Martin Luther: Father of the Reformation and Educational Reformer [1st ed.] 9783030524173, 9783030524180

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SPRINGER BRIEFS IN EDUC ATION KE Y THINKERS IN EDUCATION

Mihai Androne

Martin Luther Father of the Reformation and Educational Reformer

Translation from Romanian by Corina Dobrotă and Oana Celia Gheorghiu

123

SpringerBriefs in Education Key Thinkers in Education

Series Editor Paul Gibbs, Middlesex University, London, UK

This briefs series publishes compact (50 to 125 pages) refereed monographs under the editorial supervision of the Advisory Editor, Professor Paul Gibbs, Middlesex University, London, UK. Each volume in the series provides a concise introduction to the life and work of a key thinker in education and allows readers to get acquainted with their major contributions to educational theory and/or practice in a fast and easy way. Both solicited and unsolicited manuscripts are considered for publication in the SpringerBriefs on Key Thinkers in Education series. Book proposals for this series may be submitted to the Executive Editor: Nick Melchior E-mail: [email protected]

More information about this subseries at http://www.springer.com/series/10197

Mihai Androne

Martin Luther Father of the Reformation and Educational Reformer Translation from Romanian by Corina Dobrotă and Oana Celia Gheorghiu Text Revision by Corina Dobrotă

123

Mihai Androne Lower Danube University of Galati Galati, Romania

ISSN 2211-1921 ISSN 2211-193X (electronic) SpringerBriefs in Education ISSN 2211-937X ISSN 2211-9388 (electronic) SpringerBriefs on Key Thinkers in Education ISBN 978-3-030-52417-3 ISBN 978-3-030-52418-0 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-52418-0 © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are solely and exclusively licensed by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, expressed or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. This Springer imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Switzerland AG The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland

To my wife, Ana

Acknowledgements

Several persons brought their precious contribution to the publication of this book, and they deserve my heartfelt thanks. First of all, I am grateful to Prof. Paul Gibbs, who greatly honoured me by proposing that I should write a book on Martin Luther for the prestigious Springer publishing house: I am all the more grateful to him as not many years ago we celebrated the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. Also, my gratitude goes to the publishing team, Marianna Pascale, Prashanth Ravichandran, Lay Peng Ang, Bhagyalakkshme Sreenivasan, and Nick Melchior, whose help was very valuable in editing the manuscript. The same gratitude is owed to my colleagues from the Lower Danube University of Galati, Corina Dobrotă and Oana Celia Gheorghiu, for their translation work. I am additionally indebted to Corina Dobrotă, who also revised the final material.

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Contents

1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 The Five Solas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.1 In the Bible . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2 In Luther’s Theology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.1 Sola Scriptura . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.2 Sola Fide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.3 Sola Gratia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.4 Solus Christus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2.5 Soli Deo Gloria . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3 In Luther’s Pedagogy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3.1 A Humble Teacher of Holy Scripture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3.2 Faith Is and Must Be Lord and God Over All Teachers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3.3 God Would also Be Generous with His Gifts . . . . . . . . . 2.3.4 If We Wish to Train Children, We Must Become Children with Them . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.3.5 We Cannot Adequately Repay the Gods, Our Parents, and Our Teachers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Work as Vocation. The Priesthood of All Believers . . . . . . . . . . 3.1 My Gospel Has Nothing to Do with the Things of This World . 3.2 The Secular Occupations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.3 The Wordly Ascetism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.4 The Priesthood of All Believers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.4.1 Priesthood of All Believers and Education . . . . . . . . . 3.4.2 Education as Biblical Mandate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.4.3 The Gender Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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3.4.4 Should Women Preach? . . . . . . . . . 3.4.5 And What More Can Still Be Said? 3.5 Deus Dedit Officium, Ut Servias . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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42 44 46 52

Reform(ation) of the Church, School, and Person . . . . . . Iuventus Est Seminaria Ecclesiae . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A Sacred Ark . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A Sound Doctrine and a Right Order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.1 The Whole Aristotelian Ethic Is the Worst Enemy of Grace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.3.2 Good Works Do not Make a Good Man . . . . . . . . . 4.4 Man’s Reform(ation) and Institutional Reform . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.1 The Motive Determines the Quality of a Profession . 4.4.2 These Men of Little Faith . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.3 A Change of Heart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.4 The Best Way to Teach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.5 Knowledge and Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.6 Fides Ex Auditu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.7 Born Anew . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.4.8 The World Is Incapable of Reforming Itself . . . . . . . 4.4.9 Sola Scriptura, not Nuda Scriptura . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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55 55 56 60

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63 65 66 67 69 71 73 79 81 88 91 93 98

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5 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105

Abbreviations

CD

CO

CR

Inst

LE LW

PE RA W1 W2 WA WA BR

Karl Barth, Church Dogmatics. Edited by G. W. Bromiley and T. F. Torrance. Four volumes, in twelve parts (one in two halves), plus index. Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1936–1977 Ioannis Calvini opera quae supersunt omnia, edited by Wilhelm Baum Eduard Cunitz, and Eduard Reuss. 59 vol. Corpus Reformatorum, vol. 29–87. Brunswick, C. A. Schwetschkeand Son (M. Bruhn), 1863-1900 Philippi Melanchthonis Opera quae Supersunt Omnia, edited by C. G. Bretschneider. Corpus Reformatorum, volumes 1–28. Halle, 1834–1860 John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, 2 volumes. Edited by John T. McNeill, trans. by Ford Lewis Battles. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2006 The Precious and Sacred Writings of Martin Luther, edited by John Nicholas Lenker. Minneapolis, 1904–1909 Luther’s Works. Edited by Jaroslav Pelikan, Helmuth Lehman and Christopher Brown. Philadelphia: Fortress. St. Louis: Concordia 1957– (American Edition) Works of Martin Luther. 6 volumes. Philadelphia Edition, Philadelphia: Holman, 1915–1943 Deutsche Reichstagsakten unter Kaiser Karl V. 21 volumes, 1893–2015 D. Martin Luther’s Sämmtliche Schriflen. Edited by Johann Georg Walch, 1st edition. 24 volumes. Halle: Johann Justinus Gebauer, 1740–53 Martin Luther’s Sämmtliche Schriften. Edited by Johann Georg Walch. 2nd edition. 23 volumes. St. Louis: Concordia, 1880–1910 D. Martin Luthers Werke: Kritische Gesamtausgabe. 73 volumes. Weimar: H. Böhlaus, 1883–2009 D. Martin Luthers Werke: Kritische Gesamtausgabe, Briefwechsel. 18 volumes. Weimar: H. Böhlaus, 1930–1985

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WA DB WA TR Z

Abbreviations

Luthers Werke: Kritische Gesamtausgabe: Bibel. 12 volumes. Weimar: H. Böhlaus, 1906–1961 D. Martin Luthers Werke: Kritische Gesamtausgabe. Tischreden. 6 volumes. Weimar: H. Böhlaus, 1912–21 Ulrich Zwingli, Huldreich Zwinglis sämtliche Werke, edited by Emil Egli et al. 21 volumes. Corpus Reformatorum 88–108, Leipzig/Zürich, Heinsius/TVZ, 1905–2013

Chapter 1

Introduction

Karl Holl is one of the most famous experts in Luther’s theology who lived in the past century, university professor and specialist in church history. He was the one who brought Lutheranism back into the limelight. In his work, Karl Holl managed to evince the “creative power” (Schöpferkraft)1 of the German reformer: Luther’s theological and pedagogical ideas are topical, although he lived many centuries ago. In this sense, Luther’s great originality of thinking makes him our contemporary. The purpose of the present book is to show why Martin Luther (1483–1546) was more than a religious reformer who initiated the Protestant Reformation in the sixteenth century. Luther was a religious spirit and a man of culture, who had and still has fervent adepts, as well as doctrinaire enemies, being praised and contested to an equal extent. In any case, there is no cultural area which escaped his influence, according to Karl Holl2 : Christian theology owes a lot to the Reformer, and the contribution of the Protestant Reformation to developing Western culture and civilisation has already become well known to all of us. It should be noted from the very beginning that Luther honoured the teaching profession, and in this respect F. V. Painter focuses on a text in Table Talk where the Reformer starts by stating that he would not choose anyone to be a preacher if that person was not previously a schoolteacher.3 The teaching experience was very important to Luther, as it was indispensable for the pastoral office. Then Luther continues by saying that if he had not been mainly a preacher, he would have preferred to be a teacher and nothing else: “If I could leave the preaching office and my other duties, or had to do so, there is no other office I would rather have than that of

1 Holl

(1932a: 1). (1932a: 108). 3 See also Plass (1959: 1337): “Schoomasters have learned to speak in school with their pupils; they know how the passages of Holy Scripture are properly to be handled and explained. I wish that no one would be elected preacher unless he had first been schoolmaster.” WA 5, 27, 22–26, no. 5252. 2 Holl

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020 M. Androne, Martin Luther, SpringerBriefs on Key Thinkers in Education, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-52418-0_1

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schoolmaster or teacher of boys; for I know that next to that of preaching, this is the best, greatest, and most useful office there is”.4 But all through his life, Luther really was the teacher of the Holy Scripture, doctor in Biblia. Also, all his life Luther gave special attention to the education of children, which he considered a rich subject. Luther opined that it was normal for him to deal with issues of the educational nature, in his quality of a theologian, as the appreciation shown by people towards the Word of God also extends to cover the school, while people despising the Word of God also despise school.5 Luther took an interest in educating the young generation in his quality as an adept of the Protestant principle of sola Scriptura; in his opinion school is of utmost importance to the survival of Christianity and maintaining social order: “For if the Scriptures and learning disappear, what will remain in the German lands but a disorderly and wild crowd of Tartars or Turks, indeed, a pigsty and mob of wild beasts?”6 In clarifying all these, we have already started to give an answer to the question “How can the Reformer’s propensity towards the teaching profession be explained?” The purpose of this book is to point out that upon analysing Luther’s theology it is somehow compulsory to analyse his pedagogy as well, as the latter is a sort of extension of his religious conceptions: the Reformer’s pedagogical doctrine is included in his theology, Luther’s theology is the “living environment” of his pedagogical theses, and his educational reform is undoubtedly grounded in religion. Luther was no ordinary pedagogue. During his whole life, he was a keen supporter of religious education, as he believed that only through consistent religious education was it possible to ensure the harmonious development of human personality and the progress of society: “For one real Christian is better and can do more good than all the men on earth”.7 The most precious fortune of a state is its educated youth; its wealth is spiritual, and not so much material. Luther’s pedagogy cannot possibly be separated from his theology, nor can it be understood out of its theological context, i.e. when emptied of its religious substance. That is why the present book aims at introducing the pedagogical ideas of the German reformer, and providing them with a theological justification, in other words to capture their true nature and origin. Besides, it should not be forgotten that the preacher and the teacher are related from a professional point of view, as preaching and teaching are crucial tasks of the ministerial office, and both the preacher and the teacher are in the service of the word: the preacher is naturally a pedagogue, a teacher of the people, an instructor of the hesitant and ignorant in need of guidance. Consequently, by his appeals and exhortations, richly illustrated with examples from the Bible, Luther asked his fellow countrymen to raise their children for this spiritual

4 Painter

(1889: 143). LW 46, 253. See also Plass (1959: 1337): “If I were not a preacher, I do not know of any position on earth that I would rather have than that of schoolmaster.” WA 5, 28, 6–7. 5 LW 46, 213. 6 LW 46, 217. 7 LW 45, 350.

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office, i.e. for God’s service; in other words, not only allow them to study, but also encourage them to do so.8 The repeated and warm appeals that the Reformer made to his neighbours in favour of sending children to school should be seen in connection to the Protestant principle soli Deo gloria. Luther warns parents that they do not own their children, so that they should not take advantage of them in favour of their trivial selfish interests. Fathers and mothers should be glad to make any sacrifice for their offspring, so that when they grow up, they get to be special servants of God: pastors, preachers, or schoolmasters.9 And Luther shows his great appreciation towards those who impart learning onto others by saying: “There is no dearer treasure, no nobler thing on earth or in this life than a good and faithful pastor and preacher”.10 Just because he highly appreciated the teaching profession and had a deep love for the young generation, Luther extended his reforming efforts onto the entire society, not just school and teaching, addressing his writings to parents, the clergy, state authorities, i.e. everybody who, in a way or another, came in contact with young people and could have an impact on their lives.11 The preacher is a teacher addressing all Christians, not just the youth in a learning institution: he “instructs fathers, mothers, children, and servants in their duties”.12 To Luther God is the Supreme Preacher and Teacher, and the Bible is the perfect schoolbook. Luther’s pedagogical interests are a natural consequence of his religious, pastoral ones. Although he wrote works on theology and pedagogy, it does not automatically ensue that Luther was a theologian and a pedagogue to an equal extent, or that his pedagogical ideas might somehow explain or accurately reflect on their own the dimension of his complex personality.13 Luther was first and foremost the Father of the Reformation, viz. a religious reformer. Although it was only natural for him to be a reformer of education as well, Luther is so much more than his pedagogy. He was first of all a great Christian theologian and not a great philosopher of education, as the Reformer “was above all else a man of religion”.14 And as Roland H. Bainton remarked, Luther’s disquiet was religious par excellence, not pedagogical. This is one more reason why Luther’s religious ideas cannot possibly be overlooked when considering his pedagogical vision, as his pedagogy would be impossible to comprehend outside its theological background. And this is also why the pedagogical dimensions of his theological ideas cannot be overlooked, as Luther’s pedagogy is a natural consequence of his theology. How can one explain, in a simple and direct fashion, the educational concerns of this theological genius? Is theology not in fact a kind of pedagogy? It is generally well known that education is a hypostasis of culture, and the Reformation enjoyed cultural 8 LW

46, 220ff. 46, 223. 10 LW 46, 223. 11 Kretzmann (1940: 7). 12 LW 46, 226. 13 Bainton (1960: 76). 14 Bainton (1955: 16). 9 LW

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significance, magisterially evinced by Karl Holl in his book The Cultural Significance of the Reformation.15 However, the present book, although entitled Martin Luther, Father of the Reformation and Educational Reformer, may well have been entitled The Educational Significance of the Reformation. Or, in other words, The Educational Significance of the German Reformation. By means of all the above clarifications, the author of the present book aims at evincing the organic connection between the religious reform(ation) and the reform of education, and not to make a detailed inventory of all the educational reforms that Luther effected, nor to identify in a detailed manner all his pedagogical texts, i.e. texts that contain key words like education, teacher, teaching, training, tutor, children, school, schooling, or university. To put it differently, the present book does not at all aim at being an inventory of all the Reformer’s pedagogical texts, nor does it resume the message of the other books dealing with the pedagogical doctrine of the German reformer. It is not meant to tell everything on Luther’s pedagogical doctrine, but instead to say something significant and little known on the intimate bond uniting the Reformer’s theology and his pedagogy, viz. to characterise Luther’s theology as a theology in the service of the idea of reform(ation). The purpose of the present book is clearly determined, as it is first and foremost intended to show why Luther the theologian, while being a religious reformer par excellence, also had to be a reformer of education. In other words, the present book aims at showing the place that the educational reform occupies among the reforms he proposed. The premise the author starts from is as follows: the religious reform(ation) could not possibly be successful without an educational reform, and the reform of education, as contemplated by Luther, could not possibly be completed without a religious reform(ation), to which the former would be the natural sequel and reinforcement. It would ensue that the reform of education was no “accident”, “random occurrence”, a less important “appendix” of his religious reform(ation), a mere detail of the latter, but instead an integral part of his successful religious reform(ation). The present book aims at proving that the main principles of traditional Reformation theology—sola Scriptura (God’s Word alone), sola fide (faith alone), sola gratia (grace alone), solus Christus (Christ alone), soli Deo gloria (God’s glory alone)— are to be found not only at the basis of the sixteenth century religious reform(ation), but also stood for, to an almost equal extent, the principles of a new educational policy and philosophy. First and foremost, Luther used the harshest terms to criticise not only the Church, but the school as well, not only the religious doctrine, but also the doctrine and the methods of late-medieval pedagogy,16 not only the clergy, but also the teaching staff. Then Luther reformed all that he had previously criticised without mercy. The fracture occurred, and Luther completely detached himself from the Catholic Church, as well as the Catholic educational paradigm. Another idea that is worth evincing is as follows: Luther is known as a reformer of the Church and the school, but in fact he was concerned with reforming human nature, as in the absence of this change of the human being, i.e. his mentality, the 15 Holl

(1959), Holl (1932b: 468–543). (2001: 150).

16 Strohl

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institutional reforms he had conceived—the ones focused on the Church and the school—would not have stood any chance of success. Luther had to fight not only the faulty and therefore harmful ideas of the political leaders and the clergy, but also the superstitions, prejudice, ignorance, materialism and disdain of the masses in regard to instruction and education: “The learned are daft (Gelehrte sind verkehrte.)”.17 Luther, through his reforming efforts, had first to destroy what was wrong, and then to build the rightful concepts and institutions able to provide the best environment to change mentalities. The old teaching institutions could not be used to disseminate the new ideas emerged in the century of the Protestant Reformation, as the new views needed new institutions to promote them. In the light of these clarifications, it makes better sense why Luther strongly urged parents to send their children to school daily for at least one hour, and not only think just about making a profit off them, and not be content with the mere fact that the young people could read and write and nothing more: “This is true particularly because there are many things there (especially trade and commerce) to turn the children away from schools to the service of Mammon”.18 The Reformation led not just to closing down the monasteries and cloisters and the confiscation of their properties by the authorities, but also to the collapse of monastic schools, regarded with mistrust by the population who had adopted the new faith. However, by his educational writings like To the Councilmen of All Cities in Germany and A Sermon on Keeping Children in School, Luther’s purpose was not only to ask for the authorities’ support for the educational institutions, but also to correct the population’s negative attitude towards schooling.19 The relationship between reforming human nature and institutional reforms is most definitely complex. If institutional changes cannot be solid and durable without a change in the mentality of the people working in these institutions, it should not be forgotten that the change of human mentality occurs within the framework of institutions, through the Church and school, due to instruction and education. Luther could not reform the Church without changing the Christians’ mentality and could not change people’s mentality without reforming the Christian doctrine and the manner in which it was communicated to people. The religious reform(ation) and the educational reform had to occur at the same time. The question “What is the novelty that this book brings?” can mainly get one single answer: a new perspective on Luther’s educational doctrine, in other words a new modality to read Luther. Consequently, the present book aims at making a connection between Luther’s pedagogy and the five articles of faith mentioned above. It is not meant to expose all his pedagogical ideas in strict relation to the Five Pillars of the Reformation, but it rather invites the readers to cover and analyse Luther’s theological and pedagogical texts, also accessible through other writings, bearing in mind the respective principles, which in turn may be put in relation to the Five Points of Calvinism.20 It may be the original invitation that this book addresses 17 LW

45, 343. LW 46, 209, 232. 46, 213–214. 19 LW 46, 209–210. 20 Spencer (1979), Steele et al. (2004). 18 LW

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its readers, and it is also its main point of novelty, as compared to the other books and articles written about Luther’s educational doctrine during the past two centuries. It is our opinion that it is only through such a reading that Luther’s pedagogy unveils its entire richness and deep meaning. In the following chapters, it is important to clarify that, in keeping with the usage of the term “man” in established theological writing, the present book is going to employ it in its gender-neutral meaning. Unless otherwise indicated, all biblical citations in English are taken from the New International Version.

References Bainton, R. H. (1955). Here I stand: A life of Martin Luther. New York, NY: Mentor Book. Bainton, R. H. (1960). Interpretations of the Reformation. The American Historical Review, 66(1), 74–84. Holl, K. (1932a). Was verstand Luther unter Religion? Gesammelte Aufsätze zur Kirchengeschichte. Vol. I. Luther (6th ed.). Tübingen: J. C. B. Mohr (Paul Siebeck). Holl, K. (1932b). Die Kulturbedeutung der Reformation. Gesammelte Aufsätze zur Kirchengeschichte. Vol. I. Luther (6th ed.). Tübingen: J. C. B. Mohr (Paul Siebeck). Holl, K. (1959). The cultural significance of the Reformation. Translated by Karl and Barbara Hertz and J. H. Lichtblau. Clevland, OH, New York: Meridian Books. Kretzmann, P. E. (1940). Luther on education in the Christian Home and School. Burlington, IA: The Lutheran Literary Board. Painter, F. V. N. (1889). Luther on education, including a historical introduction and a translation of the Reformer’s two most important educational treatises. Philadelphia: Lutheran Publication Society. Plass, E. M. (Ed.). (1959). What Luther says: A practical in-home anthology for the active Christian. St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House. Spencer, D. E. (1979). The five points of Calvinism in the light of Scripture. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House. Steele, D., Thomas, C. C., & Quinn, S. L. (2004). The five points of Calvinism (2nd ed.). Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing. Strohl, J. E. (2001). The Child in Luther’s theology: “For what purpose do we older folks exist, other than to care for… the young?”. In M. J. Bunge (Ed.), The child in Christian thought. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans.

Chapter 2

The Five Solas

The five Latin solae make up a unitary whole, supporting one another. They are taken from the Bible and have constituted a distinctive feature of Protestant theology since its very beginning. The following intends first to prove that these principles are biblical par excellence, and then it is our intention to show that they structure Luther’s theological discourse, to finally demonstrate that these principles are to the same extent pedagogical principles. In other words, they are the principles of a new religious pedagogy.

2.1 In the Bible Luther rediscovered the evangelical principles of religious truth. The Bible is the main book of learning of the Christians, the perfect textbook; according to it, instruction is the premise of hope: “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope”. (Romans 15, 4). Sola Scriptura (by Scripture alone) states that the Bible alone is our highest authority and completely trustworthy, the Scriptures are the sole and infallible source and norm for Christian doctrine, faith and practice (2 Timothy 3, 15 and 16–17; 1 Corinthians 4, 6). Sola fide (by faith alone) teaches us that we are saved through faith alone in Jesus Christ, the justification is received by faith alone and the good deeds are not needed for salvation (Galatians 2, 16): we are not saved by faith plus good works. Sola gratia (by grace alone) is the doctrine according to which we are saved by the grace of God alone, the man’s salvation is the free gift of God through Jesus Christ and not the work of man (Ephesians 2, 8). Solus Christus (by Christ alone) is the protestant teaching according to which Jesus Christ alone is our Lord, Saviour, and King, the salvation is by faith in Christ alone, the Son of God is the only way to salvation (John 3, 16): there is no other name given under heaven by which men may © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020 M. Androne, Martin Luther, SpringerBriefs on Key Thinkers in Education, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-52418-0_2

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be saved. Soli Deo Gloria (glory to God alone) unveils the purpose of human life; we live for the glory of God alone, He alone is worthy of all honour and praise; man, through all he undertakes, should aim to God’s glory and not his own (1 Timothy 1, 17; 1 Corinthians 10, 31).

2.2 In Luther’s Theology All these theological principles, succinctly presented, are a constant presence, in various forms of expression, all through the vast work of the Reformer. Although the examples that may be brought to support this idea are virtually countless, the following section will only select a few, leaving the readers the pleasure to identify other similar examples in Luther’s writings. Many of the Reformer’s texts under analysis are not explicitly pedagogical, but only implicitly pedagogical. Sola Scriptura is the one that draws most attention, as this principle had the greatest impact on the Reformer’s pedagogical ideas, and thus on the educational reform instituted by Luther.

2.2.1 Sola Scriptura Protestant theology is a biblical theology par excellence, and from the very beginning sola Scriptura has been a strong urge to study the Bible systematically. Biblical hermeneutics flourished and developed beyond all expectations in history due to the Protestant Reformation. In his works Luther repeatedly points out “the divine origin of Scripture, the authority of Scripture, and the truthfulness of Scripture”.1 The Bible is the only Word of God; Luther states in one of his writings, Against the Spiritual Estate of the Pope and the Bishops Falsely So Called (LW 39), that “we have no Word except Scripture” (haben wyr keyn wort denn die schrifft).2 The Bible is our fundamental guide, according to the Reformer, who warns us at the same time not to imagine covering it from beginning to end as an easy task for the Christians, taking into account that it is so profound. The Bible has a “saving and healing power” (erlösende und heiligende Kraft),3 only it contains in itself “the powers of conversion and salvation” (die Bekehrungs- und Heilskräfte).4 The Scripture comprises God’s wisdom,5 to Luther the Bible is the source of religious truth, “the whole life and substance of the Church is in the Word of God” (tota vita et substantia Ecclesiae est 1 Preus

(1984: 109). den falsch gennanten geistlichen Stand des Papstes und der Bischöfe” (1522), WA 10 II, 108, 25. Graham (1987: 145). 3 Troeltsch (1911: 35). 4 Troeltsch (1911: 35). 5 W2 , 22, 1069. 2 “Wider

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in verbo dei).6 “The Scripture is the womb from which are born the divine truth and the Church” (Scriptura est venter, unde oritur veritas divina et Ecclesia)7 : indeed, one of the expert commentators of Luther’s theology said that to the Reformer the Church “is ever the creatura evangelii”.8 The above-mentioned texts shed light on the relation between the Church and the Bible. The Church and the ecclesiastical authorities do not have dominion over the Scripture, but are subordinated to it.9 The Bible is at the centre of Luther’s theological reflection, Verbum Dei is the foundation of Christian congregation. “The Word of God preserves the Church of God” (Verbum enim dei conservat Ecclesiam dei).10 Sola Scriptura is the basis of all the other principles, in the sense that nobody can accept those unless agreeing with this prime principle, or in other words unless searching the Bible for the principles and norms for permanent guidance in life. The Bible alone is the norma normans, the ruling rule, the norm that norms, regula credendi, the sole criterion separating falsehood from truth, in theology as well as in education. The entire Reformer’s theological and pedagogical plea for the Word of God is not to be understood by anybody unless everybody takes into account the importance granted to this principle by Protestant theology. That is why the discussion could bear on Luther’s confession before the Diet of Worms. As it is generally acknowledged, the Reformer was asked by the emperor Charles V and the officials of the Roman Catholic Church to deny his ideas and renounce his own “heretical” theological works, but Luther, having “a good conscience”, gave an answer that survived the epochs, reaching us in this day and age, and revealing his strength of character: “Unless I am convinced by the testimony of the Scriptures (testimoniis scripturarum) or by clear reason (ratione evidente) […], I am bound by the Scriptures I have quoted and my conscience is captive to the Word of God (capta conscientia in verbis dei). I cannot and I will not retract (revocare) anything, since it is neither safe nor right to go against conscience (contra conscientiam agere). I cannot do otherwise, here I stand, may God help me. Amen”.11 In order to better grasp Luther’s courageous proclamation in front of the emperor, it should be put in relation to another statement the Reformer made in one of his works. To Luther, sola Scriptura was the principle of unconditional obedience to God, i.e. the principle of firm resistance to any evil, as apparent in a short fragment from Whether Soldiers, Too, Can Be Saved: “If you know for sure that he is wrong,

6 “Ad

librum eximii Magistri Nostri Magistri Ambrosii Catharini, defensoris Silvestri Prieratis acerrimi, responsio” (1521), WA 7, 721, 12–13. 7 “Dictata super Psalterium” (1513–1516), WA 3, 454, 25. 8 Lotz (1981: 262). 9 “In epistolam S. Pauli ad Galatas Comentarius” (1535), WA 40 I, 119, 24ff. 10 “Dictata super Psalterium” (1513–1516), WA 3, 259, 18–19. 11 LW 32, 112–113. “Verhandlungen mit D. Martin Luther auf dem Reichstage zu Worms” (1521), WA 7, 838, 4–9. RA II, 555. Dermange (2009: 292). “Luther at Worms is the most pregnant and momentous fact in our history”. Figgis (1906: 101).

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then you should fear God rather than men […], and you should neither fight nor serve, for you cannot have a good conscience before God”.12 Luther defines conscience by taking into account the principles sola fide and sola gratia, as faith is not a human work: a bad conscience is distinguished from a good conscience by the fact that the former “lacks love and faith”,13 but God has the power to touch people’s conscience and thus make them turn to Him.14 A man listening to the voice of conscience, sure that his initiatives are positive from a moral point of view, shows mettle, and, fearing only God, no longer fears people’s preconceived ideas, the wrong social norms. Only such a man can be a good teacher,15 a reformer, according to Luther, as his conscience feeds on the power issued from the Word of God: “when conscience has in this way been strengthened through the Word and made sure that God approves a work of the kind it has initiated at God’s command, then it dares anything”.16 A man listening to the voice of conscience is the quintessential fighter, who does not fear the obstacles he might encounter, but instead takes action in life, righteously, with integrity and honesty, in accordance with his calling.17 Man follows his calling according to the testimony of his conscience. Such a man has courage as he disposes of beliefs, as he knows for sure; he is well informed, well trained, well educated, instruction and education being of utmost importance to Luther: false teachings create a false conscience. From this point of view, this is an opportunity to realise once more how important it is to be a good preacher or schoolteacher, as both have the power to influence the thinking of the human being, the manner in which the latter perceives the world, either to the better, or to the worse: “It is the nature of all hypocrites and false prophets to create a conscience where there is none, and to cause conscience to disappear where it does exist”.18 As seen in his work Whether Soldiers, Too, Can Be Saved, Luther opines that you cannot be ignorant and at the same time have a good conscience, as knowledge, solid beliefs shelter you from doubt, and such a man no longer hesitates in performing his tasks and no longer fears the others’ unfounded accusations. “For whoever fights with a good and well-instructed conscience can also fight well. This is especially true since a good conscience fills a man’s hart with courage and boldness”.19 In Protestant theology, the conscience and the heart are somehow on the same level. The preacher and the schoolteacher address the conscience of their audience, they have the objective of changing the heart of the recipients of their messages, so 12 LW

46, 130. 32, 32. 14 LW 32, 271. 15 LW 32, 36. 16 LW 18, 374. 17 LW 27, 120. 18 LW 28, 311. Zachman (1993: 27). 19 LW 46, 93. “Let them cry ‘heretic, seditionist, apostate, deceiver,’ and the like, as long as it is not true, as long as your conscience does not agree.” LW 13, 415. Zachman (1993: 79, 81). 13 LW

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that they could offer every Christian an urge to action in favour of his/her neighbours. We are dealing here with a new hypostasis of the relation between faith, which is addressed to God, and works, which are addressed to people, and at the same time a new hypostasis of the close relationship between two principles of the Protestant theology and pedagogy: sola fide and soli Deo gloria. The words of the French reformer John Calvin are inspiring in this regard: “Therefore, as works have regard to men, so conscience refers to God. A good conscience, then, is nothing but inward integrity of heart”.20 To Luther, sola Scriptura (the Word alone) means sola conscientia, as at the basis of conscience lies the Word of God. To put it differently, Sola Scriptura is the fundamental principle of strength of character, courage, spiritual integrity, moral rectitude, sincerity, conscientiousness in performing all duties. Moral rectitude is the quality that should be found not only in the preacher, but also in the teacher, and any Christian for that matter, irrespective of his/her profession, in order to perform its specific tasks to the fullest. “A good conscience is like the firmest rock, on which the godly rely in the affliction, and with great and high courage they despise the threats of all adversaries”.21 Karl Holl considered that Luther’s religion is a “religion of conscience” (Gewissensreligion),22 a religion able to best reveal the personal conviction of the human being renewed by grace, through faith. Conscience plays a major role in Luther’s thinking and that is why it should be signalled as such: it would not be exaggerated to consider that the Reformer rediscovered the crucial role played by conscience in Christianity. Luther genuinely believed in freedom of conscience,23 in the need for every Christian to decide knowingly in issues of a religious nature, and the evidence for that is also his essay On Monastic Vows. A man in possession of a free conscience is “a new creature”.24 Although his aim was not to describe in detail the importance of conscience in a person’s life, Luther made repeated mentions of conscience in his work. “The proper work of conscience (as Paul says in Romans 2, 15), is to accuse or excuse, to make guilty or guiltless, uncertain or certain”.25 The conscience is bound to Christ, its connection to Christ is extremely tight, as the Reformer remarks in On Monastic Vows: “The conscience belongs to Christ and Christ to the conscience”.26 Luther’s entire theology and pedagogy can be put in relation to the five solas. And as it can be easily seen, when he refers to conscience, Luther relates it to sola Scriptura and solus Christus, he does not see conscience as autonomous, but as

20 Inst.,

III, 19, 16. 6, 398–399. Zachman (1993: 81). 22 Holl (1932: 35ff). 23 Zachman (1993: 71ff). 24 LW 48, 335. 25 “Judgment of Martin Luther on Monastic Vows”, LW 44, 298. Zachman (1993: 21). 26 LW 44, 303–304. 21 LW

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totally dependent on God. “In other words, Luther describes the conscience more as a power to receive instruction than as a power of autonomous self-legislation”.27 At the same time, it is obvious that Luther became the Father of the Protestant Reformation as well as the Father of the Protestant education precisely because he did not ignore his conscience nor betrayed his beliefs of a religious and educational nature. If this important aspect of the issue is taken into account, it is no surprise that Roland H. Bainton, in his famous book on Luther, stated as early as the first chapter that the German reformer “revived the Christian consciousness of Europe”.28

