replied that

what he really said wa s that he knew not where the soul of
,

Wyclif was He hoped that Wyclif was saved and that his
.

’
own soul might b e there where he hoped Wyclif s soul was .

At this point the members broke out in loud murmur s of de

,

ri s ion al s o manifesting their feelings by shaking their heads

,
.

When the objection was read that Huss had appealed from
the decisions of the two popes Alexander V and John XXIII
, ,
“
he answered : Is it not permissible to appeal to Christ ?
I hereby publicly avow that there is no safer or more e fficaciou s
”
appeal than the appeal to Jesus Christ Here again the .

council was greatly excited and ab andoned itself to derisive

“
outcries Huss went on :
. The law allows appeal from a
lower to a higher judge and who is a more mighty and just
,

j udge and who able more e ffectually to help the b urdened

a n d Oppressed than Christ Christ who neither errs nor is
,
”
able to err ?
’
D A ill y interposed that Huss had spoken in a m uch
milder tone in his tower prison at Gottlieben— where Huss ac ,

cording to his own statement had had many hearings— than,

he was employing before the council and assured him that

h is change of manner was no t helping his case At this .
,

Huss justi fied him s elf by declaring that in the tower the
i n quisitors had s poken to him kindly but the members of the ,

council s eemed almost unanimously to b e vo ciferating agains t

him so that he had come to the conclusion that they were all
,

his e n emie s ?

’
When d A illy reminded the prisoner that in the audience
before the pope and the cardi n als at the palace he insi s ted , ,

that he had come to Co n s ta n ce of h is own free will and that ,

1
M l a d e n owicz D oc , .
, 2 82 .
 212 JOHN HUS S

coun s el you not to hold on ob s tinately to anyt hi ng bu t in

, ,

the thi ng s proved again s t you and to which you have con
fes s ed place yourself wholly at the mercy of the holy council ,

that for our s akes a n d for the s ake of our b rother and for the
sake of the ki n gdom of B ohemia the council may accord to
you some grace a n d that you may receive penance for the
,

thing s proved I have told them that I have no idea of

.

s hieldin g a heretic Nay if any one should b e found to persist

.
,

ob s tinately in hi s here sy I wo ul d wi s h to b e the fir st to start

”
the fir e a n d burn him .

To this addre s s Huss replied that he was thankful to the

king for the pa ssport and that in coming to Con s tance he had , ,

no purpose of obstinately defending errors b ut on the con , ,

t r a r y hi s purpose was to correct errors if any were proved

, ,

again s t him B efore leaving Sigi s mund promis ed Hu ss at t h e

.
, ,

next hearing a written s tateme n t of the accusations wi th

,

which he wa s charged Hus s was then conducted to his prison

.

by the bishop of Riga to whose care both he and Jerome of ,

Prague had b een com mi tted .

In writing of the incidents of this hearing of June 7 Hu ss ,

said that two Engli shmen tried to set forth the doctrine
of the eucharistic pre s ence but b roke do wn one of them when ,
’
he came to discuss the multiplication of Christ s body The .

other pronounced Huss another B e r e n g ar Thi s monk B e .

r e n g a r wa s condemned at a R oman synod 1 0 5 9 for his de ni al , ,

of the doctrine of tran s ub s tantiation and falling upon his ,

face retracted Although he afterward returned to his former

,
.

views he was protected by his friend Gregory VII He r e

, ,
.

g re t t e d that he had b een led to recant by fear of e x co m m u n i

cation from the church and the wors t of deaths at the hand s
of the people ?

Huss refer s al s o to the h oo t in g s and hi s sing s which greeted

some of h is s tateme n t s At times he was overwhelmed by .

1
S c h a ff , 4 558 s qq . H u ss r efe r s t o B e re n g a r at l e n g th in his d e rpor e
co

Chr is t i, M on . 1 203 .
 B EFO R E THE C OUNCIL OF CONSTAN CE 21
3

th e uproar so that on one occasion Sigismund had to call

, , ,

for a calm hearing for the accu s ed Hus s represents that the .

’
deman d was that he S hould accep t the council s decision
without su fli cie n t reasons b eing given for his doing so and
without being shown his errors .

On the 8 t h of Ju n e the last formal heari n g was held , .

Sigismund wa s again pre s ent in the G r a yf r iar s refectory and

’
d Ai ll y was the promin ent judicial character Thirty nin e .
-

arti cles were put in evidence twenty six of them taken from ,
-

’
Huss s Tr ea tise on the C hu r ch seven from his tract s again s t ,

P a l e cz and s ix from his tract against S tanislaus ?

As the arti
cles were b eing read aloud an English ecclesiasti c read the ,

’
pertinent text from the original of Hus s s works that no occa
sion migh t b e left for controversy over his exact meanin g .

’
As this was go ing on d Aill y again and again turned to the
,

ki n g and others remarking that the excerp ts were worse and

,

more da n gerous than the formulated articles of accusation

’
made Huss s meaning ou t to b e .

The firs t eight articles bore on predestination as the dis tin

g u is hin g mark of those who were of the church and ran sub ’

s t an t iall y as follows : The u ni v e r s a l c h u r ch is the totali ty of the

’
predestinate P aul never b elonged to the devil s household a l
.
,

though he performed certain acts worthy of the body of the

’
damned S o i t was with Peter who by the Lord s permi ssion
.
, ,

wa s guilty of perjury No part of the church can finally fall

.

away for the reason that predes tinating love never fails .

N O place of honor or human election or any other visible

and tan gible mark constitute s memb ership in the Catholic
church Judas had the marks bu t never was a true di sciple
.

of Chr i s t .

A t the r o t h article declaring that only fol lowers of Christ in

’
t hi s life can b e called Christ s vicars and that if the supposed ,

1
D oc , 2 86— 315 E ng tr an sl G ill e tt 1
—
5 8 2 6 00 H e f e l e g i v es an ab
—6 4
. . . . .
,

b r e v ia t e d s t a t e m e n t , 1 5 9 1 . C om p a re t h e an ti -
W y c li f an d H u ss a rti c l e s
a s con d e m n e d b y M a rti n V ,
M ir b t , 1 7 1 s q .
214 JOHN HU S S

vicar walk s in other way s he is the messenger of antichri s t ,

the leader s of the cou cil p n

— r a s id en te s
— shook their head s
a n d looki n g at on e a n o ther s miled
, ,
The 1 2 th article stated
.

that the papal dignity had b ee n derived from the C ae s ars .

After the pertinent section from the Tr ea tise on the C hu r ch

w as read Hu s s deposed that so far as the outward s ymbol s
,

of power and temporal goods were concerned the papal ,

dignity had its origin with Constantine but so far as the ,

spiritual function of ruling the church went it proceeded ,

’
directly from Christ Here d A illy i n terj ected that out of
.

re spect for the emperor the Nicene council gave him the
,

place of honor although that place really belonged to the

,
’
pope Why did Hus s therefore not say that the pope s
.
, ,

supremacy emanated from the council rather than from

“
C a sar ? Hus s replied : On account of the dotation a s I ,
”
have said whi ch C aes ar made
,
.

Four important article s concerning the pope and the

,

cardinals affi rmed that the R oman pontiff is not the head
,

of a particular church u n le s s he b e predestinated by God ‘

a n d hi s authori ty is null and void u nl e ss h is life and conduct

’
b e conformed to Chr i s t s law ; nor are they truly car di nal s
who refu s e to follow in the s teps of Chris t and the Apo s tle s .

’
Here d A ill y as s erted that Hu ss had preached and written
out of all moderation against the car dinal s and that such ,

preaching was not nece ss ary for the people but ought to b e
prac t i s ed if practi s ed at all in the presence of the car dinal s
, ,

themselves To this Hu ss made the reply that among his

.

auditors had b een prie s ts an d other lear n ed men and he had ,

spoken as he did so that they and future prie s t s might b e on

“
their g uard The cardinal added : You do very ill to attemp t
.

”
by such preaching to discredit and ca s t down the church .

“
A rticle XVIII set forth that no hereti c should b e handed
over by the eccle sia s tical power to the ci v il power to b e
”
pu ni shed by phys ical death Wh en the corre spondi n g
.

s ection had been read from the Tr e a tis e on the C hu r ch Hu s s ,

21 6 JOHN HUS S

true that he had made a final appeal to Chri s t but not until ,

two year s a n d more after h is procurators had failed to secure

“ ’
a hearing To thi s d A illy replied : So you wi sh to set your
.

s elf above Paul who under an accusation at Jerusalem ap

, ,
” “
pealed not to Chri s t bu t to C ae s ar Huss answered : Very .

well and if he had done thi s in the fi rst i n stance he would

,

have been esteemed a heretic B ut P aul did no t appeal to .

C a sar of his own s ugge s tion but by the revelation of Christ ,

‘
who had appeared to him saying : B e faithf ul for thou must , ,

go to R ome Here the memb ers of the council fil led the

chamber with derisive laughter and when they raise d the ,

obj ection that Hu s s had o fficiated at the mass w hi le under

the sentence of excommu ni cation Huss explained that he ,

had ministered it was true in div ine things bu t under the

, , ,

protection of his appeal to Christ Asked if he had been .

,

ab solved by the pope he replied in the negative At thi s,

.

poi n t the cardinal of Florence nodded to the no tary to take

’
down Huss s statement .

In Article XXII the principle is laid down that what

s oever is done by a sinful man is sinful and by a virtuou s ,
’
man is virtuous D Aill y followed up the rea din g by saying
.

that according to the S crip tures we have all sinned and ,

if we say we have not sinned we deceive ourselve s ; s o that i t

would seem that we always act s i n fully Huss replied that .

here the reference was to venial sins which may exist in ,

conjunction with a virtuous habit of mind Here an English .

“
man called William interjected : B ut the s e things do no t
, ,
”
comport with acts morally good Q uoting Au g ustine .
,

Hus s replied : If thou fil l e s t thyself with wine thy life bla s

”
p h e m e s no matter what prai s e s thy tongue may recite
,
.

Clamor prevented the defen dant fro m proceeding as they ,

s houted that the quotation had no application to the prop

o sit ion Thi s William seem s to have b een as Wylie sugge s t s

.
, ,

William Gorach or Grach principal of Hart Hall Oxford

, , , ,

a n d later vice chancellor of the u ni versity in 1 4 3 9

-
.
 B EFO R E THE C OUN CIL OF CONSTANCE 21 7

Articles XXIII and XXIV demand for the true pries t

t h e right to preach in spite of a sentence of excommu n ication .

Here Huss explained that he had refere n ce to an u n just

,

sentence at variance with the written law and the Word of

’
God A priest conformin g his life to God s precep ts h a s no
.

business to cease from preaching nor should he s ta n d in fear

of an unju s t prohibition as though i t were a ground of con d e m
nation .The Florentine cardinal Z a b ar e l l a remarked that ,

there were laws demanding that even an unj ust censure was
to b e dreaded Hu ss answered that as he rememb ered
.
, ,

there were eight reaso n s for dreading excommu n ication .

“ ”
No more than that ? retorted the cardinal to which Hus s ,
“ ”
rep lied : There may b e more .

Arti cle XXV stated that ecclesiastical censures are of

antichrist invented by the clergy for the subj ection of the
people and it s own exaltation These the laity are under no
.

obligation to ob ey
Article XXVI : The interdict should no t b e laid upon
the people seeing that Chri s t did no t fulminate this censure
,

either in V iew of his own inj uries or the treatment given to

’
John the B aptist Here d A ill y again i n terposed that there
.

were even wor s e thing s on thi s subject in the Tr ea tise on

the C hu r ch than thi s formula Huss denied the form of the
.

article .

’
The articles extracted from Hu ss s work written agains t ,

P al e cz arou s ed mo s t demon s tration and clamor

,
The first .

a ss erted that if the pope a bi s hop or prelate are in mortal sin

,

they are n o t pope bishop or prelate After the reading of

,
.

the origi n al text Huss said that the statement was true no t
,

o n ly of prelate s bu t also of kings If a king wa s in mortal

.

sin he was not a king in the sight of God He quoted I Sam . .

15 26 where the Lord said through S amuel to Saul who

, ,
“
should have pu t the Amalekite to death bu t did not : In
that thou ha s t rej ected my word I will al s o rej ect thee that
”
thou mayest b e king Although S aul in the sigh t of men
.
2 18 JOHN HUS S

migh t ha v e b e e n co n sidered king after this act of disobedience ,

t in r e ality h e w as n o t
y e .

At th a t m o m e n t Sigi s mund who happened to b e s tanding

,

a t t h e w i n d o w o f the r e f e ctory w as remarki n g to the cou n t

,

palati n e a n d the burgrav e O f N iir n b e rg who s tood out side , ,

that in a ll Chri s t e n dom there was n o s uch heretic a s John

’
Hu ss T h e m e mb e r s of the cou n cil followed Hu ss s s tatement
.

“ ”
by cryi n g out : Call in the ki n g A s the king did not hear
.
,

tho s e o n the platform cried ou t over the heads of those stand

“
in g n e ar the ki n g : B ri n g him that he may hear for what is , ,

b e i n g s aid concern s him Upon re q uest Hus s repeated

.
,

w h a t he had s aid and when he had concluded Sigismund

, ,

“ ’
r e mark e d : John Hu ss there is no man who doesn t sin
,

n c m o s in e cr imin e v iv it
”
And a s reported by M l a d en owicz
.
, ,

d A il ly wi shi n g to excite the s ecular pri n ces still more again s t

’

t h e accu s ed a sked whether it w as no t enough for him to have

,

a tt e mpted in h is writi n gs to revile and humble the spiritual

e s tate Did he n ow wi sh to cast down the royal o ffice also ?

.

P a l e c z the n went on to explain that king and pope were names

of offi ce s a n d the name Chri s tian wa s inte n ded to expre s s
,

m e rit so that a pope could be a real pope or a kin g a legitimate

, ,

ki n g eve n if they were no t true Chri s tians He s itating a li ttle

,
.
,

Hu s s retorted that if that expo sition was well made i t might

, ,

b e applied to B althasar Cossa John XXIII who had been , ,

d e po s e d If he was a true pope why had he b een depo s ed ?

.

T o thi s Sigi smund made the remark that until recently mem
b e rs of the cou n cil had held to B althasar on the grou n d that
h e wa s the true pope a n d he was deposed from the papacy
,

b e cau s e of his n otoriou s wickednes s e s which had scandal iz ed ,

t h e church of God and because he had plundered the church s

’
,

go o d s .

The 2 d 3 d a n d 4t h article s concerned predestination

, ,

a n d s tat e d that a reprobate pope was not a member of

t h e milita n t church a n d con s e q uently not head of the

church militant a n d that s uch a pope or prelate was no
,
2 20 JOHN HUS S

Article VII charg e d Hu ss with representing the con

d e m n a t io n of t h e X LV W y c l ifi t e Article s a s irrational and
i n i q uitou s a n d that no o n e of them wa s heretical erro n eous
, ,
“
o r s ca n dalou s Whe n d A il ly s aid
.
’
Ma s ter a n d did you
, ,
’
n o t s a y that you a r e not mi n ded to defend any of Wyclif s

e rror s ,
a n d yet from your books it appear s that yo u did
”
defe n d the s e articl e s publicly Hu ss replied that he had
,

n o id e a of d e f e n di n g a n y error s of Wyc l if or the error s of any

,

o n e e l s e but that it was agai n st h is conscience to a ss e n t with

,

’
out e xpla n atio n to the condemn ation of Wyclif s article s
wh e n th e re was nothing to allege from S cripture against them ;
!

a n d t h e ge n eral condemn ation of the article s a s a whole would

n o t hold Some of them were not open to condemnation

. .

’
Thereupon the six articles draw n from Huss s book again s t
S ta n i slau s were taken up Among them were the stateme n t s
.

that Chri s t might rule his church much better through h is

“
di s ciple s s cattered through the earth and apart from such
”
wicked head s as the prelate s s ometimes were and that ,
’
n either the pope s were the univer s al pastors o f Christ s
s heep nor was Peter In favor of the fi r s t propo s ition he
.

adduced the cases of John XXIII who had been deposed , ,

a n d Gregory XII who had re s igned

,
And he went on to say
.

that though there wa s at that time no papal head never

, ,

t h e l e ss Chri s t had no t ceased from governi n g his own church .

The s tatement called forth the deri sion of the a s sembly .

“ ’
Article VI read that The Apostle s and the Lord s faith
,

ful prie s t s in thin g s n ecessary to s alvation governed the

”
church before the papal o ffice was introduced At thi s .
,
“ ”
t h e member s exclaimed : See he turns prophe t !
,
Hu ss
reaffi rmed the s tatement made in the charge and again in
s i s ted that at that time there was no pope
; and that things
might go on that way for two year s or for aught any one ,

k n e w for an i n defi n ite time P al e cz interj ected :

. Ah and ,
”
that 18 highly po ssible is it ? ,
Hu ss answered that i t was
q uite po s sible At thi s point S toke s the Engli shman again
.
, ,
 B EF O R E THE C OUN CIL OF CONSTAN CE 221

stepped in and twi tted Huss upon asserting these tenets as

if they were his own when in fact they were no t really his
, , ,
’
b ut Wyclif s The path he was following was the path trodden
.

b efore him by Wyclif .

At t h e conclu s ion of the reading of the thirty nine ar ti cles -

,
’
d A il ly addressing Huss pointed out that there were two
, ,

—
ways open to him one of putting himself completely at the
,
’
council s mercy in whi ch case out of re spect for Sigi s mund
, ,
’
and the kin g of B ohemia and for Huss s own good the coun ,

cil would b e moved to deal wi th him graciously and in a

—
humane manner p ie et hu ma n iter The o ther was of asking .

for another audience that he migh t defend him s elf once more ,

but in thi s case he should b ear in mind that he had already

b een heard by many distingui shed men and doctors who had
given reasons against the thirty nine errors and there was -

danger of h is being s till further involved if ano ther audience

were accorded In a friendly spirit as he remarked he
.
, ,

counselled Huss to take the former course O thers joined in .

’
advising him to throw himself on the council s mercy .

To thi s advice Huss replied with b owed head repeating ,

what he had said often b efore that it was of h is own free will ,

he had come to Constance and wi th no purpose o f obstinately

defen di ng his views b ut in the hope of b eing informed of hi s
,

errors if he held any and in that case of submi tting to the

, , ,

council He therefore asked that an audience b e granted

.
, ,

him that he might have Opportunity to expound his

meaning concerning the articles adduced against him at ,

the same time assuring the council that if his reasons and ,

writings were considered to b e against the truth he would ,

humbly sub mi t to the better information o ffered by the

council . Great commotion followed these remarks many ,
’
crying out that he seemed wi l ling to yield to the council s
i n formation but not to its correction and de finition Huss .

’
replied that he was ready to yield in all three ways D A illy .

then demanded : 1 That he abj ure the heretical articles

.
222 JOHN HUSS

ap pro v ed by sixty doctor s

?
2 Swear never to preach or .

t e a ch them a gai n 3 Make public re n unciatio n 4 Promi s e

. . . .

t o uphold a n d preach the oppo s ite .

’
W ith r e fere n ce to the advice give n by d A ill y drawn ,

from t h e w e ighty s ixty names Huss wrote u n der date of , ,

Ju n e 2 6 : W hat a wo n derful piece of information ! B y

“

thi s r e a s onin g t h e virgi n S t Catherine ought to have receded .

from t h e truth a n d the faith of Je s us Chris t becau s e fifty

d octor s O ppo se d h e r ! Truly thi s b eloved virgin per s i s ted
u n to d e ath a n d wo n over the doctor s a thing which as a ,
”
s i n n e r I am n o t abl e to do Hu ss wa s referri n g to Catherine .

of Alexa n dria who accordi n g to tradition received the

, ,

highe s t place in the liberal art s M aximin promi s ed the .

highe s t r e ward s to the philosopher who would win h er b ack

to paga n i s m B ut sh e overcame them all and was broken on
.

t h e S t Catherine s wheel
’
. Her body was transported to M t . .

S i n ai where t h e famous convent commemorate s her memory

,
.

’
I n reply to d A illy Hu s s a ffirmed that he was ready t o ,

yield to the council and b e informed but he a sked for , ,

God s s ak e that the s nare of damnation should not b e thrown

’

a bout him a n d that he be n o t call ed upon to abjure articles

that h e had n ever held and renounce things whi ch had never
b e e n in h is heart e specially that after the con s ecration o nl y
, , ,

the mat e rial bread remain s I t was agai n st his conscience .

to a b j u r e a rticle s he had n e v er held and thu s to tell a lie When .

“
h e call e d h is co n s cience to witne ss many cried out : And ,

did your co n s cie n ce n ever intimate to you that you had

”
e rr e d ? At thi s poi n t the ki n g called upon Hu ss to yield ,
’
to t h e cardi n al s cou n sel and put a s ide h is unwi l lingness to
a b j ur e all the erro n eous articles A s for himself he di d no t .
,

wi s h to hold a s i n gle error and would abjure all errors even

,

if h e had n o t held a s ingle one To thi s Hu ss replied that .

t h e word ab j ure did n o t properly apply in s uch a ca s e Zab a .

1
M la d e n o w icz , . f
D oc , 3 0 8 , is o ll o we d b y H e fe l e , 7 : 1 67 . H us s in t wo
l e tt e rs ps e a ks o f fif ty d oc t o r s , D oc , 1 0 7 , 1 40 . .
2 24 JOHN HUS S

b ee n sho w n him in t h e D ominican pri s on but that he was ,

not its author H e thought it had been written by J e s e n icz

.
.

Pre ss ed Hu ss declar e d h e did not accept its teachings At

,
.

thi s poi n t in h is r e port M l a d e n owic z s eem s to apologize for

,

Hu ss s a n s we r o n the ground of the S leepless night he had

’

pa ss ed racked by toothache a n d other ills

,
He apparently .

wa s r e treati n g from h is true views ?

H is co n n ection with the services attending the burial of
the thr ee Pragu e martyrs M artin S t a f con and John was
, , ,

t hen adduced Engli shmen produced a copy of a letter from

.

t h e uni v er sity of Oxford which as they s aid Huss had read , ,

—
in a s e rmon a t the same time sho wi g the seal wi th the
n
—
purpo se of commending Wyclif Huss declared he had read .

i t b e cau se it bore the Oxford seal and wa s brought to Pra gue

by two s tudent s On gi v ing the name of Nichola s F au l fis ch
.

a s o n e of the s tudent s and pointing to P a l e cz as a witne s s ,

P a l e cz replied that F a u l fis ch was no Englishman but a ,

B ohe m ia n an d had brought with him to Prague a piece of

,

’
s to n e from Wyclif s tomb w hi ch afterward as Huss well ,

k n ew was revered in Prague as a reli c The Engli shmen

,
.

the n produced another writi n g certified to by the chancellor ,

of Oxford whi ch contained two h u ndred and sixty errors

,

’
taken from Wyclif s writings w hi ch were sent to Constance ,

for condemnation .

B efore the breaking up of the assembly personal ex ,

pla n ations were made by P al e cz and Michael de C au sis ,

as sur ing the council that in pleading against Huss they had
, ,

be e n actuated by pure motives They called God to witne ss .

that they had been moved by no personal bittern ess but ,

s olely by regard for the oath they had taken when they

became doctors of theology In reply to these atte s ta t ions .

“ ’
Hu ss e xclaimed : I stand at God s tribunal who will judge ,

”
me an d you j u s tly accordi n g to our merit s
, D A il l y then .
’

comm ended P a l e cz and the o ther doctor s who had presented

1
D oc .
, 312 .
 B EFO R E THE COUN CIL OF CONSTAN CE 2 25

’
the accusations b ased upon Huss s writings and once more
pronounced the text of his writing s as more worthy of con
d em n a tion than the formulated articles .

In readi n g over the procee di ngs i t does no t o ccur to us ,

to accuse P al e cz of un worthy mo tives or to doub t that there

were perhaps a numb er of men in the coun cil who were anxious
to give Huss a certain amount of protection a n d to grant
him a fair opportun ity of extricating hi mself from the posi
tion in which he was placed Among these were d A ill y and .
’

Z ab ar e ll a men who had no doub t of his serious departure

,

from C atholi c doctrine .

The majority of the coun cillors as is often the case in ,

ecclesiastical assemb li es S itting in j udgment upon erroneou s

doctrine s real or alleged seem no t to have b een ready to
, ,

li s ten to a rea s onable di scus s ion They had prejudged the .

cas e Explanations were usele s s R etraction was their de

. .

mand Hu s s was a dangerous hereti c A hereti c had no

. .

s tanding He was the emb odiment of all conceivable wi cked

.

ness fi t only for the flames and per di tion

,
.

Si gismund as we may believe wi th an eye to his promi s e

, ,

of safe conduct and his standing wi th the B ohe mi an and

-

Moravian nobles sought to save Huss from the worst fate

,
1
.

Of the obligations under w hi ch he was placed by the pas sport ,

we s hall speak further on .

Huss was an innovator whose statements stru ck at the

roo t of chur ch authority The rule of b elief and action he .

placed in the S criptures as interpreted by the individual .

From our standpoint the principle he was contendi n g for was

,

the righ t of the indi v i dual conscience in the presence of the

’
open B ible D A ill y and the coun cil took the oppo s ite ground
. .

The eminent French cardinal knew nothing bu t the supreme

authority of the church As repre s ented in the council at .

Con s tance i t h ad deposed a pope Joh n XXIII I t had the

, ,
.

right to s ettle do ctri n e a n d what it said was law N O in .

S e e P al a ky Ges k I I I 7 3 4 8—
1
c , 3 54
e T s h ck e r t
.
, 3 3 sq
,
. c a ,
2 .
2 26 JOHN HUS S
—
d i v idual had a n y right s against that tribunal no righ t to
te a ch in the church n o right to life itself T s ch ack er t say s :
,
.

T h e B oh e mia n had de fin ed the church as the body of the

“

pr e d e s ti n at e ; d A illy had a di fferent conception To recog nize

’
.

”
Hu s s d Ail l y would have had to lay down the pur ple
,
’
.

’
From the s tandpoint of our own age Hus s s appeal for ,

an o pportu n i ty to pre s ent his views in a detailed and con

n e c t e d form was proper but the canons of that age were
,

oth e r wi s e Huss s writings were in the hands of the com

.
’

mi ssio n s They had been examined and passed upon as

.

co n taining much that was either erroneous or heretical If .

a llo w ed s tandi n g the structure of the canon law woul d fall

,
.

T h e counc il does not deserve unmixed blame I t was t h e crea .

ture of it s age a n d its predecessors and the same palliation ,

c an be made of its action as is made for John Cal v in in Geneva .

I t s mis fortune was that it represented the sy s tem w hi ch had

exalt e d an organization at the e xpense of the authority of
the S cripture s and i n dividual right s o f conscience The .

ground Hu ss occupied without kno wing it was radically out

, ,

of accord with thi s system and was substantiall y the ground

that Luther and the Prote s tant R eformers afterward took ,

though in detail s the Prote s tant R eformers went much f u rther

tha n he did Let the S cripture s b e taken as th e final and
.

s uffi cient rule of human opinion and conduct then individual ,

di ss e n t from the accredi ted doctrines of th e church ceases

to be in it s elf an i n iquity a crime ,
.

Had Hu ss been allowed to make a formal and orderly

defe n s e there can b e l ittle doub t that the i s sue would have
,

b e e n th e very same Measured by the standard of his tim es

.
,

j udged by the canon law and by the practi ce of several

c e n turi e s he was far and away a hereti c and deserving the
p e n alty which the Middle Ages accorded to here ti cs—pe rpet
,

ual impri s onme n t or death To s hi ft the ground of a c .

’
cou n tability to the con s cience was as d A il ly and oth ers ,

s tat e d a principle unknown to ecclesiasti cal procedure

, The .
 CHAPTE R X

C OND
EM NE D A ND B U R N E D A T T H E S T A KE

M cl ius b on e mor i q u a m m al e v iv er e; p r opte r m or tis s u pp l iciu rn

cs t

n on es t p ccca nd u m ; p r a s e n te rn vita rn fin ir e in gr a t ia es t e x ir e d e m is er ia
—
.

H u ss s l e tt e r t o C hri s ti an o f P r a ch a t icz , A p , 1 4 1 3
’
. .

Be tt e r is it t o d ie w ell th an to liv e ill . To a v oi d d e a th w e m u s t n ot

s in . To end the pr e se t li fe
n in g r ac e is to p a ss ou t o f m i s e ry .

’
THE council s s e s sion being over and while Huss was on ,

t h e w a y to h is pri s on for the la s t time John of Chlum pre ss ed ,

thr o ugh the crowd and took h is ha n d The recogni tion was .

lik e a cup of water from a far country What a joy it was .

,

Hu ss wrot e to have John of Chlum s tretch forth his hand

, ,

n o t as hamed to hold it out to him an abj ect heretic bound ,

in ch a in s and hooted at by all ?

W hile the bolt s of the pri s on were b eing fas tened upon
him a confidential addre s s was bei n g made by the kin g to
,

t h e council before it s cattered It betrays how completely .

h e had put him s elf on it s side and how ready he wa s to pro

c e e d to the ultimate verdict demanded for ob stinate heretic s ,

and which the inqui s ition wa s accustomed to pronou n ce .

Although th e ad d res s wa s intended only for the prelate s who ,

s till lin gered in the refectory but had risen to retire some of ,

t h e B ohemia n s —John of Chlum Wenz el of D ub a and Peter ,

M l a d en owi cz after taking leave of Huss had returned with

-

,
’
out the ki n g s kn owledge and overheard what he was abou t
t o s ay Of the ma n y charge s brought agai n st the pri s oner
.
,

s o s pok e the ki n g a n
y on e of them was su fficient for h is con
,

d e m n a tion I n case he did not ab j ure he was to b e burned

.
,

or o ther wi s e treated as the eccle s iastical laws called for .

1
D oc .
,
1 10.

2 28
 B U R NED AT THE STAKE 2 29

B ut even if Huss abjured he was not to b e trusted for if

, , , ,

all owed to go b ack to B ohemia he and his sympathizer s ,

would disseminate the same errors and al s o new errors a n d ,

the new errors would b e worse than the Ol d He should b e .

forbidden altogether to preach or to go to his sympathizer s .

I n Poland the errors had a large following as well as in B 0

,

hernia and the council should direct his brother the king of
, ,

B ohemia and the princes and prelates to destroy them branch

,

and root wherever they might b e found In the mouth o f

,
.

two or three wi tne s ses as it is written is a th ing establis hed

, ,
.

The council should make a clean sweep of all his di sciples and
e specially Of the one detained at Constance “
Wh o do you .

” ’
call him ? The king s defective memory b eing supplied by
“
members of the council the king went on to say : Y e s
—
, ,
”
Jerome h e is the pupil and Huss is the master If you
—
.

—
have done with that one Huss in a single day you will ,
“
have little trouble in dealing with the o ther I was a young .

“
man he concluded when this sect arose and s tarted in
, ,
”
B ohemia and see how i t has grown and multiplied
,
As .

P a l a cky says these words of Sigismund spoken in a corner

,

of the Franciscan refectory soon reso u nded throughout all

B ohemi a and cost the speaker li ttle less than the crown of
a kingdom ?
Sigismund was soon to take leave of the council
and what was done he wanted done quickly He referred .

to his approaching journey to Spain whose purpose was to ,

induce B e n edict XIII to re s ign According to M l a d e n owicz .

,

the members left the refectory in high spirits over th e king s ’

words .

D uring the remain ing four weeks of hi s life spent in the

G r ayf r iar s prison Huss wro te a numb er of letters to his
,

frie n ds in Constance and B ohemia now in Czech now in , ,

Latin All the while he was su ff ering from physical weakne s s

.

and pain The wonder is that the pri s oner had any spirit
.

left On J u ne 8 the last day of public hearing he looked

.
, ,

1
Ges ek .
,
I II 357 .
2
30 JOHN HUS S

e xceedi n gly pal e— wa l do p a ll id u s He was worn out not only .

with t h e a n xiety of prolo n ged impri s onment bu t wi th a g ,

r a v a ted ailm en st — h e morrhages and vomi ti n g the stone

g
headach e a n d toothache—s o that as he himself wrote his
, ,

, ,

n ight s were spent withou t sleep ? What snatches of s leep

h e caugh t were disturbed by dreams Among many o thers .

w as t h e v i sion of ho s t s of serpents wi th heads at their tails ,

but n o t o n e able to harm him .

