Both the emperor and pope understood the threat posed by the Congregation of German Reformed Augustinians, particularly those in the Province of Lower Germany, and because these authorities possessed the necessary influence to proceed against them, they were able to silence the friars there. Despite this, it is clear that the networks the Congregation forged in the first decades of the sixteenth century, along with the tactics employed by Staupitz in his efforts to expand the influence of the group, offered the Congregation's pro-Luther elements an opportunity: they could use those assets in the service of Reformation ideas. Previously, historians appear to have assumed that any actions taken by Congregation members in Lower Germany in support of the Reformation were motivated by individual conscience and personal conviction, not the consequences of any formal or even loosely devised plan. But a closer look at the interaction between the Congregation's hierarchy and their members in the Province of Lower Germany reveals that not only were Wenceslaus Linck, Martin Luther, Johannes Lang, and other key members keenly aware of what was happening in the Low Countries, they were working to control, or at the very least to influence the situation.

Education in the Ways of the Congregation

To understand their actions in support of their ‘Lower German’ brethren, it is important to recognize that these men stood at the top of the Congregation's hierarchy.