2.2.2 Sola Fide As regards sola fide, let us recall that in his Commentary on Galatians (3, 6) Luther shows the close connection between this article of evangelical theology and all the others mentioned above: “With this words Paul makes faith in God the supreme worship, the supreme allegiance, the supreme obedience, and the supreme sacrifice. […] To attribute glory to God is to believe in Him, to regard Him as truthful, wise, righteous, merciful, and almighty, in short, to acknowledge Him as the Author and Donor of every good”.29 Luther concludes in the same Commentary, underlining the great importance of faith to the human being, as well as the kinship between sola fide, sola gratia, solus Christus, and soli Deo gloria: “But we who, by the grace of God, accept the doctrine of justification know for certain that we are justified solely by faith in Christ”.30 We are justified solely by faith in Christ (sola fide in Christum iustificari),31 it is a fundamental proclamation of the entire Protestant theology, past and present. “Therefore we are justified by faith alone, because faith alone grasps this victory of Christ”.32 This Christocentric faith yields an advantageous exchange for the one who believes in Christ, man’s salvation is entirely included in this wonderful transfer showing the all-embracing love of the Creator for His creation: “Believe in Him. His righteousness is yours; your sin is His”.33 “Faith is the divine work in us”, faith changes us in a radical manner, it makes us different beings, giving us a new heart and a new mind, faith kills our old being and through it we are born anew of God. “Aber glaub ist eyn gotlich werck yn uns, das uns wandelt und new gebirt aus Gott, Johan. 1. und todtet den allten Adam, macht uns gantz ander menschen von hertz, mut, synn, und allen krefften, und bringet den heyligen geyst mit sich”.34 27 Zachman

(1993: 28). (1955: 15). 29 LW 26, 226–227. 30 LW 26, 152. 31 WA 40 I, 263, 24. 32 LW 26, 284. Zachman (1993: 56). 33 LW 26, 233. Zachman (1993: 57). 34 WA DB 7, 10, 6–9. 28 Bainton

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2.2.3 Sola Gratia The principle sola gratia could be placed in relation to the idea that man is sinful, limited and mortal; shortly before his death Luther makes, in lucidity and humility, the following deep and touching statement: “We are beggars, this is true” (Wir sind Pettler. Hoc est verum.).35 Luther was a brilliant teacher, his lectures being attended by hundreds of students from all over Europe. Despite being a great doctor (magnus doctor), Luther considered that he was not more educated than his children in regard to the Ten Commandments, the Creed, and the Lord’s Prayer, and that is why he kept learning all these things together with his children every day.36 Luther called himself a poor sinner, a “poor bag” (armer drecksackt),37 as he confesses, therefore, that he has no reason to be proud of his achievements. The Reformer showed his appreciation for this principle (sola gratia) as follows: “The article of justification and grace is the most pleasant” (locus iustificationis et graciae est iucundissimus),38 adding at the same time that this biblical truth turns an individual into a theologian able to judge all things with a fair and sound judgment. This article of the Christian faith could also be called God alone, as apparent in one of his other texts: “But no man can be thoroughly humbled until he knows that his salvation is utterly beyond his own powers, devices, endeavours, will, and works, and depends entirely on the choice, will, and work of another, namely, of God alone (nempe Dei solius)”.39

2.2.4 Solus Christus In point of solus Christus, it is worth mentioning that this article of faith best illustrates the spiritual reform that Luther went through himself, mainly showing the change in his thinking paradigm. In 1505, in his days as a university student, young Luther was caught outside by a terrible storm. Terrified by the huge forces of nature and seeing that his life was in danger, he shouted: “St. Anne help me! I will become a monk”.40 This is how Luther came to join a cloister. But later on, he will reject the cult of saints and give up monastic life. Upon reaching spiritual maturity, Luther will honestly admit that once “Saint Anne was my idol and Saint Thomas (Aquinas) my apostle” (S. Hanna erat meum idolum, item S. Thomas meus Apostolus).41 In his Large Catechism, he will once again testify that his attitude in his youth was wrong, 35 WA

TR 5, 168, 35, no. 5468. TR 1, 30, 26–31, 2, no. 81. 37 “Hauspostille” (1544), WA 52, 698, 31. 38 “Vorlesung über Iesaia” (1527–1529), WA 25, 375, 17–18. 39 Luther (2006: 137). “De servo arbitrio” (1525), WA 18, 632, 32. 40 Bainton (1955: 15). 41 “Predigten des Jahres 1532”, WA 36, 388, 28–29. 36 WA

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also showing why. To the question “What does it mean to have a god?”, Luther gives the following answer: “A god is whatever a person looks to for all good things and runs to for help in trouble. So to have a god is just the same as sincerely trusting and believing in him. As I’ve often said, it’s only the trust and faith in your heart which make them both what they are – God and an idol”.42 If the human spirit is as Calvin said a fabrica idolorum,43 then it is easy to understand why the fallen human being finds it easier to believe in everything else than in Christ. Besides, the Reformer evinces in another text the unity existing between the Scripture and Christ, and between sola Scriptura and solus Christus, respectively. Christ and the Word are interchangeable terms in Luther’s theology.44 To Luther, Christ is the substance of the entire Bible, its essence, an idea which emerges from the following statement: “Take Christ out of the Scriptures, and what will you find left in them? (Tolle Christum e scripturis, quid amplius in illis invenies?)”45 And just like we cannot understand sola Scriptura without solus Christus, it is the same for sola fide without solus Christus. In his Preface to Romans (1522), Luther states that “faith, moreover, comes only through God’s Word or Gospel, which preaches Christ” (so kompt der glawbe nicht, on alleyne durch Gottis wort oder Euangelion, das Christum predigt).46 Luther’s statement shows what a tight connection is to be found between the Scripture and the specific activity of the preacher or the religion teacher: according to Luther, “the Gospel is nothing else than the preaching and proclamation of the grace and mercy of God which Jesus Christ has earned and gained for us through His death” (Evangelion aber heysset aber nichts anders, denn ein predig und geschrey von der genad und barmhertzikeytt Gottis, durch den herrren Christum mit seynem todt verdiene tund erworben).47 Luther’s theology is a theologia crucis, “theology of the cross”: “The cross alone is our Theology” (CRUX sola est nostra Theologia.)48

2.2.5 Soli Deo Gloria Sola Scriptura is the premise to start from in order to reach solus Christus. The Bible points only to Jesus Christ, the Scripture’s main purpose is to bring Him to us, since Luther believed that knowing Christ and knowing the Scripture are in a very close relationship: “Nescito enim Christo impossibile est habere intellectum in Scriptura”.49 Sola gratia and solus Christus give rise to soli Deo gloria, Luther says 42 Luther

(1983: 18). I, 11, 8. 44 Watson (1948: 149). 45 Luther (2006: 110). “De servo arbitrio” (1525), WA 18, 606, 29. 46 LW 35, 368. WA DB 7, 6, 17–18. Lotz (1981: 261). 47 LW 30, 3. WA 12, 259, 8–10. Lotz (1981: 261). 48 “Operationes in Psalmos” (1519–1521), WA 5, 176, 32–33. McGrath (1985: 152). 49 “Dictata super Psalterium” (1513–1516), WA 3, 620, 5. 43 Inst.,

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in another excerpt. When a Christian knows that Jesus Christ is his Lord and Saviour, when he learns that the Son of God is the one who has redeemed him from death (erlöset aus dem tode),50 then the Christian feels in his heart that he is grateful to God, and will subsequently desire to help any of his neighbours to learn this blessed truth. But this idea is best illustrated in The Freedom of a Christian. “‘Although I am an unworthy and condemned man, my God has given me in Christ all the riches of righteousness and salvation without any merit on my part, out of pure, free mercy, so that from now on I need nothing except faith which believes that this is true. […] I will therefore give myself as a Christ to my neighbour, just as Christ offered himself to me; I will do nothing in this life except what I see is necessary, profitable, and salutary to my neighbour, since through faith I have an abundance of all good things in Christ’”.51 Soli Deo gloria serves a better understanding of sola gratia. If sola gratia tells us that man cannot do anything good on his own without God’s grace, soli Deo gloria is from the very beginning an urge to action, activism, social involvement, but also humility. Christians are called upon to act positively in society without taking any credit for their beneficial actions, without boasting or taking pride in them. Roland H. Bainton, in his well-known book on Luther, when discussing the Reformer’s conception on vocation, notices that the Reformer insisted on the idea that the Gospel “could be exemplified only in the midst of secular callings”, and by “secular callings” he means “worthy occupations”.52 “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God”. (1 Corinthians 10, 31) Man should labour as God labours too, and it goes without saying that man should also rest as well, as God also rested and blessed the seventh day (Genesis 2, 2). But when discussing vocation, in fact man is referred to as an active being, whose attitudinal and behavioural model is God Himself. God’s creative activity is the best motivation given to man to lead a dynamic life, not a purely contemplative, static, passive one. “God is a tailor who makes for the deer a coat that will last for a thousand years. He is a shoemaker who provides boots that the deer will not outlive. God is the best cook, because the heat of the sun supplies all the heat that there is for cooking. God is the butler who sets forth a feast for the sparrows and spends on them annually more than the total revenue of the king of France”.53 Physical work is not a penalty, nor is it something humiliating, that people should be ashamed of. Jesus Christ was a carpenter, as well as a Teacher and Shepherd, and the Bible recalls that He did not hesitate to wash the feet of His disciples: “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve” (Mark 10, 45). The social status of the Virgin Mary and the Apostles was low, and Luther also points out this aspect. Although Mary was to become the Mother of God, she did not seek 50 “Das

XIV. und XV Kapitel S. Johannis”, WA 45, 540, 13ff. (1970: 303–304). 52 Bainton (1955: 180–181). 53 Bainton (1955: 181). WA TR 2, 370, 11ff. 51 Luther

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her own glory, nor claimed any special statute among her neighbours, but continued, in a modest and industrious manner, to fulfil her daily tasks, leading a regular life: “She is not puffed up, does not vaunt herself or proclaim with a loud voice that she is to become the Mother of God. She seeks not any glory, but goes about her usual household duties, milking the cows, cooking the meals, washing pots and kettles, sweeping out the rooms, and performing the work of maidservant or housemother in lowly and despised tasks, as though she cared nothing for such great gifts and graces. She was esteemed among other women and her neighbours no more highly than before, nor desired to be, but remained a poor townswoman, one of the great multitude”.54

2.3 In Luther’s Pedagogy Upon briefly mentioning how these five solas structure Luther’s theological discourse, time has come to briefly analyse how these five Biblical principles structure Luther’s pedagogical discourse. The question that we attempt to answer is as follows: how do the five solas explain Luther’s doctrine on education? The following important idea should be stressed: the five theological principles are also, in Luther’s case, pedagogical principles, and through them it is the easiest to capture the special profile of the Reformer’s doctrine in regard to instruction and education.

2.3.1 A Humble Teacher of Holy Scripture The Bible is one of the most important words in the Protestant lexicon, and sola Scriptura is one of the basic principles of the Protestant Reformation leading to the “expansion of schooling and literacy”.55 Luther was a specialist in biblical theology. It would most probably take a whole volume to show how important the Scripture is to Luther, so that for the moment we can only say that in The Freedom of a Christian Luther mentions that the Bible is the most treasured wealth of the Church and every Christian, and the inspired Word of God56 is man’s spiritual food: “One thing, and only one thing, is necessary for Christian life, righteousness, and freedom. That one thing is the most holy Word of God, the gospel of Christ”.57 54 LW

21, 329, quoted in Karant-Nunn and Wiesner-Hanks (2003: 46). “Das Magnificat” (1521), WA 7, 575, 8ff. 55 Gawthrop and Strauss (1984: 32). 56 The Bible is the Word of God, i.e. the Word “inspired by God through the Holy Spirit” (divinitus inspiratum […] per spiritum sanctum), this statement is an act of faith. “Vorlesung über Iesaia” (1527–1529), WA 25, 344, 10. 57 Luther (1970: 279).

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To Luther, the Word of God is the true teaching, and Luther characterised himself as “a humble teacher of Holy Scripture”, confessing at the same time that through everything he wrote or taught others he did not pursue his personal glory, but only “the praise of God, […] the welfare and salvation of all Christendom, and […] the good of the whole German nation”.58 If sola Scriptura is taken into consideration, then it is understandable why, on the one hand, Luther placed the Word of God at the centre of his entire teaching system, and why, on the other hand, he pleaded so passionately in favour of the literacy of the masses, and the organisation of a universal public schooling system, so that each Christian, irrespective of his/her social class, could read the Bible, either in the original, or in translation. “The Word is the power of God that acts upon man to transform him into a new creature, and where the Word is not preached, and thus not heard, there can be no salvation. Luther is thus concerned with correcting those who teach that are alternative routes to salvation”.59 Luther, closely following the message of the Bible, put school in the service of man’s salvation, i.e. reform(ation). “Natura enim verbi est audiri”60 : the salvific faith “comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ” (Romans 10, 17)—fides ex auditu, faith by means of listening. In addition, this principle is able to account for Luther’s harsh criticism of the doctrine and practices of medieval Catholicism, as sola Scriptura somehow constituted the main engine of all his steps towards reforming the Church, the school, and mainly the human person. By translating the Bible in German, Luther stimulated the work of all translators and thus awoke amidst the masses the desire to research and study the Scripture and the biblical languages: Christian peoples owe it to the Reformation the fact that they can read and understand the Word of God, all the peoples in their own language. Having easy access to the Bible in a language they could understand, people thus felt that they could get in direct contact with God, converse with divinity, just because they could read. “For after the Bible was translated into English, every man, nay, every boy and wench, that could read English, thought they spoke with God Almighty, and understood what he said, when by a certain number of chapters a day they had read the Scriptures once or twice over”.61 Nobody, no matter how learned and well reputed in society is above the Bible, and every man, irrespective of his social status and the office he fills at some point, should be his witnesses, disciple and confessor,62 as the Lord is “the King of Scripture”, Rex Scripturae.63 In matters pertaining to the spiritual and the religious, the only teacher allowed to teach and lead men through life is the “God’s Word alone” (allein Gottes

58 LW

48, 196–197. (1983: 129). 60 “Dictata super Psalterium” (1513–1516), WA 4, 9, 18–19. George (2013: 55). 61 Hobbes (1840: 190), George (2013: 80–81). “Mechanics, peasants, and women carried the New Testament in their pockets, and dared to dispute with priests and doctors of theology about the gospel.” Schaff (1904: 562). 62 “In epistolam S. Pauli ad Galatas Commentarius” [1531] 1535, WA 40 I, 120, 20–24. LW 26, 58. 63 WA 40 I, 459, 16. LW 26, 295. 59 Harran

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Wort),64 and not the mother, the father, the bishop or any other private person, as they have no authority in spiritual issues. What Luther means here is that every Christian has the duty to teach the others the “commandments of God” (Geboten Gottes) and not “their own ideas” (eigener Andacht).65 In issues of spiritual nature, nobody should accept the influence of this secular philosophy, profane mentality, a certain teaching that has nothing in common with the Christian doctrine, the Holy Gospel. In Luther’s view, Christian pedagogy is the premise of salvation: the Bible is necessary and sufficient for salvation (uns genugsam ist zur Seligkeit).66 If the Bible is so important, and it is “sui ipsius interpretes” (interprets itself ),67 if God clearly expresses himself through the Scripture,68 then it is obvious why Protestantism, rejecting the traditional scholarship, tenaciously aimed at setting up public schools in towns and villages and was directly interested in promoting instruction and education: by educating the masses, the Reformation put them in direct contact to the Word of God. “One of the great ambitions of the reformers was to create pious Christians capable of reading the Bible and the Catechism”.69 Luther was obviously aware that not everyone could easily become an expert in the Bible,70 although the Bible is sui ipsius interpretes, its reading is not easy, requiring a long-term systematic study, and not a superficial reading.71 Besides, one should not forget that in Luther’s time the printed copies of the Bible were extremely rare: therefore, Christians needed a sort of a summary to help and get to know better the basics of the Christian faith: Luther was of the opinion that this brief sum included the Decalogue, Lord’s Prayer and Apostle’s Creed.72 The following passage, among others, signals the high degree of difficulty of the teaching profession. At the same time, the text shows us that good knowledge of the Bible is not a purpose in itself. Luther draws our attention that we know not for the sake of knowledge, but to apply what we know: “keep watch, study, pay attention to the lection; truly, you cannot read too much in Scripture; and what you read, you 64 W2 ,

11, 472. Kretzmann (1940: 14). (1940: 14). W2 , 11, 472. 66 W2 , 10, 468. 67 “Assertio omnium articulorun M. Lutheri per bullam Leonia X” (c. 1520), WA 7, 97, 23. 68 W2 , 3, 21. W2 , 1, 950ff. W2 , 11, 313. Preus (1984: 110). 69 Scribner (1986: 61). “There shall be schools in all cities, towns, and villages where boys can be taught the rudiments of learning and writing […]. Wherever, especially in villages, these rudiments cannot be taught [for lack of schools and teachers] let the pastors or their assistants teach reading and writing to the boys.” These words uttered by count Philip, landgrave of Hesse, are written down by G. Strass in his work Luther’s house of learning: Indoctrination of the young in the German reformation (Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1978, p. 20), quoted by Spears (2012: 304). 70 WA TR 5, 435, 12ff., no. 6008: “Gottes Wort thut große Wunderzeichen, aber jdermann will es meistern.”. 71 W2 , 14, 435. 72 “Der catechismus ist der leien biblia” (WA TR 5, 581, 30, no. 6288), “The catechism is the layman’s Bible”. Gawthrop and Strauss (1984: 35, 37). 65 Kretzmann

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cannot read too well; and what you read well, you cannot understand too well; what you understand well, you cannot teach too well; and what you teach well, you cannot live too well”.73 Literacy, knowledge of the Bible, memorising its texts, all these are not a purpose in itself, a mere intellectual game with no connection to man’s daily life. Religious knowledge is a requirement of the reformation of human life. Knowing the Christian doctrine is necessary, not sufficient, as religion is not a mere school subject; this aspect was evinced by another reformer, John Calvin: “For it is a doctrine not of the tongue but of life. It is not apprehended by the understanding and memory alone, as other disciplines are, but it is received only when it possesses the whole soul, and finds a seat and resting place in the inmost affection of the heart”.74 The Bible is at the same time accessible and inaccessible to its readers. The study of the Bible has a beginning, but not an end, and the Christian remains a pupil in Bible school until the end. He is capable of passing onto a new level, but he never graduates. There is progress, but not completion. Knowledge is a path to follow, but not a destination to ever reach. This aspect is not meant to make us lose heart, but instead to stimulate our persistence. Nobody can pretend to be an expert in the Scriptures. Each progress in Bible study is in fact a new beginning, as “when one thinks one has learned it all, then one must first begin” (wen man meinet, man habs aufgelernet, so mus man erst anfahen).75 All Christians, even the best documented, are still pupils in Scripture school all their lives. Nobody can claim to have found all its secrets and deciphered all its meanings, so that to have monopoly over its interpretation. “This latter aspect of scripture – its depth, subtlety, and difficulty – is reflected in the importance Luther attached to the learning of Latin, Greek, and Hebrew, both by preachers and by those young boys as a means of preventing at least some avoidable errors in the interpretation of scriptural texts”.76 No Bible translation from Hebrew and Greek is fully satisfying, and that is why generations of scholars had been working hard on revising old translations, in order to provide better translations. The good command of the languages of the two Testaments is very difficult to get. That is why there is no surprise that the Reformers in the sixteenth century granted so much importance to the study of classical languages in school, and even felt the need to constantly refer in their pastoral practices to the original biblical texts: it is well known that Zwingli and Calvin carefully prepared their sermons, and while preaching, they held close the biblical texts in their original languages.77

73 “Vorrede

zu Johann Spangenberg Postilla deutsch” (1543), WA 53, 218, 19–23, translation by Graham (1987: 146). 74 Inst. III, 6, 4. Kvicalova (2019: 142). 75 “Predigten des Jahres 1511”, WA 49, 223, 8–9, translation by Graham (1987: 147). 76 Graham (1987: 147). 77 Farner (1954: 99), Farner (1968: 66), Parker (1992: 81).

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2.3.2 Faith Is and Must Be Lord and God Over All Teachers “Faith is and must be lord and God over all teachers” (Denn der Glaube ist und soll sein ein Herr und Gott über alle Lehrer.)78 In other words, faith is the judge of any doctrine. Sola fide reminds us, first and foremost, of a particular writing by Luther, entitled Treatise on Good Works,79 and at the same time, explains the Reformer’s virulent reaction against the Aristotelian philosophy that he did not wish to see studied in schools. In addition, starting from this principle, we become aware that Luther mainly wanted a reform of man, without which the reform of social institutions would not have made sense. This fundamental change of human mentality could only occur through faith, by God’s grace, sola fide, sola gratia. However, for man to be able to have faith, he needs to be able to read in order to know the redeeming message of the Scripture (sola Scriptura) and thus believe God’s promises. The relevance of sola fide to Luther’s pedagogical thinking is also perceptible from another angle. Education, pedagogy target children first, since they are the most in need of instruction. So, the Reformer explains, at a given point, that man is God’s child only by faith. And man, in his new quality of child of God, is put in the happy posture of being educated by his heavenly Father.80 Everything that is good from a religious, theological, and pedagogical point of view is put by Luther in connection to the principle sola fide, anything is good to the Christian through faith, in faith, on the basis of faith in Christ. Faith is a godly work in us that makes us to be born anew of God, which changes us and makes us new human beings. Considering the Epistle to the Galatians (3, 26), Luther explains the difference between Law and faith. Those who are God’s children dispose of a renewed nature, which makes the pedagogical importance of reforming the human being fully noticeable. Paul “does not say: ‘You are the sons of God because you are circumcised, listen to the Law, and keep its works,’ as the Jews imagined […]; but ‘through faith in Christ Jesus.’ Therefore the Law does not create sons of God; much less do human traditions. The Law cannot beget men into a new nature or a new birth […]. Thus it prepares us for the new birth, which takes place through faith in Christ Jesus”.81

2.3.3 God Would also Be Generous with His Gifts Sola gratia, just like sola fide, may explain the Reformer’s attitude towards medieval monasticism, and implicitly the medieval schooling system that he saw as corrupted by false teachings devoid of biblical justification. This principle, sola gratia, just like sola fide, targets human pride and hypocrisy; the man who imagines himself great and full of qualities, is in fact the opposite: the more important man believes 78 LE

8, 29. W2 , 12, 335–336. 44, 21–114. 80 Harran (1983: 117). LW 29, 155. WA 57 III, 151, 14–16. 81 LW 26, 351. 79 LW

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himself to be, the greater his faults in reality. This principle is meant to combat the wrong mentality of the human being, who imagines many times that he can achieve something good in his life on his own, without God’s help (grace), and earn his salvation through his own efforts, and be virtuous by himself. If salvation is by grace alone, it becomes ours through faith alone, through faith in Christ. The theocentrism of Luther’s theology and pedagogy is thus fully comprehensible. In his commentary on the Book of Psalms (51, 13), Luther declares that he is a teacher of God’s righteousness and therefore he is an opponent of an entire philosophy which favours human pride. God is just, God alone is righteous, and his righteousness will free us. The Reformer’s theological and pedagogical intentions are clear, as he aims at showing the right teaching that can lead man to conversion: “I will no longer teach human righteousness and human ways as the arrogant do, but rather the way of grace and of your righteousness. For thereby sinners come to you and are truly converted”.82 The fact that sola gratia structures Luther’s pedagogical discourse is also apparent in the Reformer’s view that only through good education, which is a gift from God, can the state of men and countries be improved. The Reformer’s sharpness is beyond doubt, he noticed that instruction and education have a significant impact upon the development of the entire society and that is why education is a fundamental responsibility of adults. God does not give us children “for our own pleasure and amusement”,83 was the Reformer’s opinion, and if they are “gifted”, then they should be allowed to study, as this is the only way that they can be useful to the entire community: “If we did this, God would also be generous with His gifts, and give us grace to bring up the kind of people who would benefit the country and the people”.84

2.3.4 If We Wish to Train Children, We Must Become Children with Them Solus Christus is an important principle not just theologically, but also pedagogically speaking, as from this point of view, solus Christus is closely related to soli Deo gloria. The Epistle to the Galatians (3, 24) states that the law was our pedagogue or tutor to lead us to Christ, “so that we may be justified by faith”. The schoolmaster plays exactly the same role, as his duty is to drive the young to Christ, says Luther when commenting on the verse above. From a pedagogical point of view, the principle solus Christus urges us to treat the young with more care, gentleness and love, as the entire religious education is an urge towards faith, kindness, humility, piety, respect, obedience, decency, and calm. It is downright absurd to imagine that religious education could be imparted by force or in a harsh manner. Christ mostly appreciates any activity whereby adults show their 82 Harran

(1983: 160). “Die sieben Bußpsalmen” (1517), WA 1, 192, 9–11. (1983: 61). 84 Luther (1983: 62). 83 Luther

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care for children, and in this case we are all called upon to behave onto the young ones as the Virgin Mary behaved towards Jesus when He was a child. “Therefore we should be more cautious and prudent with the young people, not speak or do all that we say or do otherwise. The heathen have well said: Youth must be regarded with the greatest reverence and honour. But Christ here preaches a still different thing, namely when we receive young children and minister to them, this pleases Him as much as if we carry Him in our arms in person, as the Virgin Mary carried Him. But how many are there, who do this?”85 There is one more aspect that Luther wants us all to take into account when he treats solus Christus as a pedagogical principle. By means of what was mentioned above, the adults were invited to treat kindly the young people they educate, taking example Mary’s behaviour towards her child, Jesus. In the following text, the Reformer advises adults not to be arrogant and despise the child’s natural wish to play, but instead take advantage of it to an educational purpose: “Let none think himself too wise for this and despise such child’s play” (Und lasse sich niemand zu klug dünken und verachte solch Kinderspiel.)86 Educators need to get close to children, not distance themselves from them, just like God, in order to teach us, did not stay far from us, but instead came down among us by the incarnation of His Son: “Christ, in order to train men, must needs become a man himself” (Christus, da er Menschen ziehen wollte, mußte er Mensch werden.)87 Taking as a model the incarnation of God, the pedagogue, to be efficient in his work, needs to become similar to the children he trains, get used to them and speak to them in their own language, just like God came down among us to speak to us in our own language: “If we wish to train children, we must become children with them” (Sollen wir Kinder ziehen, so müssen wir auch Kinder mit ihnen werden.)88 The Reformer shows that by instruction and education man becomes richer, spiritual wealth being by far the most important: “In a short time we would have a wealth of Christian people, souls becoming rich in Scripture and the knowledge of God […]”.89

2.3.5 We Cannot Adequately Repay the Gods, Our Parents, and Our Teachers If the salvation, just like any other good thing in our life, is a gift from God and not a result of our own efforts (sola gratia), then soli Deo gloria tells us that all of us should thank only God for his generosity towards us, as God is the source of anything good: “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of 85 Martin

Luther, Sermon on St. Michael’s Day, from Matt. 18, 1–10, W2 , 13 II, 2778–2779. Kretzmann (1940: 52). 86 “The German Mass and Order of Service” (1526), PE 6, 176. W2 , 10, 232. 87 PE 6, 176. W2 , 10, 232. 88 PE 6, 176. W2 , 10, 232. 89 PE 6, 176.

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the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows”. (James 1, 17) Man is urged to permanently act generously, lovingly, and with professionalism so that his entire life should be an honourable one: he, as a responsible being, should be worthy of the calling from above. Every man, irrespective of his profession, should have his thoughts aimed towards God in all he undertakes in his family and his profession: in the light of this principle, we understand why Luther asked parents and teachers to have a balanced attitude towards children, avoiding being too harsh, according to the example of God, our Heavenly Father and our Supreme Teacher, who shows love and mercy to us, His children and students, and never punishes us harshly for our daily mistakes. Through religious education man is made aware that the purpose of his life, which is on the one hand to serve God, and on the other hand, to make himself useful to his neighbours. Training and education cannot be performed casually, but according to the teachings in the Bible and only by teachers who are pious and have faith. The one educating children in fact educates the future parents, and this is the greatest responsibility of all educators, be they parents or schoolteachers. Besides, Luther gives warning, in his Commentary on Deuteronomy 6, 20, that nobody can be in God’s service except by faith. A good education feeds the memory of the educated and implicitly their gratitude to God: “He (Moses) commands the parents to be pious, to fear God and to serve Him in days of good fortune, and to believe in days of misfortune and to keep a pure faith, not only for themselves, but also for their children. The parents are to be the children’s schoolmasters, and the children are in the sequel to teach also others, are to instruct their descendants, that it be kept in memory how God led them out of Egypt”.90 No honest work is dishonourable, no activity may be looked down upon if it is an honest one, this is the message that the Reformer wants to send in this regard. Luther does not consider that the teacher’s activity is better or nobler than the handmaid’s taking care of the household, as each job has its degree of difficulty and is socially useful. It goes without saying that Luther holds the teacher’s occupation in high esteem, but he does not consider that it could be something that one could take pride in. Everyone is called upon to do his duty in his station in life, either as a worker with brawn, or as a worker with brain (as city secretary and schoolteacher).91 Luther’s attitude in this respect is a balanced one. Modesty does not prevent him from acknowledging the value of every profession, and when he makes the apology of work, he does not intend at all to underestimate the importance of study and research. He could not afford to praise only the activities that required physical effort, ignoring reading and writing, as it would have undermined his plea in favour of sending young people to school. “Some think that the office of writer is simple and easy, the real work is to ride in armour and suffer heat, cold, dust, thirst, and other discomforts. It is always the same story; […] everyone is aware only of his own problems […].

90 Kretzmann 91 Bainton

(1940: 22–23). (1955: 181–182).

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True, it would be hard for me to ride in armour; but on the other hand I would like to see the horseman who could sit still with me all day and look into a book”.92 Luther himself was a humble man, and many of the assertions in his vast work are proof of this, like in the following excerpt where he relates sola Scriptura to solus Christus and soli Deo gloria: “I simply taught, preached, wrote God’s Word; otherwise I did nothing. And then while I slept, or drank Wittenberg beer with my Philip and with Amsdorf, the Word so greatly weakened the papacy, that never a prince or emperor inflicted such damage to it. I did nothing; the Word did it all”.93 Luther worked, and preached, but the entire merit is God’s. And, as mentioned by Timothy George, Luther firmly refused that his followers be named after him, as he was not worthy of this special honour: “The first thing I ask is that people should not make use of my name, and should not call themselves Lutherans but Christians. What is Luther? The teaching is not mine. Nor was I crucified for anyone […]. How did I, poor stinking bag of maggots (armer stickender madensack) that I am, come to the point where people call the children of Christ by my evil name?”94 “Ist doch die lere nitt meyn”.95 “The teaching is not mine”. This statement is significant both theologically and pedagogically. Theologically, as it refers to sola Scriptura. Pedagogically, as both the preacher and the teacher are prompted to avoid subjectivity, and both are advised not to offer their fellow humans who they are teaching their own ideas and nothing more. From a theological and pedagogical point of view, the principle soli Deo gloria constitutes an urge towards respect and submission, soli Deo gloria is the principle of authority, observing the social hierarchy without which there would be no social order. Taking into consideration a certain commandment of God—“Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you” (Exodus 20, 12)—, Luther makes it clear that honour is not a word of lesser importance (geringes Wort), but quite the opposite. God did not command us, for instance, to love our parents or be submissive to them, but to honour them, and honour is not reducible to love, but it is above it. The Reformer makes a significant clarification in this respect: “Die Ehre streckt sich aber weiter aus denn die Liebe”,96 honour is more encompassing than love, as it means more than the latter. Hence, Luther believes, one can see the high appreciation that God has for parents, as “die Ehre gebührt allein Gott”. “Honor belongs to God alone”,97 this statement may become the motto of the entire Protestant theology, and the principle soli Deo gloria had a great influence on Luther’s speech regarding the parents’ importance in educating their children. God shares a part of the honour due to Him with parents, according to Luther: here on Earth, there is no greater rule over children than the rule of their parents: 92 LW

46, 249. Eight Wittenberg Sermons”, PE 2, 399–400. George (2013: 55). 94 George (2013: 54). “Eine treue Vermahnung zu allen Christen” (1522), WA 8, 685, 4ff. 95 WA 8, 685, 6. 96 W2 , 3, 1093. Kretzmann (1940: 31). 97 W2 , 3, 1093. Kretzmann (1940: 31). 93 “The

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“darum auch keine größere Herrschaft auf Erden ist denn der Eltern Herrschaft”.98 This conclusion is reached by the Reformer on the basis of the principle soli Deo gloria, which sort of sums up all the other principles mentioned above. The parents’ authority over children is completely special, it has something of the authority that the Heavenly Father has on His children, i.e. us, humans. This is also how he justifies the need for a good cooperation between school and family, as this partnership between the two institutions is mutually beneficial. Soli Deo gloria is the quintessential urge to action, involvement, responsibility, respect,99 decency. Soli Deo gloria means obedience towards God, the parents, the authorities. But this honour is not reduced to a certain mental attitude or reverential bodily posture. It means actual action, submission, obedience, help, just like the Reformer said: children owe it to their parents to help them if they cannot provide for themselves. To Luther, the names father or mother are sacred.100 Education within the family, the partnership between family and school are founded, in Luther’s pedagogy, on the biblical principle soli Deo gloria. If the honour that belongs only to God alone is somehow “rubs” onto the parents, then the honour due to parents is somehow “rubs” onto the teachers. Although he completely dislikes Aristotle’s philosophy, Luther quotes the Greek philosopher at some point, precisely to evince that men have all the reasons to be thankful to their parents. The order set by the Reformer is the following: divinity comes first, then parents come second, while teachers come third. Aristotle’s statement that Luther refers to has a deep theological and pedagogical meaning: “We cannot adequately repay the gods, our parents, and our teachers”.101 This statement shows once more how close the connection between theology and pedagogy is. And although the respect shown to parents and their honouring may be related to soli Deo gloria, we should recall once more that at the basis of these articles of faith is the principle sola Scriptura, and this latter one is the most important principle in Luther’s pedagogy. The Reformer signals in another text the terrible danger of ignorance and not having the knowledge of biblical teachings, or in a word, the lack of education. If the young people of today do not obey their parents or despise them altogether, then the explanation is the following: these rebellious children who refuse to honour their parents either have not heard the Word of God, or they know about it, but have not been taught to keep it.102 It is a warning that Luther sends us all across the centuries.

