Martin Luther’s letter “To The Christian Reader” was written in 1545, a year before he died. It has a tenor of reconciliation. He asks readers to cut him a little slack for at one time being a monk and upholding the Pope’s theology to the point that he would have “committed murder” to keep it in force.<\/p>\n
A simple quick read overview might be this excerpt: <\/em><\/p>\n “Therefore, Christian reader, thou wilt find in my earliest books and writings how many points of faith I then, with all humility, yielded and conceded to the pope, which since then I have held and condemned for the most horrible blasphemy and abomination, and which I would have to be so held and so condemned forever. Amen.”<\/em><\/p>\n Here is the letter in it’s original context, translated into English:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n _Dr. Martin Luther to the Christian Reader_ DR. MARTIN LUTHER TO THE CHRISTIAN READER<\/p>\n EDITION OF 1545<\/p>\n Above all things I beseech the Christian reader and beg him\u00c2\u00a0 for Such a Saul was I at that time; and I meant it right earnestly; Therefore, Christian reader, thou wilt find in my earliest books Thou wilt therefore ascribe this my error, or as my opponents I tell these things to the end that, if thou shalt read my books, Farewell, dear reader, in the Lord. Pray that the Word may be Martin Luther’s letter “To The Christian Reader” was written in 1545, a year before he died. It has a tenor of reconciliation. He asks readers to cut him a little slack for at one time being a monk and upholding the Pope’s theology to the point that he would have “committed murder” to keep it […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[1164,1162,1165,1062,1171,1130,1125,1137,864,464,1160,1169,1163,1161,1173,1170,1172,1132,1136,1168],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3C0LX-VM","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/conradaskland.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3582"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/conradaskland.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/conradaskland.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/conradaskland.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/conradaskland.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3582"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/conradaskland.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3582\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3583,"href":"https:\/\/conradaskland.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3582\/revisions\/3583"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/conradaskland.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3582"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/conradaskland.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3582"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/conradaskland.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3582"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nby Dr. Martin Luther, 1545
\nPublished in:
\n_Works of Martin Luther_
\nAdolph Spaeth, L.D. Reed, Henry Eyster Jacobs, et Al., Trans. & Eds.
\n(Philadelphia: A. J. Holman Company, 1915), Vol. 1, pp. 10-11.<\/p>\n
\nthe sake of our Lord Jesus Christ, to read my earliest books\u00c2\u00a0 very
\ncircumspectly and with much pity, knowing that before now I\u00c2\u00a0 too
\nwas a monk, and one of the right frantic and raving papists.\u00c2\u00a0 When
\nI took up this matter against Indulgences, I was so full and
\ndrunken, yea, so besotted in papal doctrine that, out of my great
\nzeal, I would have been ready to do murder — at least, I would
\nhave been glad to see and help that murder should be done — on
\nall who would not be obedient and subject to the pope, even to
\nhis smallest word.<\/p>\n
\nand there are still many such to-day. In a word, I was not such a
\nfrozen and ice-cold champion of the papacy as Eck and others of
\nhis kind have been and still are. They defend the Roman See more
\nfor the sake of the shameful belly, which is their god, than
\nbecause they are really attached to its cause. Indeed I am wholly
\nof the opinion that like latter-day Epicureans, they only laugh at
\nthe pope. But I verily espoused this cause in deepest earnest and
\nin all fidelity; the more so because I shrank from the Last Day
\nwith great anxiety and fear and terror, and yet from the depths of
\nmy heart desired to be saved.<\/p>\n
\nand writings how many points of faith I then, with all humility,
\nyielded and conceded to the pope, which since then I have held and
\ncondemned for the most horrible blasphemy and abomination, and
\nwhich I would have to be so held and so condemned forever. Amen.<\/p>\n
\nvenomously call it, this inconsistency of mine, to the time, and
\nto my ignorance and inexperience. At the beginning I was quite
\nalone and without any helpers, and moreover, to tell the truth,
\nunskilled in all these things, and far too unlearned to discuss
\nsuch high and weighty matters. For it was without any intention,
\npurpose, or will of mine that I fell, quite unexpectedly, into
\nthis wrangling and contention.\u00c2\u00a0 This I take God, the Searcher of
\nhearts, to witness.<\/p>\n
\nthou mayest know and remember that I am one of those who, as St.
\nAugustine says of himself, have grown by writing and by teaching
\nothers, and not one of those who, starting with nothing, have in a
\ntrice become the most exalted and most learned doctors. We find,
\nalas! many of these self-grown doctors; who in truth are nothing,
\ndo nothing and accomplish nothing, are moreover untried and
\ninexperienced, and yet, after a single look at the Scriptures,
\nthink themselves able wholly to exhaust its spirit.<\/p>\n
\nfurther spread abroad, and may be strong against the miserable
\ndevil. For he is mighty and wicked, and just now is raving
\neverywhere and raging cruelly, like one who well knows and feels
\nthat his time is short, and that the kingdom of his Vicar, the
\nAntichrist in Rome, is sore beset. But may the God of all grace
\nand mercy strengthen and complete in us the work He has begun, to
\nHis honor and to the comfort of His little flock. Amen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"