Reprinted from Meridian Magazine (14 Jul 2010).
©2010 by John P. Pratt. All rights Reserved.
| 1. John Huss |
| 1.1 Root Problem |
| 1.2 The Prophecy |
| 1.3 The Date of the Martyrdom |
| 1.4 Total Solar Eclipse |
| 2. Martin Luther |
| 2.1 Frederick's Dream |
| 2.2 Luther's Birth Date |
| 2.3 Enoch's Birth Date |
| 3. Conclusion |
| Notes |
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The most famous reformer was Martin Luther (1483-1546) of Germany, for whom the Lutheran church is named. His success was due in part to avoiding being slain for his cause. Many preceding him had been executed for heresy (disagreeing with the pope). Luther began his work after being inspired by the work of John Huss, a Czech (Bohemian) reformer who had been burned at the stake a century before him. One article summarizes Huss's influence on Luther thus:
Early in his monastic career, Martin Luther, rummaging through the stacks of a library, happened upon a volume of sermons by John Huss, the Bohemian who had been condemned as a heretic. "I was overwhelmed with astonishment," Luther later wrote. "I could not understand for what cause they had burnt so great a man, who explained the Scriptures with so much gravity and skill."
Huss would become a hero to Luther and many other reformers, for Huss preached key Reformation themes (like hostility to indulgences) a century before Luther drew up his 95 Theses. But the reformers also looked to Huss's life, in particular, his steadfast commitment in the face of the church's cunning brutality.[1]
Thus, let us first look at Huss's life, including a prophecy he made of Luther as he was being burned at the stake. Then we will consider more about Martin Luther, including an amazing dream that referenced Huss's work. Next we will look at the significance of the dates of the prophecy and of Luther's birth, and finally we will consider the relationship of Martin Luther to the great antediluvian prophet Enoch.
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Martin Luther would later expand this list of six errors to 95 and follow Huss's lead by also tacking his list to his church door. That list would become one of the foundational documents of the Protestant Reformation. It might be worth a moment to consider just what the most important problem was.
Of the six errors Huss listed,[3] perhaps the most fundamental was that church members were required to believe in the pope as the representative of God and obey his commandments. In contrast, Huss taught that we should believe in and obey only God (compare D&C 98:4). Note that there is a confirmation in modern scripture of this principle. Those people who only follow a man, even a true apostle or prophet such as Enoch, Moses, Isaiah, or Paul, are consigned to the lowest kingdom of heaven (D&C 76:100). The classic example is that there were Jews who believed in Moses, and yet they had the Son of God executed for heresy.
In 1405 Pope Innocent demanded that Huss stop teaching. But other events occurred such that he was promoted to rector of the entire university. His sermons drew huge crowds and his followers became known as Hussites. Some of Huss's writings were burned and the situation became more tense. Then the pope ordered indulgences to be sold in Prague, which Huss vehemently denounced. John then had to flee Prague, but while in exile he wrote his most important work Concerning the Church in which he claimed the Church was founded on Christ, not Peter.[4]
Huss was excommunicated in 1412 for insubordination. That didn't slow him down much, so he was summoned to trial at Constance, Germany on the charge of heresy. He arrived in November, 1414. At his trial, when asked to deny his published statements, he agreed to only if they could be proven wrong by the Bible. He gave marvelous answers to the questions and was a valiant spokesman for the cause of truth. He was given many chances to recant but steadfastly refused.
John Huss was judged guilty of heresy and sentenced to be immediately burned at the stake. As the fire was being lit that fateful day in July, 1415, John Huss gave an inspired prophecy. There are many versions of it, but the following appears to be the most authentic:
As the official executioner was about to light the pyre at the feet of the reformer, he said, "Now we will cook the goose." (Huss in Bohemian means goose.) "Yes", replied Huss, "but there will come an eagle in a hundred years that you will not reach."[5]
That prophecy clearly points to Martin Luther, who depended heavily on Huss's work and who nailed his 95 Theses to his church door just over one hundred years later. Before we discuss Luther in more detail, let us look at the importance of the martyrdom date.
The martyrdom of John Huss occurred on Sat 6 July 1415.[6] The day 6 July is a national holiday in the Czech Republic, honoring this amazing man. That was also the day this year in which I learned of this prophecy and began writing this article. Readers familiar with my writings know that my work deals with nine different sacred calendars, which the Lord seems to be using to time various events. Huss's martyrdom date was a holy day on five of them, which means there are five witnesses that the date was significant.
First, it was Passover on the Enoch Fixed calendar.[7] The Savior Jesus Christ was crucified as the lambs were being sacrificed for Passover. Thus, there is much significance even in this one alignment because Huss was also being executed for heresy. In fact, several times at the end of his trial he compared himself to the Savior, for he was also mocked in a robe and given an ignominious crown to wear.
