Luther’s

Theological
Apologetic
Pastoral
Polemic
Against
Islam
A Review of “Martin Luther and
Islam: A Study in Sixteenth-Century
Polemics and Apologetics”
By Adam S. Francisco.
306 Christian-Muslim Relations
Mrs. Jacqueline Hoover
Second Semester 2010

Jonathan T. Swift
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We live at a time when no aspect of Western societal life (media, economy, politics, etc.)

has gone untouched by, or even to some degree, has not been shaped by the resurgence of

interest in Christian-Muslim relations. Western academia, Reformation Studies included, has

also contributed much to the dialogue. Thus, Adam Franciso’s Martin Luther and Islam: A Study

in Sixteenth-Century polemics and Apologetics,1 makes up volume eight in Brill’s History of

Christian-Muslim Relation series.2

Writing with an academic readership in mind (made apparent by the un-translated

German and Latin titles and footnotes3) the author’s intention throughout the work is to show

that “Luther’s approach toward Islam was much more theological and apologetic than is

generally acknowledged,”4 and that Luther’s polemics against Islam ultimately served a pastoral

agenda in light of threatening Ottoman imperialism in Eastern Europe. Francisco’s format is very

intentional toward this goal in the face of detractors who suggest that he may be presupposing

too many theological and apologetical intentions in Luther’s sharp critiques and highly charged

writings dealing with the Muslim Turks. 5 Most historians examine Luther’s perspective of the

Sixteenth Century Turks politically. For by Luther’s time, the Ottoman Empire under Sultan

Sūleyman (1520-1566) had annexed much of Hungary, besieged Vienna (from 27 September to

15 October 1529), and had managed to cross the Alps into Bavaria and Bohemia sending

Germany into a panic.6

1
Francisco, Adam S., Martin Luther and Islam: A Study in Sixteenth-Century polemics and Apologetics, Brill,
Boston, 2007
2
Tsakiridis, George, Martin Luther and Islam: a study in sixteenth-century polemics and apologetics (Review),
Currents in Theology and Mission, 35, no 6 D, 2008, p 451-452.
3
Along with the exorbitant price ($177.00 on Amazon)!
4
Francisco, Martin Luther and Islam, pg. 3-4
5
Ibid., pg. 108 (chapter 4)
6
Ibid., pg. 36
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Taking all these factors into consideration Martin Luther and Islam is divided into two

parts. Part One, Islam and the West, 1095-1546 (chapters one through four) is dedicated to

surveying the historical context of European Christian contact with, writings on, and perspectives

of Islam and the Turks from Medieval times to the Sixteenth Century with special interest given

to two authors whose works were extant to Luther, Nicholas of Cusa and Riccoldo de Monte

Croce. Part Two, Martin Luther’s Engagement with Islam, 1529-1546, (chapters five through

eight) then goes on to explicate Luther’s main writings dealing with Islam against the backdrop

of his theological perspective. Luther’s main writings on the Islam of the Turks (dealt with in

Part two) are, Vom Kriege wider die Türken7 (1529), Heerpredigt wider den Türken8 (1530), and

Vermahnung zum Gebet wider den Türken9 (1541). Francisco also interacts with Prafatio

Alcoranum10 (1543), which was Luther’s introduction to Theodor Bibliander's (c. 1504-1564)

Latin translation of the Qur'an; his own translation and adaptation of the Medieval tract,

Verlegung des Alcoran Bruder Richardi, Prediger Ordens11 (1542); his preface to Georg von

Muhlbach’s Libellus de ritu et moribus Turcorum12 (1543); and finally, Luther’s sermon on the

fourth Sunday after Epiphany (1546) at St. Andrew’s Church in his home town of Eisleben.