98 W2 ,

3, 1093. 2, 328: “Derhalben soll sich die Jugend wohl vorsehen und lernen, daß sie ihre Eltern in Ehren halten und ihnen gebührliche Ehrerbietung erzeigen”. 100 W2 , 2, 328. LW 44, 80ff. 101 Kretzmann (1940: 35). W2 , 7, 35: “Den Göttern, den Eltern, den Lehrmeistern kann man nicht gebührend vergelten.” See also Plass (1959: 1337): “I would briefly say that a diligent and pious schoolteacher or master or whoever the person is who faithfully trains and teaches boys can never be sufficiently rewarded and repaid with any money, as even the heathen Aristotle says.”. 102 Kretzmann (1940: 43). W2 , 13 II, 1732. 99 W2 ,

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References Bainton, R. H. (1955). Here I stand: A life of Martin Luther. New York, NY: Mentor Book. Dermange, F. (2009). La responsabilité. In J.-D. Cause & D. Müller (Eds.), Introduction à l’éthique: Penser, croire, agir. Geneva: Labor et Fides. Farner, O. (1954). Huldrych Zwingli. Bd. 3. Seine Verkündigung und ihre ersten Früchte (1520– 1525). Zürich: Zwingli Verlag. Farner, O. (1968). Zwingli the Reformer: His Life and Work. Translated by D. G. Sear. Hamden, CT: Archon Books. Figgis, J. N. (Ed.). (1906). Lectures in modern history by the Late Right Hon. John Emerich Edward, First Baron Acton. London: Macmillan. Gawthrop, R., & Strauss, G. (1984). Protestantism and literacy in Early Modern Germany. Past & Present, 104, 31–55. George, T. (2013). Theology of the Reformers (Revised ed.). Nashville, TN: B&H Publishing Group. Graham, W. A. (1987). Beyond the written word: Oral aspects of Scripture in the history of religion. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Harran, M. J. (1983). Luther on conversion: The early years. Ithaca and London: Cornell University Press. Hobbes, T. (1840). In W. Molesworth (Ed.), Works (Vol. VI). London: John Bohn. Holl, K. (1932). Was verstand Luther unter Religion? In Gesammelte Aufsätze zur Kirchengeschichte. Vol. I. Luther (6th ed.). Tübingen: J. C. B. Mohr (Paul Siebeck). Karant-Nunn, S., & Wiesner-Hanks, M. (Eds.). (2003). Luther on women: A sourcebook. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Kretzmann, P. E. (1940). Luther on education in the Christian home and school. Burlington, IA: The Lutheran Literary Board. Kvicalova, A. (2019). Listening and knowledge in Reformation Europe: Hearing, speaking and remembering in Calvin’s Geneva. Cham: Palgrave, Macmillan. Lotz, D. W. (1981). Sola Scriptura. Luther on biblical authority. Interpretation, 35(3), 258–273. Luther, M. (1970). Three Treatises from the American edition of Luther’s Works (2nd ed.). Philadelphia: Fortress Press. Luther, M. (1983). Luther’s Large Catechism. Anniversary Translation and Introductory Essay by F. Hebart. Adelaide: Lutheran Publishing House. Luther, M. (2006). On the bondage of the will. In E. Gordon Rupp (Ed.), Luther and Erasmus: Free will and salvation Translated by E. Gordon Rupp et al. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press. McGrath, A. E. (1985). Luther’s theology of the Cross. Oxford, New York: Basil Blackwell. Parker, T. H. L. (1992). Calvin’s Preaching. Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press. Plass, E. M. (Ed.). (1959). What Luther says: A practical in-home anthology for the active Christian. St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House. Preus, R. D. (1984). Luther and biblical infallibility. In J. D. Hannah (Ed.), Inerrancy and the Church. Chicago: Moody Press. Schaff, P. (1904). History of the Christian Church. Vol. VI: Modern Christianity. The German Reformation (2nd ed. revised). New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons. Scribner, R. W. (1986). The German Reformation. London: Macmilllan. Spears, P. D. (2012). Luther, protestantism, and education. In W. Jeynes & D. W. Robinson (Eds.), International handbook of Protestant education. Dordrecht: Springer Science + Business Media B.V. Troeltsch, E. (1911). Die Bedeutung des Protestantismus für die Entstehung der modernen Welt. München, Berlin: Oldenbourg. Watson, P. S. (1948). Let God be God! An interpretation of the theology of Martin Luther. London: The Epworth Press. Zachman, R. C. (1993). The assurance of faith: Conscience in the theology of Martin Luther and John Calvin. Minneapolis: Fortress Press.

Chapter 3

Work as Vocation. The Priesthood of All Believers

The religious reform(ation) and the reform of education were inseparable in the sixteenth century, which may prove harder to comprehend by the secularised man of today’s Western society. And the action of religious reform(ation) was successful in time for the very reason that it was supported by the schooling of the masses, thus decisively contributing to the cultural progress of the Western world. Luther had the great wisdom to maintain the permanent interconnection between School and Church. Although religion holds a central place in Luther’s thinking, the socio-economic, political, cultural or educational issues hold a less than marginal place in his work, being a natural result of the major interest he had in the Word of God. To Luther, theology is in many instances the premise he departs from in order to reach a conclusion that is significant from a pedagogical, social, political, cultural, or economic point of view. The attention that Luther granted to social issues is also noticeable in the fact that four of the many volumes of Luther’s Works (American Edition) include various writings of the Reformer whose topic is social, being entitled by the editor The Christian in Society I (LW 44), II (LW 45), III (LW 46), IV (LW 47). These four volumes include shorter or longer writings on marriage, the necessity to reform the state and the Church, the relation of the Church to the state, education in general, and Christian education in particular, secular and religious life, the attitude that Christians should have towards authorities, and certain economic and religious practices.

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020 M. Androne, Martin Luther, SpringerBriefs on Key Thinkers in Education, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-52418-0_3

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3.1 My Gospel Has Nothing to Do with the Things of This World In order to understand a theologian’s propensity towards pedagogy, we should first clarify the connection between theology and pedagogy, i.e. the role played by religion in the existence of a community. The following question is thus as natural as it can be in this context: does religion play an important role in developing a society, does it have practical effects? Can it change the course of history for the better? Is its influence on human life major or, on the contrary, less important? These questions were given various answers along history. Certain thinkers did not grant religion too much importance in society (Spengler, for instance) and as a result, they prioritised circumstances of economic, political and scientific nature, while others (like Max Weber), saw the religious faith as a powerful and creative force able to ensure progress. Karl Holl shows in The Cultural Significance of the Reformation, that at first sight Luther’s stance in this matter is closer to Spengler’s than to Max Weber’s (expressed in The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism): “My gospel has nothing to do with the things of this world. It is something unique, exclusively concerned with souls. To promote and settle the affairs of this temporal life is not a duty of my office, but of those called to this work, the emperor, the nobility, the magistrates. And the source upon which they must draw is not the Gospel, but reason, tradition, and equity”.1 In order to properly interpret Luther’s statement—“Mein Evangelium hat nichts zu schaffen mit den Dingen dieser Welt”2 —we should be initiated in his theology. It is beyond doubt that by these words the Reformer wanted to draw his contemporaries’ attention to the tremendous importance of Christian faith: to Luther, according to Karl Holl, religion is “the supreme (spiritual) value” (der Höchstwert),3 subordinating all the other worldly values that man operates with, including the economic, political or cultural ones. The Reformation had economic, political, educational effects, as well as philosophical and artistic ones that could hardly be neglected. The biblical principle guiding Luther in his entire activity, and explaining to a certain extent the specifics of his theology and pedagogy, is the following: “We must obey God rather than men”.4 Luther was an efficient reformer just because he had the power to closely follow, all through his life, the five theological and pedagogical principles stated above. Man muß Gott mehr gehorchen denn den menschen.5 This is the most important exhortation addressed by Luther to his neighbours, and it sums up his entire theological and pedagogical vision. The Protestant Reformation magisterially underlined the idea that all people live coram Deo, in the presence of God, and that is why cultural and 1 Holl

(1959: 25–26). (1932: 470). 3 Holl (1959: 26), Holl (1932: 470). 4 “Temporal Authority: To What Extent It Should Be Obeyed”, LW 45, 111. Acts 5, 29. 5 “Won weltlicher Oberkeit” (1523), WA 11, 266, 36–37. 2 Holl

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educational issues should be connected to religious issues. The nineteenth-century Dutch Calvinist theologian Abraham Kuyper has best captured this truth in one of his works, Calvinism: “God is present in all life, with the influence of His omnipresent and almighty power, and no sphere of human life is conceivable in which religion does not maintain its demands that God shall be praised, that God’s ordinances shall be observed, and that every labora shall be permeated with its ora in fervent and ceaseless prayer. Wherever man may stand, whatever he may do, to whatever he may apply his hand, in agriculture, in commerce, and in industry, or his mind, in the world of art, and science, he is, in whatsoever it may be, constantly standing before the face of his God, he is employed in the service of his God, he has strictly to obey his God, and above all, he has to aim at the glory of his God”.6 The Reformation mainly highlighted a certain message of the Scripture: man has no power to justify himself by his own means, by good works, as he is saved by grace, through faith,7 and to man, God (and his Word) is the supreme good. God is the Creator and the Ruler of the entire universe, our whole existence is regulated by Him: this is why to a theologian there are no secular affairs which are independent of the religious ones. Another great Dutch scholar who lived two centuries ago, a specialist in the theology of the Reformation, in general, and in Calvin, in particular, wrote in one of his articles that the salvific faith (fides salvificans) “renews the entire man in his being and consciousness, in soul and body, in all his relations and activities, and hence a faith which exercises its sanctifying influence in the entire range of life, upon Church and school, upon society and state, upon science and art”.8

3.2 The Secular Occupations The Protestant Reformation did not just intend to replace some old theological principles with new biblical ones; it did not just aim at changing a philosophy, perceived as 6 Kuyper

(1899: 62–63). 8. The Bible is fundamental to understanding the promises of God: “For where there is the Word of the promising God, there must necessarily be the faith of the accepting man. It is plain therefore, that the beginning of our salvation is a faith which clings to the Word of the promising God, who […] takes the initiative and offers us the word of his promise. […] First of all there is God’s Word. After it follows faith; after faith, love; then love does every good work […]. For anyone can easily see that these two, promise and faith, must necessarily go together. For without the promise there is nothing to be believed; while without faith the promise is useless, since it is established and fulfilled through faith.” “The Babylonian Captivity of the Church”, Luther (1970: 156, 160). Hence the remark made by the Reformer in the same work: no other sin can condemn the Christian apart from the unbelief (Luther (1970: 182)). If any man is saved sola fide, it logically ensues that he is condemned sola infidelitas/incredulitas. Unbelief is man’s greatest sin! It is a warning addressed by the Reformer to the secularized Western society across the centuries. 8 Bavinck (1909: 448). “Luther recognized education as a potent ally of religious reformation. He saw church, state, family, and school as crucial reform agencies. Luther recognized education as a potent ally of religious reformation. He saw church, state, family, and school as crucial reform agencies.” Ornstein and Levine (2008: 86). 7 Ephesians 2,

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obsolete, with a new, accurate one: the sixteenth-century reformers did not confine their activity to an ecclesiastical reform, but wanted to undertake “a moral reformation embracing the whole of life”.9 And such a moral reformation could not be performed without a solid religious education. Luther was an efficient reformer of the Church and the school just because he saw the acute need for the reformation of man: how can we change some institutions for the better unless we change the mentality of the people working for them? This previous mention should be kept in mind as such, as it is the focus of our interest. Reformers did not just concentrate only on the pious man, member of a community of faith, but also on the man who works, studies and is part of a family, holds a certain position in society and thus has certain professional and civic responsibilities. Luther treated man’s daily life with great seriousness and considered that the secular occupations, the professional activity (“beruflichen” Tätigkeit) constitute a vocation or calling.10 The work, the profession, the office, constitute a vocation: Luther, the innovator, has a doctrine on vocation. Man’s professional life is ordered by God, and this is all its dignity, and man is bound to lead a life that is worthy of the calling from above that was addressed to it. Luther, through his entire doctrine, wanted to provide his contemporaries and successors with a new perspective on human life and the mission of man in society. Through vocation, God institutes order in the world He created, and to Luther vocation is a principle of order that should reign everywhere in society: “Let the proper station and task be attributed to each person: let the preacher and bishop teach; let the prince rule; let the people obey the magistrate. In this way let every creature serve in its own order and place”.11 To Luther, responsible human being means vocation. “Every person surely has a calling”,12 a role in society, each member of a community serves God by devoutly fulfilling the tasks assigned to them: the king— to rule, the mother—to tend babies, the father—to provide for his family through his work, the pupil—to study, the child—to honour his parents. Every person has a calling, this is a message of great impact on the educational level! Vocation means closeness, solidarity, reciprocity, a place of responsibility. If in our time we keep talking more and more about teaching as vocation, mission, and profession, then it would be a good idea to investigate the origins of this conception. In his commentary on Galatians, Luther stresses the idea that “all the duties of Christians - such as loving one’s wife, rearing one’s children, governing one’s family, honoring one’s parents, obeying the magistrate, etc., […] are fruits of the Spirit”.13 In other words, the Reformer refuses to admit that certain occupations may be “spiritual”, while others not, he is not of the opinion that certain people are more “worthy” or more “spiritual” than others by virtue of their specific profession. In his work To the Christian Nobility of the German Nation, Luther refutes the obsolete 9 Bavinck

(1909: 461). (1920: 36), Weber (1950: 54, 194). 11 LW 26, 307–308. 12 LW 3, 128. 13 LW 26, 217. 10 Weber

3.2 The Secular Occupations

31

and hypocritical idea that people should be appreciated or despised according to the work they do. The Reformer’s ethics is really interesting, as he states that all activities are profitable and commendable: “It is pure invention that pope, bishop, priests, and monks are called the spiritual estate while princes, lords, artisans and farmers are called the temporal estate. This is indeed a piece of deceit and hypocrisy. Yet no one need be intimidated by it, and for this reason: all Christians are truly of the spiritual estate, and there is no difference among them except that of office. Paul says in I Corinthians 12 that we are all one body, yet every member has its own work by which it serves the others. This is because we all have one baptism, one gospel, one faith, and are all Christians alike; for baptism, gospel, faith alone make us spiritual and a Christian people”.14 We can see in the text above that Luther makes the apology of faith, and so we should mention once more that justification by faith alone is the centre of Reformation theology, the articulus stantis et cadentis ecclesiae, “the article by which the Church stands or falls”.15 The Reformer was convinced that without this article, man would be devoid of everything on the spiritual level, and without faith the entire world is enveloped in death and darkness: “Sine hoc articulo mundus est plane mors et tenebrae”.16 To Luther, all professions are holy, not by virtue of their specific elements, but because they represent a calling from God, or better said the gift of God. This simple statement contains yet another reassertion of the sola gratia principle. Each man dealing in his profession with diligence and faith serves God, practically obeying God’s commandment to make himself useful to his family and the entire society, as the Reformer claims in his work To the Christian Nobility of the German Nation. Luther and the other sixteenth-century religious reformers equated vocation to worldly endeavours, and thus they undermined the old practices of the medieval Catholic Church and the old medieval mentality in general. By reforming his time’s religious doctrine and practices, Luther most directly influenced the philosophy of family life as well: “simple people are led into error and misunderstanding of the divine command. Such people think that going on a pilgrimage is a precious good work. This is not true. It is a very small good work – frequently it is evil and misleading, for God has not commanded it. But God has commanded that a man should care for his wife and children, perform the duties of a husband, and serve and help his neighbour. Today a man makes a pilgrimage to Rome and spends fifty, maybe a hundred, gulden, something nobody commanded him to do. He permits his wife and child, or his neighbour at any rate, to suffer want back home”.17 Vocation is a way whereby God addresses man as a responsible being. Any activity is useful in a community if through it man is helpful to his neighbours, Luther shows in Freedom of a Christian, as society needs not only priests and bishops, but also farmers, 14 LW

44, 127. (2011: 15), Jüngel (2001: 18), Loofs (1917: 323ff), McGrath (1985: 23), McGrath (1986: 1), WA 40 III, 352, 3. 16 “Die Promotionsdisputation von Palladius und Tilemann”, WA 39 I, 205, 5. 17 LW 44, 170. 15 Jüngel

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merchants, teachers and soldiers, as all these play a role in procuring our daily bread. This significant aspect of the Reformer’s theology that is also very up-to-date is taken into account by Gustaf Wingren in his book Luther on Vocation, the next quotation helps us to better grasp why this doctrine is relevant to us, who live in the twentyfirst century, and hold in such high regard professionalism and hard work: “In his vocation man does works which effect the well-being of others; for so God has made all offices. Through this work in man’s offices God’s creative work goes forward, and that creative work is love, a profusion of good gifts. With persons as his ‘hands’ or ‘co-workers,’ God gives his gifts through the earthly vocations, toward man’s life on earth (food through farmers, fishermen and hunters; external peace through princes, judges, and orderly powers; knowledge and education through teachers and parents, etc.). Through the preacher’s vocation, God gives the forgiveness of sins. Thus love comes from God, flowing down to human beings on earth through all vocations, through both spiritual and earthly governments”.18 The concept of vocation is challenging and complex. Upon researching its history, by means of linguistic investigation, we get the chance to find new details on the history of Western culture, and consequently, on the cultural significance of the Reformation. This is an aspect that Karl Holl19 focuses on. In fact, the Reformation changed the world view (the Weltanschauung) from before the sixteenth century, evincing that it is not just the profession of the monk and the priest that constitute a sacred calling from above, but also the one of husband, wife, father, mother, son, daughter, ruler, subject, farmer, soldier, merchant, cobbler, smith, miner, magistrate, councillor, doctor, pastor, teacher, or scholar. If the concept of vocation is mostly secularised today, then to a great extent the explanation is to be found in the new philosophy of the Protestant Reformation. To a great extent and not entirely, as Luther highlighted in his works the religiosity of worldly vocations.

3.3 The Wordly Ascetism Monasticism and priesthood played a major role not just in the history of this word, but in Luther’s life as well; the Protestant Reformation is owed the existence of the modern concept of vocation, as due to this religious movement the term became more encompassing and acquired a new democratic meaning: through it Luther rejected clerical privileges. The ancient and medieval monasticism considered that total commitment to God presupposes the complete separation of the Christian from the world, and the attachment to God and his commandments was seen as involving the total detachment of man from the world and its temptations. Retiring from the world meant, to the monk, the renunciation of his old sinful life. 18 Wingren

(2004: 27–28). Man is body and soul/spirit, and just like he cannot possibly live in this world without one or the other, but has to give equal attention to each, society in its entirety cannot survive if it gives up physically active jobs or the science of the scholar. 19 Holl (1958: 126–154), Holl (1928: 189–219).

3.3 The Wordly Ascetism

33

Life in the desert, in the wilderness, solitude, poverty, and chastity, ascetic life is, according to the old religious mentality, the genuine Christian life, the most certain path to salvation: “O desert of Christ, burgeoning with flowers! O solitude, in which those stones are produced of which in the Apocalypse the city of the great king is constructed! O wilderness that rejoices in intimacy with God! What are you doing in the world, brother, you who are greater than the world? How long will the shadows of houses oppress you? How long will the smoky prison of these cities close you in?”20 To the old Western religious mentality, vocation has nothing to do with the secular occupation, and it is the privilege of a minority, of a select few who confided in their own strength, of a spiritual aristocracy: only the monk has a (special) call, Karl Holl writes, summing up the position held by the Church up to the Reformation. “Nur der Mönch hat eine κλÁσ ις ”.21 But gradually this conception begins to change, and some of the medieval theologians end up admitting a calling by God for laity as well. But at the time this was not meant to deny the high prestige that monks were held in around the period of the Reformation, and the monastic profession continued to be perceived during the Renaissance and the sixteenth century as something completely special, i.e. a “second baptism”,22 a new baptism; in his turn, Luther combats this idea in The Babylonian Captivity of the Church, as he sees it as lacking biblical foundation, as well as the manifestation of a sort of exclusivism, self-sufficiency and even pride.23 In enumerating all these aspects, it is not our intent to contest the value of ascetic life, all the more that Protestantism was itself seen as “worldly asceticism”, or, in Max Weber’s words, as “innerweltlichen Askese”24 ! But “worldly asceticism” does not mean separation from the world, but involvement and engagement in the world and for the world, solidarity and cooperation: this attitude change that occurred in the sixteenth century is of tremendous importance. Besides, it should not be ignored that the Protestant Reformation itself came into being within the walls of a cloister, as Luther was an Augustinian monk. But it is beyond doubt that Luther takes, alongside with his own person, vocation out of the cloister, opens it up towards the world and presents it to everybody: the vocation is no longer confined, in the sixteenth century, in the walls where monks lived and worked.

20 Jerome

(1963: 68). (1928: 192). 22 See in this respect Vuillaume (1991: 275–292). In any case, John Calvin mentions in his work Institutes of Christian Religion (IV, 13, 14), the fact that in his time monasticism was perceived as a second baptism and the monks considered themselves as different from the “ordinary Christians”. 23 “Others […] assert in addition that entrance into religious order is like a new baptism, which may afterward be repeated as often as the purpose to live the monastic life is renewed. Thus these votaries have appropriated to themselves all righteousness, salvation, and glory, and left to those who are merely baptized nothing to compare with them.” Luther (1970: 199). 24 Weber (1920: 84ff). 21 Holl

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Playing upon words, it can be said that the Protestant Reformation is a protest against monasticism perceived as an Aristotelian “individual achievement” (Sonderleistung Einzelner),25 a virtue that however is not within the reach of most population, but the merit of a select few, the commendable performance of a spiritual aristocracy. The Lutheran theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer could capture the epitome of this mentality in one of his books: “By thus limiting the application of the commandments of Jesus to a restricted group of specialists, the Church evolved the fatal conception of the double standard – a maximum and a minimum standard of Christian obedience”.26 In other words, it was wrong to believe that it is possible to be Christian with less effort and fewer sacrifices, without respecting certain extremely high standards. The high exigencies of Christianity are not optional to anyone, but are valid to an equal extent for everyone, irrespective of gender, race, profession, civil status, or social position. This is the initial rediscovery of the Reformation. Luther’s theology is revolutionary, and the repercussions of this revolution were huge. Leaving the cloister, Luther opened it up towards the world and reminded his contemporaries of the rigours of Christian life. He is a restorer of rigour and order. Dietrich Bonhoeffer expresses this truth best in The Cost of Discipleship: “Luther’s return from the cloister to the world was the worst blow the world had suffered since the days of early Christianity. […] The only way to follow Jesus was by living in the world. Hitherto the Christian life had been the achievement of a few choice spirits under the exceptionally favourable conditions of monasticism; now it is a duty laid on every Christian living in the world. The commandment of Jesus must be accorded perfect obedience in one’s daily vocation of life”.27

3.4 The Priesthood of All Believers The change of the meaning and implicitly of the relevance of the term vocation should be seen in the larger context of the new theology emerging after the year 1517, pleading on the one hand for justification by faith alone, and on the other hand, for the priesthood of all believers, two principles that were unknown to medieval Catholicism. Clothes do not make the man, nobody devotes themselves to God just because they happen to wear clerical clothing. Luther makes it quite clear in the work already mentioned before, To the Christian Nobility of the German Nation. No one is a Christian because they dress or shave their heads in a certain way, pronounce certain formulas or make certain ritualised gestures. The ritual of consecration has no power by itself, and there are no religious formulas with a magical efficiency. Luther refers to two biblical texts in the New Testament: I Peter 2, 9 and Revelation 5, 9–10.

25 Bonhoeffer

(1955: 40), Bonhoeffer (1985: 17). (1955: 40). 27 Bonhoeffer (1955: 42). 26 Bonhoeffer

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35

The change in the manner of perception of vocation in the sixteenth century needs therefore to be put in connection with the new Protestant doctrine of the priesthood of all believers. Luther does not take down the priesthood from the pedestal where Catholic and Orthodox theology put it, but plastically speaking, lifts the life of the ordinary man on the pedestal occupied, prior to the Reformation, only by the people with an ecclesiastical dignity. Luther does not debase, but valorises! He does not depreciate, but appreciates! He does not disregard, but shows all consideration to ordinary people who have faith and to secular occupations. He does not want to strip the clergy of their clothing, but dress all Christians in it, and discipline them and thus increase their responsibility. The clergy should not be given preferential treatment. Luther is in a manner of speaking the enemy of a certain kind of religious exclusivism devoid of biblical justification, which is, in addition, harmful to the entire society, including the family and school: “For whoever comes out of the water of baptism can boast that he is already a consecrated priest, bishop, and pope, although of course it is not seemly that just anybody should exercise such office”.28 “As far as that goes, we are all consecrated priests through baptism, as St. Peter says in I Peter 2 [:9]”. Dem nach szo werden wir allesampt durch die tauff zu priestern geweyhet, wie sanct Peter i Pet. ij. sagt.29 By this statement, Luther gets the maximum connection between the teaching work and the pastoral office, as they are both related to God’s Word, and makes the Bible their common foundation (sola Scriptura): “For we teach with the Word, we consecrate with the Word, we bind and absolve sins by the Word, we baptize with the Word, we sacrifice with the Word, we judge all things by the Word. Therefore, when we grant the Word to anyone, we cannot deny anything to him pertaining to the exercise of his priesthood”.30 Luther tried to close the gap between the teaching office and the pastoral office, without identifying or confusing them, without depriving each profession of its specificity. Any Christian has unrestricted access to the Word of God, but this does not entail that anybody can be a schoolteacher or a minister of God’s Word, capable of teaching others. Christians are equal among themselves by baptism, but not by the knowledge they dispose of, nor by their level of instruction and education. Priesthood of all believers may also be translated as priesthood of the baptised, but logically speaking, not all Christians are good at doing any job. Common priesthood does not entitle anyone to give theology lessons anytime and anywhere to an entire community, without being chosen to perform such a function. Universal priesthood does not cancel the order and discipline that should reign in society, and does not constitute an exhortation to anarchy. On the contrary, the priesthood of all believers is a Protestant principle of intellectual competence and the order that should reign in Church. “Christiani omnes sunt sacerdotes […]. Christiani habent omnes sacerdotium sed non omnes functionem, quanquam omnes possint docere, exhortari, tamen unus

28 LW

44, 129. 44, 127. “An den christ. Adel deutscher Nation von des christ. Standes Besserung (1520)”, WA 6, 407, 22–23. 30 LW 40, 21. 29 LW

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et alter audiendus, ut non simul loquantur”.31 All Christias are priests, they all have a priesthood, but not a priestly function. Any Christian can teach and exhort, but if all Christians did that at the same time, nobody would be put in the position to listen to the exhortations and obey them. “A priest is always toward someone else, toward a non-priest”.32 The phrase “universal priesthood” may be deceiving: “If everybody is a priest, no one is a priest”.33 But logically speaking, if some are called to speak, others are called to keep silent and mind the exhortations they are given: “What would happen if everyone wanted to speak or administer the sacraments and no one would yield to another?”34 This idea has a clear pedagogical relevance. We are not allowed to talk all at the same time. It is rude, as well as illogical and inefficient. The preacher speaks because his audience keeps silent. The audience is silent because there is a certain person imparting knowledge: the teacher conveys information, in his turn, because he was given this possibility by an open-minded class, interested in the message conveyed to them. Through baptism, nobody suddenly becomes a learned man, with good knowledge of the Bible, able to spread the Gospel and to administer the sacraments. In this way, all Christians, including women and children, become apt to baptise and absolve in an emergency.35 But baptism is no substitute for personal study and oratorical aptitudes. We are born priests, but we are not born qualified to be preachers and teachers: we become so by personal effort, by studying and attending school. Luther is explicit in this respect. “A Priest is not identical with Presbyter or Minister— for one is born to be priest, one becomes a minister”.36 Luther wishes that the doctrine referring to the priesthood of all believers should be understood correctly by all his contemporaries, and that is why he sends the following warning: “No individual can arise by his own authority and arrogate to himself alone what belongs to all”.37 Nobody can hold the pastoral office without the consent of his neighbours, Luther sees the pastoral office in purely functional terms: “Because we are all priests of equal standing, no one must push himself forward and take it upon himself, without our consent and election, to do that for which we all have equal authority”.38 Priesthood is a power that all Christians have, but no

31 “Vorlesung

über die Briefe an Titus und Philemon (1527)”, WA 9, 16, 17; 23–25. (1997: 278). 33 Nagel (1997: 278). 34 PE 5, 276. 35 “An non enim ingens hoc donum et gloria est, quod etiam mulier in nocessitate potest baptizare et dicere: Libero te a morte, Diabolo, peccato et omnibus malis, et dono tibi vitam aeternam, facio ex filio Diaboli filium Dei. […] ut etiam puer possit absolvere, et transferre de regno Diaboli in regnum Dei per nihil aliud, quam per verbum”. “Vorlesungen über 1 Mose von 1535–1545”, WA 44, 806, 23–25, 30–31. 36 LW 40, 18. 37 LW 40, 34. 38 LW 44, 129. 32 Nagel

3.4 The Priesthood of All Believers

37

Christian can use it, for a certain length of time, unless it is “by the consent of the community” (nisi consensu communitatis).39 The sola Scriptura principle, together with the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers requires all members of the Christian community to contribute everything they have cognitively, as well as educationally. Could this be an ideal desideratum, impossible to reach? After all, Biblical teachings can be misconstrued, and Alister McGrath makes an interesting point: “Although Luther initially appears to have favored the view that all individuals could and should read the Bible in the vernacular, and base their theology directly upon that reading, he subsequently became somewhat skeptical concerning the ability of Herr Omnes to interpret Scripture, not least as a result of the Peasants’ Revolt of 1525, which seemed to him to rest upon a most distressing misreading and misapplication of Scripture, fostered and encouraged by Anabaptist radicals with a clear political agenda”.40 Thus, the sola Scriptura principle should be analysed in the perspective of its connection with the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers. At some point, Luther states that in matters of faith every Christian is “his own Pope and Church”: “In his enim, quae sunt fidei, quilibet Christianus est sibi Papa et Ecclesia”.41 Each Christian is also a priest, each Christian is worthy of, and entitled to, unrestricted access to God and the biblical truth without other people’s mediation, and besides he ought not to spare any efforts in finding it, all the more that it is difficult to identify. Thus, each Christian should, in his quality as a priest, thoroughly study the Word of God and abide by it, as well as provide religious exhortations to his neighbours. To intercede for one another, to proclaim God’s Word to one another. The priesthood of all believers is a doctrine of solidarity, religious knowledge and education. Solidarity, as no one is priest to himself, knowledge, as it renders the in-depth study of the Bible into an imperative for each member of the Christian congregation. The priesthood of all believers under no circumstances authorises anyone to show self-sufficiency, arrogant subjectivism and arbitrariness, i.e. abusive, irresponsible behaviour. The fact that the priesthood of all believers is a strong exhortation to education, is visible in the following warning given by the Reformer: “Here we have the example of Eli, whom God, as shown in 1 Sam. 2, 30ff., punished and expelled from the priesthood, because he did not train his children with proper earnestness (daß er seine Kinder nicht mit Ernst gezogen hat)”.42 Besides, the priesthood of all believers is the epitome of a democratic, progressive, and equitable doctrine: each Christian has a duty to take an interest in the well-being of the Church, its judicious organisation and administration, all Christians have a word to say in ecclesiastic and doctrinaire issues. The clergy is not a sort of privileged caste that may avoid the control of common people, a sort of a state within a state. Luther accuses the Romanists of obstructing all attempts made in the past to reform the Church, as they claimed, on the one hand, that laymen (the temporal 39 “De

captivitate Babylonica ecclesiae praeludium (1520)”, WA 6, 566, 29. (2004: 130). 41 “Operationes in Psalmos” (1519–1521), WA 5, 407, 35–36. 42 Kretzmann (1940: 17). W2 , 10, 1643. 40 McGrath

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power) have “no jurisdiction over them”, and on the contrary, laymen would be completely subordinated to clerics, as the latter hold spiritual power. On the other hand, when certain voices contested the Romanists’ decisions and professed that their decrees have no connection to the Word of God, they replied that “only the pope may interpret the Scriptures”.43 And Luther’s theology is a staunch reaction to this mentality. He shows that the decisions of the councils are not a norm of faith, but only sola Scriptura, and the pope does not have the monopole on the interpretation of the Bible, as all Christians are priests; i.e. they have the duty to announce one another of God’s mercy for Christ’s sake through faith. But nobody is authorised to read and interpret the Bible instead of somebody else. The Reformation makes the transition from theological monologue to theological dialogue, which is democratic par excellence.

