Not Really Luther

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There is a famous Luther quote that he actually didn’t say, and which my son-in-law Ben Merkle recently tracked down. Here is the quote, and it is a hummer.

“If I profess with the loudest voice and clearest exposition every portion of the truth of God except precisely that little point which the world and the devil are at that moment attacking, I am not confessing Christ, however boldly I may be professing Christ. Where the battle rages, there the loyalty of the soldier is proved, and to be steady on all the battlefield besides, is mere flight and disgrace if he flinches at that point.”

The source of the quote was Elizabeth Rundle Charles, in a book called The Chronicles of the Schoenberg-Cotta Family, published in 1865. She was referring to Luther, but somewhere and somehow, it was attributed to Luther himself and has been cited merrily as such for some time.

That and, in my opinion, the one about the wise Turk and the foolish Christian. Somebody ought to track that one down.

I am posting this under Retractions because I know I have mis-cited it before, and probably more than once.

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Tim H.
Tim H.
10 years ago

Yes there are a lot of them, Calvin bowling on the Sabbath, and “ecclesia semper reformanda” being of the Reformation being two that pop to mind.

Liz Swanson
Liz Swanson
10 years ago

I’ve been looking for this a very long time. Thanks!

rcjr
10 years ago

Calvin telling us “The best theologian is right no more than 80% of the time” and then having the nerve to hide the quote where no one can find it.

mg
mg
10 years ago

Here’s a nice view of it: https://archive.org/stream/chroniclesofsch00charuoft#page/320/mode/2up (p.321, 1st paragraph)

Stacy McDonald
10 years ago

Actually, it was first published in 1862. We have a first edition and reprinted it in 2003 as “From Dark to Dawn: A Tale of Martin Luther and the Reformation.” We still have a few copies stashed away. GREAT book!

Stacy McDonald
10 years ago

A review written by Carmon Friedrich:

http://buriedtreasurebooks.com/reviews/darktodawn.php

Kamilla
10 years ago

WellWell, I still like the quote :-)

Dan Phillips
10 years ago

Yeah. But he should’ve.

Mary Elizabeth Palshan
Mary Elizabeth Palshan
10 years ago

I’m just happy to see Kamilla still posting.  :) 

It is unfortunate this cannot be attributed to Luther; he needs all the good quotes to help camouflage all his bad-tempered, critical observations.  Frank Turk may be right about Luther after all (I can’t believe I just said that–I’ll be his fan until the end).  

Carl Vehse
Carl Vehse
10 years ago

“…the one about the wise Turk and the foolish Christian. Somebody ought to track that one down.”
The “wise Turk” [non]quote is discussed in an August 31, 2012, Cranach article, “Luther’s ‘wise Turk’ quote that he didn’t say.”
(http://www.patheos.com/blogs/geneveith/2012/08/luthers-wise-turk-quote-that-he-didnt-say/)