810.后来我听说，剥夺这些传教士牧师职位的原因有很多，我被告知，主要原因是，他们的讲道不是出于圣言，因而出于神的圣灵，而是出于自己的理性之光，因而出于自己的灵。诚然，他们一开始的确以圣言原文为前奏，但只是轻描淡写地在嘴上说说，随后弃之如无味，回头立马从自己的才智中拣选美味，含在嘴里嚼来嚼去，翻卷舌头，仿佛它真是一道美味，这就是他们的教导。据说，他们的讲道如同鸟儿的歌声一样没有灵性，其寓言被粉饰得如同秃头上所戴的优雅增白的假卷发。他们关于唯信称义的信之奥秘好比从海面刮起，并落到以色列人营地周围、造成数千人死亡的鹌鹑（民数记11章），而仁与信在一起的神学则好比天堂的甘露。我曾听他们的传教士在一起谈论唯信，看见他们所形成的图像，它代表了唯信的信条。其妄想的微光使这图像看似一个伟大的巨人，但当天上的光照到它时，它又看似上部分是怪物，下部分是蛇。看到这一幕，他们退缩了，旁观者将这图像扔到了湖里。
810. 后来我听说, 剥夺这些传教士牧师职位的原因有很多, 我被告知, 主要原因是, 他们的讲道不是出于圣言, 因而出于神的圣灵, 而是出于自己的理性之光, 因而出于自己的灵。 诚然, 他们一开始的确以圣言原文为前奏, 但只是轻描淡写地在嘴上说说, 随后弃之如无味, 回头立马从自己的才智中拣选美味, 含在嘴里嚼来嚼去, 翻卷舌头, 仿佛它真是一道美味, 这就是他们的教导。 据说, 他们的讲道如同鸟儿的歌声一样没有灵性, 其寓言被粉饰得如同秃头上所戴的优雅增白的假卷发。 他们关于唯信称义的信之奥秘好比从海面刮起, 并落到以色列人营地周围, 造成数千人死亡的鹌鹑 (民数记11章), 而仁与信在一起的神学则好比天堂的甘露。 我曾听他们的传教士在一起谈论唯信, 看见他们所形成的图像, 它代表了唯信的信条。 其妄想的微光使这图像看似一个伟大的巨人, 但当天上的光照到它时, 它又看似上部分是怪物, 下部分是蛇。 看到这一幕, 他们退缩了, 旁观者将这图像扔到了湖里。
810. I have heard several reasons why those preachers are deprived of their priestly status. People gave me the following as the primary reason. "They shape their sermons to conform with their own earthly light and therefore their own spirit rather than with the Word and therefore the spirit of God. Yes, they do begin their sermons by quoting the Word, but they merely touch these quotes to their lips, and go no further because the quotes do not taste good to them. Instead they soon select some tasty idea of their own; like a piece of exquisite sugar candy, they swirl it around in their mouth and roll it back and forth over their tongue. This is how they teach.
"As a result there is no more spiritual content in their talks than there is in the tweeting of a songbird. The allegories with which they decorate their sermons are like a beautifully curled, flour-dusted wig on a great bald head. The mystical content in their sermons, which concerns justification by faith alone, we would liken to the quails that were blown from the sea into the camp of the children of Israel, which led to the death of thousands of people (Numbers 11:[31-34]). Theological teachings concerning goodwill and faith working together, though, we liken to manna from heaven. "
On one occasion I heard some of their ministers talking to each other about faith alone and saw a kind of statue they had made to represent their faith alone. In the light of their own imagination it looked like a huge giant. When light from heaven was let in, however, the top half of the statue looked deformed and the bottom half looked like a snake. Once the ministers saw that, they left, and bystanders threw the image into a pond.
810. I was later told a number of reasons why these preachers are deprived of their priestly office. They said that the primary one was that they did not base their sermons on the Word, and so on God's spirit, but on the feeble light of their own reason, and so on their own spirit. They start with a text from the Word as a prelude, but merely pay lip-service to this, and abandon it as if tasteless. Then they select some tasty morsel from their own intelligence, which they roll around the mouth and turn over on the tongue as if it were a delicacy, and thus teach it. They said that as a result there is no more spirituality in their sermons than in the song of birds; and their allegories are dressed up like elegantly curled wigs whitened with barley flour on a bald head. They compared the mysteries about justification by faith alone, which fill their sermons, to the quails which came from the sea and fell upon the camp of the Children of Israel, which caused several thousand deaths (Numbers 11). However, they compared theological statements about charity and faith together to manna from heaven.
