Ink Against the Devil: Luther and His Opponents

by Harry Loewen

Overview

Sixteenth-century Reformation Europe was a tumultuous time during which many defining ideas of the modern era were formulated. The technological advancement augured by the Gutenberg press allowed the unprecedented circulation of ideas among a growing legion of literate Europeans.

The writings of radical reformer Martin Luther were perhaps most influential of all. His opposition to the universal Roman Catholic Church fundamentally challenged the elites and their institutions. Along the way, Luther was opposed by the Church, the political powers of the day, and competing religious ideologies. Ink Against the Devil distills the major impulses from these debates that continue to resonate to this day.

This book will appeal to both lay and professional scholars of the Reformation and its major players with prose that is accessible and free of jargon. Loewen directly addresses the debates between Luther and his many foes, including Humanists like Erasmus and the sectarian opponents found among contemporary Jews, Muslims, and Christians. Of particular interest will be a focus on anti-semitism throughout Luther’s published writings and sermons. There may be no other examples of this book’s scope in such a natural, narrative presentation.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781771121361
Publisher:	Wilfrid Laurier University Press
Publication date:	05/26/2015
Pages:	335
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Dr. Harry Loewen was the founding Chair of Mennonite Studies at University of Winnipeg. During his tenure overseeing the chair, he also founded The Journal of Mennonite Studies (1983) which continues the vibrant dialogue regarding issues related to Mennonite history, culture, and literature.

Table of Contents

Foreword Walter Klaassen xi

Preface xiii

My Earlier Luther Book

The Title

My Target Audience A Word of Thanks

List of Abbreviations xix

i In Search of a Gracious God 1

Luther Not the First Reformer

To Find a Gracious God

God's Grace Found

Luther's Theology

ii Luther's Early Red-Hot Pen 11

The Ninety-Five Theses

Major Reformation Writings

The War of Pamphlets

Birth of Religious Fundamentalism

iii Dissenting Groups and Why They Opposed Luther 23

Great Variety of Radicals

Origins of the Radical Reformers

Why They Left Luther

iv The Enemies Within: Luther and the Wittenberg Radicals 33

Karlstadt and Luther

The Zwickau Prophets

The Augustinian Monks

Return from the Wartburg

Order Restored

The Presence of Christ in Holy Communion

Final Encounter with Karlstadt

v "The Soft-Living Flesh of Wittenberg": Luther's Struggle and the Revolutionaries 53

Luther on Authority Prior to 1525

The Common Man and Authority

Thomas Muntzer

Differences Between Müntzer and Luther

Müntzer's Radicalism

vi "I Commanded Them to be Killed": Luther and the Peasants 71

Luther's Responsibility for the Peasants' War

The Twelve Articles

Luther Against the Peasants

Concerning the Harsh Booklet

Concluding Comments

Revolution of the Common Man

Non-Peasant Participants

A Note on Luther and Capitalism

vii Two Riders of the Human Wili: Luther Opposes Erasmus and Humanism 89

Humanists and the Reformation

Luther and Erasmus

Erasmus and Pope Adrian VI

Erasmus on Free Will

Luther on the Bondage of the Will

A Bitter Erasmus

Stalemate?

A Note on Anabaptists and Free Will

viii Luther Knew and Opposed the Evangelical Anabaptists 113

Origin and Spread of Anabaptism

Muntzer and the Swiss Brethren

Doctrine or Ethics?

Conclusion

ix "I Told You So": Luther and the Anabaptist Kingdom in Munster 149

"I told you so!"

Kingdom of Munster Begins

The Prophets Arrive

Jan van Leyden and Polygamy

Luther and the Münsterites

Was Luther Correct?

Anabaptism and Münsterism

Merino Simons and Münster

x Much Ado about Spirit and Matter: Luther and the Spiritualists 165

Inner and Outer Word

Hans Denck

Luther on Hans Denck

Caspar von Schwenckfeld

Much Ado about Spirit and Matter

Luther and the Word of God

Schwenckfeld and the Word of God

Concluding Comments

xi Three in One or One in Three?

Luther Opposes the Rationalists 185

The Spirits Luther Had Called Up

Law and Gospel

Concerning the Trinity

Ami-Trinitarians

Michael Servetus

xii To Believe What You Like? Luther and His Opponents on Tolerance and Religious Liberty 201

Luther's Early Views on Tolerance

Ecclesiastical Visitation?

What to Do with Heretics

Sedition and Blasphemy

Luther's Changed View

Anabaptists on Tolerance

Tolerance Problematical during the Reformation

Tolerance among Some Spiritualists

A Note on Persecution

Conclusion

Editorial Reviews

This is one of the most fascinating books on Luther and the Reformation period to come along in some time. ...Solid scholarship. Winsome writing. Summing Up: Essential.

CHOICE Magazine - P. E. Blosser