Luther and the Pheasants

[Iollain]

Anyone know what the phesants were doing that got Luther mad at them?

[Iollain]

Maybe they got in the birdfeeder and ate all the seed for the songbirds?





I ment the peasants:D

[pjw]

Maybe they got in the birdfeeder and ate all the seed for the songbirds?

grrrr. you beat me to it.
i reckon the reason Luther 'got so mad' at the peasants was that he was being accused of stirring them up to riot, so he went the exact opposite direction, and stirred up the nobility to wipe out all rebels.

[Fish and Bread]

In the movie Luther, they're depicted as rioting and destroying statues and churches because they dislike crucifixes, statues, and so forth. Luther sees it and starts yelling at them to stop, saying that wasn't what he wanted and not the point.

John

[BalaamsAss51]

Hello Iollain.

Some thoughts from "Luther the Reformer" by Kittelson -

The Peasants' War (1524-1525) was first and foremost a reaction against real oppression. Even landlords were losers in a time of declining population, when disease and hunger ravaged the countryside. They lost workers who could pay taxes and perform useful services. So they resorted to the tactics of tying peasants to the land or turning them into serfs and extorting ever greater dues from them. When the countess of Lutphen compelled her peasants to pick strawberries for a great banquet, they rebelled. Others in nearby areas followed. Little by little the rebellion spread. Muntzer, then located in the town of Muhlhausen, urged them on. He declared that the kingdom of God was at hand, and he assured the peasants that he had received a special revelation from God, according to which the princes' bullets would be caught in the sleeve of his coat. But Muntzer's sleeves did not work. His peasant army was masssacred at the Battle of Frankenhausen. Muntzer was found hiding in a bed, was tried, retracted all his errors, and was executed. Sporadic violence and bloodshed continued all over Germany for several months.

Luther was forced to take a hand in the matter. He responded in writing with "An Admonition to Peace". He addressed the princes and the lords. He condemned them for their unjust treatment of the peasants and declared that the authorities were bringing revolt on themselves. He addressed the peasants, granting that many of their demands were just, but repeated his universal rejection of rebellion.

He spent much of late April and early May 1525 traveling about the countryside and admonishing crowds of peasants to keep the peace. Although he had earlier been viewed as their friend, now he himself was rejected, jeered, and threatened.

He wrote "Against the Murderous and Thieving Hordes of Peasants". He said the princes ought to act quickly, if the peasants did not lay down their arms, then the princes were to smite, strangle, and stab them. Luther was deeply criticized for this book at the time. He later wrote that there was nothing worse than a rebel, except one who claimed the Word of God as justification for rebellion. The peasants, with Muntzer at their head, were both. Luther insisted that he was bound to defend the Word. He added "When I have time and occasion to do so, I shall attack the princes and lords too, for in my office of teacher a prince is the same to me as a peasant."

Pax

[Iollain]

In the movie Luther, they're depicted as rioting and destroying statues and churches because they dislike crucifixes, statues, and so forth. Luther sees it and starts yelling at them to stop, saying that wasn't what he wanted and not the point.

John


I've not seen the movie yet, can't find it anywhere.

[Iollain]

Hello Iollain.

Some thoughts from "Luther the Reformer" by Kittelson -

The Peasants' War (1524-1525) was first and foremost a reaction against real oppression. Even landlords were losers in a time of declining population, when disease and hunger ravaged the countryside. They lost workers who could pay taxes and perform useful services. So they resorted to the tactics of tying peasants to the land or turning them into serfs and extorting ever greater dues from them. When the countess of Lutphen compelled her peasants to pick strawberries for a great banquet, they rebelled. Others in nearby areas followed. Little by little the rebellion spread. Muntzer, then located in the town of Muhlhausen, urged them on. He declared that the kingdom of God was at hand, and he assured the peasants that he had received a special revelation from God, according to which the princes' bullets would be caught in the sleeve of his coat. But Muntzer's sleeves did not work. His peasant army was masssacred at the Battle of Frankenhausen. Muntzer was found hiding in a bed, was tried, retracted all his errors, and was executed. Sporadic violence and bloodshed continued all over Germany for several months.

Luther was forced to take a hand in the matter. He responded in writing with "An Admonition to Peace". He addressed the princes and the lords. He condemned them for their unjust treatment of the peasants and declared that the authorities were bringing revolt on themselves. He addressed the peasants, granting that many of their demands were just, but repeated his universal rejection of rebellion.

He spent much of late April and early May 1525 traveling about the countryside and admonishing crowds of peasants to keep the peace. Although he had earlier been viewed as their friend, now he himself was rejected, jeered, and threatened.

He wrote "Against the Murderous and Thieving Hordes of Peasants". He said the princes ought to act quickly, if the peasants did not lay down their arms, then the princes were to smite, strangle, and stab them. Luther was deeply criticized for this book at the time. He later wrote that there was nothing worse than a rebel, except one who claimed the Word of God as justification for rebellion. The peasants, with Muntzer at their head, were both. Luther insisted that he was bound to defend the Word. He added "When I have time and occasion to do so, I shall attack the princes and lords too, for in my office of teacher a prince is the same to me as a peasant."