The comfort of receiving communications from his friend s

w a s not e n tir e ly wi thdrawn Letters found their way to .

him a n d he a sked that they b e no t written on large sheets

,

l e s t they arou s e suspicion and fail to reach his cell Toward .

’
the e n d of the period perhaps with reference to Paul s letters ,

w ritten from his capti v ity in R ome h e closed letter after ,

“ “
letter with the words writte n in prison in chains or bound , ,

” “
in pri s on in chains expecti n g death or written in chains
, ,
”2
in expectation of the fla m e s .

The re spite before his auto — da f e was evidently prolonged -

in order that no e ffort might b e spared to induce Huss to

abjure He was interviewed by many persons sent to per
.
,

s uade him to that act B asket s as he called them were held .

, ,

out to him by which if he chose to put hi mself in them he

, , ,

might escape Threats and persuasions were employed let

.
,

u s hope more from the sentiment of mercy than from the

,

’
ambitio n to break up a heretic s ob duracy .

’
Amo n g tho s e who vi sited him were Z ab ar ell a d Aill y an d ,

P a l e cz . On e doctor who urged him to s u b mi t declar ed that

, ,

if the cou n cil should tell him he had but one eye he was ,

bou n d to agree that i t was so To this suggestion Huss .

r e pli e d that if the whole world told hi m he had but one eye ,

yet he could n ot so lo n g as he had reason say so without

, ,

doi n g viole n ce to his co n s cience After some further remarks .

t h e doctor left saying that Huss was right and that t h e

,

illu s tratio n wa s n o t a good one .

1
D oc 1 0 8,
3 12 2
Doc 12 1 2 9 , 1 40 , e t c .
.
, . .
, 7,
23 2 JOHN HUS S

who l ike n ed Hu ss s propo s ed abjuration to the b asket in

’

which P a ul wa s l e t down from D ama s cu s a n d e s caped He .

a tt e mpt e d to s e t Hu s s s s cruple s a s ide a s invalid and declared

’

th a t in s ubmitti n g to the cou n cil he would not nece ss arily

, ,

b e co n d e mn i n g v i e w s he held bu t be doing nothi n g more than,

a ck n o wl e d gi n g the authority of the tribunal whi ch co n dem n ed

him T h e r e spo n sibility would re s t upon the council And

.
.

a s for p e rjury the Opprobrium if any would fall no t upon

, , ,

Hu s s but upo n that body and its learned men who pro
,

n ou n c e d the se n tence Augu s ti n e Origen and Peter the

.
,

Lombard had yielded to authority as he him s elf on one occa ,

s io n al s o had done when he was accused of being in error

a n d acc e pt e d admoni tion The final Judge had appointed the

.

Apo s tle s and their succe s sors in council as the court of de

c is io n .

I n h is econd letter Huss repeated the reaso n s he had

s

gi v e n in the fir s t for declining to abjure for abjuration would ,

n e c e ss itate h is giving up many truths a n d i n curri n g fin al

pu n i shme n t u n le ss percha n ce he s hould repent of h is ah

, , ,

j u r a t ion before death He closed by expre s sing the assurance

.

that Chri s t would give him s trength to hold out to the end .

The s e attempt s to move Hu ss were conti n ued almos t to

t h e la s t mome n t of h is impri s o n me n t but the many exhorter s ,

—m u l tipl ices exhor ta tor es— u sing “ many word s ” failed to ,

cha n g e h is mi n d He was not willi n g to act on the principle

?

that it was a meri t to confe ss guilt even where the party was
i n n oce n t an d the tribunal confe ss ed to was augu s t and a s ,

suppo s ed divi n ely appointed

,
One of h is exhorters told him .

o f the followi n g ca s e : A book wa s placed at the s ide of a

’
s a i n t s bed He was accused of havi n g stolen it and keeping
.

it hid away On denying the charge they s howed him the

.
,

book hid away in h is bed The saint at once admitted his

.

guilt A n oth e r exhorter told of a certain n u n who lived in a

.

cloi s ter in ma n s clothes and wa s accused of bearing a son

’
.

1
D oc .
,
1 35 .
 B U R NED AT THE STAKE 2 33

The nun confessed to the charge and kep t the chi ld but later ,

s h e was proved to b e innocent An Eng l ishman come on a .

,

like errand reminded Huss that in England ma n y W y c lifi t e s

,

had signed papers of abjuration prepared by the archbi shop s .

’
He went on to s ay that if he were in Huss s place he would
’
abjure for his conscience sake .

The underlying idea in these e ff orts to b ring Hus s to an

abjuration while he continued to hold to the thi n g s abjured
was that there is merit in ob edience .

’
At Huss s request P a l ecz came to see him yet once again 1
,

in his very last hours and for the very reason that he had b een
, ,

a most deter mi ned enemy Huss asked though in vain that , , ,

P a l e cz might b e appointed as his confessor P al e cz proved .

“ ’
to b e like one of Job s friends Every one he had said .
, ,
“
th at heard you preach was infected with the heresy of the r e
”
m an e n ce of the bread in the sacrament of the altar He now .

rejoined that he had no t said every one b ut many who heard ,

him preach Huss reaffirmed his statement and went on :

.
,

Oh master how dreadful is your greeti n g and how dread

, ,

fully you are sinning ! You know I shall die here or perhaps , ,

if I rise from my bed I shall b e burned What reward will

,
.

”
then b e given you in B ohemia ! At thi s last inter v iew the ,

a f or e t irn e friends shed tear s together and Hus s begged P al e c z s

’

pardon for any opprobrious word he had uttered and especially

“ ”
for the epithet fi c t ion monger which he had used in his tract
-

addressed against him ?

Huss also reminded P a l e cz of what
he had said about him to the commi ss ioners that since ,
’
Chri s t s birth no heretic had wri tten more dangerous thi n g s
a gainst the church with the excep tion of Wyclif than he
, ,

himself Michael de C au sis al s o was several times at Hu s s s

.
’

’
prison and said to the jailer s a s ide that by God s grace Huss
who was a heretic should burn In reporting the s e few words .
,

Huss wrote that he had no feeling s of bitterness and was

praying for Michael 3
.

1
Doc .
, 1 3 6 sq . 2
Resp on sio ad P al ecz , M ou .
,
1 3 8
1 .
2
D oc
.
,
1 29 .
 2
34 JOHN HUS S

Had t h e pri s oner s till a fl ick e ri n g hope that Sigi s mund

migh t e xercis e a veto power it was q uickly snuff ed out He ,
.

recalled that at the s e s sion June 8 the kin g had given him , ,

a s s ura n c e of a n opportu n ity to reply in wri ting an assurance ,

co n fir m e d by d Ai lly and al s o a promi s e of a fi nal hearing

’
,
?

H e app e al e d to the n obl e s of B ohemia to join in petitioning

’
Sigis mu n d to keep h is promi s e Great would b e the king s .

co n fu s io n he thought if he failed to keep i t He almo s t

, ,
.

a llow e d him s e lf to think that Sigi s mund from the beginning

h a d n o i n te n tio n of treati n g him fairly Again st warning s .

,

h e had left B ohemia Jerome of Prague the good cobbler .

, ,

Andrew the Pole a n d o thers had told him before he left Pra
,

gu e that he would not return Huss went so far as to write

?

that Sigi s mund had condemned him b efore hi s ene mies did .

The ki n g might at lea s t have imitated Pilate and declared

, , ,
“ ”
I fin d n o fault in this man or in view of the safe conduct ,
-

s e n t him back to B ohemia to b e judged there by the king and

cl e rgy He had communicated to him through Lord Henry

.

’
L e fl t hat in ca s e the ki n g did no t approve of the coun cil s
,

j ud gment he would b e s e n t back in safety At a later date

,
.
,

J une 2 1 appare n tly le s t he should sin in no t returning good

,

for evil he wrote that he thanked Sigi s mund for a ll the kind
,

n e ss he had shown but in spite of hi m s elf a week later he

, , ,

e xp re ss ed the opi n ion that Sigi s m u nd had acted deceitfully

throughout the whole proceedi n g ?

H is thoughts were much upon Jerome his b eloved ,

a s s ociate He had n o word from him except that like

.

him s elf h e wa s al s o langui shing in a foul pri s on expecting

, ,

death on account of the faith to whi ch he had borne such

n oble wit n e ss to the B ohemians .

A s for the cou n cil he drew in his letters from his own , , ,

e xp e rie n ce s a s well as upon what he heard He contrasted .

the spiritual l e ader s gathered at Consta n ce who called them ,

1
The k i n g s e xa c
’
t wo rd s ,
a cco rd i
H u ss , we r e in f u tu r a a ud ien tia
ng to s cr ib er e
t u r t ib i b r ev itor et la r esp on d eb is ad ill u d D oc , 1 0 1 , 1 0 8 , 1 1 4
. . .

1
Doc 1 11 3
D oc 1 44
.
, .
.
,
.
2
36
JOHN HUS S

v o ted to co n demn him for here sy because he s old i n dulgence s ,

—
bi s hopric s a n d b e n e fic e s th e y them s el v e s bough t the s e
thi n g s from him a n d did a good bu si n e ss in selling them over
a gai n Joh n of L e it om ysl s ought twice to purcha s e the see
.

o f Pragu e for mo n ey W h y did the cardinal s elect hi m pope

.

wh e n th e y k n ew well that he was a homi cide and ki lled the

mo s t holy fath e r ? Here Hu ss wa s referring to Alexander
V whom i t was charged John had murdered
,
Why did .

pr e late s on bended k n ee adore him kiss h is feet and call him ,

— —
holy fath e r sa n ctiss imu s p a ter when they knew he was a
her e tic a n d a s odomi te ? Wh y did they s u ffer him to practi s e
s imo n y at the very moment he was exercising the function s

o f s upr e me po n tiff ?

Seldom h as there b een a more terri fi c characterization

of t h e papacy a s committed to b ad han d s Though nowadays .

Joh n X X III is s eldom if ever given a place by R oman , ,

C a tholic historia n s in the list of legitimate pope s ; never

t h e l e ss he wa s elected by cardinals an oecumenical council
, ,

w a s co n vened by his call a n d he wa s accep ted by the cou n cil

of Cons ta n ce a s pope and deposed by i t as a true pope O ther .

pope s had b ee n as b ad s ome of whom Huss poi n t s out in his

,

w ri ti n g s on the church —
John XII 9 54 9 64 an illegi timate
.
, ,

s on made pope at s ixteen was charged by a R oman syn od

, ,

with every crime of which depraved human nature was capa

b le — L
murder for ni cation perj ury He was ki l led in the very
, ,
.

act of committing adultery a n d was said to have drunk the

h e alth of the devil Of some of the pope s of the tenth ce n
.

tury even a Catholic his torian M ohler has said that they
’

, ,

w e re horrible pope s who s e crime s alo n e secured for them the

,

papal dig n ity B e n edict IX 1 0 3 3 —1 0 4 6 elected as a mere

.
, ,

boy is pro n ounced by Gr e gor ov iu s more boyi s h than Caligula

,

a n d more crimi n al tha n Heliogab alu s It s eems he say s as , ,

.

if a d e mon from hell in the guise of a prie s t were o ccupying

, ,

S t Pet e r s chair ? Alexander VI 1 4 9 2 —1 50 3 was yet to

.
’

, ,

1
H ist .
f
o the C ity f
o Rome , 4 42, 47 sq .
 B U R NED AT THE STAKE 23 7

come a p on t ifl during whose reign tragedy after tragedy

, ,

o ccurred in the papal household his children married in the ,

Vati can courtesa n s Openly flau n t e d hi mself a volup tuary

, , ,

a man of untamed sensuali ty lea ding as P astor says a , , ,

vicious life to the very end ?

In his la s t characterization of the council June 2 6 1 4 1 6 , , ,

Hu s s called i t proud avari cious and iniq ui tous with every

,

crime I t had done more harm than good The coun cill ors
. .
,

he wrote will b e s cattered abroad lik e butterfli es and their

, ,
’
decrees las t as long as spiders webs The words were bi t ing .
,

bu t there was some truth in them notably in the matter of the ,

decision by which the oecumenical council was pronounced the

supreme tribunal in the church Hu s s felt that the c ouncil .

had s triven to frighten or coerce him to sub mission and that ,

the resistance he was able to o ffer was a di rect gif t from ab ove .

In these pri s on hours his thoughts went out of ten to

,

“ ”
his fatherland B ohemia and he b ewailed the contumely
, ,

which had b een heaped upon i t on his account As t h e end .

of his life drew nearer his references to his faithful B ohemian

,

friends b ecame more and more tender As a result of th e .

’
council s dealing wi th him and the opi ni ons he represented ,

he looked forward to times of dire persecu tion in B ohemia ,

in which the lords temporal sho ul d make their influence felt ,

for they were more enl ightened he wrote in the thi ngs o f , ,

the Gospel than the lords spiritual He urged them to avoid .

all unworthy priests and to love good prie s ts according to ,

their works and to prevent o ther lords from oppressing good

,

priests Of the fi delity of his friends in Constance John of

.
,

Chlum and Wenz el of D ub a he could not s ay too mu ch ,

.

He expressed his warmest ob ligations to the B ohe mian and

Moravian noblemen and also the Polish nobles whose appeal s
to Sigi s mund had interceded for the fair treatment the royal
safe ~conduct imp l ied He requested them to give heed to
.

the reports that Chlum and o ther s would carry b ack with
1
Gesch d er P apste , 3
.
'

vi , 50 1 sq .
23 8 JOHN HUS S

them to B ohemia I t mu s t have been wi th the deepes t pang

.

o f home s ick n e s s tha t he expres s ed the hope that John of

Chlum a n d o ther fri e n d s so true to him in Cons tance migh t , ,

a rri v e s af e in their nati v e la n d ; and he called upon them ,

wh e n th e y got b ack to B ohe m ia to follow the ki n g who never ,

d i e s a m a n of s orrow s and the king of glory who giveth life

, , ,

e t e r n al
?

He s e n t me ss ages of a ffection and greeting to the wives

a n d childr e n of B ohemian noble s I n urging Wenzel of D ub a .
,

”
“
that n oble lord to put away the vanitie s of the world and
,

li v e in holy matrimo n y he represented him as a man who had,

b e e n a s oldier in many countries to the hurt of body and so u l .

’
Ju s t before his death he heard of D ub a s purpose to marry ,

a n d he wro te him a letter of congratulation

?

H is r e ference s to Wenzel and his queen Sophia show his , ,

w arm attachme n t to those sovereigns and his ob l igations for

th e ir co n s tant ki n d n e ss and for their zeal in seeking to secure
h is relea s e He called for prayer s that the Lord might keep
.

th e m in h is grace and at la s t give them eternal joy In .

co n v eyi n g a greeti n g a week before his death he expressed

, ,

the hop e that the q ueen might b e loyal to the truth and no t
take off en s e at him as though he had b een a heretic and in ,
“
h is very la s t letter he me n tions the name of hi s gracious
mi s tre ss the queen and b eg s again to express to her his
, ,

thank s for a ll the favors which sh e had shown to him 3

His .

r e coll e ctio n of t hi s lady who had attended the services at ,

t h e B ethl e hem chapel is a s honorable to him as it was to

,

her It is a te n der note when he expres s ed the fear that she

.
,

to whom he was so much i n deb ted might b e led by fal s e ,

r e port s to change her m ind toward him and regard him as a

heretic .

Nor did he forget h is other friend s no t so lofty in position , .

To J e s e n ic z he s e n t a message urging him to marry Writi n g .

to M a s t e r Marti n he s ent greeti n g s to people of humble

,

1
D oc .
, 1 27 .
2
D oc .
, 1 2 5 , 1 46 .
3
D oc .
, 1 1 9 , 1 2 7 , 1 4 5 , 1 48 .
2 46 JOHN H Uss

I, M as t e r J oh n Huss in ch a i n s an d in pri so n n ow s t a n di n g
, ,

o n t h e s h o r e o f th i s p r e s e n t l i f e a n d e x p e cti n g o n t h e m o rro w a

r f
d ead u dea l t h — h
w c i h w i ll I h o p e ur
p g e a w a y
,
my s
,
in —fin d n o
he r e sy in myse lf a n d a c ce p t with a ll m y h e art a n y truth what
so e v e r t h a t is w o rthy t o b e b e li e v e d ?

The la s t word s of thi s letter expre s s a wi s h that the u ni

v er sity m e n might lo v e B ethlehem chapel and commended ,

“
to th e ir co n s id e ratio n h is mo s t faithful and con s tant sup
porter a n d co mforter Peter M l a d e n owicz
”
,
.

Hu ss s aff ection for B ethlehem chapel was expressed in

’

t e n d e r me ssage s In a letter addre s sed to all the B ohemian

.

”
p e opl e he begged the P r agu er s to support the chapel
,

s a cel l u m
— s o far as God might permi t hi s Word to be preached

t h ere On account of it h e s aid the devil burned wi th great

.
, ,

rag e a n d he had excited the prie s t s agai n st i t whe n he sa w that

h is ki n gdom was in da n ger of bei n g overthrown by the activi ty
in that place He expre ss ed the hope that it migh t plea s e
.

God to pre s erve that chapel a n d that i t m ight b ecome more

u s e ful through the minis try of o ther s than i t had bee n through
h is own The prayer was no t destined to have a permanent
.

a n swer B ethlehem chapel was de s troyed by the Je s ui t s in

.

1 7 8 6 so that it is doub tful if a single ve s tige of it remains

,
.

The death who s e approach Huss had con s tantly b efore

,
“
him in the Fra n ciscan pri s on he often referred to a s the ,
”
drea d ful death He wa s left in comp l ete uncertainty as to
.

it s dat e but he wa s expecti n g the s ummon s at any moment ;

,

he e xp e cted i t to be by fir e ?
B y this death he hoped to b e ,

clean sed and purified like the old martyrs fro m hi s sin s and
, ,

m a d e meet for ad m i ss ion to the pre s ence of the holy S aviour .

H is suff ering s in pri s on and the delay of his death had given
him time a s he wrote to thi n k of the shame e n dured by
, ,

Chri s t a n d to meditate on his cruel cruci fixion I t had given .

him time to con sider the many pan g s e n dured by the s aints ,

a n d that t h e way to heaven out of thi s world to the worl d

’

1
D oc .
,
1 43 .
2
D oc .
, 1 1 7, 1 1 9 , 1 29, 1 43 , 1 44 .
 B U RN ED AT THE STA K E 241

to come is by sorrow and tears S o the martyr s had to learn . .

They were cu t in piece s buried and flayed alive boiled in , ,

caldrons quartered b urned an d o ther wise tor tured until death

, ,

gave relief He comf orted himself also by the example of

.

John t h e B aptis t by the M accab ees who were ready to b e

,

cu t to pieces rather than to eat fle sh II M ace 6 1 8—and

,

— .

by E l iezer who refused to deny havin g eaten flesh as a means

,

of escaping martyrdom He trusted in Chr is t for p atient .

end u rance in the pre s ent and glory hereafter He prayed .

he might no t b e allowed to recede from the divine truth nor

to swear away the errors falsely charged agains t him And .
,

from time to time he praised God for the help he had given
,

to him in his many trials Think in g of Jerome he felt sur e .

,

that t hat strong man would b e of a braver spiri t in suff erin g

“ ”
the ordeal of death than he would b e a weak sinn er B ut ,
.

e specially did he comfort hi mself by the examples of P aul and

P eter to whom despised and put to death by men Chris t
, , ,

gave the cro wn of glory receiving them into the heavenl y ,

fa t herland ?

Nor had Huss entirely broken loose fro m depending upon

the merits of the saints S everal t imes in his letters h e .
, ,

referred to their intercession and in one of his very la s t , ,

written to John of Chl um June 2 9 he exp ressed the hop e , ,

that the blessed P eter and P aul would intercede for him and
render him strong by their help to b ecome a partaker of their ,

glory At one time h e expressed the hope that God wo ul d

.

”2
give him del iverance through the merits of the saints .

It was however no t wi thout a great s truggle that he sub

, ,

m it t e d. I t was an easy thing to quote and expound words

of S crip ture bu t i t was most difficult as James counselled
, , ,

to coun t i t all j oy to b e in the mids t of divers trials Chris t .

knew Hu s s wrote that h e would ri s e on the third day and

, , ,
“
on the eve of hi s death he said : Let not your heart b e
” “
troubled . And yet he also said in the garde n : My soul is
”
sorrowful even unto death
,
.

1
D oc .
, 11 7, 1 41 , 1 43 , 1 44 .
2
D oc .
,
101 , 1 3 1 , 1 45 .
242 JOHN HUS S

In on e of h is letters to friends in Constance he offered up

t he p e ti tio n
Oh , l o vin g C hri st d ra w u s we akli n gs afte r thyse lf for if tho u
, , , ,

d r a wes t u s n o t w e c a n n o t f oll o w th e e Vouc h sa f e a bra v e spirit .

t h a t it m a y b e r e a d y I f t h e fle sh is we ak l e t thy grace go b e f o r e
.
, ,

p
r o c e e d in t h e mi d d l e a n d f oll o w F o r without th ee w e c a n d o
,
.

n o t hi n g b u t i n d e e d f o r thy s ak e w e c a n go t o a cru e l d e a th
,
Vo uch .

s a f e a r e a d y s p ir i t a f e a rl e ss h e art a ri ght f a ith a firm h o p e an d

, , ,

a p e r f e c t l o v e th a t f o r thy s ak e we may lay do wn our lif e with all

,

p a t i e n c e a n d j oy Am e n ? .

Chri s ts mercy and safe conduct coul d b e relied on im

’
-

“
p l ic it l y To
. John of Chlum and D ub a he wrote : What
God promis e s His servants He performs What He pledges .

Hims elf to give He ful fils He deceives no one by a s afe

,
.

co n duct N O s ervant who is faithful to Him does He send

.

”2
a w ay .

The S criptures were like springs of living water at which

h e drank deep drafts to s atisfy his s piritual weariness Again .

“
a n d again he stops at such passages as these : Fear not
th e m that kill the body and after that have no more that
” “
th e y can do If any man will come after me let him take
.
,

up his cross and fo l low me ”

Where I am there shall my .

s erva n t be al s o If the j ail of B edford was t u rned into a

.

gate of heaven the place where the guide book to the heave nl y
,
-

’
cou n try The P ilgr im s P r ogr ess was written so also in the
, , ,

pri son s in the friaries of Constance a ladder was set up b etween

heaven and earth up whi ch the outgoings of the B ohemian
’
pri s o n er s s oul ascended and down which des cended messages
of hope and stre n gth .

Whil e Hu s s was daily waiting in exp ectation of death ,

the council held on its way making ready for that event Th e , .

protest of the two hundred and fifty B ohemian and Moravian

n oble s wa s read before it June 1 2 Three days later the .
,

cou n cil wa s proceedi n g wi th the work of legislating ag ai nst

h e re sy and solemn ly forb ade the giving of the cup to t h e
1
D oc .
,
131 .
2
D oc .
, 1 43 .
2 44 JOHN HUSS

r e mi n di n g them of a tract he had sent forth on the subj ect

wh e th e r in Co n s ta n ce or no t we can n o t b e certain
— and
s tati n g h e had n othin g further to s a y in additio n to what he

had th e r e s aid co n c e r n i n g t h e teachin g s of the go spel s and

Paul H e urg e d h is frie n d s to make an e ffort to secure from
.

t h e cou n cil p e rmi ss ion for the B ohe m ian s to u s e the cup .

T h e cou n cil s actio n at it s thirteenth se ss ion June 1 5 w a s

’
, , ,
“
tr e at e d by Hu ss as a renunciation of the Go spel What .

” “
mad n e ss he wrot e to condem n as a n error the Go spel O f
, ,

C h ri s t a n d Paul s epi s tle s wherei n Paul said he had received

’

t h e w ord s of i n s ti tution no t from man but from Christ ; ay ,

’
to co n dem n as an error Christ s very act and example when
h e ordai n ed the cup for all adult Christians ! The council
actua lly call s it an error that believing laym en should b e
allo w e d to drink of the cup of the Lord and prie s t s pers i s ting ,

in gi v i n g them to drink are here ti cs Oh S t Paul thou .

,
.
,

s ay e s t to all the faithful As oft as ye eat this bread an d ,

‘

’
dri n k thi s cup ye do show forth the Lord s death t ill he come ,

that is ti l l the day of judgment a n d now it is said that the

, ,
”1
cu s tom of the R oman Church is agains t it !
Later June 2 1 he wro te to H awlik of the B ethlehem
, ,

chapel n o t to refuse the cup of the Lord which the Apostles

di spe n s ed for there is no S cripture against it but only custom
, ,
.

’
Cu s tom is n o t to be followed but Chri s t s example The .

cou n cil allegi n g custom has denied the communion of the

, ,

cup to layme n and the prie s t who di spense s it is a heretic

,
.

’
What madne s s to damn Chri s t s ordi n ance as an error ! Hu s s
urged H awlik no t to oppose J a cob e ll u s longer lest a schi s m ,

—
be made among the faithful an occurre n ce which woul d
gr e atly de l ight the devil Again in a letter which is of .
,

doub tful authe n ticity he urged the priest to whom it was

,

writte n to di s tribute both elements at the Supper .

The tract in which Hus s had embodied h is views was

written appare n tly b efore he left Prague for it s numerous ,

q uotatio n s from the Father s seem to re n der i t impo ss ible

2

1
D c
o . 6
,
1 2 D c 9 . 8 2
T h e tr a t is fo
o .
,
1d in M on
, 12 5
—55 . c un .
, 1 2 .
 B U R NED AT THE STAKE 2 45

for him to have written it in Constance . It is enti tled

’
The R ecep tion b y L a ymen f o C hr is t s B l ood u n d er the F or m
of Win e Nine tenths of
. the tract is taken up with quota
-

tions from the accredited church authorities from Cyprian , ,

Jerome and Au g ustine down to Alb ertus M agnus and Lyr a .

Huss cited Gela sius who declared that the use of one element ,

cannot b e separated from the o ther without great s acrilege .

He cited Ambrose who was followed by Thomas Aquinas ,

1
,

’
to show that Chri s t s flesh is eaten for the welfare of the body
and hi s blood for the wel l b eing of the soul He also cited -
.

the commentator Lyra as sayi ng that in the primi tive church

, ,

bo th elements had b een distributed in the sacrament Huss .

conclude s the tract by dwe l ling upon the accounts in M atthew

and I Corinthi ans He asserts that the consecrated layman .

should partake of both elements as much as the pries t for ,

“
P au l said : As of t as ye eat this bread and drink thi s cup ye
” ’
do show forth the Lord s death .

’
The next action taken by the council bearing on Hus s s
case and of w hi ch he heard in pri s on was the decree ordering
2

—
his books burned even his books written in Czech whi ch ,

the cou n cillors had no t even seen much less read French —
,

men Italians B ritons Sp ani ards Germans and persons of

, , , ,

o ther countrie s Lest his friends should b e intimidated by the

.

’
action he remin ded them that Jeremiah s prophecies had been
,
’
burned and yet at God s command and while the prophet was
,

in prison he had di ctated them over again to B aruch adding

, ,

at the same time prophecies He gave his au t hority as Jere .

ah 3 5 or 4 5 M l a d e n owicz at thi s po int added a note to the

.

eff ect that Huss di d no t have the book of Jere mi ah at hand

and that the exact reference was chapter 3 6 In the days
of the M accab ees books were burned ; and in the times of
the New Testament they burned holy men who had books
of the divine law in their posse s sion Cardinals had bur ned .

F ri e d b e r g
’
1
Cor p u s j u r . ca n .
, d e Con sec .
, 2 12 . s ed .
,
1 131 8 .

2
D oc .
,
1 3 4, 1 39 .

3
D oc .
,
1 32 .
2 46 JOHN HUS S

all the copies of Gr egor y s M or a l s they could lay their hands ’ 1

o n a n d Chry s o s tom w a s condemned for heresy by two coun

,

cil s a n d y e t he w as afterward exo n erated .

T h e s ame treatment bur n ing in the fl ame s continued long , ,

after Hu ss s death to be prescribed by the authoritie s for

’

un welcome publication s The cu s tom held on well Even . .

in New E n gla n d by the order of the M as s achusett s legisla

,

ture one of the v ery fir s t theological books produced on

,

our s oil William Py n chon s The M er itor iou s P r ice of Ou r

,
’

Red e mp tion wa s burned 1 6 5 0 , ,

.

To the charges brought against him by the council Huss ,

r e plied on July 1 in a formal confession wri tten with his

o wn hand repeating that i t was his purpose not to recant
,
.

It ru n s thus : 2

I Joh n Huss in h ope a pri e st of J e sus C hri st f e ari n g t o ofle n d

, , ,

G o d a n d f e ari n g to f all i n to p e rj ury do h e r e by prof e ss m y u m ,

w i ll i n g n e ss t o a b j ur e all or a n y o f t h e articl es produc e d agai n s t

m e b y f al s e wit n ess e s For G od is my wit n e ss th a t I did n o t pr e ach
.
,

a ffir m o r d e f e n d th e m thou gh they say that I did ,

More o v e r con .
,

c e r ni n g t h e a rticl e s e x tr a ct e d from my bo oks I s ay that I det e st ,

a n y f a l se i n t e rpr e t a tio n which an y of th e m b e ar s but i n a smuch ,

a s I f e a r t o o ff e n d ag a i n s t t h e truth or to g a in s ay t h e opi n io n of

t h e d oc t o r s o f t h e church I c an n o t ab j ur e a n y o n e of th e m
,
And .
,

if i t we re p ossibl e th a t m y v oice could n ow re ach t h e whol e wo rld

a s a t t h e d ay o f j ud gm en t e v e ry l ie a n d e v e ry sin that I ha v e

c o mm itt e d will b e m ad e ma n if e s t—th en wo ul d I g ladly ab j ur e

b e fo r e all t h e world e v e ry f a l se ho o d an d e rr o r which I h a d e ith e r

th ought o f s ayin g or actually s aid I writ e thi s of my own fr e e .

will a n d choice .

Writing to his friends he had reiterated again and again ,

that he had no t recalled or recanted a s ingle one of the ar

f iel e s He pronounced them shameless and trumped up
.

again s t him by fal s e witnes s es Although some of them were .

l ti a Lif e f S av ia u s G r egor o iu s 2 9 4 r e j e c t s t h e s t ory in t h e fo rm

1
P a n ,
o n . v , ,

i whi c h it is t o l d b y J o h n t h e D e a co n M i g n e v o l XX V
n
J o h n t h e D eacon , , . .

Sp ks f t h e p eo pl e a d n o t t h e c r d i n a l s h a vi n g b u r e d t h e b oo ks
ea o n a n .

T h t t is i H rd t 4 3 8 9
1
e ex n E n g l tr a s l b y W o r k m an
a , 75 P a l a ck y
. . n .
,
2 .
,

D oc d oe s o t g iv e it b t h is G sch I I I 1 3 6 3 s p e a k s o f i t a s g e n u i n e
.
,
n ,
u e .
, , ,
.
2 48 JOHN HUS S
”
as you ha v e k n own it At the s e hones t words Hu ss wep t .

a n d s aid : D octor Joh n k n ow well that if I felt that I had

“
,

w ritt e n or preach e d a n ything co n trary to the law a n d to

h oly moth e r church which is erroneous I would recall i t , ,

God b e i n g my wit n e s s B ut I have always desired a n d still .

d e s ir e that they show me out of the S cripture s things b etter

a n d mor e clo s e to the tru th than the things I have written

a n d taught A n d if they are s hown me I am mos t ready to

, ,

recall th e m .

At thi s poi n t on e of the bishop s exclaimed : S O you want

”
to b e wi s er tha n the whole council ! To this Huss replied
that he did no t want to b e wiser than the whole council but ,

he a sked that they give him even the leas t member s i tting
in the cou n cil to i n s truct hi m by S crip ture s more weighty
a n d coge n t tha n those he had used and he was ready forth ,

with to r e cant Thi s s tatement was met by the bi s hops with

.

“ ”
the exclamation : See how obs tinate he is in his here s y ! ,

The la s t s ce n es were to occur on the foll owing day the ,

6 t h of July After more than eight months of dismal im

.

pri so n me n t Huss was taken and led to the cathedral where

, ,

the cou n cil held its fi fteenth session Sigi s mund was there .
,

wearing h is crown and at his s ide Ludwig count palatine , , ,

Frederick of N iir n b e r g Henry duke of B avaria and a mag , , ,

n ate of Hu n gary whose function i t was to carry the insigni a

of empire —
,

the imperial apple the crown the s ceptre and the , , ,

s w ord There was a full attendance The cardi n al arch

? -
.

bi shop o i O s tia presided Hu s s who was conducted to the .

