Abstract
Nathan Montover’s book Luther’s Revolution: The Political Dimensions of Martin Luther’s Universal Priesthood considers the political implications of Luther’s doctrine of the universal priesthood and how it challenged traditional political authority in sixteenth century Germany. In this respect, Montover adds another perspective on the relationship between Luther’s politics and religious doctrine. The study appeals to some of the major, although dated, Luther biographies of the twentieth century including those by Oberman, Bainton and Lohse, in the context of the implications of Luther’s conception of the new Protestant priesthood and political structure. As Montover correctly ascertains, the conclusions previously presented are anything but conclusive. Montover guides the reader through an issue-oriented discussion of the political discontent of Germany to contextualise the political ramifications covering the major issues like indulgences, the titular obligation of the Holy Roman Empire and foreign taxation schemes. Montover is most insightful in the frequently neglected discussion on the gravaminum, the mechanisms of German grievances towards the papacy.
In identifying Luther’s political discussions, Montover unites Luther’s theology of cosmological order to the existing exercising of political power. In this respect, Montover argues that the power of the papacy was grounded in its power to appoint ministers and hold religious autonomy as Christ’s vicar through the plenitudo potestatis. Montover argues that by concentrating religious power, it became political as the papacy concerned itself in secular affairs. Here, Montover inserts his principal thesis that the universal priesthood of all believers attacked the papacy’s cosmological autonomy. Montover suggests that Luther’s doctrine allows for different channels of governance in secular and religious authority. Here Montover believes that Luther breaks through the attempts of other reform movements by critiquing the papacy’s power at its heart –as identified in his history of papal critiques. Montover argues that Luther creates a space for the political through this doctrine by allowing the secular authority to assume its temporal claims. Without the ties of the papacy, Christendom –and Germany in particular, the universal priesthood solidifies itself in Scripture rather than secular affairs which are granted a natural functionality to govern within the model.
In conclusion, Montover’s work adds yet another voice to the debate on the political ramifications of Luther’s theology and to what extent they governed his doctrinal positions. This book argues its position persuasively, but is hampered by its limited agenda within the broader sphere of Luther’s thought and intellectual inheritance. This book will lend itself well to students of Luther and the reformation in conjunction with other studies in Luther’s political thought.