Article Title：Facts and fears in and around Martin Luther (Remarks inspired by the recent biography of Luther by Richard Marius)
Abstract：
In his recent biography Richard Marius attends above all to Luther's temperament, which was melancholy and susceptible to haunting fears of death. As the biography breaks off in 1527, Luther is in deep depression and has already published works marred by bitterness and vehemence. The biographer admits his summary judgment that while Luther did bring evangelical freshness to the faith of a few, he contributed to the Reformation precisely the elements that made it catastrophic for the West, as in the religious wars of the century after Luther's death. Luther, after such a demythologization, can still speak to us about marshaling what talents we have to bring some light to our world. The work presents several aspects of the Church in Luther's time inaccurately, and on Luther's theology some of its interpretations also call for correction. But on Luther's discovery of the Gospel, placed in 1519, Marius delineates well the factors exacerbating Luther's anguish and the flash of light that came from St. Paul as Luther found an evangelical word of consolation and assurance repeatedly communicated in sacramental encounters with Christ. This creates a new dialectic of fear and hope and left Luther still susceptible to depression, especially in reaction to divisions in his own ranks and the many obstacles that blocked smooth implementation of reform.
Keywords: biography; church history; Reformation; historical theology; Luther
DOI: 10.3366/more.2000.37.1.3
Source：MOREANA
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