Martin Luther on Copernicus
I have run across this quote in several places attributed to Martin Luther, although I have been unable to find the original source.
People give ear to an upstart astrologer who strove to show that the earth revolves, not the heavens or the firmament, the sun and the moon… Whoever wishes to appear clever must devise some new system, which of all systems is of course the very best. This fool wishes to reverse the entire science of astronomy; but the sacred scripture tells us [Joshua 10:13] that Joshua commanded the sun to stand still, not the earth.
If someone knows the original, or conversely, disputes the authenticity of the quote, please post in the comment section.
No doubt a Lutheran in the early sixteenth century would have found himself excommunicated for insisting that the evidence supports a rotating earth. Of course, Lutherans now insist that God was being metaphorical when he wrote the book of Joshua. I find this astonishing, since Luther himself found the language so clear he was ready to call anyone who insisted otherwise a fool.
Whence came the shift in Lutheran theology from a literal interpretation of Joshua 10:13 to a metaphorical one? God’s word is unchanging and the age of divine revelation ended long before Luther. The only new data that has become available since Luther’s time is an apparently faith-crushing body of evidence in favor of heliocentrism. We have satellites in orbit around the sun, for crying out loud. Even hardcore fundamentalists now have to acknowledge that the earth orbits the sun, and not the other way around. This should make biblical literalists uncomfortable. The church position on the meaning of Joshua 10:13 appears to have been made with the assistance of experimentally obtained data – a big no-no in theology.
My question for biblical literalists is the following: How does one know whether or not a claim in scripture is to be interpreted literally or metaphorically? Are you absolutely certain that there are not passages that your church interprets literally that should not be interpreted metaphorically instead? I know you are reading this blog. Don’t be afraid to answer.
May 4, 2010 at 17:20
I’ve often wondered that myself. How does any church decide when Scripture should be interpreted literally and when a metaphorical interpretation is appropriate. How often are metaphorical interpretations used to justify the beliefs or actions of a church? Although not the biblical scholar that you are, I tend to think there were few people with the time to delve into scientific inquiry in Biblical times. They were too busy eeking out a living and defending themselves from religious and military aggressors. They would have readily accepted that the sun moved and the earth stood still, especially since to think otherwise would have created questions about how we stay attached to the earth if it is always moving. Two translations of the verse in question mention that the sun “did not go down” for a whole day. We still use that terminology today, referring to the sun going down even though we know better. Just some thoughts, no conclusions.
May 4, 2010 at 17:28
Illinois reader, you seem to proceed from the assumption that the Bible, while a valuable moral guide, was written by men. If this is incorrect, I apologize. However, this is not the claim made by Lutheran theology. Were the Bible written by the creator of the solar system, as Lutherans claim it was, then it is reasonable to expect its description of the solar system to be correct. Instead it reflects the Hebrew’s general understanding of cosmology at the time.
Also, while we do refer to the sun setting and rising even today, this is a phrase whose origins can be traced to a literal rising and setting of the sun. It has, to use a phrase, been grandfathered in. When Joshua was written its meaning was literal.
May 4, 2010 at 17:22
In the absence of any kind of response from the literalists, it is safe to assume that this is one of those embarrassing moments in Lutheran history, as the Galileo incident is with the Catholics. Unfortunately, it is a gaff that invalidates their entire theology. Either:
1) God did indeed write the Bible but made it ambiguous so that differing interpretations were inevitable. This raises many problems in Lutheran theology, not the least of which touches on the God’s omnipotence.
or,
2) The Bible was written by men who believed, as all men did at the time, that the sun moved while the earth remained still. This also invalidates all of Lutheran theology.
May 19, 2010 at 00:31
Friend, I found a source for the Luther quote. Pardon the long URL. I didn’t know how to abbreviate it without a URL shortener. I found this quote on Biologos.org (I am not affiliated with it), and I found your site while trying to source the quote.
http://books.google.com/books?id=DnNZSbzfeDQC&pg=PA107&lpg=PA107&dq=People+gave+ear+to+an+upstart+astrologer+Copernicus+who+strove+to+show+that+the+earth+revolves,+not+the+heavens+or+the+firmament,+the+sun+and+the+moon.+Whoever+wishes+to+appear+clever+must+devise+some+new+system,+which+of+all+systems+is+of+course+the+very+best.+This+fool+wishes+to+reverse+the+entire+science+of+astronomy%3B+but+sacred+Scripture+tells+us+that+Joshua+commanded+the+sun+to+stand+still,+and+not+the+earth.&source=bl&ots=78pPZOgAqE&sig=WxExjKf2W16CB00x_d0O0Uzptio&hl=en&ei=ZXLzS7fSMcP7lwfKxIGNDQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4&ved=0CCEQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=People%20gave%20ear%20to%20an%20upstart%20astrologer%20Copernicus%20who%20strove%20to%20show%20that%20the%20earth%20revolves%2C%20not%20the%20heavens%20or%20the%20firmament%2C%20the%20sun%20and%20the%20moon.%20Whoever%20wishes%20to%20appear%20clever%20must%20devise%20some%20new%20system%2C%20which%20of%20all%20systems%20is%20of%20course%20the%20very%20best.%20This%20fool%20wishes%20to%20reverse%20the%20entire%20science%20of%20astronomy%3B%20but%20sacred%20Scripture%20tells%20us%20that%20Joshua%20commanded%20the%20sun%20to%20stand%20still%2C%20and%20not%20the%20earth.&f=false
Here is the Biologos link: http://biologos.org/blog/the-firmament-of-genesis-1-is-solid-but-thats-not-the-point/
April 26, 2011 at 13:50
[...] literally one must reject the heliocentric model of the universe. Martin Luther, for example, used this verse as evidence of an earth-centered universe and to condemn Copernicus. Today’s orthodox heirs to Luther, however, while rejecting evolution and modern cosmology, [...]