,

cathedral by the bishop of R iga remained out s ide the door ,

while the ma ss wa s bei n g sung He was the n taken i n s ide .

,

an d reachi n g a small platform in the middle of the church

,

e i
rai s d l ke a table he k n elt and prayed for some time On
2
,
.

1
Ml d wi a t D
eno
3 6 —
cz
3 4
’
T h ac oun t o f J oh B r b a t
s a ccou n oc 1 2 e c n a u s,
—
.
, , .

D oc .
, 55 6 558 . R
,
i h e t al
c n
; H a r d t 78
, 4
—
s qq
4 7 5 00
0

ad mod u m m e n s a —M l a d
. .

S ed es ,
D oc , 2 1 7 P os itu s in medio sca m n o al to
. . . .

Har d 4 t , 3 89 S e e a l so M a n si , 2 7 7 4 7
.
U b i e r a t l ev a tu s in al tu m sca m n u m
.

pro eo .
 B U R NED AT THE STAKE 2 49

the platform were placed the priestly rob es used at the cele
bration of the mass .

The proceeding s were opened with an address by the

bishop of Lodi on R oman s 6 6 : that the body of sin migh t
”
b e done away . The prelate repre s ented that the exter mi na
tion of heretics was a work most pleasi n g to God He dwelt .

—
upon the familiar illu s tratio n s for here s y a rotten piece of
fl e s h the little spark which unle ss checked turn s to a great
, ,

fl ame and burns up the house the creeping cancer the scabby
, ,

member of the flock The more virulent the poison the

.

swifter should b e the application of the cauterizing iron .

No t less h a d was the priso n er than Arius who was a spark , ,

— —
a glimmer scin till a in Alexandria but b ecause the spark
,

was no t immediately p ut ou t it depopulated almost the whole

world with it s flame And mu ch worse was he than S ab e lliu s
. .

With lurid strokes he pictured the evils that had grown

out of the Prague here s ies even to the murder of priests
, ,
’
the daily contemp t to which Christ s bride the mother of ,

th e faithful wa s given over and the mocking disregard of

, ,

the keys of the church The abo mination of de s olation wa s

.

wor s e in that day than in the old days of the cruel persecution
of the Chr istian martyrs Then the body was oppres s ed ;
.

in church s chi s ms the souls of men are destroyed In the .

former ca s e human blood was spilled ; in s chism the orthodox

faith is put to shame That persecution of the pagan world
.

wa s to many as salt ; this s chism to many as death U n der .

fi erce pagan tyrants the faith grew ; in s chi s m the faith

perishe s Tyrant s s inned in ignorance ; in s chi s m many sin in
.

knowledge and in ob s ti n acy B y s chi s m eccle s iastical lib erty

.

su f fers injury and the unity e n j oined is s e t a s ide All the .

laws of religion and sanctity are relaxed Heretics s hould b e .

coerced and damned that the body of sin may b e de s troyed

,
.

In the s tyle of B o s suet more than two centuries later

, ,

when he preached before Louis XI V and appealed to him to

proceed against church di ss enters an d eulogized him as ano ther
2 56 JOHN HUS S

Co n s ta n tine Theodo sius and Ju s ti n ian the bishop of Lodi

, , ,

pr e ss e d upon the ki n g the obligatio n to bind up the lacerated

w ou n d s of t h e church to heal the gapi n g s chi s m a n d to ex
,

t ir p a t e h e r e s y For that work the ki n g was elected of God

.
,

d e put e d from heave n before he wa s cho s en on earth B y .

e xecuti n g it he would secure unending fame and unfading

glory —p er p etu a f a ma et cel eb r is gl or ia .

’
The sermon over the council s proctor Henry of Piro
, , ,

ann ou n ced that the council would continue the pro s ecution
of Joh n Hus s and an admonition was made forbidding all
,

d e mo n stratio n s with hand or foot all applause or words of ,

di sapproval or other interruption of any sort The articles .

drawn from Wyclif s writi n gs and co n demn ed by the u ni

’

v e r sity of Oxford were read A bishop then read from the .

’
pulpit the thirty articles taken from Huss s writings and the
proceedi n g s connected with his hearing At the reading of .

the very first article defining the church as the totality of

,

the elect Huss attemp ted to speak but was interrup ted by
, ,

d A ill y who bade him keep silence and wai t ti l l the whole
’
,

li s t had been read when he might make a reply To thi s

,
.

method Hu s s objected on the ground that he would not b e

able to remember all the charges Cardinal Z ab ar ell a ex .

“ ”
claimed be silent We have already heard you enough
,
.
,

a n d bade the beadles keep Huss quiet Then with folded .

,
“
ha n d s and in a loud voice Hus s cried out : In the sigh t of
,

God I deman d that you hear me lest I b e bel ieved to have held
,

”
errors Afterward do with me what you please
. When i t .

wa s e vident that the council was in no mood to li s ten b e ,

be n t on his knee s and lifting his eyes to heaven prayed

, ,

ferve n tly .

Whe n the charge s were read that the accused held to the
remanence of the bread and the i n va l idity of act s done by a
pri e s t in mortal sin Huss again attempted to reply ; and again
,

Z a b a r e l l a commanded him to be s ilent B ut Hu ss per s i s ted .

,

sayi n g that he had never held taught or preached that t h e ,

2 52 JOHN HUS S
—
fac e was flu shed with s hame il l e sta tim vehemen ter er u b u it .

Thi s i n ci d e n t is n o t giv e n by M l a d e n owicz in h is longer a c

c o u n t bu t i t is fou n d in h is s maller accou n t in the B ohemian
,

l a n guag e ? A hu n dred year s later Charle s V urged to s eize ,

“
Luth e r at Worms is reported to have replied : I will no t
,
”
blu s h like my pr e decessor Sigi s mund ,
.

Two s entences were then pronounced by an Italian

prelate the bi shop of Concordia the one ordering his books
, ,

bur n ed a n d the other pronouncing Huss a heretic The sub .

“
s ta n ce of the former is as follows : The holy general council
of Con s ta n ce called of God As a bad tree is known by
it s bad fruit s s o John Wyc l if of damned memory is known
,

by h is deadly teachings and the sons of perdi tion whom he

hath begotte n agai n st whom the holy council is bound to
,

ri s e up bastard and illegitimate as the o ffspring is and to

, ,
’
pull out the errors from the Lord s fi eld as noxious vipers and
to provide proper culture that the cancer do not wind its
way on to the destruction of others In s pi te of the holy .

cou n cil s recent condemnation of the evil teachings of John

’

Wyclif a man of damned memory to the fir e John Huss a

, , , ,

di s ciple n ot of Christ but of John Wyclif the here s iarch , ,

h a s spread heresies through his books and by hi s preachings

a n d h a s in the presence of a multitude of the people and the

clergy pronounced John Wyclif a Catholic man and an

n —
eva gelical doctor v ir cathol icu s ci d octor ev a n gel icu s And .

wherea s the s e matters have been fully proved before the

cardinals patriarchs the archbi s hops the bishops the o ther
, , , ,

prelates and doctors of the S criptures and laws— thi s mos t

,

holy council of Co n s tance declares and decree s the thirty

a rticl e s s ca n dalou s erroneou s rash and seditiou s and some
, , ,

notoriou sly heretical and doth order the book enti tled d e
,

E ccl es ia and his other book s written in Lati n and Czech to

be publicly bur n ed a n d where s oever found the eccle s ia s tical
, ,

authoritie s s hall publicly commit them to the flames and ,

1
M on .
,
2 518 .
 B U R NED AT THE STAKE 2 55

all who disregard the decree shall b e proceeded against by

” 1
the inquisitors of heretical depravity .

The sentence again s t Hu s s himself was in substance as

follows : It declared that after full reports from the com
mission appointed by the council and from masters of theology
and doctors of the law b ased upon the testimony of ma n y
witnesses worthy of credi t the council found that John Hu s s
,

had for many years taught many things evil s candalous , ,

seditious and dangerously heretical Having God only b efore .

it s eye s the mos t holy council of Constance pronounced

, ,

decreed and declared John Huss a true and manifest hereti c ,

havi n g taught errors and heresie s s ince long time condemned ,

in the church of God and preached them He had s tubbornly

,
.

treated with contemp t the key s and ecclesiastical cen s ure s

and had interposed an appeal to the Lord Jesus Chris t as
S upreme Judge in which he laid down positions scandalou s
,

to the apostoli c see itself and b eli ttling ecclesiastical censure s

and the keys The council condemned him a s a misleader of
.

the people who had seduced them from the faith in B ohemi a
,

by his teachings and writings Inasmuch as he was incor .

r igib l e and unwil l i n g to return to the bosom of holy mother

church and abj ure his here s ie s i t ordered him to b e degraded ,

from the pries thood And hav ing in mind that the church
.
,

of God had no o ther course open to it the council relinquis hed ,

him to the secular authority and decreed that he was to b e

tur ned over to it ?

No t a dissenting voice was raised agains t th e sentence .

At the conclusion of the reading of this verdict Huss ex ,

claimed in a loud voice that he had never been obs tinate

nor was he then but that he had always desired more
,

weighty information from the S crip ture and e speciall y did he ,

desire i t that day After the reading of the previous sentence

.

1
M on .
, 33 5
1 H a rd t , 4 ,43 6 sq .
; G ill
E ng e tt
.
,
2 8—
tr an s l
5 60 . .

2
A tte n to q u od eccl es ia D e i n on ha b ea t u l tr a q u od a ge r e va l ea t j ud icio s ecu l a r i
r el in q u it et ip su m cu r ia s ec u l ar i r el in q u end u m f or e d ecer n it H a r d t , 4 43 7 . .
2 54 JOHN HUS S

a gai n s t his books he exclaimed that the council had not

,

p o i n ted ou t a s ingle error in them and begged that alleged ,

e rror s might be poi n ted ou t a n d as for his books in the ,

vulgar B ohemian he a sked how the council could condemn

,

what i t had never looked upon with it s own eyes Huss fell .

upo n h is k n ees and prayed that out of his great mercy Chri s t
i n
—
might pardon h s e emie s those who had falsely accused
him and suborned false witnesses The prayer was received .

by the council with indignation or ridicule .

’
The process of Hus s s degradation from the priesthood ,

a s ordered in the se n tence followed at the hands of seven ,

prelate s includi n g the archbi shop of Milan and the suffragan

,

bi shop of Con s tance The white robe of the altar was placed
?

“
o n him At this he said : When my Lord Jesus Chris t was
.

led from Herod to Pilate he was clad in a white robe B eing ,

.

a sked to recant he turned to t h e assembled throng and wi th

, ,
“
t e ars in h is eyes refu s ed sayin g : I fear to do this thing les t
, ,

I be found a liar in the eyes of the Lord and also lest I sin
a gain s t my con s cience and God s tru th —n e con scien tia m et
’

D ei ver ita tem ofi en d a m I have not held the arti cles falsely .

a s cribed to me but rather have I taught and preached the

,

oppo site I also refuse to abjure les t I give o ffense to the

.

” ’
multitude to whom I have faithfully preached God s Word .

At thi s a prie s t s itti n g near him cried out :

, See how , ,

harde n ed he is in his wickedness and obstinate in his

”
heresy !
Hu s s then s tepped down from the platform and the bishops
di v ested him of the prie s tly rob e and took from him the
chalice they had placed in his hands accompanying the act ,
“
with the O bjurgation : O cursed Judas who hast spurned the ,

cou n sel s of peace and hast taken counsel wit h th e Jews we ,

”
take from thee thi s cup of redemption To this Huss replied : .

“
My trust is in the Lord God Almighty for whose name I ,

1
R i ch e n t a l , p . 80 ; M on .
, 1 3 6 ; Ha dr t 4 43 3
, , 43 7 . The accou n s t d i ff e r
in r e g a rd t o the n u mb e r of th e pr e l a t es t ak i n g p a rt in thi s r
c e e m on y .
2 56 JOHN HUS S

in g his books in the churchyard he said smiling to the b ys t an d ,

e r s n o t to believe that he was about to di e for errors for they

, ,

w e re fal s e ly imputed to him Almo s t all of the city was on .

tr
t he s ee s t — women as R i chental is careful to s ay a s well as
, ,

m en — bu t the larger part of the throng wa s kep t b ack from

f e a r that the bridge at the G e l t in g e r Gate migh t break down
u n der the w e ight of so great a crowd The place fixed for the .

e x e cutio n was out s ide the city walls in a meadow a s you go , ,

’
toward the ca s tle of Gottlieben and where a cardi n al s ass ,

had r e ce n tly been buried Perhap s Hu s s looked on to the .

ca s tl e its elf where he had endured lo n ely imprisonment for

,

two months .

Arrived at the s pot appointed Huss kneeled and sang ,

p s alm s : Have mercy upon me O God and In Thee O Lord , , , ,

d o I put my tru s t Some of his friends remai n ed with him to

.

t h e end a n d heard h is prayers S ome propo s ed that he have a .

co n fe s sor but a friar on horseback dre ss ed in a green mantle

,

h e ld by a red silken b and replied that he was a heretic and

de served no confessor Another account that of R ichental
.
, ,

s tate s that he himself asked Huss whether he wanted a con

f e ss or and called the priest Ulrich S ch or an d Ulrich asked .

Hu ss whether he would renounce his errors To t his he .

“ ”
replied that i t is no t necessary I am no mortal s inner ,
.

“
Hu ss had confessed in prison and been ab s olved by a do ctor
”
mo n k who listened to him as Hu ss himself writes in a
, , ,

ki n dly a n d right b eautiful spirit absolved him and gave him ,

ad v ice but did not enjoin him to do what the commissioners

,

had ad v i s ed him to do ?
He was about to s peak to the by s tanders in German but ,

the count palatine would no t allow it While he wa s engaged .

in pray e r his paper cap fell off

,
Huss smiled and the b y .
,

s ta n d e r s picking i t u
, p placed i t again on his head with the
,

wro n g s ide however fore remarking that i ts wearer s hould b e

, , ,

burn ed up with his ma s ters the devils whom he had served , ,

.

1
D oc .
, 136; M l ad .
, D oc .
, 322 .
 B U R NED AT THE STAKE 2 57

R ising from prayer and so as to b e heard by his friends near

“
by he said : Lord Jesus Christ I wish to bear most pa t iently
, ,
’
and humbly for thy Gospel s sake and the preaching of thy
”
Word this dire i gnominious and cruel dea t h
, ,
Once again .

he urged a ll not to c re di t the articles charged against him .

His outer garments bein g removed his hands were tied with ,

ropes b ehin d his b ack and bound to a s take When they .

no ticed that his face was toward the east a position w hi ch ,

did no t b efi t him because he was a here ti c they turned his ,

body so that i t should face the west His neck was then
.

bound to the s take by a ru sty chain Two bundles of fagots ?

were placed under his feet and mixed with s traw the pile ,

was heaped up around his body to his chin Addressing h is .

“
executioners he said : The Lord Jesus Christ my R edeemer
, , ,

was bound with a harder chain and I a miserable S inner , , ,

’
am not afraid to bear this one bound as I am for his name s,
’
sake ?
Once more an opportuni ty was given him to recant this ,

time by the marshal of the empire Happo of Poppenh eim , ,

”
and the count pala t ine God is my witness Huss replied
.
,
“
that the things charged agains t me I never preached .

And then he repeated : In the same truth of the Gospel

w hich I have written taught and preached drawing upon
, ,

the sayings and positions of the holy do ctors I am ready to ,

”
die to day-

. At t his the two nobles s truck their hands to

gether and left .

The combustibles were then lighted and while the flames ,

“
were licking up around the helpless body Huss sang : C hr iste ,

fil D ei v vi miser ere mei

i i — Chris t thou S on of the l iving God
, ,
“
have mercy upon me And as he reached the line qu i n a tu s
.
,
”— —
s
e e x M a r ia Virgin e who art born of the Virgin M ary t h e
flames were blown by the wind into his face Almost sti fl ed .
,
“
he s till was able to articulate Lord into thy hands I com
, ,

1
Ufi r echt b r ett—u pri g h t b o a r d —a s R i c h en t a l p u t s i t H e a l s s p ea ks o f . o

pit c h whi c h h a d b e en thr o wn u p on t h e s tr aw a n d o f t h e t e rri b l e od o r g iven

forth b y t h e c a r ca s s o f t h e b u r n e d ass a f t e r t h e fir e was we ll b e gun .
 2 58 JOHN HUSS

m e n d my s piri t a n d moving his head as if biddin g farewell ,

a n d in prayer h e d ied as the faithful M l a d e n owicz writes ,

—
, ,

in t h e Lord ex s p ir a v it in D omin o .

T h e tradi tio n ca n not b e veri fi ed that to an old woman car

“ ”
r yin g wood to the s take Huss exclaimed : Oh s imple piety ! ,
’
Luth e r q uotes the word s in h is Preface to some of Hu ss s
“
w riti n g s 1 53 7 The o ther tradition that Huss said
,
. To , ,

d a y you are burni n g a Goo s e but out of my ashes will be ,

”1
bor n a swan whom you wi ll not burn ,
was no t a prophecy ,

s poke n by him but the invention of a later t ime ,

It o ccur s .

’
s e veral time s in Luther s work s and may have been made up
’
in part from Hu s s s own words and in part from those u ttered
”
by Jerome He hoped so he wro te in one of his letters
.
, ,

that after h is death God would raise up braver men to make

bare the malice of antichri s t and lose their lives for the tru t h
of the Lord Je s u s ” —
Jerome s words wer e referring to him .
’

s e lf
— that the cou n cil had condemn ed him falsely and u m
j u s tly havi n g found no evil in him and that after his death
, ,

he would return to trouble the consciences of its members

with remorse He ci ted them all to appear after one hundred
.

y e ar s had passed a n d in the prese n ce of the mos t high God , ,

the fi n al Judge to make reply to him ?

,

When the executioners pushed do wn what remained of

the body held by the chain another load of wood was brought ,
.

The skull was broken wi th s ticks and the heart which had , ,
’
bee n thru s t through was bur ned to ashes At the palatine s , .

comma n d the garme n t s held by execu tioners were al s o

3
, ,

1
H od ie a n ser e m u r itis s ed ex m eis c in er ib u s n as cetu r cygn u s q uem n on as

sa rc p oter it is .

2
r
E t ego p os t m o te m m eam r el in q n a m in con scie n tia v es t r a r emor s u m et cito vos
o m n es u t r cs p on d ea t is m ihi cor a m al tis s im o ct inf r a cen tu m
j u stiss imo j ud ice ,

a n n os . S e e G ie s e l e r , 2 3, pp .
4 1 7 sq ; H e fel e 7 2 13 ; D oc .
,
1 3 5, a sol 39; M on .
,

2 5 26 .

2
i h e t l st a t e s th a t th e y co si s t e d o f t wo g ood c oa t s o f b l a ck c l o th a
R c n a n ,

g ird l e with s ilv r g ilt c l s p t wo kn iv e s in t h e s h ea th a n d a l e a th e r s c rip in

a e -
a , , ,

whi c h th e r e w s prob ab ly som e m o e y T h e pri n c ip a l a c co u n t s o f t h e

“ ”
a n .

sce n s a t t h e s t ak e a r e b
e
y thi s a u th o r b y M l ad en o wic z an d B a rb a t u s D oc
, . .
,

3 23 54 -
2 55 7 W
 CHAPTE R XI

HU S S S
’
P LA C E IN H I S T OR Y

P er t uI er zm t a mb o con s ta n ti a n imo n ecem , et q u a si ad ep ul a s in v ita ti

ad in ce n d iu m pr op er a r u n t . r r
U b i a d e e ca p er u n t hym n u m cec in er e
q u e m v ix fl a mm a cl f a go ignris i r
n t er cip er e p ota il N e mo p hil os op hor u m .

r r r r
t o m f o ti a n imo m o te m p er t ul isse t ad itu u t is ti in cen d iu m .

ylvi
! E n eas S -
h p XXX
u s : H ist B oh , c a VI . . . .

W ith a s t e d fas t m i n d b o th b o r e d e a th an d a s if i n vi t e d t o a fe as t
a , ,

so th e y h as t e n e d t o t h e s t ak e W h e n th e y b e g an t o b u rn th e y s an g
.
,

a hy m n whi ch t h e fl m e an d n oi se o f t h e fir e we r s ca r ce ly ab l e t o
a e

i n t r pt N phil osoph e r w a s e v r r e p o rt e d t o h a v e b orn e d e a th

er u . o e

with so b r a v e a s pirit as th e s e t wo d id t h e fl am e s .

J OH N H U S S was burned but no t vanquished He b elongs .

to the hi s tory of his own people as a patrio t identi fi ed with

o n e of the most active periods of it s annal s and to quote the ,
“
B ohemian savant F l aj sh a n s as our greates t and mo s t ,
”1
famou s theologian of the fi fteenth century He has a place .

in the wider history of his age for the conspicuous part he

played at the cou n cil of Constance so that as long as that , ,
’
a s s e mbly s proceedings continue to have an intere s t hi s name ,

will excite i n terest and hi s career b e studied And he has a .

place in the s ti l l wider his tory of modern progre s s as a pre

cur sor of the R eformation and a wi tnes s in favor of the sacred
rights of conscie n ce .

As a n actor among his own people Huss stands forth al s o ,

a s it s most notable preac her and a leader without equal in

the i n t e llectual life of its university He was the best known .

-

a n d the best beloved priest of his times in B ohemia

-

We have .

1
S u p e r I V l ib b . S e nt .
, p iv.
,
r
u n s e es gr os s te n u nd b er ithmtesten The ol ogen ,
 ’
HUS S S PLACE IN HISTO R Y 261

no record of any one who was at once more honored at the

cour t and more beloved by the common people He was a .

prolific pamphleteer and the two large folio volume s of twelve

,

hundred pages with double columns do no t exhaust his Latin

work s no t to speak of his works written in the B ohemian
,
.

His writings so far as the Western reader knows are the mos t
, ,

s timulating£111 rich that the B ohemian li terature has pro

d u ce d His pen was adap ted not merely to attract the popular
.

hearing in a time of controversy ; i t al s o dropped messages

of learning in his C ommen tar y on the S en ten ces of P eter the
L om b ar d recently discovered as well as in o ther writings
, ,
.

I n his espousal of the cause of the Czechs as against the Ger

mans which brough t upon him much Opposition and justi fi ed
,

him as he though t in fearing death at the ha n ds of Ger

, ,

mans he was in the righ t Prague was the capital of the

,
.

Czech ki ngdom and i t was fi tting that i ts university no

, ,

matter what the old charter was should b e controlled by

,

those who were of the Czech nationality Though he con .

d e m n e d intermarriages b etween Czechs and Germans or at ,

least demanded that the children of such marriages speak

Czech we must no t on that account charge him with bigotry
,
.

D id he not also say that he preferred a good German to a

b ad B ohemian ? For these reasons Huss lives on in the hearts
of a large body of followers and also Catholi c admirers in
B ohe mi a .

For centuries his name was treated with obloquy by the

popul ation of hi s native land E ff orts were made by the
.

Je sui ts to entirely blot out his memory or at leas t to cover

, , ,

i t wi th such contumely as to make i t synonymous with ir

religion and the subver s ion of the true interest s of his people .

Wh en P a l acky published his H istor y of B ohemia th at work ,

was subjected to rigid inves tigation by the censor and on , ,

a ccount of references supposed to condemn the religious

authorities with whom Hu ss had to do parts of it were cu t
,

out The modern visitor to Prague always associates the

.
2 2 JOHN H Uss

city with the name of John Nepomuk as it s patron sai n t 1

.

T h e figu re of thi s s ai n t h a s bee n u s ed to ca s t Hus s into the

sh a d o w a n d Nepomuk s hi s tory whether wholly matter of ’

, ,

l e g e n d or of partial truth h a s been employed to give to the ,

s a i n t a s upr e me place in the a ffectio n s of the B ohemian s as

’
an e arthly example of the heavenly virtue s The s aint s .

r e al n a m e wa s Joh n W e l fin of P om u k a city sixty fiv e miles ,

-

s outh w e s t of Prague A s far a s we can make out a man of

.
,

thi s n ame was in 1 3 73 connected with the chancery of the

, ,

archbi shop of Prague ; after his ordination 1 3 7 8 or 1 3 80 wa s , ,

mad e pari sh prie s t of S t Gallus and from 1 3 9 0 to 1 3 93 was .

,

acti v e as vicar — ge n eral of the diocese He is said to have b een .

rich an d to have made loans I n 1 3 93 according to the later .

,

leg e n d he was drown ed in the Moldau into which he had

,

been thrown by order of King We n zel for his devotion to

J oh n of J e n z e n s t ein archbi shop of Prague with whom Wen
, ,

zel had a q uarrel Nearly a ce n tury later he was reported as

.
,
’
ha v i n g been the confe ss or of Joan na Wenzel s first consort , ,

a n d it was for h is refu s al to reveal the secrets of the con f e s

s ion a l that the ki n g pu ni s hed him with death after having

’
attempted to persuade him by bribe s John s body wa s .

r e ported to have fl oated on the surface of the river which ,

wa s illumin ated by light s In 1 6 70 D l au h owe sky made a .

,

romance out of h is career which b e pronounced to b e ba s ed ,

o n old manuscript s but the manuscripts have not been forth

,

comi n g Accordi n g to this completed legend all Prague

.
,

tur n ed out to s e e th e lights and the next mor nin g t h e body

wa s fou n d on the river bank the face lit up with a heave n ly ,
’
lu s tr e Agai n s t the kin g s prote s t the saint was buried in
.
,

the cath e dral but the propriety of the entombme n t was

,

proved n o t o n ly by a treas ure of gold which the digger s

s t ruck but by a heavenly odor that proceeded from the
,

F o r N e om u k ,
1
p se e A . H . W r a t isl a w : L if e , L egend a nd Can on iz at ion of
S t J ohn N ep om u ce n , -

1 8 73 P a l a c ky , Gesch 3 6 1 sq Loe sc he in H e rz og , 9 3 0 6
—7 4
. . . .
,

3 09 ; S ch m u d e : W e tz e r W e lt e-

, 7 1 7 26 1 2 .
2 64 JOHN HUS S

v oke real a n interest The Catholic hi s torian and reade r

so .

ca n n ot pa s s Hu ss by a n y more than the Pro testant To the .

Prot e s ta n t world h is s uff e rings and death s tand for an evan

e lic a l preacher a n d s cholar who for the s ake of conscience
g , ,

wa s willing to s u ffer and to die a violent death .

I t is a s triking fact that no charges were brought against

Hu ss touchi n g h is moral character during his life in the city
of Prague or at Consta n ce duri n g h is trial nor yet after his
,

d e ath I n thi s regard h is memory is in marked contrast to

.

the memorie s of three of the greater R eformer s Charges .

w e re brought duri n g his life against Calvin by his ene mies ,

touching the course of h is youth whi ch are false Agains t ,

.

John Kn ox after his death false charges were also brought

, , ,

which Catholic historians now pronounce inventions B ut .

’
aga in s t Luther s purity of life the bitterest attacks are still
b e i n g made by Catholic controversialists like D enifle and
Gri s ar In the ab s e n ce of any trustworthy testimonies by
.

co n temporaries these writers draw incriminating con clusions

,
’
from Luther s word s not allowing for the fact that his lan
,

guage was often exaggerated and that those who knew him
be s t testified to the purity of his life I t was o therwise wi th
.

Hus s N 0 charge against his moral conduct was ever made

.

by his e n emies and those who knew him from day to day
,

bore s t rong testimony to his exemplary character .

The charges against Huss were that he had disob eyed the
di s cipline of the church and rejected sundry of its doctrinal
“
te n et s He himself died assured of his orthodoxy
. Be .

co n fident to quote again what he wro te to the university

,
“
of Prague the week before his death I have no t revoked ,

nor abjured a sin gle article I refuse to renounce unless

.

what the cou n cil charged against me shall b e proved false

”
from S cripture In the s ame communication he s tated that
.

wi th his whole heart he professed every article required to b e

b e lie v ed For two year s he had looked forward to the pos
.

s ib ilit y of a j udicial death and from the earliest period o f

,
 IN
’
HUS S S PLACE HISTO R Y 2 65

h is imprisonment in the D o minican friary he made the prayer

that he might never recede from the truth as he kn ew it and , ,

begged his friends to intercede wi th God to give him con

’
stamey ?
We have no heart to compare Hu s s s conduct per ,
’
si s ted in during a long imprisonment wi th S avonarola s who , , ,

under torture made recantations he afterward recalled N O

,
.

man ever prayed more earne s tly or stu di ed the S crip tures
more intensely in order that he might b e kept from yieldi n g
,

to the wrong than did Huss even though the deliverance

, ,

from a horrible death was in sight

A r e these two t hin gs compatible—Huss s ignorance that
.

he was out of accord with the canon law and the dogmatic
b elief of his age and on the o ther hand the solemn sentence , ,

pronoun ced by the great coun cil with un animi ty declarin g

that he was a recreant to both ? Some of it s members as ,

the card inal of O stia and Z ab ar ell a were eminent cano nists , .

’
Gerson and d Ailly were lea ding theologians of the century ,
.

Against the sentence not a single voice of dissent was raised .

’ ’
D Ailly like all the prelates of his time fully jus ti fi ed Huss s
, ,

condemn ation and said that by its immense abundance of

’ ’
proof Huss s Tr eatise on the C hu r ch comb ated the pope s
authority and plenary power no less than the Koran comb ats
the Catholic faith Gerson said that he worked as hard as
.

any of the other memb ers of the council to secure t h e con

v ic t ion of Wyclif and Huss To both these distinguished
?

’
churchmen Wyclif and Huss were perni cious heretics Huss s
, ,
.

books were full of s tatements that jostled agains t the doc

,

trinal system in vogu e at that day The coun cil was of the .

same mind as Walter Map had been who in speaking in , ,

the thir d Lateran coun cil 1 1 7 9 of the condemnation of th e

Waldenses said : If we admi t them then w
, ,
“
,
e our selves ,
”
ough t to b e turned ou t Accor ding to the laws and usages .

1
D oc , 5 6 , 9 1 , 1 4 2
. .

F or d A ill y , G e r son s W or ks , 2 : 9 0 1 H ar d t , 6 1 6 , q u o t e d b y T s ch a ck e r t ,
2 ’ ’
.

p . 23 4. F or G e r son , D ial A p ol , D u Pin s c d , 2 3 8 7

’
. . S c h wab , 6 00 , n o t e 3
. . .
2 66 JOHN HUS S

of t h e church Hu ss was j u s tly a heretic In the eyes of his

,
.

the o logical co n temporarie s there was no doub t on the question .

?
H o w w a s i t that h e did not perceive thi s The explanatio n
is that h is mi n d was s o wrought u pon by a certain class of
t e xt s of S criptur e that he forgot that in order to be a heretic , ,

it w as o n ly n ec e s s ary to combat the current sy s tem held

by t h e church Scripture or n o S crip ture
,
Nay Hu ss in .
,

s i s ted that h is view s w e re in accord with Augu s tine and o ther

Fath ers a n d al so in accord with the canon law which he ,

o fte n trouble is that he did n o t quote everything .

H is mi n d failed to take in the class of texts and quotations

with which his view s were or s eemed to b e at variance
, , .

Hu s s believed he was n o heretic but he soon discovered ,

he was out of accord with the council and he s eems to have ,

bee n of the opi n io n that s ome of h is s maller treatise s contained

matter more ob n oxious to the council than what they fou n d
in the Tr e a tise on the C h u r ch He wrote to this e ff ect to
.

John of Chlum and was glad that h is treatise again st the

Hidde n Adversary had not been brought to it s kn owledge ?
’
Even if Augu s ti n e s principle had been followed at Con
s tance namely
,
that it is di ffi cult to defin e here s y and that
,

the spirit in which an error is held rather than the error itself , ,

—
constitute s here s y yet the sentence would n o t have been
~

otherwi s e Erasmu s a s quoted by Luther mu s t b e take n

.
, ,

wi t h all owance when he said that John Hu s s was burned but

—
he was o t convicted exu stu m qu id em sed n on con v ictu m
n
“
esse
?
The principle pursued wa s that by our laws he s hould
die a n d the council understood what the law of the church
,

and of church procedure in its day was .

