The Christian Angel

Several of the publicists depicted Luther in largely mundane categories, but the hovering dove and glowing nimbus also had their verbal equivalents in some of the publications. For example, in his A Pleasant Christian and Godly Reminder and Warning To the Imperial Majesty, Sent By One of His Imperial Majesty's Poor Knights and Obedient Servants , Hartmuth von Cronberg spoke with some moderation of "the true servant of God, Doctor Luther" and characterized Luther as one who had led thousands of people to the true spring, Christ Jesus.^[23] But in his Rejection of the Alleged Dishonor Attributed By Many To the Pious and Christian Father, Doctor Martin Luther of the Augustinian Order, In That He Called Our Father the Pope a Vicar of the Devil and Antichrist ,^[24] Cronberg went on to say that there had "undoubtedly not been a truer more Christian teacher living in a thousand or more years than this doctor Luther."^[25] In his To the Praise of Luther and To the Honor of the Whole of Christendom ,^[26] the student Laux Gemigger thanked God for bestowing his grace "upon us poor sinners" and sending into the world "the well-born doctor Martin Luther, whom you have chosen as a light of Christendom" to tell of God's divine word and reveal the state of the present world, much to the displeasure of the pope and his supporters who desired to pervert the world, "which the pious Luther will never permit."^[27] Escalating the rhetoric even further, the oft reprinted Passion of Doctor Martin Luther , written by "Marcellus," called Luther a "preacher of truth"

and "doctor of the writings of St. Paul,"^[28] but the treatise as a whole described Luther's appearance at Worms in a narrative modeled explicitly on Christ's passion—with Luther taking the role of Christ!

While this last comparison was obviously extreme, in his Concerning the Conformed-to-Christ and Properly Grounded Teaching of Doctor Martin Luther, An Extremely Beautiful and Artful Song Along with Its Exegesis ,^[29] Michael Stifel claimed with all evident sincerity that Luther was the angel of the apocalypse come to reveal the Antichrist. The signs laid down in the Bible concerning the last times led Stifel to conclude with Luther that the time was near for the persecution of the Antichrist against the truth of God. "I believe," he wrote of Luther, "that this man is sent to us by God, ordained and raised up in the fervor of the spirit of Elias."^[30] With direct reference to the angel of Revelation, he explained that "the undertaking and purpose of this pamphlet is to certify and prove the teaching of the Christian angel, Martin Luther, and [to show] how his writings flow directly from the ground of the holy gospel, Paul, and the teachers of the Holy Scriptures [that were] sent and certified by God."^[31] In explaining how he could make this bold claim, Stifel also made a pun on Luther's name that was frequently used by these early authors. "Yes, even now I wish to name this angel," Stifel wrote, "He is called Martin Luther. And [his teaching] is also so clear or pure [luter ], that I believe that he has this name as a sign for us of God's order." Stifel went on to explain that his readers should not be bothered that an angel or spirit did not have flesh and bone, yet Martin Luther had flesh and bone as a human being. "For one finds in the Holy Scripture that holy men who teach the way of God are called angels." After giving several examples from Scripture, Stifel concluded, "An angel is also called a messenger of God, which without doubt Luther is, proclaiming the word of God so clear [luter ] and purely."^[32] Other treatises also played on Luther's name and the German word for pure or clear to associate Luther with the preaching of the pure gospel.^[33]

In only one of these treatises, the anonymous A Pleasant Argument , was Luther himself criticized even as his teaching was being affirmed. This treatise showed a remarkably clear grasp of Luther's central concerns, but the anonymous author reacted badly to the more extreme claims made by Luther's supporters. The curialist in this dialogue, who most likely represents the author's own point of view, commented at the outset that the Germans honored "their idol Luther" as

if he were God rather than just a saintly man.^[34] He reported that he had heard it said in Rome that, although Luther touched on the fundamental issues, he did not do so out of love of God but out of jealousy. This jealousy was revealed in his books, in which he said that if the Romanists had not written against him, he would not have written against the papacy. From this admission, those at Rome wished to argue that he was provoked not by the love of God but by human writings directed against him. They concluded that it was pride that motivated Luther and made him want to be prominent in the university and teach something new. Their judgment, the curialist went on, was sustained by the sharp, abusive, slanderous, and foolish words that Luther employed in his writings.

Interestingly, the curialist was willing to ignore these considerations as long as Luther's teachings continued to be scriptural. "All that I let be as it may be," he wrote, concluding this recitation of the Roman view. "Whether Luther writes out of God or out of the spiritual deceit of the devil, his teaching pleases me very much. And since [he] does not deal with these matters contrary to the Scriptures, I will continue to be pleased with them."^[35]

This is an instructive example of how expectations and experience could clash, making it difficult to settle on a coherent public persona. On the one hand, the author standing behind the curialist regarded Luther as a "saintly man" who thus far had taught in accordance with the Scriptures. But he was put off by Luther's supporters' characterizations of him, and he harbored serious questions about Luther's motivations. He was also offended by Luther's violent and abusive language and by what he saw as Luther's willingness to use force to bring about reforms.^[36] This abusive vehemence, questionable motivation, and willingness to use force all accord poorly with the socially defined role of the "saint" or "man of the Bible." Most of the defenders either shrugged this dissonance off or did not even make mention of it. But in A Pleasant Argument the conflicting attributes are held in fascinating tension. Given the normal course of psychological dynamics, it is highly unlikely that many of Luther's supporters would have maintained this tension very long. The tension was eventually resolved either by going wholly over to Luther's side and finding rationalizations for his angry temperament or by returning to Catholicism in the conviction that Luther's aggressive temperament disclosed his true subversive nature.