LUTHERAN FILM ASSOCIATESPresents
Leader’s Guidefor
the Video Teaching Series
Written by Robert E. A. LeeREALWorld Communications
© Lutheran Film Associates With appreciation to Aid Association for Lutherans for their assistance on this project
ABOUT THIS VIDEO SERIES
The movie Martin Luther, first released in 1953, has been in great demand for decades bychurches and schools as a means of teaching about the religious issues of the Reformation andabout the man, Martin Luther. This was the original purpose for the Lutheran Churches of theUnited States in commissioning its production.
When the production was completed, those who previewed it initially were unanimous infeeling it should be shared with the general public through theatrical cinema bookings. Whilemany in the film industry said it couldn’t be done, the producers rented a theater inMinneapolis for a world premiere. It was instantly a hit and a wide international theatricaldistribution followed.
The response was electric. It created considerable controversy. Critics praised the movie.Voices were raised seeking to get the movie banned. Some accused the producers of bad faithand even of being communist-inspired!
Now, because many who had not yet been born when the film first opened have not yetseen it, Lutheran Film Associates decided that it would be useful to offer selected segments ofthe movie as a tool for teaching classes about the Reformation and about Martin Luther.
This was accomplished in this four-part video series, Luther Legacy.The four parts:
1. Who Was Luther and What Was Driving Him?2. How 95 Arguments Triggered a Revolution3. A Rebel on Trial: “Here I Stand”4. The Protestant Movement Under Way
TO THE LEADER
Please preview the entire video before presenting it to your group.The full feature movie is available on video (see listing of resources on p. 16) Some groups
may want to follow up their experience with these four units by viewing the full-length movieeither together as a group or individually in their own homes. If the leader is not familiarwith Reformation history, it is recommended that he or she view the 105-minute Martin Lutherfilm before the first session.
About the “Luther Rose”Luther felt that he wanted a visual aid of sorts to symbolize his theology. And
so he developed the distinctive icon of a rose in a circle with the heart and crossat the center. In a letter he explains his design:
2
The first should be a cross: black at the heart (center), its natural color, that I may remind myselfthat faith in him who was crucified makes us blissful. Then the just man will live by faith, faith inthe crucified. But such a heart should be in the middle of a white rose, to show that faith gives joy,comfort, and peace; therefore the rose should be white and not red, because the color white is thecolor of the spirits and all angels. Such a rose stands in a field the color of heaven, to show thatsuch joy in the spirit and in faith is the beginning of future heavenly joy. And in such a sky-bluefield a golden ring, to show that such bliss in heaven lasts forever and has no end and is also pre-cious beyond all joys and possessions, just as gold is the highest, noblest, and most precious metal.
— from Martin Luther, An Illustrated Biography. Crossroad, New York 1982.
LUTHER LEGACY PART I:Who Was Luther and What Was Driving Him?
SUGGESTIONS FOR LEADER’S INTRODUCTION
Our purpose: To discover what the legacy of Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation isand how it helps to shape our Christian faith today.
The basic resource within this video is a selection of scenes from a famous movie producedalmost a half century ago by the Lutheran Churches of North America: Martin Luther. In foursessions, we will use images and sequences from this film to help us explore the heritage of faithfrom one of history’s great turning points: the Protestant Reformation of the 16th Century.
The video poses questions. Try to remember what these questions are and how we mighttalk about them after the showing.
POSSIBLE DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. How would you answer the question posed by the title of this unit: “Who Was Luther andWhat Was Driving Him?”
2. On the basis of what you have seen and heard, if you had to describe the kind of personMartin Luther was, what would you say?
— What did he look like?— What sort of personality did he have?— What was his family background?
3
3. What did you discover about heresy in the video? Explain what heresy means.[Heresy is a condemning judgment by a religious authority that one’s beliefs and teachings are con-
trary to official doctrine or dogma.]
4. Is heresy only an historical issue or are there heretics in our day also? In addition to MartinLuther, who in history may have been branded a heretic? Who today (rightly or wrongly)might be labeled a heretic?
[The infamous Inquisition, established in Spain in 1480, tortured and burned at the stake untold num-bers of heretics.]
5. What were the spiritual questions being raised by Martin Luther in his day?[“How can I satisfy an angry God?” was a main question for Luther.]
6. In the 16th century, at the time Luther lived, people believed in demons and were afraid ofeternal damnation. How did Luther deal with his fears? What equivalent fears trouble peopletoday? How do we deal with our fears today?
