Martin Luther: The Courage to Seek

Title: Martin Luther: The Courage to Seek
Author: Edwin P. Booth
Series: Heroes of the Faith
Major Themes: Martin Luther, Germany
Synopsis: Using many quotes from Martin Luther’s own writings, the life and teachings of the great reformer are described.

Martin Luther: The Courage to Seek is the fifth book I’ve read in the Heroes of the Faith series. I found the other four quite interesting, but this one about Martin Luther was a hard one for me to get through. As a biography, it is very accurate. Interspersed through the story are a lot of quotes from Luther’s own writings or contemporary records. I found the writing style to be very dry, however. Maybe it was because I read an edited edition, or maybe it was because the author spent a lot of time talking about theological issues. I’m not sure.

This story of Martin Luther talks a lot about Luther’s spiritual progression, how he became a monk over his father’s objections and then began seeing the inconsistencies in the Catholic church. Eventually matters came to the point at which Martin felt like he had to do something about his differences with the church. He wrote his famous 95 points and posted them on the church door—the community bulletin board of his time—and, without intending to do so, sparked the Reformation.

One chapter I found interesting dealt with the Peasant’s Rebellion. For centuries the peasants had been mistreated and repressed by the nobility, kept in a state of near-starvation. Finally they had had enough and revolted against their oppressors, only to be slaughtered by the better-armed army.

No warnings!