DESCRIPTION

Of MENNO SIMONS' severe persecution and the place where he, having last preached the Gospel, died and was buried.

"Those who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus," says the Apostle Paul, "shall be persecuted" original: "Die Godtsaliglijk willen leven...": which words, though confirmed by the unbridled wickedness of the world with many examples today, you nevertheless see validated in a singular way in the example of our author Menno Simons. For after he had been persecuted and hunted in many ways by his adversaries, they—so that their evil intention might be more surely carried out—issued an edict term: "plackaet" - a public decree or ordinance, often posted in town squares. by which they made known that anyone who should harbor our Menno or one of his followers in their house, or seek to hide them in any way, would be declared guilty of death. This was clearly seen around the year 1539 regarding (a) Tjaert Reyndertsz, a husbandman A farmer or tiller of the soil. outside Harlingen; who, because he had once hidden Menno Simons in his house during a time of great distress, was a few days later taken to Leeuwarden and there, like a godless criminal—though even his enemies testified to his piety—was broken upon the wheel.

Furthermore, in the year 1543, a new (b) edict was proclaimed throughout all West Friesland; by which they promised all criminals, even murderers, a pardon for their villainies, the Emperor’s mercy, the freedom of the country, and in addition about one hundred Carolus guilders term: "Caroli gulden" - gold coins issued during the reign of Emperor Charles V. if they could deliver our Menno into the hands of the executioner. For this reason, they also posted his name, person, clothing, and appearance on church doors, so that their command might be carried out all the more promptly. Consequently, he could not find even a small hut or a straw room where he could rest or live with his wife and small children for even half a year. So Menno (c) himself recounts that in the year 1546, in a certain place where people still boast of being Evangelical Christians, four dwellings were confiscated and the owner dispossessed because he had rented one of them to Menno’s sick wife and small children for a short time, though they were unknown to the neighbors. This harsh oppression forced our Menno to retreat to a place located between Hamburg (d) and Lübeck, about 6½ to 7 miles from Hamburg and 3 miles on this side of Lübeck, a short mile past Oldesloe. It had formerly been a large oak forest, but was then an open field, commonly called the "Wuestenfelde" original: "Woeſte Veldt" - literally "The Waste Field." This became a famous refuge for Anabaptists., belonging under the nobleman and Lordship of Fresenburg. The nobleman residing there at that time was a very cruel man, for which reason he was respected and feared by everyone; but because he had spent much time in the Netherlands in his youth and had seen people killed for their faith from time to time, he was very compassionate toward such people. Having knowledge of their foundational beliefs, he gave them freedom to live there by "winking at them" A phrase meaning he turned a blind eye to their presence despite official prohibitions. and stood by them very zealously and faithfully. Notwithstanding that he was

frequently commanded on the King’s behalf not to tolerate those people, he would—following the King's order—have one of his servants announce to them in the daylight that they must depart under penalty of punishment; however, he would send a trusted servant afterward to inform them of the reason for that order, telling the men to remain absent or stay inside their houses for eight to fourteen days. In the meantime, he knew how to quiet the matter through one courtier or another. Thus, refugees from all sides flocked there, until finally a fine company or small congregation came together and lived there quite peacefully, each household paying only one Reichsthaler term: "Rijksdaeler" - a standard silver coin of the Holy Roman Empire. per year in protection money, without further taxation. It was indeed a singular providence of Almighty God that the refugees were able to hide and be protected under one of the cruelest men, who was feared by everyone else. For this reason, our Menno also thought it good, as has been said, to move to this place.

Furthermore, after Menno Simons had been out of the Papacy term: "Pausdom" - the Roman Catholic Church. for about thirty years, and during that time had taught and proclaimed the Gospel, purified of Roman idolatry and superstition; having given his last admonitions (as it seemed) with death upon his lips while on his sickbed, he rose again for a few days as a sign of his unquenchable zeal. However, immediately thereafter, falling ill again on the anniversary of the day he had left the Papacy, he fell asleep in the Lord on the following day, being the 13th of January in the year 1561, on a Friday. He was in the 66th year of his age and, as was often the practice during times of persecution, was buried in his own garden. This manner of burial, according to the notes of Hoornbeeck Johannes Hoornbeeck (1617–1666), a Dutch Reformed theologian who wrote on the "art of dying well.", was also customary among the early Christians during the persecutions by the Pagans.

NOTE: Although the Martyrs' Mirror notes on page 59, and T. van Bracht in his Bloody Theater of the Anabaptists, book 2, page 129, as well as others, state that MENNO SIMONS died in the year 1559 on the 13th of January, we have nevertheless judged it to be in the year 1561 for the following reason:
Because in an old description of MENNO SIMONS' death, the year 1561 is recorded. We have considered this testimony the most probable because he wrote a small tract to the two High-German teachers, Zylis and Lemmekes, on January 23, 1559—as you can see in this book on page 490—which would have been ten days after his passing if he had died on January 13th of that same year, 1559.

NOTE: The reader should know that, although on some portraits of MENNO SIMONS printed previously, his birth year is stated as 1505, we have nevertheless taken the year 1496. This is because the Martyrs' Mirror page 59, T. van Bracht in the Bloody Theater of the Anabaptists book 2, page 129, P. J. Twisck in the Downfall of Tyrants and Yearly Histories book 16, page 1075, and G. Brandt in his History of the Reformation, book 4, page 187, all collectively testify that he died in the 66th year of his age. If MENNO died in the year 1561, as indicated above, then he must necessarily have been born in the year 1496, or he would otherwise have already passed away in only the 56th year of his age.