Sentrum og snikksnakk. Luther i bruk - i samfunn og skole

Abstract

Approaching the 500-year Reformation anniversary, the article discusses what might legitimize Luther as a topic in today‘s society and educational practice. Are his crucial ideas an exclusively religious heritage, or could they be converted to issues of common relevance? Referring to the ways Luther was used by the GDR state and church in the 1983 anniversary, the article questions the potential for recontextualizing his specifically theological issues. By this, it relates to a current debate in religion didactics whether stories could be taught according to their religiously specific or universal, existential dimensions – cf. the question of learning about or from religion. The cultural and political impact of Luther’s theology obviously make it relevant as common heritage. His theological issue, however – man’s lack of free will (De servo arbitrio), and his view on «theological man» as defined solely by God’s justification (De homine), which Luther considers to be his primary concern – appears to be counter-intuitive, i.e. different from what seems right or natural. Hence, it challenges the concept of cultural heritage, but proves a critical corrective to common, essentialist justifications of human dignity, cultural identity and superiority – which makes it an issue to be learnt from and not only about.