ABSTRACT
This chapter talks about Martin Luther and humanism in the early years. First, Luther insisted on using the best source materials, including both the Bible and classical literature. Luther's letters provide insight into the mind of a man whose honesty and integrity made likely a confrontation with ecclesiastical corruption. Luther creatively applied humanism to the problems he faced. Beginning with his earliest extant correspondence and ending in December 1516, the chapter traces the course of his relationship to humanism and the gospel. His university student days and early career in theology was a time of relative harmony with the ecclesiastical authorities. Gradually, his position changed from accepting the avenues and associations humanists offered, to some reservations about the vanity of their cause. Among the important formative events in Luther's early career, his defense of Reuchlin was of the first order. The chapter explains the Luther's defense of his academic credentials.