3.4.1 Priesthood of All Believers and Education Luther’s ideas on vocation and the (spiritual) priesthood of all believers allows a better understanding of his ideas on education and teaching both in school and within the family. Every Christian is a bishop in the specific domain where he exerts his responsibilities and asserts his competencies with dedication and diligence, including the educational ones. And just like bishops work together in a council and take decisions of common accord, so all Christians, who are bishops as well, have to support each other in their council called society. All people should work together as this is the only way that they can, each alone and all together, really fulfil the tasks ascribed to them. In a 1528 sermon, Luther highlights the educational role of the family, and supports the need for a close cooperation between family and school, as well as between the family and the Church. Luther opines that any preaching is useless without the support of parents, more specifically of the fathers who are lords and bishops in their families: “Nam nisi vos parentes et domini nos adiuveritis, nos parum efficiemus nostra praedicatione. […] Quisque pater familias in sua domo est Episcopus […]”.44 Parents, or rather fathers, are the rulers of their families and, like it was already seen, they have not only material obligations, but also spiritual obligations. Luther resumes the main idea in the previous text and develops it on another occasion, showing that pater familias has the duty to behave as a bishop, as well as a preacher in his family, or in other words as a teacher to his children.45

43 LW

44, 126. Abendmahl” (1528), WA 30 I, 57, 12–13–58, 8–9. 45 WA TR 2, 617, 10ff., no. 2726a, b. 44 “Das

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39

3.4.2 Education as Biblical Mandate Luther put training and education to the service of vocation. School is an institution of utmost importance in a civilised society, as it turns boys into men capable of filling a public office, and girls into women able to devote themselves successfully to their domestic responsibilities.46 Education is a commandment of God. The Scripture is impregnate with educational imperatives: in his treatise To the Councilmen of All Cities in Germany That They Establish and Maintain Christian Schools (1524), and which F. V. N. Painter considered “the most important educational treatise ever written”,47 Luther shows that education is a biblical mandate. God urged parents through Moses to educate the youth, and the same exhortation is found in Psalm 78, 5–6: The Lord “decreed statutes for Jacob and established the law in Israel, which he commanded our ancestors to teach their children, so the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born, and they in turn would tell their children”.48 Education means transmission of knowledge and experience from a generation to another, from adults to young people, i.e. from those with more knowledge and experience to those with less: in the Judeo-Christian tradition children’s training is a noble responsibility for the parents, a sacred calling. Those who educate their offspring thus prove that they mean well for the latter: “This is why God has entrusted them to us who are older and know from experience what is best for them”.49 Children are educated by the elderly as they cannot educate and protect themselves. The Bible urges parents to teach their children, and to the same extent, it urges children to ask their parents to teach them. People’s responsibility varies according to their age. If adults have the duty to explain and provide answers, the young have the duty to ask and search for answers, to allow being taught, obeying their elders. According to Luther, there is no education without epistemic curiosity (desire for knowledge) and discipline: “This is also evident in God’s fourth commandment […]. This is also why Moses commands in Deuteronomy 32 [7], ‘Ask your father and he will tell you; your elders, and they will show you’”.50 Luther, highlighting the biblical importance of education (sola Scriptura), gives his contemporaries and followers a warning which evinces once more that education is a moral responsibility of the old towards the young, and shows that it is the young’s moral responsibility towards themselves: “I also think that in the sight of God none among the outward sins so heavily burdens the world an merits such severe

46 LW

45, 368. (1889: iii), Eby and Arrowood (1946: 82). 48 Cf. LW 45, 353. God gave parents a particular command, i.e. everyone should “diligently teach” their family, according to Calvin; the Latin text is the best expression of the concept of education as divine mandate: Peculiare tamen interea mandatum datur patribus, ut singuli suas familias sedulo erudiant. CO 31, 723. 49 LW 45, 353. 50 LW 45, 353. 47 Painter

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punishment as this very sin which we commit against the children by not educating them”.51 Luther explains why a lot of parents, whom he calls carnal-minded and worldly hearts, are not interested in educating their children, and are not concerned with their souls, but only with the temporary welfare of the youth. These uneducated materialistic parents consider that only the priests, monks, or nuns need schooling; thus, if the youth in the German lands no longer wish to follow an ecclesiastical career, then they no longer need to study too much, but strictly what is necessary for them to earn a living. The sixteenth-century Reformers criticised learning institutions supported by the Catholic Church, considering them as completely ineffective and even harmful. However, common people who have never take a favourable view of learning, considered that, rather than receive a wrong kind of education, the youth would be better off receiving little or no education at all. And it is precisely against this mentality that Luther takes stand, under the circumstances when the old schooling establishments started to be reformed through the Word of God (sola Scriptura), turning from devil’s training centres into Christian schools52 : in these renewed schools the young people “have come to maturity in the knowledge of God, and who spread His word and teach it to others”.53 An educated man is an educator; this is the great strength of education, according to Luther. Besides, the Reformer purports, if before the citizens had to provide financial support to cloisters, after these were closed, they imagine no longer having any sort of financial obligations. But Luther claims that if before the citizens were compelled by the authorities to spend large amounts of money on maintaining nonChristian institutions, they should, with the advent of Protestant reforms, manifest their gratitude to God and work for His glory, willingly contributing to the maintenance of schools where the poor children are rightly trained.54 Through this type of arguments Luther subordinates the need for the financial support of schooling to the soli Deo gloria principle. Trying to explain the anti-education attitude of the masses and the reluctance of common people to financially support education, Luther implicitly evinces the need for the change of mentality, and the reformation of man and the entire society. Many parents consider that if they gave life to their children they no longer have any obligation towards them. These parents could not educate their children even if they wanted to, and those who know how to educate their children do not have enough time, as domestic chores take up all their time. These would be in need of hiring a private tutor, but few can afford to. Many parents, living in poor conditions, have an untimely death, and the education of the orphans is left unattended. As for those who

51 LW

45, 353. 45, 352. 53 LW 45, 350. 54 LW 45, 350–351. 52 LW

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do not have children, they are completely uninterested in education and its financial support.55

3.4.3 The Gender Education Under these circumstances, the Reformer asks in his writing To the Councilmen of All Cities in Germany That They Establish and Maintain Christian Schools that education should be supported by the authorities, as it is only through education that human nature can be improved, and society may make progress: this is one of fundamental ideas Luther’s pedagogy. Man can change for the better by schooling, the study of the Bible and languages, enabling him to know God’s Word (sola Scriptura). That is why Luther advocated school education for boys and girls, as it is only through education and training that we may have “capable men and women”56 : men able to govern the society, women capable of making the most important decisions in the household. The education the Reformer desired is differentiated according to gender, and boys are favoured from this point of view: in his opinion school education should be focused on the boys. Luther pleads for creating schools for girls to replace the old convents where girls used to be educated. In these new schools, girls learnt how to read and write, and dealt with the study of religion, languages, music, mathematics, literature, and history.57 Luther’s pedagogical conservatism is obvious: the Reformer opines that boys should spend at most two hours every day attending school, and in the remaining time they should learn a trade or deal with other chores at home. Girls, on the other hand, should go to school for an hour daily, and the rest of the day should be devoted to housework.58 To put it differently, boys should study more, and girls less, as people have different social responsibilities, according to their gender. In Luther’s vision, children should be schooled for a longer or shorter time according to their talent: the most capable should be oriented towards an educational or a clerical career.59 Luther urges the authorities and the teaching staff to pay attention to children’s skills and help them put these to good use. “The exceptional pupils, who give promise of becoming skilled teachers, preachers, or holders of other ecclesiastical positions, should be allowed to continue in school longer, or even be dedicated to a life of study”.60 The Reformer’s attitude towards women is complex, even ambiguous. It is certain that he was not the supporter of full equality between men and women.61 Women used 55 LW

45, 355. 45, 368. 57 Stjerna (2009: 45). 58 LW 45, 370. 59 LW 45, 371. 60 LW 45, 371. 61 Classen and Settle (1991: 231ff). 56 LW

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to be marginalised, and this situation did not suddenly and fundamentally change at the emergence of the Protestant Reformation. By exceptional pupils Luther definitely meant a small number of gifted boys who could attend secondary schools and universities (an opportunity that was not available to girls, according to Mary E. WiesnerHanks).62 Women, even if denied access to positions of ecclesiastical authority,63 could still have a pedagogical career, in teaching the little girls publicly.64 The fact that they could educate not just their own children, but also the children of other people, is much more clearly expressed in the German text, whose English rendition can be found above: by exceptional pupils Luther mainly referred to boys, but did not completely exclude girls from this category of exceptional children who deserved to be given the opportunity to study more and for a longer period of time: “Wilche aber der ausbund dar unter were, der man sich verhofft, das geschickte leut sollen werden zu lerer und lerreryn, zu prediger und andern geystlichen emptern, die soll man deste mehr und lenger da bey lassen odder gantz daselbs zu verordenen…”.65

3.4.4 Should Women Preach? The Reformer’s attitude towards women’s role in the Christian congregation was an ambivalent one. As compared to the previous centuries, his view is a step forward. 1. Catholics rely on a certain biblical verse (1 Corinthians 14, 34) not only to forbid women from preaching in Church, but also to contest the validity of the doctrine called the priesthood of all believers. Thus, Catholics claim that preaching “cannot be common to all Christians, because women are excluded”.66 But so are handicapped, speechless, and incompetent persons, and this however is not a valid argument to challenge the validity of this Protestant doctrine. The preacher should be a competent and gifted person (sola gratia), with “a good voice, good eloquence, good memory”.67 Apostle Paul, in order to maintain order and discipline in Church, forbids women from preaching in a Christian congregation, if it already contains men “skilled in speaking”.68 2. Luther, in the same work entitled The Misuse of the Mass opines that in general, men are better orators than women, and that is why the former are given precedence. But things change when in a congregation there is no man apt to preach: in this case it is necessary that women preach.69 62 Wiesner-Hanks

(2000: 88). 5, 276. 64 Wiberg Pedersen (2010: 193). See also Titus 2, 3–5. 65 “An die Ratherren aller Städte deutches Lands” (1524), WA 15, 47, 13–16. 66 LW 36, 151. 67 LW 36, 151. 68 LW 36, 152. 69 LW 36, 152. 63 PE

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Therefore, the interdiction for women preaching to others is not an absolute one. And the assertion that women must remain silent in churches needs accurate interpretation. In fact, when the preacher preaches, the rest of the Christians should remain silent, no matter if they are men or women: it is only in these circumstances that the audience may pay attention to the preacher’s words and the preacher has the actual possibility to speak. “What a fine model I imagine that would be, for anyone to have the right to interrupt a preacher and begin to argue with him!”70 Luther has a lot of admiring words for women71 and considers that they play an active role in Church, even if in most cases they are not called to preach publicly. If women keep silent in the churches, it does not mean that they are passive and only the preacher is active: “they may pray, sing, praise, and say ‘Amen,’ and read at home, teach each other, exhort, comfort, and interpret the Scriptures as best they can”.72 That Luther urges women to read and interpret the Bible and only allows them to preach under special circumstances shows, on the one hand, the deep meaning of the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers, as contrary to the exclusively male priesthood,73 and on the other hand, the importance of the preacher’s competence in the Reformer’s eyes. In A Sermon on Keeping Children in School, Luther notes that although the pastoral office “is the highest and the chief of all”,74 it was not considered so highly in the past: it used to be considered that the priest, who was male, was allowed to say mass, even if he was so ignorant, that he could not preach a word in front of the believers.75 But Luther opines that such an ignorant man should not have access to the priestly office. To Luther, what it matters most eventually is the preacher’s competence and conscientiousness, irrespective of the gender. A learned woman endowed with oratorical talent is more valuable than an ignorant and speechless man. In fact, Luther purports that a woman who studied in the new Protestant schools is more knowledgeable than a man who attended the old unreformed universities: “It is especially easy in our day to train persons for teaching the gospel and the catechism because not only Holy Scripture but also knowledge of all kinds is so abundant, what with so many books, so much reading, and, thank God, so much preaching that one can learn more now in three years than was formerly possible in twenty. Even women and children can now learn from German books and sermons more about God and Christ […] than all the universities, foundations, monasteries, the whole papacy, and all the world used to know”.76 Luther does not mean that if in a Christian congregation there is no man apt to preach, nobody will preach. A skilled woman may preach in certain circumstances,

70 LW

40, 388. (1959: 1457). 72 LW 40, 391. 73 Mattox (2009: 254). 74 LW 46, 221. 75 LW 46, 221. 76 LW 46, 232. 71 Plass

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but an intoxicated,77 retarded or ignorant man may not. Through this view Luther opened the possibility of women’s ordination in the Protestant churches—to happen a few centuries later.

3.4.5 And What More Can Still Be Said? Luther focused repeatedly on the fact that Church and school are the two fundamental institutions of society. If God Himself has established the spiritual estate, Christians should not allow it to disappear completely: “If you will not raise your child for this office, and the next man will not, and so on, and no fathers of mother will give their children to our God for this work, what will become of the spiritual office and estate?”78 The Church can survive only with the help of school, and the Christian faith may be preserved and disseminated only by means of education. If all Christians are priests, then all should be concerned with the future of the Church. Schooling the young should be the responsibility of both parents to an equal extent. Luther addresses men and women, fathers and mothers, urging them to allow kids to attend school and study, so that the pastoral office should not perish: children belong to God to a greater extent than to their parents, and only by learning can they serve God79 (soli Deo gloria). Luther states that all children should be allowed and encouraged to study, and all parents should want above everything else that their offspring become good Christian pastors (although admittedly it is not possible, nor is it desirable, that all children should become pastors). But even if not all children become good Christian pastors, through education they get the great opportunity to become good Christians and function better in family and society life.80 Knowledge and study do not prevent man from earning a living; quite the contrary, they help him lead a better life.81 With the emergence of Protestantism the number of parishes increased considerably, and so did the need for pastors and sacristans.82 If they choose to become pastors, young people can earn a living from their pastoral activity (1 Corinthians 9, 14; Luke 10, 7–8).83 If they do not want to join the clergy, they may work in state administration. By providing financial help to school and the Church, adults are only taking care of the future of their children who are going to work for these two institutions, or in state administration later on.84 And if some 77 LW

40, 388. 46, 222. 79 LW 46, 223. 80 LW 46, 231. 81 LW 46, 231. 82 LW 46, 234. 83 LW 46, 233. 84 LW 46, 243. 78 LW

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parents send their children to school, it does not mean that other parents are allowed to keep their children at home, thus preventing them from studying: “It does not help your case to say, ‘My neighbor keeps his son in school, so I don’t need to.’ For your neighbor can say the same thing, and so can all the neighbors”.85 No society needs uneducated rebellious people, behaving rudely. Instead, society is in great need of scholars: preachers, jurists, pastors, writers, physicians, schoolmasters, rulers.86 Luther tirelessly pleads in favour of education, evincing its advantages or virtues. Education is not a goal in itself, as an educated man lives better than an uneducated one. That is why Luther even wonders at some point: “And what more can still be said?”87 An educated young man has a bright future ahead, and is extremely useful to his neighbours. In fact he has a bright future because he is useful, here and now, to the other people, contributing to their material and spiritual well-being.88 Sponsoring education is the best investment for the future anyone can make; education is the symbolic place where honour meets generosity and sacrifice. In A Sermon on Keeping Children in School, Luther tries to provide his contemporaries with all the possible arguments in favour of schooling children, especially boys, and financing education: many times he resumes the same idea by means of different wording, precisely to be more persuasive. Anybody studying his work may reach the conclusion that Luther is the greatest Protestant advocate of education in the sixteenth century. He points out that sponsoring schools is a good work: “how much more should you rejoice if you have raised a son for this office of preaching in which you are sure that he serves God so gloriously, helps men so generously, and smites the devil in such knightly fashion? You have made of your son such a true and excellent sacrifice to God that the very angels must look upon it as a splendid miracle”.89 God performs miracles through education. Luther briefly describes the beneficial effects of education as follows: it turns sinners into saints, dead men into living men, saves the damned, and turns devil’s children into God’s children. The office of preaching has a protective role in society, as it is due to it that man lives in harmony with his neighbours and does not lead a bestial kind of existence90 : it “protects a man’s body so that no one may slay it; it protects a man’s wife so that no one may seize and defile her; it protects a man’s child, his daughter or son, so that no one may carry them away and steal them; it protects a man’s house so that no one may break in and wreck things; it protects a man’s fields and cattle and all his goods so that no one may attack, steal, plunder, or damage them”.91 Man’s life and possessions are firstly protected by the preacher’s word and the writer’s pen, and only after by the knight’s sword, according to the message Luther sends in his writing A Sermon on Keeping Children in School. 85 LW

46, 223. 46, 256. 87 LW 46, 228. 88 LW 46, 227. 89 LW 46, 229. 90 LW 46, 238. 91 LW 46, 237. 86 LW

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3.5 Deus Dedit Officium, Ut Servias Protestantism erases the old distinction between the sacred and the secular, and the removal of this separation has an educational impact. Protestantism does not desacralise the sacred, but instead sacralises what the Middle Ages perceived as secular. Vocation is redefined and becomes unlimited, the world becomes the space where all people can serve God equally well and to an equal extent, irrespective of their actual professional, familial and political duties. In this respect, in a plastic expression, it may be stated that Protestantism closes down the old Catholic cloisters, as it turns the entire world into a giant cloister, with a new architecture and a new mission. This closing down of old cloisters is undoubtedly part of Luther’s program of institutional reform: “A general destruction of cloisters and other institutions would be the best reformation in this respect”.92 Commenting the first book of the Old Testament Luther notes that “what seem to be secular works are actually the praise of God and represent an obedience which is well pleasing to him”.93 From this point of view, the Reformer shows his opposition to a certain discrimination of religious nature, and in this case it is only legitimate to speak of the modernity of his thinking. “Therefore, just as those who are now called ‘spiritual,’ that is, priests, bishops, or popes, are neither different from other Christians nor superior to them, except that they are charged with the administration of the word of God and the sacraments, which is their work and office, so it is with the temporal authorities”.94 The ones in priestly clothes are not different from their neighbours by “status”, but only by their actual work.95 By means of an analogy Luther points out that the diversity in society does not exclude the existence of a common goal, and progress is not possible without the ideal of cooperation and mutual help. Diversity means not incompatibility, but complementarity, and the following text evinces, among others, the ethical dimension of the Reformer’s thinking, combating individualism, and praising altruism. Luther opines that nobody should only follow their own interest, as anybody with such a wrong attitude is actually making a disservice to themselves, as long as all of us live in society, are social beings par excellence, and cannot survive on our own. Hard work has social usefulness and a religious meaning: “A cobbler, a smith, a peasant – each has the work and office of his trade, and yet they are all alike consecrated priests and bishops. Further, everyone must benefit and serve every other by means of his own work and office so that in this way many kinds of work may be done

92 LE 7, 100. “Eine gemeine Verstörung aller Stifte und Klöster wäre hierin die beste Reformation”

W2 , 12, 88. 93 Martin Luther, Commentary on Genesis 13, 13, quoted by McGrath (2012: 257). 94 LW 44, 130. 95 “It follows from this argument that there is no true, basic difference between laymen and priests, princes and bishops, between religious and secular, except for the sake of office and work, but not for the sake of status.” LW 44, 129.

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for the bodily and spiritual welfare of the community, just as all the members of the body serve one another”.96 Luther sees all professions as related. In any case, this thinking paradigm is common to the entire Protestant Reformation, and Protestantism distancing itself from the ideal of monastic life is also explainable from this point of view as well, as Protestantism sees monasticism as a sort of sectarianism.97 And Luther, starting from the biblical conception referring to universal priesthood, knows too well that the priest exists for others and not for himself,98 and God calls nobody to live selfishly, but to be helpful to others. By claiming the priesthood of all believers Luther promoted popular education and this is one of his greatest merits. That is why it is no surprise that many of his successors praise him, highlighting his innovative ideas and their beneficial influence on the progress of the entire society. A case in point is Thomas Lindsay who, at the beginning of the twentieth century, wrote the following about the Reformer: “For he was the first to plead for a universal education—for an education of the whole people, without regard to class or special life-work. His firmest thought was that no village should be without its school. He inspired the German people with the desire to give their children as good an education as possible, and, after all, the creation of a living desire that can grow and make itself felt is the root of the matter”.99 Just like Karl Holl says, Luther’s attitude is sometimes ambivalent, but it can be accounted for by taking into account the sola fide principle: the Reformer is no adept of monastic life, but on the other hand does not oppose it too strongly. Although he values family life and the love between parents and children, he does not condemn celibacy absolutely.100 He does not consider that laymen, ordinary men with families and children, are necessarily superior to those who are unmarried. If there is a different valorisation of people from a Christian point of view, then the differentiation criterion is not the clothes they wear or their marital status, or the work they perform in society, but their faith in God. But it can be presumed that Luther could not help loving marriage more than celibacy, not only because he gave up the latter himself, but mostly because in 96 LW

44, 130. facts themselves tell us that all those who enter into the monastic community break with the church. Why? Do they not separate themselves from the lawful society of believers, in adopting a peculiar ministry and a private administration of the sacraments? If this is not to break the communion of the church, what is? […] By erecting a private altar for themselves, what else have present-day monks done but broken the bond of unity? For they have both excommunicated themselves from the whole body of the church and despised the ordinary ministry by which the Lord willed to preserve peace and love among his people. For every monastery existing today, I say, is a conventicle of schismatics, disturbing the order of the church and cut off from the lawful society of believers. And that this separation should not be obscure, they have taken upon themselves various names of sects.” Inst., IV, 13, 14. 98 “Denn ein Priester ist nich für sich, sondern für andere da.” Holl (1928: 216). 99 Lindsay (1900: 238). 100 “Marriage is good, virginity is better, but liberty is best.” Bainton (1955: 156). “Bonum coniugium, melior virginitas, sed optima fidei libertas.” “Themata de Votis” (1521), WA 8, 330, 29. Through this statement the Reformer reconfirms the dignity of marriage, but not to the detriment of virginity: the sentence above leads to the conclusion that any man is free to decide if he should get married or not. 97 “The

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The Freedom of a Christian he portrayed Christian love so beautifully, describing the justification of the believer as a spiritual union, as a symbolic marriage between the believer (who is a sinner) and Christ (who is righteous), a marriage to the exclusive benefit of the Christian. Man cannot achieve salvation by remaining in a state of spiritual celibacy, but only through this mystical marriage alluding to two of the principles of the Protestant Reformation, i.e. sola fide and solus Christus: “Christ is full of grace, life, and salvation. The soul is full of sins, death, and damnation. Now let faith come between them and sins, death, and damnation will be Christ’s, while grace, life, and salvation will be the soul’s; for if Christ is a bridegroom, he must take upon himself the things which are his bride’s and bestow upon her the things that are his”.101 Besides, like Philip Schaff writes, Luther showed his appreciation for marriage on another occasion, and behind his statement there is the sola Scriptura principle: “Next to God’s Word, there is no more precious treasure than holy matrimony”.102 This idea should be insisted upon, as Luther mentions it several times in his writings. The Reformer does not completely despise monasticism, as he was a monk himself for quite a long time, but at the same time, in the Babylonian Captivity of the Church, he never recommends that anybody should adopt such a lifestyle as superior to the others. Every man is free to do so or, on the contrary, to avoid such a manner of leading his life. But, after all, it would be better to avoid it. The practices of men are equal in his eyes, and what matters to the Reformer is not just work in itself, but first and foremost the inner belief of the person performing an activity to the benefit of the whole society and not just to the benefit of a small group. To Luther, the important issue is the motivation of the worker, the certainty that he has a noble mission to carry out, coming from God, the hidden thought that constitutes the intimate engine of all his actions. Sola fide! What matters to the Reformer is that by the work he does man in fact gladly submits to the commandments of God. Luther looks up to the daily occupations of those who are not part of the privileged class: the work of the ordinary farmer, of the woman in her household, of the maid, of the male/female domestic servant. The maidservant works hard, she is useful to the others, is in the service of her neighbours. The Christian, irrespective of his/her social position or profession, should be, symbolically speaking, a manservant or a maidservant, and this clarification is in the spirit of Luther’s theology and ethics, and serves to a better comprehension of his doctrine on education, and consequently the nobility of the teaching profession. Therefore, Luther holds in high respect the activity of these “domestic servants”. The work to the benefit of the whole society is an act of faith, and behind this idea there are the principles of sola fide and soli Deo gloria. The maidservant’s work is above the priest’s activity, if the latter lacks the faith, Luther writes in The Babylonian Captivity of the Church.103 These observations made by the Reformer are worth including in any work of pedagogical deontology and education philosophy. 101 Luther

(1970: 286). (1904: 461). 103 WA 6, 541, 8–9. 102 Schaff

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The practical activity that lacks inner conviction serves human self-glorification and feeds pride and hypocrisy, Luther adds in the same work. The works and the vows are nothing in God’s eyes if they are devoid of faith! The monk, just by living in a cloister, does not prove that he has vocation or should be praised for his lifestyle. Hence, Luther makes an observation that has obvious educational significance, advising parents not to take advantage of the tender age of their children, and their ignorance, not to abuse their dominant position in the family, treating them despotically, and abusively establishing their future without taking into account their own preferences, deceiving their good faith and traumatising them mentally, turning them into their slaves. Such behaviour is not only immoral, but it is also illegal. The following quotation is longer, but it is absolutely suitable in this respect: “For instance, it is simply foolish and stupid for parents to dedicate their children, before birth or in infancy, to the ‘religious life’, or to perpetual chastity; indeed, it is certain that this can by no means termed a vow. It seems to be a kind of mockery of God for them to vow things which are not at all in their power. […] Still less do I understand at what age vows may be taken in order to be legal and valid. I am pleased to find unanimous agreement that the vows taken before the age of puberty are not valid. Nevertheless, they deceive many young children who are ignorant both of their age and of what they are vowing. They do not observe the age of puberty in receiving such children; but the children, after making their profession, are held captive and consumed by a troubled conscience as though they had afterward given their consent”.104 As a conclusion to all these above, it should be restated that by taking vocation and himself out of the cloister, Luther turns all man’s occupations into a vocation. Any profession is to him God’s call, including the profession of the teacher, which Luther relates to sola Scriptura and solus Christus. Luther points out that the teacher is called by God to public activity, and that is what constitutes the nobility and usefulness of the teaching activity: “Nobody produces fruit by means of the Word unless he is called to teach without wishing for it. For One is our Teacher, Jesus Christ (Matthew 23, 10). He alone, through His called servants, teaches and produces fruit. But the man who teaches without being called does so to his own harm and that of his hearers, because Christ is not with him”. (Nemo fructificat verbo, nisi qui sine suo voto vocatur ad docendum. Unus est enim Magister noster Iesus Christus. Hic solus docet et fructum facit per vocatos servos suos. Qui autem non vocatus docet, non sine damne et suo et auditorum docet, quod Christus non sit cum eo.)105 The Reformer took vocation out of the cloister to introduce it in school, the household, and the merchant’s stall. Anybody, irrespective of their position in society, should do their duty, bearing in mind the good of their neighbours. Luther is explicit in this respect in his Commentary on Galatians, revealing once more that the soli Deo gloria principle is applicable not only in theology, but in pedagogy as well. No matter if someone is a preacher, magistrate, husband, tutor, disciple, he must fulfil

104 Luther 105 Harran

1–4.

(1970: 205). (1983: 127). “In epistolam Pauli ad Galatas commentarius” (1519), WA 2, 454, 40–455,

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his vocation.106 And nobody should be puffed up on the grounds of his position in society, nobody should take pride in his learning and knowledge, as anybody who takes pride in being a teacher or a scholar is no better than the villager living in his hamlet, but rather below him, as the latter goes to heaven, while the former goes to hell. Nobody should consider himself as above his neighbours, as all people, no matter the profession in which they had received their training, are God’s creatures, and nobody should be proud about belonging to a certain social class, Luther writes in a sermon in 1544.107 God gives us an office not to take pride in it and use it in our own benefit, but to be useful to others, the Reformer adds: “Deus dedit officium, ut servias”.108 It would be great if these words of the Reformer could be the motto of the teaching profession in the whole world! But all the same this formula could be adopted as the motto of a country’s government, the trade of physicians, jurists, or volunteering organisations. Vocation means responsibility, involvement, cooperation, mutual aid, solidarity, altruism, lack of compromise, conscientiousness, diligence, professionalism, attachment and dedication, personal engagement, refusal to live one’s life in comfort and deceit. Vocation means fighting for the truth. Being responsibility, vocation is “a total response of the whole man to the whole of reality”.109 The interpretation of the previous definition given by the Lutheran theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer is as follows: “If, for example, I am a physician, then in the concrete instance I serve not only my patients but also medical science and with it science and the knowledge of truth in general. Although in practice I perform this service at my concrete position, for example at the bedside of a patient, yet I am continuously aware of my responsibility for the whole, and it is only in this that I fulfil my calling. Furthermore, it may happen that I, as a physician, am obliged to recognize and fulfil my concrete responsibility no longer by the sick-bed but, for example, in taking public action against some measure which constitutes a threat to medical science or to human life or to science as such”.110 The quotation is representative for the Protestant mentality of the past and the present. We are responsible and have concrete duties to carry out just because we have a certain position within a group. That is why ethical discourse is mainly addressed to the old and not to the young, to the parent and not to the child, to the teacher and not to the pupil, to the judge and not to the judged, to the leader and not to the led, to the preacher and not to the layman111 : the ethical discourse is destined to the one who is in a position to influence the others’ life. 106 WA

40 I, 210, 16–18: “Hic, si es praedicator, magistratus, maritus, praeceptor, discipulus etc., non est tempus tum audiendi Evangelium, sed legem, ibi servito vocationi.”. 107 WA 49, 607, 5–8: “Ich soll denken: Habes donum dei et doctor. Si superbus: tum paganus auff dorff, qui non tibi par, sed grosser, et sic ipse geu himel, ego zu hell. Si princeps, edelman, bauer, burger wil stoltziern, cogita: Deus non creavit solum princepes, edellent, menner, quid hochest?”. 108 WA 49, 610, 8. 109 Bonhoeffer (1962: 226). 110 Bonhoeffer (1962: 225). 111 Bonhoeffer (1962: 239).

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Work is appreciated by the Reformer not necessarily for its economic usefulness that can be measured by mathematical calculations, but mostly because it means concrete manifestation of love for our neighbours, and is at the same time a conclusive expression of our obedience to God. “If you are a manual labourer, you find that the Bible has been put into your workshop, into your hand, into your heart. It teaches and preaches how you should treat your neighbour”.112 To Luther, vocation is a function of God’s grace. It is an issue that pertains to the spiritual nature rather than to the physical constitution of the human being; its scope is the heart, and not just the hand that actually does the work. Vocation belongs to the field of faith, it is related to man’s conscience, to his personal beliefs. To Luther, promoter of the principles sola fide and soli Deo gloria, professionalism, zeal, conscientiousness, responsibility, are all the expression of faith, its manifestation. It is to be understood in this case that when aiming at man’s spiritual, moral restoration through faith, Luther implicitly tried to revitalise the humans’ professional zeal, humility, and responsibility, and this is the logical conclusion that can be drawn from the analysis of the following statements by the Reformer: when a schoolmaster, a scholar “abides in his vocation, and does his duty therein faithfully (maneat in vocatione sua ac in ea probe et fideliter officium suum faciat), not troubling himself with those works which pertain not to his vocation, he may glory and rejoice in himself; for he may say, I have done the works of my vocation appointed unto me by God, with such faithfulness and diligence as I was able. Therefore I know that this work, being done in faith and obedience to God, pleaseth God”.113 It would be no mistake to consider that the theology of the Protestant Reformation is a theology of ministry. As previously seen, Luther combines in his discourse two aspects that seem complete opposites and mutually exclusive: freedom and servitude. In this respect he expresses himself much more clearly in The Freedom of a Christian, a short text where Luther identifies the essence of genuine freedom—the Christian one—and provides the most poetical definition ever given to the Christian. The freedom the Reformer refers to is of divine origin, and it does not exclude submission. The following text is not explicit in itself and can only be accurately interpreted by someone with knowledge of philosophy, the Christian doctrine, in general, and Protestantism in particular. However, it is obvious that a cultivated man, even if not initiated in Protestant theology, may realize after the careful examination of the following statement, that Luther possesses a dialectical understanding of Christian freedom: “A Christian is a perfectly free lord of all, subject to none. A Christian is a perfectly dutiful servant of all, subject to all”.114 The Christian is free to serve, not to selfishly satisfy his own interests and lead a comfortable life. Freedom is of utmost importance to Luther, in his quality of reformer 112 LW

21, 237. (2001: 553). “In epistolam S. Pauli ad Galatas Commentarius” (1535), WA 40 II, 153,

113 Luther

14ff. 114 Luther

(1970: 277). “Eyn Christen mensch ist eyn freyer herr über alle ding und niemandt unterthan. Eyn Christen mensch ist eyn dienstpar knecht aller ding und yderman unterthan.” “Von der Freiheit eines Christenmenschen”, 1520, WA 7, 21, 1–4. See 1 Corinthians 9, 9.

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of religion and education: it cannot be denied that neither religion nor education may exist in the absence of freedom. Man cannot develop physically, intellectually and spiritually in slavery: that is why Luther rejected medieval despotism and denounced the enslaving character of the old religious practices. His religious and educational reform(ation) was meant to be a release from slavery. A “manumission” of the man who has a family life, is a member of a congregation and belongs to a certain professional association. In fact the Protestant Reformation, in its entirety, mainly aimed at man’s emancipation through faith and knowledge, or in other words, through education.

