t Basel, among which were the "Commentaries on the
Psalms," the "Sermon of Good Works," the "Commentary on the Lord's
Prayer," and besides these, other Christian books, not of a
contentious kind.

Upon this, Luther made answer, first in German, then in Latin, that
the books were his.

The form of procedure had been committed by the Emperor to Eck,
Glapion, and Aleandro, and it may have been by their deliberate
intention that Luther was now asked, whether he wished to defend
all the books which he had acknowledged as his own, or to retract
any part of them? He began his answer in Latin, by an apology for
any mistakes that he might make in addressing personages so great,
as a man versed, not in courts, but in monk-cells; then, repeating
his acknowledgment of the books, proceeded to divide them into
three classes. There were some in which he had treated the piety of
faith and morals so simply and evangelically that his very
adversaries had been compelled to confess them useful, harmless,
and worthy of Christian reading. How could he condemn these? There
were others in which he attacked the Papacy and the doctrine of the
Papists, who both by their teachings and their wretched examples
have wasted Christendom with both spiritual and corporal evil. Nor
could any one deny or dissimulate this, since the universal
experience and complaint bear witness that, by the laws of the Pope
and the doctrines of men, consciences are miserably ensnared and
vexed, especially in this illustrious German nation. If he should
revoke these books, what would it be but to add force to tyranny,
and to open, not merely the windows, but the doors to so great
impiety? In that case, Good God, what a cover of wickedness and
tyranny would he not become! A third class of his books had been
written against private persons, those, namely, who had labored to
protect the Roman tyranny and to undermine the piety which he had
taught. In these he confessed that he had been more bitter than
became his religion and profession. Even these, however, he could
not recall, because to do so would be to throw his shield over
tyranny and impiety, and to augment their violence against the
people of God. From this he proceeded to ask for evidence against
himself and a fair trial, adducing the word