different realities and reactions ing a case where advice was sought from the faculty of law of the university of Tübingen.510 In Vienna in 1767 Catharina Jacobin came to the courthouse and confessed to six murders of children, two in her home village in Bohemia and four when she had travelled around. This was a problematic case for the court. By authorities in other places three deaths of children, fitting to the confession of Jacobin, could be confirmed, but were they murders or accidents? Was the confession true or false? Finally she was believed, sentenced and executed in 1769.511 In 1834 near Trier there was a case deeply related to the spirituality of the perpetrator, the twenty-three years old Matthias. His brother Heinrich, fiften years old, read spiritual literature for him while he worked and he frequently visited Mass, even the early morning Mass on working days. A sermon Matthias heard some four weeks before the murder helped convincing him that the righteousness of God is so demanding that nobody can fulfil it and reach salvation. Especially the women tempted men into sin and all closer connection to women threatened to be fatal as he did not feel himself morally strong enough to stay chaste. Then he remembered a book read by Heinrich about martyrs and how they with certainty came to heaven through their death. Matthias then got the idea of persuading somebody to kill him so that he died as a martyr. The only possible candidate was his brother Heinrich, but he was too weak. Therefore, the plan was changed to the killing of Heinrich and Matthias subsequently being executed as a martyr. Heinrich became convinced that this was the safest way to reach heaven and that he therefore should be killed. On the Saturday of July 26th 1834, Heinrich went to confession and the next day the plan was carried out. They carried what they needed out into the forest where Heinrich knelt before a crucifix and read prayers of repentance from books of prayer. He took the crucifix in his hands and the brothers said goodbye. Matthias said to Heinrich that he should think of Christ who died a similar death. He also asked him for his prayers when he reached heaven and uttered the hope that they would 510 Lewis 2016 p 131 sq. 511 Stuart 2023 p 348 sqq. 145
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