Inspirational Quotes by Martin Luther
“For this life is one of first fruits, not of tithes.”
― Martin Luther ,
“Consequently, the kingdom of Christ is of such a kind that it has both those who are weak and those who are courageous, either constantly or for a time. Nevertheless, those who are always strong are rare. But those who are weaker than these should not be dealt with too harshly; for this is a kingdom of comfort, of the poor, and of the afflicted.”
― Martin Luther ,
“In politics there are no perfectly safe courses; prudence consists in choosing the least dangerous ones.”
“From this a general rule is drawn, which never or rarely fails: that he who is the cause of another becoming powerful is ruined because that predominance has been brought about either by astuteness or else by force, and both are distrusted by him who has been raised to power.”
“it is necessary for you to study; since, then, you have no longer the excuse of illness, take pains to study letters and music, for you see what honour is done to me for the little skill I have. Therefore, my son, if you wish to please me, and to bring success and honour to yourself, do right and study, because others will help you if you help yourself.”
“But when states are acquired in a country differing in language, customs, or laws, there are difficulties, and good fortune and great energy are needed to hold them, and one of the greatest and most real helps would be that he who has acquired them should go and reside there.”
“In this way you have enemies in all those whom you have injured in seizing that principality, and you are not able to keep those friends who put you there because of your not being able to satisfy them in the way they expected, and you cannot take strong measures against them, feeling bound to them.”
“it is necessary to be a fox to discover the snares and a lion to terrify the wolves.”
“Roman authorities recommended that a very effective way to persuade and move a person or a council to adopt a particular policy is to offer examples taken from history. Exemplification, as the author of the Ad Herennium wrote, ‘renders a thought more brilliant when used for no other purpose than beauty; clearer, when throwing more light upon what was somewhat obscure; more plausible, when giving the thought a greater verisimilitude; more vivid, when expressing everything so lucidly that the matter can, I may almost say, be touched by the hand’.”
“Therefore, a wise prince must think of a method by which his citizens will need the state and himself at all times and in every circumstance. Then they will always be loyal to him.”
“But a man is not often found sufficiently circumspect to know how to accommodate himself to the change, both because he cannot deviate from what nature inclines him to do, and also because, having always prospered by acting in one way, he cannot be persuaded that it is well to leave it; and, therefore, the cautious man, when it is time to turn adventurous, does not know how to do it, hence he is ruined; but had he changed his conduct with the times fortune would not have changed.”
“[T]he Romans, observing troubles from afar, always found remedies for them and never allowed them to develop in order to avoid a war, for they knew that war does not go away, but is merely deferred to the advantage of others.”
“Starożytni pisarze cichaczem zalecają książętom ten środek (walka prawem i walka siłą), podając, że Achillesa i wielu innych książąt starożytnych oddano na wychowanie Chironowi, centaurowi, który miał ich w dyscyplinie trzymać. To, że ich nauczycielem była istota na pół zwierzęca, a na pół ludzka, nic innego nie znaczy, jak tylko że książę musi się posługiwać i jedną i drugą naturę i że jedna bez drugiej nie jest siła.”
“[O utrzymaniu podbitych prowincji] Zostawić im ich własne prawa, czerpać stamtąd pewne dochody i stworzyć wewnątrz rząd oligarchiczny, który by ci je utrzymał w przyjaźni.”
“Należy bowiem pamiętać, że ludzi trzeba albo potraktować łagodnie albo wygubić, gdyż mszczą się za błahe krzywdy, za ciężkie zaś nie mogą. Przeto gdy się krzywdzi człowieka, należy czynić to w ten sposób, aby nie trzeba było obawiać się zemsty.”
“one should not be deterred from improving his possessions for fear lest they be taken away from him or another from opening up trade for fear of taxes;”
“The chief foundations of all states, new as well as old or composite, are good laws and good arms; and as there cannot be good laws where the state is not well armed,”
“Examples of this kind teach us that one should not believe any human being, no matter how saintly he may be, but must pay attention to Him who calls and to His Word.”
“God wants our conscience to be certain and sure that it is pleasing to Him. This cannot be done if the conscience is led by its own feeling, but only if it relies on the Word of God.”
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Martin Luther changed the course of Western civilization by initiating the Protestant Reformation. As a priest and theology professor, he confronted indulgence salesmen with his 95 Theses in 1517. Luther strongly disputed their claim that freedom from God's punishment of sin could be purchased with money. His refusal to retract all of his writings at the demand of Pope Leo X in 1520 and the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V at the Diet of Worms meeting in 1521 resulted in his excommunication by the pope and condemnation as an outlaw by the emperor.
Luther taught that salvation is a free gift of God and received only by grace through faith in Jesus as redeemer from sin, not from good works. His theology challenged the authority of the pope of the Roman Catholic Church by teaching that the Bible is the only source of divinely revealed knowledge and opposed sacerdotalism by considering all baptized Christians to be a holy priesthood.
His translation of the Bible into the language of the people (instead of Latin) made it more accessible, causing a tremendous impact on the church and on German culture. It fostered the development of a standard version of the German language, added several principles to the art of translation, and influenced the translation into English of the King James Bible. His hymns inspired the development of singing in churches. His marriage to Katharina von Bora set a model for the practice of clerical marriage, allowing Protestant priests to marry.