To the Christian Nobility of the German Nation
by Martin Luther · An den christlichen Adel deutscher Nation von des christlichen Standes Besserung
Assigned by 1 of the 9 reading lists, catalogue entry only
- Written
- 1520
- Era
- Renaissance
- Form
- Theology
- Language
- German
- Length
- Short · 80 ppunder 120 pages
- Difficulty
- Moderate2 of 5 for a first-year reader
We recommendThree TreatisesFortress Press, 1970The usual assigned text, with the other two treatises of 1520.
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An appeal to the German princes and knights to reform the church themselves, since Rome will not. Luther begins by knocking down what he calls the three walls the papacy hides behind: that clergy outrank laity, that only the pope may interpret scripture, and that only the pope may call a council. Against the first he argues that every baptised Christian is a priest. He then lists grievances, from papal taxation and the traffic in benefices to clerical celibacy and the state of the universities, and proposes concrete measures for each.
No reading guide yet
The catalogue entry above is complete: the dates, the form, the themes and every program that assigns To the Christian Nobility of the German Nation are verified against each program's published list.
What is missing is the part that takes real work: the summary, the key passages, and a recommended translation. The edition named below is the one most programs assign, so the buy links are useful already.