References Bainton, R. H. (1955). Here I stand: A life of Martin Luther. New York, NY: Mentor Book. Bavinck, H. (1909). Calvin and common grace. Princeton Theological Review, 7(3), 437–465. Bonhoeffer, D. (1955). The cost of discipleship. Translated by R. H. Fuller. London: SCM Press. Bonhoeffer, D. (1962). Ethics, edited by E. Bethge. Translated by N. H. Smith. New York, NY: Macmillan. Bonhoeffer, D. (1985). Nachfolge. München: Chr. Kaiser Verlag. Classen, A., & Settle, T. A. (1991). Women in Martin Luther’s life and theology. German Studies Review, 14(2), 231–260. Eby, F., & Arrowood, C. F. (1946). The development of modern education in theory, organization, and practice. New York, NY: Prentice-Hall. Harran, M. J. (1983). Luther on conversion: The early years. Ithaca and London: Cornell University Press. Holl, K. (1928). Die Geschichte des Wortes Beruf. Gesammelte Aufsätze zur Kirchengeschichte. Vol. III: Der Westen. Tübingen: J. C. B. Mohr (Paul Siebeck). Holl, K. (1932). Die Kulturbedeutung der Reformation. Gesammelte Aufsätze zur Kirchengeschichte. Vol. I. Luther (6th ed.). Tübingen: J. C. B. Mohr (Paul Siebeck). Holl, K. (1958). The History of the Word Vocation (Beruf). Translated by H. F. Peacock. Review & Expositor, 55(2), 126–154. Holl, K. (1959). The cultural significance of the Reformation. Translated by Karl and Barbara Hertz and J. H. Lichtblau. Clevland, OH, New York: Meridian Books. Jerome. 1963. Letters. Translated by C. C. Mierow, introduction and notes by T. Comerford Lawler. Vol. I, Letters 1–22. New York, Newman Press. Jüngel, E. (2001). Justification, the heart of the Christian faith: A theological study with an ecumenical purpose. Translated by J. F. Cayzer, with an Introduction by J. Webster. Edinburgh, New York: T&T Clark. Jüngel, E. (2011). Das Evangelium von der Rechtfertigung des Gottlosen als Zentrum: Eine theologische Studie in ökumenischer Absicht (6th ed.). Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck. Kretzmann, P. E. (1940). Luther on education in the Christian home and school. Burlington, IA: The Lutheran Literary Board. Kuyper, A. (1899). Calvinism: Six lectures delivered in the theological seminary at Princeton. New York, NY: Fleming H. Revell Company. Lindsay, T. M. (1900). Luther and the German Reformation. Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark. Loofs, Friedrich. (1917). “Der articulus stantis et cadentis ecclesiae”. Programm der theologischen Fakultät der Universität Halle-Wittenberg zum 31 Oktober 1917. Theologische Studien und Kritiken, 90, 323–400. Luther, M. (1970). Three Treatises from the American Edition of Luther’s Works (2nd ed.). Philadelphia: Fortress Press.

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Luther, M. (2001). Commentary on Paul’s Epistle to the Galatians. Lafayette, IN: Sovereign Grace Publishers. Mattox, M. L. (2009). Luther on Eve, women, and the Church. In Timothy J. Wengert (Ed.), The Pastoral Luther: Essays in Martin Luther’s practical theology. Grand Rapids, MI, Cambridge: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. McGrath, A. E. (1985). Luther’s theology of the Cross. Oxford, New York: Basil Blackwell. McGrath, A. E. (1986). Iustitia Dei: A history of the Christian doctrine of justification. From 1500 to the present day. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. McGrath, A. (2004). The intellectual origins of the European Reformation (2nd ed.). Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing. McGrath, A. E. (2012). Reformation though: An introduction (4th ed.). Malden, MA: WileyBlackwell. Nagel, N. (1997). Luther and the priesthood of all believers. Concordia Theological Quarterly, 61(4), 277–298. Ornstein, A. C., & Levine, D. U. (2008). Foundations of education. Boston, New York: Houghton Mifflin Company. Painter, F. V. N. (1889). Luther on education, including a historical introduction and a translation of the reformer’s two most important educational treatises. Philadelphia: Lutheran Publication Society. Plass, E. M. (Ed.). (1959). What Luther says: A practical in-home anthology for the active Christian. Saint Louis: Concordia Publishing House. Schaff, P. (1904). History of the Christian Church. Vol. VI: Modern Christianity. The German Reformation (2nd ed. revised). New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons. Stjerna, K. (2009). Women and the Reformation. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing. Vuillaume, C. (1991). La profession monastique, un second baptême? Collectanea Cisterciensia, 53, 275–292. Weber, M. (1920). Die protestantische Ethik und der Geist des Kapitalismus. Gesammelte Aufsätze zur Religionssoziologie. Vol. I. Tübingen: J. C. B. Mohr (Paul Siebeck). Weber, M. (1950). The Protestant ethic and the spirit of capitalism. Translated by T. Parsons, with a Foreword by R. H. Tawney. New York, London: Charles Scribner’s Sons-George Allen & Unwin Ltd. Wiberg Pedersen, E. M. (2010). A man caught between bad anthropology and good theology? Martin Luther’s view of women generally and of Mary specifically. Dialog: A Journal of Theology, 49(3), 190–200. Wiesner-Hanks, M. E. (2000). Christianity and sexuality in the early modern world: Regulating desire, reforming practice. London, New York: Routledge. Wingren, G. (2004). Luther on vocation. Translated by C. C. Rasmussen. Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock Publishers.

Chapter 4

The Reform(ation) of the Church, School, and Person

The rapid spread of the Protestant Reformation from Wittenberg throughout Europe went hand in hand with the development of the educational reform. Luther wanted the state to support the school because, this way, it would also indirectly support the Church too: this is a fundamental idea of the Reformer’s educational policy.

4.1 Iuventus Est Seminaria Ecclesiae Luther’s views on the importance of education can be briefly expressed through one of his statements. Luther notices that the flourishing of the Christian religion depends on the progress of education, and his observation is not without grounds. The reform of religious teachings and that of education are basically two sides of the same coin: “Es ist auch keyn großer schad der Christenheit, dan der kinder vorseumen. Dan soll man der Christenheit widder helffen, so muß man furwar an den kindern anheben, wie vortzeyten geschah”.1 The Reformer claims, in the above text, quoted in German, which we shall paraphrase here, that there is no greater evil for Christianity than neglecting children’s education, and if we want to revive Christianity, then we need to elevate children from their present pitiable condition. It is beyond doubt that Luther places education in the service of the Christian faith; in other words, he makes education the most effective means of propagating the new Christian confession. Education is for the Reformer the expression of personal devotion of all those who play a part in training the youth for life: parents, educators, and state authorities. Luther regards education as a religious duty of every Christian and of the society as a whole; in his view, Christians are the best citizens of a state. There is strong interrelatedness between the Church and the school—when the school thrives (wenn Schulen zunehmen), everything is as it should be, and the 1 “Ein

Sermon von dem ehelichen Stand” (1519), WA 2, 170, 14–16.

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020 M. Androne, Martin Luther, SpringerBriefs on Key Thinkers in Education, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-52418-0_4

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Church flourishes as well (die Kirche bleibt rechtsschaffen).2 In the time of the Protestant Reformation, the school becomes a nursery of sorts for the ecclesiastic staff; the Reformer states that schools are of utmost importance to the Church, as they have a protective role: “When schools are growing, then […] the Church is safe” (Cum scholae crescent, tum […] ecclesia est salva.). Without educated young people, the Church has no future, as school is the nursery of the Church: Iuventus est seminaria ecclesiae. Ultimately, schools are proof of the existence of divine providence, since “God has preserved the Church through schools” (Deus servavit ecclesiam per scholas), or in other words, “schools conserve the Church” (scholae sunt conservatrices ecclesiae.)3 Luther sets the new mission of the Protestant school and, accordingly, recommends the recruitment of pastors and preachers from schools; with the emergence of Protestantism, the school becomes a religious institution more relevant than any council. This verdict of the Reformer is truly telling: schools are more useful to the Christian world than councils. Luther believes that the increase in the number of schools would determine the increase in the number of churches too: “Schulen müssen Pfarrherren und Prediger geben […]. Aus Schulen muß man Pfarrherren und Prediger nehmen, die müssen Kirchen bauen und erhalten. Schulen und Pfarren sind besser denn die Concilia”.4 It is not far-fetched at all to claim that Protestantism made education a means of its development and territorial expansion. Owing to the Reformers in general and to Luther in particular, the connection between the two institutions tightens, and the number of schools grows fast in the Protestant territories—the advancement of education went on alongside the expansion of the new faith. In these learning institutions, education had strong religious accents and would excel in what moral discipline was concerned. This aspect is undoubtedly a positive one: the progress of the West in the last centuries is unconceivable without the reforms imposed by Luther, Calvin, and Melanchthon in the sixteenth century.

4.2 A Sacred Ark Reformers, in general, and Luther, in particular, were aware that the progress of knowledge is not supported by monastic learning but relies on the foundation and implementation of a public school network, which is the reason why they aimed to establish a universal and public schooling consisting of primary school, secondary 2 W2 ,

22, 1537. TR 5, 239, 30–35, no. 5557. See also Plass (1959: 1337): “A pastor and schoolteacher plant and raise young trees and saplings in the garden. Oh, they have a precious office and work and are the finest jewels of the Church; they preserve the Church”. “Von den Konziliis und Kirchen” (1539), WA 50, 617, 18–21. 4 W2 , 22, 1522. 3 WA

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school, and university. Luther, also known as the “Father of Public Education”,5 was familiar with the humanist ideas of the time and, as any other scholar during his age, was versed in writing in Latin. With his vernacular translation of the Bible, he contributed to the development of modern German.6 It is not in the least surprising that the Reformer insisted that Latin, Greek, and Hebrew be taught in schools, because he believed that foreign languages help the youth to better know their native tongue,7 to understand the great writers of the Antiquity, who were also good orators, and also the Bible and the whole Christian theology: “The languages are the sheath in which this sword of the Spirit [Ephesians 6, 17] is contained; they are the casket in which this jewel is enshrined”.8 By knowing the Bible and how to read and write, anyone could discern truth from falsehood in doctrine matters. For Luther, the foreign languages are “a sacred ark”.9 One conclusion can be easily drawn from here: if foreign languages are not taught in education institutions, then the very perpetuation of the Gospel is imperilled, and the survival of the Christian faith is endangered. Speaking foreign languages was of utmost importance for the Reformer, being in close connection with the salvation of souls.10 Luther knew how to emphasise the religious importance of philology. He placed classical culture in the service of the Church and the state. The educational programme of Luther and Melanchthon included reading, writing, theology, history, languages, natural sciences, mathematics, philosophy, music, literature. Literacy, with the emergence of the Protestant Reformation, “had been accepted as the key to true faith and possible salvation”.11 Luther (re)discovered the saving power of the letters, and the following statement is not, as some may be tempted to believe, a stereotypical view, but we all should perceive the great educational strength of sola Scriptura in it: “Protestantism was a vital force toward the propagation of literacy among the populace in the West”.12 The study of foreign languages could help the youth to better fathom the study of Christian doctrine and thus to increase its accessibility to the general public and the common people through translations, independently of clerical mediation, thanks to the print technology, although the latter’s influence should not be overstated, if we take into consideration the high percentage of illiterate and semi-illiterate

5 Hibler

(1985: 302). Reformer’s academic activity went beyond the confines of a certain confession or religion. Catholic theology, hostile to Luther, could not afford to ignore the Reformer’s cultural merits: “Its linguistic merits were indisputable; its influence on national literature most potent. Like all his writings in German, it was the speech of the people; it struck the popular taste and charmed the national ear. It unfolded the affluence, clarity, and vigour of the German tongue in a manner and with a result that stands almost without a parallel in the history of German literature”. Ganns (1913: 447). 7 Holl (1959: 113). 8 LW 45, 360. 9 LW 45, 360. 10 LW 45, 367. 11 Luke (1989: 136–137). 12 Graff (1987: 135). 6 The

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people in the sixteenth century.13 “The pedagogical endeavour of the Reformation presupposed a society whose members were, or were being trained to be, readers”.14 At the same time, knowledge of the classical authors’ eloquence was compulsory for all those who, while not being a part of the German nobility or the privileged elite, aimed to become successful preachers/teachers, thus contributing to the spread of the Reformation. Culture becomes, with the emergence of the Protestant Reformation, indispensable for the training of the future Church and state leaders, an idea that is evident in some of Luther’s writings, such as To the Councilmen of All Cities in Germany That They Establish and Maintain Christian Schools, Instructions for the Visitors of Parish Pastors in Electoral Saxony, the School Ordinance from the Würtemberg Church, Ordinance—1559: this last text clearly states that “by these studies children may become capable theologians (rechter Theologi) and may be trained in other highly necessary arts, civil government, official duties, and domestic matters”.15 If Luther lamented for the past and the present because he saw them imbued with corruption, superstition, ignorance, and illiteracy, he also realised that, without remedying this deplorable state of affairs, the German society had no future or, better said, had a dark one ahead. “Without the knowledge of letters pure theology”, writes the Reformer in letter in 1523, “I am persuaded, will in the future be unable to flourish, as in the past it has most miserably fallen and lain in ruins whenever literature has declined”.16 Notwithstanding, the Protestant Reformation did not exclusively promote the study of theology, philology, liberal arts, and music, the latter being praised as “the divine and most delightful gift” (die göttliche und überaus herrliche Gabe) and “next to the Word of God” (nach dem Worte Gottes), the “mistress and governess of feelings” (die Herrin und Regentin der menschlichen Herzensbewegungen)17 —but also recommended the study of history. It is through this subject that the Christians could construe, on the one hand, God’s intervention in the life of human society and, on the other hand, the complexity of the social and political changes. History teaches us useful things, the writers who recorded the deeds of the past (Historienschreiber) are, in fact, our best and most useful teachers (allernützlichen Leute und besten Lehrer 18 ). “Truly, if there were no other benefit connected with the languages, this should be enough to delight and inspire us, namely that they are so fine and noble a gift of God, with which he is now so richly visiting and blessing us Germans above all other lands”.19 If school subjects are a blessing, a divine gift, then study as such is a blessing, just like education is a blessing and a divine gift, not just for each individual, but the entire society, as seen in the previous quote. Studying is a noble 13 Scribner

(1984: 237). (1981: 104). 15 Eby (1931: 215), Vormbaum (1860: 69). 16 McGiffert (1911: 269). 17 “Vorrede auf die Gefänge vom Leiden Christi”, W2 , 14, 428. 18 W2 , 14, 378. 19 LW 45, 358. W2 22, 1543. 14 Strauss

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activity, which is not just useful to man, but also gives him pleasure. Luther mentions on another occasion “the pure pleasure a man gets from having studied, even though ne never holds an office of any kind”20 and laments, at the same time, that few people have managed to get to know this pleasure of studying: “for there are perhaps very few people who are moved by this pleasure”.21 God’s gifts are not meant to sadden man, but cause him joy. Study is not just pleasurable, but also useful, and this usefulness is not merely religious. The German Reformer did not overlook the important contribution that pagan Antiquity had in developing Western culture. God shows his generosity not only towards Christians, but the entire human race. Art and science are God’s gift, and that is why their transmission to the future generations through school is to man a vocation, a sacred calling. This idea is even better evinced by John Calvin: “What then? Shall we deny that the truth shone upon the ancient jurists who established civic order and discipline with such great equity? Shall we say that the philosophers were blind in their fine observation and artful description of nature? Shall we say that those men were devoid of understanding who conceived the art of disputation and taught us to speak reasonably? Shall we say that they are insane who developed medicine, devoting their labor to our benefit? What shall we say of all the mathematical sciences? Shall we consider them the ravings of madmen? No, we cannot read the writings of the ancients on these subjects without great admiration”.22 As already shown before, Luther does not contest the merits of pre-Christian thinkers, but at the same time he does not share all their opinions. The Reformer’s opposition to Aristotle’s philosophy is obvious: “For what one does for one’s own sake, for the sake of friends, or on account of virtue is not unfree, but someone who does the same thing for others would often be held to be acting like a hired laborer or a slave”.23 Luther firmly rejects Aristotle’s view, stating that vocation means a loving relationship and not selfish distancing, altruism, and individualism, and our deeds are good only if they serve our neighbours, and not only ourselves: “Findiftu eyn werck an dyr, das du gott odder seynen heyligen oder dyr tzu gutt thuest und nit alleyn deynem nehisten, so wisse, das das werck nit gutt ist”.24

20 LW

46, 243. 46, 243. 22 Inst., II, 2, 15. 23 Aristotle (1998: 228) (8.2). 24 “Adventspostille (1522)”, WA 10 II, 41, 5–7. 21 LW

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4.3 A Sound Doctrine and a Right Order “Alle Gebiete der Kultur hat die Reformation im Lauf der Jahrhunderte befruchtet”.25 “The Reformation, in fact, enriched all areas of culture”.26 This statement of Karl Holl also quoted in the original is undoubtedly important, but it is just an introduction to Luther’s theology and pedagogy: an author should be judged, earnestly, by his own words! Our undertaking sets out from a common sense premise: if the educational system of a given country, no matter how civilised it may be, is not perfect but in constant need of improvement, if in the democratic countries of the Western cultural space is a permanent discussion on the need of a reform in education,27 why would not the Germany of the sixteenth century need such a reform? An all-encompassing reform, to counterbalance the general moral decay of the society? It is certain that Luther was aware of its necessity and constantly pleaded in favour of the reform(ation), while also having the means to act effectively in this respect. In 1527, while visiting the existing schools to see their state, Luther “was profoundly moved by the dense ignorance and indifference, gross immorality and spiritual destitution which prevailed everywhere”.28 General moral decay could only be fought with the help of an all-encompassing reform(ation), one able to reinstate man as a moral, decent, disciplined, and responsible being. Luther realised that man’s change for the better could only happen through his spiritual resurrection, through faith, sola fide. The word is the commencement of change. At first, Luther sounded the alarm by showing the deplorable state of the German nation. Then, he identified the concrete measures in view of overcoming the generalised crisis, thus paving the way towards modern-based education, one that regulated and standardised the school practices and also disciplined the teachers’ behaviour. It is not without importance that the authorities of Württemberg, after Luther, were bothered by the diversity of the instructive–educational activity in schools, as this diversity was for boys (Knaben) rather a “hindrance” than “help”. For this reason, they decided to eliminate this uncomfortable situation through administrative measures, and consequently imposed “a uniform school ordinance” (ein gleichmessige Schulordination), so that the preceptors (Praeceptores) be able to “regulate everything” (alle richten) and not modify a thing by their own will. Thus, there would have been perfect harmony in all schools (alle Schulen auff ein ander correspondieren).29 Taking a leap over time, we see that it is not in the least surprising that the great German Protestant philosopher, Immanuel Kant, after having stated in his Lectures on Pedagogy that the human being was “the

25 Holl

(1932: 542). (1959: 151). 27 Marin (2012: 159ff). 28 Eby and Arrowood (1946: 87). 29 Eby (1931: 215), Vormbaum (1860: 69–70), Luke (1989:120ff). 26 Holl

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only creature that must be educated”, also stressed the great importance of discipline: “Discipline or training changes animal nature into human nature”.30 Not only do the school or the Church have a mission in this respect, but also the family, which is the first called upon to discipline the youth. The family cannot elude their responsibilities, and not only should they care for the child’s body but also for his soul—Luther is trenchant in his sermons in this respect. The Reformer would have rather had a dead son than a disobedient one: “Ich wollt lieber einen todten denn einen ungezogenen Sohn haben”.31 It may be the case that Luther had a certain biblical verse in mind when he uttered this statement; therefore, once again, he abided by the sola Scriptura principle: “A foolish child is a father’s ruin […]. Discipline your children, for in that there is hope; do not be a willing party to their death” (Proverbs 19, 13 and 18). Discipline, in Luther’s view, is not tyranny; he recommended parents to avoid extremism, while also advising them to be not too indulgent—to leave the children do how they please, for example—nor excessively severe, as both attitudes are counterproductive and contradict Christian teachings. “Parents commonly are guilty of the ruin of their children. They usually make a mistake in two directions, either by excessive coddling and indulgence, or through excessive severity and animosity. On both sides a proper restraint must be practised”.32 Parents hold authority over their children, but it must be balanced. Neither parents nor children should forget that the authority of the father over their children comes from God (das Recht der Väter über die Kinder rührt von Gott her)33 : children should be obedient to their parents, and parents should avoid excesses in exercising their authority and to prefer treating the younger with love, as God treats us, human beings, who are His children. In Luther’s view, discipline is part and parcel of piety, as results from the commentary he makes to a text from the Old Testament (Joel 1, 2–4). According to Luther, pious teachers do not only directly deal with children’s education but are bound to give good advice to parents too, in what concerns the way in which they should treat their young ones: “pious teachers (gottselige Lehrer) must admonish parents frequently in public sermons, that they show this care for discipline in the home (häusliche Zucht), and they must stimulate them by promises as well as by threats, also by examples and verses of Holy Writ, in order that they may not neglect their office in this respect. For that is truly a nursery of piety and the mainspring of discipline if young people are in this manner faithfully instructed by their parents at home”.34 As already shown, Luther himself conformed to this requisition. Luther showed special interest to discipline and order, as two indispensable ingredients of his envisioned reforms. The following statement is truly suggestive: in his view, man cannot become better without being disciplined at home and at school. In

30 Kant

(2007: 437). TR 5, 489, 11, no. 6102. 32 “Exposition of 1 John 13, 14”, W2 , 9, 1543. Kretzmann (1940: 38). 33 W2 , 9, 1543. 34 Kretzmann (1940: 57). W2 , 6, 1500. 31 WA

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other words, school plays a fundamental role in man’s reformation, in his improvement: “A teacher punishes his pupil, not to do him harm but to do him good. Of course, the rod is harsh; but the discipline is extremely necessary for the boy, and the intention of the punisher is friendly and sincere. Thus a father punishes his son, not to ruin him but to improve him”.35 Naturally, this is not a singular statement of Luther’s. The following text is meant to facilitate a better comprehension both of the previous text and of the importance that Luther places on discipline. The evil should not go unpunished, and it ought not to be tolerated. The state authorities, the pastors, and preachers, as well as the parents have the duty to not treat the evil leniently, but to try to restrain it. Each and every Christian is called upon to admonish his neighbour that behaves improperly, without hating him or trying to have his revenge. The lack of leniency is not at all compatible with the love that we are called upon to show others. By manifesting our outrage at our wrongful neighbour, we are, in fact, trying to improve him. When parents punish their obstinate and disobedient children without casting them away from home or hating them, they show that they only want to reform (Besserung) the youth.36 Discipline was therefore indispensable for the moral reform and for the reform of human nature that Luther had in mind. The German reformer’s perspective on the love which does not exclude discipline but actually includes it needs to be related to the idea of vocation and to the soli Deo Gloria principle: “But let Christians know they are under obligation to serve God with their gifts; and God is served when they employ them for the advantage and service of the people-reforming them, bringing them to a knowledge of God, and thus building up, strengthening and perpetuating the Church. Of such love the world knows nothing at all”.37 A sound doctrine needs decency, a right order, that is, an administrative uniformity, in order to be assimilated. This uniformity was perceived by Luther and his followers as compulsory for effectiveness. The efficacy of the preacher, i.e. of the teacher, rested on his abiding by the pedagogical principles. Luther recommends that preachers have in mind at all times the age and individual peculiarities of those to whom they speak: “In the first place, the preacher should take the utmost care to avoid changes or variations in the text and wording of the Ten Commandments, the Creed, the Lord’s Prayer, the sacraments, etc. Conversely, he should adopt one form, adhere to it, and use it repeatedly year after year. Young and inexperienced people must be instructed on the basis of a uniform, fixed text and form. They are easily confused if a teacher employs one form now and another form-perhaps with the intention of making improvements, later on. In this way all the time and labour will be lost”.38 In the Protestant areas, the inspectors and the pastors were charged with monthly inspections to make sure of the positive evolution of the school activities. And this 35 LW

26, 416. 8, 320. W2 12, 610. 37 LE 8, 323. W2 , 12, 613. 38 “The Small Catechism”, Luther (1989: 472). 36 LE

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way, just as the cleric had lost, with the Reformation, his privileged position in the society, becoming a minister—Luther himself considered that he was “in the ministry of the Word” (ministerio verbi), that is, “in the true service of God” (vero cultu Dei),39 —similarly, the schoolmaster lost his quality of undeniable master of his school: he gradually became “a public servant in a minutely regulated public institution”.40 School becomes, step by step, a bureaucratic institution, a public organisation with a minutely regulated activity, with clear rules, one at all times subject to control, a space in which pedagogy is born as a science in its own right.

4.3.1 The Whole Aristotelian Ethic Is the Worst Enemy of Grace Vehemently criticising the corruption and ignorance of the clergy, as well as the inefficacy of the educational system of the time, Luther required the German nobility to become involved in the reformation of the Church and of the school institutions, first and foremost, of universities. “Die universiteten dorfften auch wol eyner gutten starken reformation”. “(The universities, too, need a good, thorough reformation.)”41 Luther was thus fully aware that something significant had to be changed in higher education. “The University of Wittenberg owes its success mainly to Luther’s theology based on biblical humanist methods”.42 In To the Christian Nobility of the German Nation (also translated as Open Letter to the Christian Nobility of the German Nation Concerning the Reform of the Christian Estate), he signals the negative influence of the papacy at the religious, political, philosophical, and educational level. He bemoans the fact that universities are not Christian but pagan: no longer are studied there the Bible and Christian teachings— the source of true wisdom—but the useless, corrupting, downright deleterious philosophy of Aristotle. Luther considers that the Greek philosopher’s ideas are unbiblical (i.e. against sola Scriptura) and that Aristotelianism cannot meet Christianity, as they are perfect opposites. Just as he does not prompt anyone to go to monastery, he does not advise anyone to read Aristotle’s Physics, Metaphysics, On the Soul, and Nicomachean Ethics, allowing only for the reading of three books, eventually abridged: Logic, Rhetoric, and Poetics, which are useful to the youth who want to become good orators, preachers, and teachers. Therefore, the Reformer believes that Aristotle’s logic should be retained in university curricula. But he reproaches the work On the Soul with denying the immortality of the soul and criticises Nicomachean Ethics for its wrong understanding of

39 Smith

and Jacobs (1918: 70). “De votis monasticis” (1521), WA 8, 575, 36–37. (1914: 17). 41 “An den Christlichen Adel deutscher Nation von des Christlichen standes besserung” (1520), WA 6, 457, 28–29. LW 44, 200. 42 Junghans (2003: 27). 40 Learned

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virtue, practically, for its lack of compatibility with the Pauline anthropology and biblical pedagogy. In this last work,43 so unappreciated by Luther, Aristotle claimed that there were two kinds of virtues and that neither of them was planted within us by nature, as everything that is within us by nature is unchangeable, and it cannot be habituated to be different from what it is: by nature, the stone falls and, no matter how many times one would throw it in the air, it cannot be determined to change its trajectory from descending to ascending. Consequently, virtues are not innate but acquired, the intellectual ones, by teaching, and the moral ones, as the result of habit. Hence, Aristotle’s observation: although virtues are not present within us by nature, although no one is born virtuous, the ability to become so is innate, and we are able to perfect our virtues by habitude, in practice, with the help of some concrete, specific, habitual actions. Aristotle judges facts by analogy. People become house builders by building houses and become musical instrument players by playing a musical instrument. Along this line of argumentation, Aristotle makes a statement that stirs the Reformer’s discontent, two millennia later: “So too, then, by doing just things we become just; moderate things, moderate; and courageous things, courageous”.44 Luther and the entire Reformation’s thinking paradigm is completely divorced from that of the Greek philosopher. The German theologian disputes the idea that man could be virtuous by himself, by repeated actions,45 without needing help from the divinity, that is, God’s grace—the only benevolent and omnipotent Teacher of virtue! As a supporter of the biblical principle of sola gratia, Luther unavoidably ended up rejecting Aristotelian ethics. In his view, the reform of the Church, school, and, above all, man, could not be pursued with the help of Aristotelian philosophy, but only with that of Christian teachings. According to Luther, the five solas were the only effective principles, able to guarantee a change for the better at both human and institutional levels. The German Reformer is trenchant in his appreciations: Aristotelian philosophy seems to him to be the expression of the proud man, who thinks himself worthy, who shows self-sufficiency and ingratitude to God, who thinks that he can learn goodness by himself, by his own natural strength and abilities: “The whole Aristotelian ethic is the worst enemy of grace” (Tota fere Aristotelis Ethica pessima est gratiae inimica).46 This is not by any means the only or the most severe verdict Luther gives Aristotelianism: “Totus Aristoteles ad theologiam est tenebrae ad lucem”.47 Aristotle is to theology what darkness is to light—therefore, if Christian theology is the light, 43 Aristotle

(2011: 26). (2011: 27). 45 “Virtue is, therefore, something that one acquires like a habit; one becomes virtuous by doing virtuous deeds. As applied to Christian theology by the Scholastics, this means that righteousness becomes something that Christians gain for themselves”. Springer (2011: 25). 46 “Disputation against Scholastic Theology”, Luther (2006a: 269). “Disputatio contra scholasticam theologiam” (1517), WA 1, 226, 10. 47 WA 1, 226, 26. Dieter (2001: 409). 44 Aristotle

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then Aristotelian philosophy is obscurity. If Aristotelianism was incompatible with the doctrine of the Church, then it should not have had a place in a Christian school, in the education system. Luther, a supporter of the sola fide biblical principle, disputes the idea that goodness is ready at man’s hand, and that man can turn from evil to good by practising good works, by his own efforts, without faith. Man cannot change or reform his nature, views, mentality with the help of Aristotle’s simple and practical “recipe”. In his Lectures on Romans, the Reformer elaborates, showing that the sola fide principle is fundamental to Christian ethics: “according to him (Aristotle), righteousness is brought about by actions, even if they are entirely outward, if only they are repeated often enough. […] But true righteousness comes about only if one believes the words of God with his whole heart […]”.48 Christianity denies that man could save himself, apart from God, without faith and without attending the school of Scripture (Romans 10, 17), a school that Aristotle could not have met anyway. Protestantism does not deny the importance of concrete actions and works, but emphasises the fact that they are posterior and not anterior: they do not determine through themselves a change or improvement of man’s inner being.

4.3.2 Good Works Do not Make a Good Man Aristotle believed that man became virtuous by performing virtuous actions, which is absurd. Luther refutes this erroneous conception of the Greek philosopher with both logic and the support of the principles of sola Scriptura, sola fide, sola gratia, and solus Christus: “The righteousness of God must be distinguished from the righteousness of men which comes from works—as Aristotle in the third chapter of his Ethics clearly indicates. According to him, righteousness follows upon and flows from actions. But, according to God, righteousness precedes works and works result from it. […] Works and actions do not produce virtue, as Aristotle says, but virtues determine actions, as Christ teaches”.49 How can a man with no virtue perform virtuous works in order to become virtuous through them when he lacks motivation, the desire to do so, being led through life by evil thoughts? Can a wicked man do good to become good? Is this a way of man’s reformation? Can man become a moral expert of sorts just as an instrumentalist becomes a virtuoso through practice? What part does talent play in this? Can a barren tree bear fruit by its own efforts alone? Or, rather, does man not need first a reformation of his being, only after to perform good works, compliant with his renewed nature? And if so, can man be his own reformer? Does Aristotle not disregard the nature of things, overriding the person, with his features? Does Aristotle not turn

48 Luther 49 Luther

(2006b: 293). See Romans 4, 3. (2006b: 18, 228).

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upside down the natural cause and effect relation? And is not contemporary pedagogy unfortunately tributary, for the most part, to Aristotelian philosophy? Luther, on the other hand, reveals to us the true relation between the human being and his acts, and the accurate perception that we gain on this relation helps us identify the means by which human nature can be improved, from a Christian point of view. The work does not change the person, as it bears the mark of that person. The work bears the imprint of man, it reveals him: it shows him the way he is, man’s character must change before any good work. The person’s nature must change in order for the nature of the work to change in its turn. Man needs to be reformed himself— sola Scriptura, sola gratia, sola fide. This challenging philosophical and pedagogical question is yet again approached by the Reformer in The Freedom of a Christian. “Good works do not make a good man, but a good man does good works; evil works do not make a wicked man, but a wicked man does evil works. […] A good tree cannot bear evil fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit [Matthew 7, 18]. It is clear that fruits do not bear the tree and that the tree does not grow on the fruits, also that, on the contrary, the trees bear the fruit and the fruit grows on trees. As it is necessary, therefore, that the trees exist before their fruit and the fruit does not make trees either good or bad, but rather as the trees are, so is the fruit they bear; so a man must first be good or wicked before he does a good or wicked work, and his works do not make him good or wicked, but he himself makes his works either good or wicked”.50 In Luther’s view, the reform of the human being (sola Scriptura, sola fide, sola gratia, solus Christus) gives meaning to other type of reform. According to the German theologian, anthropology is the premise for pedagogy—the change of man— by grace, through faith—is essential for any other change within a community, be that ecclesiastic, political, economic, educational, or otherwise. Faith is the resort and essence of the good work: “Therefore faith is the ‘do-all’ in works” (Est ergo fides Fac totum in operibus).51 Luther considers that “the faithful ‘doing’” represents “the incarnate faith”.52 And to him, the true faith is always an incarnate faith. Just like a good tree bears sweet and bounteous fruit, faith is also fruitful, begetting works that are pleasant to God and useful to the entire society.

