#2247-To Justus Jonas

To the higly-renown and worthy man,Herr Justus Jonas,Doctor of Theology and Probst in Wittenberg, his superior in the LOrd.
Grace and peace in Christ! You will, my dear Doctor Jonas, greet Herr Spalatin because I cannot write to him. 1536 Midweek In Pentecost (7 June). Your Mart.Luther.
But listen to what I have forgotten: your letters appear to be exceedingly happy and give the aroma of rightly-made, delicious red wine although you and Spalatin have not indicated the same and put forth other reasons. I am happy that the hope for harmony is so great but soon the former are inclined to quarreling and the disturbing old one finds a different dispute since he, like the salamander lives from fire so he himself lives by hate,strife, and dissension. I write little because yesterday the entire day I suffered the passage of a stone which you, with horror, call lead; however, having avoided wine and a number of granules have passed through and so I am again well. Happily
I have learned everything from the Landgraf especially that our Prince has dealt so generously and graciously in this our union or attempts at union. My lord Kaethe greets you respectfully and is happy that you are happy but she fears that you may be deceived by the goodness of the wine and that you through excessive use may have gathered by the use of the same stones so that you will bring along your kidneys full of them "so rough and sharp" (these are her words) "of stones as the kegs are after they have been drained", but you may say they have their origin here in Wittenberg although you have always sown them elsewhere you (publish here?) go out from here and return here again as Michael Stiefel once said that you are accustomed to go outside from time to time to pass wind but when you come back in with your colleagues you bring the stink with you. You will no doubt recognise the Philosophy as I also learned it through her (Ed. Kaethe) at Coburg. Everything at your house goes well. Again be it well with you.
NOTEs: Believe Jonas is teaching at Jena for a time and organizing a school there. Both Jonas and Luther suffer from kidney and/or gall stones. Anyone know about the effect of red wine on "stones"? If I understand the Editors correctly they think the Latin per ipsam means ML is relating what Kaethe wrote to him while he was in Coburg (Gruboc) during the presentation of the AC in June of 1530 and several months afterward. Michael Stiefel independently devised a system of logarithms. Also predicted the end of the world and ML stepped in to save his neck when it didn't occur.