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10/29/2003
Contact: K.E. Schwab --
724-738-2199; e-mail: karl.schwab@sru.edu
EDITOR’S NOTE: Art of Martin
Luther and his wife, Katherine, are available at www.SRU.edu (click
on “More”)
RETIRED SRU PROFESSOR TO DETAIL LIVES OF
REFORMER MARTIN LUTHER,
AND HIS WIFE, KATHERINE VON BORA, IN
BAILEY LIBRARY OUTREACH PROGRAM
SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. – Details of the lives of Martin Luther,
whose scholarly writings led to the formation of the Lutheran
Church, and the influence his wife, Katherine von Bora, once a
Catholic nun, had on him and the Protestant Reformation, will be
presented by retired Slippery Rock University Professor Dr. Stephen
Glinsky, Jr., as part of Bailey Library’s continuing
“Outreach” program.
The
free, 3 p.m., Nov. 16 lecture in Bailey Library’s Special
Collections Room will include information from Glinsky’s
recent work in translating two books from German to English. The
books, “Martin Luther, Rebel and Reformer,” originally
written in German by Volkmar Joestel, and “Katherine von
Bora, Luther’s Wife,” written by Martin Treu, offer
historical views of the lives of the 16th-century former
Catholic priest and the one-time Catholic nun who became his wife.
The translations were made from books written in 1994 and 1995,
respectively.
Glinsky
will present copies of his translations, which were published this
year, to Philip Tramdack, Bailey Library
director.
A
30-year professor of German in SRU’s department of modern
languages and cultures, Glinsky has traveled extensively throughout
Germany and has given presentations both about the fall of the
Berlin Wall as well as about Martin Luther, including a 1996 event
commemorating the 450th anniversary of the death of the
Reformation leader. His presentation “Martin and Katherine:
Where They Lived, Loved, Worked and Carried Their Message to the
World” will include photographs, and drawings of Wittenberg,
Germany, home of the Luther Museum, as well as from Wartburg,
Torgau and other Luther sites.
The
professor’s translations, which will be available for
purchase at the outreach program, are intended for the general
public as well as Luther scholars. “I believe they aid in the
understanding of the Protestant Reformation [begun in 1517] brought
about by Luther’s scholarly papers outlining what he believed
where the fallacies in Catholic Church practices at the
time,” Glinsky explains.
“The
second book, which focuses on Katherine, gives insight to the
support she provided her husband. She was a forerunner and pioneer
of today’s move toward women’s equality, and she was
clearly among the first women to have a direct influence, if only
principally behind the scenes, in religious matters. As a former
nun, she worked beside her husband on these important issues and
was, in fact, the first role model for what was to become the
responsibilities of a ‘pastor’s wife,’”
Glinsky explains. The couple had six children.
The
lecture, which will include a question-and-answer period, will also
separate fact from myth, Glinsky explains, noting, “Despite
drawings and tales of the day, there is no clear evidence that
Martin Luther actually nailed his 95 theses against the abuses of
indulgences to the Castle church door. Instead, it is clear these
95 items, sent at first to two bishops and a few close friends,
were then published and circulated by others. The items were
circulated in a time when printing and literacy were quickly
growing – and therefore were more readily available to the
scholars and leaders of the day, and to all others who could
read.”
Today’s
Lutheran Church has some 8 million members.
The
presentation is being co-sponsored by the SRU Women’s
Center.
PN, PgN, WPN, PR, S
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