Second, on the Jubilee Fixed calendar,[8] the date was the last day of Passover week, which is also a holy day. Moreover, on that calendar, the year is also significant, because it was the last year of a 49-year jubilee cycle. The first and last of every sacred cycle is holy.
Third, the day was also 13 Monkey on the Sacred Round calendar[9] of the Native Americans. The number 13 represents the high point (it was the largest day number) and Monkey was associated with a priest (John the Baptist was born on 1 Monkey). Thus, 13 Monkey is something like a High Priest day. The Savior began his public ministry on Sat 6 Apr AD 30, which was 13 Monkey as well as Passover on the Hebrew calendar.
Fourth, the martyrdom day was also 0 Lord on the Mercury calendar. The day the Savior began his public ministry was 0 Lord on the Venus calendar. Thus, there are three similarities to the day that Jesus began his ministry (Passover, 13 Monkey, 0 Lord). It is as if John Huss was really beginning his ministry at his execution. There is much truth in that suggestion because Martin Luther was as impressed that the execution witnessed to the wickedness of the belief system Huss was denouncing.
Finally, the day was 1 Jehoiarib on the Priest Cycle.[10] That is the first day of the 168-day Priest Cycle, and it is the most holy day on the cycle. That seems especially significant because John Huss was a priest. So it was an especially holy day that was rare indeed.
One other point is that there was a total solar eclipse during the trial. It was total in Constance, Germany, where the trial was held, at about 7:06 a.m. on Fri 7 Jun 1415.[11] Sometimes eclipses are spiritually significant, such as at the Crucifixion of the Savior.[12] Total solar eclipses only occur at a given city about once in 300 years. When they do occur, the sky really goes dark so that stars appear. The light of day being snuffed out during the trial appears to have been an omen indeed. And the light would return after a period of darkness.
Thus we see that the date of the martyrdom of John Huss was significant indeed on the Lord's calendars. We might do well to follow the Czechs' example and celebrate John Huss Day every July 6th, as the day commemorating when the fire of the Reformation was lit. John Wycliffe had preceded him in death, but died of a stroke rather than being executed as a martyr. To the best of my knowledge, John Huss was the first of the reformers to be burned at the stake for his beliefs that the head of the church was not infallible and that the church must conform to the holy scriptures.
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Luther was ordered by the pope to recant his 95 Theses. In response, Luther publicly set fire to the pope's decree. Luther was then excommunicated on 3 Jan 1521. Then on 18 Apr 1521 Martin was ordered to stand trial with the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, Charles V, presiding. Prince Frederick, the Elector of Saxony, provided Martin Luther safety going to and from the trial. Frederick was extremely influential; he had been the pope's candidate to be the emperor, but Frederick had supported Charles V instead.
When asked to retract his statements, Luther's response was:
Unless I am convinced by the testimony of the Scriptures or by clear reason (for I do not trust either in the pope or in councils alone, since it is well known that they have often erred and contradicted themselves), I am bound by the Scriptures I have quoted and my conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and will not recant anything, since it is neither safe nor right to go against conscience. May God help me. Amen.[13]
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Luther was the most powerful reformer and is known for having survived so long after having been condemned to death. A nagging questions is, "Why was Frederick of Saxony on Luther's side, so much so that he overturned the order of the emperor?"
Now for the "rest of the story", which is not widely known. On the morning of 31 Oct 1517, the very day on which Luther would nail his 95 Theses to the church door, Frederick of Saxony had a dream. He told it to his brother, and fortunately it was recorded by many of the chroniclers of the time. Here it is in Frederick's own words:
Having gone to bed last night, fatigued and out of spirits, I fell asleep shortly after my prayer, and slept calmly for about two hours and a half; I then awoke, and continued awake to midnight, all sorts of thoughts passing through my mind. Among other things, I thought how I was to observe the Feast of All Saints. I prayed for the poor souls in purgatory; and supplicated God to guide me, my counsels, and my people according to truth. I again fell asleep, and then dreamed that Almighty God sent me a monk, who was a true son of the Apostle Paul. All the saints accompanied him by order of God, in order to bear testimony before me, and to declare that he did not come to contrive any plot, but that all that he did was according to the will of God. They asked me to have the goodness graciously to permit him to write something on the door of the church of the Castle of Wittenberg. This I granted through my chancellor.
Thereupon the monk went to the church, and began to write in such large characters that I could read the writing at Schweinitz. The pen which he used was so large that its end reached as far as Rome, where it pierced the ears of a lion that was crouching there, and caused the triple crown upon the head of the pope to shake. All the cardinals and princes, running hastily up, tried to prevent it from falling. You and I, brother, wished also to assist, and I stretched out my arm; — but at this moment I awoke, with my arm in the air, quite amazed, and very much enraged at the monk, for not managing his pen better. I recollected myself a little; it was only a dream.
