Martin Luther

Part One

Martin Luther, the founding father of Protestantism, was born on November 10, 1843, in Eisleben – once a Saxon town but now located in the Saxony-Anhalt region of Germany – to parents Hans and Margarethe Luder (Luther). At the age of seven his never-ending journey to find a greater understanding of life and religion had begun. His parents had enrolled him in different schools around Mansfield, Magdeburg, and Eisenach where he would study the trivium: grammar, rhetoric, and logic. Also, Luther was expected to understand the basics of Christianity which may have been the key experience that lead him into a life of religious understanding.

In 1501, he began his studies at the university in Erfurt under the guidance of his father who insisted that he study law. Having someone in the family who studied law would be a great asset to Hans Luther, yet young Luther wanted more from life. Studying law wasn’t giving him the assurance he needed in life, he believed law represented uncertainty. He believed he could find that assurance that his soul desired in studying theology. Luther’s professors were becoming accustomed to the nominalist viewpoint, which translated to Luther as a call to question and test the authority of the church.

On July 2, 1505, as Luther was traveling back to the university from a visit home, he claimed to have been shaken by lightening. During the event, he prayed out of fear and at that moment he vowed to become a monk. That same July he left the university and entered the local Black Cloister. He admitted that life in the monastery wasn’t easy and he was constantly being confronted with temptation. Marty writes, “He said he prayed, fasted, kept vigils, and almost froze to death in the unheated ch...

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...Part Four

Martin Marty takes a reserved approach in writing this biography on Martin Luther. He doesn’t use much emotion in describing the life of Martin Luther which has its advantages and disadvantages. This style works because it frees the biography from the clutter and allows the author and reader to focus on the basic facts that are necessary for the biography. This style also makes the book less exciting and doesn’t show much emotion in parts that would benefit from it. For instance, when Hans Luder corners Martin Luther after his first Mass as a new priest and interrogates him, Martin Marty doesn’t pick a clear side. He expresses what appeared to be the facts of the situation but then shows how Luther could have also been at fault. I believe situations like this would benefit if Martin Marty would have taken a closer emotional connection to the subject.