Nor is the po sition well taken that Huss was condemned

for disobedience to the di s cipline of the church alone Lechler .
,

for example declares that from the s ta n dpoint of the coun

,

cil of Trent he was no t con v icted of a n y here sy ; but the

,

s e n time n t of h is own age and n o t the s ymbol of the six

,

L th e r l tt r M P r e fa ce
1
D
oc . 8,
10 .
1
2
u
’
s e e ,
on .
, .
2 68 JOHN H Uss

b e s aid however that there is di spute as to how far the

, ,

d e cr e e s of the coun cil of Co n sta n ce are to b e regarded a s

’
bi n di n g a n d i t would seem that accordi n g to M artin V s
, ,

word s in a d journin g it the R oman pontiff has the right of

,

d e ter m i ning the value of each of the s e decrees by itself Joan .

o f Arc in 1 43 7 was also declared a here ti c a n d a decayed mem

, ,

h e r who w a s to be cut off le s t she infect the other member s

,

of the church At a n y rate we wi s h that the spirit of the

.
,

court of Ma ss achu s ett s might b e followed when i t expressed

regret for it s judgment upon the alleged witches of Salem
a n d for it s decree banishing R oger Wil l iam s and the spirit ,

of the Fre n ch Protestants who in 1 90 3 placed the expiatory

, ,
’
tablet on the stone markin g the place of Servetus s death a ,

tablet who s e in s cription does not blame Calvin but disavow s ,

’
the animu s of per s ecution in this age for Calvin s followers .

Papal i n fallibility or no infallibility i t would make greatly ,

for the promotio n of truth and good wi l l if the R oman pontif f -

would Openly di s avow the spirit of our spiritual forefathers

that co n demned Hu ss to death .

’
Hu ss s views were the right views the views of S crip tur e , ,

the view s that mu s t b e held by those who take the position

that fir s t and last the church is a spiritual institu tion that ,

it s doctrine s and usage s mu s t b e in accordance wi th the law

of Chri s t and that it h as no di rect or indirect authority over
’
a man s earthly exi s tence to s horten i t or to cut if off B ut
,
.

this was not the view of the fif teenth century The ecclesias .

tical government which had been perfected in the medi aeval

,

a e l e ft n o place for i n dividual opi ni on or the di s cu ss ion as to

g ,

what wa s right a n d to b e b elieved b etween a council and

a n indi v idual accused of here s y It is no t surprising that
.

the cou n cil acted u n a n imously but in the view of the spirit
, ,

O f fr e e i n q uiry which had begu n to show it s elf in the fourteenth

a n d fiftee n th ce n turie s a n d in the light of sub s e ue n t hi s tory

q ,

it is to be r e gretted that not a si n gle voice was rai s ed to show

s y mpathy with the conde m ned man s fundamental position
’
.
 ’
HUS S S PLA CE IN HISTO R Y 2 69

There are moments dur ing his trial when the feeling
arises that Huss was inclined to recede fro m the plain mea nin g
of what he had wri tten and perhap s resort to technicali tie s
of language in the attemp t to parry accusation s This feel .

’
ing however mus t give way as unjus t in View of Hus s s con
, ,

s t a n c y in the face of a horrible dea t h ma intained t hrough a ,

protracted period and the evidences of S incere piety which

,

are evident on every page of his letters Wi th his writings .

in our hands we do not have th e impression that his meaning

,

was mis unders tood On the contrary the car dinal of Cambray
.
,

was justi fi ed in saying that the formulated accusations were

less in crimin atin g than the or gin al text of the wri tings I n .

deed if the methods of the inquisition for heresy in vo g ue

,

at that tim e are held in mind the council dealt leniently ,

’
with Huss After Huss s death the claim of leniency in
.
,

his treatment was made by the coun cil itself I t applied .

—
no tortur e in the prison ce l l perhaps for the very good
’
reason that torture was no t necessary Huss s v iews were .

pl ainl y set forth and su fficient to convict and the council ,

greatly prolonged the time of re spite gi v in g him Opportu ni ty ,

for abjuration How far i t was in fluenced to pursue this

.

cour se by regard for Sigismund we do no t know or whether , ,

i t was influenced at all by consideration fo r the king .

The remark made by Gerson after the council had ad ,

j ou r n e,
d deserves to be repeated for the implication i t con
’
tain s that after all Hus s s execution was a legal mistake
, ,
.

The Paris rector said that if Huss whom the s ynod con ,

d e m n e d and pronounced a hereti c had had an attorney , ,

he would certainly no t have b een convi cted B ut this remark .

is not to b e taken seriously Gerson as has b een s tated was

.
, ,
’
in a hu ff over the council s refusal to condemn the proposi
tion that a vassal who agi tates against his king may b e law
f u lly murdered This proposition carried to the council by
.
,

Petit wa s intended to justify the duk e of B urgundy who had

, ,

murdered his cou sin and rival the duk e of Orlean s who ex
, ,
2 76 JOHN HUSS

e rc sei d u n du e i n fluence over his bro ther Charles VI king , ,

o f Fr a n c e ?

Hu s s s primal mistake was that the council would be in

’

a fram e to acc e p t from his lips the s tatement of truth which

h e fou n d vouched for in the S crip tures I t was the sharp .

critici s m of ! E neas Sylvius that Huss and Jerome went to

—
C o n s ta n c e more a n xiou s to teach than to be taught d ocen di
u ipp i i
e q u a m d is cen d i cu p d or es
— and the charge is made that
q
th e y wer e ob s ti n ate in not hearkening to the council All .

m e n expo s e them s elves to t hi s charge who have a new message

a n d in s i s t upo n their me s sage in the face of con s tituted a u

t h or it y .Howe v er the cou n cil canno t b e condemn ed for not

,

ha v i n g give n Hu ss an opportunity to freely expound his views

in public In the firs t place it was not customary to pur
.
,

s u e that cour s e with suspected heretic s a n d in the second , ,

I I u ss s writt e n s tatement s were s u ffi cient evidence again s t

’

him U n e q uivocal recantation it demanded bu t only after

.
,

prolonged i n ve s tigation ba s ed upo n preferred charges .

’
If we compare Luther s course down to the diet of Worms , ,

w ith the cour s e of Huss we s hall fin d much that is intere s ting

,

in the way of likenes s a n d co n trast The views which Luther .

s e t forth in the XCV Theses in regard to penance and the

tr e a sury of merit he had no thought of as bei n g ou t of accord

,
’
with the church s teachi n gs S O it was with Huss In his . .

fir s t s tatements differing from the traditional s ystem of belief ,

Luther drew only from the fund of his religious experience

a n d the S crip tures Hu ss on the other hand drew from a
.
, ,

pred e ce ss or Wyclif Luther though thr eatened wi th ex com

,
.
,

m u n ica tion and declared an outlaw by the emperor not only ,

did n o t modify his views but knowingly departed further ,

a n d further away from the traditio n al sy s tem On the other .

ha n d Hu ss seems to have bee n a heretic as has been said

, , ,

wi thout k n owi n g it So far as the intellectual denial of

.

t h e doctri n e of papal i n fallibility goes and the authority

1
S ch wab , Ger son , 6 0 9 s qq .
For d Ailly
’ ’
s a ttit u d e , T sch a cke r t , 2 3 5 sq .
 JOHN H U ss
2 7 2

B ut he d e cli n e s
to pronou n ce a j udgment saying some accep t ,

a n d s o me de n y a n d th at s o far as a final judgment was con ,

cern ed h e commi tted the matter to Chri s t who chose to leave

,

i t u n certai n for him As for the wi n e he took the groun d in

.
,

t h e C omme n ta r y that i t was not to b e dis tributed to laymen ,

i n a smuch a s Chri s t wa s wholly in each element ?

I t h as be e n s aid that Huss died for h is attachment to

Wyclif a n d in defe n s e of his memory This is true but i t is .
,

o n ly a part O f the truth The two men were closely associated

.

together by the council of Constance as b eing partakers of

heretical opinio n s as master an d pupil ,
When in 1 4 1 3 .

P a l e c z called him a W y clifist h e meant that he was s traying

“
,
”2
from the e n tire faith of Chri s tendom Huss had protested .

’
agai n s t the burni n g of Wyclif s books He was identified .

at the u n iver sity and in the city of Prague as the O x ford

profe ssor s defender’
To his las t dyi n g breath no word
.

e s caped his mouth in the least di s crediting Wyclif He did .

’
not deny that he wanted to b e where Wyclif s soul was and
that he thought i t to b e among the saved .

I n vectives fl yi n g about in Constance joined their names

toge ther The missal of the Wyclifis t s as i t was called ran :
.
, ,
“
I believe in Wyclif the lord of hell and p atron of B ohemia
, ,

a n d in Huss his only bego tten son

,
our nothing who was , ,

co n ceived by the spirit of Lucifer born of his mother and , ,

made incarnate and equal to Wyclif r u ling at the time

of the de solation of the univer s ity of Prague at th e time ,

wh e n B ohemia apostatiz ed from the faith who for us heretics ,

d e s cended i n to hell and will not ri s e again from the dead or

”3
ha v e life eter n al .

The heretical s candalous and sedi tious teachings for

, ,

which the council of Constance s e n t Huss to his death did ,

1
S u p er I V S en t , 5 5 7 , 5 7 5
. . .

2
D oc , 5 6 ; B u d d e n s ie g : W icl if P a tr iot a nd Ref or me r , p
.
. 1 1 , sa y s th a t th e
wh o l e H u s sit e m o v e m e n t is m e r e W y c lifis m ” Lo s e r t h , p Wy
“
. . xv i: I t wa s
c l if s d oc tri n e pri n c ip a lly f or w hi c h H u s s yi e l d e d u
’

p h is l i e f .
”

3
L o s e r t h , pp 3 4 8 s qq
. .
 ’
HU S S S PLACE IN HISTO R Y 2 73

not include all the practices and dogmas which Wyc l if r e

n ou n c e d i However they were su fli cie n t if entertained to
, , ,

s hake to i ts foun dation the eccle s ia s ti cal and do ctrinal s y s tem

accep ted in his day In a ll fundame n tal po s itions he was .

in agreement wi t h the English teacher These positio n s .

concern the nature and f u nctions of th e church th e exte n t ,

of the pope s au thority and his infallibili ty the immediate

’
,

responsib ili ty of the in di vidual to th e S criptures and the ,

power of the priesthood in the sacrament of penance The s e .

’
are mos t fully developed in Hu ss s Tr ea tise on the C hu r ch .

They are re s tated in his two wr itings agai n st P al e cz and

S tanislau s of Znaim who had attacked the v iews se t for th ,

in that treatise To a greater or le s s degree they are also

.

touched upon in his treati s es again s t the eigh t do ctors and

on in dulgen ces and some of them are s tated wi th great po s i
,
.

t iv e n e s s in h is letters especially those addres s ed to P r a ch a t icz

,

in the year 1 4 1 3 The Tr ea tis e on the C hu r ch written dur ing

—
.
,

his period of semi voluntary exile from Pra g ue was prepared

-

—
for th e very purpo s e of b eing an Apologia a self defense and -

was considered by th e co u ncil of Cons tance as giving the mo s t

calm and delib erate statement of his views This treatise and
“

the two defenses agains t P al e cz and Znaim o ccupy on e h u ndred

and twenty three pages of h is works two column s to a page
-
?
,

The following statement will set forth these views in b rief

I The churc. h — The co u ncil di d no t go astray in makin g
’
Huss s de fin i tion of the ch u rch t h e main accusation That .

de fin i tion struck at the very roo t of the theory of the me di aeval

chur ch whi ch the coun cil had i n herited and accepted The .

treatments of the S choolmen b a s ed upon Augustine fo l lowed , ,

the theory that the church is a vi sible and tangible organiza

tion a s vi s ible and tangible as was the republi c of Venice
,

or the kingdom of France I t is the ki n gdo m of the faithful .

1
M on .
,
1 2 43 —
3 65 . For r e fe r en ces to the T r eatis e on the C h urch , se e my
t r sl . in t h e com p an i on vo l u m e . f
T h e f e w r e e r e n ce s g iv e n h e r e ar e f or th e
m os t p art from the d e fe n s e s a d d r e sse d t o P al e c z an d S t an i s l au s .
2 74 JOHN H U ss

wh o have the mark of bapti s m and is ruled over by the pope

a n d the hierarchy This ruling body is a self perpetuating -

ari s tocracy deri v ing it s power directly from God a s in the

, ,

ca s e of t h e pope or by co n s ecra t ion a n d election as in the

, ,

ca s e of the bi shops Pope and prelate s are no t the repre s enta .

tiv e s of t h e Chri s tian commonwealth but the vi cegerents of ,

God Thi s wa s the well developed and accepted theory

.
-

though it did n o t have formal s tatement until the coun cil of

Tr e nt 1 5 60 a n d it found in Cardinal B e l l ar min it s chief
, ,

d e f e n d e r in h is great work on the controversies between the

R oma n Catholi c s and the Pro testants This was the theory .

u n d e rlyi n g B oni face VI I I s famous bull of 3

1 0 2
— Un a m s a n c ’

ta m . B y the defi n ition all who are baptized are rrfe m b e r s of ,

the church a n d heirs of divine grace The pope is an e ss ential .

factor of the church s o that where he is not recognized and ,

obeyed the church is not .

On the o ther hand Huss de fined the church to b e the

—
,

—
totality of the elect u n iv er sita s p r edestin a tor u m whether
o n earth in heaven or sleeping in purgatory ; or to give h is
, ,
“
fulle s t de fini tio n the church is the number of all the elect
,

a n d the mystical body of Christ whose head Chris t is ; and ,

the bride of Christ whom of his great love he redeemed wi th ,

”1
h is own blood Where two or three are gathered together in
.

’
Chris t s n ame there he is in the midst of them That is the
,
.

church I t is one thing to be of the church and another to

.

—
be in the church a l iu d est d e eccl esia a l iud in e ccl esia The .

a n tichrists who left the church were never of the church “

I John Judas was in the church and no t of it .

—
The p r a sciti or reprobate that is those of whom God
, ,

k n ow s beforehand that they will no t continue in a state

of grace or never be in that st a t e m ay b e in the church but
,
~
,

are certai n ly n o t of i t Thi s is taught in the parable of the .

field with its wheat and tares an d the parable of the net
, ,

1
Mon d e E ccl es ia
.
, ,
1 2 45 . A d P a l cca 1 3 40 . I n h is su p er I V S en t , 6 1 6
. .
,
“
H u s s in , i
p a ss n g , q u o e s t A u g u s ti n e : t he c hu rch is t h e b o d y of t he e lect an d
j u s tifi e d f ithf l
a
”
u .
2 76 JOHN HUSS

be t h e body of the elect For t hree hundred years or more .

a fter Chri s t th e r e were no cardi n al s and if the church could ,

e xis t a n d get alo n g well without them then i t could get along ,

without them al way s and Chris t could well r e e s tabli s h the

,
-

purity O f t h e primiti v e church without cardi n als and pope .

If t h e pop e is the head of the R oman Church a n d the cardinals

the body then they in themselve s form the entire R oman
,

Church a s the huma n body together with the head con

,

s ti t u t e s the whole man .

( 2 ) It s et s a side the idea that pope prelates and pries ts ,

are tru e pope prelate s and priests by virtue of their offi ce

,

a n d ordi n ation in the ab s ence of puri ty a n d humility of life .

Judas had the offi ce a n d the ordination of an apostle bu t was ,

not a true apo s tle They might not be of the elect and in
.
,

that ca s e they are not of the church Exactly who is of the

,
.

e lect a n d so of the church

, cann ot be certainly known ex
,

cept by re v elation The s tandard by which we must judge

.

“
pope prelate s and priests is their conduct and works
,
By .

”
their fruit s ye s hall kn ow them To this text Huss went .

back agai n and again .

( 3 ) Hus s s defini tion set aside the idea that church govern
’

ment is n ecessaril y bound up with prelates and popes On .

the co n trary spiritual authority is vested in the church

,

the body of the elect The Apo s tle Peter received the keys
.

’
as a repre s e n tative of the church or to use Huss s own word s : , ,
“ ”
The church received the keys in the per s on of S t Peter . .

All the Apo s tle s were commissioned equally to feed and

go v ern the church Thomas went to India— no t by Peter s
.
’

appointme n t John was sent equally with Peter to S amaria

. .

Jam e s pre sided at the synod of Jerus a lem The thir teen .

hi —
Apo tle were t rteen prelates or princes p r in cip es in
s s —
ve s ted with equal au thority in all the earth So are their .

s ucce s sor s but only so far as they truly follow in the Apos
,
’
tle s s tep s in their teachings and conduct To the church that .
,

is the body of the elect against which the gates of hell will
, ,
 IN
’
HUS S S PLA CE HISTO R Y 2 77

not prevail—to i t discipline was co mmi tted Matt 1 6 1 8 ,

.
,

18 15 Chris t enjoined that o ffenses should b e told to it

. .

The church even has the righ t to depo s e popes In his R eply .

to S ta ni slau s Huss emphasized over again t hat the power of

,

the keys was intrusted to the church that is the body of , ,

the elect ?

(4) Huss nowhere uses the terms visible and invisib l e

in making a di s tinction in the church as the R eformers did ,

after him Nevertheless he sets forth the same idea in other

?
,

language The church is l ike a fi eld containin g elect and

.
,

reprob ate good and bad ; and while the elect alone b elong
,

to the true church yet in a s much as we cannot tell in all cases

, ,

wi th certainty who the reprob ate are we must ob ey the church ,

so long as its leaders do not act contrary to the law of C hr ist ,

but o nl y then The chur ch itself as a visible orga n ization

.
, ,

may b e a harlo t ?

In principle Huss also sinn ed mortally against the current

idea of the chur ch and its function s when h e permitted lay
men to intrude upon the pro v ince of the chur ch in s e q u e s t r a t
ing the revenues of unworthy priests and made null the
interdict and other chur ch censures as they interrup ted
<
divine rites and s topped p r e a ch in g Not onl y di d he call
u pon the kin g of B ohemia to pu t a sto p to simony and other

cleri cal o ffenses by the use of the civil a r nfy h e also gave the
same advi ce to the king of Poland This principle that lay .

men have the right to interfere to correct evil church practices ,

’
w a s made the subject of one of Gerson s articles against Huss ,
“
pronouncing i t an error most pernicious and scandalous in ,

1
M ou .
, 1 352 .

2
I t is h a rd t o un d e r st an d W r at isl a w s m e an i n g p ag e 2 1 0 wh en h e say s
’
, ,

H u ss s d e fin i ti o o f t h e c h u r c h was o f an u tt e rly u n pr ac ti ca l n a t ur e e s
’
n ,

p e c ia ll y a s h e d id n o t dr a w an y c l ea r d i s ti n c ti on b e t we e n t h e v i s i b l e an d t h e
i n vi si b l e c h u r c h t o t h e l a tt e r of whi c h a l on e h is d e fin iti on is a pplicab l e T h e
,
.
”

R e f o rm e r s c o ul d n o t m ak e a c l e a r dis tin c ti on in d e t a il s of pr a c ti c e S c h wa n e .
,

D ogme n g sch d er m ittl er Z eit p ag e

-
e . . s a y s ri g htly :
.
,
H u ss r e j e c t e d t h e d e f
i n i ti on th a t t h e c h u r c h is a vi si b l e c omm un ity o f b e li e v e r s .
”

1
D oc .
, 55 .
2 78 JOHN HUS S
— —
d u cin g laymen secul ares to perpetrate sacrilege and sub ,
” 1
v e r s i v e of the lib e rty of the church .

II The pop e —I n regard to j urisdi ction the R oman

.
,

po n ti ff h as authority over the parti cular R oman church ,

which is the compa n y of the faithful in that particular com

mu n ion as the An t ioc h a n church is the co mpany of the faith
,

f u l u n der the bi shop of A n tioch The church is both u n iver s al

—
.

a n d particular a n d the bull of B o ni face U n a m sa n cta m

w a s wro n g in repre s enting that all the sheep were commi tted
to Peter s care The other Apostles were equally intrusted
’
.

’
wi th the care of Christ s flock .

The pope is not the rock on whi ch Christ said he would

build h is church Matt 1 6 1 8 As Augustine in his Re,
. .

tr ac ta tion s had said Christ is the R ock He is the f ou n d a

,
.

tio n .
“ — —
Petra the R ock s aid to Petro Peter : I say unto
—
thee that thou art Peter that is the confessor of the true ,

R ock which is Chri s t — and on this Petra — R ock wh o m

,
fl

—
thou ha s t co n fe ss ed that is upon me I will through s trong , ,
”2
faith and perfecting grace build my church The f ou n d a .

tion with which the church is b uil t on the R ock is faith ,

faith rooted in love That Christ is the R ock is plain from .

S cripture Paul and Peter call him the foundation the rock
.
, ,

the corner stone Like wise Christ presented himself as the

-
.
,

fou n dation which in time of storm will not b e moved Our

, ,
.

lo v e and faith are placed in Chri s t not in Peter To Christ ,

.
,

a n d not to Peter di d the prophet s look forward ,

Peter did .

not dare to a ss ert that he was the head of the holy Catholic
church Chri s t alone is the head of the body imparting
.
,

life a n d sensation to its members To the two passages .

,

Matt 1 6 1 8 and John 2 1 1 5 which it will b e remem

.
, , -

’
bered are emblazo n ed on the ba s e of the dome of S t Peter s
, .
,

Hu ss devote s elaborate expo sition .

The pope is fallible and may be a reprob ate and heretic

p a p a ta l li e t f a l ter e p oss u n t Thi s is proved from S cripture .

1
D oc .
, 31 , 53 , 1 87 .
2
M on .
, d e Eccl es ia , 1 92 . A d P a l ecz , 1 321 .
2 86 JOHN HUS S

n ot ki n g of the R omans and that Sigismund is no t king of

Hu n g a ry ? Thi s with them is an article of faith and yet they
” ’
do n o t O bey B o n iface s decree Hus s al s o uses thi s argument .

agai n s t P a l e cz The R oma n po n ti ff is to be ob eyed only so

.

’
far a s h is d e cr e e s are in accord with Chri s t s law ?
A s for the citatio n to R ome he had di s ob eyed it because ,

h is own dioce s e was the proper place for his case to b e in

v e s tig a t e d if at all B y his long absence in R ome the Word
,
.

of God would have been kept from the p eople in P rague ,

a n d the way O f citation was not the way pres cribed by Chri s t ,
” “
a s is S hown in Matt 1 8 15 I al s o he said re s i s ted the
. .
, ,

bull on indulgence s s ent out by John XXIII for to rebel ,

”
agai n st an erri n g pope is to ob ey Chri s t As for the interdi ct .
,

it l ike excommunication is used to terrorize and enslave the

, ,

people The pope has no right to order di vine service s stopped

.

in any locality simply because one man may b e disob edient .

Even though Judas was present Christ went on di s tributing ,

“
the La s t Supper I was excommunicated Huss deposes
.
, ,
“
because I preached Christ and was seeking to turn the clergy
” ’
to a life conformed to God s law Then came the citation .

a n d the i n terdict B o niface VIII and Clement V b l a sp h e

.

m ou sl y make every rational creature man or a n gel subj ect

’

, ,

to the R oman ponti ff People wen t to heaven when there .

were no popes They went to heaven during the rule of

.

Agne s and they have continued to go to heaven in the interims

,

’
followi n g a pope s death and before the election of his su c
ce ss or B ut in all times Christ and he alone is head of the
.

—
, ,

. i
church The church never dead or without a head mor tu a
s

v el d e ca p ita ta —for Chri s t lives forevermore If launched

, .

at all excommu n ication should b e launched for mortal sin

, ,

not for matter s neither b ad nor good in themselves In fact .

,
’
the pope wa s n o t nece s sary to the church s being or even its ,

well bei n g an d if popes and cardinal s both were de s troyed

-

, ,

eve n a s Sodom yet the holy church would remain ? ,

1
D oc .
, 5 8, 6 0 ; M on .
,
ad P a l ecz , 1 3 29 .
2
D oc .
, 59 .
 ’
HUS S S PLACE IN HISTO R Y 281

Again all such titles a s mo s t holy should b e given up

,

and the adoration of the pope and the pomp wi th which he

surrounds himself b e abandoned Worldly p ower was given .

’
to the pope by Constantine and the poi s on of Constanti n e s
donation conti n ued to spend i tself A reprob ate pope should .

not b e addressed as mos t holy father or Judas would b e ,

ju s tly called mos t holy bishop ?

In his letter s Huss approached Luther in s tigmatizing
,

unworthy popes and declared the R oman hierarchy the

great harlo t the blaspheming congregation of which we read
, ,

in the Apocalypse The pope is antichris t who under the

.
, ,

garb of sanctity conceals the abomination of the beast He

,
.

sits in the place of honor and o ffers himself for worship to

—
all comers a s though he were God qu asi sit D eu s And the .

council condemned a pope as a S imoniac heretic sodomi te , ,

and murderer ! 2
To b e sure these words had reference to ,

John XXIII but the council regarded him as true pope

,
.

As for councils and th eir authority it must no t b e for ,

gotten that Huss looked forward with hope to a council ,

t hough he appealed to Chri s t D uring his stay in Constance .

he developed a de finite View most unfavorable to the council

convened in that city As h a s been quoted b efore he de .
,

c l a r e d that t h ough it professed to b e a most holy synod speak ,

ing by the Holy Spiri t and incapable of error yet was i t full ,

of the wickedness of antichrist whose foulness deserv e d to be ,

a proverb and whose fallibility S hown in o ther ways was also , ,

shown in accepting John XXIII as pope kissin g his feet and ,

addressing him as most holy father .

—
III The priesthoo d Priests in mortal sin do no t per
.

form the sacraments e fi cie n t ly Here Huss invalidates the .

,

whole theory of sacerdotal power received through ordination .

’
Thomas Aquinas s theory is that the validity of the sacrament
’
does no t depend upon the priest s character and Leo the Great , ,

4 50 declared that even in an unworthy successor the digni ty

,

1
Mon .
, ad P al ecz ,
1 : 3 22.
2
D oc .
, 55 , 1 3 5 , 1 44 .
282 JOHN HUS S
’
o f Peter is no t wanting Leo s s tatement Pastor quotes in .

v i n dication of h is treatment of Alexa n der VI who in spi te of , ,

h is fl agrant crime s yet was true pope Follo wing Wyclif

,
.
,

Hu ss al s o s tated that a king in mortal sin h a s no right to

e xerci s e authori ty I t is true that at his trial Hu ss seems
.
, ,

t o ha v e modified h is s tatement by declaring that according ,

— —
to the law of meri t qu oa d mer itu m such ki n gs or pries t s in
~

mortal sin were n ot to excerci s e royal or priestly authority ,

— —
but according to their o fficial dig n ity qu oa d ofiiciu m they
might . B ut the council laughed him down In his wri tings .

h is meaning is plai n .

The ab s olution of s in s therefore depends upon the charac , ,

ter of the priest Although Huss nowhere declares that the

.

pri e s tly act in absolvi n g from s in is only declaratory yet in , ,

eff ect he makes it such A pries t can absolve no one whom

,
.

God h as not before absolved and all absolutions pronounced ,

“
for gifts of money are of no avail Under Agnes where were .
,

”
the keys ? he exclaims The priest has no arbitrary right .

to exerci s e the keys He is nothing more than a servant or.

living i n s trument He mu s t exerci s e the right properly and

.

have a good motive or the exercise is useless ?

And as for
ce n sures Chri s t did no t call down fir e from heaven
,
He came .

to heal no t to destroy The apostoli c see is not a fi nal tribunal

,
. .

How can it be in view of such a case as John XII who was

,

put to death while in the very act of adultery Christ is the .

final tribunal God is to b e ob eyed rather than man

, .

.
—
IV The S cripture s Here Huss is on all o ccasions , ,

emphati c He followed Wyclif in demanding that the S crip

.

’
ture s should be in the hands of the people and that the priest s
fir s t duty is to expound their teachings to all men alike They .

are to be in the vernacular and in the hands of all The ,

.

S cripture s or the law of Chris t as he liked to call them are

, , ,

the supreme rule of Opinio n and conduct The pries t and .

people are obligated to follow them a b ove all mandate s of

1
M on .
,
1 3 52 ; su p e r I V S en t
. .
,
60 6 , 6 1 6 .
 2 84 JOHN HUS S

s ub j ec ti v ity as H e f e l e s ays the cou n cil could not tolerate

, , ,

as it did not the pri n ciple of the s ole authority of the B ible ;
“
a n d H e fe l e conti n u e s that in these respect s Hu ss was a true
”1
precur s or of the R eformation All the member s of the .

c o u n cil r e cognized the wall of partition between him and

them s el v e s on thi s subj ect .

P r ie r ias the Domi n ica n master of the palace in h is tract

, ,

ans weri n g Luther s The s es s tated the principle anew that

’
,

the Scripture s derive their authority from the church an d the

“
pope a n d s aid
,
whoso does not re s t upon the doctri n e O f
,

the R oma n Church an d the R oman pope a s an infallible rule

of faith from whi ch even the Holy S crip ture s derive their
,

authority he is a heretic With Huss a h u n d r e d ye a r s

‘

.
, ,

before both pope and council were liable to err The S crip
,
.

ture s alo n e are i n fallible the supreme authority for human ,

opinion and conduct .

Hu ss carri e d the B ible with him to Constance and to the

D omini ca n pri s on Among the mo s t s olemn legacie s to h is
.

di s ciple Ma s ter Martin was that that Martin might b e dili

, ,

ge n t to read the Bible e specially the New Testament and he , ,

urged h is B ohemia n friend s to lis te n onl y to s uch priests as

were it s re v erent student s Perhaps his last written word s .

were the words addre ss ed to the chaplai n of Q ueen Sophia

an d other priest s to b e dilige n t s tudent s of God s Word and
’
,

to preach the Word of God v er b u m D ei— ?

If Tyndale was
s tra n gled at Vilvorde for having tra n s lated the B ible into

E n gli sh the n i t is al s o tru e that Huss a hundred year s

, ,

earlier wa s bur n ed at Con s ta n ce for his devotion to that

,

s acr e d book .

It wa s h is di ss ent from the s e four vital doctrines the ,

church the pope the power of the key s an d the S criptur e s

, , ,

which brought Hu ss to his death To s tate it in another way .

,

r
R u cks ichtl ich dies e b eid e n pr in cip iel l e n P u n kte is t H u s s wa h
1
r er Vor l a uf er
. r
d P otes ta n tis m us , 7 2 1 7 C om S c wab , Ge s on , 6 00 s q
. p . h r .

1
D oc , 1 1 7 , 1 1 9 , 1 4 8
.
.
 IN
’
HUS S S PLACE HISTO R Y 28
5

i t was the clash on the subj ect of authority in matters of

re l igion whe t her the final seat of authori ty is the vi s ible
,

organization ca l led the church wi th the pope at its head or , ,

t h e S crip tures as interpreted by the individual invoking the

guidance of Christ .

’
In our dealing with Huss s case the most interes ting ,

ques tion ari s es whether—j u s tifie d as wa s the council accord

—
in g to the canons of the age in putting Hu s s to death whether ,

after all Huss was no t dealt wi th u nfairly by Sigi s mund in

—
, ,

—
vi ew of the promise of safe conduct sol v u s cond u ctu s that -

king gave him D id no t that pro mise afford him positive as

.

s ur ance of safety on hi s return j ourney to Prague ? And did

no t the king break his word when he executed the council s ’

sentence and gave Huss over to the flames ? Here we must

b e g ui ded by the letter of t h e s afe conduct and by the in -

t e rp r e t a t ion which Huss the king and o ther s put upon i t

,
.

