--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Martin Luther and John Calvin advocated…" description: "\"Martin Luther and John Calvin advocated the wholesale murder of heretics, apostates, Jews, and witches.\" — Sam Harris" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f8c/sam-harris-457_heretic_martin-luther-and-john-calvin-advocated_3184148.jpg" --- # Martin Luther and John Calvin advocated the wholesale… ![“Martin Luther and John Calvin advocated the wholesale murder of heretics, apostates, Jews, and witches.” quote by Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f8c/sam-harris-457_heretic_martin-luther-and-john-calvin-advocated_3184148.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f8c/sam-harris-457_heretic_martin-luther-and-john-calvin-advocated_3184148.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f8c/sam-harris-457_heretic_martin-luther-and-john-calvin-advocated_3184148.jpg) > “Martin Luther and John Calvin advocated the wholesale murder of heretics, apostates, Jews, and witches.” [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The statement critiques historical religious leaders for endorsing violence against dissenters, highlighting moral failures. **In simple terms:** Religious leaders once endorsed violent persecution. Key Takeaway Question historical moral justifications. Themes history ethics religion Mood critical thoughtful Type analysis historical When to use this quote - academic study - public discourse - education - policy making Key Concepts moral philosophy human rights Questions to Reflect On - How do we reconcile past religious actions with modern ethics? - Can we separate doctrine from its historical misuse? A Different Perspective Historical context can be complex; not all actions were universally accepted. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Calvin Advocated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/calvin-advocated-5846277/) [Heretic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heretic/) [Heretics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heretics/) [Heretics Apostates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heretics-apostates-5846278/) [Jew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jew/) [John Calvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/john-calvin/) [Judaism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/judaism/) [Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/luther/) [Martin luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/martin-luther/) [Murder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/murder/) [Murder Heretics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/murder-heretics-5846276/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Wholesale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wholesale/) [Witch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/witch/) ## Related quotes > [I read the other day an account of a meeting between John Knox and John Calvin. Imagine a dialogue between a pestilence and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/i-read-the-other-day-an-account-of-a-meeting-between-john-knox-and/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) > [“The Swiss theologian John Calvin, in his commentaries on the Hebrew prophets, says that God so identifies with the poor that their cries express…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-j-keller/the-swiss-theologian-john-calvin-in-his-commentaries-on-the-hebrew/) [Timothy J. Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-j-keller/) > [“How, as John Calvin put it, “without knowledge of self there is no knowledge of God.” “For”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-morgan-cron/how-as-john-calvin-put-it-without-knowledge-of-self-there-is-no/) [Ian Morgan Cron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-morgan-cron/) > [ I had been reading about \[John\] Calvin for years and had been studying the English Renaissance for many more years, and it had never… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilynne-robinson/i-had-been-reading-about-john-calvin-for-years-and-had-been-studying/) [Marilynne Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilynne-robinson/) > [We talk about predestination because the Bible talks about predestination. If we desire to build our theology on the Bible, we run head on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-c-sproul/we-talk-about-predestination-because-the-bible-talks-about/) [R. C. Sproul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-c-sproul/) > [“No man that ever lived, not John Calvin himself, ever asserted either original sin, or justification by faith, in more strong, more clear and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wesley/no-man-that-ever-lived-not-john-calvin-himself-ever-asserted-either/) [John Wesley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wesley/) > [ Reading \[John\] Calvin is a breath of fresh air. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-d-crisp/reading-john-calvin-is-a-breath-of-fresh-air/) [Oliver D. Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-d-crisp/) > [No person, no matter how clever and deceitful, can indefinitely hide a character that is rotten and out of tune with God. John Calvin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/no-person-no-matter-how-clever-and-deceitful-can-indefinitely-hide-a/) [John Macarthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) > [A silk dress in four sections, and shoes with high heels that would have broken the heart of John Calvin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-leacock/a-silk-dress-in-four-sections-and-shoes-with-high-heels-that-would/) [Stephen Leacock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-leacock/) > [ \[John Calvin\] writes clearly, directly, without artifice, and gets straight to the practical heart of the matter. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-d-crisp/john-calvin-writes-clearly-directly-without-artifice-and-gets/) [Oliver D. Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-d-crisp/) > [“THE LAW “THE THIRD, AND PRINCIPAL USE, WHICH PERTAINS MORE CLOSELY TO THE PROPER USE OF THE LAW, FINDS ITS PLACE AMONG BELIEVERS IN…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-jones/the-law-the-third-and-principal-use-which-pertains-more-closely-to/) [Mark Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-jones/) > [I think everyone who has an interest in Reformed theology, or just in Christian theology more generally, should read John Calvin Institutes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-d-crisp/i-think-everyone-who-has-an-interest-in-reformed-theology-or-just-in/) [Oliver D. Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-d-crisp/) > [ \[John Calvin's\] treatment of the person and work of Christ, of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer, of prayer and liturgy,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-d-crisp/john-calvin-s-treatment-of-the-person-and-work-of-christ-of-the-holy/) [Oliver D. Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-d-crisp/) > [“Finally, the Reformers also agreed that worship should be in the vernacular and that the twofold structure of Word and sacrament be maintained. Zwingli…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-e-webber/finally-the-reformers-also-agreed-that-worship-should-be-in-the/) [Robert E. Webber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-e-webber/) > [“John Calvin, Comment on 2 Cor. 5:20 This is why Paul upholds the teaching of the gospel in such a forceful way ... Seeing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-calvin/john-calvin-comment-on-2-cor-5-20-this-is-why-paul-upholds-the/) [John Calvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-calvin/) ## More by Sam Harris > [“Moderates in every faith are obliged to loosely interpret (or simply ignore) much of their canons in the interests of living in the modern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/moderates-in-every-faith-are-obliged-to-loosely-interpret-or-simply/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [There is no question but that nominally religious scientists like Francis Collins and Kenneth R. Miller are doing lasting harm to our discourse by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/there-is-no-question-but-that-nominally-religious-scientists-like/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [We have Christians against Muslims against Jews, and no matter how liberal your theology, merely identifying yourself as a Christian or a Jew lends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/we-have-christians-against-muslims-against-jews-and-no-matter-how/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [“Your principal concern appears to be that the Creator of the universe will take offense at something people do while naked. This prudery of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/your-principal-concern-appears-to-be-that-the-creator-of-the-universe/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [“As manuals for contemplative understanding, the Bible and the Koran are worse than useless. Whatever wisdom can be found in their pages is never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/as-manuals-for-contemplative-understanding-the-bible-and-the-koran/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [About 120 million of us place the big bang 2,500 years after the Babylonians and Sumerians learned to brew beer. If our polls are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/about-120-million-of-us-place-the-big-bang-2-500-years-after-the/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [“If your golf instructor were to insist that you shave your head, sleep no more than four hours each night, renounce sex, and subsist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/if-your-golf-instructor-were-to-insist-that-you-shave-your-head-sleep/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [The fact that one can lose one's sense of self in an ocean of tranquility does not mean that one's consciousness is immaterial or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/the-fact-that-one-can-lose-one-s-sense-of-self-in-an-ocean-of/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [The second commandment is "Thou shall not construct any graven images." Is this really the pinnacle of what we can achieve morally? The second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/the-second-commandment-is-thou-shall-not-construct-any-graven-images/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [“But the reality of consciousness appears irreducible. Only consciousness can know itself—and directly, through first-person experience.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/but-the-reality-of-consciousness-appears-irreducible-only/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [“Whether or not one likes Huntington's formulation, one thing is clear: the evil that has finally reached our shores is not merely the evil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/whether-or-not-one-likes-huntington-s-formulation-one-thing-is-clear/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [The problem is that religion tends to give people bad reasons to be good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/the-problem-is-that-religion-tends-to-give-people-bad-reasons-to-be/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [Muslim moderates, wherever they are, must be given every tool necessary to win a war of ideas with their co-religionists. 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And yet, it is obvious that an utter revolution in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/what-could-possibly-cause-billions-of-human-beings-to-reconsider/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) [Explore all 543 Sam Harris quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) ## More Heretic quotes > [Wicked sons do not have the Holy Ghost in the same way as do beloved sons, and yet they do have Baptism. So, too,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/wicked-sons-do-not-have-the-holy-ghost-in-the-same-way-as-do-beloved/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [A heretic can be tolerated. But a heresy cannot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahathir-mohamad/a-heretic-can-be-tolerated-but-a-heresy-cannot/) [Mahathir Mohamad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahathir-mohamad/) > [“Every great philosopher, in their own way, questioned the fundamental assumptions that were present in the thinking of their time”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-west/every-great-philosopher-in-their-own-way-questioned-the-fundamental/) [Steven West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-west/) > [... faithfully and strenuously you should resist the heretics in defense of the only true and life-giving faith, which the Church has received -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-clement-i/faithfully-and-strenuously-you-should-resist-the-heretics-in-defense/) [Pope Clement I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-clement-i/) > [The only good thing that we owe to Plato and Aristotle is that they brought forward many arguments which we can use against the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/girolamo-savonarola/the-only-good-thing-that-we-owe-to-plato-and-aristotle-is-that-they/) [Girolamo Savonarola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/girolamo-savonarola/) > ["If any man thirst, let him come and drink from the rivers of living water" (cf. John 7:38). Where shall he who thirsts come?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyprian/if-any-man-thirst-let-him-come-and-drink-from-the-rivers-of-living/) [Cyprian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyprian/) > [Consequently, heretics and schismatics, separated from the unity of this Body, are able to receive the same Sacrament, but with no benefit to themselves;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/consequently-heretics-and-schismatics-separated-from-the-unity-of/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [Flesh is heretic. My body is a witch. I am burning it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eavan-boland/flesh-is-heretic-my-body-is-a-witch-i-am-burning-it/) [Eavan Boland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eavan-boland/) > [Tout re volutionnaire finit en oppresseur ou en he re tique. Every revolutionary ends as an oppressor or a heretic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/tout-re-volutionnaire-finit-en-oppresseur-ou-en-he-re-tique-every/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [I have no expertise of other religious traditions so I'm not going to opine on them, but in Islam the more you know about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haroon-moghul/i-have-no-expertise-of-other-religious-traditions-so-i-m-not-going-to/) [Haroon Moghul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haroon-moghul/) > [“I was born a heretic. I always distrusted people who know so much about what God wants them to do to their fellows.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-b-anthony/i-was-born-a-heretic-i-always-distrusted-people-who-know-so-much/) [Susan B. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-b-anthony/) > [Well, another female child is born into the world! 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