Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1883-12-03


revolutionary France, he would have been
something greater than Mirabeau; in our OWL
pulpit In the seventeenth century. and he would
have been second Bossuet or Bridajne."
The material of the hero was in Luther; but
| it Is the use made of the material, not the ma
| terial itself that entities man to honor and re-
| spect. Gifts, such as we have enumerated in
Luther are the two edged sword which the
owner may handle for veal or woe of his fell
| lows. The moral virtues demand chief atten-
ton. This is particularly true, in the case Of
Luther who took to himself the, mission of a
religious reformer, whose recognized title TO
glory among his followers and admirers is that
| he accomp ished religious reformation, and in
whose honor, IN consequence, peans have been
| chanted from pulpits of Christian churches
on the centenary of his birthday. will put
| him before you as his own writings, authenti-
ated and pndoubted, show him, adding here
| and there comm ats from his contemporaries.
LUTHER's soURRILoUs TALK.
! am placed at a most serious disadvantage
when l speak of Luther before an audience
whom l respect. am compelled to wrap in
| general statements and in fgurative language
| things, which, were | to repeat in plain words,
you would pronounce me mad, and you would
at once abandon your seats in unutterable dis
gust. Decency and modesty forbid my giving
you verbal quotations from sermons, letters and
conversations. L can but refer to them; but the
sermons, letters and conversations are written
down in black and white in Luther's complete
works, and they can easily be seen and read. 1t
is not too much to say that in no man whose
words have been written down WAS there ever
dirsier tongue than in Luther. If the tonsue is
an Indication of the heart, then Luther's heart
was work of corruption. The chancellor of
England, Thomas More, called Luther ''latri-
| nsrius nebulo," i. g., as near as | can translate
the Latin words public sink hole of scoundrel-
II H. i ~ IL
physical and moral furnished him with nick
names and epithets when he revied his enemies,
sported with his companions around the beer
table, and even at times when he preached his
sermons.
Luther's "Tisch Reden,'' OF cradle Talks
book of 1850 pages, in folio, containing his
daily conversations as taken down
at the time by his friends
is in certain parts as unclean a book as has been
printed. speak of the ''Table Talk in its
original fullness. Bohn has published in his
standard library what purports to be Luther's
liable Talk,'' small volume, which should bear
the title" e"Decent extracts from the Table Talk
1t leaves out all passages that would offend a
polite ear. IS no word in the preface indicates
that iti small abridgement it is but a fraud
upon the public.
In 1922 Luther preached in the church at
Wittenberg, before promiscuous audience of
men, women and children, serrcon on marri-
age, which proves him to be absolutely sharIe.
less IN his speech. After preaching the sermon
in German, he wrote it out in Latin for the
benefit of all times. 1t is simply shocking
Suffice it to say that he asserts the impossibilitv
of confluence, and indicates very openly for
both husband and wife circumstance in which
he counsels adultery. Nothing approaching this
sermon was ever spoken penned by
any man pretending either to teach or to prac-
tice morality.
RObertSOn cartaiDIy n Catholic autb it,r
Hist. of Chas. W says of Luther: Ellis doc
trines encouraged, and his life set the example
of the utmost licentiou ness of manners" He
hated confluence, and, on all occasions
rallied at it, and expressed his horror
for those who proposed to lead continent lives
In letter to the Knights of the Teutonic order
he advised concubinage in preference to chastity.
LUTHER's UNGovERRNABLE TEMPER.
He was possessed of most ungovernable
temper. His friend Melanchton deplored his
furious outburst of anger 81 tremble when l
think of the passions of Luther; they yield not
in violence to the passions of Hercules -
Luther, he testi6es, often dealt out to him heavy
blows In his fits of anger His coarse abuse of
his adversarIes shows him almost devoid of
reason, when his passions were aroused. The
English writer, Hallam, commenting upon
Luther's letter to Henry VIII, says that SIT al
most justifes the supposition that there was a
vein of insanity in his very remarkable charac-
ter.'' His let er to the cardinal archbishop of
Mainz is sample of his mildest effusions. He
had advised the archbishop to become believer
in the Wittenberg theology, aud receiving no re-
| ply, he wrote: "Besone, hangman of cardinal,
knavish lackey, blockhead, crazy monk, effem-
mate epi"urean, papistical devil, mad-dog,
| earth-worm son of Cain, --.'' l dare
| not finish the quotation. The Swiss reformer,
| Zwinglius, ascribes Luther's fearful temper to
satanic influence. ''The devil,' he said sis
master of Luther to such degree as to make
one believe that he wishes to gain entire possession
! of him." And elsewhere he says, 'tLuther is
possessed not by one but by whole troop of
| devils''
| Luther himself was willing to admit that the
I devil had much to do with him. He has left
| us in his words a report of his conference
| with the devil at Wartburg Castle, during which
thespirit Of evil argued with such rare theological
acumen against prlva m ssses, that the reformel
confessed himself vanquished and promised never
| again to celebrate private masses Whether
| Luther was actually Taught by the devil or i'm,
agined for purposes of has own the interview
the fact that the DEVILS name and authority ar,
C )nr ccted with the origin of the revoIn
uon does no honor to the work. In his CLAUS
postiie" Luther delares that he has often seer
ard wrestled with the devil.
HIS LOVE OF GOOD CHEER
His loy for good cheer was proverbial. Ev
| eiy oNe'iAhS IoI hlIeeIl years, sundays excepted
he spent hours around the beer table ol the Blacl
Eagle tavern. Count Hoyer, of Mansfield, wrot
in 1922 to Ulrich of Helfens elm; 81 have beer
al along as l was at Worms, a good Lutheran
but have learned that Luther is a blackguart
and as good drunkard as there is one in Mans
field, delightlng to be in the company of womel
and to play upon his flute His conduct i
unbecoming and he seems irretrievabiy
fallen" In a letter from Vienna
to his wife, Luther says: 81 devon
like Bohemian, and 1 swig like German
for which God be thanked, Amen. Henc
Master Philip was really dead here, and like an
other Lazarus rose again from the dead"
strange record for a reformer to give of himsel
and his fellow reformers. He seemed a
times most pious, spoke o
God in most reverent loving word
and prayed with the fervor of a SAINT
Then again, his language towards the Deity wa
blasphemous.
Only beer, or insanity. dab ical obsessio
can expla II these expressions culed from hi
: liable Ialk:' May the name of the pope b
damned: may his reign be abolished. If
l thought God did not hear my prayer, l woul
address the devil. l owe more to my dear Cath
S erlne and to Philip, than to God himself. Co
las made many mistakes l would have give
hlm good advice, had assisted at the creation
Hailam's explanation of Luther's savage an
scurrllous talk IS The most charitable we ca
: give.
} PROUD AND sELF-oPINIoNATED.
. He was proud and sef-opinionated. He woul
n DV lIrrrr k,,