The Book of the Concord of the Koran or Law of Muhammad and the Evangelists

of the Eucharist perform. In place of all orders of the ecclesiastical hierarchy, they have evangelists and ministers instituted after their own custom. Laymen are held the same as others for any duty whatsoever. For there is no one in whom that new spirit does not immediately generate a certain admirable persuasion of knowledge, so that he judges no one to be his inferior. Oh, all are priests and kings, but it troubles them when they are able to judge themselves priests according to their own custom; yet because so many kingdoms are lacking, they cannot be kings in the new way. But it is a wonder, since the Word of God was once spread by the diligence of the church into the whole world, now that it has perished in the whole world because of adulterous dogmas, that no one from this new church comes forward who, at the risk of his life, wishes to preach Christ to the Mahumedici Muhammadans, or to the Indians, or to any Gentiles whatsoever, even though they leave no stone unturned to subvert the world. They disseminate booklets, hold conventicles in secret, and even feed their own with common alms. It is a wonder what impostors they are, so that the word may be disseminated and scattered. But it should have been done by spontaneous death and miracles. Finally, what reverence do they have for the sacred orders constituted by God, once they have departed from the church? There is an order of sacred magistracy, in which there must necessarily be a highest, middle, and lowest order (as I taught amply in the third book of the Concord of the World), and both civil reason and the institution of Christ make it so. For since ignorance and wickedness can never be lacking among men, it is certain that Jesus foresaw that his own could not act all in an equal rank, even if they were as brothers. Daily sins and doubts demand a daily and always-ready remedy. Among equals, there