Martin Luther – Dr. Paul Thigpen

Dr. Paul Thigpen, author, Church historian, and former Evangelical minister, describes the monumental figure Martin Luther as “a figure of great complexity and contradiction.” In this 2005 Deep in History talk, Dr. Thigpen reveals points about Martin Luther’s life and ideology that Thigpen struggled with as a Protestant, including Luther’s early life, attitudes toward the Catholic Church, and his views on the human person.

Click Here to purchase this talk as an mp3, CD, or DVD.

Click Here to purchase the full set of available talks from the 2009 Deep in History Conference.

Study Questions:

-Was there anything from Martin Luther’s younger days that surprised you? How did that help you to better understand his ultimate actions? 

-What were some of Luther’s sentiments towards the Catholic Church? What were his sentiments toward other breakaway, Christian groups?

-What was the end of Luther’s life like?

-As Dr. Thigpen describes Luther’s theology, how did Luther view the human person? How does this differ from the Catholic Church’s view of the human person? 

-What were the “four historical ironies” of Luther’s theology that Dr. Thigpen lists? How does this help you put your personal belief system into perspective? 

Resources:

• Dr. Paul Thigpen’s Amazon author page
• Dr. Thigpen’s The Journey Home episodes: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, Paul & Leisa Thigpen
• Dr. Thigpen’s Deep in Scripture episodes: The Rapture, Bread of Life Discourse, “Master are you going to wash my feet?”, Romans 8
• Dr. Thigpen’s written conversion story, His Open Arms Welcomed Me
• Dr. Thigpen’s Deep in History Conference talks: “Luther”; “Martyrs”; “Southeastern Missions”; “From Topeka to Rome:How the Pentecostal Movement Has Brought Millions Closer to the Catholic Faith”; “Spiritual Authority — Who Needs It?”; “Tales of Thomas, Judas, & the Magdalene: The Fourfold Gospel & the False Gospels”; “You Have Received Gold, So Pass It On: Sacred Tradition in the Life of the Early Church”