By far, what is most outstanding about Francisco’s study is his discussion on Luther’s

assessment of Islam (as far as Luther understood it) in light of the theological grid through which

he also perceived the Papacy, his times (eschatology), and the created order of the world. For

example, in chapter Five Francisco begins with an analysis of Luther’s Die Dreistandelehre, or

theology of the “three estates.” Luther mused, “What good can be in the government

7
Of the War Against the Turks (special thanks to Florian Jackël for help translating the German titles).
8
Military Sermon Against the Turks
9
Admonition to Prayer Against the Turks
10
Preface to the al-Qur’an
11
Refutation of the al-Qur'an by Brother Richard of the Order of Preachers
12
Concerning the Rites and Customs of the Turks
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and…Turkish way of life since according to their Qur’an these three things reign freely among

them: namely lies13, murder14, and disregard for marriage?”15 Francisco points out that “It might

be tempting to dismiss Luther’s allegation as hyperbole or Islamophobia, but despite his harsh

caricaturisation of the Turks as destroyers of religious truth, benevolent political rule, and

virtuous domestic relationships between men and women in holy matrimony, there is a deep

rational behind his initial critique of Islam.”16 He then expounds upon Luther’s three-fold

theological understanding of the created order consisting of the Spiritual Estate, the Temporal or

Political Estate, and the Marital or Economic Estate. For Luther, these three realms are the basic

building blocks of God’s design for order and harmony in the world which the Devil is ever

working to destroy. But because Islam, in Luther’s thought, undermines the Spiritual realm by

spreading falsehoods about Christ who has all authority in Heaven and on earth,17 violates

strictly separate roles of civic and church responsibilities by waging jīhād in the name of religion

(Luther also vehemently opposed the Crusades), and, according to his sources, encouraged

polygamy and the liberality of divorce, Luther concluded that Islam was of demonic origin

designed to destroy God’s created order. Of course, Francisco admits, Luther’s conclusions are

not unique for his times, but the way he arrived at those conclusions was an entirely innovative

theological contribution.

Francisco goes on to show that while Luther was no Islamicist,18 his “understanding was

as broad and perceptive as anyone’s knowledge was during his time and, according to

13
about Muhammad’s prophethood, Jesus’ divinity, and the corruption of the Bible: Francisco, Martin Luther and
Islam, pg. 142-3
14
by advancing Islam by the sword (like the papacy): Francisco, Martin Luther and Islam, pg. 144-5
15
through liberal exercise of divorce (whereas the papacy destroys marriage through the restriction of it): Francisco,
Martin Luther and Islam, pg. 146-7
16
Ibid., pg. 132
17
Matthew 28:18
18
Francisco, Martin Luther and Islam, pp. 3-4
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contemporary research, surpassed most,”19 despite the fact that Luther had never once met a

Muslim in person.

Although Francisco argues that theology and apologetics are at the heart of Luther’s

polemics, at every stage of his presentation of the material he is careful to remind his readers,

first, that Luther’s apparently crass polemic against Islam does not even come close to the sharp

words he reserved for the Papacy. For example, Luther once remarked, “Compared to the Pope,

‘Muhammad appears before the world as a pure saint.”20 Secondly, this study repeatedly points

out, especially in chapters six and eight, that Luther’s ultimate goal was pastoral. “An analysis of

Luther’s advice in a hitherto unexamined portion of … Heerpredigt reveals his early thought on

how a Christian should deal with the temptations one might experience under the Ottomans, and,

especially, how one might respond to the Anfechtung21 caused by the allure of Islam.”22 Luther

had heard accounts of many European Christians who had come under Turkish captivity. He also

foresaw an imminent Ottoman take-over of Europe and feared clergy and lay-believers would

not be prepared spiritually and mentally to stand against the many deep doubts and temptations

which would oppress them from every side were the Turks to rule them. Therefore, Luther,

through polemic attacks on Islam, and providing robustly theological apologetics, deeply desired

to bolster the faith of his readers so that they might withstand the inevitable pressures they would

face to convert. Franciso argues in chapter six that Luther…

…wrote as a pastor to theologically ignorant laity, and his advice served a

singular purpose: to ensure that Christians living in the Ottoman Empire would
remain firm in the faith while, at the same time, living out their faith despite being
faced with satanic or Islamic Anfechtung…23

19
Ibid., pg. 127
20
Ibid., pg. 84
21
Literally: “temptation” but implies an assault of doubt and despair, i.e. “spiritual angst.” See Francisco, Martin
Luther and Islam, pg. 151
22
Ibid., pg. 151
23
Ibid., pg. 174
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But Gregory Miller in his own review of Martin Luther and Islam challenges Francisco as if he

had overlooked these very points. Miller’s critique of Francisco, therefore, is unwarranted when

he writes:

