On his path the busy devils were lurking to weaken him, to
mislead him, to make innumerable others wretched through him. He saw
their work in the angry bearing of the cardinal, in the scornful face
of Eck, even in the thoughts of his own soul. He knew how powerful
they had been in Rome. Even in his youth apparitions had tormented
him; now they reappeared. From the dark shadows of his study the
spectre of the tempter lifted its claw-like hand against his reason.
Even while he was praying the Devil approached him in the form of
the Redeemer, radiant as King of Heaven with the five wounds, as
the ancient Church represented Him. But Luther knew that Christ
appears to poor humanity only in His words, or in humble form, as He
hung upon the cross; and he roused himself vigorously and cried
to the apparition: "Avaunt, foul fiend!"--and the vision disappeared.
Thus the strong heart of the man worked for years in savage
indignation--always renewed. It was a sad struggle between reason and
insanity, but Luther always came out victorious; the native strength
of his sound nature prevailed. In long prayer, often lasting for
hours, the stormy waves of his emotion became calm, and his massive
intelligence and his conscience brought him every time out of doubt to
certainty. He considered this process of liberation as a gracious
inspiration of his God, and after such moments he who had once been in
such anxious doubt was as firm as steel, indifferent to the opinion of
men, not to be moved, inexorable.
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