Martin Luther was a controversial figure during his lifetime eliciting strong emotions in
friends and enemies alike and his outsized persona has left an indelible mark on the world
today. Living I Was Your Plague explores how Luther carefully crafted his own image and how he
has been portrayed in his own times and ours painting a unique portrait of the man who set in
motion a revolution that sundered Western Christendom. Roper shows how Luther's hostility to
the papacy was unshaken to the day he died how his deep-rooted anti-Semitism infused his
theology and how his memorialization has given rise to a remarkable flood of kitsch from Here
I Stand? socks to Playmobil Luther. Lavishly illustrated Living I Was Your Plague is a
splendid work of cultural history that sheds new light on the complex and enduring legacy of
Luther and his image.