4.4 Man’s Reform(ation) and Institutional Reform Through his entire Christian theology and pedagogy, Luther intends to draw attention to the necessity of reforming the human being, which gives meaning to any other social change. Not only does Luther want to draw our attention to the necessity of improving man, but he also wants to indicate how this improvement of the human being can actually and concretely take place. We cannot improve our lives in the community just by changing certain rules, practices, and institutions—man himself 50 Luther

(1970: 297). 26, 266. “In epistolam S. Pauli ad Galatas Commentarius” (1535), WA 40 I, 417, 18–19. 52 LW 26, 266. 51 LW

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must change! And this is an aspect of utmost importance that has not been understood until now. Society seeks to enact good laws and effective rules for each institution, but we had better remember that Luther, when he distinguished between office and person, wanted to stress that the person was more important than his social position, and it is futile to reformulate the tasks of a certain office to make it more effective unless we fail to look first into human nature. Can we, those who live in the age of moral relativism, still believe that moral obligation could survive in the absence of God? Have we forgotten Sartre’s warning from Existentialism is a Humanism: “If God does not exist, everything would be permitted”53 ?

4.4.1 The Motive Determines the Quality of a Profession The relation between office and person is analogous to that between faith and work. This is the reason why it is important to study Luther’s theology in order to comprehend his pedagogy, to put them both in the service of changing man for the better. Luther’s pedagogy is part of his theology, any writing that aims to portray the pedagogical ideas of the Reformer and does not pay attention to his religious thoughts is doomed to fail. “An occupation or a work can be good and right in itself and yet be bad and wrong if the man who does the work is evil or wrong or does not do his work properly”.54 Luther brings examples to support this idea, and it is easily noticeable that everything he says about the office of judge also stands valid for teachers. In Luther’s view, teaching is a divine office: after all, is not the teacher a judge of his students’ behaviour and performance? Does not he reward the good behaviour of his students, and does not he castigate their misbehaviour? “The occupation of a judge is a valuable divine office. […] But when the office is assumed by one to whom it has not been committed or when one who holds it rightly uses it to gain riches or popularity, then it is no longer right or good. The married state is also precious and godly, but there are many rascals and scoundrels in it. […] It is the same way with the profession or work of the soldier; in itself it is right and godly, but we must see to it that the persons who are in this profession and who do the work are the right kind of persons, that is, godly and upright, as we shall hear”.55 The adage “the man sanctifies the place” is, most definitely, perfectly true and applies to the same extent to both judge and teacher—to anyone, in fact, who holds certain responsibilities in family and society. Not anyone holding an office proves to be an honourable man, as it is not the profession that sanctifies the man: there are, unfortunately, numerous examples of selfish people who debase a divine office by preponderantly aiming to attain their personal goals and not the good of the entire community. 53 Sartre

(1960: 33–34). Soldiers, too, Can Be Saved”, LW 46, 94. 55 LW 46, 94. 54 “Whether

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Luther underlines the fact that what matters the most about a person is their faith, convictions, good intentions, life principles, and motives for their actions.56 Practically, the Reformer tells us that no profession is good for one who lacks character, who is not led by pious intentions and charitable motives; conversely, any profession is noble and beneficial if the one who practises it is a good man, animated by pious and good intentions. Man gives nobility to the office that he holds. Man does not become good by virtue of his profession, but the profession is useful by its being exercised by a good man: profession belongs to man and not the other way around. In his shorter writing “Admonition to Peace”,57 he notices that not everyone is “a true Christian” (rechte Christen) among a crowd, because not everyone is animated by “good intentions” (gute meynung). Some of the common people are motivated to act destructively, being driven by “selfish purposes” and thus looking for “their own advantage”. In Luther’s view, only faith is a good motivation. Luther translates sola fide as Christian, moral motivation. It is motivation that characterises our deeds as good or evil. This concept is an urge to self-examination and introspection for us all! We notice once again what a fine psychologist Luther is. The following example helps us better understand why motivation, that is, sola fide, is of such importance for the Reformer. Luther considers that there exist three categories of people. Some seem wicked and are really wicked, others seem to be good but are in fact wicked, and lastly, there are also those who seem to be good and actually are. The last category is naturally represented by Christians. The following text is interesting and worth quoting in its entirety, although it is long. It refers to the first two categories of people, among whom there is no significant difference: “Those who are obviously evil sin both inwardly and outwardly and are without an appearance of righteousness even in their own judgment. But those who seem to themselves as well as to others outwardly good sin in the inward man. Even though they do good works outwardly, they do them either because they fear punishment or because they love riches or glory or some other created good, but not because they want to do them gladly; so the outer man, it is true, applies himself diligently to good works, but the inner man is filled to overflowing with opposite lusts and desires”.58 The third category of people is succinctly described by Luther in his “Preface to Romans”. This category is worth granting greater attention, as through the following text Luther proves impossible to discern works from the faith that motivates and generates them, from this Christian good will. The text comes to reinforce the value that Luther places on the Protestant principles of sola fide, sola gratia, and soli Deo gloria: “Hence, the man of faith, without being driven, willingly and gladly seeks to do good to everyone, serve to everyone, suffer all kinds of hardships, for the sake of the love and glory of the God who has shown him such grace”.59 We could replace the man of faith by the Christian teacher; in the previous quotation, Luther actually 56 Plass

(1959: 1512). 46, 17f, WA 18, 292, 10ff. 58 Luther (2006b: 86). 59 Luther (1961: 24). 57 LW

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describes the man who sanctifies every profession, and lends nobility to each activity, including the didactic one.

4.4.2 These Men of Little Faith Luther first and foremost values “a good conscience”.60 In Luther’s viewpoint, preaching God’s Word is premise and preparation for any institutional reform, including that of education and learning. Had he been a supporter of Aristotelianism, he could not have perceived the necessity of this premise. Luther basically re-establishes the actual relation between faith and works, thus warning us against the deleteriousness of human hypocrisy and the fact that things are rarely what they seem to be. The reform(ation) of the person is placed by the Reformer in close connection with both the change of the way the person is perceived and the change of the way in which persons perceive the world they inhabit. Man is made to be good in faith and wicked in unbelief . Man’s goodness is his faith, whereas his wickedness consists in his lack of faith. Faith makes the man pious. God judges us by our fruit-bearing faith, one that works, does, and expresses in the most actual way possible. Conversely, men can only judge us by our perceptible deeds, as they cannot know man’s heart, which is why they are often deceived by the hypocrisy of their neighbours. Luther proves himself not only a remarkable theologian and a creative pedagogue, but also a fine psychologist: “It is indeed true that in the sight of men a man is made good or evil by his works, […] is pointed out and known as such […]. All this remains on the surface, however, and very many have been deceived by this outward appearance and have presumed to write and teach concerning good works by which we may be justified without even mentioning faith. […] For the person is justified and saved, not by works or laws, but by the Word of God, that is, by the promise of his grace, and by faith, that the glory may remain God’s, who saved us not by works of righteousness which we have done [Titus 3, 5], but by virtue of his mercy by the word of his grace when we believed [1 Corinthians 1, 21]”.61 Instead of speaking about his own virtues, man had better refer to God’s virtues, as it is the only way for him to learn piety and humility. And in the German reformer’s view, the five solas are principles of piety and humility, traits of a renewed human nature, one that is improved by grace, through faith. Luther returns to the vital connection between God’s commandments and the actual life of man. If man is a traveller through life, then the Bible, which contains God’s commandments, is his compass. This aspect is extremely relevant, which is why we insist on it. In his Treatise on Good Works,62 Luther states that the good work is the work commanded by God; consequently, the good knowledge of the Scripture is the premise of any moral action (Matthew 19, 17): the Christian acts 60 LW

46, 23. (1970: 299). 62 LW 44, 21ff. WA 6, 202ff. 61 Luther

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as God commands and not as his neighbour would like, or following various social conventions. Through these considerations, Luther makes the apology of the upright, principled man of firm convictions and ethical behaviour, one that does not act so as to be advantaged, according to his narrow personal interests. For Luther, faith is the most important good work, and the Reformer wants to teach his contemporaries about the “good work of faith” (gutte werk des glaubens). Luther does not despise works, but he just judges them by their motivational resorts. A good work can be a professional one. The work of the zealous and altruistic individual who, in his family, works, walks, sits, eats, drinks, and sleeps “for the nourishment of his body or for the common welfare” (zu des leybs narung odder gemeinen nutz) is as good as the work of the individual who prays in church, of course, without replacing or making the latter futile. Professionalism is a good work for Luther. A Christian’s daily actions are all good works and not in the least unimportant, but all of them have deep religious significance. The Reformer goes even further with these examples and claims that there is nothing to be thought little of as insignificant in the life of a man of faith, even if it is something as “minor” as picking up a straw. Luther does not miss the opportunity to condemn, once again, man’s hypocrisy and superficiality: singing songs in church, kneeling at mass, fasting, building monasteries, pilgrimages—all these are not, as some may think, good works by themselves: they lack any value if they lack faith. In Luther’s view, a man of vocation and an enemy of Aristotelianism, all behavioural manifestations of man have the same dignity if they express his faith: “if these things are done with such faith that we believe that they please God, then they are praiseworthy, not because of their virtue, but because of that very faith by which all works are of equal value, as has been said”.63 Faith, which is unique, grants equal value to different works. Logically speaking, different works cannot be equally valued when judged by their own features, i.e. by their own virtues. They can only be equal if they have a common origin, a common foundation. We deal, in Luther’s case, with an interesting philosophy of the work, one that does not devalue the cleric’s prayer but values to the highest extent the daily works of the pious layman. One does not ridicule fasting but puts forward the life of the Christian, in its entire simplicity. Luther, as a religious educator, aimed to teach and to instruct those who did not know the importance of faith and who granted more importance to religious ceremonies than to faith itself. He believes that “these men of little faith” (die selbigen schwachgleubigen)64 should not be despised and blamed, and considered to be lost, but blame should rather be placed on the ignorant and blind teachers (ungelerten blinden meistern)65 who did not know how to talk to them about faith but instead made them slaves to works, thus alienating them from the Bible’s message. These unknowing “students” who want to know the truth and who allow to be taught through the Scripture (sola Scriptura) must be led from works back to faith (sola fide) “in

63 LW

44, 32. 44, 36. WA 6, 214, 15. 65 WA 6, 215, 2–3. 64 LW

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a kindly manner and with gentle patience” (senfftiglich unnd mit seuberlicher).66 It is desirable that “the teacher” should behave with the meekness and patience that a physician shows to his patients, tactfully, without forcing and rushing things, or else he might make a great disservice to them instead of any good. As for the stubborn ones, adds Luther, the ones who obstinately refuse to know the truth and fight it openly, they should be ignored and drifted away from.

4.4.3 A Change of Heart “Among the reformers, Luther was the most aggressive religious reformer and the most extensive writer on education”.67 Luther was the most extensive writer on education just because he was the most aggressive religious reformer. We dare, however, to assert that Martin Luther was a great reformer of education precisely because he noted the stringent necessity of the reformation of man and not only the importance of a social, institutional change. For Luther, man’s reformation meant his conversion, which is “fundamentally Christocentric”, and it is opus Dei and not an autonomous work of a person who converts on his own: conversion is a passing “from unfaith and unrighteousness to faith and righteousness coram Deo, before God”, it is “the turning to God of the repentant Christian”.68 It involves a change of mind and will for the better; conversion is at the same time intellectual and emotional: it entails fighting ignorance and fake wisdom.69 In this respect, education plays an important part in fighting ignorance, and from this particular viewpoint, one can perceive the specific way in which Luther associates the educational activity with the sola fide and sola gratia principles: “Conversion as the initial turning of man by grace to faith is God’s work, part of the opus dei”.70 Conversio is illuminatio mentis.71 The Protestant Reformation pleaded from the very beginning in favour of a right understanding of “repentance”, opposing it, in the Ninety-Five Theses, to the doctrine and practice of indulgences stemming out of the medieval penitential system. “When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said ‘Repent’ [Matthew 4, 17], he willed the entire life of believers to be one of repentance”,72 Luther insisted in the first thesis, “the reformation and change continue as long as he [the Christian] lives”.73 Luther also states that repentance means “that the sinner has a change of heart and hates his sin”.74 66 LW

44, 36. WA 6, 215, 4. (1931: 11). 68 Harran (1983: 56), Harran (1981: 13–33). 69 Harran (1983: 67). “Dictata super Psalterium” (1513–1516), WA 4, 7, 12ff. 70 Harran (1983: 72). 71 Harran (1983: 73). 72 LW 31, 25. 73 LE 11, 315. W2 , 11, 692. 74 LW 31, 84. 67 Eby

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A change of heart signifies a change for the better, in other words, improvement (Besserung).75 The Roman Catholic sacrament of penance is not the same as the Biblical repentance. “Repentance rather signifies here a change and reformation of the whole life (eine Aenderung und Besserung des ganzen Lebens); so that when one knows that he is a sinner, and feels the iniquity of his life, he desists from it and enters upon a better course of life, in word and deed, and that he does it from his heart”.76 Conversion is a profound change that affects the heart of man, and it is its renewal (Ezekiel 36, 26). Conversion means spiritual progress, which is why the following quote is suggestive for the matter at hand: “There can be no doubt, then, that Luther the educational reformer contributed to the modern world not only by insisting that basic education be available for all - and by making it so - but also by bringing to common people the fundamental notion that true religion could be a matter of the mind as well as of the heart and public behaviour. From the training of pastors, to the catechisms, to the hymns, Luther’s educational reforms in fact did much to create the modern world, with its typical distinction at the popular level between religion of the head and religion of the heart”.77 Conversion means spiritual advancement, and it also means a renewal of man’s behavioural manifestation. A reformed man is a man with a different behaviour, one who acts along different parameters, one who possesses, in everything he does, different thoughts, motivations, intentions, and desires, one who has a new perception of the world and a new philosophy of life, one who has great sensitivity or spiritual receptiveness. A reformed man is a man with a new heart, a new spirit (Ezekiel 36, 26). The heart of man is his spiritual identity, and it is, symbolically speaking, the headquarters of his faith; this faith is trust: the heart trusts (God): “das Herz glaubt, […] ihm ganz vertrauet”.78 In Luther’s views, the heart is the symbolic centre of the belief in Christ, because, without His redemptive death, we would be forever lost, adds the Reformer. Luther revisits the question of the relation between faith and works, proving how important this reflection topic is to him, just as the correlation he makes between faith and grace: “For only that work is good which proceeds from a good and pure heart. A good heart, however, is born only out of grace. Grace does not come from works; it comes from faith in Christ”. (Hoc enim opus solum bonum est, quod ex bono puroque corde procedit. Bonum autem cor non nisi ex gratia nascitur: gratia non ex operibus sed ex fide Christi venit.)79 Jesus Christ, as the incarnate Son of God, is not only the destination but also the source of our faith: through His message, “He moves every Christian heart to faith”.80 God purifies man’s heart sola fide!81 75 LE

11, 314. W2 , 11, 691. 11, 314. W2 , 11, 691. 77 Kittelson (1985: 111). 78 W2 , 10, 231. 79 Harran (1983: 130). “In epistolam Pauli ad Galatas Commentarius” (1519), WA 2, 563, 26–28. 80 LW 32, 42. 81 LW 32, 54. 76 LE

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4.4.4 The Best Way to Teach Having faith in Christ means grasping Him in the heart.82 In addition, one notes that the Reformer is also familiar with the teaching principles (linking theory with practice): “Theory and practice should not be seen as separate entities but integral to what teachers do in their everyday practice. The integration of theory (propositional knowledge) with practical knowledge is a key requirement of the twenty-first century professional teacher”.83 Antiquity is a source of good educational practices for the Reformer. The renowned Roman Varro, notes Luther in Introduction to Capella’s “History of the Duke of Milan”,84 says that “the best way to teach” (allerbeste Weise zu lehren) is “to add some examples to words” (wenn man zu dem Wort Exempel oder Beispiele gibt.) Only by such exemplification, only with such a didactic strategy can a student “clearly understand” and also “easily memorise” the teachers’ statements (daß man die Rede klärlicher versteht, auch viel leichter behält). If the teacher fails to provide concrete examples and just gives theories, no matter how good and true they may be, the audience’s heart will not be “so deeply moved” (wo die Rede ohne Exempel gehört wird, wie gerecht und gut sie immer ist, bewegt sie doch das Herz nicht so sehr) and they will not be clearly understood and easily memorised. In other words, Luther believes that not only has theology a major role in man’s reformation, in the change of his heart, but also pedagogy; the theologian is effective in his undertakings if he possesses strong pedagogical knowledge, because it is only in this way that he can reach man’s heart. And this is why history is of such importance to the theologian and pedagogue Luther: “darum ist es ein sehr köstlich Ding um die Historien”.85 Luther places history and pedagogy in the service of theology; in other words, he makes them instruments of man’s salvation: history is useful for the theologian because, among other things, it offers “illustrations” (Exempel) and “portrays” (Geschichten).86 Luther is interested in the change of man’s heart, in the reformation of the human nature through a new spiritual rebirth in close connection with sola fide, sola gratia, and solus Christus, as apparent from the reading of previous texts. But the change of man’s heart is also placed by the Reformer in relation to the sola Scriptura principle, as results from the following statement: “For the Word of God is powerful enough, when uttered, to change even a godless heart” (Sicut enim verbum dei potens est, dum sonat, etiam impii cor immutare).87 God changes man’s heart by softening it.88 82 LW

26, 132. and Evans (2015: 52). 84 W2 , 14, 376. 85 W2 , 14, 376. 86 W2 , 14, 376–377. Kretzmann (1940: 80), Painter (1889: 156). 87 Luther (1970: 197). “De captivitate Babylonica ecclesiae praeludim” (1520), WA 6, 538, 7–8. 88 LW 45, 378. 83 Waring

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Luther’s theology intertwines with his religious pedagogy, as the reformation of the human nature is at the same time theological and pedagogical. He knows how to highlight the inseparable connection between Word and Spirit, as well as the importance of this close connection at the educational level: the word can be theologically and pedagogically investigated but in the matter of Spirit, the expertise belongs to theology alone. Even though Luther’s theology and pedagogy are in close connection, they neither overlap, nor identify one with the other. The preacher and the teacher must be well read on the topic under focus because it is only in this way that they can prove eloquent, and that their speech could reach the hearts of their listeners: “Wer aber die Sache inne hat und versteht, der lehrt recht und trifft die Herzen”.89 A good teacher (ein guter Lehrer) must master both the subject he teaches and the specialised language: grammar is only useful to the one who, by systematic study, has previously acquired strong knowledge in his field of expertise. Luther puts his finger on it: the teacher/preacher’s speech (die Rede) does not take shape in his mouth but in his heart: “soll einem Lehrer oder Prediger die Rede folgen und wachsen aus dem Herzen und nicht im Munde”.90 The teacher and preacher must speak from their hearts in order to reach people’s hearts. Not only do both the teacher and the preacher have to be good orators to move people’s hearts, but they also need to be dedicated to study, which has a direct impact on life. The sola Scriptura principle explains the importance that the Reformer places on the formation of intellectual skills, on the development of creative potential and learning capacity. Some pastors and preachers, Luther sadly notes, are lazy (faule) and unable to do their job at high standards. They occupy themselves neither with prayer nor with the study of the Bible—they do not do anything that they should do and do not submit to their calling. They do not read, do not understand, cannot teach others, nor do they know how to live their lives.91 As they are not spiritually reformed themselves, they cannot contribute to the change for the better of their neighbours either.

4.4.4.1

Repetition, Memorisation, and Understanding

Unlike Christians of other denominations, (neo)-Protestants know a lot of Bible verses by heart. How may such a fact be explained? In order to provide an answer, we should first investigate the place that repetition and memorisation hold in Luther’s theological and pedagogical doctrine. Promoter of discipline, order, and uniformity in educational practices, Luther gave repetition and memorisation a central place in learning. In a time when the number of literate people was on the increase, the practice of text memorisation was in danger. So, Erasmus, in De ratione studii, shows that 89 W2 ,

1, 998. 1, 1000. 91 Meuser (2003: 141). “Vorrede zu Johann Spangenberg, Postilla deutsch” (1543), WA 53, 218, 3ff. 90 W2 ,

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getting an education should not be an impediment to practising memorisation: “I have never approved of youths writing down every word they hear, for this practice leads them to neglect the cultivation of the memory, allowing for the fact that some may want to make a few brief notes of certain things, but that only until such time as the memory has been strengthened and they no longer desire the prop of the written word”.92 Luther, in his Small Catechism, asked teachers, in order to make themselves better understood by children, to “avoid changes or variations in the text” and to “adopt one form, adhere to it, and use it repeatedly year after year”. Teaching should be differentiated according to the pupils’ age and training level, i.e. adapted to the audience the teacher or preacher addressed at the time. By the standardisation of educational practices, Luther did not mean that the teacher should teach in the same manner anytime and anywhere, but in a differentiated manner, taking into account the peculiarities of his audience, as salient in the following excerpt: “When you preach to intelligent and educated people, you are at liberty to exhibit your learning and to discuss these topics from different angles and in such a variety of ways as you may be capable of. But when you are teaching the young, adhere to a fixed and unchanging form and method”.93 Luther asked teachers to adopt the best teaching strategy when they are in the presence of children, and convey information to them in the same manner and through repetition, to ensure better retention by the young: “Begin by teaching them the Ten Commandments, the Creed, the Lord’s Prayer, etc., following the text word for word so that the young may repeat these things after you and retain them in their memory”.94 Repetitio est mater studiorum, as ancient Romans used to say, and the Reformer agrees with this point of view. Repetition is the mother of study; i.e. knowledge may be stored longer by repetition. Luther asked that certain parts of the Catechism should be learnt by heart, exactly in the form they were taught, by a constant effort made by pupils during the entire day, under their parents’ supervision. “These are the parts of the Catechism which nobody can do without. We have to learn them off by heart and repeat them word for word. Then we have to train our children to repeat them each day when they get up in the morning, when they come to meals, and when they go to bed at night”.95 Memory needs training, and repetition is the key to better understanding: “for when what is not immediately understood is repeated, it brings more light, and then what one reads today he may read tomorrow, and next year, and many years after”.96 Besides, at the time of the Reformation, memorisation was seen as a form of mental discipline, according to Karl Holl: “What orthodoxy gave youth with its emphasis on memorization, meditation, and comparison of Bible passages was a mental discipline 92 Thompson

(1978: 691). Small Catechism”, Luther (1989: 472). 94 “The Small Catechism”, Luther (1989: 472). 95 Luther (1983: 12). 96 Calvin, Commentary on Jeremiah 36: 1–2, quoted by Kvicalova (2019: 145). 93 “The

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of the first order”.97 It is said that when he was a monk, Luther himself learnt by heart quite an impressive number of biblical verses. He confesses that “then I ran through the Scriptures as I had them in memory” (Discurrebam deinde per scripturas, ut habebat memoria).98 Anyway, the comprehension of the Scripture is not incompatible with memorising its most important texts: the Reformer states in his Large Catechism that God’s Word is not meant just to be heard (hören), but also “learned and retained” (gelernet und behalten).99 The Bible is not a book that you only read carefully once and then place on the shelf: Christians keep rereading it all through their lives and go back to it constantly. Those who have knowledge of the Scripture feel the need to revisit it, and in doing so they involuntarily memorise certain parts. The attachment to the Bible (best expressed in the sola Scriptura principle), the pleasure to read it, undeniably leads to remembering its significant texts: “if you know Holy Scripture, nevertheless it must be read and reread” (Si sanctam scis scripturam, tamen semper relegendum).100

4.4.4.2

Erudition, Cato, and Aesop

The repeated reading of the Bible results in memorising its important passages and provides each time the opportunity of new reflection, and thus this repeated reading is the safest way to erudition: Meditatio enim est summa, efficacissima et brevissima eruditio.101 Study, erudition mean mental labour, Luther’s theology is an exhortation to personal meditation: “you should meditate” (soltu meditirn). What to meditate means precisely to him is explained in the following: “That is, always repeat the oral speech and the literal word in the Book and compare them with each another, not only in your heart, but also outwardly, read them and reread them with diligent attentiveness and reflection, [to see] what the Holy Spirit means by them”.102 Luther himself was a scholar, and he was interested in humanism. The Reformer read Cicero, Plautus, Terence, Virgil, Horace, Plato, Pliny the Younger, Quintilian, Homer, Herodotus, Xenophon, Juvenal, Suetonius, Seneca, Plutarch, Demosthenes, Ovid, and so on. At the same time, he valued the erudition of the great writers of the Antiquity. It is true that he repeatedly criticised Aristotle, but it is equally true that he quoted him many times. Luther recommended that schools should include in their curricula the ancient authors whom he had read himself, and praised for the elegance of their style and the depth of their thinking. Luther encountered the work of Aesop 97 Holl

(1959: 112).

98 “Vorrede zum 1. Bande der Gesamtausgaben seiner lat. Schriften, Wittenberg 1545”, WA 54, 186,

10–11. Translation by Graham (1987: 148). 99 “Der Große Katechismus” (1529), WA 30 I, 146, 15–16. Graham (1987: 148). 100 “Vorlesung über die Briefe an Titus und Philemon” (1527), WA 25, 27, 5–6. Translation by Graham (1987: 148). 101 “Dictata super Psalterium” (1543), WA 3, 539, 23–24. Graham (1987: 148). 102 “Vorrede zum 1. Bande der wittenberger Ausgabe” (1539), WA 50, 659, 23–25. Translation by Graham (1987: 149).

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in his initial school years and learnt by heart some of his fables103 : the Reformer remained a faithful reader of Aesop’s for his entire life. Luther opines that instead of poisoning the spirit with a philosophy (Aristotelian) and a theology (scholastic) with no biblical foundation, the young had better read classical literature: Cato is more valuable than all the monks taken altogether, but not more than Moses.104 Therefore, Protestantism was far from being the enemy of the classical tradition, and Desiderius Erasmus erroneously considered: “wherever Lutheranism reigns, literature perishes” (Vbicunque regnat Luteranismus, ibi litterarum est interitus).105 Protestantism did not express opposition to “the good letters” (bonae literae), and the Dutch humanist is wrong in this respect: “I hate those evangelicals not only for many other reasons, but principally because on their account the liberal arts languish everywhere, grow cold, lie idle, and perish”.106 The Reformer praised Cato’s maxims, Donatus’ grammar, as well as the ancient fabulist Aesop, whom he translated and published in German, “for children and the common folk” (pro puerili et rudi vulgo),107 “for the sake of the youth” (umb der Jugend willen).108 Luther was genuinely fascinated by the Greek writer: “There is surely more erudition in Aesop than in all of Jerome” (In Aesopo certe plus est eruditionis quam in toto Hieronymo.)109 The Reformer thought that the work of the Greek storyteller deserved to be known by the young, as it contains valuable teachings of a moral nature: Luther frequently quoted him in his writings and so popularised his ideas. If the works of Cato and Aesop survived and are being studied in schools, this is due to divine providence (Et Dei Providentia factum est, quod Catonis et Aesopi scripta in scholis permanserunt). The books of the two authors are undoubtedly relevant (grevissimus) and more valuable than all the works of the ancient philosophers and jurists: Cato provides useful precepts, a practical wisdom, and Aesop very pleasant stories. Their writings are the best (of course, after the Bible, post biblia110 ). Sola Scriptura is the comparison principle: the closer to the Bible, the more valuable a book is. Luther compares the Bible to Virgil’s writings, calling it “the divine Aeneid” (divinam Aeneida).111 Carl P. E. Springer is correct in his observation: Luther urged the Christians to read Greek and Latin authors not just for their elegant style and useful teachings, but also “because they could serve as a useful propaedeutic to Scripture study”.112 Sola Scriptura is not an obstacle to erudition, but on the

103 Springer

(2011: 38). über 1. Mose, kap. 8–9, 19”, WA 42, 373, 35–374, 3. Springer (2011: 9). 105 Allen and Allen (1928: 366), no. 1977. Springer (2011: 3). 106 Allen and Allen (1928: 360), no. 1973. Springer (2011: 3). 107 WA BR 5, 309, 14, no. 1563. Springer (2011: 2). 108 “Etliche Fabeln aus Esopo”, WA 50, 454, 10. Springer (2011: 85). 109 WA TR 1, 194, 18–19, no. 445. 110 WA TR 3, 353, 22–27, no. 3490. See also WA BR 5, 285, 4–6, no. 1552. 111 WA TR 5, 318, 2. Springer (2011: 11). 112 Springer (2011: 11). 104 “Vorlesungen

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contrary it is the principle that ensures the Christian openness to God and to the classical culture.

4.4.4.3

Aesop and the Latin School Curriculum

Luther and Melanchthon provided detailed curricula for public schools.113 In the Latin schools, children learnt how to read, started studying Latin grammar, and learnt certain prayers. At the next level, they deepened the knowledge of grammar by reading classical authors, also studying Psalms and the Gospels, the Lord’s Prayer, the Decalogue, the Creed. At the same time, they were taught Terence, Plautus, and Aesop’s fables. At the third level, young people got acquainted with the works of Ovid, Cicero, Virgil, as well as with dialectics, rhetoric, and poetics. The study of the Bible, classic languages, and Antiquity authors continued in the university, and the teachers in the University of Wittenberg were devoted to the educational reform initiated by Luther and to the dissemination of the messages of the new Christian confession. All through school, children were taught music, mathematics, science, and history. The curriculum for the vernacular schools was simpler and more practical. Children learnt reading, writing, arithmetic, memorised the Ten Commandments, studied biblical history, then agriculture, commerce, all being taught in German. The importance given to the study of Aesop in school is best described by the Reformer himself. He requires the pupils to learn the fables by heart and understand their explanation: “The second division consists of those children who can read and should now learn grammar. With these we should proceed in the following manner. All the children, large and small, should practice music daily, the first hour in the afternoon. Then the schoolmaster shall first expound the fables of Aesop to the second division… In the morning the children shall again explain Aesop. The preceptor shall decline a number of nouns and verbs, many or few, easy or hard, according to the ability of the pupils, and have them give the rule or explanation of these forms. When the children have learned the rules of syntax they should be required in this period to identify parts of speech or to construe, as it is called, which is a very useful practice, though employed by few. When now the children have learned Aesop in this way, they are to be given Terence also to be learned by heart. For they have now matured and can carry more work. But the schoolmaster shall exercise care so that the children are not overtaxed”.114 If the fables of this legendary figure are meant to be studied in school by pupils, if they are “children’s book” (kinderbuch), it does not ensue that they could be treated superficially or that adults had nothing to learn from them. Aesop’s fables are not trivial, and they are no trifling things: on the contrary, they contain “worldly pagan

113 Berman 114 LW

(2003: 186). 40, 316–317, quoted by Springer (2011: 52–53).

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wisdom” (weltlicher Heidnisscher weisheit)115 and that is why they deserve all our attention, irrespective of our age or how learned we are. Luther describes Aesop as “the better teacher of morals” (meliorem morum magistrum).116 People prefer to hear some unpleasant truths from the mouth of animals than the mouth of their neighbours,117 according to Luther, and that would be the main educational purpose of fables. They tell unpleasant truths in a pleasant way. Readers find in them “the most exquisite teaching, admonition, and instruction” (die allerfeineste Lere, Warnung und Unterricht)118 for issues pertaining to people’s personal and social life, so that we can all live in peace in this world. However, the fables, despite their pedagogical potential, cannot compare to the Scriptures. Sola Scriptura is not a criterion of quantity, but of quality. If the fables of Marcolfus or Aesop can, however, be easily understood with our own wisdom, in order to understand the Bible we need prayer and the Holy Spirit’s assistance.119 In other words, if the classical authors can be understood equally well by Christian and unchristian people, the Bible can be best understood by the Christians, as they have the Holy Spirit as Supreme Teacher.

4.4.5 Knowledge and Change To Luther, the greatest disaster in the world (hochste schade) is a false preacher, as he is the “worst man on earth”.120 Luther considers that individual study has major importance in the man’s changing for the better and, in this respect, he foregrounds his personal experience. The man who changes for the better is a man in transition. By thoroughly studying the Bible, he can (re)discover a truth that changes his worldviews, his mentality, and implicitly his life. Thus, the discovery is the premise of becoming, while knowledge is the condition for change. A good comprehension acquired through research can be the premise of a genuine spiritual revolution, while a superficial reading can be extremely deleterious. As we shall prove further, by sola Scriptura, not only did Luther reject the human traditions, but also the traditional deficient and superficial pseudo-comprehension of the Word of God. In Luther’s case, sola Scriptura, sola fide, and sola gratia were the foundations of his personal change, of his spiritual reformation.

