Death, Ritual and History

Abstract

Magdalena Luther, beloved daughter of the Wittenberg reformer, died on 20 September 1542 at the age of thirteen.1 Her parents were devastated by her slow death from a virulent fever. As Magdalena’s last hour approached, her mother Katharina lay exhausted from weeping while Martin Luther grappled with the impending loss. ‘I love her very much,’ he prayed aloud. ‘But if it is thy will to take her, dear God, I shall be glad to know that she is with thee.’2 Luther fell to his knees beside her bed and wept bitterly, praying that Magdalena would be saved. He asked her if she was prepared to join her heavenly father; she responded that she was. She died in his arms, we are told.’ After her death the prayers of her parents for her salvation ceased. Magdalena was now beyond human intercession: ‘separation’ is the term Luther later used to describe her death.