Pax

Ahh Haa! I new there was more to the story, thanks.

[Fish and Bread]

I've not seen the movie yet, can't find it anywhere.

I acquired the DVD via Amazon.com a while back. If your circumstances permit online ordering, you may want to check there and see if it is still available.

John

[Jim47]

I've not seen the movie yet, can't find it anywhere.


I've seen the movie several times, and liked it very well, but the biography out on him through Northwest Publishing House is an even more accurate account of what happened.

http://online.nph.net/cgi-bin/site.pl?catalog

[SPALATIN]

Anyone know what the phesants were doing that got Luther mad at them?

I don't know what those confounded birds did to him. Those phesants should have been cooked and stuffed for dinner a long time ago. :D

[KagomeShuko]

Anyone know what the phesants were doing that got Luther mad at them?

I certainly don't know, but I guess it was all for the birds!

Makes me think of the Irish Rover's song. . .

I'm not a pheasant plucker, I'm a pheasant plucker's son, and I'm sitting plucking pheasants until the pheasant plucker comes.

Be careful with that one!

Stein Auf!
Bridget

[Iollain]

I acquired the DVD via Amazon.com a while back. If your circumstances permit online ordering, you may want to check there and see if it is still available.

John

Yes, i did find one there, thanks

[Iollain]

I've seen the movie several times, and liked it very well, but the biography out on him through Northwest Publishing House is an even more accurate account of what happened.

http://online.nph.net/cgi-bin/site.pl?catalog

Thanks for the link:)

[Iollain]

I don't know what those confounded birds did to him. Those phesants should have been cooked and stuffed for dinner a long time ago. :D

lol, i knew the spelling looked wrong but i was in a big hurry at the time

[Iollain]

I certainly don't know, but I guess it was all for the birds!

Makes me think of the Irish Rover's song. . .



Be careful with that one!

Stein Auf!
Bridget


Hehe, careful indeed:D

[Jim47]

Has anyone seen any pheasants recently? :D

Its been years since I've had a good pheasant dinner. :thumbsup:

[SPALATIN]

Has anyone seen any pheasants recently? :D

Its been years since I've had a good pheasant dinner. :thumbsup:

Oh Jim. Me too. I used to hunt them with my Dad who passed away almost 17 years ago. We used to have a freezer full of wild game like Pheasant, Duck, Grouse and then the big daddy venison. I haven't hunted in years and the only gun I have is my Dad's deer rifle. My mom didn't like eating this kind of food so she would prepare the pheasant for my dad, sister and me and then have liver and bacon with onions.

Boy this takes me back.

:sigh:

[Lutherrunner]

Oh Jim. Me too. I used to hunt them with my Dad who passed away almost 17 years ago. We used to have a freezer full of wild game like Pheasant, Duck, Grouse and then the big daddy venison. I haven't hunted in years and the only gun I have is my Dad's deer rifle. My mom didn't like eating this kind of food so she would prepare the pheasant for my dad, sister and me and then have liver and bacon with onions.

Boy this takes me back.

:sigh:

I remember hunting pheasant with my dad too, back in Mid-Michigan in the early 60's....they were everywhere.....then, was it DDT that made the eggs weak or something and the numbers dwindled?......have they made a comeback?

[RobNJ]

Nah, now the only edible ducks I run across, are hanging by the neck, in the local Chinese market (which is not excactly a bad thing! ;) )

[Jim47]

I remember hunting pheasant with my dad too, back in Mid-Michigan in the early 60's....they were everywhere.....then, was it DDT that made the eggs weak or something and the numbers dwindled?......have they made a comeback?


I think the DDT had more of an affect on the song birds. What has really harmed the pheasant population, is no habitat. We had lots of fence rows and quite a few woods when I was a kid. Now days you have to drive for miles to find a fence row, and most of the farmers are even mowing the ditch banks, so they just have no place to go. The other big thing would be too many cats :sigh:

[SPALATIN]

I think the DDT had more of an affect on the song birds. What has really harmed the pheasant population, is no habitat. We had lots of fence rows and quite a few woods when I was a kid. Now days you have to drive for miles to find a fence row, and most of the farmers are even mowing the ditch banks, so they just have no place to go. The other big thing would be too many cats :sigh:

That's it! We need to have a cat hunt. Though I don't think they taste very good. :eek:

[Jim47]

That's it! We need to have a cat hunt. Though I don't think they taste very good. :eek:


In certain parts of the world I believe they are considered as common table fare. I was in Viet Nam for almost 12 monthes before I ever saw or heard a cat, so I'm quite sure they like'm. :sick: (By the way, there were plenty of rats and mice so I know the cats couldn't have starved.)

[Iollain]

We have partridge here, really good to eat

[SPALATIN]

We have partridge here, really good to eat

Do you shoot them while they are in the pear tree? ;)

[Iollain]

Oh yes, i'd shoot them in a pear tree:)