115 “Auslegung

des 101 Psalms” (1534–1535), WA 51, 243, 32–33. Springer (2011: 58). über 1. Mose, kap. 8–9, 19”, WA 42, 373, 37. Springer (2011: 59). 117 “Etliche Fabeln aus Esopo” (1530), WA 50, 453, 25ff. 118 “Etliche Fabeln aus Esopo” (1530), WA 50, 452, 20. Springer (2011: 83). 119 “Vorrede zum 1. Bande der Wittenberger Ausgabe” (1539), WA 50, 659, 20–21. Springer (2011: 66). 120 “Matth. 18–24 in Predigten ausgelegt” (1537–1540), WA 47, 454, 33. 116 “Vorlesungen

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In one of his later writings,121 not long before his passing, Luther gives the account of his conversion, when he was young. In the year 1519, when he restarted his study of the Psalter, with the ardent desire to better understand Apostle Paul, he paid the most attention to the first chapter of the Epistle to the Romans, wishing to clarify what the righteousness of God signified. Luther confesses that he initially understood the phrase in question philosophically and traditionally, in the sense of active righteousness by which God is righteous and, in this quality, He becomes angry and severely chastens the unrighteous sinners. Understanding God in this faulty way, knowing that he was a sinner and that he was unable to please God whatever he might have done, even by living the austere life of a monk, Luther, “with a desperate disturbed conscience”, ended up fearing God and even hating Him within. However, God, without actually being harsh but gracious (sola gratia), gave Luther a clear understanding of the Scripture (sola Scriptura), and he started to interpret the biblical text correctly (sola gratia). “At last, God being merciful, as I meditated day and night on the connection of the words ‘the righteousness of God is revealed in it, as it is written: the righteous shall live by faith’, I began to understand that ‘righteousness of God’ as that by which the righteous lives by the gift of God, namely by faith, and this sentence, ‘the righteousness of God is revealed’, to refer to a passive righteousness, by which the merciful God justifies us by faith, as it is written, ‘The righteous lives by faith’”.122 The consequence of this awareness was major: Luther became a great reformer after he had been reformed himself by his better understanding and interpretation (sola gratia) only of the Scripture, not of any other book (sola Scriptura): “This immediately made me feel as though I had been born again, and as though I had entered through open gates into paradise itself. From that moment, the whole face of Scripture appeared to me in a different light”.123 Luther’s pedagogy is, in consequence, a response to the exhortations that the Bible sends to us all: “You must be born again” (John 3, 7) and, respectively, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 18, 3). The regeneration is a fundamental spiritual change of man which helps him move from old man to new man, as Luther notes, “from the birth of sin to the birth of righteousness” (aus der Sunden geburt zu der geburt der gerechtigkeit.)124 The new birth is not physical, fleshly, but spiritual. In the new birth (neue geburth), “man becomes something that he was not before. Because the birth brings into existence something that was absent (der mensch das wird, das er zuvor nicht war. Denn die Geburth bringet ein dieng in ein wesen, das vor nicht ist gewesen.)”125 The following statement is also important: in Luther’s view, the invisible new birth (sola gratia) must precede good works: “unser Heil und seligkeit 121 “Vorrede zum 1. Bande der Gesamtausgaben seiner lat. Schriften” (1545), WA 54, 185, 12–186,

21. McGrath (1985: 95–98). (1985: 96–97). 123 McGrath (1985: 97). 124 “Auslegung des dritten und vierten Kapitels Johannis”, WA 47, 10, 17–18. Ngien (2018: 54ff). 125 WA 47, 9, 4–6. 122 McGrath

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nicht stehe in guten werken oder gerechtigkeit des fleissches, Sondern das wir mussen neue geborn werden. Die neue geburt muss vorhehr gehen”.126

4.4.6 Fides Ex Auditu If Luther’s theology can be regarded as a “theology of the heart”,127 then we are entitled to assert that he was preoccupied with the necessity of the reformation of the human nature precisely in his quality of theologian of the heart. The theology of the heart is a theology that pleads for man’s spiritual regeneration and implicitly for the change for the better of the entire society. By heart, Luther does not understand, naturally, our muscular organ nor strictly our affective side, but much more than this. Discussing Psalm 51, 10—“Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me”—Luther claims that by “heart” (cor) we should understand “soul” (anima), “mind” (intellectus), “will” (voluntas), and “emotion” (affectus). “Without grace there is no good desire in the heart of man”.128 For the German Reformer, the heart “is the innermost being of a person as well as the source of thoughts, volitions, and feelings”.129 Having defined the heart, it was easier afterwards for the Reformer to decide what its change consists in, that is, to define the conversion: “Conversio autem hec est mentis et voluntatis”.130 It would not be completely wrong if, in the spirit of Luther’s theology, we considered the heart and the conscience one and the same. The phrase fides ex auditu occupies a central position in the Reformer’s thinking. He believes that man’s possibility or ability to hear and understand the salvific Word is not exclusively physical and natural, purely reasonable, but rather metaphysical; in other words, it is the gift of God, the work of the Holy Spirit (sola gratia). “But in theology we must only hear and believe” (Aber in der Theologie muß man nur hören, und glauben)131 : “the Word of God is not heard even among adults and those who hear unless the Spirit promotes growth inwardly. Accordingly, it is a Word of power and grace when it infuses the Spirit at the same time that it strikes the ears”.132 Regeneration takes place through the hearing of the Word of God in the power of the divine Spirit. Someone becomes a genuine theologian and pedagogue sola fide, sola gratia, mostly by hearing: “we must not deviate from the words as they sound” (da soll man 126 WA

47, 15, 16–18. (2013: 109). 128 LW 48, 159. 129 Anttila (2013: 109–110). “Enarratio Psalmi LI” (1532), WA 40 II, 425, 17–20. “Dictata super Psalterium” (1513–1516), WA 4, 7, 22: “Cor autem voluntatem et affectum significat.” WA DB 10 I, 101, 22–24. 130 WA 4, 7, 16. 131 Preus (1984: 112). W2 , 5, 457. 132 Harran (1983: 130). WA 2, 509, 2–4. 127 Anttila

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nicht weichen von den worten, wie sie lautten).133 But man’s change for the better, his transformation into a genuine theologian and educator does not occur only through the Word heard, but also through to the Word read, not just through oral communication, but also through the individual study pursued by the few who could read, and Luther’s conversion is proof to this. Not only is the biblical message audible but also readable. However, the Protestant theology, iconophobic in its essence, shows that the inner ear is the organ of spiritual perception, and Luther notes that the spiritual kingdom, the kingdom of Christ (Christi Reich), is a “hearing kingdom” (hör Reich) and not “a seeing kingdom” (sehe Reich).134 Christ is present in the preacher’s sermon; this is the explanation of the preacher’s persuasive power,135 and it also accounts for the reason why preaching can only be Christocentric (solus Christus). Protestant theology and pedagogy favour the ear over the eye, and the individual Bible study pursued by the scholar is not meant to argue this, because when we read or hear the Bible’s message we actually hear (the invisible) God speak to us. Naturally, Luther equates “Gottes Wort” and “die heilige Schrift”136 : “Das ist doch ja ein tröstlicher Spruch, wo wir glauben könnten, daß Gott mit uns redete, und Gottes Wort wäre, was wir in der Bibel lesen oder hören”.137 When we claim that God speaks to us, these words are not deceiving at all: God truly speaks to us, really, not figuratively: “Gott redet und thut es selbst”.138 And the Bible exegete, when he studies the texts of the Old and New Testaments, must believe this with all his heart in order to be effective in his endeavour. The exegete’s work has a necessary requisition in the Protestant principle of sola fide: “Denn du sollst also mit der Schrift handeln, daß du denkest, wie es Gott selbst rede”.139 Along these lines, we can say that the biblical texts are letters we receive from God (unsers Herrn Gottes Briefe)140 ; we are also entitled to affirm that the Bible is “God’s Book” (Buch Gottes).141 The conception Luther had of the Bible in its dual hypostasis of spoken Word and written Word was intended to stimulate, on the one hand, verbal communication and rhetoric, and on the other hand, reading and textual analysis. If God has spoken to us, then we are also bound to speak as well as possible to our neighbours. If God has sent us letters, then we are also bound to write as well as we can. The prevalence that the Reformer gives to hearing over seeing is also present in another text. In an age when the printed copies of the Bible were very rare and, thus, hardly accessible to the common people, who could not read and write, anyway, 133 Preus (1984: 112). “Wider die himmlischen Propheten, von den Bildern und Sakrament” (1525),

WA 18, 147, 24. des Jahres 1545”, WA 51, 11, 29–30. 135 “Wochenpredigten über Joh. 6–8”, WA 33, 629, 4ff. 136 W1 , 21, 201. 137 W2 , 9, 1800. 138 W2 , 3, 68. 139 W2 , 3, 21. 140 W2 , 1, 1069. Preus (1984: 117). 141 W2 , 9, 1830. Preus (1984: 118). 134 “Predigten

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the God’s Word was in fact the Word sent orally by the preacher and the teacher, and not the one individually read and studied by everyone, as is the case in our technologically advanced era. Commenting on Galatians 3, 28, Luther makes the teacher–hearer distinction: “Here many other titles could be added of offices that have been divinely ordained. For example: ‘There is neither magistrate nor subject, neither professor nor listener, neither teacher nor pupil’”.142 But even in our time, which is so technologically and scientifically advanced, when the Internet is the most important source of information, and illiteracy has almost been completely eradicated in the West, the written Word of the Bible, to which everyone has permanent access, has not replaced the preached Word, orally conveyed in churches and schools. Christians, even if they already have good knowledge of the doctrine and are experienced Bible readers, still feel the need to take part in conferences and church services. They feel the need to hear God’s Word, not just read it. Luther was a prolific writer, as well as a gifted orator: the written Word does not replace the spoken Word, and the activity of the writer does not supplant as useless the work of the preacher who teaches “the oral Gospel” (das mündlich Euangelion).143 This oral Gospel “should not be proclaimed with the pen, but with the mouth” (nitt mit der feddernn, sondern mit dem mund soll getrieben werden.).144 God spoke to man, He did not address him in writing, even if the Bible is God’s book. God’s voice is better heard in the preacher’s Word than in any written religious text, or so Luther seems to say. He prefers the living (active) word of preaching: “[the] Gospel is not really that which is in books and composed in letters, but rather an oral preaching (mundliche predig) and living word (lebendig wortt), and a voice (stym) which resounds through the whole world and is shouted forth abroad”.145 Luther’s bias towards oral communication is only natural from another point of view as well. People usually “trust” only what they can see, while the Bible states that “blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John 20, 29). Faith is inside us, unlike the visible things which are outside us, outside our inner faith. Luther does not equate the written word and the preached word: to him, the spoken word is the pedagogical word, the powerful word of teaching. The theologian should be a scholar precisely to be a good preacher, a good pedagogue: “The Reformation gave centrality to the sermon. The pulpit was higher than the altar, for Luther held that salvation is through the Word and without the Word the elements are devoid of sacramental quality, but the Word is sterile unless it is spoken”.146 The Christian teacher provides his students with spiritual nourishment, according to Luther. The importance of the Protestant principles sola Scriptura, sola fide, and 142 LW

26, 353–354. die himmlischen Propheten, von den Bildern und Sakrament” (1525), WA 18, 136, 22. Graham (1987: 149). 144 “Kirchenpostille” (1522), WA 10 I 1, 17, 12. Graham (1987: 149). 145 “Epistel S. Petri gepredigt und ausgelegt. Erste Bearbeitung” (1523), WA 12, 259, 12. Graham (1987: 149). 146 Bainton (1955: 272). 143 “Wider

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solus Christus to Luther’s pedagogy is also salient in the following text: “To preach Christ means to feed the soul, make it righteous, set it free, and save it, provided it believes the preaching”.147 The Christian teacher is a little saviour of his students. A small-scale saviour, since the preacher’s word is God’s Word, the preacher’s voice is God’s voice. This Word becomes powerful by preaching, by its being transmitted orally. In order to influence the life of others, the Word is supposed to be spoken: for the written Word “is not as fruitful and powerful as it is through a public preacher whom God has ordained to say and preach this”.148 Through these ideas, Luther stimulated not only the religion teacher’s attachment to his pupils, but also the pupils’ attachment to their teacher. That is why, in the spirit of Luther’s theology, it is much more natural to associate disbelief not to spiritual blindness, but to spiritual deafness. The religion teacher shows responsibility and efficiency not necessarily in writing, but in speaking, and his pupils do their duty not necessarily if they see, but mostly if they hear. The main exhortation that the religion teacher addresses his pupils would be not to see, but to listen. The explanation is simple: “The word is meant to be spoken. […] Listen, brother: God, the creator of heaven and earth, speaks with you through his preachers” (Verbum vocale. […]Audi, frater: Dens, Creator coeli et terrae, tecum loquitur per praedicatores suos).149 Luther repeatedly highlighted the importance of the oral Word in preaching, and his plea rests on the solus Christus principle: Christ did not write, nor did He command His Apostles to write anything.150 The oral word was at the core of the life of Christ and His Apostles, just like it constantly is at the core of the life of the Church. To the Reformer, the Church is a “mouth-house” (mundhawß) and not a “pen-house” (fedderhawß).151 Although he was to an equal extent a brilliant writer and a prolific preacher, Luther considered that the Church needs more preachers than writers. The Church is not a library where the readers get to know the writers’ works, but a meeting place for those who speak and those who listen: “in Ecclesia non satis esse libros scribi et legi, sed necessarium esse dici et audiri”.152 So is what Luther says about the Church not valid for school as well? Is it not, even at the present time, in more need of preachers than writers? “The lipps are the public reservoirs of the Church” (Labia sunt receptacula publica ecclesiae.)153 The spoken word has another advantage when compared to the written word, which is also pedagogically significant. The spoken word may be adjusted to the peculiarities of the audience, which is of utmost importance. Books are not 147 Luther

(1970: 280). Luther, Works, American edition (Saint Louis: Concordia, 1955), 64, n. 66, quoted by Kent Edwards (2009: 34). 149 WA TR 4, 531, 15-15, no. 4812. Wilson (2005: 63). 150 “Kirchenpostille” (1522), WA 10 I 1, 7–9. 151 “Adventspostille” (1522), WA 10 I 2, 48, 5. 152 “Operationes in Psalmos” (1519–1521), WA 5, 537, 10–11. 153 LW 18, 401. “Praelectiones in prophetas minores” (1524), WA 13, 686, 7. 148 Martin

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comprehensible to everyone, but the teacher, if he is a good pedagogue, can make himself understood by all, not just the scholarly. Luther’s personal experience is worth mentioning here, as it shows his love and attachment to children: “When I preach here [in Wittenberg] I adapt myself to the circumstances of the common people. I don’t look at doctors and masters, of whom scarcely forty are present, but at the hundred or the thousand young people and children. It’s to them that I preach… If the others don’t want to listen, they can leave”.154 God speaks to us so that we believe and follow His commandments; we should not doubt155 and not do as we were commanded to. Those who doubt the truth of the biblical message really doubt the fact that the words of the Scripture are God’s voice who does not lie: in this respect, it may be said that only Christians hear God’s voice and it is only to them that God truly speaks; on the other hand, non-Christians consider that the Bible is “a man’s speech and word” (menschen stimme und wort).156 The Kingdom of the Son of God “is founded on the Word which cannot by perceived (fassen) and comprehended (begreiffen)” except with ears and tongue. The Christians are distinguished from non-Christians by these two organs (gliedmas): Christians hear and speak differently from non-Christians, and their mouth “praises God’s mercy (die Gottes gnade preiset) and preaches Christ the Lord (und die von dem Herrn Christo predigt)”157 (soli Deo gloria). This entails that the religion teacher should mainly observe how well his students manage to receive his messages and at the same time if they express themselves adequately. We should not doubt the message of the Scripture just because the one conveying it to us here and now does not look like we wish he did. The Lord, being omnipotent, could speak to us if He wanted even through an ass.158 Hence, the remark of the Protestant theologian Karl Barth: “If the question what God can do forces theology to be humble, the question what is commanded of us forces it to concrete obedience. God may speak to us through Russian Communism, a flute concerto, a blossoming shrub, or a dead dog. We do well to listen to Him if He really does”.159 Starting from this premise, a generalisation may be made; i.e. students give their undivided attention to the teacher and believe that his messages are true only when they are convinced that the author they are studying in class speaks about himself and his ideas through the teacher. At the same time, students should be responsive to their teacher, no matter if they like his appearance, clothes, or manner of speaking. Luther is explicit in this respect: “Who is speaking? The pastor? By no means! You do not hear the pastor. Of course, the voice is his, but the words he employs are really spoken by my God”.160 Both a speaker lacking eloquence and a gifted orator may

154 WA

TR 3, 419, 29–420, 4, no. 3573. Wilson (2005: 68). über 1 Mose von 1535–45”, WA 42, 118, 12–15. 156 “Predigten des Jahres 1535”, WA 41, 150, 29. 157 “Predigten des Jahres 1534”, WA 37, 512, 36–513, 27. 158 “Resolutiones disputationum de indulgentiarum virtute” (1518), WA 1, 595, 34–35. 159 CD I/1, 55. 160 LW 22, 528, quoted by Wilson (2009: 102). 155 “Vorlesungen

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speak the Word of God to an equal extent. God’s message is the same, even if it is conveyed by a father, an angel, or God himself. Whoever reads the Scripture with faith and humility hears God without seeing Him.161 The great benefit we derive from reading the Bible is hearing the divine voice, says the Reformer repeatedly. Reading the Scripture is an act of great responsibility, and at the same time a great honour pertaining to those who are literate. Through Bible reading, the Holy Spirit speaks to each and every reader, and man reads so that God may speak to him: “wer das wortt Gottes liesset, mit denen redet auch der heilige Geist”.162 Although he states that the preached Word is stronger than the written Word; i.e. the two Words are distinct, and they are also solidary, somehow united. But it is beyond doubt that at the foundation of the written Word there is the spoken Word, God’s voice, the only one that may be perceived by man. A good preacher (teacher) should possess certain qualities, as a good sermon should meet certain requirements to be considered as such. These qualities that should be possessed by the one addressing an audience are responsibilities pertaining to pedagogical deontology. The preacher should prove professionalism, intelligence, eloquence, erudition, moral resilience, patience, and humility. Luther requires that the preacher should be first and foremost a didactician: 1. he should “teach systematically” (esse didacticos); 2. “he should have a ready wit” (ein fein kop haben); 3 “he should be eloquent” (wol bered sein); 4. “he should have a good voice” (ein stimme haben); 5. he should be endowed with “a good memory” (bonam memoriam); 6. “he should know when to make an end” (sol wissen auffzuhoren); 7. “he should be sure of his doctrine” (sol seins dings fleissig sein); 8. “he should venture and engage body and blood, wealth and honour, in the word” (sol leib und leben dran setzen); 9. “he should suffer himself to be mocked and jeered of everyone” (sol sich von ydem man lassen geheyen); 10. “he should patiently bear the fact nothing is seen more easily and quickly in those preachers than their faults” (quod petienter ferat. In praedicatoribus nihil facilius aut citius videri quam eorum vitia).163 In addition, the fides ex auditu phrase, beyond its biblical foundations, i.e. beyond the fact that it made reference to the life and activity of the greatest Preacher of all times, our Lord Jesus Christ, who transmitted His learning orally,164 also described the state of facts from past ages. In other words, it described the relation between the one teaching a certain doctrine and the one receiving it; in their vast majority, the common people were in the position of listening to the preacher’s words, as they had neither books, studies, and literacy, nor the desire to learn how to read or write. “In sixteenth-century Germany oral transmission was still the primary mode of communication, in which information was received by face-to-face contact within small communities. Even the printed word was most often mediated by the spoken word, by reading aloud to oneself, by reading aloud to others or by discussion of things 161 “Wider

das Papsttum zu Rom, vom Teufel geftistet” (1545), WA 54, 263, 14–15: “Wer Gott wil hören reden, der lese die heilige Schrifft.” 162 “Auslegung des dritten und vierten Kapitels Johannis”, WA 47, 184, 17–18. 163 WA TR 2, 531, 4–9, no. 2580. Wilson (2005: 68–69). 164 Cf. “Kirchenpostille” (1522), WA 10 I 1, 626, 6–9. Graham (1987: 151).

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in print. Public and private discussions were probably the most frequent means of transmitting ideas, while pride of place as the major formal means of communication must go to the pulpit, from which most public announcements were proclaimed”.165 Consequently, we should not overestimate the role of the printed book in disseminating the Protestant ideas: we had better speak of the impact that the Reformation had on the printed word, than of the impact that the printed word had on the Reformation.166 Although numerous books were printed in Western Europe in the sixteenth century, most of them were written in Latin, a language known only by the intelligentsia of the time. This is why we should not be surprised by the following text of the Reformer, from his commentary to the Epistle to the Hebrews: “For if you ask a Christian what the work is by which he is made worthy of the name of Christian, he can give no other answer than hearing the word of God, which is faith. Thus the ears alone are the organs of a Christian man, because not by the works of any other member but by faith is he justified and judged a Christian”.167 Luther considered that the ear and the heart are the anatomical elements of faith, of trust. The preacher targets the hearing; at the same time, the Holy Spirit, the Supreme Preacher and Teacher, addresses the heart, and the Holy Spirit is the vehicle transporting the Word of God from the ear to the heart; in this case, it is possible to perceive from a different angle the close connection between sola fide and sola gratia (Holy Spirit alone): “The ears grasp the word, and the heart has faith in it” (Das wort fassen die ohren, und das hertz gleubets).168 A third anatomical element of faith is the tongue (the mouth), expressing faith, or rather confessing it: Luther continues the previous statement by saying that the tongue speaks or confesses what the heart believes—“Die zunge aber redets oder bekennets, wie das hertz glaubet.”169 In this case, we are tempted to consider that Luther might intend to say that a part of the preacher’s or teacher’s faith may be conveyed to his audience through oral communication rather than written communication: the tongue is the noblest of the members, and the speech—the highest faculty.170 The stress that Luther laid on the biblical fides ex auditu is also legitimate from another perspective: the Reformation proved the importance of preaching and the power of the word preached, thus stimulating in the most direct way possible the desire of the masses to hear it. Considering that the preaching activity is vocational, the Protestant Reformation encouraged both the preacher and the teacher’s zeal. “Indeed, for Protestants ‘hearing the Word’ became virtually a third Sacrament 165 Scribner

(1984: 238). See also Grimm (1958: 50): “The Protestant Reformation would not have been possible without the sermon. Regardless of how the reformers gained their new theological insights, they used the sermon to bring their doctrines directly to their followers in the vernacular and to apply these doctrines to the immediate and practical religious needs of the people. Since the pulpit was one of the most important means of communicating information in the sixteenth century, the role of the sermon in making the Reformation a mass movement can scarcely be overestimated”. 166 Pettegree and Hall (2004: 785–786). 167 Luther (2006a: 194–195), George (2013: 55). 168 “Predigten des Jahres 1534”, WA 37, 513, 19. Graham (1987: 151). 169 “Predigten des Jahres 1534”, WA 37, 513, 20. 170 LW 46, 249.

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alongside Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Communities cared enough about this to pay out of their own pockets to support a preacher if no benefice was vacant, and to put considerable pressure on magistrates who were reluctant to provide or permit such a preacher. […] Printed propaganda for the Reformation presented this aspect of the evangelical sermon as a radical departure from older patterns”.171

4.4.7 Born Anew Man cannot reform himself, but he is changed for the better by God, through His sovereign power. One should not forget that Luther is a supporter of the soli Deo gloria principle. Man does not hear the salvific Word with his biological ears but with his spiritual ears. Hence, the educator, be him preacher or schoolteacher, cannot work miracles in his respective activity; he cannot be one hundred per cent persuasive and effective without the miraculous intervention of the Holy Spirit: the only one to perform miracles is God. In Luther’s view, the efficiency of the religious educator is proof of God’s presence in the space where learning is transmitted: “For the Word proceeds from the mouth of the apostle and reaches the heart of the hearer; there the Holy Spirit is present and impresses that Word on the heart, so that it is heard. In this way every preacher is a parent, who produces and forms the true shape of the Christian mind through the ministry of the Word”.172 In other words, both the preacher and the teacher address their audience in a language they know, and yet, the ability to comprehend and accept unreservedly what they hear (sola fide) is God-given (sola gratia). Luther judges by analogy, and the comparison he makes at some point has pedagogical significance: “if it does not infuse the Spirit, then he who hears does not differ at all from one who is deaf. Consequently, when an infant is not confused by other things, it is easier for the very sound of the Word – the sound uttered through the ministry of the Church – to be operative through the Spirit. Then there is greater susceptibility on the part of the child”.173 In Luther’s view, the Holy Spirit ensures a good reception of the Word by man, who thus returns to God. The Holy Spirit, the Supreme Teacher of the mankind and its infallible Pedagogue, possesses the infinite power by which He writes the Word of God in the heart of man, so that the Christian accepts it with full conviction and without hesitation.174 In Luther’s view, God is the most talented and clear speaker and writer.175 The Holy Spirit is the Supreme Speaker. The Holy Spirit is also the Supreme Writer, in two ways: not only did he “write” the Holy Scripture throughout the past ages

171 Scribner

(1984: 238–239). 26, 430. 173 Harran (1983: 130). WA 2, 509, 4–7. 174 “Wochenpredigten über Joh. 6–8”, WA 33, 271, 29–30–273. 175 Preus (1984: 121). 172 LW

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with the support of some inspired people, but He is also “writing” His Writ now, at present, and “will write” it in future in the hearts of the believers. Had God not permanently written His Word in the hearts of men, the Bible would be just a book without any influence on mankind. What Luther implies here is that the Holy Spirit writes the Word of God in the heart of man, which is visible in the metaphorical phrasing of the Reformer. The Holy Spirit, our Schoolmaster (Schulmeister) and our incomparable Teacher, transforms the Word into “fiery flames” (fewrigen Flammen) and “living thoughts” (lebendigen gedancken), and He does not need a pen (Feder) or ink (Dinte) to write it in our hearts. This explains that we accept and understand the Word without reservations or doubts. This divine fire gives us all life and the skill to give the Word a good use.176 God is the sovereign and the most efficient Teacher of mankind and Reformer of the human nature. And as Luther claims, the Holy Spirit is the only source for the salvific faith: “For the Holy Spirit must be both the Preacher of this message and the Author who inscribes it in my heart, so that I believe ad say ‘I believe in Jesus Christ’”.177 If man possesses the ability to believe, then it is exclusively due to God: faith is not a natural act of man but a supernatural act. There can be only one conclusion: soli Deo gloria! The regeneration is the change of human nature, a new birth by grace, through faith. The regeneration, as Luther perceives it, is an alteration of the human essence, the most important aspect of man’s life. Faith means renewal, improvement. As Luther declares at some point, changing the person subsequently impacts the change in the entire society: “Concerning this birth, Christ also declares (John 3, 3): ‘Except one be born anew, he cannot see the kingdom of God.’ Here we are taught that works will not answer; the individual must himself die and obtain a different nature (die Person muß selbst und ganz heran, sterben und in ein ander Wesen kommen). This takes place in baptism when he believes, for faith is this renewing (der Glaube ist diese Verneurung)”.178 This last assertion of the Reformer is of utmost importance: “der Glaube ist diese Verneurung”. A person who was born anew/born again is a different person, with a new nature, identity, and patterns of thinking, feeling, and acting. The change, as Luther sees it, is ample, profound, and utterly real, not imaginary. As a reformer, Luther is a theologian of change, of renewal, of improvement, of man and social institutions’ transformation for the better: “you could not see the kingdom of God unless you became a wholly different person (du werdest denn gar ein anderer Mensch), unless you were born anew, according to Christ’s words in John 3, 3”.179 Only a renewed, reformed man is compatible with the Kingdom of Heaven. We consider that Luther became a religious and educational reformer precisely because he was first and foremost interested in the improvement of the human being, an aspect unfortunately overlooked by the commentators of his writings. For the 176 WA

33, 273. 22, 286. Zachman (1993: 61). 178 LE 7, 155. W2 , 12, 140. 179 LE 8, 234. W2 , 12, 528. 177 LW

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Reformer, being “born anew” means having the heart cleansed “through the Holy Spirit”, i.e. by grace, sola gratia.180 But also solus Christus, sola Scriptura. We are born again of and in God, through Christ, through the Gospel, in order to comprehend its message and be faithful to it,181 in order to ultimately have a love-based behaviour. A man born anew is “a new creature”.182 He loves the good things that he used to hate, and hates the bad things that he used to love.183 He has a changed thinking and different desires, which do not originate in the flesh but in his renewed spirit.184 “In short, there must be an entirely different being (anderer Mensch); that is, the entire person must be changed (ganze Person anders werden) so as to obtain an altogether new mind (Verstand) and heart (Herz), and new thoughts (Gedanken) and feelings (Sinne)”.185 Hence the importance that Luther places on education in general and on religious education in particular. An uneducated, uninstructed man is not a spiritual being but an old man who cannot be pleasing to God,186 nor be useful in any way to his neighbours and to the society as a whole. Luther’s theology, a theology of the reform(ation), of improvement, is a theology of the Christ’s preached message, orally transmitted by the preacher or teacher, a word that reaches the hearts of the listeners through faith, by grace. The transmission of the didactic message is rather a human work, while its efficient reception is, for the most part, a divine work. Luther’s pedagogy is a space where the human meets the divine, the teacher meets the Holy Spirit, and the human teacher meets the divine Teacher. The keyword is reform, a red thread in the entire thinking of the German theologian, which is able to also justify his pedagogical plea. It is, otherwise, the most important word in the title of this book. Luther is absolutely certain of the necessity of a good educational reform, one having the human being at its centre. His words are powerful and full of pathos, and he cannot conceive something more diabolical (teufflischer) in the society than an unreformed university system (unreformierte universiteten),187 which, in his view, corresponds to an unreformed man. The reform was regarded by Luther as the only solution to the corruption (of truth and mores) that prevailed in the sixteenth-century society. The Bible itself emphasises the importance of this reform of the human spirit: “And be not conformed to this world, but be reformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what he good and acceptable and perfect will of God is”188 (Romans 12, 2). Commenting on this verse, Luther indicates the authentic meaning of this word: to him, the reform is a renewal, and the Holy Spirit is the great spiritual Reformer of 180 LE

8, 245. W2 , 12, 539. 10, 144, 213. 182 LE 13, 171. 183 LE 11, 368. 184 LE 12, 351–352. 185 LE 12, 428. W2 , 11, 1168. 186 LE 12, 428–429. 187 WA 6, 458, 37–40. 188 Luther (2006b: 321). 181 LE

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man (sola gratia). “The apostle treats this with great sensitiveness. He does not say: be reformed to the renewal but: ‘in the renewal’ or ‘through the renewal,’ or better yet, as in the Greek: ‘Be reformed by the renewing of your mind.’ He adds ‘by the renewing’ in order that one should see that, in connection with this transformation, he does not teach an instability of mind (or a renewal of the external cultus) but, rather, a renewing of the mind, day by day, that is to become greater and greater, in accordance with the words of 2 Corinthians 4, 16: ‘The inward man is renewed day by day,’ and of Ephesians 4, 23: ‘Be renewed in the spirit of your mind,’ and of Colossians 3, 10: ‘Put on the new man, which is renewed’”.189 The Christian’s greatest desire is to undergo a profound spiritual inner reform. Luther’s interest in the reformation of the inward man is also evident from a letter that he sends in 1522 to George Spalatin, the secretary of Elector Frederick the Wise of Saxony. Its few lines make it clear that its author was thinking about man’s reformation, i.e. his improvement; man’s reform(ation) is regarded as the only viable alternative to his destruction: “the purpose is to reform (Besserung) and not destroy (Verderbung) the man”.190 For Luther, the reform(ation) was salvific par excellence.