While Luther's engagement with Islam certainly included apologetic elements,

this should not be singled out as Luther's primary mode of engagement. Almost
always when Luther writes about the Turks he is simultaneously writing about
other things ... While it is incorrect to argue that Luther simply uses the Turks
rhetorically to combat enemies closer to home, an emphasis on this broader
rhetorical context is essential in understanding Luther's writings on Islam. In
addition, pastoral concerns are central to these writings. Luther is less interested
in apologetically defending "Christianity" against "Islam" than he is in helping
individual Christians to endure the troubles of the Last Days or perhaps even
spiritually survive Turkish captivity.24

Miller seems to have missed Francisco’s point altogether. Earlier, in his Spring of 2000 article in

Lutheran Quarterly, Miller rather two-dimensionally argued that “Luther's primary interest in

the Turks was in responding to the Ottoman advance and understanding the place of the

Ottomans in eschatology,” and that “Luther's discussions of Islam were not systematic or

thorough.”25 Whereas, Francisco’s careful and nuanced presentation in 2007, shows that

Luther’s discussions, although not systematic, were definitely thorough. But more importantly,

he made it abundantly clear that Luther’s primary interest was to help individual Christians to

endure the troubles of the Last Days and spiritually survive Turkish captivity by theologically

and apologetically defending “Christianity” against “Islam.”

The greatest importance of this work lies in its advancement of a deeper understanding of

what Protestants in the Reformation tradition have inherited in terms of historical Christian-

Muslim relations, for better or for worse, from the leading thinker of the Reformation, and

therefore, what they inevitably bring to the table of Christian-Muslim dialogue even today. What

24
Miller, Gregory J., Martin Luther and Islam: a study in sixteenth-century polemics and apologetics, Lutheran
Quartly, ns 22, no 3, Aut 2008, pp. 362-364 (quotation on pg. 363-4)
25
Gregory Miller, Luther on the Turks and Islam, Lutheran Quarterly, ns 14, no 1, Spr 2000, p 79-97.( quote: pg.80)
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Francisco puts forth at the conclusion of his discussion of Luther’s Sermon on the fourth Sunday

after Epiphany (1546) at St. Andrew’s Church would summarize well the significance of what

this in-depth study of Luther’s thought on Islam has for modern readers: “Not only does

[Luther’s theological apologetic] represent a new approach to responding to Islam, but by also

exposing the profound theological differences between the two religions, it also set the stage for

the most basic apologetic dilemma in Christian-Muslim dialogue, the reliability of the Scriptures,

which would be taken up by the next generation of Christian apologists.”26 The implication is

that with Martin Luther and Islam, Adam Francisco has filled in a heretofore wide historical gap

of research in Sixteenth-Century Christian-Muslim relations. Any Protestant who desires to

engage in serious Christian-Muslim dialogue would do well to examine this study closely in

order to better understand historical differences, avoid previous pitfalls, and improve upon both

dialogue and apologetics in the Twenty-first Century.

26
Francisco, Martin Luther and Islam, pg. 231
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Weimar Edition of Luther's Works, Currents in Theology and Mission, 26, no 6, D 1999,
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Bainton, Roland H., Here I Stand: A Life of Martin Luther, New American Library, New York,
1950

Bainton, Roland H., The Reformation of the Sixteenth Century, Beacon Press, Boston, 1952

Henrich, Sarah S.; Boyce, James L., Martin Luther--Translations of Two Prefaces on Islam :
Preface to the Libellus de ritu et moribus Turcorum (1530), and Preface to Bibliander's
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Miller, Gregory J., Luther on the Turks and Islam, Lutheran Quarterly, ns 14, no 1, Spr 2000,
pp. 79-97.

Miller, Gregory J., Martin Luther and Islam: a study in sixteenth-century polemics and
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2008, pp. 362-364
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Rajashekar, J Paul and Wengert, Timothy J., Martin Luther, Philip Melanchthon, and the
publication of the Qur’an, Lutheran Quarterly, ns 16, no 2, Sum 2002, pp. 221-228.

Smith, Robert O., Luther, the Turks, and Islam, Currents in Theology and Mission, 34, no 5, O
2007, pp. 351-364

Tsakiridis, George, Martin Luther and Islam: a study in sixteenth-century polemics and
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