Prince Frederick's Dream
by Michael ParkerI was still half asleep, and once more closed my eyes. The dream returned. The lion, still annoyed by the pen, began to roar with all his might, so much so that the whole city of Rome, and all the States of the Holy Empire, ran to see what the matter was. The pope requested them to oppose this monk, and applied particularly to me, on account of his being in my country. I again awoke, repeated the Lord's prayer, entreated God to preserve his Holiness, and once more fell asleep.
Then I dreamed that all the princes of the Empire, and we among them, hastened to Rome, and strove, one after another, to break the pen; but the more we tried the stiffer it became, sounding as if it had been made of iron. We at length desisted. I then asked the monk (for I was sometimes at Rome, and sometimes at Wittenberg) where he got this pen, and why it was so strong. "The pen," replied he, "belonged to an old goose of Bohemia, a hundred years old. I got it from one of my old schoolmasters. As to its strength, it is owing to the impossibility of depriving it of its pith or marrow; and I am quite astonished at it myself." Suddenly I heard a loud noise — a large number of other pens had sprung out of the long pen of the monk. I awoke a third time; it was daylight.[14]
That inspired dream was given to Prince Frederick before the 95 Theses were even tacked to the church door. At first he would have had no idea what it meant, but the meaning would become clear soon enough. It must have had a profound influence on him to help defend Luther against the pope and the emperor.
Note the amazingly clever reference to John Huss in the last paragraph of the dream (in bold face type). What was a "pen" in those days? It was not a ball-point pen nor even a fountain pen. It referred to a goose-quill pen. So in the dream, when Frederick was told that the amazing pen came from an old goose, that would not be surprising. Of course it came from a goose, like all pens. But the "old goose of Bohemia, a hundred years old" is an unmistakable reference to John Huss. And the pen is an excellent way to symbolize the truth of Huss's writings, for it was his writings that stirred Luther to action. Moreover, the dream ties directly to the "hundred year prophecy" of Huss, referring to Martin Luther, which also used the goose symbolism for Huss. It is not clear whether Frederick ever figured out that the goose was Huss, but he certainly would learn that the monk was Martin Luther. This dream may even reveal why Huss had the name "Goose" at all, for the pen is mightier than the sword.
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Martin Luther was born on Mon 10 Nov 1483. Was that a special "holy day" on any of the Lord's sacred calendars? Was there any special significance to that date? Years ago when the birth dates of many of the great reformers were studied in my research to detect whether there was a pattern on those calendars, nothing unusual was noted.
One exception was Martin Luther. In his case there was a Venus-Saturn conjunction, where the two planets were very near each other on the morning of the day he was born. Although Saturn is moving very slowly through the sky, Venus moves rapidly, so that such their conjunction pinpoints an event to the very day. That is, the planets are much farther apart only one day before or after the conjunction. The effect is so noticeable that the illustration included here was made for the actual viewing location, in this case Germany.[15]
The Venus-Saturn conjunction is reminiscent of the conjunction of those same two planets on the day Moses was born. However, the one for Moses on Wed 22 Jan 1542 BC was perhaps the closest in history. In the illustration included for the morning sky, one must look closely in order to separate the two planets. Later in the day, they came so close as to appear almost touching in a telescope, and would have appeared to be only one very bright star in the sky. It would not, however have been visible in Egypt because it would have been day time there.
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It has been proposed in my work that the great prophet Enoch was also born on "1 Eagle". Moreover, on the morning of his birth, Fri 19 Sep 3378 BC, there was also a Venus-Saturn conjunction that was remarkably similar to that of Martin Luther.[18]
In the illustration of Enoch's conjunction, note that the stick-figure form of the constellation of Libra is shown. Note that the conjunction is just below the cross bar of the balance. Now compare it to the illustration of Luther's conjunction. The two planets are almost exactly at the same spot when viewed against the starry background. Moreover, look at the planet Mars in both. At the time of Enoch's birth, it was in conjunction with the star alpha Librae, which is at the apex of the triangle in the constellation Libra. At the time of Luther's birth it is only a few degrees away from that same spot.
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Martin Luther, the greatest of the reformers, depended heavily on the works of John Huss, who preceded him by over a century. Apparently John Huss prophesied of Luther as he was being executed for heresy by being burned at the stake. Moreover, it now appears that one reason Luther escaped execution himself was because of a dream that Prince Frederick of Saxony had which clearly showed that Luther was writing inspired words, and that the amazing pen he was using came from an "old goose" from Bohemia that was a hundred years old. That clearly had reference to John Huss, whose surname means "goose".
Looking at the date of Huss's martyrdom shows it was a sacred day on five sacred calendars, very similar to the day of the beginning of the Savior's public ministry. Moreover, there was a Venus-Saturn conjunction on the days of Luther's birth, which was more similar to the one at Enoch's birth than any other such conjunction in history. This suggests that Luther may have been a modern type of Enoch.
