Luther the Reformer, by James Kittelson, is a biography that provides a thorough review of Martin Luther’s life, from childhood until death.
Luther's Early Years
The book is divided into five parts. Part one relates the early years of Luther, and provides readers with insights into Luther's early life and family. For example, when Luther was baptized, infant mortality rate was 60% or more and so many parents thought it wise to have babies baptized on the day of their birth.
Even those who survived often struggled to find enough to eat. Martin’s father, Hans Luder, started out as a peasant working in a copper mine, but through sheer determination worked his way up until he owned “at least six mine shafts and two copper smelters.” No doubt his ambition for Martin to get a good education no matter the sacrifice contributed to Luther’s worth ethic in later years.
Kittelson provides insight into the religious world at this time. He writes that, “Salvation was something to be earned…It was an age of pilgrimages, People were exhorted to travel in groups to this or that shrine in order to work off the penalties for the sins they had committed.”
Martin Luther's Evolution from Lawyer to Monk
At times Kittelson engages in a certain degree of speculation. For example, regarding Luther’s decision to become a monk as the result of a thunderstorm, the author writes, “At the time of the vow he was walking back to the University of Erfurt. He had taken an unexplained, but officially authorized, leave of absence to visit his family. This leave suggests that the decision was not as sudden as the bolt of lightning that knocked him off his feet.”
Later he writes that “It is even possible that the illnesses which troubled him so much in his later years developed as a result of his strict denial of his own bodily needs.” Given the fact that there are gaps in what is known about Luther, a certain amount of speculation is to be expected, though it doesn’t put a significant dent in the biography.
Luther The Reformer and The 95 Theses
The second part of this Martin Luther biography details the beginning of Luther’s time as a reformer, starting with his time as a professor at Wittenberg, his new understanding of the righteousness of God and justification, his nailing of the 95 Theses to the church door at Wittenberg, and the resulting reactions. Although this section is lengthy, Kittelson writes in an easy-to-read fashion that keeps the reader’s interest.
To his credit, he doesn’t try to sugar-coat Luther as though he could do no wrong. For example, after posting the 95 Theses Luther “embarked on a series of sermons and essays about the proper place of indulgences in the life of a Christian….Luther was concerned only about the spiritual effects of indulgences.”
Luther’s theology developed over a long period of time and it took a while for him to totally condemn things like indulgences and the worship of relics. Kittelson points out that during this time, rather than spending his time on issues like indulgences, Luther concentrated on ensuring that “his formal theology would permeate the entire University of Wittenberg.”
Likewise, when Luther got married, “Melanchthon, for one, suggested that perhaps marriage would cure Luther of his love for coarse jokes. He was wrong.” The fact that Kittelson portrays Luther as just as much a sinner as the rest of us lends authenticity to his account of Luther’s life.
Luther's Writings
Part three of Kittelson's Luther the Reformer details some of Luther’s later writings like his Address to the Christian Nobility of the German Nation, On the Babylonian Captivity of the Church and The Freedom of a Christian, as well as his condemnation by the Edict of Worms, translation of the New Testament into German and the issue of monastic vows.
Part four deals with his marriage to Katharina, his debates with Erasmus, resulting in his book On the Bondage of the Will, and his bouts of depression, out of which came A Mighty Fortress Is Our God. As Kittelson writes “In the midst of these trials, Luther’s trust in a gracious God endured. His assurance did not depend on his outward well-being.”
Luther the Reformer's part five deals with Luther's final years, including his treatise Against the Jews and Their Lies. Kittelson makes it clear that Luther was attacking the Jews from a theological viewpoint, not a racial one.
Kittelson's Biography of Martin Luther
James Kittelson has written a well-balanced biography of Luther. The book is well-illustrated with sketches and photographs and he quotes extensively from the German editions of Luther’s Works and other respected sources both by and about Luther. It is ideal for anyone just learning about Martin Luther as well as for the veteran reader of Luther.
Source:
- James M. Kittelson, Luther the Reformer (Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1986).
Bob Hunter - For over twenty years Bob Hunter has been involved in the field of Christian apologetics. From 1995 to 2008 he was a writer and researcher ...
