Pilgrim Aflame

The discovery of purpose, the dynamic of freedom, and the drive of faith all converge in the life of Michael Sattler - a little-known reformer. Here is a person who strides across the pages of history, leaving behind a new radiance as one who carries a torch. The sixteenth-century Reformation marked the beginning of what we call today the modern period, for it was the harbinger of the enlightenment. In that testing time men struggled and prayed, bled and died, proving how deeply they believed and how far-reaching was their vision.

Michael Sattler, prior of a Benedictine monastery, converted under the impact of Luther’s reforming, convicted of the existential character of faith, joined the emerging free church movement. He helped the radicals achieve a program which changed the lives of thousands, and jarred the new Europe to its very foundations. Supplying leadership in both dialogue and doctrine, hated by Protestant and Catholic alike for his stand, he paid the ultimate price at the stake in Rottenburg in May, 1527.

This is a historical novel introducing a creative leader in the rise of the Mennonite Church through the Anabaptist movement of the sixteenth century. For twentieth-century persons in search of identity, purpose, freedom, and meaning, Sattler’s quest and achievement have much to offer. In a shattered world we can yet find the thread of meaning which will help us to be both new creatures in Christ and our brother’s brother. The character of a man’s faith determines the caliber of his life.