up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land,
that I should not destroy it; but I found none. Therefore have I poured
out Mine indignation upon them; I have consumed them with the fire of
My wrath." With these words God indicates how He wants us to withstand
Him and turn away His anger from one another, as it is frequently
written of the Prophet Moses, that he restrained God, lest His anger
should overwhelm the people of Israel.

XV. But what will they do, who not only do not regard such misfortune
of Christendom, and do not pray against it, but laugh at it, take
pleasure in it, condemn, malign, sing and talk of their neighbor's
sins, and yet dare, unafraid and unashamed, go to church, hear mass,
say prayers, and regard themselves and are regarded as pious
Christians? These truly are in need that we pray twice for them, if we
pray once for those whom they condemn, talk about and laugh at. That
there would be such is also prophesied by the thief on Christ's left
hand, who blasphemed Him in His suffering, weakness and need; also by
all those who reviled Christ on the Cross, when they should most of all
have helped Him.

O God, how blind, nay, how insane have we Christians become! When will
there be an end of wrath, O heavenly Father? That we mock at the
misfortune of Christendom, to pray for which we gather together in
Church and at the mass, that we blaspheme and condemn men, this is the
fruit of our mad materialism. If the Turk destroys cities, country and
people, and ruins churches, we think a great injury has been done
Christendom. Then we complain, and urge kings and princes to war. But
when faith perishes, love grows cold, God's Word is neglected, and all
manner of sin flourishes, then no one thinks of fighting, nay, pope,
bishops, priests and clergy, who ought to be generals, captains and
standard-bearers in this spiritual warfare against these spiritual and
many times worse Turks, these are themselves the very princes and
leaders of such Turks and of the devil host, just as Judas was the
leader of the Jews when they took Christ. It had to be an apostle, a
bishop, a priest, one of the number of the best, who began the work of
slaying Christ. So also must Christendom be laid waste by no others
than those who ought to protect it, and yet are so insane that they are
ready to eat up the Turks and at home themselves set house and
sheep-cote on fire and let them burn up with the sheep and all other
conte