[Luther was found almost unconscious in his cell as a result of self-flagellation.]
7. Luther was obsessed by sin. Many people today don’t recognize sin as a spiritual virus. Afew years ago the noted psychiatrist, Dr. Karl Menninger wrote a book with the title, WhateverHappened to Sin? How did Martin Luther’s experience affect how Christians today deal withsin and forgiveness?
[His discovery that the Bible as God’s Word offers the sinner the free gift of grace by faith alone —not by works — has been taught and preached down through the centuries by churches following thetheology and teachings or “Confessions” of the Reformation.]
8. How did Luther help change the question of marriage for clergy? Explain the differencebetween the Protestant and Roman Catholic policy today on the matter of clergy marriage.
[Marriage is forbidden to Roman Catholic priests who take a vow of celibacy, whereas Protestants gen-erally encourage clergy to marry.]
4
LUTHER LEGACY PART II:How 95 Arguments Triggered a Revolution
SUGGESTIONS FOR LEADER’S INTRODUCTION
The last session showed us part of Martin Luther’s life and faith struggle. It presented thegreat Reformer as a troubled monk and theologian who was a university professor atWittenberg.
Wittenberg, a small city in eastern Germany was a princedom ruled by Prince Frederick.He was a devout Christian who supported Luther. But even the Prince didn’t know what rev-olutionary ideas were brewing in the mind and soul of Professor Luther.
Pay special attention to some of the words you will see highlighted on the screen: RELICS,INDULGENCES, PURGATORY, THESES, SOLA. You will see why they are important to theLuther Legacy.
POSSIBLE DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. What is the date of Reformation Day? What other ritual happens on that date? How are thetwo related?
[Luther posted his theses on October 31, (1517) the eve of All Saints day, which is now ourHalloween.]
2. Remember these words from the video: Relics, Indulgences, Purgatory, Theses, and Sola? Let’stalk about what they mean.
[The leader would do well in advance of this session to check her/his own sources for definitions thatmay simplify these words for the group. The following may be helpful as a part of this process]
RELICS — These were considered sacred articles and many of the faithful believed in thosedays — as the film shows — that by showing honor — “venerating” — these bones and splin-ters and pieces of cloth and other items belonging to individuals who became saints, peoplecould earn extra blessings or rewards after death. What did Luther think about this practice?Is there relic worship in our time? Explain.
INDULGENCES — These are special letters, authorized by the Pope, representing reductionof punishment or the time souls were thought to be waiting “on hold” in a place called purga-tory. Who was the slick salesman of indulgences who provoked Luther to action, and whatwas this huckster promising?
[Tetzel was the name of the Dominican monk who took advantage of the ignorance and fears of illit-erate peasants. Luther was furious at this fund-raising scheme.]
5
PURGATORY — Roman Catholic theology has held that this is a place where, after death, thesouls of the faithful are held for purification or purging before they are eligible to proceed toparadise. This holding pattern, according to this doctrine, may include some punishment ifsins committed during life have not been adequately forgiven.
THESES — It’s the plural of thesis, a formal proposition advanced by scholars to be tested byher/his peers. It is written as an argument that the proponent tries to explain and support. InLuther’s case, as a scholar, he thought it would be the best way to invite serious considerationof his ideas — ideas mostly in opposition to the abuses occasioned by how the church thenused indulgences and relics.
SOLA — Martin Luther was making a bold statement when he scrawled “Sola,” meaning“ALONE” in the margin along side the Bible’s text from Romans (3:28) where it states, that one is“justified by faith apart from the works of the law.”
3. What was wrong with what Tetzel was doing in making his pitch in the market place?What examples of the commercial exploitation of religion do we find in our world today?
4. Luther used the media of his day — the newly invented Gutenberg Printing Press. Whywere they so explosive at that time of history? If Luther were to publish his 95 argumentstoday, what media would he likely choose?
6
LUTHER LEGACY PART III:A Rebel on Trial: “Here I Stand!”
IDEAS FOR LEADER’S INTRODUCTION
There are good guys and bad guys — isn’t that the formula we have come to expect from TVshows and movies? In this episode of our Luther Legacy series we find that Martin Luther — ahero to many Protestants for almost 500 years — was an outlaw and a rebel in his time. A goodguy to some and a bad guy to others. And other good guys of the time, the highest authorities ofboth government and of religion — the Holy Roman Emperor and the Pope — suddenly becamebad guys to Luther and his followers when they declared him an outlaw, no better than a com-mon criminal.
