The Table-Talk of Martin Luther
The Table-Talk of Martin Luther, or simply as Table-Talk, is a collection of recorded conversations, observations, and discussions attributed to Martin Luther, the German theologian and leading figure of the Protestant Reformation. The work covers a wide range of religious, theological, historical, political, and practical subjects, reflecting Luther's views on Scripture, Christian doctrine, the church, education, government, and everyday life.
The conversations were recorded by Luther's associates and students, rather than written as a conventional book by Luther himself. The German compilation known as Tischreden was published in 1566 under the editorial care of Johannes Aurifaber. The English translation by William Hazlitt became one of the best-known English-language versions of the work.
The Conservapedia Original Source Project provides an organized transcription of The Table-Talk of Martin Luther, divided into chapters with internal links for research and reference.
Historical Background
Martin Luther frequently discussed theology, biblical interpretation, church affairs, politics, education, and other subjects with colleagues, students, and visitors. Notes of these conversations were preserved by people associated with him, including Johannes Aurifaber and Antonius Lauterbach.
Following Luther's death in 1546, Aurifaber assembled material for publication. The first German edition of the Tischreden appeared at Eisleben in 1566. The published collection subsequently circulated in numerous editions and translations.
The surviving collection should not be treated as a verbatim transcript of every conversation. It represents material gathered, selected, arranged, and transmitted by other people. Modern scholarship has also shown that Aurifaber's compilation does not always correspond to the contemporary notes preserved independently by other recorders.
English Translation
William Hazlitt translated the work into English under the title The Table-Talk of Martin Luther. The translation circulated in nineteenth-century editions, including an edition published in London in 1848 under the title The Table-Talk or Familiar Discourses of Martin Luther.
The edition transcribed for the Conservapedia Original Source Project bears the title The Table-Talk of Martin Luther and identifies the Lutheran Publication Society of Philadelphia as its publisher. Its supplied electronic transcription was typed by Kathy Sewell on June 1, 1997. That date identifies the transcription, not the publication date of the printed edition, which has not been established from the supplied title-page information.
Hazlitt's translation presents a selection of the material found in Aurifaber's compilation. Readers should therefore distinguish this English version from the complete body of surviving historical records concerning Luther's conversations.
Contents and Subjects
The work ranges across many aspects of Luther's thought and experience. Its subjects include:
- Theology and Scripture: God's Word and works, Jesus Christ, the Holy Ghost, sin, free will, justification, prayer, baptism, and the Lord's Supper. - The Christian life: the catechism, the relationship between law and gospel, temptation, tribulation, sickness, death, and the resurrection. - The church and religious controversy: preachers, the church, excommunication, Luther's adversaries, and relations with Jews and Turks. - Government and society: princes, political authority, discord, lawyers, military defence, and the responsibilities associated with vocation and calling. - Education and learning: universities, the arts, learned men, astronomy, astrology, and the interpretation of history. - Places and peoples: countries, cities, and the religious and political circumstances of Luther's age.
The collection is valuable as a source for studying how Luther's ideas were presented in informal conversation, as distinct from his formal theological treatises, sermons, and published controversies. Individual statements should nevertheless be considered in their textual and historical context.
Conservapedia Original Source Project
The Conservapedia Original Source Project provides a chapter-organized transcription of the English text, with links allowing readers to move between the chapters and consult the source directly. The chapter headings organize the material for convenient reference; they should not be assumed to reproduce the arrangement of every historical edition.
Index
Chapter 00 - Introduction
Chapter 01 - God's Word
Chapter 02 - God's Works
Chapter 03 - Nature of the World
Chapter 04 - Idolatry
Chapter 05 - Jesus Christ
Chapter 06 - Holy Ghost
Chapter 07 - Sin
Chapter 08 - Free-Will
Chapter 09 - The Catechism
Chapter 10 - Law and the Gospel
Chapter 11 - Justification
Chapter 12 - Prayer
Chapter 13 - Baptism
Chapter 14 - Sacrament of the Lord's Supper
Chapter 15 - The Church
Chapter 16 - Excommunication
Chapter 17 - Preachers and Preaching
Chapter 18 - The Patriarchs and Prophets
Chapter 19 - The Apostles and Disciples of Christ
Chapter 20 - Angels
Chapter 21 - The Devil and His Works
Chapter 22 - Temptation and Tribulation
Chapter 23 - Luther's Adversaries
Chapter 24 - Regarding Offences
Chapter 25 - The Christian Life
Chapter 26 - Princes and Potentates
Chapter 27 - Discord (Economic Freedom)
Chapter 28 - Sicknesses and the Cause Thereof
Chapter 29 - Death
Chapter 30 - The Resurrection
Chapter 31 - Allegories
Chapter 32 - Spiritual and Church Livings
Chapter 33 - Constrained Defence (Christian Military Action)
Chapter 34 - Lawyers
Chapter 35 - Universities, Arts, etc.
Chapter 36 - Astronomy and Astrology
Chapter 37 - Learned Men
Chapter 38 - Jews
Chapter 39 - Turks
Chapter 40 - Countries and Cities
Chapter 41 - Vocation and Calling
See also
- Martin Luther - Protestant Reformation - Lutheranism - Original Source Project
External links
- [[1](https://www.lutherdansk.dk/Table-Talk/index1.htm) Martin Luther's Table-Talk] — electronic transcription of the Hazlitt translation, including introductory material. - [[2](https://ccel.org/ccel/l/luther/tabletalk/cache/tabletalk.pdf) The Table-Talk of Martin Luther] — electronic edition hosted by the Christian Classics Ethereal Library.
Category Luther Category Category Reformation Category Source Project