4.4.8 The World Is Incapable of Reforming Itself Luther was a reformer and not a self-reformer. In his Discourse on Free Will, Luther responds to Erasmus, showing that no one can reform himself on his own. “You say: Who will endeavour to reform his life (corrigere vitam suam)? I answer: Nobody! No man can! God has no time for your self-reformers, for they are hypocrites. The elect who fear God will be reformed by the Holy Spirit. The rest will perish unreformed”.191 The reform(ation) is something outwardly imposed, and things do not move in the right direction on their own. There is resistance to change—the more profound the change, the greater the resistance. Luther claims in the incipit of his reformatory writing To the Christian Nobility of the German Nation that the supporters of Rome symbolically built three walls around them, to guard them from any reform, and that this would be the main cause of the dramatic decline of Western Christian life. It should be remembered that Martin Luther did not want to break with the Catholic Church, and yet he was forced to do so. Luther wanted a profound change at the level of the entire society, and in this context, the explanation for this break is very simple— and it is provided by the Reformer himself in one of his sermons: “Therefore, to undertake to reform the pope, the convents, and the high schools and still maintain them in their essence and character, would be like squeezing water out of snow and still preserving the snow”. (Darum, Pabst, Klöster, hohe Sculen reformiren wollen

189 Luther

(2006b: 323). (2006c: 171). WA BR 2, 556, 14. 191 Luther (2002: 110). “De servo arbitrio” (1525), WA 18, 632, 3. 190 Luther

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und doch in ihrem Wesen erhalten, das ist eben so viel, als das Wasser aus dem Schnee drücken und den Schnee doch erhalten.)192 Catholicism and education institutions are no longer in harmony with the Bible and with Christ’s teachings, Luther claimed. It is for this reason that he rejects them as more than heretical. This attitude of the Reformer is once again based on the principles of sola Scriptura and solus Christus: “Christ and the Scriptures are not necessary, as long as the doctrine of the pope and his schools exist”. (Also ist Christus und die Schrift gar kein noth, so des Pabst und der Universität Lehren bestehen.).193 Without a consistent reform, the Church will fall down completely because of the many abuses, Luther notes in his treatise On the Councils and the Church. And although we all need to be reformed, he admits that this reform is not an easy undertaking: “we see that the world is incapable of reforming itself” (videmus mundum irreformabilem).194 Men are incapable of changing by themselves because the change for the better of the human being is undertaken sola gratia: “Because men are without grace and have not the Spirit of God, it is impossible for them to love righteousness. […] They cannot possibly change their hearts by the power of their own nature without the grace of God, for, of himself, man can do nothing good, but only evil”.195 Which is why is understandable that the Church prays “Grant us a penitent heart”.196 Luther confessed in another letter, also written in Latin, how concerned he was with the change (mutatio) of the impious religious practices (impiorum rituum197 ) which were dangerous to man’s salvation, but these liturgical reforms, in order to become useful, needed a preliminary fundamental reform in doctrine.198 At the Diet of Worms, Luther explained to a select audience that he had only attempted to make the Christian faith comply with God’s Word: “For I have desired nothing in all this except a reformation according to Holy Scripture, and this I have urgently demanded. Otherwise I will endure all things for his imperial majesty and the empire: life and death, fame and infamy, reserving nothing at all for myself except only the right to confess and testify to the Word of the Lord. I most humbly commend myself and subject myself to his imperial majesty and the whole empire”.199 The Church has no foundation at all if it is not built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets: “the Word of God shall establish articles of faith and no one else, not even an angel” (Gottes wort sol Artikel des glaubens stellen und sonst niemand, auch kein Engel.)200 The Church cannot be reformed in accordance with the decrees of the fathers and the councils, Luther claims in On the Councils and 192 LE

10, 105. W2 11, 89. 10, 217. W2 11, 198. 194 Luther (2006c: 254). WA TR 4, 524, No. 4805. 195 LW 32, 35. 196 LW 32, 35. 197 WA BR, 5, 221, 22. 198 Luther (2006c: 296, 348). 199 LW 32, 121–122. 200 “The Smalcald Articles”, Luther (1989: 507). “Die schmalkaldischen Artikel” (1537, 1538), WA 50, 206, 27–29. 193 LE

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the Church, because the great theologians of the Antiquity and the Middle Age often argued, and the councils of the Church had the purpose to defend the articles of faith, and not to invent new ones; their duty was to study and confess, not change them. No theologian or council can bring something new about the Bible, amend it in any way, and, of course, refute it; any Christian admits that God is omniscient and holy, and that the Bible is infallible! As Luther notes, “God cannot err or deceive” (Gott kann nicht irren noch betrügen.)201 The logical conclusion is: “For it is certain that Scripture does not lie”. Denn daß ist gewiß, daß die Schrift nicht lügt.202 However, this full attachment of the Christian to the Bible has important practical effects. If a philosopher of the Antiquity has become famous without knowing anything (I know that I know nothing—Socrates), why should we be surprised that a German at the dawn of the Modern Age has become the Father of the Reformation without doing anything? Anything but keeping the Word of God, of course. We should never forget that both the preacher and the teacher are in the service of the Word: “I will preach it, teach it, write it, but I will constrain no man by force, for faith must come freely without compulsion”.203 Protestantism is the religion of the Word! In Treatise on the Blessed Sacrament, Luther equates the effort of the reformation of the Church “and of all Christians at the risk of life, property and honour”204 with a number of noble human behaviours, such as helping the poor, caring for the sick, intercession for others, and defending the truth. For Luther, the reformation action meant no less than fighting inequity, as results from Whether Soldiers, too, Can Be Saved. This is why it is easy to understand why Luther envisaged a compulsory education for all children, not only for the children of wealthy merchants and city rulers. The inequity in the sixteenth-century German society could be fought by taking firm administrative, theological, and educational measures. In addition, if education has beneficial effects on the entire society, it needs to be imposed by the state, as an exigency that cannot be overlooked. If the authorities compel the citizens to do their military duty and fight in case of a war, then they should also compel them to send their children to school, as a people’s ignorance is even more dangerous than the war that might be waged at some point.205

4.4.9 Sola Scriptura, not Nuda Scriptura If the reform of theological studies and Christian piety was conceived by Luther in close connection with God’s revealed truth, with the change of perception on human 201 W2 ,

19, 337. (1984: 137). W2 , 1, 714. 203 “The Eight Wittenberg Sermons”, PE 2, 399–400. George (2013: 55). 204 PE 2, 17. 205 Painter (1889: 269–270), Eby (1931: 149–150), Eby and Arrowood (1946: 91). 202 Preus

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nature, then he leaves the task of reforming non-theological faculties to the experts in their respective fields. Luther has something to say about the law schools, as he requires, in To the Christian Nobility of the German Nation, that the canon law be abandoned insofar as the Bible to remain the only behavioural guide for man (sola Scriptura). The Bible is accessible and useful to everybody, not just to theologians, and every Christian should be granted unrestricted access to it, without being forced to study the mediaeval philosophers and theologians beforehand. We should not forget that owing to Protestantism the Bible has become the most widely read book in the Christian space. Luther has, otherwise, a lot to reproach to the scholastic theologians, whom he does not even consider competent teachers, as they do not possess a doctrine that expresses truth. The one who does not know the Scripture is ignorant, and an ignorant cannot teach anyone because he needs to be taught himself. The true teacher knows and confesses the truth of the divine letter. In the following text, Luther only reasserts the validity of the sola Scriptura, sola fide, and sola gratia principles: “I know and confess that they taught me nothing other than ignorance of sin […]. Nor did they teach me what constitute the power of God, the work of God, the grace of God, the righteousness of God, or about faith, hope and love. In brief, not only did they not teach me anything but what they did teach was entirely contrary to the Holy Scripture” (Ego scio et confiteor, me aliud nihil didicisse quam ignorantiam peccati […], nec quid virtus dei, opus dei, gratia dei, iustitia dei, fides, spes, charitas sit. Breviter, non solum nihil didici (quod ferendum erat), sed non nisi dediscenda didici, omnino contraria divinis literis.206 By requiring a simplification of the curriculum in his age, Luther actually prompts us too to carefully select our readings: only the best (theology) books should be published because it is only these books that make their reader learned. Quality matters, and not quantity, sola Scriptura excludes nuda Scriptura, and sola Scriptura is a qualitative not a quantitative theological and educational principle. For Luther and for the entire Protestant theology, the Bible is the most valuable book in the world, but not the only one that may be read. Luther does not entertain extremist opinions. In his view, the Bible is not the only book for Christians but the book that they trust the most. For this reason, Luther required the authorities and the nobility to politically and financially support the establishment of school institutions and good libraries, especially in the urban areas. However, he specifically wanted Aristotle’s writings excluded, as his philosophy was unchristian207 : “My advice is not to heap together all manner of books indiscriminately and think only of the number and size of the collection. I would make a judicious selection, for it is not necessary to have all the commentaries of the jurists, all the sentences of the theologians, all the quaestiones of the philosophers, and all the sermons of the monks. Indeed, I would discard all such

206 Harran

(1983: 187). “Resolutiones Lutherianae super propositionibus suis Lipsiae disputatis” (1519), WA 2, 414, 22–27. 207 LW 45, 373–375.

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dung, and furnish my library with the right sort of books, consulting with scholars as to my choice”.208 Luther therefore starts by mentioning the books that he would not want gathered in a public library accessible to both the clergy and laymen. Then, he names the works that he considered good for study and consequently worthy of being collected in such a book repository. The Word of God comes first: Luther grants maximum importance to biblical exegesis and classical philology: “First of all, there would be the Holy Scriptures, in Latin, Greek, Hebrew, and German, and any other language in which they might be found. Next, the best commentaries, and, if I could find them, the most ancient, in Greek, Hebrew, and Latin. Then, books that would be helpful in learning the languages, such as the poets and orators, regardless of whether they were pagan or Christian, Greek or Latin, for it is from such books that one must learn grammar. After that would come books on the liberal arts, and all the other arts. Finally, there would be books of law and medicine, here too there should be careful choice among commentaries”.209 The principle of sola Scriptura was not intended to be nuda Scriptura. Luther considers that there are other theologians worth studying by those who want to become better acquainted with this field, for example, the fathers of the Church, but no one should limit themselves to their study. The other Christian theologians are useful to the extent that they help us better understand certain biblical texts, their works are solely an introduction to the Holy Scripture, and those who are content with the reading of certain authors and abandon the reading of the Scripture are just like travellers who read the road signs without taking the respective roads. The writings of the Bible commentators are destined to facilitate access to it and not to substitute it. Sola Scriptura is the fundamental principle according to which the study and learning are organised in the Protestant cultural space: although the Scripture is not the Christian’s only reading, to him/her it is the only fundamental, therefore compulsory, reading. This conception should not be surprising: any commentary introduces us in the reading of a certain work without substituting it, without making the reading of the main work futile. Luther is unequivocal in his work, To the Christian Nobility of the German Nation: in universities, the Bibles should be studied preponderantly, and in schools, the Gospels. In all cities and towns, he adds, there should also be schools for girls, in which the Gospels should be taught to them, either in German or in Latin. In the past, in monasteries, nunneries, and schools, there had been Bible readings, but in his time, the monks and nuns only occupied themselves with praying and singing, while the prelates did not know the first thing about the Bible themselves. Starting from sola Scriptura, Luther condemns mediaeval piety and bemoans this decline of the monastery and school life: little girls learn from their mothers how to weave and sew from an early age, and why would the youth of both genders not learn the Gospels as well, all the more that they are essential for the Christian life?

208 LW 209 LW

45, 375–376. 45, 376.

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Luther claims that things be granted their right value, no more no less. And the five solas tell us, in fact, the same thing. All five solas are qualitative not quantitative principles; they are axiological principles that prioritise, hierarchise, differentiate, and grant various degrees of importance to things. The five solas are principles of hierarchy, of the relation, therefore, of order. The five Reformation principles are in fact the five reform principles, the five principles of religious, educational, social, political, and especially human nature reform(ation). The Protestant Reformation, based on the five solas, organises, restructures, and sets things in order. Just as the thorough reading of the Bible does not render the study of other writings useless (sola Scriptura), faith does not exclude but subordinates the work (sola fide). Grace does not exclude man’s effort and the necessity of his involvement in society (sola gratia), and the honour and the glory that we owe God do not cancel or render useless the respect that we owe our parents, teachers, and all our neighbours. Nevertheless, in this last case, Luther’s specification should be mentioned, as it clearly reveals the attitude that we should have towards certain social positions: “the magistrate, the emperor, the king, the prince, the consul, the teacher, the preacher, the pupil, the father, the mother, the children, the master, the servant […] God wants us to respect and acknowledge them as His creatures, which are necessity for this life. But He does not want us to attribute divinity to them, that is, to fear and respect them in such a way that we trust them and forget Him”.210 Soli Deo gloria! Luther undertakes a nuanced analysis of these aspects. The teacher is just a creature, in which quality he cannot be adored, but nevertheless an indispensable creature to social life, as Luther records in his Lectures on Galatians. A human community that lacks teachers has no future: “a schoolmaster is extremely necessary for a boy, to instruct and chastise him; for otherwise, without this instruction, good training, and discipline, the boy would come to ruin”.211 And after having requested a rigorous selection of readings, Luther also envisions a careful selection of the future students and a toughening of their examinations. School institutions must be placed under the management of the state officials. Having become well acquainted with the Bible, their graduates were prompted to become educated ministers for the Lutheran Church, able to diligently fight heresy, i.e. any doctrine that would conflict with the Bible (sola Scriptura). The Bible is not the only readable book, but to Luther no book that contravenes the biblical texts is readable or worth being studied in school—for example, as already mentioned, some of Aristotle’s works. The Reformer’s efforts to reinstate the authentic order in the society were not in vain. In a letter sent in the spring of 1530 to the Elector John of Saxony, Luther, after having praised the pastors and preachers in the area for faithfully teaching people the pure doctrine, the whole truth (so treulich und rein lehren), the biblical truth, thus contributing through the inculcation of sound learning to the preservation of peace in the land, also examines the youth’s educational level in his time. Boys and girls, he contentedly remarks, know the Scripture and the Catechism, and are more 210 LW 211 LW

26, 95. 26, 346.

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faithful and more inclined to prayer and discussions on God and Christ than the ones who, in the past, attended schools and spent their entire lives between the walls of a monastery.212 Sound instruction and the thorough knowledge of the doctrine help every Christian to fulfil his duty, his vocation: “it is the duty of every Christian to espouse the cause of the faith, to understand and defend it, and to denounce every error”.213 We remark once more that, in the Reformers’ view, the Bible is the alpha and omega of religious education, i.e. its basis and goal. For a Christian educator, the proclamation of the Word of God is the most important. The most important but not the only one. Luther was not exclusivist, and he was not the man of a single preoccupation throughout his life, because in the same fashion the five solas are not exclusivist par excellence, nor are they excessive, i.e. exaggeratedly limitative. Of course, they are not fully permissive either. Not only was Luther the Father of the Reformation, but he was also a cultured man who valued the cultural acquisitions of his age and tried to identify the just relation between theology and other subjects of learning, between religion and other fields of culture, as apparent in the First Preface to Walther’s Hymn Book of 1525: “I do not hold the opinion that all arts are to be completely discarded through the Gospel, as some super-spiritual people would have it; but I would like to see all arts, especially music, placed in the service of Him who has given and created them”.214 The Protestant Reformation is theocentric par excellence, man, with all his knowledge and culture, must be in the service of God, and there is nothing exaggerated about this theological principle (soli Deo gloria). In fact, it would be better if we judged by analogy: if it is natural that the created things be useful to their creator, artist, or artisan, why would this truth not apply to God too, as Creator of the entire world? Soli Deo gloria is moderate in all respects, as this principle does not teach us to focus all our attention on divinity and completely disregard the world that we live in. Such a philosophy would be completely opposite to Luther’s teachings. As we could see, Luther does not discuss the education system and education in general as an education theoretician or as a pedagogy expert but as a religious reformer, a reformer of mores and mentalities. Luther can be analysed as an education reformer only in his capacity as Father of the Protestant Reformation. Reform(ation) and education are interrelated in that qualitative education is not possible in the absence of its reform, and its reform and that of the entire society is undertaken by educated people who have undergone a spiritual, intellectual reform. The reforms are to the advantage of education, which, in its turn, is in the service of the Reformation, contributing to its progress; they are imperative and decisive to the advancement of the Gospel. The education and instruction of the youth of both gender education and instruction were regarded by Luther as the only solution to the moral crisis of the society.

212 WA

BR 5, 325–326, no. 1572. 44, 136. 214 Kretzmann (1940: 85). 213 LW

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References Allen, P. S., & Allen, H. M. (Eds.). (1928). Opvs epistolarvm des. Erasmi Roterodami. T. VII (1527–1528). Oxonii: In typographeo Clarendoniano. Anttila, M. E. (2013). Luther’s theology of music: Spiritual beauty and pleasure. Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter. Aristotle. (1998). Politics. Translated with Introduction and Notes by C. D. C. Reeve. Indianapolis/Cambridge: Hackett Publishing Company. Aristotle. (2011). Nicomachean Ethics. Translated, with an interpretive essay, notes, and glossary by R. C. Bartlett and S. D. Collins. Chicago, London: The University of Chicago Press. Bainton, R. H. (1955). Here I stand: A life of Martin Luther. New York: Mentor Book. Berman, H. J. (2003). Law and revolution II: The impact of the Protestant Reformations on the western legal tradition. Cambridge, MA, London: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press. Dieter, T. (2001). Der junge Luther und Aristoteles: Eine historisch-systematische Untersuchung zum Verhältnis von Theologie und Philosophie. Berlin, New York: Walter de Gruyter. Eby, F. (1931). Early Protestant educators: The educational writings of Martin Luther, John Calvin, and other leaders of Protestant thought. New York, London: McGraw-Hill Book Company. Eby, F., & Arrowood, C. F. (1946). The development of modern education in theory, organization, and practice. New York: Prentice-Hall. Ganns, H. G. (1913). Luther. In C. G. Herbermann et al. (Eds.), The Catholic Encyclopedia: An international work of reference on the constitution, doctrine, discipline, and history of the Catholic Church (Vol IX). New York: The Encyclopedia Press. George, T. (2013). Theology of the Reformers (Revised ed.). Nashville, TN: B&H Publishing Group. Graff, H. J. (1987). The legacies of literacy: Continuities and contradictions in western culture and society. Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press. Graham, W. A. (1987). Beyond the written word: Oral aspects of Scripture in the history of religion. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Grimm, H. J. (1958). The Human Element in Luther’s Sermons. Archiv für Reformationsgeschichte, 49, 50–60. Harran, M. J. (1981). The concept of conversio in the early exegetical writings of Martin Luther. Archiv für Reformationsgeschichte-Archive for Reformation History, 72, 13–33. Harran, M. J. (1983). Luther on conversion: The early years. Ithaca and London: Cornell University Press. Hibler, R. W. (1985). Martin Luther, The Educator. The Educational Forum, 49(3), 297–305. Holl, K. (1932). Die Kulturbedeutung der Reformation. Gesammelte Aufsätze zur Kirchengeschichte. Vol. I. Luther (6th ed.). Tübingen: J. C. B. Mohr (Paul Siebeck). Holl, K. (1959). The cultural significance of the Reformation. Translated by Karl and Barbara Hertz and J. H. Lichtblau. Cleveland, OH, New York: Meridian Books. Junghans, H. (2003). Luther’s Wittenberg. Translated by Katharina Gustavs. In D. K. McKim (Ed.), The Cambridge Companion to Martin Luther. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Kant, I. (2007). Lectures on pedagogy. In G. Zöller & R. B. Louden (Eds.), Immanuel Kant, anthropology, history, and education. Translated by M. Gregor, P. Guyer et al. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Kent Edwards, J. (2009). Deep preaching: Creating sermons that go beyond the superficial. Nashville, TN: Academic. Kittelson, J. M. (1985). Luther the educational reformer. In M. J. Harran (Ed.), Luther and Learning: The Wittenberg University Luther symposium. Selinsgrove, London and Toronto: Susquehanna University Press-Associated University Press. Kretzmann, P. E. (1940). Luther on Education in the Christian home and school. Burlington, IA: The Lutheran Literary Board. Kvicalova, A. (2019). Listening and knowledge in Reformation Europe: Hearing, speaking and remembering in Calvin’s Geneva. Cham: Palgrave, Macmillan.

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Learned, W. S. (1914). The Oberlehrer: A study of the social and professional evolution of the German Schoolmaster. Cambridge, London: Harvard University Press-Oxford University Press. Luke, C. (1989). Luther and the foundations of literacy, secular schooling and educational administration. The Journal of Educational Thought (JET)/Revue de la Pensée Éducative, 23(2), 120–140. Luther, M. (1961). Selections from his Writings. Edited and with an Introduction by J. Dillenberger. New York: Anchor Books. Luther, M. (1970). Three Treatises from the American Edition of Luther’s works (2nd ed.). Philadelphia: Fortress Press. Luther, M. (1983). Luther’s Large Catechism. Anniversary Translation and Introductory Essay by Friedemann Hebart. Adelaide: Lutheran Publishing House. Luther, M. (1989). Basic theological writings, edited by T. F. Lull. Foreword by J. Pelikan. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press. Luther, M. (2002). Erasmus-Luther: Discourse on free will. Translated and edited by E. F. Winter. New York: Continuum. Luther, M. (2006a). Early theological works, edited and translated by J. Atkinson. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press. Luther, M. (2006b). Lectures on Romans, edited and translated by W. Pauck. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press. Luther, M. (2006c). Letters of spiritual counsel, edited and translated by T. G. Tappert. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press. Marin, S. M. (2012). Reconfiguring systems of education in a knowledge-based society. A case study: Training school manager by master programmes. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 63, 159–164. McGiffert, A. C. (1911). Martin Luther: The man and his work. New York: The Century Co. McGrath, A. E. (1985). Luther’s theology of the Cross. Oxford, New York: Basil Blackwell. Meuser, F. W. (2003). Luther as preacher of the Word of God. In D. K. McKim (Ed.), The Cambridge Companion to Martin Luther. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Ngien, D. (2018). Luther’s theology of the Cross: Christ in Luther’s Sermons on John. Eugene, OR: Cascade Books. Painter, F. V. N. (1889). Luther on education, including a historical introduction and a translation of the Reformer’s two most important educational treatises. Philadelphia: Lutheran Publication Society. Pettegree, A., & Hall, M. (2004). The Reformation and the book: A reconsideration. The Historical Journal, 47(4), 785–808. Plass, E. M. (Ed.). (1959). What Luther says: A practical in-home anthology for the active Christian. St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House. Preus, R. D. (1984). Luther and biblical infallibility. In J. D. Hannah (Ed.), Inerrancy and the Church. Chicago: Moody Press. Sartre, J.-P. (1960). Existentialism and humanism. Translation and Introduction by P. Mairet. London: Methuen. Scribner, R. (1984). Oral culture and the diffusion of Reformation ideas. History of European Ideas, 5(3), 237–256. Smith, P., & Jacobs, C. M. (Eds.). (1918). Luther’s correspondence and other contemporary Letters (Vol. II). Philadelphia: The Lutheran Publication Society. Springer, C. P. E. (2011). Luther’s Aesop. Kirksville, MO: Truman State University Press. Strauss, G. (1981). Techniques of Indoctrination: The German Reformation. In H. J. Graff (Ed.), Literacy and social development in the West: A reader. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Thompson, C. R. (Ed.). (1978). Collected Works of Erasmus, volume 24. Literary and educational Writings 2: De copia. De ratione studii. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. Vormbaum, R. (Ed.). (1860). Evangelische Schulordnungen (Vol. 1). Gütersloh: Bertelsmann. Waring, M., & Evans, C. (2015). Understanding pedagogy: Developing a critical approach to teaching and learning. London, New York: Routledge.

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Wilson, H. S. (2005). Luther on preaching as God speaking. Lutheran Quarterly, 19, 63–76. Wilson, H. S. (2009). Luther on preaching as God speaking. In T. J. Wengert (Ed.), The Pastoral Luther: Essays in Martin Luther’s practical theology. Grand Rapids, MI, Cambridge: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. Zachman, R. C. (1993). The assurance of faith: Conscience in the theology of Martin Luther and John Calvin. Minneapolis: Fortress Press.

Chapter 5

Conclusions

The sixteenth century was complex and is traditionally considered to be the era of the Reformation movement starting in Germany and subsequently spreading all across Europe. But the truth is that 500 years ago there were a variety of reformations (Protestant, Radical, and Catholic), with multiple interconnections, as well as a series of similarities and dissimilarities.1 It would not be too much to say that it was a century of religious controversy par excellence. Protestantism is a multifaceted phenomenon; it is well known that Luther, Zwingli, and Calvin were unable to reach an agreement on certain doctrinaire issues, especially the Lord’s Supper. But these dissimilarities between the Reformers’ doctrines should not prevent us from speaking about the Protestant Reformation in the singular. There are considerable differences between Protestants, Catholics, and Orthodox believers, which are greater than those existing between the historical Protestant denominations. Thus, all Protestants and neo-Protestants, apart from Protestant liberalism, have shared a series of common ideas. To them, the Bible is the sole and sufficient rule of Christian faith and practice (sola Scriptura). All have always claimed in unison that justification is by faith alone (sola fide). Also, they have regarded faith as a gift of grace alone (sola gratia) from the very beginning and considered that salvation is accomplished by the mediation of Christ alone (solus Christus). The four principles naturally lead to the fifth principle, soli Deo gloria (to God alone be the glory): this is the leading principle of Protestant piety. Luther, as the Father of the Reformation and educational reformer, was a theoretician of the renewal of man and school, and thus of the whole society. Gustav M. Bruce states the following in his work dedicated to the Reformer: “Luther, therefore, stands forth as the greatest educator of his age and in the very front rank of the world’s

1 Durand

(2007: 129), Hendrix (2004: xv), Lindberg (2010).

© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020 M. Androne, Martin Luther, SpringerBriefs on Key Thinkers in Education, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-52418-0_5

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greatest educators, whose educational theories have become the valued heritage of successive generations of educational leaders in Church and State”.2 Precisely because he was one of the greatest religious reformers of the second Christian millennium did Luther stand out as an education reformer. His pedagogy cannot be arbitrarily separated from his theological ideas. Luther’s theology is the premise of his pedagogy, as well as its explanatory basis: due to the fact that he embraced Christian ideas without reservations and permanently aimed at providing his neighbours with the evangelical truth, Luther fervently advocated mass literacy and schooling. He has the merit of sensing that progress and well-being can only be achieved by close cooperation between the Church and the family, and school and state. Luther believed that the state has the duty to support, by means of concrete measures, the Church, family, and school, and this support given to these institutions is to the benefit of the state and the entire society. Luther held in high regard all those who were connected to the four institutions above, appreciating equally the life and activity of the preacher, the schoolteacher, the rulers, the parents, and the children, as he regarded all these as callings, i.e. holy orders.3 Although he did not see celibacy as contrary to the Scriptures, he expressed his preference for a family life based on love: the family is the only environment that may ensure the development and suitable formation of the young generation. Luther was extremely concerned with the education of the children of both genders, just because he had understood the importance of marriage and did not disregard the sexual relationship between spouses, which he otherwise considered “a natural and necessary thing” (eyn nöttig naturlich ding).4 If erotic love is natural and necessary, then the same can be said about conceiving children: “for to produce seed and to multiply is a matter of God’s ordinance, not your power”.5 Conjugal love is a godly love; Luther did not shy away from admitting at a certain moment in his Table Talk that he himself was the fruit of the bodily love between his parents.6 The love between spouses, which should not be reduced to bodily love, takes as a perfect model the love between Christ and His Church, and that is why it is worthy of our undivided respect.7 The woman is the helper of man (Genesis 2, 18), and although she is the mistress of the house mainly performing domestic tasks, the man is not spared of these: the Christian father takes care of his children and is not at all embarrassed to wash their diapers.8 Luther did not consider that the spouses have identical duties. The nature of the order is hierarchical, and just like Christ is the head of the Church, so the husband is

2 Bruce

(2002: 299), Eby and Arrowood (1946: 82). (1998: 187), quoted by Miller-McLemore (2012: 180), Luther (1994: 57). 4 LW 45, 18. “Vom ehelichen Leben” (1522), WA 10 II, 276, 18. 5 LW 45, 19. 6 WA TR 2, 167, 4, no. 1559. 7 LW 46, 304. 8 LW 45, 40. 3 Wengert

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the head of his family.9 Although both parents have the duty to educate their children well, however the father is primarily responsible for the religious instruction and education of his children. The father is bishop and preacher in his family, and the wife can replace him in performing this type of duties only in his absence and in cases that are somewhat exceptional. If the woman is made to bear children, the father has the duty to feed, defend, and, of course, educate them.10 If women can, under certain circumstances, instruct and educate others, then it is necessary that they should be previously educated and instructed themselves, and that is how we can explain Luther’s advocacy for the education of girls, of the entire population, of all citizens irrespective of gender or social status. But Luther was not the only sixteenth-century religious reformer with pedagogical preoccupations. Luther is by no means a unique case in his time. On the contrary, the great religious reformers that were his contemporaries—Zwingli, Calvin, and Melanchthon—were deeply concerned with mass literacy and the foundation of highperformance learning institutions, accessible to everyone. This is meant to show, once more, how close the connection used to be, at that time, between theology and pedagogy, between the religious reform(ation) and the education reform. Just like Luther, the Swiss theologian Huldrych Zwingli (1484–1531) highlighted the need for a sound knowledge of classical languages—Hebrew, Greek, and Latin, which were considered “gifts of the Holy Spirit” (divini spiritus donum)11 : they are very useful to those who wish to thoroughly study the Bible and have a better grasp of Christian theology. Just like Luther, Zwingli manifested his interest in educational and moral issues: K. Fulda opined that Zwingli’s short essay called Of the Education of Youth could be considered, without any exaggeration, “the first Protestant treatise of pedagogy”.12 And the same as Luther, Zwingli believed that the Christian educator cannot transmit the faith to his students, as it cannot be taught or learned, no matter how eloquent and methodical the teacher may be, nor how intelligent the student may be. Nobody shall obtain faith even if he hears the Word of God (Romans 10, 17), in the absence of the Holy Spirit’s illuminating work in believers.13 Hence, the success of Christian education is permanently ensured by the conjugated actions of two completely different teachers: a visible human one, addressing our ears audibly and externally, and an invisible divine one, talking to our hearts inaudibly and internally. The human teacher instructs, and the divine Teacher illuminates the minds of people, so that they can understand and accept the truth of the Gospel. Luther repeatedly showed the importance of the spiritual reform of the human being, and so did Zwingli. Their common message was taken up and carried forward 9 “Predigten

des Jahres 1525”, WA 17 I, 24, 21. des Jahres 1522”, WA 10 III, 171, 9ff. WA TR 1, 19, 11–12, no. 55. WA TR 1, 40, 1–2, no. 103. WA TR 1, 532, 3–4, no. 1054. Karant-Nunn and Wiesner-Hanks (2003: 28ff). 11 Z 2, 542. 12 Reichenbach (1899: 43). 13 Z 2, 538. 10 “Predigten

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by Calvin and Melanchthon. John Calvin (1509–1564) was a French theologian, pastor, and reformer in Geneva during the Protestant Reformation, who explained that the Church, the family, and the society in its entirety cannot survive in the absence of discipline.14 Calvin encouraged parents to see to their children’s religious education and pleaded in favour of studying classical culture and philosophy, also bringing a significant contribution to the set-up of public vernacular schools in Geneva, maintained and controlled by the state. The University of Geneva was founded in 1559 at the initiative of the French reformer. Georgia Harkness briefly describes Calvin’s activity in the following excerpt: “He believed in education, and he set before his followers the requirement of both an educated ministry and an educated laity. He founded a university for the better education of the people and the training of young men for the ministry. He insisted that children be given free, compulsory education”.15 The kinship between theology and pedagogy is better evinced by the idea that we, people, are God’s children, and God is our Father and Teacher.16 It is not possible to understand the performance of US education and the features of Western mentality unless it is related to the Protestant Reformation of the sixteenth century. North American culture and civilisation bears the mark of Calvinism, as it is mentioned in a book published 20 years ago: “Many settlers were Puritans who followed the teachings of John Calvin […]. The role of schooling was to produce literate, hardworking, frugal, and respectful men and women who might resist the temptations of the world”.17 Anyway, when discussing the influence of Protestantism on Western education, it is impossible to overlook the work and activity of Philip Melanchthon (1497– 1560), Martin Luther’s disciple, a German humanist scholar and reformer who supervised the founding of the public schools in several German towns, regulating and supervising their activity.18 At the same time, he reorganised higher education and dealt with the fair remuneration of the teaching staff in universities. He stressed the study of languages, theology, philosophy, logic, rhetoric, music, astronomy, mathematics, and physics, as all these subjects contribute to a better grasp of the Biblical message and consequently to the fight against heresies and to the preservation of the Church.19 The Gospel reaches people and thus only survives through the Church and the school.20 However, although the preachers and the schoolteachers play a major role in spreading the biblical message, in sacred matters the Holy Spirit remains our unique Teacher.21

14 Inst.

IV, 12, 1. (1958: 87). 16 103rd Sermon on Job, CO 34, 527. 17 McNergney and Herbert (1998: 50). 18 Richard (1898: 134). 19 Manschreck (1955: 202–204), Methuen (1996: 385ff). “De studio linguarum”, CR 11, 232ff. 20 “De dignitate studii theol.”, CR 11, 328. 21 “Encomium eloquentiae”, CR 11, 64. 15 Harkness

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Melanchthon believed that only a learned man may live well and happily, and religion is necessary to maintain civil discipline. Just like all the letters of the alphabet are useful in a speech, so all the subjects that are taught in school are useful to everyone and to the society in general.22 If learning is so important, then schools are equally important, since through them we can get to better know the goodness of God and our salvation. It is yet another reason why school should keep close to the Church and second it in its noble mission.23 The Reformers were educated learned people, bringing a significant contribution to the progress of education in the Western world. The Reformation touched every aspect of culture, and by the vocation doctrine, Protestantism released human energies and put them to the service of the welfare of the entire society. The Reformers re-established the dignity of the mundane tasks by showing that they had religious significance. But above all they highlighted the organic connection between the message of the Bible and the human being’s change for the better.

References Bruce, G. M. (2002). Luther as an Educator. Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock Publishers. Durand, J. (2007). The many faces of God: Highways and byways on the route towards an Orthodox image of God in the history of Christianity from the first to the seventeenth century. Stellenbosch: Sun Press. Eby, F., & Arrowood, C. F. (1946). The development of modern education in theory, organization, and practice. New York: Prentice-Hall. Harkness, G. (1958). John Calvin: The man and his ethics. New York, Nashville: Abingdon Press. Hendrix, S. H. (2004). Recultivating the vineyard: Ther Reformation agendas of christianization. Louisville, London: Westminster John Knox Press. Karant-Nunn, S., & Wiesner-Hanks, M. (Eds.). (2003). Luther on women: A sourcebook. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Lindberg, C. (2010). The European Reformations (2nd ed.). Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell. Luther, M. (1994). Small Catechism: A contemporary translation. Translation and Introduction by Timothy J. Wengert. Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress. Manschreck, C. (1955). The Bible in Melanchthon’s philosophy of education. Journal of Bible and Religion, 23(3), 202–207. McNergney, R. F., & Herbert, J. (1998). Foundations of education: The challenge of professional practice (2nd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon. Methuen, C. (1996). The role of the Heavens in the thought of Philip Melanchthon. Journal of the History of Ideas, 57(3), 385–403. Miller-McLemore, B. J. (2012). Work, labor, and chores Christian ethical reflection on children and vocation. In M. J. Bunge (Ed.), Children, adults, and shared responsibilities: Jewish, Christian, and Muslim perspectives. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Reichenbach, A. (1899). A brief Sketch of Zwingli’s educational career. In H. Zwingli, The Christian Education of Youth. Translated by Alcide Reichenbach. Collegeville, PA: Thompson Brothers.

22 “De 23 “De

ordine discendi”, CR 11, 209–211. coniunctione Scholarum”, CR 11, 606ff.

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5 Conclusions

Richard, J. W. (1898). Philip Melanchthon, the Protestant Preceptor of Germany (1497–1560). New York, London: G. P. Putnam’s Sons. Wengert, T. J. (1998). Luther on children: Baptism and the fourth commandment. Dialogue, 37(3), 185–189.