From the Diet of Worms to the Augsburg Confession - James Aitken Wylie

defense. Luther and his friends had recently revised
the articles of the Marburg Conference in a strictly
Lutheran sense. This revised addition is known as
the "Schmalkald Articles" Under the tenth head a
very important change was introduced: it was
affirmed, without any ambiguity, that the very
body and blood of Christ are present in the
Sacrament, and the notion was condemned that the
bread is simply bread. This was hardly keeping
faith with the Reformed section of Christendom.
But the blunder that followed was still greater. The
articles so revised were presented to the deputies at
Schmalkald, and their signatures demanded to them
as the basis of a political league. Before combining
for their common defense, all must be of one mind
on the doctrine of the Lord's Supper.
This course was simply deplorable. Apart from
religious belief, there was enough of clear political
ground on which to base a common resistance to a
common tyranny. But in those days the distinction
between the citizen and the church-member,
between the duties and rights appertaining to the
individual in his political and in his religious
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