Si gi s mund s sal vu s con d u ctu s which was promised to

’
,

Hu s s before he left Prague ran as follows 1

,

Sigi smun d by God s grace Augus tus Ki n g of t h e R oman s

,
’
, ,

a n d Kin g of Hu n g ary D a lmati a C ro a tia e t c to all an d e v e ry ,

—
.
, , ,

pri n ce b o th e ccl e sia stical an d s e cul ar duk e s mar q ui se s coun t s

, , , ,

b a ro n s to all m agi s trat e s an d O ffici al s of citi e s an d v ill ag e s

a n d t o a ll t h e r e s t of o u r p e opl e s ub j e ct s of t h e Holy E mpir e p e a c e
, ,

a n d all good .T h e ho n or a bl e m a s t e r J oh n Hu ss b a ch e lor of , ,

s acr e d th e ology a n d m as t e r o f a rt s t h e b e ar e r of th e se pr e s e n ts
, ,

j ourn eyi n g from t h e re alm of B o h e mi a to t h e g en e ral cou n cil about

to c on v e n e in C o n stan ce whom we h a v e r e ce i v e d un de r our p r o
,

t e c t ion a n d t h e prot e ctio n of t h e Holy E m p ir e we with full h

,

aff e ctio n r e comm e n d to you all d e sirin g that you r e c e i v e him

, ,

ki n dly an d tre at him with f a v or a n d th a t you will h e lp him in all

matt e r s t o sp e e dily pro se cut e his j our n e y gi v i n g h im se curity by ,

t h e w a y wh e th e r by l a n d or s e a a n d al s o s a f e ty to his s e r v an t s
, , ,

hor se s a n d baggag e a n d th a t all tribut e s a n d oth e r r e striction s

what so e v e r m ay b e r e m o v e d from h is fr e e pass ag e o v e r all road s ,

F or t h e t e x t , D oc , 2 3 7 ; H a r d t , 4
1
.
5 2 2 ; H e f el e , 2 1 8 . T h e d i s c u s s i on s
ar e m an y , a m on g t h e b es t b e i n g , H e f e l e , 2 2 7 s qq , W yli e , 1 7 8
.
-
1 8 7, an d B e rg e r
K on ig S ig u nd d er C on cil
’ ’

. .
2 86 JOHN HUS S

thr ou gh all ga e s a n dt c i ti e s
p e rmit him fre e ly a s h e
and th a t ye
—
, ,

c h o os e s
t o p a s s a l o n g t o s t op t o an d t o r tur tr a n sir e
e n ,
ab id e ,

—
, ,

r r
s ta e m o a
,
r i r e d ir e a n d s o pr o v i d e for him an d h is s a f e a n d s e cur e
,

p a s s ag e .

Thi s document was dated at Spires O ctober 1 8 1 4 1 4 , , ,

a n d reached Con s tance November 5 Hu ss reached C on ,

.

s tance after it was S ig n ed by the king I t s la n guage is specific .

a n d provide s for h is return Did i t obligate Si gismund under .

all circum s tan ces to S ee to i t that Huss was unimpeded in

return ing to Prague ?
A s we have s een the promise of safe conduct was sent
,
-

to Hu ss from Italy and Chlum and D ub a were commis sioned

,

by the ki n g to escort him to Cons tance R epeatedly in h is .

letter s written on h is way to Con s tance and after his arrival

, ,

did Huss s tate that he made the journey and entered into
—
the city without the safe conduct ?
B y this he meant withou t
the official paper which Wenzel of D ub a leaving the party ,

at N iir n b e r g had gone to ob tain from the king In making

,
.

thi s stateme n t Huss wa s expre ssing h is joy at being treated so

,

well a n d getting alon g without inconvenience though charged ,

with be ing a heretic and though he had not yet received the
promised o ffi cial document Certai n ly his arre s t and im .

prisonment the la s t of November were a plain violation of

’
thi s pledge S O Chlum and Huss s o ther friend s in Constance
.

regarded it and so apparently did John XXIII So the

, , ,
.

B ohemian and Moravian nobles interpreted i t in their appeals

demanding his release S o Sigi s mund himself felt who when .
, ,
’
he wa s apprised of Hus s s arrest sent word to Constance ,

that he s hould be released threatening that if Huss was no t ,

relea s ed he would on his arrival in the city break do wn the

’
doors of Huss s pri s on and let the prisoner out Writing .

’
aft e r Hu ss s death to the Moravians and B ohemians March ,

21 ,
1 41 6 Sigi s mund declared that if Hus s had journeyed in
, ,

h is company to Constance h is ca s e would most prob ably ,

1
D oc 7 6, 7 7. 79 .
2 88 JOHN HUS S

promi s e wa s a pledge to pro tect Hu ss on the way to Constance

a nd back — l ib er e u t C on s ta n tia m v en ien s e con v ers o r ed ir e a d
B oha m ia m .

( 4) Henry L e fl a n d o thers S O Hus s a ss erts assured h im , ,

’
that the king had pledged him s elf for Hus s s safe return to
Prague .

5) D uri n g the period of his impri s onment Hu s s declared ,

that Si gi smund had acted treacherously and broke n h is word ,

that he ought not to put the s en tence of Con s tance into exe
c u t io n and ought at lea s t to have s ent him b ack to B ohemia .

Chri s t deceived no man H is s afe conduct co ul d b e relied .

-

on ?

There were some at Constance — how many we do

( )
6
n ot know — who belie v ed that Sigi s mund had broken his
promi s e Thi s is evide n t from the action taken in the council
.
,
’
S e pt e mber 2 3 1 4 1 5 to ju s tify Sigi s mund s conduct
, ,
.

’
( 7) Thi s was the vi ew taken by Hu ss s followers after
h is death and in 1 43 2 the B ohemian delegates to the coun cil
,
’
of B a s el having an eye to Hu s s s fate and the alleged de
,

c e p t ion pa ss ed on hi m demanded a distinct in s ertion of a

,

clau s e pledging them safe return One hundred and six years .

’
after Hu s s s death Luther declared fai th had been broken
,

with Huss and he being of the same mind also demanded

, , ,

a n e xpre s s stipulation from the emperor Charles V for his , ,

s afe return from Worms He said that even a promise of .

s af e — conduct given to the devil mu s t b e kept much more , ,

th e n a promi s e to a heretic
,
?

( 8) As for Sigi s mun d s own unders tanding of his promi s e

’

of s af e co n duct we have no statement written by him before

-

the execution of the death sen tence or after it on which we

ca n ba s e a defin ite opi n ion except t h e letter of the s afe con -

duct which is his on e disti n ct s tatement All that we kn ow

, .

be sides is th at Sigismund indignantly resisted Huss s arres t ’

3
1
1
614 1 1 4, 1 43 . 2 3 7 , 53 5 , 5 54 .

2
RO t h
s n, Le b en L u the rs , 1 352 . A d d r es s t o the Ger m N ob il ity, 5
. 24 .
 ’
HUS S S PLACE IN HI STO R Y 2 89

and impri s onment when he fir s t heard of them as a violation

, ,
’
of his promi s e and that after Hu s s s death he wrote to
, ,

B ohemia that Huss might have been s aved if he had wai ted
to go wi th t h e king to Constance The last must b e deemed .

an attemp t on Sigismund s p art to excu s e him s elf ’

.

From t he s e considerations i t would seem that Sigi s m u nd

broke hi s pledge and Huss was foully treated On the other .

hand i t is argued and wi th plausibili ty that S igismund

, , ,
’
gave his pledge for Huss s safe return on condition that Huss
wo ul d b e cleared I t is hardly to b e imagined that Sigismund
.

—
was unaware of the custom of the age that on the que s tion
of here s y the ecclesiastical s entence was fi nal that heretics ,

had no rights b efore man or God and that it was the duty of ,

the civil arm to punish them with death Fer di nand king .
,

of Aragon as we have seen urged Sigi s mund to k ill Huss

, ,

for t h with The council in its decree of S eptemb er 2 3 s carcely

.
,
’
two months after Huss s death took the ground that no ,

s a l vu s con d u ctu s given by emperor or o ther prince to a heretic ,

or one su spected of heresy had any validity whatsoever , ,

seeing i t wa s to the prejudice of the j urisdiction exerci s ed

by the church ; nor could such a pledge pu t any hinderance
in the way of the church in the exercise of its authority .

Moreover t h e person who gave such pledge of safe conduct

,
-

was under no obligation to keep the pledge The principle .

was also stated in distinct words by the council that a con

firmed heretic by his heresy placed hi mself outside the pro
t e c tion of all safe conducts and that no promise or faith is
-

to b e kep t wi th him according to any law natural divine , ,

or human whi ch shall b e to the prej udi ce of the Catho l ic

,

faith ? This means that faith is no t to b e kep t with a

heretic .

1
N ec fid es au t p r omiss io d e j u r e
al ign a s ib i hu man o, in
n a tu r al i, div in o v el

pr aj ud iciu m ca tholica fid ei ob s er vand a M ir b t ,

p 1 70 . ar e t wo o r m s
. . T h e re f
or t wo p a rt s g iv en o f t h e cou n c il s d e c r e e T h e fir s t , b y M a n s i , 7 7 79 , t he
’
.

s e c on d b y V a n d e r H a r d t , 4 f
5 2 1 ; t h e l a tt e r t ak e n r om a s i n g l e m a n u sc ript
in Vi en n a , b u t o f exce pti on a l we i g ht , b e i n g writt e n b y t h e h an d o f on e wh o h a d
2 96 JOHN HUS S

That Sigi s mund as a king and as emperor could have

, ,

a ssert e d his royal word in re si s ting the council there can b e ,

n o doubt S O John of Gaunt in the ab s ence of any o ffi cial

.
,

promi s e O f protection protected Wyclif in the face of the ,

E a rth q uake council That from the moment of his arrival in

.
,

Co n s ta n ce Sigi s mu n d became more an d more s ubservient to

,

t h e cou n cil has been s how n Little did he protect Hus s after .

h e reached the city on Chri s tmas Eve John XXIII was a

,
.

b e tter frie n d to him than the king John at least provided .

Hu s s with dece n t food and humane guards Sigismund i t is .

,

true affirmed on Ju n e 8 that he had ful fil led his pledge to

,

s e e to i t that Hus s had a fair public hearing He no doub t .

, ,

s uppre s s ed a n y s cruples he may have felt on the ground that

the cou n cil s will after all was supreme and that i t was no
’
, ,

per j ury to disregard a promise to a hereti c when he was

’
following the church s behe s t Thi s was the very plea to .

which Hu ss steadfa s tly refu s ed to give way when he was

called upon to recant Hu s s wa s governed by conscience .
,

Sigi s mund by rule s of prudence .

It is probable the council would have broken with the

ki n g if he had kep t the letter of his pledge His imperial
,
.

’
good faith probably was no more at s t ake than the council s
v e ry exi s te n ce A s it was in yielding to the council Sigismund
.
,

lo s t with the B ohemian people They fel t deeply that it was .

’
a n atio n al disgrace that he had yielded to the council s sen
te n ce When Sigismund wanted to drive away the envoy
.

from Milan who had come to Constance wi t h a safe conduct

,
-

the council put itself in t h e way declaring that all having ,

a s afe co n duct had the righ t to s tay and go ; but the envoy
-

wa s no t a heretic At the very least Sigismund should have

.
,

b e e n a t t h e co u n c il H e f e l e , 7 2 2 7 , 2 3 7 , d i s p u t e s t h e se c on d an d e x pl a i n s i t
.

as b e i n g a n o t e o f s o m e m e m b e r o f t h e c ou n c il w hi c h h e in t e n d e d t o pro p o se

for it s a c ti o n , b u t d id n ot f
I t con t a i n s e x pr ess r e e r e n c e s t o S i g i sm u n d s o wn
.
’

c as e as h vi n g b r ok en h is pl e d ge t o H u ss T hi s p e r son a l r e fe r en ce s e e m s t o b e
a .

i f vo r o f t h e g e n u i n e n e ss o f t h e se co d p a rt o f t h e o ffi c i a l d e c r e e whi c h is
n a n ,

r pr
e es e t n
e d a b o v in t c l au se b eg i nn in g with t h e wor d s t h e pri n c ipl e
e h e
” “
.
292 JOHN HUS S

t he Dominica n preacher had much of the clay of human

th e ology clin gi n g to him but in the s e M ed ita tion s a true ,

Chri s tia n was speakin g and he de s erv e d to b e ca n o n ized in

s pit e of a n tichri s t who s ought to blot o u t his memory ,
.

To Hu ss s direct i n fl ue n ce Luther bear s ge n erous and

’
,

r e peat e d witne ss not o n ly in his three preface s to the thr ee

,

edi tio n s of s om e of Hu ss s epis tle s a n d other works issued at ’

Witt e nberg 1 5 3 6 and but al s o in o ther places Nean

,
.

der Lechler Ullmann and o thers make Hus s a precursor of

, ,

Luther Harnack takes another view whe n he says : The

.

W y cl ifit e and Hu ssite movement mu s t b e taken a s the ripes t

fruitage of the reform movement of the Mid dl e Ages and al ,

though i t loo s ened the ground and prepared the way yet it ,

” 2
brought to expre ssion no reformatory ideas We take the .

former ground n o t only because Hu s s actual ly furnishes a

,

good deal of the e ss ence of the R eformation in his statements

on the church the pope and the S criptures but becau s e of th e
, ,

deb t Luther distin c tly acknowledged to him .

’
As a s tudent at Erfurt Luther had in his hands Huss s ,

s e rmo n s He tell s us that he was influenced by curiosity to

.

di s cover what s ort of teac hings the hereti c had sown To .

hi s amazement he was moved wi th a d mir ation and at the , ,

s ame time was fi lled wi th surprise that a man who preached

,

s o evangelically and wa s so apt and so serious in expoundi ng

the S cripture s should have been burned as a heretic SO

”
abomi n ated he says speaking of the s ixteenth century was
, , ,
’
Hus s s very name that the sun i tself i t was thought would , ,

have been ob s cured if it had b een mentioned with honor .

The apparent contradi ction b etween these sermons and

’
Huss s here sy he could only explai n on the as s umptio n that
the sermon s were preached b efore Huss b ecame a hereti c .

’
Soon after Luther s R eformatory activity b egan he was ,

1
P rin t e d on t he fir s t p ag es of the l a r ge ed . of H u s s s wo rk s
’
.

2
D ogme n ges ch Le hr e von d er K ir che Z tsc h f
’
.
, 3 413 G ot t s ch ic k : H u ss s
.
, . .

K ir che n ges ch , 8 .
3 6 4 , sa s a y th t
H u ss h ad n o o th e r vi e w o f s a lv a ti on th an

t h e on e c u rr en t in h is a ge .
 ’
HUS S S PLACE IN HISTO R Y 2 93

accused by E ek at the Leipzig disputation 1 5 1 9 with being , ,

a Hussite Eck had mentioned articles of Wyclif and Hu s s

.

condemned at Constance such as that faith in the pope was ,

no t neces s ary to salvation and that the church on earth does

not require a s ingle head Thi s skill ed di spu tant then went
.

on to allege a rumor that Luther was quite favorable to the

B ohemians Pres s ed to the wall Lu ther replied that amo n g
.
,

the B ohemian articles there were many which were both

Christian and S criptural I t was a matter of i n di fference to
.

him that Wyclif and Huss advocated the articles they S hould ,

no longer b e condemned Of Christians no article S hould b e

.
,

requ ired which was not S crip tural Q uick to take advantage .

of these admissions E ek declared that i t was after the manner

,

of the B ohemians to presume to kn ow the S criptures better

than the pope councils do ctors and u ni ver s ities The con
, ,
.

d e mn e d B ohemians woul d thereafter look upon Luther as

their advocate In this way Luther was forced to tak e
.
,

publicly a po s ition in advance of his previous posi tion an d

solemnly declare that general councils as wel l as popes were , ,

i
no t infall ble ?

I t was soon after this dispu tation that Luther received

letters from Hussites of the Utraquist wing John P od u schk a ,

and Wenzel R osd ol owsky who expressed their b es t wi s hes ,

and accompanied their letter wi th a gift of kn ives and a copy

’
of Huss s Tr ea tise on the C hu r ch The former said that what .

Huss had been in B ohemi a that Luther was in S axony ,

.

Luther acknowledged these comm unications and sent hi s cor

respondents a Copy of hi s smaller writings Th e good or .
,

t h od ox opinion of Huss in Germany was expressed by a con

temporary C ochl a u s who pronounced Huss worse than a
—
, ,

Jew a Tartar a Turk and a Sodo mi te B ut the influence

,
.

of the B ohemian had gone so far with Luther in 1 5 2 0 that , ,

with reference to those who yoked their names together he ,

a s serted that withou t s u r misi n g it he had b een advocating all

, ,

1
K o st lin ,
1 2 6 5 sq .
2 94 JOHN HUS S

Hu ss s teachings and he and his asso ciates were all Hussites

’

w ithout kn ow ing i t He was amazed that evangeli cal truth

.

had been publicly con sig n ed to the flames a hundred years

before a n d yet ala s no one dared openly to acknowledge
, , ,

that this was the case .

’
I n 1 5 2 0 a Lat in edition of Huss s Tr ea tise on the C hu rch
app e ared in Wittenberg In his addres s to the Germ an .

nobili ty written the s ame year Luther called upon the

, ,

R oman Church to confess that it had done wrong in burning

’
Hu ss He was burned u n justly and in violation of Go d s
.

’
commandments ; that innocent man s blood he asserted was , ,

?
s till crying from the ground A year later he revoked his
’
s tatement that some of Huss s articles conde mn ed at Con

s tance were true He now a ffirmed that they were all true
.
,

a n d that the pope and papi s ts in co ndemnin g Huss at Con ,

s tance had also condemned the Gospel

,
and in its place pu t ,

the doctrines of the dragon of hell ? From that time on ,

Luther was an uncompromis ing champion of Huss as a man

’
of God In his preface s to Huss s letters and wri tings
.
,

already referred to he fully expressed this Opinion ,

In one .

of the s e characteri s tically calli n g the R oman bishop that

,
“
ba silisk of the church and plague of all the earth he ,

accuses the pope of b eing the creator of new gods by canon

izi n g the saints while at the same time he damned that good
,

and mo s t pious man John Huss and ordered the whole world , ,

to execrate him as a devil to b e abhorred thr ough eternity .

In e ffect he set himself up as the judge of the living and

,

the dead by damn in g Th e one and orderin g new saints to b e

i n voked and worshipped .

’
In the second preface he speaks of Huss as the church s ,

holy martyr and pronounced the coun cil of Constance as hav

in g expo s ed itself to deri s ion and ridi cule for raving against
that pious man and he prayed that the next council to b e
,

1
T o the Ge m Nobil ity, 5 r . 23 . Gr u nd u nd Ur s ach all e r A r tikel . K o st lin ,
1 40 8 .
2 96 JOH N HUS S

of the university of Prague It is written on parchm ent and

.

co n tai n s the coat s of arm s of many B ohemi an nobles .

Thr e e medallio n s with w hi ch one of its pages is illu m inated

, ,

repr e s e n t Wyclif striking fire with two flin t s Huss s tarting ,

a fl am e a n d Luther hold ing aloft the burning torch A pic .

ture at the foot of the page represent s Hu ss in the midst of

the fl am e s at Con s tance .

Ov e r again s t thi s old Hussite song book is to b e S e t one -

of t h e bronze piece s of s tatuary erected in front of the u ni ,

v e r s ity in 1 8 48 to commemorate the fiv e hundredth an niv e r -

s ary of Charle s IV a n d represe n ting the faculty of theology .

—
Hu ss h as n o place there the most notable figure so far as ,

the out side world know s ever connected wi th the u niversity

,
.

The group repre s ent s a woman wi th her right hand on a

book labelled the B ible and on her left knee a volume labelled
Thoma s Aquinas The B ible is clo s ed the work of the S chool
.
,

m a n is wide open The controver s y in B ohemia sti l l goes on

.

between Hu ss who advocated the open B ible and the e c cl e si

, ,

a s t ic a l tradition which keep s the B ible closed and follows the ,

s chola s tic theology .

Taking a wider survey and going beyond the di stinctively

religiou s realm we must also give Hus s a place in the hi s tory
,

of the s truggle for the rights of conscience Here according .

,

to Lechler lie s his chief merit In spite of his self distrust

,
.
-

and gentle nature Hus s wa s not i n timidated by the council

1
,

to co n s e n t to a form of recantation which he believed to b e

a fal s e hood In a sense similar to that intended by R enan
.
,

whe n of the Christian martyr of Lyons, the s lave B landina ,

“

he s ay s that by her death sh e did more to abolish slavery than

all the writi n g s of the ancient philosopher s so it is true that ,
’
Hu ss s moral heroi s m in the pre s ence of a terrible death h a s
promoted the cau s e of liberty of op rm on If Luther asserte d .

at Worm s that it was not safe to do a n ythi n g again s t one s ’

con s cience the s ame attitude was al s o taken by Hu ss

, .

S H l f rt p
1
6ee e e ,
. 20 .
 IN
’
HUS S S PLACE HISTO R Y 2 97

Above all friendships he placed loyalty to the tru th Sub .

mission to authority at the expense of convi ctions he refused

to regard as meritorious He could not recant becau s e a s .
,

he s aid again and again he was no t ready to offend agains t ,

God and his conscience In his C ommen ta ry on the S en ten ces

.

of the L om b ar d he stated that to act contrary to conscience

,

is sin bu t he did no t there take up the question whether

,

re s istance to the church is S in He closed hi s treatment by .

saying that in addi tion to what he had wri tten there were
many more t hi ngs whi ch might b e said ab ou t conscience ?

The problem of thi s relation of the individual conscience

to church authority may have been among the things un
treated .

Gerson himself insisted that the individual is b oun d to

submi t to the church pu tting his conscience aside so far as
,

he holds views disapproved by the organization I t is no .

excuse he ar gues for di s ob edience b efore God or man that

, ,

his conscience justi fi e s him Heretics have a conscience bu t .

,

an unenlightened conscience They have deliberately set .

themselves against God and arrogate to themselves a knowl

edge of God w hi ch is false Conscience is n o excuse for error .

and heresy ?

Huss laid down a principle of far reaching signifi cance -

when he predicated a tribunal higher than the church the ,

tribunal of Christ He spoke better than he perhaps kn ew

. .

He coul d scarcely have foreseen the full application given to

that pr inciple in the twentieth century I t was a principle .

w hi ch the great teachers of his age did no t understand a ,

principle whose very statement they abhorred The tribu n al .

—
of God is s e t up in th e S criptures the S crip tures so Hu s s ,

S u p er I V S e t p 3 5 —
1
.
3 54
n .
,
. 1 .

2
E in e B er uf u n g a uf d a s Get oiss en er ken n t Ger s on n iekl an S c h wab , 5 99 _ .
,
.

H e f e l e , p 2 1 7 , e x pr e ss e s r e s p e c t f or H u ss s h e r o i s m s h o wn in t h e f a c e of d ea th
’ ‘

. .

f
I t was f or t h e au th o r s r e l a tiv e ly a v o r a b l e tr e a t m e n t o f H uss , a n d h is a il u r e
’
f
f
t o j u s ti y t h e co u n c il in p as sin g thi s s e n t e n ce a g a i n s t h im e x ce pt b y t h e s t an d a r d
‘

of t h e a g e in w hi c h t h e co u c il wa s h e l d whi ch n o d ou b t
n ,
l ed t o t h e su ppr e ss i on
of t h e se en v th vol um e of h is H istor y of the Cou n cil s .
2 98 JOHN HUS S

co n tended— no t as interpreted by the church but as inter ,

e t e d by the co n s cie n ce
p r .

I n place s in h is writi n g s he distinctly plead for reason as

a guide in matters of religious co n duct s uch as prayers and ,

fa s ti n g With it s aid eccle siastical mandate s di s tinct from

.
,

the precept s of the Go spel are to b e judged On one o c ,

.

ca s io n h e spoke of the S c riptures s pecial divine revelation

, , ,

t h e rea s on a n d experie n ce as the guides which are to b e de

1

pend e d upo n in dete rm ining what we are to b elieve and the

comm a n d s we are to Obey It is n o t to b e supposed that Huss .

meant to make the reason co ordinate with the S criptures -

which co n ta i n the truth H is purpose wa s to assert the rights .

of reason over agai n s t the hierarchy or the church as a guide

to the t ruth He nowhere worked out into a careful system
.

the relation the S criptures the reason the church and , ,

Chri s tian experience bear one to the o ther I t is evident .

,

however that he predi cated fo r th e individual reason a place

, ,

s uch as h is age and the S choolmen denied i t as a guide of

cond uct in matters of religion .

It is therefore in accordance with his o ther teachings tha t

, ,

Hu ss did n o t shrink b ack f rom the word hereti c with the same
abhorrence h is contemporaries felt for it A s a sermon already .

quoted show s he even had a good word to say for the uses
,

of heresy Heretics are dangerous but their mistakes may

.
,

be very useful M any are led away by heresy bu t by it the

.
,

faithful are tempted and are made s trong ?

This is a very
di fferent conception from that handed down from the Middl e
Ages Here s y was a thing not to b e all owed to live and if
.
, ,

n ece ss ary it was to b e crushed by the death of th e heretic

, .

Thi s idea first carried into practice in the burning of the

,

Priscillianist errori s ts 3 8 5 was advocated by Pope Leo I in , ,

4 50 and a century later by the emperor Justinian who l aid

, ,

1
M on .
, 1 : 1 5 6 , men s u r a l ib r ata r a tion e ; r a tio j ud ical d e E ccl es .
, Mon .
,

30 5 sq .

2
Ad oct o d octor es . M on .
,
1 3 8 1 , 3 83 .
 3 00 JOHN HUS S

cor p or is The furthest limi t to which Chri s t

con d e m n a r e v ol u it .

we n t wa s to bid the church treat obsti n ate o ffe n der s a s heathe n

a n d publica n s a n d withdraw from them Huss speak s of the
1
.

pri n cipl e ad v ocated by the doctors that religiou s o ffender s ,

b e tur n e d o v e r to the magi s trate for puni shme n t as the san ,

’
u in a r corollary I t i s true that in the pre s ence of d A il l y
g y .
,

Hu ss mo d ifi e d h is s tateme n t declaring that the suspected ,

her e tic s hould be labored with and in s tructed an d o n ly then ,

if n ec e s s ary pu n i sh e d corporally B ut the statement of the

,
.

Tr ea tise on the C h u r ch even as thus modi fi ed caused a great , ,

tumult among the j udge s On e of the charges made agai n st .

Hu ss by G e r s on was that he had de nied the righ t of the church

to i ss u e the i n terdict but s o far as we know Hus s did not go
, , ,

that far Ger s on we n t on to s ay that prelates and pri n ces

.

w e re under obligatio n no t o n ly to co n demn heretics but u n, ,

der threat of s evere pe n alties to fight them ou t of exi s tence ?

,
’
I n gen e ral it may be s aid that Huss s treati s e lead s to
,

the a s s e rtio n of the pri n ciple of the rights of the i n dividual

co n s cie n ce ju s t a s do the words of the Westmi n s ter C on f e s
,
“ ”
s io n ,
God alo n e is Lord of the conscience though the West ,

mi n s ter divi n e s were unconsciou s of the full appli cation of

’
th e ir noble expre ssion Alo n g the line of Huss s appeal from .

all human tribu n als a n d commandment s of men to the law

of Christ and to Chri s t himself is his far reach ing statement ,
-

a s tateme n t which de s erve s to b e quoted to the e ffect that ,

n o t the pope but the Holy Spirit is the teacher of the church
,

a n d it s s afe s t refuge r ef u giu m s ecu r iss imu m eccl esia s a n cta

- ?

In the d i s cu ssio n of the power of the church over the lives

of heretics Hu ss clearly elab orated a con s ideration in h is
,

R e p l y to the E ight D octor s a co n sideration he had b arely ,

touched upo n b e fore in his Trea tis e on the C hu r ch and in his

attack agai n s t the papal bulls o f indulgence He made a dis .

1
De e ccl es ia . M on .
,
1 2 85 .
2
D oc .
,
1 85 sq .

1
I n R e pl y to S ta n is l a u s , M on .
, 3 54 . I t mus t n ot be forg ott en th a t t h e ad
v o ca t e s o f t h e d e a en a th p lty a l so a pp ea l e d t o t he H o ly G h os t as d id G e r son .
 ’
HUS S S PLACE IN HISTO R Y 30 1

t inction be tween the Old and the New Testaments and his
posi tion was that the death penal ties of the Old Te s tamen t
were i n flicted in ob edience to immedi ate divine commands in
each case B y the New Tes tamen t measure s les s severe are
.

in cu l cated ?
The example and the words of Chri s t make for
toleration and peac e — a d p acem d u cit C hr istu s v er b o et exemp l o

—and the death of ecclesias tical o ffenders is never jus ti fi able ,

whe ther in war or by individual sentence excep t by the au ,

t h or iz a t ion of a special divi n e revelation Here Hu s s was .

,

far in advance of his times and had his teachings b een followed
instead of the spiri t and letter of th e mediaeval theology and
legislation the cause of religious toleration woul d have r e
,

c e iv e d more consis ten t recog n ition from Protes tant Christen

dom than was th e case at one time .

Protestantism inaugurated the new era in regard to th e

treatment of religious dissenters Luther wrote to Leo X .
,

that the burning of heretics is contrary to the will of the Holy

Spirit declared that the soul is no t to b e compelled by physi
,

cal force bu t by moral suasion and that every one should b e ,

allowed to b elieve as he may choose and if he does not b elieve ,

he has already punishment enough ?

It is to b e lamented
that this good principle was set aside in so many cases by
’
the R eformers Calvin s part in the execu tion of S ervetus
.

’
is greatly to b e condemned In ju s ti fi cation of S ervetus s .

execu tion he wrote a pamphlet which upon the b asis of

, ,

passages in the Old and New Testament jus ti fied the death ,

penalty for Off enses against the first table of the Sinai ti c
law B eza his su ccessor also wrote a treatise along thi s line
.
, ,
.

The S econd Helvetic confession s tated the principle but in ,

spite of this attitude of intolerance the trend of Protestant

sentiment and Prote s tant teaching has b een in favor of
lib erty of though t and i t is in Pro testant countries that the
,

1
M on .
,
1 —
S ee d e e ccl es c h a p XI X
3 93 3 9 6 . . . .

2
H e r e h e wa s s p eak i n g o f t h e A n a b a pti s t s S e e VOl ke r , Tol er a n z
. und In
t ol er an z im Z e ita l ter d er R ef or ma tion , 1 9 1 2 , pp 8 2 , 8 9 , e t c . .
3 0, JOHN HUS S

bene fits o f r e ligious liberty are enjoyed In B ohemia a measure .

of tol e rati o n w a s gra n ted by Joseph II in 1 7 8 1 and a larger ,

liberty in 1 8 48 ?
It is littl e to s ay that Huss was a champion of the rights
o f con s ci e n c e if w e have in mind s tatements only For con .

s ci e n c e h e w a s willi n g to give up his life B y his death he .

a ccompli s hed more tha n he could have accomplished by a

treati s e H is min d w as set on progres s and following Wycl if

.
,

a n d at the moment defending Wyclif he laid do wn the true ,

“
p ri n cipl e O f i n tellectual advancement in the words : If any ,

man in the church can instru ct me from sacred S crip ture or

by sou n d reasoni n g I am most willing to yield For from the
,
.
,

outs et of my s tudie s I have laid this down as my rule that, ,

whe n e v er in a n y matter I perceive a sounder reason than the

o n e I w a s mo v ed by I would gladly and humbly recede from
,

my former opinion knowing well that the things we know are

,

much l e ss numerous than the things of whi ch we are ign o

”2
ra n t .

By h is life Huss accomplished much in winning the hearts

,

o f m e n ; by his teachings he accomplished more ; by his death , ,

h e accomp li shed most A calm study of his su fferings in.

pri so n a n d at the stake reveal s as Luther found out and also , ,

’
Galileo s co n demnation proved that the highest church tribu ,

n a l s err a n d it teache s that wide scope should b e given in the

tol e ratio n O f di ff erences in matters of religion and conscience .

It doe s n o t occa sion surprise that even a temperate R oman

Catholic writer like Helfert writing more than half a century ,
’
a go 1 8 , 5 3 s hould have exp ressed t h e V iew that Huss s career
,

1
Le c k y
Rat ion al is m in E u r ope, c h a p IV , s a ys : T ol e r a ti on is e sse n ti al ly a
, .

n o rm a l r es u lt o f P r o t e s t an ti s m f or it is t h e d ir ec t l o i ca l an d in e vit ab l e c on
, , g ,

seq u e n c e o i t h e d u e e x e r c i s e o f priv a t e j u d m e n t F or t h e o pp os it e O pi n i on
”
g .

