The Dirty Mennonite
A Blog on Anabaptist Theology, History and Modern Ecclesiology

I find Hubmaier’s life so interesting. I will do my best to tell this short chapter of his life without writing a book for a post.

Hubmaier was a Catholic scholar, pastor and chaplain in Germany in the early 1500’s. By 1522 he was reading the writings of Luther and making friends in the reformation movement. By 1525 he was closely aligned with the radical reformers and he no longer practiced infant baptism. He also got married. After this, Hubmaier became one of the most eloquent and convincing writers and debaters for the radical’s cause.

Eventually (and perhaps ironically) Zwingli, who was proposing moderate reform in Zurich, became a bitter enemy of Hubmaier. He had Hubmaier imprisoned for his radical ideas and tortured for seven months. Under intense distress Hubmaier recanted his more radical beliefs (i.e. adult baptism). By April of 1526 a defeated and rejected Hubmaier was allowed to leave Zurich and he sought refuge among groups of radicals in Moravia. With his faith and purpose restored he began to teach and preach what he believed God had spoken to all mankind through the Bible.

By God’s providence political winds had shifted in Moravia and by February 1527 Hubmaier and the radicals there were in trouble again. Hubmaier was turned over to the authorities for a second time as a heretic. This time he was determined not to recant. On March 10, 1528 Hubmaier burned at the stake for heresy. In the flames, he cried out, “O my heavenly Father! O my gracious God!” and when his hair and beard burned, “Oh Jesus!” Choked by the smoke, he died. To the spectator it appeared that he felt more joy than pain. His wife would also die a heretic by drowning three days later.

That’s the beauty of the Christian life. We are all in process. Hubmaier gave up everything because he believed that the Bible was the sole authority for the Christian life. Though he faltered God gave him the Grace to preserve.

“Die warhet ist untödlich.”

This is the phrase that often ended the writings of Balthasar Hubmaier. Hubmaier was a German Anabaptist leader who was extremely popular in the towns in which he preached. He was the only Anabaptist leader who was schooled in scholastic theology and received his doctorate. He was burned at the stake in Vienna on March 10, 1528 as a heretic.

The phrase which became his motto translated is, “Truth is Unkillable!” Hubmaier is perhaps my favorite Anabaptist leader and theologian so my upcoming posts on Anabaptism will focus on him.