I Am Baptized, Part 1

 Doing some routine pastoral work on a snowy morning in the Iron City, Father A. stumbled across a form letter written by a predecessor in which Martin Luther is purported to have said Baptisma sum. Obviously, Luther did not say this precisely, since it would have meant either that he was baptism itself personified, or perhaps a baptized female. What he did say, however, is ego sum baptizatus, "I am baptized," and this is something he said often.

But when and in what context did he say this?  We thought it might be enjoyable to track down a few instances now and then, as time allows.  Most of of us have heard stories about Luther mentioning his baptism to ward off the Devil, or writing it in chalk and covering it with a hankie (as he did with the Lord's hoc est corpus meum at Marburg). If a reader can provide citations to either of these, we will be most grateful.

Meanwhile, here is a little something for starters.

In his Lectures on Genesis from the 1540s, Luther discusses 26:15-16, and praises Isaac's patience at a time when it would have been easy to feel forsaken by God, and proposes it as a model for Christians:

In spite of all, we should say "I believe. I have been baptized. I have been absolved. I have God's promise of grace and mercy. I have enough. Whether night, day, tribulation or joy befalls me, I shall nevertheless not forfeit His mercy or lose courage." (LW 5; consulted online, so no page number is available; cf WA 43:469).

This is quite a quotable moment. If you are pretentious and would like to quote it in Latin, come sit by us at the Synod assembly:

...  dicamus tamen: Credo, sum baptisatus, sum absolutus, habeo divinam promissionem gratiae et misericordiae, satis habeo, sive nox, sive dies, sive tribulatio, sive laetitia mihi obversentur: non tamen amittam misericordiam, nec despondebo animum.

Another instance from Luther's 1523/1524 discussion of Genesis, which exists in two forms as recorded by two students, concerns the faith of Noah, in chapter 7.

You see what the Word can do, if it is understood by faith; it protected him for 150 days. This is written to praise faith, because the Scriptures are given in order that faith may be preached. Here there is no need of Noah's works to help. What is the bare word of God? "Make an ark and I will be with you." 

This let us learn, and this is written for us, so that when the hour of death or affliction comes, we will not ask "Where shall we stay?" That to those who say "I am dying," and "Woe is me," may stand firm in the words "I am baptized." [You pray:] "Thus have you spoken, O Christ"; and as much as Death invades, so much more must you hold to the Word.

That is a very weak translation; Latinists are welcome -- nay, implored -- to improve it based on the original:

Vides, quid verbum possit, si fide percipitur, quod servavit 150 dies. Hoc scriptum est pro laude fidei, quia data est scriptura, ut fides praedicetur. Hic nullum opus adiumento Noe. Quid autem nudum verbum dei 'fac arcam, Ego tecum ero', hoc discamus, et nobis scriptum, quando hora venit vel mortis vel afflictionis, ut non quaeramus, ubi manebimus? ut illi dicunt "Ich stirb und [wehe ist mir?]" sed consistendum in verbo 'ego baptizatus sum'. 'Ita dixisti, Christe", et quanto plus invadit mors, tanto plus verbum arripe. 

In the first passage, baptism is connected closely to faith, absolution, grace, mercy and even providence.  It is as if Luther, quite possible speaking off the cuff, simply lists a series of God's gifts. In the second (if we have understood it correctly) Luther uses baptism as a defense against the familiar medieval dread of death. It will surprise nobody familiar with Luther that, in both passages, he connects baptism closely to the Word of God.