Two Of A Kind

Two Of A Kind

They took the road less traveled and more dangerous.

MICHAEL SATTLER was a Catholic priest in southern Germany in the 1520s, and Margaretha had a lay position in the Catholic Church. Boldly breaking their vows of celibacy to marry, they were of one mind regarding their faith in God and their love for each other.

As if this weren’t scandal enough, their convictions led them to join the Anabaptists, a fledgling religious movement the ecclesiastical and magisterial powers deemed dangerous.

The Anabaptists believed that obedience to God was primary and obedience to the state was secondary. This view attracted the Sattlers, and they also committed to the group’s principle of seeking careful counsel of fellow believers before acting. Adult baptism and strict pacifism also attracted the Sattlers. These views were considered extreme at the time, but Michael and Margaretha consistently made choices against the norm.

When Michael became an Anabaptist leader, he saw a great need for structure within the movement, which was full of life and spirit but lacked direction and organization. It needed written guidelines in order to preserve freedom, set boundaries, and protect themselves against fanatics who might lead the group astray. On February 24, 1527, in Schleitheim, Germany, Michael Sattler brought together a small group of Anabaptist leaders who wrote and adopted seven articles of faith, which they called the “Brotherly Union.” They now had an organized church.

Michael went to Rottenburg, where officials seized the “Brotherly Union” papers as well as other Anabaptist plans. Nineteen people, including Michael and Margaretha, were arrested and tried for violating Catholic doctrine and practice such as baptism, the Eucharist, unction, and veneration of the saints. Michael was also charged with leaving his monastery, marrying, and promoting a pacifist approach toward the Turks.

In court Michael refuted all the charges except the last, for he did believe in a pacifist approach to the Turks. He questioned the authorities regarding their persecution of other Christians. “The Turk knows nothing about the Christian faith; he is a Turk according to the flesh. But you want to be considered Christians, boast of being Christ’s, and still persecute his pious witnesses. You are Turks according to the spirit.”

He insisted that the Anabaptists had done nothing against the Bible and requested a debate with the Catholic leaders. Sattler asserted that if he and the other Anabaptists could be proved in error, they would gladly accept their punishment. “But if we are not shown to be in error, I hope to God that you will accept teaching and be converted.” The court did not take kindly to the suggestion of his “teaching” them and returned with the sentence: “Michael Sattler shall be committed to the hangman, who shall take him to the square and there first cut out his tongue, then chain him to a wagon, tear his body twice with hot tongs there and five times more before the gate, then burn his body to powder as an arch-heretic.”

As the executioner tied Michael to a ladder, Michael prayed with slurred speech, “Almighty, eternal God, Thou art the way and the truth; because I have not been shown to be in error, I will with Thy help on this day testify to the truth and seal it with my blood.” After the fire burned the ropes off his hands, he raised his hands and struggled to form the words: “Father, I commend my spirit into Thy hands.”

After Michael’s death the authorities tried in vain to persuade Margaretha to recant her testimony, but she declared that she would forever remain true to her Lord and to her husband. Eight days after Michael’s execution, Margaretha was drowned in the Neckar River that passes through Rottenburg.

Reflection

Do you tend to go along with the flow, taking the path of least resistance, or, like the Sattlers, do you take the more difficult, nonconformist road when your convictions call for it?

Hate what is wrong. Stand on the side of the good.

Romans 12:9