Last night we watched part two of a two-part show on PBS about Martin Luther. It was very well done and informative. It inspired me to write a poem about Martin Luther for Thankful Thursday because I am thankful for the reformation of the church for which Luther was responsible.
I am thankful for the truth he taught that salvation is a gift of God. Salvation is not something I must earn by my own deeds, or worse, by the purchase of indulgences from the church. I am also thankful for Luther’s translation of the Bible into the language of the people, the forerunner of our modern day Bibles that are translated into almost every language in the world so that all may learn of God’s love and mercy.
1/17/12 Update: Decided to link to this poem for dVerse Poets Pub Open Link Night as an example of a poem that, as Natasha says, “bears witness to our history.” I also made a small tweak to line 3, which never seemed quite right before.
Man of Conscience
Man of conscience who
Argued his point in the 95 Theses
Risking excommunication and death
Though fear was abolished by courage
Instilled by God, His Holy Spirit power
No man could make him recant
Lifelong pursuit of his God
Unable to find peace for his soul
Til the Word of God opened his heart
Heretic they called him for the hope he shared
Eternal life as a gift from the Lord, not earned
Reform turned revolution leads to truth
“Unless I am convinced by the testimony of the Scriptures or by clear reason (for I do not trust either in the pope or in councils alone, since it is well known that they have often erred and contradicted themselves), I am bound by the Scriptures I have quoted and my conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and will not recant anything, since it is neither safe nor right to go against conscience. May God help me. Amen.” Martin Luther, Diet of Worms.