But the story, of course is not that simple. Luther was a rebel. He was not afraid to usestrong language in lambasting both Pope and Emperor, and he defied them. But he had whathe felt was a higher authority, and he made a stand on conscience that is among the most sig-nificant and pivotal in history.
POSSIBLE DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Some of the great trials of history have become the basis for memorable film scenes. Whatwould have happened if Luther had agreed to recant what he had written and renounce hisown beliefs?
2. What other religious leaders or historical figures have been put in the same spot? [Galileo was one. He surrendered finally and agreed to withdraw his theories of astronomy that
everyone today agrees were right. Joan of Arc and Jan Hus stood their ground and paid for it with theirlives. They were burned at the stake.]
Sometimes today persons who act out of conscience are arrested and history remembers themas martyrs. Who comes to mind?
[Dietrich Bonhoeffer is one example. Others?]
3. What was Luther’s crime? How was he like today’s “Whistle Blowers”? Let’s review someof the abuses Luther exposed because he felt they were opposed to the truths in the Bible.
[Remember the 95 theses? These blasted the practice of selling indulgences to pay for building St.Peter’s in Rome. He debated a famous theologian, John Eck, in Leipzig and in this debate he insisted thatthe Pope was wrong. He wrote pamphlets affirming that salvation was a free gift received by faith and notby good works. He burned the Papal document condemning him for what the Pope deemed as treason.]
7
4. What happened on his way home from the trial. Who was Luther’s rescuer? Why? [Duke Frederick arranged the abduction to Wartburg Castle near Eisenach because he felt Luther
was his loyal subject and deserved his protection. He also recognized that the trial was a sham.]
5. What is the significance of the Bible translation work that Luther accomplished while inhiding in Wartburg castle?
[At the time it opened the Bible, previously only available in Hebrew and Latin, to anyone who couldread German. The translation itself became a model of German that changed the mixture of regional dialectsinto a formal German that soon became the norm for most of German speaking Europe.]
6. What is the view of Catholics today concerning Luther?[During Luther’s 500th birthday celebration in 1983, Pope John Paul II preached in a Lutheran
Church and praised Luther’s contribution to biblical scholarship. Lutheran and Catholic theologiansnow virtually agree on much of what Luther advanced, such as “Justification by Faith.” While the offi-cial condemnation of Luther continues, the Vatican has seriously been considering posthumously clear-ing Luther of his heresy.]
8
LUTHER LEGACY PART IV:The Protestant Movement Under Way
IDEAS FOR LEADER’S INTRODUCTION
The life and work of Martin Luther were very complex. And Luther’s legacy is similarly com-plex. There are various phases of Luther’s life. We have been able so far to scan only the earlyyears. These were the times when Luther as a Roman Catholic monk and priest and professorwas in a constant argument and tension with the church fathers, and with the Pope, Leo the10th, particularly. But there is also the Martin Luther who was a parish pastor, who preachedand traveled, who wrote and taught. And there was the Martin Luther who was a family manwith a wife and children. And Luther the musician who played the lute and wrote hymns westill sing today. These hymns, by the way, are also sung today at Roman Catholic masses. Thenthere is the Martin Luther who helped bring the Protestant Movement under way. Luthernever wanted the church to be called by his name as it has been in many countries, eventhough in Germany it is known just as the “Evangelical Church.”
Today’s episode of our series, Luther Legacy, concludes with the Protestant Movement’sDeclaration of Independence, when theologians and Princes stood together to proclaim whatis known as the Augsburg Confession. Since 1530, together with the Bible, the AugsburgConfession has been the foundation document for all Lutherans in the world.
POSSIBLE DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. What was the hymn sung by the congregation in the finale of the film? [“A Mighty Fortress.” It would be good at this point to use a hymnal to have the group look at the
music and text and note that Martin Luther wrote both the words and the music. For many, Luther’ssetting of Psalm 46 also evokes the image of Wartburg Castle which literally was his fortress whenLuther was in hiding.]
2. Why couldn’t Luther stand with the theologians at Augsburg?[He was still under the Emperor’s ban of the same Emperor, Charles the Fifth, who decreed Luther an
outlaw at Worms.]
