Luther’s theological and ethical consideration of lying is founded on protecting the reputation and welfare of the neighbor. In sermons, prayer books, catechisms, lectures, letters, and table talks, Luther addresses lies and secrecy in varying contexts and continually returns to the same conclusion: a person’s speech should protect the neighbor’s reputation rather than harm it. Luther first develops his thoughts on lying in catechetical literature on the eighth commandment, “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor,” which he interprets positively as a requirement to protect the neighbor’s reputation. Diverging from an idealized Augustinian ethic which condemns all lies as sinful, Luther’s emphasis on protection of the neighbor allows him to identify truths as sinful when they harm another and lies as sinless when they protect another. Luther does draw on Augustine’s framework of three types of lies—the harmful, the playful, and the dutiful—to distinguish among sinful, harmless, and beneficial lies. Luther maintains this focus on protection and the distinction among kinds of lies in his Lectures on Genesis, where he examines lies in many different contexts, commending some and condemning others. Luther’s interpretations expand to offer application and advice to his contemporaries, including advice on how to deceive others in an appropriate way. Luther’s consistent position on deception in his catechetical and exegetical writing provides his rationale for advising lying in the case of Philipp of Hesse’s bigamy despite the disastrous consequences for both Luther and Philipp. Combined with his theology of the seal of the confessional, Luther’s view of lying provides further protection for the neighbor, whether the neighbor is a rich influential ruler or the vulnerable woman next door. As others in the Wittenberg circle wrote their own catechisms, they drew heavily on Luther’s concern for protecting the neighbor and continue to excuse lies that prevent harm. Luther’s emphasis on protection and prevention of harm thus become an enduring focus in the Lutheran ethical tradition’s treatment of lying and deception. / 2025-07-26T00:00:00Z
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bu.edu/oai:open.bu.edu:2144/46507 |
| Date | 26 July 2023 |
| Creators | Woods, Stephanie Anne |
| Contributors | Brown, Christopher B., Roldan-Figueroa, Rady |
| Source Sets | Boston University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis/Dissertation |
| Rights | Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ |
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