The Reformation and Modern German Medicine

Abstract

The words and deeds of three religious reformers provide context in this exploration of the relationship between the Reformation and the development of modern German medicine. For the past few decades, historians have regarded the Reformation and the development of German medicine as two parallel movements, and incisive exploration of the connection between the two is lacking. However, Luther’s medical views, Melanchthon’s medical education, and Bugenhagen’s medical practice demonstrate that the Reformation played a powerful and irreplaceable role in promoting the development of modern German medicine. Proactive treatment, respect for doctors, medicine based on natural science, education on anatomy, government-run hospitals, and the provision of free medical treatment for the poor were the roots of modern medicine, all personally nurtured by Luther and other such figures. Although the development of German medicine later attracted worldwide attention in its position at the global forefront, the first foundations for its operations were laid by 16th century Germans, including religious reformers such as Luther, Melanchthon, and Bugenhagen.