A Mighty Fortress Is Our God
The month of October is here and it signals the height and beauty of the fall season: glorious reds, oranges and yellows on the trees; cooler weather with crisp nights that foretell the coming of winter; finding that perfect pumpkin to decorate for Halloween. Autumn is my favorite time of year for all of these reasons and many more. It passes all too quickly!
In Lutheran circles, the month of October concludes with the festival of the Reformation, commemorating Martin Luther’s posting of his famous 95 Theses on the doors of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany (http://reverendluther.org/pdfs/The_Ninety-Five_Theses.pdf). This occurred on October 31, 1517 – the Eve of All Saints Day on November 1. Why this particular day? Because many would be coming to church for special worship services on All Saints Day, and Luther’s call for scholarly debate on the abuses of the Church of his day (especially the teaching of indulgences) would be noticed by colleagues and taken up for debate, as Luther proposed. The doors of the Castle Church served as the community bulletin, and so this was a logical place for Luther to post his 95 These. October 31 has come to be regarded by many as the unofficial beginning of the Reformation movement, although there were many others who called for reform prior to Luther. Conditions were ripe for change in Europe with the rise of nation states, exploration of the New World, and the beginning of the Renaissance. There was increasing frustration on the part of the faithful in much of Europe as their money went south to build the massive new St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. It is a known fact that the sale of indulgences was harnessed to raise funds for this enormous building project. It was especially for this last thing that Luther did what he did and wrote what he wrote. His concern was that God’s people were being led astray. Instead of faith in the God who justifies for the sake of Christ, people’s faith was in buying forgiveness of sins through the sale of indulgences. Faith had been reduced to “checking the box,” a problem that plagues every generation of believers.
Here in America, the festival of the Reformation on October 31 has largely been overshadowed by Halloween, also on October 31. Because of this, the festival of the Reformation has largely been transferred to the last Sunday of October when the liturgical color is red, reminding us not only of the fire and power of the Holy Spirit, but also of the blood of the martyrs who gave their lives for the sake of the Gospel. A mainstay for Lutheran Christians on Reformation Sunday is the singing of Luther’s powerful hymn, “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God” (Ein’ feste Burg). The Lutheran Service Book Companion to the Hymns puts this hymn in its historical context:
“A mighty fortress is our God” was most likely written sometime between 1527 and 1529, a period that saw an epidemic hit Wittenberg, a serious illness befall Martin Luther (1483-1546), Turkish forces threatening the German borders, further threats from Catholic armies, and theological attacks from both Catholics and more radical Protestants. The hymn is often called the “battle hymn of the Reformation,” but in Luther’s day, it was thought of in different terms, as can be seen from the heading on an Augsburg broadsheet of 1529: “A hymn of comfort” – something that was sorely needed at the time (Lutheran Service Book Companion to the Hymns – Volume 1. St. Louis: Concordia, 2019; p. 836).
Luther’s great hymn is based on Psalm 46 (Psalm 46 ESV - God Is Our Fortress - To the - Bible Gateway), which begins with this well-known and beloved verse: “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Compare this with the first line of Luther’s hymn:
A mighty fortress is our God;
A trusty shield and weapon;
He helps us free from every need
That hath us now o’ertaken.
The abiding truth of Luther’s hymn continues to stir hearts and minds today with its powerful text and stirring music. There are two versions of the melody or tune for this hymn, and both are contained in Lutheran Service Book (see hymns #656 and 657). Luther, who was himself well-versed in music, is believed to be the composer of the original melody, which is a rhythmic setting (see next page). But the other hymn setting from the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries is just as familiar and probably easier to sing for most people today. There have been multitudinous hymn settings, variations, cantatas and more all based on this hymn.
Whatever hymn version we may prefer of “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God,” the important thing is the message that the hymn contains. That message remains the same throughout the centuries, and centers in the three great “solas” of the Reformation: that we are saved by God’s grace alone, through faith in Jesus Christ alone, made known in holy Scripture alone. Sola gratia – Sola fide – Sola Scriptura.
