self-will of the children may be broken, and that the
children may become humble and meek.

Just as it has been said of the other Commandments, that they are to be
fulfilled in the chief work, so here too let no one suppose that the
training and teaching of his children is sufficient of itself, except
it be done in confidence of divine favor, so that a man doubt not that
he is wellpleasing to God in his works, and that he let such works be
nothing else than an exhortation and exercise of his faith, that he
trust God and look to Him for blessings and a gracious will; without
which faith no work lives, or is good and acceptable; for many heathen
have trained their children beautifully, but it is all lost, because of
their unbelief.

VII. The second work of this Commandment is to honor and obey the
spiritual mother, the holy Christian Church, the spiritual power, so
that we conform to what she commands, forbids, appoints, orders, binds
and looses, and honor, fear and love the spiritual authority as we
honor, love and fear our natural parents, and yield to it in all things
which are not contrary to the first three Commandments.

Now with regard to this work, things are almost worse than with regard
to the first. The spiritual authority should punish sin with the ban
and with laws, and constrain its spiritual children to be good, in
order that they might have reason to do this work and to exercise
themselves in obeying and honoring it. Such zeal one does not see now;
they act toward their subjects like the mothers who forsake their
children and run after their lovers, as Hosea ii. says; they do not
preach, they do not teach, they do not hinder, they do not punish, and
there is no spiritual government at all left in Christendom.

What can I say of this work? A few fast-days and feast-days are left,
and these had better be done away with. But no one gives this a
thought, and there is nothing left except the ban for debt, and this
should not be. But spiritual authority should look to it, that
adultery, unchastity, usury, gluttony, worldly show, excessive
adornment, and such like open sin and shame might be most severely
punished and corrected; and they should properly manage the endowments,
monastic houses, parishes and schools, and earnestly maintain worship
in them, provide for the young people, boys and girls, in schools and
cloisters, with learned, pious men as teachers, that they might all be
well trained, and so the o