Combining biographical narrative and analytical essays, this book provides a new, comprehensive view of Martin Luther’s life and times, along with a new examination of the radical theology that sparked the Reformation and changed the Christian world forever.
Drawing on sources new and old, the authors chronicle the fascinating, turbulent life of the Great Reformer from a historical point of view. Luther’s revolutionary thoughts on scripture and salvation are explored from a theological perspective, offering a fresh appraisal of the doctrine that irrevocably divided the Roman Catholic Church.

Attorney and history teacher Larry D. Mansch is the legal director for the Montana Innocence Project and has written four previous books. He lives in Missoula, Montana.
Curtis H. Peters is a professor emeritus of philosophy and a semi-retired Lutheran pastor. He lives in New Albany, Indiana.

Larry D. Mansch and Curtis H. Peters
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 352
Bibliographic Info: 40 photos, 1 map, 1 illustration, appendix, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2016
pISBN: 978-0-7864-9854-3
eISBN: 978-1-4766-2555-3
Imprint: McFarland

Table of Contents


Acknowledgments vi

Introduction 1

Part One: Life

Chapter 1. Christendom 9

Chapter 2. Young Martin 14

Chapter 3. “Help me, St. Anne” 20

Chapter 4. Wittenberg 36

Chapter 5. When the Coffer Rings 48

Chapter 6. Popes and Heretics 60

Chapter 7. Heidelberg 67

Chapter 8. “The goose that squawks among the swans” 73

Chapter 9. Sola Scriptura 86

Chapter 10. Exsurge Domine 99

Chapter 11. “Here I stand” 107

Chapter 12. Knight George of Wartburg Castle 122

Chapter 13. The Battle for Wittenberg 130

Chapter 14. A Culture of Persuasion 140

Chapter 15. “I have made the angels laugh and the devils weep” 152

Chapter 16. The Devil’s Work 159

Chapter 17. The Faith Alive 170

Chapter 18. A “great and constant disturbance” 182

Chapter 19. “Look at what he is doing now” 193

Chapter 20. Legacy 206

Part Two: Lessons

Essay 1. Luther on Church History 212

Essay 2. Luther on Children’s Education 217

Essay 3. Luther on Monasticism 221

Essay 4. Luther on the Central Issue: Law and Gospel 225

Essay 5. Luther on the Divisive Issue: Indulgences and Church Finances 231

Essay 6. Luther on the Authority Issue: Papacy/Scripture 235

Essay 7. Luther on the Theologies of Glory and the Cross 240

Essay 8. Luther Against Scholasticism: Was He a Humanist? 245

Essay 9. Luther Debating the Key Issues: Luther vs. Eck 250

Essay 10. Luther on the Sacraments: The Die Is Cast 254

Essay 11. Luther on the Oneness of the Church: The Una Sancta 261

Essay 12. In Need of Comfort and Strength: Luther on the Psalms 265

Essay 13. Luther on Spiritual Growth in a New Church 271

Essay 14. Luther on Free Will: Against Erasmus—A Failed Alignment of the Stars 278

Essay 15. Luther on Marriage, Celibacy and His Dear Kate 285

Essay 16. Luther on Church and State 291

Essay 17. Luther on Other Reformers 298

Essay 18. Luther on the Jews 305

Essay 19. Luther on Melanchthon 310

Essay 20. The Capstone Essay: A Contemporary Perspective 316

Chapter Notes 319

Bibliography 333

Index 337

“chronicles the life of Martin Luther in a new way”—ProtoView.