P a u l u s P r otes ta n t is rn u s u nd T ol er a n z i nt I é te n J a hr h 1 1 1 wh o a d d u c e s t h e
,
, 9 ,
.

cas es o f P r o t es t a n t i n t o l e r a n c e i n c l u d i n g M as sa ch u se tt s tr e a t m en t of t h e
’
,

Q u a ke rs a n d R oge r W illi a m s .

ol
iq u a p e s on a r eccl es ia me s cr iptu r a s ac r a v el r ation e v al id a d ocu er it ,
pa r ol ts s z mc cons e n t i e , r et c d .
, o Tr in ita l e Al on ,
. 1 : 131 . W yc li f h a d us e d
a l m os t t h e sa m e wor d s in h is d e U n iv ers al ib u s S ee Loser t h , p
. .
3 53 .
 CHA PTE R XII

W R I T I N G S A N D T H E H U S S I TE S
’
H US S S

E go imp nd e ns om n ia J oha n n is H us et d ocu i e t ten u i, b r ev iter s a mu s

i
om ncs H us ta ig n o a n t es
—L u e th r
L rr
e tte to S p a l a t in , F e b.
1 5 20 .
. .

S hamel ly ( u aw es ) I b oth t a u ght an d h e l d a l l t h e t e achi n gs of

ess n ar

H ss i s h o rt w e w e r e a ll H
u : n ,
it es w ith ou t kn ow i n g it u ss .

N o h m a s o l e v e r b o r e it s e l f w ith l o fti e r fo rtit u d e or s we e t e r o r

u n u

h u m b l r h rity th a n J oh n H u ss — L e a I n q u is it io 2 4 8 7
e c a ,
n ,
.

J h H d m a y o th e r s h a v e w ag ed h a rd e r b a ttl es th an we d o
n
—
o ss a
n u n .

I f ur au
o is g r e t it s au th r
c se o a n d c h pi
aam on ,
is gr t l
e a a s o Lu th e r . .

Le tte r t M el a nc ht ho
o J u n e 2 7 53 n , ,
1 0 .

T HE three men duri n g the Middle Ages who received the

s e n t e n c e of death a s a direct consequence of the action of the

church a n d who have a di s tinct place in hi s tory are Arnold

O f B r e s cia Hu ss and S avo n arola Arnold of B rescia left no
,
.

w riti n g s a n d his followers in Northern Italy are dim S hadow s

in t h e pa s t O f whom at best we know but very little S avo , ,
.

marola of whom Alexander VI said he s hould b e put to death

,

ev e n though he were another John the B ap tist lef t ad mi rers ,

but no followers a n d h is limi ted writing s s uch a s they are

, , ,

have only a personal interest John Huss left both a large .

body O f writing s and al so a devoted body Of fe ll Q VECLS whose s

fortu n e s have contributed a noteworthy chap ter to the his

tory of the church H is writi n g s chi efly in Latin covering .
, ,

four or five departments include his sermons his letters , , ,

h is exegetical work s his polemical writing s intended to set , ,

forth h is opi n ion on points of co n trover sy and h is theological ,

C omme n ta r y on the S en ten ces of P eter the L omb ar d H is Czech .

w ri ti n g s which are much s maller in extent are prai s ed for

, ,

their tyle by B ohemian writers competent to spe ak

s ?

1
P a l ac ky , Ges ch .
, 299 sq . W r at isl aw ,
—
3 49 3 7 5 . Lu tz ow , 2 00 s qq . T wo
of H u ss
'

s l e tt e r s writt e n fr om C o n s t a n c e we r e pri n t ed 1 4 59 a n d f r
ou 1 49 5 .

3 04
 ’
HUS S S W R ITIN GS AND THE HUS SITE S 30 5

Of his sermons specimens have already been given His .

letters frequently quoted in this volume have an undying

, ,

value for the purposes of e difi ca t ion a n d are a chief authori ty ,

for his opinion s and experiences in the last years of his life .

His comm entaries on the Psalms and hi s explanation s of the

’
D ecalogue and the Lord s Prayer attest h is devotio n al spirit ,

but have no place of importance in the his tory of B iblical

exp osition .

Hi s C ommen tar y on the S en ten ces of P eter the L omb ar d ,

publis hed for the fir s t time 1 90 5 has a di s tinct value and ,

enables us to appreciate more than we di d b efore the extent of

’
Huss s indep endent learning ?
The volume contains nearly
eight hundred pages P eter the Lomb ard who died 1 1 6 4 fur
.
, , ,

n ish e d in hi s four b ooks of S en ten ces the theological text book -

of the Middle Ages I t was used by all the S choolmen after

.

’
his day in their lectures including Thomas Aquinas Hus s s
,
.

C ommen tar y was delivered as a series of lectures b etween ,

1 40 7 and 1 40 9 b efore hi s troubles had fairly b egun He

,
.

follows the original closely However in cases no t a few he .

,

indicates that he does not consider hi mself to have exhausted

the speci fi c s ubj ect under treatment a s serting that he had ,

left many ques tions undis cussed Huss himself quo ted from .

hi s C ommen ta ry and carried i t wi th him to Constance He .

used recent theologians such as D u r an d u s B r a d war d in e and

, ,

Wycl if .

’
Of Huss s many pole mical works including his Tr ea tise on ,

’
I n d u lgen ces Wyclif s Tr act on the Tr in ity and The A n swer to
,

h
t e E g i ht D i
octors the chief is the Tr ea t se on th e C h u r ch— dc
,

E ccl esia ?
I t was the one from w hi ch the charge s were drawn
that brought its author to the stake The treatise was cal le d .

forth by the docum ent of the eigh t memb ers of the theo
logical facul ty o f the university o f Prague written in defense
1
M ag i s t e r J H u s : S u p er I V S en ten tiar u m T h e g en u in e n ess is n ot
. . .

d ou b t e d . F l aj sh an s g iv es t h e a r g u m e n t s p viii s qq
,
. .

L o s er t h W iclif and H us p 1 8 2 s ay s : F ri en d s an d foe s a l ik e h a v e a l

2 “
.
, , ,

wa ys r egar d e d it with r es p ec t .
566 JOHN HUS S

of Joh n XXI I I S bulls of indulgence and in protes t against

’

t h e X LV Article s of Wyclif ? Prepared during the period of

his s e mi v o lu n tary exile from Prague 1 4 1 3 and intended to
-

, ,

b e a j u s tificatio n of h is di s regard of the eccle siastical censures

i s sued agai n s t him and the citation calling him to R ome the ,

work h a s prop e rly a place among the notable writings on the

s ub j e ct of eccle s iology For nearly a thousand years that
.

s ub j e ct had had no elaborate treatment Au g ustine in the .

,

fifth ce n tury without giving a de finition of the church fur

, ,

n is h e d materials of the greatest importance in them s elves and

for hi s tory in h is controver sial works again s t the D onatis t dis

s e n ter s B efore him Cyprian who di ed a martyr 2 58 pre
.
, , ,

s e n ted the fir s t de fin ite work in the department of ecclesiology

’
in h is Un ity of the C hu r ch Wyclif s great work reopened
.

the di s cu ssion and he was followed by Huss .

Duri n g the Middle Ages the de finition and nature of

the church were taken for granted and no t discussed as a
di s tinct topic The R oman Church was as clearly de fined as
.

w a s the R oman empire with i ts sovereign its courts and its

, ,

c e remo n ies The S choolman who came nearest to entering

.

i n to a di s cussion was Hugo de S t Victor who calls the holy .

,

Catholic church the body of Christ v iv ifie d by one spirit ,

”
u n ited by one faith and s ancti fied What is the church he .
,

—
a sk s but the to tality of the faithf u l the totality of Chris
,

tian s ? 2
Peter the Lomb ard nowhere takes up the de fini tion ,

a n d Thomas Aqui n as with whom begins the s pecial treatment

,

of the papacy in systems of theology also practi cally ignored ,

the sub j ect excep t in passages where he was considering the

’
pope s absolute supremacy Accor ding to the medi aeval .

id e a drawn from Augu s tine the church is the vi s ible Chris tian
,

i n s titution the corporation ou t of which there is no salvation

, .

T h e de finition wa s narrowed to the limits of the R oman

Church a s we have it de finitely stated in the profession de
1
D oc 4 7 5 4 80
.
—
T h e d oc u m e n
. t was d a t ed F e b . 6, 1 41 3.
2
D e S acr a men t is , 1 2 .
that wherea s Wyclif s treati s e wa s n o t pub l i shed until 1 88 6
,
’
,

Hu s s s w ork w as pri n t e d in 1 5 2 0 at Witte n berg a n d it s teach

’

, ,

’
ing s k n o w n to Luth e r Through Hu ss s memory the q ue s tion
.

o f t h e church w a s k e p t pro m ine n t before Europe At the .

clo se o f t h e fifte e n th c e ntury We ss el the Holland R eformer , ,

e xclaimed : The church cannot err ; but what is the church ?

I t is the commu n io n of the s aints to which all true believers ,

belo n g w h o are bou n d tog e ther by one faith one love on e

, , ,

hope . T h e nature a n d prerogatives of the church con s tituted

a fu n dam e ntal q ue s tion which w as awaiti n g settlement To .

B o n iface s proud as s ertion w hi ch Oekam M ar sigliu s of

’

, ,

P a dua Wyc lif and Hu s s in the l ight of S crip ture and h is

, ,

tory declared to be without fo u ndation i t remained for the

, ,

R e formatio n to give the heavie s t blow .

S e ldom if ever has on e author been under so deep a deb t

, ,

of O bligatio n to a teacher as Hu ss wa s to Wyclif Not o n ly .

did Hu ss adopt many of the ideas of Wycl if he appropriated ,

whol e paragraph s of h is writing and transferred them to h is

o wn page s While this ca n n ot b e gain s aid yet in explana
?
,

tio n it mu s t be said that Huss was no servile imitator nor did

he seek to play a part in the garment s of another His soul .

burned with pa ssion for the truths which he defended More .

o v er h is treati s es have a character of their own They are

,
.

’
more direct a n d practical than Wyclif s and b etter adap ted
to reach the ear of the average man and move him Wyclif ,
.

goe s o ff i n to all s ort s of side discu ss ions which are not e s se n

tial to h is main poi n t and shows more of the scholastic ten
d e n cy to e n ter upo n ni ce philosophic discriminat ion s B oth .

a re S criptural but Hu ss the more S criptural argui n g from

, ,

t h e s tandpoint of an experimental knowledge of the S crip

ture s a s well as from their letter Wyclif has the s harpne s s .

of the polemic Hu ss the per s ua sion of the advocate Hu ss

, .

doe s n o t employ the strong epithets wi th which Wycl if a c

c e n t u a t e s h is s tateme n t s He nowhere calls the pope the
.

1
T hi s is s h own c l e a rly b y L ose r t h , pp . 1 81 —9 2 0 .
 ’
HUS S S W R ITINGS AND THE HUS SITE S 30 9

vicar of the fi end or a terrible devil the epithet Wyclif ,

employs of Gregory XI .

It mu s t al s o b e remembered that Hu s s issued his polemical

writings within the n arrow limi ts of two or three years b e ,

ginning with h is Tr e a tis e on I n d u lgen ces In each case the .

cause was urge n t the feeli n g i n te n s e in Pragu e and in the

,
’
writer s own heart Wh at he wro te he was obliged to write .
,

q uickly .

The C ommen tar y on the S en ten ces shows that Huss had
a mu ch larger gif t for ori ginal thought and writing than it h a s
b een recently the custom to credi t him wi th This work has .

the marks of independent theological discussion and i t also

’
evinces Huss s acquaintance wi th the wide fi eld of theolog
i cal knowledge He quotes Wyclif though no t at length
.
,
.

He refers to him once by name and then to b ear witness to ,

h is deep regard for his ma s ter and give expres s ion to h is own
merciful view of the judgments of God R eferring to those .

who wi th great assurance pronounced Wyclif eternally damned

in hell he declared that he ventured to dissent from that
,

judgment and hoped that Wyclif was of the numb er of the

saved And he observed that in ca s e Wyclif was in heaven
.
, ,

there would b e addi tional ground for prai sing the Lord who ,

has received him there or in case Wycl if was in purgatory , ,

he hoped the Lord would in his mercy liberate him quickly ?

Huss had b een s peaking in the line of hopeful reli ance upon
’ “
God s mercy Fir s t and last he says : . I lean more toward ,

hope trusting the mercy of God than to despair looking in

, , ,

the direction of eternal damnation from whi ch the om nip o ,

tent God in mercy deliver us an d we prai s e God for His mos t ,

gracious mercy b ecause even in the hour of death He is so

,
”
merciful to forgive .

P 6
1
. Lo e t h 21 ft e r t h e p b li c ti n o f H u ss s C mm ta y m od ifi ed
. s r a u a o
’
o en r

1
1 15 w pi g j d g m
s ee t i r g rd t H u
n u d e pe d
en e p o W y c li f a d s ai d :
n e a o ss s
’
n en c u n n

We c a n a ss u m eit a s c e rt a i th a t ou r pr e vi ou s j u d gm e n t in r e g a rd t o H u ss s
n
’

lit e r a ry wo rk m u s t b e a lt e r e d in se ve r a l p o i n t s an d th a t it will b e a ppri s ed

a t a c on s i d e r a b ly hi g h e r v a l u e th a n h e r e t ofo r e —
M ittheil d es I n st f os terr .
,
”
. . . .

Ges chichtsf or s chu n g . NO . 26 .

 JOHN HUS S

Hu s s s Comme n ta r y is a clear s traightforward and judi

’
,

cio n s th e ological trea t i s e with a s tro n g practical tendency

,
.

It is to be r e g a rded as a moderate s tatement of the theology

o f the age in which its author lived He does no t dep art .

from the offi cial te n ets yet he modi fies them Certain pruri
,
.

e n t q ue s tio n s he decli n e s altogether to answer Such ques .

tio n s h e pronoun ce s of little pro fi t and as in the case of , ,

t h e co n ditio n of the lo s t he relegate s the solution of many of

,

the problems to the ligh t of the day of j udgment The author .

place s above all s cienti fic knowledge of religion the law of ,

’
Chri s t and the duty of love to one s neighbor which he turns
a sid e agai n and again to empha s ize as he does also the words , ,

t h a t by th e ir fruit s shall men be known

?

Hu ss has al so the honor of having had a part in B ohemi an

hym n ody He sent to certain nuns a s ong to be chanted at
.

ve sp e r s a chant whi ch he bade them sin g with the heart a s

,

well a s with the melody of the lip s As in the movement led .

by Savonarola there was a revival of hymn s ingi n g so it was ,

’
in Prague u n der Huss s leadership Huss revived ancient .

B ohemia n hym n s and after h is death the s ingin g of sacred

, ,

s o n g s charact e rized his fo l lower s Three h ymn s are ascribed

.

to him in t h e hymn book of the B ohemian B rethren 1 5 7 6

-

,
.

Amo n g all t h e 1 5 1 6 hymns of the Moravian h ymn book pub -

lis h e d at B ethlehem 1 8 9 1 only one is ascribed to him

, ,

To a v e rt from m e n G od s wrath ’

J e su s su fi e r e d in our s t e a d ;
B y a n i gn omin i ous de a th
H e a full at on e men t mad e .

A Latin hymn ascribed to Huss of old has these as its fi rst

t wo v er se s :

J C hr is tu s n os tr a s a l u s ,
esu s

Q u od r ecl a ma i omn is m a l u s ,
N obis in s u i m em or ia m ,
D ed it h an c p a n is hos tia m .

1
Fl aj sh a n s ed .
,
p . x1 .
3 12 JOHN HUS S
’
SO profound w a s t h e impre ss ion Hus s s death made upon
h is peopl e tha t in Pra gu e a n d in the villages in church and on ,

s tr e e t e v e ry m a n w a s di s ti n ctly for him or agai n st him

,
A .

co n t e mporary chro n icl e r s ay s : Every household in B ohemia

is di v i d e d the wif e agai n s t the hu sb and the father against
, ,

the child a n d t h e ho s t agai n s t h is gue s ts

,
The hou s e s of .

t h e a n ti Hu s s ite s were plu n dered or even destroyed

-
Priests .

O f the o l d way s u ff er e d per s onal i n jury or were driven from

th e ir pari sh e s The doub tful report ran on the street s of

.

Co n s ta n ce that prie s t s were even drowned in the Moldau and

kill e d with the sword ?
E sp e cially was the Iron B i shop John of L eit om ysl the , ,

obj e ct of popular indignatio n He was looked upon as the .

u n fe e lin g leader against Huss at Constance Noble s se q ues .

t r a t e d part of h is domains and on his return he had to b e pro

t e c t e d from viole n ce On the other hand great nobles id en t i
.
,

fi e d them s elve s with the Hu ssite movement C e n e k of W a r t e m ,

berg Lacek of K r a war and others men who o ccupied the

, ,

highe s t po s itio n s in the state Wenzel if he did no t espou s e .

,

the cau s e of the religiou s revolutio n at least showed h im s elf ,

i n di ffere n t in seeing that the peace was kept The queen .

w a s an Open syrn p a t hiz e r and was s urrounded by women of

like mind Joh n of J e s e nicz conti n ued to b e a favorite at the
.

court Had We n zel been a man of s trength he would prob

.
,

ably have abandoned his cautiou s attitude and openl y sup

’
ported the great body of his n obles in defending Huss s mem
ory a n d promoting the principles for which he died .

’
Not u n til five days had elapsed after Huss s death did
L e it o m ysl venture to appri s e the kin g of what had o ccurred .

I n s tead of proc e edi n g at o n ce to communicate the n ew s he ,

a pologized for havi n g b een s ile n t so lo n g and he approached

h is s tateme n t gradually with remark s about Gregory XII S ’

r e s ig n atio n a n d B e n edict s probable refu s al to re s ign He ’

.

1
P a l a c k y , Ges ch .
, 3 78 . N i e h e i m in H a rd t , 2 410 . P a l ac k y , Ges ek .
, 3 71 ,
t
d o u b s t h e um o r r .
 ’
HUS S S W R ITIN GS A ND THE HUS SITES 515

then announced that Huss had b e en bur n ed alive that his ,

teaching s and the teaching s of Wyclif had b ee n co n demn ed

’
and that Jerome s ca s e was bein g con s idered He expressed .

the ge n eral regret that no me ss enger had reached the council

from the king and that i t was rumored though he believed
, ,

fal s ely that the king had looked with favor upon Huss He
,
.

heard that many things had b een reported to We n zel abou t

hi mself w hi ch s eemed to indi cate that he was acting in op
positio n to the king and the kingdom of B ohe mia but he ,

called upon the k ing not to give them credence On his r e .

turn from Con s tance he would explain his course and as he

, , ,
’
though t to the king s satisfaction
,
.

In very dif ferent tone and lan guage did the bishop on the
same day write to Konrad archbishop of Prague He de ,
.

c l ar e d he had worked with might to asser t the fair fame of

B ohemia and to deliver it from the p e s t if e r ou s an d mos t

f
dangerous heresy and s chism with which it was t hreatened ‘

because O f t h ose most dangerous here s iarchs John Wyclif and ,

John Hu ss Al l rigor had been employed by the council in

.

its procedure As for himself he had no t tried to palliate

.
,

in t h e least the event s w hi ch had been o ccurrin g in B ohe mia ,

and he hoped that the archbishop would now see to it that

the king sent legate s to Constance and promised obedience
for his kingdom ?

A strong plea for the unity of the B ohemian church was

made by the council itself in deman di n g that its decrees b e
obeyed In a communi cation dated July 2 6 addressed to
.
,
“
the nobles and other chi ef citizens of B ohemia the holy ,

synod of Constance representing the universal chur ch of God

, ,

declared that it had B ohemia upon its heart day and night .

I t spoke of the hideousness of the terrible schism and the

most pernicious wi ckedness of the here s y which had arisen
in that time The syn od had taken mea s ure s to restore to
.

the church the sweetnes s of peace an d to free it from noxious

1
D oc .
, 5 64 s qq .
5 14 JOHN HUS S

briars By his foul a n d dete s table doctrine John Wyclif had

. ,

s ought t o tur n the church away from fundamental teaching s

.

No o n e had e v e r before a ss ailed the faith under the veil of

the Chri stia n r e ligio n as he had done and no one had been
s o p e r v e r s e a n d co n tumacious in defying holy church His .

book s h a d bee n ord e red burned and his bones exhumed His .

p o i s o n ou s doctrine had infected the minds of John Huss and

J e r o m e From s uch men of perdition the synod had a t
.

t e mpted to free the kingdom of B ohemia Hus s had been .

gi v e n every opportunity at Constance and had been heard

r e p e atedly by commi s sions in private and in public The .

e mp e ror Sigismund had been present The synod had a t

, ,
.

tempt e d to per s uade Huss of his error s and proceeded in a

s pirit of forbeara n ce wi shing the life and no t the death of
,
’
t h e si n n er At the devil s in s tigation he persisted and became
.
,

more p e rverse He wa s sentenced and went forth to death

.

through the act of the civil power The synod adjured the .

mag n ate s of B ohemia to prevent pestiferous men from sowing

the s eeds of Wycl ifit e and Hussite heresy and to see to it
that the stai n might be completely wiped out from B ohemia ?

The council was ready to back up its s entence with all

t h e authority at it s command In sending the bishop of .

L e it om y sl back to B ohemia with the commi s sion to uproo t

,

h e re sy re s tore order a n d strike a death blow at the moral

,

ca n c e r the council comme n ded him as a son of obedience

,
”
a n d a brave a n d dis creet soldier of Christ I t instructed .

him to excommu n icate rebellious prelates depriving them of ,

th e ir livi n g s a n d also all ob s tinate laymen of every degree

, ,

from the n oble s down who were su spects of here s y and to

, ,

deprive them and their children forever of all rights and land s
gi v en them by the church And if nece s sary he S hould call
.
, ,

in the aid of the secular arm —a u xil iu m b ra chii s ecu l ar is .

The feelin g in B ohemia wa s not to b e allayed with let

ter s n or was order to b e e s tab l i shed by the presence of the
1
D oc .
, 568 sqq .
5 16 JOHN HUS S

publicly post up I n di sputed matters they would appeal f or

.

c o u n s e l t o the u n i v er sity of Prague Whatever the apo s tolic

.

s e e comma n d e d they would submi t to provided it wa s n ot ,

co n trary to God a n d His law A commi ttee wa s appoi n ted

.

by t h e diet to pa ss j udgme n t upon epi s copal cen s ure s an d to

s e e that the pact wa s ob s erved con s i s ti n g of C e n e k of War
,

t e m b e r g Lac e k of K r awa r and B ocek of P o d ie b r a d

,
.

H e re we ha v e unimpeachable te s timony to the perso n al

purity of Hu ss and the profound i nflue n ce he had exerted
in h is n ati v e la n d . What he had preached B ohemian noble s ,

regarded a s in accord with the S criptures upon whi ch they ,

~
fir mly pla n ted themselves as determining the rule of f ait h
and daily co n duct The document promi s ed full liberty of
.

pr e achi n g a n d the sig n er s pledged themselves to support it

,

’
three time s on the Lord s D ay on their territorie s and in all
churches an d mo n a s teries withou t allowing any hinderance .

A n y prie s t comi n g and a sking for the privil ege of preachin g

the Word of God S hould have the pri v ilege granted
The council al s o had sympathizers who met Octob er 1 , ,

at B ohmisch B rod under the protectio n of archbishop K onr ad .

Fourteen of them signed a paper whi ch is not extant but ,

which i t is known pledged the s ign ers to the support of the

, ,

council K i n g We n zel it is s aid pro mised by word of mouth

.
, ,

h is adh e sio n to this s eco n d document .

’
No t u n til n early a year had elapsed since Hus s s death
did B oh e mia hear directly from the emperor Sigismu n d ,
.

After that event he had journeyed to Spain to induce B ene di ct

to re sig n a n d go from there to England In the fir st of thr ee .

letter s writte n from Paris March 1 4 1 6 the emperor com

, , , ,

me n d e d the n oble s who remai n ed true to the council To .

the sig n er s of the pact he wrote that the troubles in which

Hu ss b e came i n v olved were due mo s t prob ably to h is havin g
gon e alo n e to Co n s tance S everal times Sigi smund himself
.

had l e ft t h e cou n cil in i n dig n atio n but if he had objected to

, ,

t h e co n ti n uation of the trial that body would have adjourned

, .
 A ND T H E
’
HUS S S W R ITIN GS HUS SITE S 5 7
1

’
If the nobles of B ohemi a per s i s ted in defending Huss s cause ,

they would b e resisting the whole body of Chri s tendom He .

hoped they would give aid to his bro ther and a ss ume a posi
tion whi ch would b e pro fi table to themselves and B ohemia .

In th e third letter addressed to the members of both par

,

tie s Sigismund expressed sorrow for the si tuation in w hi ch his

,

deares t bro t her was placed and wrote they were a ll Chri s tians ,

and for that reason i t was b ecomin g to observe order and

discipline Their fathers had handed down to th em the true
.

religion and he b egged them to follow the path of peace and

avoid strife ?
The bishop of L e it om ysl who found hi mself unsafe in his
,

own di oce s e had a strong s upport in the vicar —

,
general of
Prague and the cathedral chapter With the excep tion of the .

cathedral the stronger parishes of the city were in the hand s

,

of Hussite priests On S ep tember 5 the very day the nobles

.
,

were signing the pact the cathedral chapter fo l lowing pas t

, ,

deci sions of the synod of Prague and the decree of the council
at Constance ordered priests to ab andon giving the cup to
,

the laity upon pain of excommunication and two weeks ,

later it ordered the execution of the b an upon all itinerant

,

preachers .

On Novemb er 1 it placed the capital under the in ter di ct

, ,

one of the grounds set forth b eing the presence of John

of J e s e ni cz at the palace upon whom had been laid the b an
,
’
of excomm uni cation In spite of J e s e nicz s wi thdrawal from
.

’
the city a few weeks later and in spite of the king s protes t ,

the inter d ict was maintained I t was urged that o thers su ch

.
,

a s C e n k o of W ar t e m b e r g who were under the b an rema ined

, ,

in the city and that the Hu s si te priests who had b een in ,

stalled in place of the old incumb e n ts were celebrating in ,

s acred t hin gs and that some of the old priest s had b een
,

s eiz ed and were led to prison by the Prague magis trates The .

king was called upon to see that the nobles under e x com
D oc 6 1 9 —
1
62 .
,
1 .
m u nica tio n left the city and that the o ther complaints were
recog n iz e d .

I n F e bruary 1 4 1 6 the council of Constance summoned

, ,

to its bar the four hundred and fif t y two nobles ?

A com -

mi s sio n e r from each of the n ation s was app ointed to act on

a court of trial On heari n g of the ci tation Sigismund de
.
,

m a n d e d that further proceedi n g s b e po s tponed until hi s return

to Co n s ta n ce That such mea sures were insu ffi cient to meet
.

t h e s ituation appears di s tinctly from a letter addressed by

,

the coun cil to the nobili ty of B ohemia a month later ?

It
lam e nted agai n the leaven of wickedness which originated
wi t h th e Ol d enemy of mankind the serpent who is never at , ,

re s t a n d had ma n ifested h is power in John Wycli f of accursed ,

m e mory John Huss and o thers and inebriated them wi th

, ,

th e chalice of B abylon These in turn had handed that cup .

, ,

of damnable error and wickedness to o thers Some who .

,

accordi n g to the fle s h were prominent among the nobili ty had ,

da m nably conspired against Christ to defend their errors .

A s for Hu ss he had been conv i cted many times of the

,

mo s t manife s t and dangerous heresies both judicially and by

s cholastic arguments I n spite of the law di vine and human
.
, ,

that he should not be released from prison and chains he was ,

a ccorded pub l ic hearings and an opportuni ty for repentance .

The attemp t was al s o made to bring him back to the lap of

t h e church and to the truth of the Chri s tian religion by
e xhortation s of sweetest love and superabundant instr u ction

about the Catholic faith These admonitions fe l l on dull .

,

viperou s ear s for Hu s s loved iniquity and at last going to

, ,

h is own place he received th e reward due him and his follow

,

e r s for their crimes —h e t h e mos t miserable of all miserable

men .

The council adjured the nobles to protect the church

a n d a ss i s t its legate the bi shop of L e it om ysl in the whole
, ,

1
T h e h u ll was p os t e d up at P as sa u , M ay 3, 1 4 1 6, M ay 5, at C on s t a n c e ,
M a y 1 0 , in Vi
en n a , etc
—
.

2
D oc.
,
615 619 .
5 26 JOHN HUS S

e v ery co n s cie n ti ou s man who hated the errors w hi ch thrived

th e re e s pe cia ll y by e v ery foreigner
,
.

The cou n cil r e min ded Sigi s mu n d that one reason for its
ha vin g b e e n co n v e n e d w as that it might take measure s for the
e xt e rmi n a t io n of here sy a n d the reformi n g of a world infected

wi th error Thi s tas k it had in part fulfill ed by con signin g

.

t w o h e retic s to the s ecular arm It b elonged to him as the .

d e f e n d e r a n d advocate of the church to put forth his might

to aba sh p e r fid y a n d eliminate all heresy D elay wa s danger .

ou s . H e s hould be q uick to act for the s alvation of tho s e who

wer e wa n deri n g about a s lo s t He should act w hi le there .

w as yet hope .

Thi s was an Open call to the emperor to pu t do wn by the

s word if n eces s ary the religiou s revol t of B ohemia The
, ,
.

a ppeal did n o t wai t lo n g to b e complied with and the r e sp on

s ib il it y for the blood with which B ohemia was drenched in

t h e a n ti Hu ssite cru sade rests upon the co u ncil

-
.

To the cou n cil s addres s whi ch was passed by the fiv e

’
,

nations Sigi smu n d replied that if his brother had not su fli

, ,

cie n t authority to proceed he would go to his aid If i t were ,

.

neces sary to resort to force a n d the sword he prayed that the ,

executio n O f the task might be committed to another rather

than himself le s t he be expo s ed to the suspicion of b eing
,

moved not with zeal again s t the W y clifi t e s but by a desire to

,

humble his bro ther and make spoil of his kingdom .

In a further communication to the baron s dated S ep tember ,

4 1 4 1 7 Sigi s mund called their atte n tion to the wi de spread

-

, ,

rebe l lio n in B ohe m ia and if possible outdid the council in

, , ,

th e appalli n g n arrative he gave O f the i n juries heaped upon

the prie s t s of the old r é gime He referred to the Neroni c .

p e r s e cutio n which was goi n g on with the purpo s e of forcing

t h e prie s t s to ab j ure the Catholi c faith I n fact so d ire wa s .
,

the per s ecu tion that such a u s e of force in religion had n ot

bee n kno wn even in the times of Pharaoh or the pagan per
,

s e c u t or s of the church The council had brought charges

.
 ’
HUS S S W R ITIN GS AND THE HUS SITES 321

agains t Wenzel but he had interfered to protect his b e s t

,

b eloved brother in the hope that he would pu t a side his in

,

diff erence and pu t a s top to the enormi tie s which were bei n g
perpetrated In cas e th e council found i ts ecclesiastical
.

censure s unav ailing and felt it s elf ob liged to insi s t on s ecular

ai d he hoped the b arons would exonerate him from all guil t
,

in the case .

While these communications w e re b ein g interchanged b e

’
tween Cons tance and Pra gue Huss s friend Jerome was , , ,

b eing tried : and he was bur ned M ay 3 0 1 4 1 6 Jerome dif , ,

.

f er e d from Huss in the circums tances of hi s birth b eing of a ,

noble family and in his personal presence b eing a large and

, ,

s trong man He was restless as hi s career shows Edu cated

.
,
.

in Prague where he was promoted to the B A degree 1 3 9 8

,
. .
, ,

he travelled abroad and after various exp eriences went to

’
O x ford where he copied wi th his own hand Wyclif s D ia l ogu s
,

and Tr ia l ogu s which he took b ack wi th him to B ohemi a

,
.

In 1 40 3 he visited P ales tine and two years later was at P ari s

, ,

and afterward at Cologne and Heidelb erg taking t h e M A ,

. .

degree from each university .

From the fir st Jerome was on intimate terms with Huss

,
’
and in 1 4 1 0 defended Wyclif s writings at the Prague uni
, ,

versity though he denied accep ting everythin g that Wyclif

,

s tood for At Vienn a he was cast into prison on the charge

.

of being a Wyclifi t e He es caped bu t was followed with .

,

the b an of excommun ication by the archbi s hop of Vienn a .

He s tood by Huss in the s trife over the right s of the B ohemi an

nation at the university and in attacking the crusading letters
of John XXIII Wh en Huss s tarted out for his journey to
.

Constance Jerome warned him that he would no t get b ack

,
’
alive Agains t Huss s advice he appeared in Constance in
.

the spring of 1 4 1 5 and posted up a no ti ce asking for s afe

,

conduct from the cou n cil and Sigi s mund .

