as administrator of passau, ernest turned against the followers of martin luther and against the anabaptists. in 1522, he participated in the provincial synod in mühldorf am inn and in 1527 he took part in the conference in salzburg. in 1524 he joined an alliance between the south german bishops, the dukes of bavaria and the archduke ferdinand to enforce the edict of worms. on his instigation, the reformer leonhard kaiser was handed over to the secular authorities in 1527 and burned at the stake in schärding, then part of the district of burghausen. in 1532, ernest was present at the imperial diet in augsburg and in 1532 in regensburg.