Luther's 1543 Preface to Quran
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We offer here a summary of Luther’s 1543 preface to the Latin Quran edited by Theodore Bibliander and printed by John Oporin in Basel, Switzerland.
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[edit] Introduction
On February 21, 1542 Luther saw, for the first time and much to his delight, a rough Latin translation of the Quran. A few months later, John Oporin, a printer in Basel, is summoned before the city council because he published a Latin translation of the Quran there. Luther forcefully speaks out for the printer in an October 1542 letter to city council. Apparently, then, it was Luther (and Melanchthon) who commissioned Oporin to publish the Quran.
Already in 1536, another Basel printer had attempted to publish a Latin version of the Quran, but he had been stopped by the censors of the city council. It was his envy that brought Oporin before the council in August 1542. The proceedings there ended in the printer’s condemnation and in the confiscation of the Quran copies printed. As Luther stated in his letter, and in his preface (see below), it was most damaging to the Muslims to have their holy book now available to Christians who could easily see how wrong it is. Printing and widely disseminating, not suppressing, the Quran, was thus the way to go.
Luther’s letter arrived, with a similar letter by Martin Bucer of Strasbourg, in Basel in early December. The council was moved to agree with Luther’s (and Bucer’s) argumentation. The book was now released by the censor, provided that somebody other than Oporin would assume responsibility for any negative consequences resulting from the publication of this book. This man was then Theodore Bibliander of Zurich. Beginning in January 1543, the book could be sold. Following a suggestion by Bucer, Luther contributed the preface to this edition of the Quran that is still reflective of the preceding negotiations in Basel.[1]
It is also noteworthy that Luther, since his preface would be printed in a “Zwinglian city,” avoids mentioning the Zwinglians as “enemies of the gospel.” The enemies listed are those of general “Protestant” Christianity: heathen, Jews, Anabaptists, Catholics, the new Antitrinitarians (Luther mentions Michael Servetus, 1511-1553), and now also Muslims.
[edit] Summary of the Text
[edit] General Remarks Concerning the Origin of False Religions, Especially Judaism
- Many – e.g., Nicholas of Lyra, Paul of Burgos, and Anthony Margaritha – have prepared books on the current (secret) rites, opinions, and customs of the Jews, so that they might be refuted all the more easily by comparing their madness and blasphemies to the testimonies of the prophets in the OT.
- This is how the faith and love of the truth of the gospel is confirmed and just anger against Jewish blasphemies is kindled.
- As the devil turned poor Eve away from God’s word with his lies, so all later raging of all nations against the true doctrine of God goes back to the devil, such as human sacrifices; the worship of cats, dogs, sexuality, and other monsters.
- So also the raging of the Jews has its origin with the devil, e.g., their seditions after Christ’s resurrection (esp. the Bar Kochba rebellion), the attempt to rebuild the temple during the reign of Emperor Julian the Apostate – but also, when they cannot take up arms, they sit together in their caves, curse God’s Son, dream up poisonous falsifications of the prophetical testimonies, make up cruel rites, hurt their bodies, and dream of world domination.
- “As the apostles condemned the errors of the nations, so the church today ought to refute the errors of all the enemies of the gospel, so that the glory of God and his Son, Jesus Christ, may be celebrated against the devil and his instruments.” (570)
- As God showed by new and horrible signs, when his Son was killed on the cross, that he would pursue all, not just Jews, who despise his Son – and although only few were moved by this show of force – so we today, in a world dominated by the idols of the Jews, Turks, and Papists, sound forth the gospel and testify that Christ is crucified and risen who, according to the apostles, is the Son of God and Savior; and we also condemn all errors warring against the gospel.
- As Luther wrote against the errors of the Papists and Jews, so he’s already begun writing against those of Mohammed, but so far he’s lacked Mohammed’s book, the Quran, to do that more effectively (the mindlessness of the Jews fully came to the fore when their secret teachings were made public).
[edit] Why Publish and Study the Quran?
- Some fear that weak minds might be confused by the publication of the Quran in Latin – but there is no one in the church who is not absolutely sure that no religion or doctrine concerning God can be true that totally differs from the prophetic and apostolic writings.
- “There is therefore one church beginning with Adam, to whom God revealed himself with certain and wondrous testimonies in the very word he handed down to the prophets and apostles. And so often he commands that in it the doctrine be acknowledged and all other opinions be rejected by it. He binds us to this one doctrine, as he clearly says in Isaiah 59 [:21].” See also John 15:7; Eph. 2:20. (571)
- “Therefore, all opinions of all nations concerning God are to be condemned with the greatest constancy that either do not know or reject the prophets and apostles.” (571)
- Mohammed confesses to have come up with a new opinion that differs from the prophets and apostles – as the heathen opinions of old are to be rejected, so also Mohammed’s figments.
- Those who do not even know that on the religion in agreement with the prophets and apostles is the true religion, how do they arm themselves against Mohammed’s ideas they might hear even if they do not read the Quran?
- “It is thus utterly shameful if Christians do not admonish themselves daily in prayers concerning the truth of that sentence; if they do not separate themselves in prayer from Jews, Turks, heathen; if they do not think that only he is the one true God, Creator of the world, Hearer of prayers, and Giver of eternal life, who has revealed himself in the prophetic and apostolic Scriptures, who sent us his Son and wanted to be our sacrifice. Let those who do not think this in prayer acknowledge this stupor to be a big sin.” (571)
- Daniel and the Israelite captives in Babylon lead the king and many others to the knowledge of the true God (Dan. 2:47; 3:28-29); equally, the victorious Goths, Venetians, and Franks were converted by those whom they conquered – so perhaps now some Turks may be converted by educated captives; at the very least God wants to confirm the uneducated Christians on the Balkans, in Greece, and in Asia by them so that they, having read the Quran, are able to spread the gospel all the firmer.
- “These antitheses contain much confirmation: As the church of God is perpetual, so the doctrine of the church ought to be perpetual. This book testifies that the figment of Mohammed is new. By necessity, God’s church embraces the prophets and apostles; but Mohammed rejects their teaching. In the church, therefore, from the very beginning this sound of the gospel was handed down, that the eternal Father wanted the Son of God to become a sacrifice for sins; but Mohammed laughs at this sacrifice and placation. In the church always existed the doctrine concerning the cause of human weakness, of calamity and death, namely, concerning the sin spread after the fall of the first parents. Mohammed, just like Epicure, considers this to be a vain fable. This book [the Quran] offers many more antitheses which, when juxtaposed, instructs the believers much.” (571f.)
- We who teach in the church have seen many different enemies – papists, Jews, Anabaptists, Servetus, and others – let’s also arm ourselves to fight against Mohammed: one cannot say anything about things one does not know.
- “Therefore it is useful for the learned to read the writings of the enemies in order to refute, shake, and overthrow them all the more powerfully, in order to be able to heal some and certainly to arm our people with firmer arguments.” (571)
[edit] Notes
- ↑ See the Introduction by Otto Clemen in WA 53:561-566. The text of Luther’s preface is found in WA 53:569-572.
