“What then shall we Christians do with this damned, rejected race of Jews?
First, their synagogues should be set on fire, and whatever does not burn up should be covered or spread over with dirt so that no one may ever be able to see a cinder or stone of it. And this ought to be done for the honour of God and of Christianity, in order that God may see that we are true Christians.
Secondly, their homes should be likewise broken down and destroyed.
Thirdly, they should be deprived of their prayerbooks and talmuds in which such idolatry, lies, cursing and blasphemy are taught.
Fourthly, their rabbis must be forbidden under threats of death to teach anymore.” – Martin Luther
“If I find a Jew to baptize, I shall lead him to the Elbe bridge, hang a stone around his neck, and push him into the water, baptizing him with the name of Avraham!.. I cannot convert the Jews. Our lord Christ did not succeed in doing so; but I can close their mouths so that there will be nothing for them to do but to lie upon the ground.” – Martin Luther
Jesus did not call them Abraham's children, but a "brood of vipers" [Matt. 3:7]. Oh, that was too insulting for the noble blood and race of Israel, and they declared, "He has a demon' [Matt 11:18]. Our Lord also calls them a "brood of vipers"; furthermore in John 8 [:39,44] he states: "If you were Abraham's children ye would do what Abraham did.... You are of your father the devil. It was intolerable to them to hear that they were not Abraham's but the devil's children, nor can they bear to hear this today.------Martin Luther
They [rulers] must act like a good physician who, when gangrene has set in proceeds without mercy to cut, saw, and burn flesh, veins, bone, and marrow. Such a procedure must also be followed in this instance. Burn down their synagogues, forbid all that I enumerated earlier, force them to work, and deal harshly with them, as Moses did...
If this does not help we must drive them out like mad dogs.----Martin Luther
Martin Luther: [ in his last sermon, four days before he died, ] called for practical measures: burn their synagogues, confiscate all books in Hebrew, prohibit Jewish prayers, force them to do manual labour, and drive them out of Germany.
2007-10-04 14:01:54 · 9 answers · asked by kloneme 3 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Wow, and to think that I was raised a Lutheran....I am now more grateful than ever that I converted to Catholicism!
Did it escape Martin Luther's attention somehow that Jesus Himself was Jewish?
He must not have been a well man. What vile statements! Detestable!
2007-10-04 14:38:02 · answer #1 · answered by Bright Shadow 5 · 7⤊ 0⤋
Why do you sound like a Nazi? At any rate lest you forget good Christian that the Jews were the choosen people. Choosen for a two fold purpose here and now...First to suffer for the sins of humanity (the writings of Luther) and to continue doing so for as long as humanity exists. Second to keep the gates of Heaven when the end of days arrives...In other words the Jews will be the first ones to get to Heaven (if there is one). PEACE!
2016-05-21 02:26:55 · answer #2 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The fallacy is called: viewing the past through the lens of the present.
I am Catholic, but considering the date his "On the Jews and their Lies" was written, 1543, you'd be hard-pressed to find ANYONE in Europe who was not anti-semitic. Were they bad people?
In 2007, we can just say that 'those were unenlightened' times, when it came to relationships with other cultures.
I see this as equivalent to when, say, every now and then, some idiot comes along blaming the Catholic church for slavery, when it has existed even before Jesus was born, and which continued to exist in the US, a Christian country, until, when was that ... 1863?
I don't see the point of the question. From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/On_the_Jews_and_Their_Lies
scholars seem to debate what effect, if any, this book had on later German history. Some contend this book was largely IGNORED.
2007-10-04 20:23:47 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Luther's antisemitism is little known. Thanks for bringing it to the attention of the Y!A community.
Jesus often said, "You will know them by their fruits" (Matt 7:16; 7:20; 12:33; Luke 6:44; John 15:8). The test of a Christian reformer or theologian is his personal holiness.
Luther's antisemitism must count against his doctrines of faith alone and scripture alone. Luther's faith was clearly isolated from his works as an antisemite. His interpretation of scripture was clearly warped, cut off from the interpretive community Jesus appointed--the Church.
Cheers,
Bruce
2007-10-04 14:42:54 · answer #4 · answered by Bruce 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
He thought once the corruption of the Roman Catholic church was fixed (Protestant Reformation), the Jews would naturally want to convert. When they didn't, he was pissed.
Note: the modern Lutheran church does NOT condone Luther's anti-semitism.
2007-10-04 14:06:55 · answer #5 · answered by scoop 5 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Indeed it is disheartening that a man who did so much good for Christianity, also did so much bad. But I guess that is why it it written that all have fallen short of the glory of God. And again, "There is no one righteous, not even one; " (Rom 3:10)
2007-10-04 14:06:08 · answer #6 · answered by whitehorse456 5 · 1⤊ 5⤋
he's mentally-ill. I just wish that people could see that fact. and he didn't do anything good in Christianity.
2007-10-04 14:08:07 · answer #7 · answered by The Asker 4 · 3⤊ 0⤋
because jews deserve to die. they are northing but a useless people.
2007-10-04 16:17:27 · answer #8 · answered by azim_cymo 3 · 0⤊ 3⤋
they took his money
2007-10-04 14:04:52 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 3⤋