Erik H. Erikson, Young Man Luther: A Study in Psychoanalysis and History (1958)

As part of NTT JTSR’s series on Key Texts, the present article discusses Erik H. Erikson’s interdisciplinary, psychohistorical study of the young Martin Luther, its reception, and its relevance for today. Erikson showed how Luther’s own identity crisis – emerging from the troubled relationship with his father – converged with a crisis in late medieval society and theology, and how being a talented homo religiosus helped Luther to solve both crises at the same time, presenting a “religiosity for the adult man” in accordance with the Renaissance need for autonomy. It is argued that during his psychosocial study of Luther and the latter’s cultural context, Erikson developed a general, existential theory of religion that is also relevant for an understanding of the search for identity and religion in modern times.

Visualizing Narrative: Lutheran Theology in the Engravings of Lucas Cranach

The early stage of the Reformation in Germany was marked by an iconoclastic movement inspired by radical reformers. In the scientific literature, iconoclasm is often interpreted as a phenomenon that became a catastrophe for German art, as it halted its renaissance progress. The purpose of the article is to prove that the Lutheran Reformation did not become an event that stopped the development of German art, but, on the contrary, gave a new impetus to its development, especially the art of engraving. Throughout the history of Christianity, there have been discussions about what church art should be, in what form it should exist and what function it should carry. In the days of the Reformation, these discussions flared up with renewed vigor. Most reformers held the view that the church needed to be cleansed of works of art that were seen as a legacy of Catholicism. The iconoclast movement that transitioned into church pogroms and the destruction of works of art in Wittenberg in early 1522 prompted Martin Luther to publicly express his disagreement with the radical reformers and to express his own position on the fine arts in the reformed church. In a series of sermons from March 9 to 16, 1522 (Invocavit), Martin Luther recommended the destruction of images that became objects of worship, but considered it appropriate to leave works of art that illustrate biblical stories or reformation ideas. For Luther, the didactic significance of images became a decisive argument. The main points of the series of Luther’s sermons (Invocavit) show that he not only condemned the vandalism of iconoclasts, but also argued that the presence of works of art in the church does not contradict the Bible, but, on the contrary, helps to better understand important truths. It is noted that the result of Luther's tolerant position was the edition of the September Bible (1522) illustrated by Lucas Cranach's engravings. The reviewed narrative and visual sources prove that due to Reformation the art of engraving received a new impetus, and Lutheranism was formed not only as a church of the culture of the word, but also of the culture of the eye. It was established that the main requirement for art was strict adherence to the narrative, which is observed in the analyzed engravings of Lucas Cranach. It is considered that the engravings to the book of Revelation are characterized not only by the accuracy of the text, but also by sharpened polemics, adding a new sound to biblical symbols, sharp criticism of the Catholic Church, and visualization of the main enemies of the Reformed Church. It is proved that the polemical orientation of the engravings spurred interest and contributed to the commercial success of the September Bible. The rejection of traditional plots by protestant artists did not become overly destructive, and in some cases, it even led to the enrichment of European visual culture.

Visualizing Berio’s Sinfonia: Choreographing Animation for Indeterminate Narratives

In 1968, a year of massive political and cultural upheaval, Luciano Berio composed a score that would shape his legacy. Entitled Sinfonia, which literally means sounding together, the symphony was sparked by the assassination of Martin Luther King. Heralded as “the ultimate pre-postmodernist musical palimpsest” (Service, 2012). Sinfonia reverberates with the political assassinations and massive protests punctuated by police repression that marked 1968. In late 2019, I was offered an animated projection commission with a primary voice in choosing a piece for live symphonic performance/projection. After some researching, I found Berio’s Sinfonia. It had what I was looking for - a “contemporary” piece, it resisted illustration, linear narrative and 19th century romanticism while eschewing the rigid formality of serialism. Instead, it embraced two core Modernist principles – fragmentation and use of the archive. Berio quoted/sampled disparate chunks of literature, music, and events of 1968 in the service of the political and the poetic to discover unity in the heterogeneous. His score seemed ripe for visual interpretation - and exposition - with animation as the prime driver. Following Berio’s lead, I chose visual sampling as my entre and turned to Google. By animating in and out of iconic (and lesser known) images in the orb of 1968, I created a commensurate puzzle piece that mirrored the suggested avant-garde intent I found in Sinfonia – “Where now? Who now? When now?” (Beckett, 1965, p. 291).

The Prophetic Lens: A Missiological Function of Film for Black Social Movement from Martin Luther King, Jr. to the Camera Phone

Through technological advances and its democratization, the camera is found to have dual functionality. It is both a prophetic and a missiological tool used to awaken the collective conscience of a nation apathetic towards the Black experience and to offer a counter-narrative reorienting the US to becoming a more racially just society. This paper considers definitions of gospel, missions, and the prophetic, outlining a framework for how the camera functions in all three. It briefly explores the use of the camera from Martin Luther King, Jr., during the Civil Rights Movement, to the contemporary citizen with a camera phone, all capturing anti-Black violence. As we will see, like the parables of Jesus were to his kingdom message, the content of the camera has proven vital to acquiring justice by exposing the realities of racial injustice, confronting the status quo, and energising viewers to take positive action.

Serve to Lead: Why Serving Others is Essential to Lead?

The purpose of this research paper is to inculcate the attitude of service to serve others selflessly. It explains the benefits and consequences of serving others. It discusses nonprofits, volunteerism, sharing with others, caring for others, adding value to society, and making a difference in the lives of others. It illustrates the consequences of serving others with the examples of Abraham Lincoln, Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr, and Nelson Mandela. It emphasizes contribution over achievement. It unveils that greatness is determined by service and outlines a nonprofit initiative, Vision 2030: One Million Global Leaders. The predominant emphasis is to serve others for a cause, not adulation, and implores the reader to be a giver, not a taker, by infusing life with passion and purpose.

A Reflection Analysis on the Martin Luther and the Third Enlightenment

On April 26-30，2021，, the first season’s lectures of “Martin Luther and the third enlightenment” were successfully held by Shanghai Library and co-organized by the Sino-Europe Center at Shanghai University. Because of epidemic and the limitation of the ground,this series of lectures were conducted both online and offline. All the lectures were spoken by Professor Paulos Huang,Director of the Sino-European Center at Shanghai University and the Tutor for Doctor at Shanghai University.