While returning to Prague he was seized at Hirs chau ,

and taken b ack to Constance M ay 2 3 with ch ains on hi s , ,

 JOHN HUS S

ha n d s He was remanded to prison and at his trial in the

. ,

Fra n ci s ca n r e f e ctory was recognized by Gerson and teachers ,

o f Heid e lb e rg a n d Colog n e as one of their former students

a n d i n cli n e d to heretical loo s eness The proceedings agains t .

’
him w e r e d e l a y e d by Hu ss s execution On June 6 in a letter .
,

w ritt e n to Joh n of Chlum Huss referred to Jerome as his ,

bel o v e d brother to whom he hoped dying constancy would

,

b e gi v e n as al s o to himself
,
He had heard from commis .

s io n e r s O f the cou n cil that Jerome would su f fer death Writing .

t o h is fri e nd s in B ohemia on June 2 7 Huss said to quote the , ,

letter agai n that God o n ly knew why h is own death and the
,

death of h is dear brother Jerome were b eing delayed He .

hoped that Jerome would die without incurri n g guilt and

s how a firmer spirit in the hour of the ordeal than he himself ,

a weak s i n ner po ss e ssed ?

,

Hu ss s ca s e being di sposed of the council exerted i tself

’
,

to tur n Jerome from his errors and its attemp t was crowned
2

wi th succe ss Converted from h is p e r fid y the prisoner made

.
,

h is reca n tation in the presence of the four nations and later ,

September 2 3 before the council in its nineteenth session

,
.

B ei n g at the time as he declared under no compulsion he r e , ,

p u d ia t e d the articles of Wyclif and of Huss approved the ,

condem n atio n of the two men and promised to commun icate

to the B ohemian people a s tatement of his act and the reasons
leadi n g him to it The rigor of his imprisonment was relaxed
.
,

but a di fference of opinion prevailed as to the wisdom of his

’
r e lea s e D A il ly Z ab ar ell a and other influential council lors
.
,

favored it while Gerson took the o ther side The moderate

, .

party yielded .

J e rome continued to languish in prison for nearly six

month s whe n a new trial was inaugurated apparently at the
, ,

1
Doc , 1 4 1
. F or J e r o m e s li e , s ee M on ,
.
’
f . 2 522
—
53 4 . In 1 878, J a r os l a v
G o ll p u b l is h e d a t P r a g u e a M S whi ch h e h ad . f oun d in F r e ib ur g g ivi n g a n ac
c o un t o i J e r o m e s a rr e s t a n d d e a th
’
.

2
f
F o r a u ll a c cou n t o f t h e tri a l , H a r d t , 4 : 6 2 9 69 1 , 6
-
: 1 91 s qq ; M an s i
8 42—
,
.

J e r om e r e ca n ta ti on l M on
’
27 79 4 s qq .
, 8 64 . F or s , a so .
,
2 5 2 5 sq .
3 24 JOHN HUS S

in g a b e n ch Jerome made an elo q uent defense a mo s t graphic

, ,

r e port of which we have from an eye wi tness Poggio B rac -

c io l in i t h e Italia n huma n i s t and hi s torian of Florence

,
He .

d e n i e d that h e h e ld her e tical article s a n d in his clo s ing word s

cit e d h is j udg e s to appear in h is pre s e n ce at the b ar of the
m o s t high a n d right e ous Judge at the s ame time predicting ,

that in the mea n time h is memory would plague their con

s cie n ce s The holy s y n od then pronounced him a follower
.

o f W yclif and Hu ss a rotten a n d withered branch pa l mitem —

,

n tr id u m cl a r id u m
— to be cu t o ff from the church and de
p
li v er e d to the s ecular arm to receive the vengeance due the
crim e of h e re sy A cap was placed on his head painted with
.

r e d d e v il s The ceremony of presenting him a chalice was

.

n o t repeated for he wa s a laic ,

.

The condemned man went forth from the church with

cheerful count e nance si n ging the creed and the litany on the ,

w a y to the place of execution The s take was reared on the .

s pot where Hu ss had s u ffered He ki s sed i t and when his .

,

garment s were removed the wood and straw were heaped up ,

to h is chin which was covered with a heavy beard The flames .

w e r e s low in putti n g an end to his misery when compared

with Hu ss Jerome addre s sed the people profe s sing h is faith
.
,
’
in the Apo s tle s Creed a n d s aying that he died for refusing to
pr o fe s s to the council that Huss had been j ustly condemned .

On the co n trary he knew Hu s s wa s a true preacher of the G os

,

p e l
. A S he was dyi n g he chanted the E aster hymn Hail Holy , , ,

— “
Day S olv e f esta dies After sayi n g Lord into thy hands I .
, ,
”
commend my spirit he exclaimed in B ohemian : Almighty ,

Lord God have mercy upo n me and forgive my s ins for tho u
, ,
”
k n owest that I love thee s incerely His clothes were cas t .

i n to the fl ame s and the remains of h is body carted off to the

lake Accordi n g to Ri che n tal ma n y learned people wep t that
.
,

J e rome had to die for they thought he was almost more ,

l e ar n ed than Hus s ?
1
R i hen t l p
c a , . 83 , sa ys th t a J r
e o me c ri e d ou t t e rri b ly—gr au l ich—whil e he
ng b u rn ed l a rg e tr
“ ”
w as b ei ,
f or h e wa s a s on g m a n
, .
 ’
HUS S S W R ITIN GS AND THE HUS S ITES 3 25

A great bowlder now marks the place where Jerome and

Huss died b earing their names with the simple date of their
,

death B urned on the same site and compa ni ons in life they
.
, ,

were commemorated in B ohemia as witnesses together for

th e Gospel and as glorious martyrs They were p ainted as .

saints on the walls of churches and a Hu ss ite li turgy of 1 4 9 1

pu t them side by side with S tephen and S t Lawrence ? To .

quote again that elegant writer ZE n e as Sylvius Huss and , ,

Jerome were regarded among the B ohe mi ans as deserving

the honors paid to martyrs and were held in no less honor
in Prague than Paul and Peter among the R omans .

’ ’
P oggio s account of Jerome s last address contained in his
letter addressed to Leonardo Aretino is a piece of elegant
l iterature often quoted ?
Poggio opens his letter by saying
’
that he was moved to give a descrip tion of Jerome s trial and
death on account of the solemnity of the o ccasion and
’
chiefly on account of the man s eloquence and do ctrinal
teaching The follo wing statement gives the substance of
.

this remarkable document

He co n f e sse d—so Poggio wrot e —that h e had n e ver se e n an y on e

wh o in a public trial e sp e cially for a capital o ff e n s e appr o ach e d
, , ,

mor e clo sely to t h e s tan dard of t h e e lo q u en ce of t h e an ci e n ts which

h e an d Areti n o so much admir e d It was wo n d e rful t o se e with .

what words what fl ue n cy of e lo q u e n ce what argum e n t s what

, , ,

cou n te n an ce an d pow e r of v oice with what co n fide n ce h e r epli e d ,

to his adversari e s He Poggio wa s n ot co n cer n e d to pa ss j udg

.
, ,

me n t upo n a case of the ki n d H e ac q ui e s ce d in t h e de ci si o n of

.

m e n who we r e h e ld to b e wi se r th an himse lf J e rom e re mi n de d .

his hearer s that th e y we r e m e n n o t god s mort a l n o t immortal , ,

liable to mi stake error d e ce ptio n an d misi n form atio n He him

, ,
.

1
S c h wab ,Ger s on , 6 0 9 E n em i es c h a rg e d th a t H uss wa s
. pl aced am on g
t h e h o ly g od s , H a rd t , 6 1 8 1
”
.

S e e S h e ph e r d s Lif e of P oggio T h e l e tt e r is a l s o con t a i n e d in M on , 2

2 ’

— — — —
. .

53 2 53 4 ; D o c ,
6 2 4
. 6 2 9; H a r d t , 3 6 4 7 1 ; H e f el e , 7 2 8 0 2 8 3 ; G e r m an f r s l , .

P a l acky , Ges ek , 3 86 E n g l t r sl , W hit c om b L it S ou r ce B ook of the I ta l

—
-
. . . . .
,

Rena iss a n ce , 4 0 4 7 ! E n e a s S ylvi u s , c h a p XXXV I , r e fe r s t o thi s l e tt e r as t h e

. .

l e tt e r o f th a t n ob l e writ e r , e t c
“
.
3 26 JOHN HUS S

se lf wa s but a n imp e rf e ct m an u n de r tri a l f or h is lif e H e ad v an ced .

n o thi n g u n wo rthy o f a g o o d m an a s thou gh h e f e lt co n fid e n t a s ,

h e al so p u b li cly a ss e rte d th a t n o j us t r e a so n c o uld be fou n d for

,

h is d e a th .

M a n y p e r s on s h e mo v e d with humor man y w ith satire man y , ,

v e ry o f t e n b e c au se d t o l augh in sp it e o f t h e s ad affair j e s ti n g a t ,

t he ir re p r oa ch es H e sa id that the re h a d b e e n m an y e xce ll e n t

.

m e n w h o h a d s uff e r e d f o r th e ir v irtu e s an d b e e n oppr e sse d by

f al se wit n es se s an d con de m n e d by wick e d j udge s He to ok .

t h e m b a ck t o S o cr a te s u n j u s tly con d e mn e d by h is f e ll ow citiz e n s

, ,

wh o d id n o t shu n d e ath or pa i n wh e n h e m ight have a v oide d both .

H e m e n t i o n e d the capti v ity of Plato t h e flight of An axagoras t h e , ,

t orture o f Z e n o a n d t h e u n j u s t co n d e mn atio n of man y other

,

p ga an s
. Th e n c e h e p a sse d to t h e H e br e w exampl e s fir s t call ,

in g u p Mo se s t h e li b e r a t o r o f his pe ople Jo se ph s old by his br e th

, , ,

r en ,
I sa i a h D an i e l S u s an n a
, ,
C omin g down to Jo hn t h e
.

B a p ti s t a n d th en to t h e S a v iour h e s howe d how in e ach case th ey

, , ,

we r e co n d e m n e d by f a l s e wit n e s se s a n d fal se j udg es Th en .

h e t ook u p S t e p h e n kill e d by t h e body of t h e pri e s ts an d all t h e

, ,

Apostl e s con d e m n e d to de a th a s popul a r a git a tors an d d e spi se rs of

,

t h e go d s . H e d we lt at l e n g th upo n t h e pri n cipl e that s uch

tre atme n t was mo st i n i q uito us wh e n it c ame from t h e han d of a
c ou n cil of pri e s ts Th e n proce e d i n g to prai se Joh n Huss who
.
, ,

h a d b e e n c on d e m n e d to b e bur n e d h e call e d him a good m an , ,

j u st a n d h oly u n worthy of such a d e ath sa yin g that h e himse lf

, ,

was p rep a r e d t o go to a n y pun i shme n t whatsoe v er Huss had .

n e v e r h e ld Opi n i on s ho s til e to the church of God but o n ly a g a in s t ,

t h e abuse s of t h e cl e rgy a n d t h e prid e the arrogan ce an d t h e ,

p o m p of pr e lat es who spe n t th e ir p a trimo n y n o t on t h e poor

, ,

b u t on m i s tre ss e s boo n compan i on s horse s k e n n e l s of dog s an d

, , ,

o th e r thin gs un worthy of t h e r e lig io n of C hri s t .

H e di sp l aye d t h e gr e at es t cl e ve rn e ss for wh en h is addr e ss ,

wa s o ft e n i n t e rrupt e d with v ariou s di sturban ce s he l e ft n o on e ,

u n s c a th e d but turn e d tr e n chantly upo n his accu se r s a n d force d

,

th e m to b lush or t o k ee p s il e n t For thr e e hun dre d a n d forty

.

d ay s h e h a d l ai n in t h e bottom of a foul dark towe r H e did n ot, .

co m p l ai n of t h e h ar shn ess of t h i s tre atme n t but e xp r e sse d his

wo n d e r th a t s uch in hum an ity could b e shown I n t h e du n g e o n .
,

h e s aid h e h ad n o t o n ly n o f a ciliti e s f or r e a di n g but n o n e for s e e

, ,

in g . H e s tood th e r e f e a rl e s s an d u n t e r r ifie d n ot al on e d e ~ ,

s p is in g d e a th but s e e ki n
, g it s o that you would have s aid h e wa s an
,
3 23 JOHN HUS S

d e pended wi th their whole heart upon Christ whom they ,

sought to ho n or .

A s it wa s Hu s s s solem n hope that at the trib unal o f

’

God he might b e found not to have repudiated a single

tittle of Chr i s t s law S O followi n g S t Jerome he expressed
’
, ,
.
,

the wi s h that as a n old man he might hold the fai th he

, ,

had be e n taught a s a boy ; and in that same precious fai th

he wish e d to die eve n a s every child of predestination wi s hes
—
,

—
to die ? That be s t of ma s ter s op timu s magister the a d
—
dre s s Hu ss O ften applied to Chris t h im s el f had suffered
fal se accu s atio n an d bitter death The disciple is not ab ove .

h is Lord .

Aft e r November 1 1 1 4 1 7 the church of the West was , ,

agai n u n der one head by the election of O tto Colonna

Martin V to whom the case of Huss was fully kn o wn It
,
.

had b e e n committed to him by John XXIII and he had ,

pro n ou n ced the first excommunication again st the dead

’
h e retic On e of Marti n s fir s t acts February 2 2 1 4 1 8 after
.
2
, , ,
’
the council s di ssolution was the reiterated condemnation
of the articles brought against Wyclif and Huss and the
excomm u n ication of all of both s exe s who persisted in the
pe s tile n tial doctrines of those heresiarchs and Jerome of
Pra gue Martin also called upon all men to seize the here tics
.
,

put them in chain s and pro ceed against them wi t h ci v il

penalti e s .

In B ohemia serious di ssensions broke out in the ranks of

,
’
Hu ss s foll ower s w hi ch resul ted in the development of two
,

wing s the Taborite s who settled at Tabor wi th John Ziska

, ,

a s lead e r a n d the Cal ixtines or Utraquist s so called from the

, ,

fact that they di s tributed the ca l ix or chalice to the laity at

’
t h e Lord s Supper The city of Tabor was built near the site
.

of A u s t i the castle where Huss spent mo s t of his se m i v ol un

,
-

tary e xile from Prague The location S ixty eight miles south .
,
-

of t h e capital city was well adapted to b e a stronghold and

—7
, ,

1
Mon .
,
1 3 25, 330 .
2
M ir b t , 1 70 1 2.
 ’
HUS S S W R ITINGS AND THE HUS SITE S 2
3 9

the streets were so laid out that an army penetrating through

the wal ls could no t see from one e n d of them to the other .

Founded in 1 4 1 9 the city s till exists and has a mu s eum con

,

tainin g many obj ects of i n terest dating from the Hussite war s
and fronted by a bronz e s tatue of Ziska the sturdy one eyed , ,
-

Taborite soldier The city has a small Protestant church

.
,

recently built which reminds the visitor that the whole

,

region roun d ab out now Catholi c once resounded to th e

, ,

Hussite hymn s and witnessed the S imple ceremo nies of their

P u ri tan faith The Tab or it e s were the rigorous party goin g
.
,

e ven to a fanati cal extreme The Calixtines more conserva .

,

tive and fin all y contenting themselves with the use of the cup
and the free use of the S crip tures were largely co n fin ed to ,

?
the city of Prag ue
E arly in 1 4 1 7 the un iversity taking note of t hi s dis
, ,

sension and led by J a cob ell u s of Mies Christian of P r a ch aticz

, ,

and John of R einstein all friends of Huss condemned the , ,

party of the Hussites who were denying purgatory prayers ,

for the dead who b anished images from the church ab andoned
, ,

the use of candles incense the ringing of b ells and consecrated

, ,

b aptismal water who refused j u di cial oaths demanded the

, ,

mass in the vu lgar ton gue and that o nl y such ceremonies ,

b e practised as were distinctly set f orth in the New Testa

ment These errors and o thers were set forth in twenty three
.
-

arti cles issued by a coun cil of the masters and clergy of Pragu e
a year and a half later The term Taborites is not used al .
,

though that party was meant .

The theological facul ty further formulated the Hussite

doctrine in four articles whi ch demanded free preaching of the
’
Gospel the adm in istration of bo th elements in the Lord s
,

Supper the deprivation of clergymen possessed of riches and

,

1
! E n eas S ylvi u s , wh o g iv es a vivi d d es c ripti on o f T a b o r , whi c h h e vi s it e d ,
“
sa y s t h e in h a b it an ts ca ll e d th e m se lv es B r e thr e n o f T ab or , j u s t as if wi th t h e
thre e d i scipl e s th ey h a d s e e n C hr is t t h e S a vi ou r on t h e M oun t of T r an s
figur at ion
” —
H ist B oh , c h a p XL
— —
. . . . .

2
D oc , 6 5 4 6 5 6 , 6 6 7 6 8 1
. .
33 9 JOHN HUS S

the removal of priest s with mortal S ins B etween these two .

parti e s th e n oble s were divided but foll o wing the university , , ,

C e n e k of W a r t e m b e r g Lacek of Kr a wa r a n d other nobles , ,

o rd e red a ll clergyme n on their domains to distribute the cup

on pai n o f lo s i n g their places and induced the su ff ragan —

bishop
of Prague to give ordin ation to a number of Hussite s .

The cou n cil of Co n stance was not slow in meeting this

n e w rebellio n by declari n g the ordination invalid and Gerson ,

oppo sed to i t his tract against the dis tribution of the cup ,

in which he call ed upon the church to depend less upon moral

method s and more upon the secular authority in enf orcing
’
the cou n cil s act ?

Affairs entered into a new stage at the sudden death of

t hat u n fortunate monarch Wenzel August 1 6 1 4 1 9 A year , , ,
.

before he had resisted Martin V by forbidding heretics to

,

a ppear in the court of the cardinal inqui s itor whom M artin -

had s e n t to B ohemia The council had passed twen ty four .

-

article s calling upon the king to protect the church in all its
r e gu lation s a n d to reinstate clergym en who had been de
p r iv e d of their living s to b ur n all Hussite writings and for ,

bid all s inging of Hu s site songs to deliver over to the council ,

s uch leaders of heresy as J a cob e ll u s John of R einstein Jese , ,

n icz Chri s tian of P r a ch a t icz S imon of T issn ow and Simon of

, ,

R ok yz a n and to treat all laymen taking the cup as heretics

,
.

Moved by the s e demands and the advice of Sigismund Wenze l ,

proceeded with some energy b anished John of J e se ni cz from ,

the city and ordered the old priests reinstated b ut set apart ,

three churches for the Utraquists He l ived long enough to .

se e the i n terdict lifted from the city ?

’
Wenzel s death foll owed upon an armed disturbance in
the s treets of Prague Many of his coun cillors had left th e .

court rather than yield to the measures of repres sion One .

of th e se John of Ziska led a procession to the old town hall

, ,

1
S c h w ab , 60 4 sq .

D oc .
, 68 2 sqq . P a l ack y , Ges ek .
, 41 0 s qq . T h e t wen ty -
fou r a rt i c l es a ls o
in H e fe le , 3 44 sq .
33 2 JOHN HUS S

o wn lo d gings The deliberatio s resulted in the

.
called
n so -

C o m p a c t a t a four articl e s who s e chief stipulation was the

, ,

right of t h e B oh e mia n s to di s tribut e the cup to the laity .

The s e compact s were afterward s e t a s ide by Piu s II 1 4 6 2 , ,

t h e s am e po n ti ff w h o s e t a s ide the decree o f Constance de

c l a r in g th e authority of general council s fin al .

Archbi shop K o n rad who had id e n tified him s elf w

,
ith
the Ca lix t in e s died in 1 43 1 He wa s followed by R okyz an
,
.
,

w h o admi ni s t e red the archdio ce s e of Pra g ue until h is

death 1 4 7 1 although he wa s never recognized by R ome
, ,
.

Si gi smu n d who died 1 43 7 was followed by hi s son in law

, ,
- -

Albert O f Au s tria I n 1 4 5 8 the crown went to George Po di e

.

brad a B ohemia n nobleman who had acted for several year s

,

as r e ge n t u n der Ladi slaus Po s tumu s P odie b r a d was the .

l e ader of the Calixti n e party and under him an d R ok yz an ,

that party retai n ed it s s trength in the city The king had to .

co n t e n d agai n s t M atthi a s C or v in u s of Hungary to whom ,

t h e apo s toli c see had tran s ferred the B ohemian crown In .

t h e mea n time the Ca l ixti n e s had defeated the Taborites at

Lipa n 1 43 4 whe n Procopiu s and
, ,
of his foll ower s
f e ll Tabor wa s take n by P o d ie b r ad 1 4 5 2 The king died
.
,
.

in h is war s wi th Matthia s 1 4 7 1 The throne then pa ss ed

,
.

to the hou s e of Hapsburg B y variou s agreements the Calix

.

ti n e s were co n firmed in their rights No t o n ly B ohemi a and .

Mora v ia but also adjoi nin g land s were largely under the
i n fl ue n ce of the law of religious lib erty .

A third party grew up in B ohemia from the Hussite sto ck ,

k n ow n as the B ohemian B rethren I t s exact origin is a matter .

of di spute It appear s distinctly 1 4 5 7 and seems to have

.

had som e con n ectio n with the Au s trian Waldenses One of .

t h e ear l ie s t of the Walde n sian leader s w a s P eter C h e l cicky ,

a marked religiou s per s o n age of whom we would lik e to ,

k n ow a great deal more tha n we do B y 1 5 0 0 the s e dis .

s e n t e r s had i n crea s ed to grouped in three hundred

or more co n gregation s They had their own co n fe ss ion
.
,
 ’
HUS S S W R ITIN GS AND THE HUS SITE S 333

catechism and hymn ology They rejected war and oath s . .

B rethren including Michael Weiss th e hymn writer visited

, ,
-

Luther who at an early date had in hi s hand a copy of their

,

catechism .

—
Under Maxi milian II 1 5 64 1 5 7 6 there was a fair pros
, ,

peet of all B ohemia and the German provi nces of Austri a

becomin g Pro te s tant D ollin ger says that in some of the
.

provinces nine tenths of the population was Prote s tant

-
B ut .

later under Ferdinand II ( 1 1 63 7 who h ad b een b rough t

, ,
.
,

up under strict Je s uit influences the Hussites endured the ,

bittere s t of persecu tions The downfall of B ohemian and .

M oravian Protestantism foll owed The Jes ui ts who had .

,

e s tablished themselves in Austria were indefatigable in their ,

e fforts to bring about this re s ult They acted we may sup .

,

pose upon the judgment which C ochl a u s set forth that there
, ,

had never b een a mortal man who was more dangerous and
pestilential to B ohemi a than Huss ?
B y moral persuasion
and legislation by confiscation of lands by the expulsion
, ,

o f the Protestant popul ati on and by its extermination wi th

the sword their work was accomplished
,
The Protestant .

nobles were forbidden by law to have preaching even in

their castle s .

’
The Thirty Years War which began with the revolt of ,

B ohemia against Ferdinand II 1 6 1 8 and the election of , ,

Frederick of the Palatinate as its king no t only left B ohemi a ,

bleeding but B ohemi an Pro testantism to all appearances

done to death In the b attle at the Whi te Mountain near
.
,

Prague 1 6 2 0 Frederick was completely defeated and with his

, , ,

defeat the fate of B ohemian Hu s sitism was sealed Twenty .

s even di stinguished Protestants were executed on the pub

lic square near the spo t where the proposed monument t o

,

Hu s s is to b e erected in 1 9 1 5 by the s ubscrip tion of B ohemians

who have revived the memory of their great countryman
1
N u l l u m u n qu a m f u is s e mor ta l em r egn o B ohemia n ocen tior em au t pes til en
t ior e m q u a m H u s , p 1 1 4 . .
334
JOHN HUS S

bur n ed to death at Constance whose cause the ancestors of ,

s o ma n y O f them d e fe n ded even to the loss of their lives .

All Prote s ta n t teachers a n d preacher s were given in 1 6 2 4 , ,

a w e e k to l e a v e the country on pain of death B ohemian .

a n d G e rma n B ible s a n d all B ohemian works publis hed after

1 4 1 4 wer e plac e d u n der the su spicion of heresy and burned

in gr e at n umber s in the market places and under the gallows -

.

O n e J e s uit A n ton K on ias ch boasted he had burned

, ,

s uch books Thus the Czech literature was threatened with

.

utte r de s tructio n Protestants had been forbidden all rights

.

— m arriage worship mercha n dise or making a will

, ,
Ferdi .

n a n d s vow to exterminate heretic s if in doing so he had

’

to rule over a desert was realized More than

,
.

families including 40 0 nobles emigrated and the B ohemian

, , ,
’
people which at the beg inning of the Thirty Years War
,

n umbered between and was reduced at

it s close to or The last of the bishops of
the B ohemian B rethren Comenius died in exile in Holland
, , ,

1 6 70. Hu ssite s if there were any who remained in B ohemia

,

and retained their ancient faith kep t it a secret ,

.

The Hussite spirit was crushed bu t not extinguished .

Spark s burned agai n and turned to a flame in the Moravian

church .I n 1 7 2 2 two Moravian families led by Christian ,

Da v id s ettled at Herrnhut near D resden on lands set apart

, , ,

by Count Zinzendorf From that spot as a centre this hu mble

.

body of sincere Chri s tians has ill uminated the world by i ts

mi ssio n ary devotion carrying the spirit and the teachings
,

of Hu ss to regions of whose existence that good man never

d r e amed even to the remotest ends of the earth and the
,

s —
mo t desti tute population s the i s lands of the Wes t In dies ,

the Mo s q uito Co as t Greenland an d Labrador the natives of

, ,

Australia the lepers of Jerusalem the table land o f Thibet

, ,
-
.

The spark s of the old Hussite flame al s o began to S how signs

of lif e in B ohemia it s elf after the edicts of religious t Ol e r a
tio n is sued in 1 7 8 1 and 1 848 At present the pastors of the
.
,
 AP P E N D IX I

C HR ONOLOGICAL LIST OF E VE NTS IN HUSS S LIFE ’

OR B E AR ING UPON IT

1 215 . E s tabli shm e n t of th e I n q ui sitio n by I n n ocen t III p 8 ,

. .

1 2 74 . D e ath of Thomas A q ui n as t h e prin c e o f t h e S choolm en p 7 , ,

. .

1 30 2 B o n ifac e VI I I s bull Un am s an ctam p 4 ’

1 3 0 5—
. .
.
, ,

1 3 78 . The Avign on e xil e of the papacy p 1 6 , . .

D a n te die d He r epudi a t e d C o n s tan ti n e s do n ation p 1 0 ’

1 32 1 . .
,
. .

—
1 3 78 1 4 1 7 . T h e pap a l s chi sm p 1 7 ,
. .

1 3 82 . A n n e of B oh emia marri e d t o R ichard II p 4 6 , . .

T h e E a rth q uak e syn od in Lo n do n co n demn s 2 4 article s of

Wyclif .

1 3 84 . John Wycl if die s pp 48 sqq ,

. .

—
1 346 1 3 7 8 . Charl es IV kin g of B ohemia p 2 4 , , . .

1 3 69 . K o n rad of Waldh a us en dies ; M ilicz of K r emsier d 1 3 74 ; , .

M a thi as of Jan ow d I 3 94 pp 2 8— 33 ,
.
,
. .

1 3 73 . Hu ss born p 1 9 ,
. .

1 3 89 . Hu ss e n ter s the un iver sity of Prague ; B A 1 3 93 ; B D . .

, . .
,

1 394 ; M A 1 3 96 p 2 0
. .
, ,
. .

1 40 1 . Hu ss ordai n e d pries t p 2 0 ,
. .

1 40 2 . Huss pr e ach e r at B ethlehem chap e l p 2 7 ; rector of t h e ,

.

un i v e r sity p 2 1 ,
. .

1 40 3 . T h e XLV Articles of Wyclif forbidden by t h e un i v er sity

to be taught p 54 ,
. .

Z b yn ek archbi shop of Prague p 59

, , . .

1 40 5 . Hu ss appoin te d to i n v e s tigat e t h e holy blood of Wy l sn ack ,

pp 64 sq
. .

I n n ocen t a ddr essed by t h e Prague cl e rgy call s upo n Z b y

, ,

n ek to proc e e d ag ai n s t W y c l ifi t e e rror s p 68 ,
. .

1 40 8 ? Hu ss w rit e s C om on the S en ten ces of the L om b ar d p

.
30 5 ,
. .

W e l em owicz a n d K nin tri e d for Wyclif h e r e sy p 6 9 .

,
. .

1 40 9 . C hart e r of t h e unive r s ity of Pr a gue chan g e d pp 7 8 s qq , . .

Hu ss r e ctor of t h e un i v e rsity p 8 3 ,
. .

T h e R e formatory cou n cil of Pi s a me e t s an d el e cts Al e x

ande r V pp 8 5 sq ,
. .
338
APPENDIX

Al exa n d e r V i n s tructs Z b y n ek t o proceed agai n s t Wyclif

is m , p 8 7 . .

W y cl if s b ook s publicly burn e d p 9 1

’
. .
,

H u s s pu b l i c ly d e f e n d s Wycl if I s e x commu n icat e d p 9 2 .

,
. .

H u ss a p p e al s t o J oh n XX III p 9 7 ,
. .

Hu ss cite d t o R om e by C ardin al C olon n a p 9 9 ,

. .

H u ss e x co mmu n ica t e d by t h e R oman curia p 1 0 0 ,

. .

H u ss h a s c on tro v e rsy with Joh n S tok e s p 1 0 8 ,

. .

P a ct of p e a c e b e twee n Z b yn ek a n d t h e u niv e rsity July 3 , ,

102

f
I .

Z l y n e k d i e s A lb ik of U n iz ow , archbi shop of Pragu e , 1 0 5 sqq

. .

141 2 .
J oh n XXI I I S bull s of i n dulg e n ces an n oun ce d in Prague ,
’

pp . 1 1 1 s qq .

W ok of W a ld s te i n s proc essio n 1 2 3 sq
’
,
.

E x e cuti on of S t af c on M a rti n a n d Joh n p 1 2 4

, , ,
. .

I n t e rdict ag ai n s t Pr agu e 1 3 6 sq ,
.

Hu ss s withdr awa l from Pr agu e pp 1 3 3 sqq

’
,
. .

Las t bull ag a in s t Hus s p 1 40 ,

. .

Hu ss a p p e a l s to C hri s t p 1 3 8 ,
. .

Hu ss write s t h e Tr eatise on the Chu r ch p 3 0 5 ,

. .

P a l ecz S t an i s l a u s e t c ban i shed fr om Pragu e p 1 54

, ,
.
, , . .

1 41 4 . Hu ss s ta rts for C on s tan c e Arri v e s th e r e No v emb e r .

3,
PP - I é s s qq
Huss i m pri so n e d by the car din al s No v emb e r 2 8 p 1 7 6 , , . .

Hu ss in t h e D om in ican pri son D e c emb e r 6 p 1 79 , ,

. .

Sigi sm u n d arri v e s in C o n s tan c e D e c ember 2 5 p 1 8 5 , ,

. .

Hu ss in pri son at G o ttli eb e n M arch 2 4 p 1 9 5 , ,

. .

J oh n XX I I I d ep ose d pp 1 9 2 sqq , . .

Huss tr a n sf e rr e d to t h e prison of the Franci scan s Jun e 5 , ,

p 20 3
. .

Hu ss s public he a ri n gs in t h e Fran ci scan friary Jun e 5 7

’
, , ,

8 p 20 4
,
. .

Hu ss write s to th e un i v er sity of Prague Jun e 2 7 p 2 4 7 , ,

. .

Hu ss co n dem n e d as a h e r e tic an d burn e d July 6 p 2 53 2 5 6 , , .

, .

Four hu n dr e d an d fi f t y t wo B ohemian an d Moravian n obl e s

-

ag r e e to pr o t e ct fr e e pr e achi n g S ept e mb e r
5 p 315 , ,
. .

J er om e r e can ts in th e cathedral of C o n stan ce September 2 3 , ,

p 3 23
. .

J e r om e di e s a t the s tak e M ay 3 0 p 3 2 5 , , . .

T h e u n i v e r sity of Pragu e d e cide s for t h e cup p 3 2 9 , . .

