Works of Martin Luther, with Introductions and Notes (Volume I)Luther, Martin
ReligionChristian
Works of Martin Luther, with Introductions and Notes (Volume I)
Luther, Martin
Lutheran Church -- Early works to 1800; Theology -- History -- 16th century -- Early works to 1800
Of the same character is his statement in both his Latin and his
German treatise[46] that Christ is the head of the Turks,
heathen, Christians, heretics, robbers, harlots and knaves. It
would be no wonder if all the stone and timber in the cloister
stared and hooted this miserable wretch to death for his horrible
blasphemy. What shall I say? Has Christ become a keeper of all
the houses of shame, a head of all the murderers, of all
heretics, of all rogues? Woe unto thee, thou miserable wretch,
that thou thus holdest up thy Lord for all the world to
blaspheme! The poor man would write about the head of
Christendom, and in utter madness imagines that "head" and "Lord"
are one and the same. Christ is, indeed, Lord of all things, of
all the good and the evil, of the angels and the devils, the
virgins and the harlots; but He is not the head, except only of
the good, believing Christians, assembled in the spirit. For a
head must be united with its body, as I showed above from St.
Paul in Ephesians iv,[47] and the members must cleave to the head
and receive from it their activity and life. For this reason
Christ cannot be the head of an evil community, although it is
subject unto Him as Lord; even as His kingdom, namely
Christendom, is not a bodily community or kingdom, yet all things
are subject unto Him, be they spiritual or bodily, of hell or of
heaven.
Thus in his first argument this reviler vilified and slandered
me; in this second argument he reviled Christ much more than me.
For even if he thinks much of his own holy prayers and fastings
in contrast to a poor sinner like me, yet he has not called me a
brothelkeeper and archknave, as he has Christ.
[Sidenote: III. The Argument from Scripture]
Now comes the third argument, in which the high majesty of God is
made a target, and the Holy Spirit becomes a liar and a heretic,
so that by all means the contention of the Romanists may be
upheld.
The third argument is taken from the Scriptures, just as the
second was taken from reason and the first from folly, so that
everything may be done in proper order. It runs as follows: The
Old Testament was a type of the New Testament, and because it had
a bodily high-priest, the New Testament must have one
likewise—how else shall the type be fulfilled? For has not
Christ Himself said: "Not one jot or tittle of the law shall pass
away; it shall all be fulfilled"? [Matt. 5:18]
A book more foolish, senseless, and blind I have never seen. Once
before, another[48] wrote the same thing against me, so coarse
and foolish that I could not but scorn it. But because they have
not sharpened their wits, I must speak bluntly for the
thickheads; I see that the ass does not appreciate a harp, I must
offer him thistles.
[Sidenote: Type and Fulfillment]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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