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KEY Commentary Side Textual Bibliographic Scriptural
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secte (as the pope doeth) yet he sofereth none to breake
their promises of chastite dedicat to god (though haply
they vse no soch vowes / and as the pope wyll not excepte it
be for monye) but luther teacheth to breake
holy vowes.T. luther teacheth that vnlawfull vowes
grounded on a false fayth vnto the dyshonourynge of god are
to be broken and no nother. And agayne constrayned seruice
pleaseth not God. And thridly youre pope geueth licence and
his blessynge to breake all lawfull vowes / but with the
most vnlawfull of all will ye not dispence.
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yet . . .
vowes. Cf. CWM 6/1.375/4–7. Tyndale interpolates two
asides into these paraphrases of More: "(as the pope doeth)" (189/16)
and "(though . . . monye)" (189/17–19).
luther . . .
vowes. After giving a postive account of vowed chastity in The Holy Sacrament of Baptism, 1519 (WA 2.735f;
LW 35.41f), Luther attacked "that most widespread delusion of vows" as
derogatory of Baptism and contrary to Christian freedom in the Baptism
section of Babylonian Captivity, 1520 (WA
6.538/26–542/38; LW 36.74–81). In November 1521 he composed his
wideranging
Judgment . . . concerning Monastic Vows (printed
1522) (WA 8.573–669; LW 44.251–400), which argues that vows rest on an
erroneous basis, namely, the distinction between universally binding precepts and special evangelical counsels, and that they are
contrary to the true nature of faith, Christian freedom, the
commandments,
and natural reason. Tyndale's account of the
case against vows refers to faith and freedom, but argues more pointedly
than Luther that vows should give way to the primary
precepts of self-maintenance and service to one's neighbor
(190/7–15 and above, 161/25–162/8 with n). (JW)
On 13 June 1525 Luther married Catherine von
Bora, a former Cistercian nun who had been sent to the
convent while still a child (NCE 8.1090). Their happy union of twenty
years produced six children and a new appreciation of conjugal
spirituality. See Ch. 17, "The School for Character," Bainton 223–37.
More obsessively returns to the theme of their marriage about ten times
in Dialogue and over twenty times in Confutation. Although More knows the popular
belief that "Antecryste sholde be borne betwene a frere and a nunne . .
." (CWM 8/1.51/3–4), he holds that Luther is not Antichrist but his
forerunner (8/1.271/11–13).
luther . . . no
nother. Cf. CWM 8/1.135/17–18.
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Then he bringeth forth the ensample of the hethen / to
confirme the popis chastite. And no wronge / for the same
false imaginacion that the hethen had in theirs / hath the
pope in hys. Vnderstonde
therfore / If thou vow ane indifferent thynge /
to please god in hys awne person / he receaueth not thyne
Idolatrie: for hys pleasure and
honoure is / that thou shuldest be as he hath
made the / and shulde
receaue all soch thynges of hys hand and vse
them as ferforth as they were nedfull and geue him thankes
and be bounde to him: and not
that thou shuldest be as thou haddest made thy
selfe / and that he shulde receaue soch thynges off the to
be bounde to the / to thanke the and rewarde the. And agayne
/ thou must geue me a reason of thy vow out off the worde of
God. Morouer when thou vowest lawfully thou maist not do it
precyselye / but all waye excepte / yf thyne awne or thy
neyboures necessite required the contrary. As yf thou
haddest vowed neuer to eate flesh or drinke wine or stronge drinke / to tame thi flesh / and thou after warde fellest in disease
so that thy body in that behalfe were to tame or that there
coud no no
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ensample of the
hethen. For the Vestal Virgins, cf. CWM 6/1.375/16–28.
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