Jerome of Prague

Peter, one of the Twelve Apostles, promised loyalty to Christ but then denied knowing Him after Jesus was arrested. Immediately after his denial, Peter wept in repentance and recommitted his life to following Jesus (Luke 22:31–33, 54–62).

A similar experience also occurred with Jerome of Prague (ca. 1365–1416), the eloquent Bohemian reformer and close friend of Jan Hus.

While studying at Oxford, Jerome accepted John Wycliffe’s teachings against papal supremacy. Jerome’s new emphasis on the authority of Scripture and the headship of Christ generated strong opposition from the Roman Catholic clergy. In April 1415, he was arrested and brought before the Council of Constance.

Under much pressure and physical exhaustion, on September 23, 1415, he signed a formal retraction from the so-called heretical teachings of John Wycliffe and Jan Hus. However, some of the clerics questioned the sincerity of his renunciation.

So, his trial was resumed in 1416.

On May 26, Jerome publicly withdrew his earlier retraction. He even confessed to the council that no other sin had bothered him so much as having denied his own convictions. On May 30, the council condemned him as a relapsed heretic and sentenced him to be burned at the stake. When the executioners wished to start the fire behind his back, he said, “Come here and light the fire in front of me.

If I had been afraid of it, I should never have come to this place.” He died praying. His ashes, like those of Hus, were thrown into the Rhine River.

We may never have publicly denied our Lord and Savior like Peter and Jerome of Prague did, but perhaps our loyalty to Christ, our commitment to His Word, and our support for His church are not as strong as they used to be.

Perhaps we even made promises to Him that we never fulfilled. If that is the case, we should follow the example of those two great Christians, rededicating our lives to Christ and His cause.