Rating: 
Summary: Best Biography of Luther Available
Review: This is by far the best biography of Luther I have read. Oberman strives to discuss Luther within the political, spiritual, and social contexts of the early 16th century. A must read for those interested in Luther or the roots of the Protestant Reformation.
Rating: 
Summary: don't let the picture scare you
Review: this is one of the finest if not the finest biographies on the life of Martin Luther. it may well go down as the authentic biography for seminary students....oberman's thesis is that luther stood before God and the devil, waging a war for luther's soul....historically one cannot deny luther's depressions which often alienated friend and foe alike...depressions are oppressions of demonic activity but not possessions...this ongoing battle lead luther to find the only solace he could find in this life, the safety and surety of the cross which lead him to the theologia crucis (theology of the cross). while this book's scholarship is breathtaking, it is easy to read because luther's spiritual battles are too fascinating to be obscured. This book shows that luther often failed in his battle with the devil, but knew that the war had already been won on calvary and that is the joy for all christians. Luther's last written words, he lapsed from latin to german and said, "Wir send Bettlers. Das ist wahr." yes, brother martin, we are beggars, and that's the truth.
Rating:
Summary: An excellent survey and interpretation of Luther's life
Review: This was a nice, easy to follow survey of Luther's life. It covers his early years when his father worked in the factory and when he was being groomed and prepared to be a lwayer. It talks about the day he walked home during a fierce thunderstorm where he was so frightened, that he promised St Anne that he would become a monk. In fact, the entire book depicts Luther as constantly in a spiritual battle with the devil, and Obermann does a good and convincing job of highlighting Luther's battles with emperors, synods, colleagues and enemies. Near the end of the book, there is even a chapter on Luther's health problems, which included severe heart stress and kidney stones. The end of the book also contains a year by year chronological survey of some of the key moments of Luther's life, icluding his appearance before the Synod of Dort and the year he was hiding out at Wartburg Castle. A fascinating survey of a fascinating reformer.
Rating:
Summary: Solid
Review: This work is very important if one is to gain an unparalleled understanding of Martin Luther the central figure behind the protestant reformation. The author attempts to start the work giving a perspective of what the world, Europe and specifically Germany were like during the life of Martin Luther prior to the reformation, and at some points, during the reformation period. After the author weaves through the complex circumstances between the Papacy and the governing officials throughout Christendom, he attempts to place Luther at the start of his educational career. As Luther moves from his bachelor's program, he moves to a Masters degree. Significant events in Luther's life move him to join a monastery of the Augustinian order. Throughout this time Luther begins to understand his own problems with the sale of indulgences and how he can possibly, if ever, achieve salvation.
During his time in the monastery Luther visits Rome, and is dismayed at the state of affairs with the Holy City, the author argues that this was not the quintessential turning point in Luther's life and railings against the church, but clearly had an impact and helped move Luther towards his forthcoming condemnations. Luther eventually pins his ninety five theses to the door in Wittenberg, and incites debate on many fronts. Luther is subsequently dismissed from the monastery, the church, and eventually the empire. The author then focuses on the repercussions of Luther's theology on the Church, and other reformers and movements such as Erasmus, with whom Luther broke ranks, and the Anabaptists along with others. Luther spends the rest of his life studying scripture and refining his concepts of, sola scriptura, sola gratia, and sola fide. (Scripture alone, Grace alone, by faith) He held fervently to these beliefs in the face of criticism from the Church, and other reformers. Luther did theology with his heart as much as with his mind, and would not waver from the fine line he walked his whole theological career.
Main Point
The main point of the work is found early on in this work by Oberman. The main point is clearly stated on page 12, "To understand Luther, we must read the history of his life from an unconventional perspective. It is history, "sub specie aeternitais," in light of eternity; not in the mild glow of constant progress toward Heaven, but in the shadow of the chaos of the Last Days and the imminence of eternity." This certainly is the main thrust of the work, to which the author does an admirable job working towards throughout his treatise on Luther.
