"Little about Luther’s celebrated translation may have been original"...so says Philip Blosser

It's interesting how one thing leads to another. I was reading Philosophical and Practical Problems with Sola Scriptura by Philip Blosser in the book, Not By Scripture Alone (Santa Barbara, CA: Queenship Publishing Co., 1998). In the article, Blosser explains how previous to the Reformation there were ample translations of the Bible in German, and this points to the fact that pre-Reformation Catholicism had a high view of Scripture. Blosser then states,

"In fact, little about Luther’s celebrated translation may have been original. The Swiss Reformer, Ulrich Zwingli, is quoted as having declared to Luther: 'You are unjust in putting forth the boastful claim of dragging the Bible from beneath the dusty benches of the schools. You forget that we have gained a knowledge of the Scriptures through the translations of others. You are very well aware, with all your blustering, that previously to your time there existed a host of scholars who, in biblical knowledge and philological attainments, were incomparably your superiors.' "

This type of comment and argument have a ring of truth, to an extent. There is a popular myth that in the library of the Augustinian cloister, Luther discovered a neglected, chained, dusty Bible. The myth then states it was not until Luther's German translation that the Bible was given back to the world. This myth became so popular, that versions of it actually appeared by the end of the sixteenth century in editions of Luther's Bible in a short biography on Luther, or in the introduction.

It is though possible, that this myth has some truth to it, and may have some insight into this comment from Zwingli. It is possible that Luther found a chained Bible in a university library while he was a young student. Luther's early biographer, Johannes Mathesius (a friend of Luther's), tells the story that the young Luther did have such an experience. Luther also mentions something like this story in a few Table Talk utterances. For a detailed study on this issue, see: Willem Jan Kooiman, Luther and the Bible (Philadelphia: Muhlenberg Press, 1961). Given that the printing press was still relatively new, finding a chained Bible would not have been outrageous, but rather a sad practical necessity. Well, Zwingli speaks about the "Bible from beneath the dusty benches of the schools"- which may actually be something completely different than the chained Bible myth.

Roman Catholics have pounced on the different versions of this myth for a few hundred years. I probably would have passed by Blosser's comment had it not been for his documentation of the Zwingli quote:"Alzog. III, 49, quoted in Patrick F. O’Hare, The Facts about Luther (Rockford, IL: TAN [Thomas A. Nelson] Publishers, Inc., 1987), 191."

So, one thing leads to another. I looked up O"Hare's comment:

"To maintain that Luther knew not and could not find any Bibles except the one he was supposed to discover as librarian of his convent, is to brand him as a liar. It is interesting now to recall what Zwingle, the Swiss Reformer, who made many false boasts for himself, once said to Luther: "You are unjust in putting forth the boastful claim of dragging the Bible from beneath the dusty benches of the schools. You forget that we have gained a knowledge of the Scriptures through the translations of others. You are very well aware, with all your blustering, that previously to your time there existed a host of scholars who, in Biblical knowledge and philological attainments, were incomparably your superiors." (Alzog. Ill, 49.)"

Previous to this comment, O'Hare presents the same type of argument as Blosser, that there were German Bibles in existence previous to Luther. The Zwingli quote is icing on the cake since Zwingli, a Protestant, appears to be stating this as well. Blosser goes a step further stating, "In fact, little about Luther’s celebrated translation may have been original." You see, Luther probably just did a medieval cut-and-paste from these earlier German translations. Now, I'm getting more curious. I'd like to see the context of the Zwingli quote. Blosser may actually just be parroting something Father O'Hare mentioned earlier. O'Hare (citing Protestant writer Licentiate Braun) stated, "We recognized in [Luther's] translation of the Bible a masterpiece stamped with the Impress of originality — we may be happy now if it is not plainly called a 'plagiarism !'" [The Facts About Luther, ( p. 5 in the Tan Edition)].

