ABSTRACT
In his work Claritas scripturae bei Martin Luther, Friedrich Beisser detailed the relationship between the reformer's concept of the word of God and human perception of that word. Beisser took a theological, linguistic and historical approach to the problem of Luther and scriptural clarity, asserting that his interpretation of scripture had a complex basis. Although many have studied Luther and humanism, few of the studies were grounded in a close philological examination of his writings. Text-based studies that have been done, most notably by Birgit Stolt and Helmar Junghans, have not exhausted the possible findings. Where Luther was at his most personal, in his correspondence, the territory remains largely unexplored. Given the importance of Quintilian for letter writing of the day, an exploration of the correspondence should uncover the extent to which Luther used humanist styles, techniques and organization, and how he applied those tools to his understanding of the gospel.
