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| The wrong illustration was used by the editor. He could have emailed me for the correct one. |
Review: Treasures From
Luther’s House Postils, by
Gregory L. Jackson, February 17, 2020 Issue, CN
Introduction by OJist Phil Hale, cub editor of CN. Alleged review by Pastor Jonathan Reprecht, WELS pastor, certified OJ advocate.
From Hale - lots of laughs -
"More attention should be given to Luther’s sermons. They at one time had a place in most Lutherans’ houses. But to have 37 pages, including strange advertising, out of multiple volumes of Luther’s sermons, cannot give but a taste.
Every serious Lutheran should read Luther’s postils. Many seem to be available online for free, since the recent Baker published version is partially based on the Lenker edited edition of Luther’s works (The Precious and Sacred Writings of Martin Luther), which is now in the public domain. The newest volumes of Luther’s Works (CPH) is (sic) also re-translating many of Luther’s sermons. [GJ - Please translate this glossolalia!]
Since the real thing is available at no cost, there is no need to settle for a select bite, edited by someone who denies what Luther taught on justification and thinks he is virtually the only orthodox Lutheran in American (sic) today. Rather than just promoting Luther’s teaching, he cannot help but promoting himself. –ed."
[Here endeth the Hale storm.]
GJ - We have provided the House Postils at a bargain cost in the printed version, especially when ordered at the author's price. We have also provided them at 99 cents on Kindle, and free as a merged set of all three plus the Treasures - PDF.
The purpose of the set was to make them more available, portable as Kindles and as free PDFs, and non-profit.
The Treasures volume is a low cost way of introducing the set when they have been largely overlooked.
People appreciated the Gems volume of the Lenker Luther Sermons (8 volumes) so I decided to create one for the House Postils.
Hale has no argument for Justification without Faith, so he indulges himself in personal attacks, at the level of a middle school remedial English student. Even then he would get a D for not matching the subject to the verb and failing to follow through on parallel constructions.
Lazy Ruprecht - Typical WELS Hot Air Merchant
Ruprecht seems as unsettled - dealing with Luther's words - as Hale is. The first part is a hilarious, uncited, unsourced monologue on exactly who wrote the House Postils. Using sharp research skills, perhaps from the Dummies Guide to Luther, Ruprecht has thrown doubt upon the historical postils simply by wondering which words Luther really wrote. Too bad the age of synoptic Gospel comparisons is over. He could have attained tenure at Mordor or even the Little Schoolhouse on the Prairie. (Are you related to Gaylin Schmeling? Sorry, can't hire you.)
The same logic could be applied to Law and Gospel, by another Calvinist, CFW Walther. He lectured and someone took notes. Also, Luther's final version of Galatians - he lectured from an outline, and notes were taken. But Luther agreed to what they took down, so no one says, "He never really wrote them, though scholars are still divided."
Ruprecht -
"The supplementary information mentioned
above takes up 10 of the book’s 37 pages. It is all
interesting yet sometimes a bit frustrating due to
the lack of details to satisfy the curiosity that is
stimulated. Pastor Gregory Jackson is the editor,
and he compiled his vignettes from the work of one
of his members, Alec Satin, who published Luther’s
complete House Postils in three volumes. But others have also published this three-volume compilation, and all seem to agree that it is very difficult
to do so without extensive research in the notes of
the original German Weimar Ausgabe of Luther’s
works. Even Concordia Publishing House reportedly refrained from publishing this work due to the
accuracy questions."
[Here endeth Ruprecht.]
I have the House Postils (three volumes) edited by Eugene Klug, who is far more credible than Ruprecht. CPH despises Luther and Justification by Faith, and their treatment of the 500th Anniversary is a shame.
Lazy Ruprecht could have asked for details by email or phone, since he is so interested in playing the role of the wise professor. This was a joint project between Alec Satin, Norma A. Boeckler, and me.
By lowering prices and making everything free, our participants expect to see these works carried over into the next generation, not buried by neglect as so many books were before.
Some Lutheran individuals have reprinted old classics, but they are scattered. We are trying to gather them into several distribution points, where they can be used in America and for world missions.