So, one thing leads to another, now I start searching for the Zwingli quote. I did some quick searches, nothing in depth. I didn't come up with the context (yet), but I did find some interesting things. I found Alzog. III, 49 cited by Blosser and O'Hare as the source for the Zwingli quote. Now, Mr. Blosser doesn't explain what Alzog. III, 49 is, nor am I sure if O'Hare does either (a cursory search of The Facts About Luther retrieved little). But Google Books gave me the text from Johannes Baptist Alzog, "History of the Church," p. 49. Alzog states,

"Luther now had the effrontery to make the silly boast that he was the first to drag the Bible forth from beneath the dusty benches of the schools, an assumption which even Zwinglius some time later indignantly denied. "You are unjust," said he, "in putting forth this boastful claim; you forget that we have gained a knowledge of the Sacred Scriptures through the translations of others. To mention a few, there is Erasmus in our own day; Valla, a few years earlier; and the pious Reuchlin and Pelican, in the absence of whose labors, neither you nor others could have accomplished the great work. But I will be merciful, my dear Luther, although I should not; for the impudent boasting that pervades your books, your letters, and your discourses, merits the severest chastisement. You are very well aware, with all your blustering, that, previously to your time, there existed a host of scholars, who, in biblical knowledge and philological attainments, were incomparably your superiors."

First and importantly, note O'Hare gave a conflation of the quote (and Blosser never probably checked it). The earlier translation work of other's are explained by Zwingli as, "To mention a few, there is Erasmus in our own day; Valla, a few years earlier; and the pious Reuchlin and Pelican, in the absence of whose labors, neither you nor others could have accomplished the great work." These of course, were fairly recent people. The "work of others" Zwingli has in view are men like Reuchlin (no friend of Rome!) and Erasmus (a sometimes friend of Rome). Zwingli notes of the men, "in the absence of whose labors, neither you nor others could have accomplished the great work"...the great work of Luther's translation! This is a far cry from Blosser's assertion that Zwingli held, "little about Luther’s celebrated translation may have been original." Zwingli notes Luther built on the foundation laid by these earlier men, not that he plagiarized these men, or that he reinvented the wheel, so to speak.

Then Zwingli says, "But I will be merciful, my dear Luther, although I should not; for the impudent boasting that pervades your books, your letters, and your discourses, merits the severest chastisement." Indeed, Luther did frequently boast about his abilities as a theologian. Zwingli then states, "You are very well aware, with all your blustering, that, previously to your time, there existed a host of scholars, who, in biblical knowledge and philological attainments, were incomparably your superiors." Now this is true as well, there were men previous to Luther that surpassed him in theological and philological ability.

Do you see how the conflation of the Zwingli quote from O'Hare and Blosser puts a slightly different spin on his words? The Biblical translating work that Zwingli referred to was recent work, done by some who were not hook-line-and-sinker in step with Rome. He wasn't referring to all the older German translations (as brought up by both O'Hare and Blosser).

Well, there's more to look up, time allowing. There's Luther's "dusty bench quote" and context, which was also added into the citation by O'Hare, and possibly not actually said by Zwingli. Could it be, Alzog was simply repeating the popular myth, and adding it to Zwingli's words? Not having a richer context for Zwingli's quote leaves everything here somewhat speculative. As to the Luther quote, Carrie found a secondary source, that I was able to use to trace back to a treatise from Luther, though it probably is not from the writing Zwingli had in mind, but interesting nonetheless:

"My friends the theologians have spared themselves pains and labor; they leave the Bible in peace and read the Sentences. I should think that the Sentences ought to be the first study of young students in theology and the Bible ought to be the study for the doctors. But now it is turned around; the Bible come first, and is put aside when the bachelor's degree is reached, and the Sentences come last. They are attached forever to the doctorate, and that with such a solemn obligation that a man who is not a priest may indeed read may indeed the Bible, but the Sentences a priest must read. A married man, I observe, could be a Doctor of the Bible, but under no circumstances a Doctor of the Sentences. What good fortune can we expect if we act so perversely and in this way put the Bible, the holy Word of God, so far to the rear? Moreover the pope commands, with many severe words, that his laws are to be read and used in the schools and the courts, but little is said of the Gospel. Thus it is the custom that in the schools and the courts the Gospel lies idle in the dust under the bench, to the end that the pope's harmful laws may rule alone. [An Open Letter to The Christian Nobilityof the German Nation Concerning the Reform of the Christian Estate, 1520]"
One thing I'm fairly confident of, Philip Blosser may want to rethink using Patrick O'Hare as a source, and he may want to consider actually reading Luther and Zwingli rather than about Luther and Zwingli through the eyes of Father O'Hare. I'll keep this one in the oven for a few days, to work on it when I get the chance.