The virtuous wife of Mathis Zell in Strassburg, my friendly, dear friend.
Grace and peace in Christ! My dear woman. I have not answered your letter previously , though very proper, which came some time ago because I thought that it was too soon and the matter was so fresh; but now because,praise God, the stone wall (Schrope? word not used by ML elsewhere has far as Editors know; perhaps sharp stones) has been changed abit, and so I now again take up your letter so that now you ,your husband and friends may be assisted so that, please God, peace and unity may be preserved. You well know that over everything love must have the preeminence, excepting God. Where He and His Word have the precedence so certainly love shall be dominant next to God. Such a thing will not happen with our efforts nor devotion but with prayer and spiritual sighing; this is God's matter, not ours. God must accomplish it and it is not of our doing. Pray,pray,pray and let it be His concern. Herewith, be commnended to God, Amen. Greet for me your loving husband. 24 January 1531 Martinus Luther.
NOTES: The story of the Reformation in Strassburg is fascinating-very complex but not quite the Lutheran brand, at least, at first. Mathis Zell or Matthias had the pulpit at the cathedral in Strassburg and along with Wolfgang Capito, another ML correspondent was very influential in spreading the Reformation. Catarina was a talented hymn writer and very tolerant to many who had different ideas on Reformation. Toward the end of her life when Lutherans denied burial to two sisters of the Schwenkfeld persuasion, she conducted the funerals herself and though quite infirm she conducted their burial services. Martin Bucer was very active in Strassburg and a long letter of his to ML is next. The above info is from Dairmaid McCullough's "The Reformation" which is a comprehensive account of the Reformation in all its aspects as well the Counter-Reformation.
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