A Mighty Fortress

I did not like this hymn when I was growing up. I thought it had a strange melody and it was especially difficult to play on the piano given that the harmony changes on almost every beat. I grew to love it in my adult years. That’s because I became aware of the theological context in which this hymn was written (going back, why would I care about theology in my teenage years? ha). In this blog post we will travel back in time to the sixteenth century and meet one of my favorite theologians – Herr Doktor Martin Luther – and understand the theological context in which this hymn was written.

Five hundred years ago the Catholic Church was shaken up from within. Certain theologians, including Martin Luther, noticed that the Catholic Church was not faithful to the holy scriptures. And there were several political issues at hand to protect these heresies:

1. The Pope had too much power over interpreting the scriptures; if you did not agree with the Pope, you got kicked out of the church (fancy term: excommunicated)
2. No one could tell the Pope he was wrong, only the bishops’ council
3. But only the Pope could summon the bishops’ council

So if you noticed anything wrong with the Catholic doctrine, you had two options:

1. Keep it to yourself
2. Make a big fuss and get kicked out of the church

Guess what Luther did :)

There were several doctrinal issues that provoked Herr Doktor Luther, but the primary one was the selling of indulgences. In a nutshell, the only way average people like you and me could receive forgiveness from the Lord was to buy their forgiveness from the church officials. Not only that, you could also buy more forgiveness for your relatives, even for the deceased members of your family. It became quite a prolific industry! You can see the results of that monetary venture when you visit the Vatican today.

Now there were certain theological concerns with getting excommunicated from the Catholic Church in the sixteenth century. It wasn’t like today when you have a disagreement with your local pastor/priest so you start attending the other church down the street. Back then the Catholic Church preached that there was no salvation outside of the Roman Catholic Church. Ouch! So you either agreed with the Pope or you went to hell.

Thus, Luther declared that the Pope was the church’s enemy, for he kept the people in darkness and did not tell them the GOOD NEWS, that salvation is given on faith alone, not on indulgences! And so, Luther began his Reformation campaign – salvation (or, another fancy term – justification) comes from Jesus Christ based on faith alone! Anyone who disagreed with this doctrine was automatically an enemy of the Church.
One way in which Luther spread his anti-Catholic (but pro-Jesus) ideas was by writing hymns for the church. In fact, the Lutheran church was the first to use congregational hymns as part of their worship service whereas in the Catholic church only the trained musicians could make music. Here’s an example of a hymn that illustrates how we ought to stay strong in Jesus Christ and his word, instead of the enemy:

“A Children’s Hymn to Sing Against the Two Archenemies of Christ and His Holy Church,
the Pope and the Turks."

Lord, keep us in Thy Word and work,
Restrain the murderous Pope and Turk,
Who fain would tear from off Thy throne
Christ Jesus, Thy beloved Son.

How’s that for a bold statement? The Pope (and the Turk, but that’s another political issue in which I will not get into… this time) was the archenemy of Christ and his Holy Church! Luther has now definitely placed himself in a new theological camp – the Protestant camp, for he was protesting against the oldest institution of his time.

Now that you know the historical and theological context in which Luther lived, let us look at another hymn that he wrote for his church:

A mighty fortress is our God,
a bulwark never failing;
our helper he, amid the flood
of mortal ills prevailing.
For still our ancient foe
does seek to work us woe;
his craft and power are great,
and armed with cruel hate,
on earth is not his equal.

In this first verse we are introduced to two characters: God and the “ancient foe” (old timey English word for “opponent”). God is characterized as a “mighty fortress,” a “bulwark” (another old timey English word, meaning “a defensive wall”), and our “helper” amid all the destructive circumstances on this earth. However, these destructive circumstances are not met with a postmodern attitude “eh—it happens sometimes.” Enter, our second character – the “ancient foe.” In our own 21st century interpretation we may be quick to assume Luther is talking about Satan in general, but our historical trivia knowledge tells us that he may (most definitely) be talking about the pope. Note that Luther is speaking of this ancient foe in the present tense: “for still our ancient foe does seek to work us woe; his craft and power are great, and armed with cruel hate.” The pope was, afterall, the most powerful man in Europe in Luther’s time.

In the second verse Luther draws the attention away from the murderous pope and on to us: “Did we in our own strength confide, our striving would be losing,” meaning humans have no power to defend ourselves before the ancient foe, be it the pope or Satan. This line paves the way to our Savior, the only one who can “win the battle” against the ancient foe. “You ask who that may be? Christ Jesus, it is he!”

In the third verse the enemy of the church is no longer addressed in the singular, but in the plural – “this world [is] with devils filled; [who] threaten to undo us.” From what we know of the sixteenth century, Luther was referring to the Pope and the Turk, among others. They threatened the growth of Protestant Christianity at every turn. Later in this same verse Luther introduces a new character: the prince of darkness. I would argue that now he is discussing Satan, as the scriptures often refer to Satan as the prince of darkness. He is behind all the devils of this world. But, good news – “we tremble not for him… for lo! his doom is sure!”

In the final verse of this hymn Luther brings the attention back to us, God’s people. We are no longer confiding in our own strength, rather we are equipped with the Word and the Holy Spirit. God’s truth, written in his Holy Word, “abideth still” and through the Holy Spirit that word illuminates our understanding of God’s truth. And, thanks be to God, “his kingdom is forever!”

In my piano arrangement I wanted to depict the mighty fortress via large “fanfare-sounding” block chords . You will hear these chords throughout the piece: “CHORDS CHORDS CHORDS – A mighty fortress is our God – CHORDS CHORDS CHORDS – A bulwark never failing” etc. This way, you are constantly reminded (musically) that no matter what comes our way, God is ALWAYS our mighty fortress, a place of refuge. Then, during the middle section “For still our ancient foe doth seek to work us woe” the music drops in the lower register, depicting the prince of darkness. The melody then suddenly jump a few octaves higher, showing that we as humans are helpless before the ancient foe. But!! CHORD CHORD CHORD – God is still our mighty fortress, no matter the circumstance! Thanks be to God, his kingdom is forever!