ther, with little
will in it either way, had consented: he was now nineteen years of age.
Alexis and he had been to see the old Luther people at Mansfeldt; were
got back again near Erfurt, when a thunder-storm came on; the bolt
struck Alexis, he fell dead at Luther's feet. What is this Life
of ours?--gone in a moment, burnt up like a scroll, into the blank
Eternity! What are all earthly preferments, Chancellorships, Kingships?
They lie shrunk together--there! The Earth has opened on them; in a
moment they are not, and Eternity is. Luther, struck to the heart,
determined to devote himself to God and God's service alone. In spite
of all dissuasions from his father and others, he became a Monk in the
Augustine Convent at Erfurt.

This was probably the first light-point in the history of Luther, his
purer will now first decisively uttering itself; but, for the present,
it was still as one light-point in an element all of darkness. He says
he was a pious monk, _ich bin ein frommer Monch gewesen_; faithfully,
painfully struggling to work out the truth of this high act of his; but
it was to little purpose. His misery had not lessened; had rather, as it
were, increased into infinitude. The drudgeries he had to do, as novice
in his Convent, all sorts of slave-work, were not his grievance:
the deep earnest soul of the man had fallen into all manner of black
scruples, dubitations; he believed himself likely to die soon, and far
worse than die. One hears with a new interest for poor Luther that, at
this time, he lived in terror of the unspeakable misery; fancied that he
was doomed to eternal reprobation. Was it not the humble sincere nature
of the man? What was he, that he should be raised to Heaven! He that
had known only misery, and mean slavery: the news was too blessed to
be credible. It could not become clear to him how, by fasts, vigils,
formalities and mass-work, a man's soul could be saved. He fell into
the blackest wretchedness; had to wander staggering as on the verge of
bottomless Despair.

It must have been a most blessed discovery, that of an old Latin Bible
which he found in the Erfurt Library about this time. He had never seen
the Book before. It taught him another lesson than that of fasts and
vigils. A brother monk too, of pious experience, was helpful. Luther
learned now that a man was saved not by singing masses, but by the
infinite grace of God: a more credible hypothesis. He gradually got
himself founded, as