Analysis Of Luther's On The Jews And Their Messages

Another of Luther’s messages is that Jews curse Christians and slander them. Luther believes that, “They curse us Goyim. In their synagogues and in their prayers they wish us every misfortune”(Bertram, p. 54). Luther then goes on to elaborate in how the Jews curse Christians by saying that Mother Mary was not a virgin in denying the coming of the Messiah among other slanders. Luther states, “Then they also call Jesus a whore 's son, saying that his mother Mary was a whore, who conceived him in adultery with a blacksmith” (Bertram, p.70). Luther being a very religious man rooted in the Christian faith takes offense to this and sees such sayings as a representation of all Jews. More severely Luther also writes of Jews speech that is different

As if his style of repetitiveness in saying the Jews are arrogant, cursed, and using scripture in defense is not sufficient, Luther adds the element slander. One of his most vehement statements was, “Therefore be on your guard against the Jews, knowing that wherever they have their synagogues, nothing is found but a den of devils in-which sheer self-glory”(Bertram, p.23). Luther is tells his followers that Jews are devils and their synagogues contain devils and to in essence, be afraid. People in Luther’s time period were very superstitious and took religion very seriously, and to associate something with the Devil was a big deal. Luther takes slandering the Jews to a new level when he says, “Therefore, wherever you see a genuine Jew, you may with a good conscience cross yourself and bluntly say: "There goes a devil incarnate” (Bertram p. 46). Though it is known through basic human morals today that public slandering of one another is not acceptable, Luther not only slandered the Jews but condone others to curse and call the Jews devils as

Although negative views against the Jews at the time of Luther may not have been labeled as anti-Semitism during the holocaust it was clearly stated as anti-Semitism and led to the atrocity of the mass genocide of the Jews by the Nazi. It is evident that Nazi’s got much of their influences from Luther through their praises and reference to the theologian. In The Holy Reich it is mentioned that before the beginning of the final solution in 1940 renowned Nazi Himmler had a conversation on the “Jewish problem” saying, “You should read, moreover, what Luther said and wrote about the Jews. No judgment could be sharper” (Steigmann-Gall, p. 235). Steigmann then goes on to write that Himmler then goes on to reference On the Jews and Their Lies also that Himmler loved Luther so much he wished to be remembered a the Luther