his references to marriage and vows of chastity in his sermons and
pamphlets were filthy and unpardonable even in an age when people were
much more outspoken on such subjects than they are at present. Though
he insisted strongly on the necessity of preaching the pure Word of
God, he had little difficulty in having recourse to falsehood when
truth did not serve his purpose, or in justifying his conduct by
advocating the principle that not all lies were sinful particularly if
they helped to damage the Roman Church. His frequent and enthusiastic
references to the pleasures of the table were more like what one
should expect to find in the writings of a Pagan epicure than in those
of a Christian reformer. He was not, as is sometimes asserted, a
habitual drunkard. His tireless activity as a writer and preacher is
in itself a sufficient refutation of such a charge, but he was
convinced that a hard drinking bout was at times good for both soul
and body, and in this respect at least he certainly lived up to his
convictions.[38]

It would be a mistake to judge him by his Latin writings, which, both
in manner and style, seldom rise above the level of mediocrity. It is
in his German books and pamphlets that Luther is seen at his best.
There, he appears as a man of great ability and learning, gifted with
a prodigious memory, a striking literary style, and a happy knack of
seizing upon the weak points of his adversaries and of presenting his
own side of the case in its most forcible and attractive form. No man
knew better than he how to adapt himself to the tastes of his audience
or the prejudices of his readers. He could play the role of the judge
or the professor almost as well as that of the impassioned fanatic
convinced that behind him were arrayed all the powers of Heaven. In
dealing with men of education, who were not likely to be captivated by
rhetoric, he could be calm and argumentative; but when he addressed