3. What is a catechism and what purpose did Luther have in mind for it?[Luther insisted that believers, beginning with children, should be educated in the faith. He set forth
questions and answers as a teaching tool to help create, through memorization, an understanding of the10 Commandments, the Creed, the Lord’s Prayer and the Sacraments. It was his way of bringing thechurch school into the home where parents were to rehearse their children in what the catechism says.]
9
4. Review the highlights of the Luther Legacy from the four sessions:[Early life in Eisleben where his father, Hans, was a miner.Studies at the University at Erfurt in lawLuther enters a monastery as an Augustinian monkHe studies philosophyHe travels to RomeLuther is called as a professor in WittenbergHe objects to relics as the focus of worshipLuther objects to sale of indulgencesHe posts 95 Theses — arguments for debateLuther brought to trial as a hereticHe stands firm: “No man can command my conscience!”Hidden by Duke Frederick at Wartburg CastleTranslates New Testament into GermanHe establishes a model of a Lutheran pastor — teaching, preaching, administering sacramentsThe Protestant Movement’s foundation document: Augsburg Confession]
Note: The discussion should allow for matters to be discussed which were not a part of theMartin Luther movie, whose structure largely determined the outline used in these four partsof the Luther Legacy.
The leader should familiarize herself/himself with other Luther events and confrontations.For example, some may want to discuss Luther’s role in the Peasants’ War. This was contro-versial, to be sure. From today’s perspective, Luther’s verbal blasts against the rebels seem tohave encouraged the Princes to crack down on them mercilessly .
Similarly, some of Luther’s later writings, from today’s perspectives, appear blatantly anti-semitic. Luther’s spiritual descendants cannot satisfactorily explain away nor justify Luther’sbrutal stance vis-à-vis Jews.
For more on this issue, see “Was Luther Anti-Semitic?” by Eric W. Gritsch in Issue 39 ofChristian History magazine.
In that same issue of Christian History, Martin E. Marty discusses Luther’s Living Legacy.Here are some quotes:
“I don’t believe in the heroic concept of history, in which one person overshadows everything. Isee Luther in the context of late medieval ferment: there is reform all over, and somehow a revoltin the junior faculty at Wittenberg is the one that catches on. Because Luther is a titanic charac-ter, he leaves his stamp on history....”
“Also, Luther stands symbolically as the greatest single agent in increasing the value of the individ-ual.... Luther contributed unintentionally to the rising status of women. He was patriarchal, but Iteach my students to judge people in the context of their time, and for his day, Luther was progres-sive. He assumed that girls, along with boys, should be taught the catechism, and in that he antici-pated co-education. He insisted that marriage was just as important a vocation as monasticism,and in that he accorded greater status to a woman’s role in marriage.”
10
USEFUL BOOKS ABOUT MARTIN LUTHER AND THE REFORMATION
[From Christian History magazine issue 39 Vol. XII No.3]Compiled by Dr. George S. Robbert, professor of historical theology at Concordia Seminary,St. Louis, Mo.
Althaus, Paul. The Theology of Martin Luther and The Ethics of Martin Luther, both translated byRobert C. Schultz (Fortress, 1966, 1972). Althaus systematically covers Luther’s doctrinal andsocial teachings.
Bornkamm, Heinrich. Luther’s World of Thought, translated by Martin H. Bertram (Concordia,1958) The book presents Luther’s teachings on a wide variety of issues.
Brecht, Martin. Martin Luther: The Preservation of the Church 1532-1546, translated by James L.Schaaf (Fortress, 1993). The third and final volume of what will likely become the standardmulti-volume biography of Luther in English.
Edwards, Mark U., Jr. Luther and the False Brethren (Stanford, 1975); Luther’s Last Battles: Politicsand Polemics, 1531-1546 (Cornell, 1983). Two of the finest books about the later Luther.Interestingly written and based solidly on the sources.
Pelikan, Jaroslav ed., Interpreters of Luther (Fortress 1968). Eleven essays on how Luther hasbeen interpreted from the sixteenth century through the twentieth century.
Tillmans, Walter G. The World and Men around Luther (Augsburg 1959). Interesting thumbnailsketches of the people, both friends and foes, who interacted with Luther.
Other DVDs and videos are available on Martin Luther.For a free catalog, contact:
P. O. Box 540Worcester, PA 19490
610-584-35001-800-523-0226
Fax: 610-584-6643E-Mail: [email protected]: www.visionvideo.com
11
