Another Letter of Joost Verkindert, Written in his Bonds, to his Wife

The grace and peace of God the heavenly Father, the love of His beloved Son, together with the comfort, joy, and gladness of the Holy Ghost, this I wish you as a friendly greeting, my very dear and beloved wife and sister in the Lord. Be pleased to know that I am still reasonably well, considering the time, for which I thank and praise the Lord for His great goodness and grace, trusting to hear the same from you. Know further that I received your letter, and I thank you for your good exhortation and Christian concern for me in these my bonds. O my beloved, this indeed may truly be called the narrow way, for we are assailed from every side, namely, from flesh and blood; and Satan does not rest day or night, by some means to bring us into error or unbelief; for the enemies of the cross of Christ approach us very subtly. Now they have compassion for us, saying: "I will be innocent of your blood." Then they say: "If you die in your belief, you must go from this fire into the eternal." To this I replied to him that we had a better hope, and were not like those who beat the air. First Corinthians 9, verse 26. He said that we were possessed of the devil, and were so firmly bound or held by him that we would not let ourselves be moved. We replied that the Jews also said to Christ that He had a devil. John 7, verse 20; John 10, verse 20. I wonder, said he, whether it would do any good to exorcise you; and other blasphemous words. We told him to go and seek souls, and to reprove harlots and rogues, drunkards, and the ungodliness of the people, since to such the kingdom of heaven is denied. He answered that he exhorted them to repentance. Lauwerens told him that all their things and ceremonies were nothing but hypocrisy and abomination, and that they sold masses to the people by the dozen. He replied to Lauwerens, saying: "If you were a wise man, I should take this ill of you." I asked him where there was anything written [in the Bible] concerning his mass. He said it was a sacrifice, and made many words about this matter, so that it was astonishing where he got it all; much of it had a fair appearance. Among other things he said that he would shed his blood for us, to gain our souls. I told him that he would nevertheless be unwilling to die for us and set us free. He said that we were too pernicious to live. I said: "My lord, I am much surprised (since you say that if we die in this belief we are damned) that you will not rather allow us to live; for as long as a man lives, he has time for amendment and repentance." But he had little inclination for this, saying that we were of the worst persuasion on the earth; for the Calvinists and Martinists, he said, were more easily moved than we were; so that we could not agree. But he said that he prayed for us daily. Oh, said he, I remembered you this very day in my mass. We said that we also prayed to the Lord day and night for our greatest salvation. He said that we sought salvation, but ignorantly. He would also have the flesh and blood of Christ really present in the bread or Supper. About this we made but few words, but I said to him: "Just as Israel made a golden calf, which served as an idol, to whom they said that these were their gods which had delivered them out of Egypt; so it is also with your people; for they say: 'This is our god which has redeemed us on the tree of the cross.'" He said that if He were not present in the bread, it would be idolatry; but when the priest has pronounced the words over it He comes sacramentally into it, and hence it is also not idolatry. And when he could not move us with the Scriptures, he held out release and pardon to us, to lure us, so that my conflict thereby becomes the more grievous to me; yet I hope that the Lord will help us to triumph, for without the help of God it would be impossible to stand.

Therefore, my beloved, help me earnestly to entreat the Lord that He will preserve me, through His great goodness and longsuffering, as the apple of His eye, that I may not be led astray through philosophy or carnal liberty, nor depart from my God, of which I have a great dread; but that He will comfort and strengthen me in my good purpose, to the praise of His holy name, and to the salvation of my soul.

With this I will commend you to the crucified, bleeding Christ Jesus, and to the rich Word of His grace, who is faithful in what He has promised. I greet you, my beloved, with the kiss of peace; and Lauwerens and I also greet all our acquaintances very warmly with the peace of the Lord. Amen.

Written in my bonds, by me,

JOOST VERKINDERT,

Unworthy prisoner in the Lord.