Interesting Point
In chapter five, which dealt with the reformation breakthrough, the most interesting part of the entire work came to light for this reader. The clarification, for me, of what drove Luther was the battle of the heart with the head is what the author argues drove Luther towards criticizing hundreds of years of Church theology and therefore, theologians. It is easy to focus on Luther in the context of his time period, but his railings against the results of Church tradition, and his subsequent lasting effects on the rest of history come from a battle of the heart, which to me, regardless of how much I agree with Luther, certainly points to him as a key "hinge of history" where the world was never the same after him. This is what I found most interesting about this work. Joseph Dworak
Rating:
Summary: Solid
Review: This work is very important if one is to gain an unparalleled understanding of Martin Luther the central figure behind the protestant reformation. The author attempts to start the work giving a perspective of what the world, Europe and specifically Germany were like during the life of Martin Luther prior to the reformation, and at some points, during the reformation period. After the author weaves through the complex circumstances between the Papacy and the governing officials throughout Christendom, he attempts to place Luther at the start of his educational career. As Luther moves from his bachelor's program, he moves to a Masters degree. Significant events in Luther's life move him to join a monastery of the Augustinian order. Throughout this time Luther begins to understand his own problems with the sale of indulgences and how he can possibly, if ever, achieve salvation.
During his time in the monastery Luther visits Rome, and is dismayed at the state of affairs with the Holy City, the author argues that this was not the quintessential turning point in Luther's life and railings against the church, but clearly had an impact and helped move Luther towards his forthcoming condemnations. Luther eventually pins his ninety five theses to the door in Wittenberg, and incites debate on many fronts. Luther is subsequently dismissed from the monastery, the church, and eventually the empire. The author then focuses on the repercussions of Luther's theology on the Church, and other reformers and movements such as Erasmus, with whom Luther broke ranks, and the Anabaptists along with others. Luther spends the rest of his life studying scripture and refining his concepts of, sola scriptura, sola gratia, and sola fide. (Scripture alone, Grace alone, by faith) He held fervently to these beliefs in the face of criticism from the Church, and other reformers. Luther did theology with his heart as much as with his mind, and would not waver from the fine line he walked his whole theological career.
Main Point
The main point of the work is found early on in this work by Oberman. The main point is clearly stated on page 12, "To understand Luther, we must read the history of his life from an unconventional perspective. It is history, "sub specie aeternitais," in light of eternity; not in the mild glow of constant progress toward Heaven, but in the shadow of the chaos of the Last Days and the imminence of eternity." This certainly is the main thrust of the work, to which the author does an admirable job working towards throughout his treatise on Luther.
Interesting Point
In chapter five, which dealt with the reformation breakthrough, the most interesting part of the entire work came to light for this reader. The clarification, for me, of what drove Luther was the battle of the heart with the head is what the author argues drove Luther towards criticizing hundreds of years of Church theology and therefore, theologians. It is easy to focus on Luther in the context of his time period, but his railings against the results of Church tradition, and his subsequent lasting effects on the rest of history come from a battle of the heart, which to me, regardless of how much I agree with Luther, certainly points to him as a key "hinge of history" where the world was never the same after him. This is what I found most interesting about this work. Joseph Dworak
Rating:
Summary: Pre-enlightenment mentality
Review: Very well written, reads like a novel. Describes Luther's belief in the devil and where one could meet the devil. Also describes his belief, as Augustinian, in predestination. Luther appears to have been a terrible man at times, as in the peasant revolt when he advocated killing the rebels (thereby supporting the princes who supported himself). Maybe one best appreciates Luther's unwitting contribution to the Enlightenment, that each person should read and think for himself, after dealing with groups who implicitly respect authority and repress tolerance. Of course, in Luther's case he meant the Bible, but that constraint was easily generalized to other forms of thought. Luther himself was not very enlightened, being on the side of ridiculing and suppressing Copernicus' ideas.
|
