short, thievery is the most common craſt and the largest guild on earth” (Large Catechism). Since we can’t trust the system, we must do some-


thing to keep it in check. Luther may have believed that you can’t legislate the gospel (his two-kingdom ethic), but he was no friend of the American system, if sepa- ration of church and state is understood to mean that politics is purely secular and that God and Christians must keep their hands out of politics. In Luther’s view, when government, which is subject


to God, does something contrary to the last six of the Ten Commandments (those related to our responsibil- ity to others), Christians need to make sure it gets back on track. As for the charge that Luther didn’t help the peasants,


a careful study makes clear that he wasn’t indiff erent to their economic agenda. His problem was with the peas- ant movement’s theology and its belief that you could achieve God’s kingdom on earth by a revolution. But Luther wasn’t blind to economic injustices. Luther, too, lived in turbulent economic times.


Germany in the 16th century was in the early stages of an economic and communications revolution. Fabulous wealth was generated for the owners of the new tech- nology, but the infl ation rate was nearly 50 percent and the peasants (not unlike today’s factory workers) linked to the old feudal sharecropping economy were falling deeper into poverty. Luther’s father may have profi ted from the emerging trends, but the Reformer was no fan of the unbridled free market.


A level playing field Luther said money is “the most common idol on earth” (Large Catechism) and “the desire for wealth clings and sticks to our nature all the way to the grave” (T e Book


The commandments and justice


of Concord). Contrary to the assumptions of modern capitalism, he thought money in itself was sterile and couldn’t produce tangible wealth, except for illicit gains from interest on loans and taking advantage of those who experience losses (Luther’s Works, Vol. 45). Although Luther felt the only valid loans were interest


free (Luther’s Works, Vol. 45), he was a realist and called for fair interest rates (the lower the better) set by govern- ment and even fl oating interest rates based on the bor- rower’s income. “Wherever they (interest rates) exceed 5 percent, however, let each prince and civil authority con- cerned force them down to that rate and permit a reduc- tion in this principal as a compensation for the period during which excessive rates were collected” (“Letter To Duke John Frederick,” Luther’s Works, Vol. 45). Luther defi nitely felt the growing economic extremes


of his day were problematic. In one 1532 sermon he observed: “Nothing in the world so eff ectively hinders faith as mammon, or riches, on the one hand and pov- erty on the other” (Complete Sermons, Vol. 5). Acting on his beliefs, Luther helped set up generous


government safety nets for the poor. To make the mar- ket more fair, he even proposed that the government set prices, “which would enable the merchant to get along and provide him with an adequate living ...” (Luther’s Works, Vol. 45). His commitments to protecting the poor and those


without power are refl ected in his views on govern- ment authorities: “T ey should be alert and courageous enough to establish and maintain order in all areas of trade and commerce in order that the poor may not be burdened and oppressed” (Large Catechism). In view of all this, what do you think Luther would


If we take seriously Martin Luther’s explanation of the commandments in the Small Catechism, how does this affect the way we think and vote about justice in society?


tell his spiritual sons and daughters in 21st century America about income inequality? Let’s get a conversa- tion going, and maybe do something about what we, Luther and common-sense justice conclude. 


The Fifth Commandment: You are not to kill. What is this? Answer: We are to fear and love God, so that we neither endanger nor harm the lives of our neighbors, but instead help and support them in all of life’s needs.


The Seventh Commandment: You are not to steal. What is this? Answer: We are to fear and love God, so that we neither take our neigh- bors’ money or property nor acquire them by using shoddy merchandise or crooked deals, but instead help them improve and protect their property and income.


Author bio: Ellingsen is an ELCA pastor and professor at the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta. He also teaches


at the Lutheran Theological Center in Atlanta. October 2014 25


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