I once heard their priests talking among themselves about faith alone, and an image they formed, which represented their doctrine of faith alone; the feeble light of their imagination made this appear like a huge giant. But when light from heaven was let in, it appeared in its upper part like a monster, in its lower part like a snake. On seeing this they drew back, and the bystanders threw it into a lake.
810. I afterward heard many reasons why those preachers were deprived of their office. I was told that the chief reason is, that they did not prepare their sermons from the Word and thus from the Spirit of God, but from their own rational light, and thus from their own spirit. They begin, indeed, as a prelude, with a text from the Word; but this they merely touch with their lips, and then abandon as tasteless, immediately selecting something savory from their own intelligence, which they roll about in their mouths and turn over upon their tongues as something delicious. Such is their teaching. It was said that as a consequence there was no more spirituality in their sermons than in the songs of birds, and that they were merely allegorical adornments, like wigs beautifully curled and powdered on bald heads. The mysteries of their discourses on justification by faith alone were likened to the quails brought up from the sea and strewn about the camps of the children of Israel (Numbers 11), because of which several thousand persons died; while the theology of charity and faith together were likened to the manna from heaven. I once heard their preachers talking together about faith alone; and I saw a kind of image formed by them, which represented their faith alone. In their light, which was the light of hallucination, this appeared like a great giant; but when light from heaven was let in upon it, it appeared like a monster above and a serpent below. Seeing this, they withdrew, and the bystanders threw the image into a pond.
810. I afterwards heard several reasons why those preachers are deprived of their office. It was mentioned as the chief reason, that they do not frame their discourses from the Word, and thus from the Spirit of God, but from rational light (lumen) of their own intelligence, and thus from their own spirit. They take texts indeed from the Word as an introduction; but these they only touch upon lightly, and leave as things without savor. Then they choose something savory from their own intelligence, which they roll in the mouth and turn upon the tongue as rich dainties, and this is the extent of their teaching: Hence their discourses have no more spirituality in them than the songs of birds; and the picturesque allegories with which they adorn them are like the beautifully curled and powdered wig on a bald head. The mysteries in their sermons concerning justification by faith alone are like the quails from the sea cast upon the camp of the Children of Israel, by eating which several thousand people died, Numbers 11; whereas theological teaching concerning charity and faith united is like manna from heaven. I once heard some of their clergy conversing together about faith alone, and I saw a kind of image which they caused to take form. This represented their doctrine of faith alone, and it appeared in the delusive light (lumen) of their natural intelligence as a mighty giant; but when light (lux) from heaven was shed upon it, it then appeared as a monster above and a serpent below. At the sight of this the clergy withdrew, and the bystanders cast it into a stagnant pool.
810. Audivi postea plures causas, cur Praedicatores 1 illi deprivantur sacerdotio; dixerunt quod primaria sit, quod non ex Verbo et sic ex Spiritu Dei Sermones suos conforment, sed ex rationali suo lumine et sic ex Spiritu proprio; primordia quidem sicut praeludia ex Verbo depromunt, sed haec modo tangunt labiis, et sicut non sapida deserunt, et mox eligunt quoddam sapidum ex propria intelligentia, quod ut lautitias ore volvunt et super lingua versant, et sic docent: dixerunt, quod inde non plus spirituale insit concionibus illorum, quam quod inest cantibus oscinum; et quod sint allegorica exornata sicut sunt capillamenta pulchre cincinnata et farina hordei dealbata super Capite calvo: mystica sermonum illorum de Justificatione per solam fidem aequiparabant Coturnicibus e mari conjectis super castra filiorum Israelis, ex quibus ad plura millia mortui sunt, Numeri XI; at Theologica de Charitate et Fide simul aequiparabant Mannae e Coelo. Quondam audivi Presbyteros illorum de sola Fide inter se loquentes; et vidi quoddam Simulachrum ab illis formatum, quod solam Fidem illorum repraesentabat; hoc apparuit in lumine eorum, quod erat phantasiae, sicut magnus Gigas; sed cum immissa est lux e Coelo, apparuit illud superius sicut monstrum, et inferius sicut serpens; quo viso recesserunt, et ab adstantibus conjectum est in stagnum.
Footnotes:
1. Prima editio: Praedcatores.