§ 10. As Roman emperor and supreme steward of Christendom, it pertains to Our Imperial office to confess Our obligation to guard, protect, and maintain the holy Christian faith as it has been preserved until now and taught in an honorable and praiseworthy manner by the entire Holy Christian Church. Also to enforce Our Imperial edict, which We issued at Our first Diet at Worms [in 1521]. Therefore, We, together with Ours and the Holy Empire's obedient electors, princes, and estates, have at last decided, and have agreed and promised for Ourselves and Our subjects, to firmly remain faithful to the old, true, traditional Christian faith and religion, and by the honorable, praiseworthy ceremonies and usages that have always been performed in all the churches. And We will allow no alteration to them to be made prior to the decision by a future General Council.
§ 11. Despite Our edict issued at Worms, and despite the Recesses of the Diets We called to Nuremberg [in 1522, 1522-23, and 1524] and Speyer [1526, 1529], many abuses and innovations against the Christian faith and religion have been introduced.
§ 12. In particular, some have taught, written, and preached that, in the blessed Sacrament of the altar, the Body and Blood of Christ are not essentially present under both forms of bread and wine, but only in a figurative and symbolic way – plus many other un-Christian details, additions, and interpretations.
§ 13. Some preach and teach that Christ's command obliges every person to receive the blessed Sacrament of the altar under both forms [bread and wine]. And that those who administer or receive the Sacrament under one form, do so invalidly.
§ 14. Some have even suppressed the office of the Holy Mass and preached that the Masses are the worst form of blasphemy.
§ 15. Some have not entirely abolished the Masses but made changes to them to please themselves, which changes are against the long usage and the regulations and laws of all the Christian churches. The same is true of the singing of the Mass, the observance of the hours, other songs in praise of the Mother of God, the dear saints, and the holy Fathers, which are done to the honor of God and the edification of men, and which have been established and held in a common and uniform way in all the Christian churches. These have been abolished as blasphemous and un-Christian and replaced by other singing more to their taste.
§ 16. Some have taught that the Baptism of children is worthless, and that each person, when he arrives at the age of reason, ought to be baptized again. They do not regard Baptism as a sacrament, and some have abolished the good Christian ordinances honoring of the rite of Baptism and put others in their places.
§ 17. Some hold no prayers or ceremonies at all, and they do not permit their children to be baptized by a priest but by some lay person, man or woman, and they do this in plain [i.e., unblessed] well water.
§ 18. Some do not have their children confirmed nor do they have the sacrament of Extreme Unction administered to the dying.
§ 19. Some have in inhumanly savage ways destroyed or burned the images of Our Savior, Christ, His venerable mother, Mary, and the dear saints, who for ages have been held in Christian memory by all Christian peoples.
§ 20. Some have taught that there is no free will, but that everything happens as it must happen, and not otherwise, out of inexorable necessity, and that therefore God is the true author of evil.
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