Martin Luther Quotes
Every country must have its own devil. Welshland its own, and France its own. Our German devil will be a good wind-pipe, and must be called drinking, being so thirsty and hell-like that no guzzling of wine and beer, however large, will cool it off, and I fear that such will ever remain Germany's plague, until the day of judgment.
Luther, Martin. Luther's Works, Volume 44: The Christian in Society I. Edited by James Atkinson, Fortress Press, 1966, p. 214.
Ever since Smith made this statement, Western societies have argued the issue of causality. Contemporary thinking is that the availability of alcohol outlets are both a cause and an effect of heavy and dangerous drinking. Most state alcohol authorities however do regulate the number of outlets and have not accepted Smith’s point.
Samuel Langhorne Clemens, 1835-1910. The Congressmen who voted for Prohibition in the next century had not read or believed this quotation of Twain’s.
Islam prohibits drinking alcohol. Ataturk was the first Muslim politician not only to drink alcohol, but to do so publicly and make a public toast. Unfortunately he became addicted and died early as a result of his alcoholism. Ironically, to this day, he is used by Turks and other Muslims both as an example of the right to drink alcohol and also by those who appreciate the wisdom of Muhammad in banning alcohol.
This is one of the proverbs of King Solomon of the Jews, son of King David.
The distinction between recreational drinking and heavy drinking is a subtle one and rarely made until modern times. Most leaders who would not have heavy drinkers in positions of responsibility were usually themselves teetotalers and they were very rare. Heavy drinkers and alcoholics have been in positions of responsibility throughout history including modern times—eg House Ways & Means Chairman Wilbur Mills and Russian President Boris Yeltsin. Peter was unusual in that he made the distinction.
Martin Luther, O.S.A. was a German professor of theology, priest, author, composer, Augustinian monk, and a seminal figure in the Reformation. Luther was ordained to the priesthood in 1507. He came to reject several teachings and practices of the Roman Catholic Church; in particular, he disputed the view on indulgences. Luther proposed an academic discussion of the practice and efficacy of indulgences in his Ninety-five Theses of 1517. His refusal to renounce all of his writings at the demand of Pope Leo X in 1520 and the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V at the Diet of Worms in 1521 resulted in his excommunication by the pope and condemnation as an outlaw by the Holy Roman Emperor.
