Luther? Luther who?

Mondays are for Church History. This post was prepared 5/29/15 for publication 6/15/15.

Ozment, Steven E. The Age of Reform: 1250-1550 : An Intellectual and Religious History of Late Medieval and Reformation Europe. New Haven, Conn. ; London: Yale University Press, 1980. Kindle Electronic Edition.
Chapter 6, “The Mental World of Martin Luther” pp. 223-244. Part 1, “Young Man Luther” pp. 223-231.

As a monk, Luther dealt with many issues common to the laity. There was a lack of consolation. Religious life failed to deliver confidence. Luther’s objections were to the common religious culture of his time and demanded a religious solution. On p. 223 Ozment recommends Erikson’s Young Man Luther (1958), which draws explanations from Luther’s childhood. “For Erikson, the Reformation was an unsuccessful attempt to resolve by cultural revolution the universal problems of childhood and adolescence” (Ozment 1980, 223). Why is this approach valid? “To the psychologist, man is a far more constant and predictable creature than he is to the historian” (Ozment 1980, 224). Though Erikson’s work is interesting Ozment does admit it is based on speculation. more likely (Ozment 1980, 227) much of Luther’s tension was built on the prevailing moral and religious culture of his time.