A very busy day off

Beth and I got up early and rented a car to go to Luther's birthplace and deathplace in Eisleben and to his boyhood home in Mansfeld. It's good that we rented a car because all of the trains are shut down this week because of a strike. I was told they will resume on Sunday morning at 9 a.m. That is certainly a different way of striking than in the US! I've included a picture of our rental car -- a Skoda, because my son will ask.

Our first stop was Eisleben -- where Luther was born and where he died. Below is his birth house. He was born on the Feast of St. Martin, November 9. His mother was not sure of his birth year, so Melanchthon established 1483 as the year of Luther's birth. Martin was named after the saint celebrated on his birth day, and he was baptized shortly after midnight on November 10 at St. Peter and St. Paul's church. His mother was not in attendance, but his father was joined by Luther's godparents. 

Not long after Luther's birth, the family moved to Mansfeld. More on that later in this post....

In 1546, Luther traveled to the region from Wittenberg to settle a dispute among the princes of Mansfeld. When the dispute was settled, he returned to Eisleben. He had been feeling ill during much of the trip, but he managed to preach 4 sermons (his final 4 sermons) in St. Andrew's church (church and pulpit pictured below). The pulpit is being restored, so the top portion has been removed.

Luther had to cut the last sermon short because he felt so ill. He was taken across the street to the home where he was staying. He was attended by his sons and by Justus Jonas, who wrote a detailed account of the events of his death.

Luther's death house pictured above. His funeral pall is pictured below. It is encased in a wooden structure to preserve it. The people of Eisleben are very involved in the preservation and restoration of this death house and its contents -- none of which are from Luther's day, except the funeral pall. Long story about the house! But most of the items from Luther's death were burned in 1707 because so many people were collecting pieces of them to keep as relics. The religious leaders of the day thought this was too much like what Luther had fought against that they burned the bed and the cup he used.

Below is the bedchamber as it was recreated from Justus Jonas's account of Luther's death.

By the way, this is one of the pews in St. Andrew's church. That is NOT a kneeler under that pew. It is a heater. A seat heater in church!!! I am pushing for these to be installed at Calvary! :)

On to Mansfeld...

I was really excited to go to Mansfeld because the town in which I grew up is called Mansfield, SD! The town of Mansfeld, Germany is pretty small, and it seems that they are pretty unaware of their significance in Luther's story. It is a very unassuming town. They have a lovely museum across from Luther's boyhood home. During renovations, they discovered a garbage pit full of items that date back to c. 1500. These include toys, bells, pieces of clothing, animal bones, parts of weapons, parts of doors and furniture, and much more. 

Luther's boyhood home, pictured above. The museum is a very modern building across the street. Below, this is a picture of Mansfeld from the Mansfeld Schloss (castle) where Luther went to settle the royal family dispute just before his death. You can see St. George's church in the picture. This is where Luther got the name Junker Jorg (Knight George) during his time in exile at Wartburg castle.

 

Below is a portion of the castle. Much of it is in ruin, but the portion in the picture on the right is a youth hostel. There is also a nature preserve surrounding the castle with hiking trails.

Flowers in the castle garden.

View of the Mansfeld Schloss from the village below.