 AP P E ND IX II

A SPUR IOUS ACCO UN T OF HUSS S JOUR NEY TO ’

CONSTANCE AND TR IAL

U n de r titl e
Th e I nf all ibil ity of the P ope a t the C ou n cil of
th e ,
’
C on stan ce a n d H u ss s T r ial , S en ten ce , a n d D ea th a t the S ta ke ,
w ritt e n by a m emb e r of t h e coun cil , P OC I U S , P R I OR O F S T N IK .

LA S E N , 1 a n i n t e r e s ti n g but spuriou s d e scriptio n is gi v e n of i n cid e n t s

in Hu ss s j our n ey a n d h is tri a l on July 6 in the cath e dral of C on
’

s ta n c e wh ich diffe r s mat e ri a lly from t h e accr e di t e d authoriti e s

,
.

S o far a s it can b e trac e d t h e bookl e t app e a r e d fir s t a t R e utlin g e n

, ,

W iI r t em b er g 1 84 6 A r eprin t w as i ssu e d in St Loui s M o 1 8 7 5

’

. . .
, , , ,

fi v e y e ar s aft e r the proclamati on of the dogma of pap a l inf a lli

b ili ty . T h e R e utli n g e n e ditio n purp o rted to b e a r epri n t of an
o rig i n al e ditio n s aid to ha v e app e ar e d at Co n s tan ce a n d co n ta in s ,

o n it s titl e p ag e t h e s t a t em e n t er s tm al s ged r u ckt 1 5 2 3 an C os tn itz

-

o rigi n ally pri n t e d a t Co n s tan c e 1 523 T h e volum e co n tai n s t wo

,
.

l e tt e r s writt en in a mo s t graphic s tyl e by P ogiu s who r epre s e n t s ,

h im s e lf a s ha v in g accompan ie d Hu ss from Prag u e to C o n st an c e

a n d as havi n g u n d e rg o n e a chan g e from a n e n e my of t h e h e r e tic

to a warm parti san The rout e h e r epre se n ts Hu ss as ha v in g tak en

.

diff e rs from the rout e as laid dow n in Hu ss s l e tt e r s an d by M lad e

’

n owicz .

The d e scriptio n P ogiu s giv e s of t h e sittin g of t h e cou n cil in

t h e c a th e dr a l of C o n s tan c e July 6 whe n Hu ss w as co n d em n e d
, , ,

co n tai n s t h e s tartlin g s ta t emen t that th e v e r di ct of h e r e sy wa s

n o t u n an im o u s On t h e co n trary accor din g to P ogiu s it w as r e
.
, ,

s i s t e d by a n umb e r o f bi shop s who se addr esses of disse n t b e pro

,

f esse s to giv e T h e mo s t of th e s e di s sen tin g prelat e s w e re G e r

.

’
1
D ie Unf ehl b ar keit d es P ap s tes a uf d C on cil z u C on stan z u nd J H u ss s Ver
. .

hor , Ver u r theil u n g u nd F eu er tod (5 u n d 6 J u l i, 1 4 1 5 ) geschr v on d em C on cil s

. . .

M itgl ied e, P ogiu s , P r ior z u Nikl asen S t Lou i s, M o , 1 8 7 5 F or an e l ab or at e

. . . .

n o ti c e o f t h e b ook l e t an d its c o n t e n t s , wi th l e tt e r s ro m L o s e r t h a n d P r o f f .

M ull e r of T iib in g e n , se e my a rti c l e in A mer J . o ur n al o f Theol ogy ,

Ap .
,
191 5 .

3 41
3 42 APPENDIX

mans, b ut Vi n c e n t F e rre r ,
th e S p an iard , al so vote d with the
m in o ri ty .

T he v olum e is e v id e n tly a forg e ry co n tr a dicts Hu ss s

,
an d
’

l e t t e rs M la d e n ow icz s a ccou n t t h e d o cum e n ts in Va n d er Ha r d t

,
’
, ,

a n d t h e s t a t e m e n t s o f G e r so n d A illy a n d oth e r a cc r e dite d sourc e s

’
, , .

T h e r e is n o e v i d e n c e o f t h e boo k l e t s h a v i n g b e e n in e x i s te n c e b e
’

f o re t h e R e u tli n g e n e dit i o n app e a r e d T h e t e rm C ost n it z which .

,

is S l a v i c w a s n o t u s e d f o r C o n s ta n c e by t h e G e rm an s
,
T h e n am e .

P og iu s t h e a uth o r w as e v id e n tly m e an t to c o n c e al t h e forg e ry by

, ,
“ ”
it s r e se m b l a n c e t o P ogg iu s t h e Italia n hum a n i s t wh o wrot e
, ,

t h e b r ill i an t acc ou n t o f J e rom e s tri a l a n d d e a th at t h e s tak e

’
.

P ogg iu s s publ i c c a r e e r a n d p e r son al habits are out of accord with

’

wh a t P og iu s t e ll s a bout him se lf .

T h e m o ti v e o f t h e forg e ry is a m att e r of co n j e ctur e wh e th e r ,

it w as b y a C a tholic t o r e m o v e t h e O dium from t h e church ari sin g

from t h e u n a n i m ou s v e rdict ag a in s t Hu ss or by a Prot es tan t to ,

s e r v e as a b url e s u e on t h e a ll e e d sa cr e dn e ss of t h e cou n c il which

q g
v ote d d own t e a chi n g s of S criptur e in co n d em n i n g Hu ss an d at the ,

s am e t im e lib e rty of th o u ht in r e li iou s matt e r s

, g g .

T h e diffi culty o f buryi n g a book a ft e r it h as o n c e been put in to

p r i n t is a ff ord e d b y thi s book l e t which h a s r e ce n tly b e e n r epri n t e d
,

in B e rli n t o furth e r t h e i n t e r e s t in t h e Hu s s an n i v er sary of 1 9 1 5 ,

e v e n as t h e s t o r
y o f Luth e r s violen t death is every n ow an d th e n
’

r ep u b l i sh ed lie though it is
, .
3 44
IN D EX

C aj e t a n 1 7 7 ,
C ou n c ils , 1 62 —6 5 ;
1 H uss on , 2 3 4 s q .
,

li ti
C a x n es 3 2 8 s q ,
.
23 7
lvi
Ca n , 1 1 2 26 , ,
2 64 , 2 6 8 C ou rt e n a y , 4 9 , 5 0
rr z
C a an a 1 9 9 ,
C r a c ow , 7 9
th ri
C a e ne of S e na, 1 7 i C r e i g ht o n , B i sh op , 2 6 7
Ca th ri e
e n ,
St .
,
222 C r u ci at a , 1 1 3
C e nek of W a r t e mb erg , 3 1 2 , 3 1 6 , 3 1 7, C r us ad e s , 2 , 1 1 2 , 1 2 1 , 1 3 0 , 3 3 1
C U P. t h e . 2 00 . 2 43 $ 2 . 3 3 2
33 1
C h a pe l c l os
s ed , 90 , 130 C ypri an , 1 4 9 , 3 0 6
C h arl es I V ,
1 ,
24. 2 8. 3 0 . 3 1 . 44 . 7 5 . C yrill u s , 2 3
C z e c h l an g u ag e , 2 3 , 3 4 , 3 0 4
C h ar l es V 2 5 2 ,

C h ar l es V I , 1 6 5
’
D A il l y . 1 4 , 8 5 . 1 9 5 . 2 04 .

C h ar l es o f D ur az z o , 1 1 1 20 6, 20 8, 2 1 0 , 2 1 4, 2 1 6, 221 ,
222,

C h e lcic k y 3 3 2 2 25. 230. 23 4. 2 4 7 . 2 63 . 2 6 5 . 2 6 9 .

,

C hl u m J oh n o f , 1 6 5 , 1 6 7 ,
,
1 70 ,74 sq ,
1 .
3 22
1 79 s qq .
,
1 84 , 1 88 , 1 97, 2 0 4 sq , 2 2 8 ,
. D an t e , 1 0 , 1 4 , 5 2
23 7. 2 4 I 5 44 24 7 D en ifle , 2 6 4
C ho t e k , 1 40 D e s a n gu ine Chr is ti , 6 5
C hri s t s e xa m pl e , 1 1 8 ; k i n gd om , 1 1 9 ;
’
D e u t s chb r od S ee M i ch ae l d e C an s i s
.

f
s u f e ri n gs 1 5 0 , 2 40 , 2 4 2 ; H uss s ap
,
’
D id ac us , 1 7 8
pe a l t o 1 3 8 , 1 5 8 ; b es t of m as t e rs ,
,
D Ol lin g e r , 7 , 9 , 2 7 9
3 28 D u ns S co t us ,
8
C hri s t m as s e r m on , 4 0 D iir er , 1 42

C hrys o s t o m , 6 9 , 9 4 , 1 3 8 , 2 9 3
C h ur ch a n d e m p ir e , 4 , 5 E a rth q u ak e cou n ci l , 5 4 , 20 9 , 2 9 0

C h ur c h d e fi n e d , 7 , 1 5 , 3 6 , 5 2 , 11 7, 1 44 , E ck a rt , 1 2
1 52? 5 4 7 73 7
1 2 2 75 30 7
—7 7 2 )
E i g ht d oc t o r s , t h e , 1 0 7 , 1 2 6 sq .
,
130 ,

Ch u r ch , T ea t is e r on t he , 2 7 , 3 6 , 9 6 , 99 ,

1 16. 1 2 4. 1 3 2 . 1 3 8 . 1 45 . 1 5 6 . 1 7 5 . E r asm u s , 1 4 , 1 5 9 , 2 66
E v an g e li ca l c l e r g y , 1 4 7
“ ”
1 84 , 2 0 4 . 2 1 3 2 2 1 4 . 2 5 2 2 2 6 5 2 2 93 5 9
12 -

2 99 . 3 06 sq E x ecr a b il is , b u ll , 1 63
C l e m e n t VI I , 1 7 , 7 4 , 1 1 3 , 1 3 7
C l e ri ca l m or a ls , 6 0 , 6 3 , 7 0 , 7 1 , 1 3 4 F a ith , 1 29 , 1 3 1 ,
1 56
C och lae u s 5 1 , 8 2 , 2 93 , 3 0 3
, F a th e r , t h e , 2 0 5 , 2 3 1
C oe les t in V , 1 9 2 F a u l fisch , 4 7 , 6 8 , 2 2 4
C ol on n a , C a r d i n al , 9 7 , 99 , 1 00 , 1 3 5 F e r d i n an d o f A r agon , 1 87

C om e n i us , 3 3 4 F e r d i n an d o f A u s t r i a , 1 93

C om p a c t at a 3 3 2 , F i d a , 1 70 , 1 74, 1 76
C o n r ad in , 1 1 2 F ill as t r e , 1 7 3
C o ns c i e n ce , 1 1 6 , 2 0 8 , 2 2 2 s q , 2 2 6 , 2 54 , F in ke , 1 6 5
—
.

296 30 2 F l aj s h a n s . 2 . 1 9 . 2 0 . 2 8. 3 4 . 4 5 . 5 7 . 59 .
C o ns t a n c e , 4, 1 1 8, 56, 1 22; H us s
’
s 65, 181 ; onH u ss , 2 5 9 , 2 60 , 3 0 5

go i ng to, 167 s qq . F ou rth L a t e r an , 8 , 1 6 1 ,

251

C o ns t a n c e , c ou n c 72 ; il of , 1 61 s qq .
,
1 F r a n c i s can c on v en t , 1 9 5 , 2 0 3 , 2 13

tries H u ss , 1 8 3 s qq , 2 2 6 ; co n d e m n s . F r e d e ri ck B a rb a r oss a , 6
H uss s q ; co n d e m ns W c ,
y li f F r e d e ri ck I I , 6 , 9 , 1 1 2 , 1 4 1
20 2 ; t
a c s in a c co d a n ce w t he r ith F r e d e ri ck t h e W i s e , 1 4 1
pri ipl
nc es o f t h e a g e , 2 6 9 s q . F ri e db e r g , 2 4 5
C o ns t an ti ti o
’
ne s d on a n, 10, 5 5, 214 F un k , 1 1 , 1 6 1
 IND EX 345

G ee an d H ar d y , 49 , 5 4 , 1 5 6 ag a ns i t , 7 0 , 9 0 s qq , 2 0 5 s qq , 2 5 0 . .

G e l n h a u s e n , K on r a d o f , 1 6 2 s qq .
; c it e d t o R om e , 9 9 ; e x co m

G e r m an s a t P r ag u e , 7 7 , 7 9 s q 80 , .
, m u n ica t e d , 9 2 , 1 00 ,
13 5, 2 6 6 s qq .
;
8 2 s q , 1 0 3 , 1 40 , 1 5 5 , 2 0 6 , 2 1 2 , 2 6 1
. a h e r e ti c ,
1 40 , 1 52, 1 89 , 2 25, 233 ,

G e rs on . 1 4 , I 9 . 5 7 . 7 7 . 1 0 7 . 1 5 7 . 1 6 2 . 24 8, 2 5 2 , 2 5 5 , 3 1 8; s on o f

1 7 4; 1 8 4 ) 1 9 3 ) 2 0 1 : 2 0 8 ) 2 2 7 , 2 43 7 i n i q u ity 1 2 3 ; W y clifis t 1 3 5 2 7 2 ;
, , ,

2 6 3 . 2 6 5 . 2 6 9 . 2 9 7 . 3 00 . 3 2 2 an d i n d u l g e n c e s 1 1 1 sq 1 4 1 16 ,
.
,
1 ,

G icz in , 9 1 , 1 2 5 1 22; e il e 1 4 2 s qq ;
x an d t h e e i g ht
,
.

G ies e l e r , 2 5 8 d oc t or s 1 4 5 s q q ; a pp e a ls t o C hri s t
,
.
,

G ill e tt , 1 9 , 1 8 1 , 2 1 3 , 2 5 2 1 3 8 s qq .
; 2 10, 21 5, 23 1 ,
242 , 251 ;
G l u x , H e r t o n k v on , 1 0 8 l ooks fo rwar d t o d e a th 1 40 2 4 6 , , ,

G o l d e n B u ll , 24 1 5 1 sq ; c a ll e d
. u p on t o a b j ur e ,

G o ll , 3 2 2 2 2 8 sq 230 , 23 2 , 247 , 2 48 ; con

—
.
,

G o o se , 1 9 , 1 5 0 , 1 8 2 , 1 8 9 , 2 5 8 d em me d a n d b u r n e d , 2 2 8 , 2 5 2 2 5 6 ;
G o ttli e b e n , 1 9 4 s q , 2 0 2 , 2 1 0 , 2 5 6 . d e liv e r e d u p t o t h e d e vi l , 2 5 5 ; l et
G o t t s chick , 2 9 2 t e r s , 1 49 , 1 8 2 , 2 2 9 ; a n d t h e c u p ,
G r ego r o v iu s , 2 3 6 a n d con s c i e n c e , 2 2 3 ,
—
2 00 , 2 43 s q ; .

G r egory VI I , 4 , 6 , 1 4 6 , 1 6 2 2 54, 2 96 3 0 2 ; an d t h e B i b l e , 3 9 ,

G r ego ry XI . 1 7 . 3 1 . 4 9 . 5 1 2 4 1 , 2 4 7 , 2 5 4 , 2 66 ; on t h e c ou n c il

G r ego ry XI I . 2 6 . 7 0 . 7 3 sqq . 7 7 . . of C ons t an c e , 2 6 8 , 2 8 9 ; a n d W y c li , f

1 1 1 sq .
,
1 62, 1 9 2 , 2 20 I s. 3 3 . 4 3 S ea . 5 6 . 7 1 . 9 4. 1 2 6.

G ri sar , 2 6 4 209 sq .
,
2 72, 3 08 sq .
; an d the P r ot
G r os s e t es t e , 6 7 , 1 39 est an t R efor m a ti on 1 5 s q 2 73 s qq ,
.
,
.
,

2 9 1 s qq ; pl a c e in hi s t ory 2 2 6 0 s qq
.
, , .

H a ll u m , B i s h o p , 1 7 3 , 1 9 3 , 2 1 8 S ee C h ur c h L u th e r P o p e P r e ac h , , ,

H ap sb u r g , h ou se of , 2 4 , 2 6 in g S i g i sm un d P al e cz e t c
, , ,
.

H ar as s e r , 5 6 H u ss it e can t ion al e 2 9 5 ,

H ar n ack , 2 9 2 H u ss it es 4 8 83 1 5 4 1 6 3
, , s qq ; , , , .

H awlik , 2 9 2 c r u s a d es a g a i n s t 3 3 1 ,

B e te l e , 2 2 , 2 43 , 2 5 8 , 2 8 5 , 2 9 0 , 2 9 7 , 3 3 0 H ym n s b y H us s 3 1 0 ,

H e l fe rt , 1 7 7 , 3 0 3
H en ry I I I 1 6 2 ,
I n d u l g en ces , 20 , 1 1 0 sq .
, 1 1 9, 1 2 0 sq .
,

H enr y I V. 5 . 2 3 1 24. 2 71 . 3 09
H e r es i a r c h , 88 , 2 5 2 , 2 5 5 I n n oce n t I I I , 4 , 5 , 8 , 44 , 8 7 , 1 1 2 , 1 44 ,

H e r es y an d h e r e ti cs , n o ri ght t o li ve ,
8 . 9 . 8 7 . 1 4 8 . 2 49 . 2 9 9 ; n am e . 1 3 3 . I n n ocen t IV , 6
1 3 5 ; H uss on , 6 3 , 8 6 , 1 0 7 , 1 1 0 , 1 2 9 I n n oce n t VI I , 6 8 , 1 1 1
1 3 2 , 2 1 4 , 2 9 8 ; H u ss a h e r e ti c , 1 4 5 , In q u i s iti on , 8 , 1 4 7 , e t c .

1 59 , 1 98, 2 0 2 sq .
, 2 0 8, 2 2 6, 2 3 3 , 2 6 5 , I n su l h ot e l , 1 7 9
I n t e r d i c t , 1 3 9 s qq , 2 1 7 .

H er g e nr Ot h e r , C ar d i n a l , 6 , 1 1 , 7 7 , I s i d ori an d e c r e t a l s , 1 0
H er g e n r Ot h e r P , 1 3 6 , .

H Ofle r , 7 9 , 8 2 , 83 J acob ell us 3 3 . 6 9 . 9 3 . 1 43 . 1 4 7 ,

'

eor $24

Hr ad schi n , 2 4 , 2 6 2 43 . 2 4 6

H um an is t s , 1 3 s q , 1 40 .
J an ow M a tthi as of
, ,
2 8, 31 s qq .

H u ss , s t u d en t , pri es t , pr e ac h e r , 1 8 , 2 2 , J ar os l av 6 9 ,

2 7 . 3 8 4 2 ; l e ad e r . 5 8 5 9
-

19 2 1 5 4 ; P u -
J e r om e of P r ag u e 1 , , 47, 1 23 ,
1 89 , 2 29 ,

rity of li fe , 2 64 , 3 1 6 ; phys i ca l q u a li 23 4. 2 4 1 . 2 58 . 2 70 . 3 1 4 sq 3 21 sa .
o

ti es , 5 8 ; opi n ion of hi m se lf , 2 3 9 , 3 24
241 ; an d m on e y , 1 88 ; c h ar g es J e r om e ,
St .
,
1 1 5, 11 7
3 4 6 IND EX
L en z , 1 0 8
es e n iCZ 9 8. 55 ,
1 45 1
J .
13 5. I 4o s q ,

sq .
, 3 1 2, 3 1 7, 3 1 9 Le o I V , 1 3 2
L e wi s t h e B av a ri an , 1 3 7 , 1 94
J es u its 2 49 2 63 . .

L od i , b i s h op of , 2 4 9 , 3 2 3
.

of A re 26 8
J o an ,

w i fe o f W e n ze l 7 6 2 6 2 Lo es c h e , 2 6 2
J o a n n a , , ,

h X I I 23 6 282 Lo ll a r d s , 4 7 , 9 5
J o n , ,

J o h n XX I I 1 1 1 2 , ,
f
L oo s , 1 3
L or d s S u pp e r an d tr an s u b s t an ti a ti on ,
’

J o h n XX I I I 7 s 8 6 9 O 96 9 7
. . . . . .
1 03 .

6 1 2 1 2 271 S ee R em
10 7. 1 23 .
1 2 7 . 1 3 2. 1 3 5 . 1 3 9 . 1 53 . 5 5
0 , 3 ,
1 5 ,
2 0 , ,
.

s qq .
5 244 1 9 7. a n e n ce .

Los e r t h , 47 sq 9 1 , 93 , 1 1 6, 1 2 1 ,
20 2 , 2 1 8 s q 23 6 , 28 1 1 9, .
,
,
.

J h o f A ti 4
n o us ,
1 2

L ou i s IX , 9
J h o f E g l d 6 49
o n n an , ,

L ou v a i n , 1 5 9
J h o f G orlitz 7 6
n o ,

h f J a d n 1 58 L u d m ill a , 2 3 , 3 5
J o on 1 5 n u ,
1 ,
0,

h f J e s t e in 5 9 6 2 262 L u p ac , 1 2 4
J o n e n o z n , , ,

L U t h er y I I ; I S ) 3 5 , 44 3 4 8 7
J oh mb u rg 1 2 3 133,
f L
n o u xe , ,

2 26,
J oh o f N ass 8, I 7 7; 2522 2 70 ,
n 73 au , 1 13 141 7
1 59 7
h f N p m k 6 26 2 29 6, on H u ss , 8 5 , 2 8 8, 2 9 2 , 3 04
J o n o e o u ,
2 , 30 1 ;
J oh o f P a ri
n s, 10 Lii t z ow , 2 ,
J oh o f S t au pitz 1 3 4
n ,
L yr a , N ic . of , 2 4 5

J t f M or a vi a 88 1 0 4
os o , ,

J u d as , 6 1 , 63 M ans i 1 66 1 9 5 2 89 3 2 2
, , , ,

M ap W a lt e r 2 6 5
, ,

K a u ff h aus , 1 7 1 M ar cu s of K On igsgr a t z 1 1 6 ,

Kb e l , 7 0 M ars igl iu s o f P ad u a 1 1 4 8 50 1 5 8 , , , ,

K e ys p o we r o f , 1 2 6 , 2 7 6 , 2 8 2
,
M arti n V 9 7 1 6 2 2 0 2 2 1 3 2 68 3 2 8
, , , , , ,

M a rti n o f P r ag u e H uss s l e tt e rs t o,
’
K i n gd o m o f G od , 3 9 ,

Kn i n , 69 1 68, 2 3 8 sq .
,
2 84

K n ox , J oh n , 2 2 , 44 , 2 6 4 M atth e w P a ri s 6 7 ,

Ko hl e r , 3 0 3 M ed i ci s 1 4 ,

Ko li n , S t e ph e n o f , 2 7 , 3 4 M e l an chth on 1 5 2 ,

K on r a d o f V e c ht a , 1 0 7 , 1 43 , 1 5 7 , 1 6 6, M i ch ae l d e C ans i s , 87, 1 23 , 1 3 5, 1 3 9,

1 71 . 1 74 . 1 75. 1 83 . I S 8. I S 9. 2 24.

Kage lge n , 8 2 233

M i ch ae l d e M olin os 1 99 ,

L a b k ow icz , N i col as o f , 80 M i d d l e A g es 1 4 , ,

L a c e k o f Kr awar , 9 8 , 1 0 2 , 3 1 2 , 3 1 6 M ili cz of K r e m s i e r 2 8 3 0 s q , ,
.
, 40
L ac e m b ok , H e n ry of , 1 6 5 , 1 7 7
L ad i s l a u s o f N a pl es , 1 1 1 s q , 1 2 1 , 1 2 8 , . M l ad en owicz ,
1 6 5 s q, 1 68, 1 76 sq .
,
1 81 ,
1 9 4, 1 98, 2 0 4 s qq .
, 20 8, 210, 2 1 8,

L an gs d orff , 61 , 62 2 2 2 s qq .
,
2 2 8 sq .
,
2 40 , 2 4 5 , 2 48 , 2 5 1

L a ti m e r , 3 4 M Oh l er 2 3 6 ,

Le a 1 83 ,
, M o l d au 2 4 2 5 , ,

Le chl e r , 2 6 6 , 2 9 6 M or a vi ans 3 3 4 ,

L ec ky 3 0 2 , M ort a l sin d es tr oys k in g ly an d pri estly

L e fl o f L a z an , 1 5 5 p owe r 54 5 5 2 6 2 1 8 , , ,
1 ,

L e ipzi g u n iv e r s ity , 8 2 M uhlh e i m J o h n of 2 6 9 0 , , ,

Le it o m y s l , b i sh o p o f , 1 40 , 1 43 , 1 48 , M iill e r K a rl 2 9
, ,
1

M y s ti cs G e r m an 1 2 s q
, ,
.
3 48
IND EX

S r ce s
a a n ,
13 0 , 13 2 1
T h om as o f U d i n e 9 9 ,

S v a r l
ona o a, 1 5, 2 2 , 2 63 , 304 T hr e e m a rtyr s 1 2 5 ,

S ch hi gac n ,
3 03 T i th e s p u r e a lm s 5 5
, ,

S cha fl C h H i st 48 , 5 7 , T r an s u b s t an ti a ti on S ee R em a
'

6 3 7, 53
’

sq . 1 1 ,
I , .
,
.
,
.
,

19 2 n e n ce

S c hm u d e ,
26 2 Tr ia l ogu s , 4 7 , 6 9 , 88 s q , 9 7 .

l
S ch oo m e n , 8 , 5 8 s q , 1 3 1 , 2 2 6 , 2 43 . T r u th , 5 8
h
S c w a b , 2 0 1 , 2 0 6 , 2 43 , 2 7 0 , 2 9 7 , 3 2 5 , T s c h ack e r t , 2 0 6 , 2 2 5 s q , 2 6 6 , . 2 70

3 3° T y n d a l e , 1 8 0 , 2 84
h
S c wa n e ,
2 7 7, 30 7
S e n te n ces o f the Lom b a d , r 1 1 5, 1 23 , 1 80 , U n a m s a n ctam , 4 , 6 , 7 , 2 74 , 30 7
26 1 .
2 71. 2 79 . 297. 304 $2 . 3 09 U r b an V , 3 1
r
S e m d c s a nc tis ,
. 2 7 sq .
, 3 4, 3 7 U r b an VI , 1 7 ,
h ph r
S e e d , 3 25 U tr aq u i s t s , 2 9 3 , 3 2 8 s q .

S i gi sm un d , 76 , 1 04 sq .
,
1 08, 1 41 ;
and H us s , 1 55, 21 1 ,
2 1 8, 2 23 ,
2 52, Van d e r H a r d t , 1 71 , 1 9 1 , 1 95,

2 55 an d t h e s a l v u s con d u ctu s , 1 6 6, 2 43 . 2 4 7 . 2 4 8 . 2 5 3 2 89
;
8 5 —9
.

23 4, 2 50 s q .
,
2 2 1 ; an d J oh n Vit e s ’
,
St .
, 30 , 3 2, 2 63

XX I I I 1 64 , 1 92 sq 1 94 ; and th e VOlk e r , 3 0 1
—
.
, ,

B oh e m an i n ob e s , l 3 14 3 6 1 , 3 20 .

A ls o 1 75, 63 21 1,
sg .
,
1 2 23 , W a l d en 50 ,

2 2 5 , 2 2 9 , 2 3 4 , 2 4 8 , 2 50 s q . W a ld e n se s , 5 6, 57, 69 , 1 5 8, 2 65,

i
S m o n o f T is s n o w , 9 3 , 1 0 2 , 1 5 3 2 99

S im y on 7 . 1 ,
1 1 8 sq .
, W a l d h au se r 2 8 s q 4 2 ,
.
,

S i E rr or s
x 56 ,
1 W a ld o P e t e r 5 7
, ,

S m ith P r es e rv e d
, , 3 03 W al s i n g h am 5 1 ,

S O p h ia ) Q uee n ) 5 8 ) 7 3 7 7 6 : 9 6 2 1 40 ) 2 3 82 W a rs r e li g i ou s 1 1 7 1 3 0 1 3 2
, , , ,

3 19 W el em owicz 6 9 ,

S t a fco n , 1 24, 2 24 W en ce s l au s S t 2 3 2 6 3 5 ,
.
, , ,

S t a n i s l a us o f Z n a i m , 5 4, 5 6 , 6 4 , 6 9 , e t c . W e n z e l k i n g 5 8 ; r e c og n iz es t h e P i s an
, ,

S ee P a l e cz p o p es , 73 s qq .
,
i n t e r c e d es f r
96 ; o

S t e fa n es c h i, C a r d i n a l , 1 3 5 H u ss , 99 , 101 ; h is o pp o rt u n ity 1 0 6 , ,

S t ie k n a , J o h n o f , 2 7 , 3 4 1 41 , 1 64 , 21 1 ,
2 6 ; d e a th 3 3 0
2 ,

S t it n y , T h om as o f , 4 7 We n ze l of D ub a, 1 65, 1 67, 1 70 , 1 81 ,

S t ok es , 46 , 5 0 , 5 2 , 5 6 , 1 0 8 s q , 2 0 7 , . 2 2 8, 23 8, 2 4 7

2 20 W e n ze l o f T i e m 1 1 4 ,

S t o r c h , 1 83 W hit com b 3 2 5 ,

S t u p n a , P e t e r o f, 3 4 W hit e M o u n t a i n 3 3 3 ,

S u tri , 1 6 2 , 1 9 2 W itt e n b e r g u n iv e rs ity 4 5 ,

S ylv es t e r , 10 W ok o f W a l d s t e i n 1 2 3 ,

W or km an an d P o p e 1 49 , ,
1 81 , 23 1 ,

T ab o r , 3 20 2 46

Ta ul r
e , 13 W o r m s m on u m e n t of 1 5
, ,

T e y n c h u r ch , 2 5 , 2 8 s q , 1 1 3 . W r a t isl aw 2 3 2 6 2 2 7 7 3 04 , , , ,

Thes m er itor u rn , 1 2 2
. W ych e 9 s .

T hirty a rti c l e s 2 5 0 s qq , . W y c li f 8 1 5 ; on pr e a ch i n g 2 7 ; H u ss s
, ,
’
,

T hirty Y e a rs W ar , 3 3 3 d eb t t o , 4 3 s qq , 3 0 8 ; on L or d s S u p
’ ’
.

T h o m as a B e ck e t , 5 , 1 0 4 p e r , 4 7 , 2 0 7 ; ch a r a c t e riz e d , 4 8 s q ; 1 9 .

T h o m as A q u i n as , 7 s qq , 1 1 4 , . a rti c l e s con d e m n e d , 5 1 ; d e fi n e s t h e
2 45 . 305 59 c h u r ch , 5 2, 2 75 ; H uss on , 2 0 9 , 2 1 0 ,
 IND EX 3 49

3 09 ; b y co u n c il of C on
c on d e m n e d Z ab a re l l a , 1 64 , 1 73 , 1 7 7, 20 7 sq .
, 21 7,
s t a n ce 2 5 2 ; s on o f B e li a l , 3 1 9
,

W y c li f, X LV A rti c l es of , 6 9 , 1 2 5 , 1 2 6 , Z b y n e k , A r ch b i s h o p , 5 9 ; t a k es u p
’
1 3 5. 1 44 s o 1 4 7. 1 84 . 2 0 9 . 2 20 H uss s c as e , 6 8 , 7 2 , 7 5 s qq ; a n d t h e .

W y c li f s ’
w riti n gs , 46 , 4 7, 5 5 sq ; . un i v e rs i ty , 8 1 , 85 ; p u ts P r agu e
b u r n ed , 8 5 s q .
,
88 , 9 1 , 1 08, 1 53 , 1 9 5, un d e r i n t e r d i c t , 86 ; b u ll a ga i n s t
f
W y cli , 88 , 9 2 , 9 9 ; d e ath , 1 0 5 , 1 4 6 ,
W y cl ifit es , 48 , 69 , 7 2 , 1 0 7, 1 52, 1 9 6, 2 09

2 72 Zd i s la v 9 3
,

W yli e 1 0 8 1 6 4 2 1 6 2 8 5
, , , , Z e b r ak 1 2 4 1 2 7
, ,

W y lsn ack 6 4 ,
Z i sk a J oh n o f 3 2 8
, , , 330
W y ss eh r ad 2 0 2 5 1 0 1 1 43
, , , , Z ul N i c h o l as 5 9
, ,