Martin Luther definitely made an impact on Christianity. He’s known for:
- Being a brilliant theologian
- Being a key figure in the Protestant Reformation
- Translating the Bible from Latin into the common tongue (for him, German)
- Being a bit of a hot head
- Using colorful language
- Writing wonderful hymns
Above we have Luther’s seal, which is actually a rather brilliant Christian mandala.
Here, Luther uses traditional Christian symbols and liturgical colors in order to make an elegant, profound statement about his faith.
The elements of Luther’s mandala can be broken down as follows:
Golden Outer Ring: The circle is the Christian symbol for God, and gold is the color of divinity. This emphasizes God’s influence on everything happening within the ring.
Blue Background: Blue is the color of the sky, and is symbolic of both heaven and truth.
White Rose: While a red rose symbolizes martyrdom, a white rose symbolizes purity. This association is probably due to the color white symbolizing purity as well.
Red Heart: The heart is symbolic of the inner person. Their soul and/or spirit, as well as their innermost feelings. Red is the color of blood, and is also the liturgical color for Pentecost.
Black Cross: The cross refers to the central work of Christ. Fittingly, black is the color of death. Note the centrality of the cross in Luther’s mandala.
Here’s my interpretation of Luther’s mandala. By believing in one’s heart, the power of Christ and the cross, that person is made clean. In repentance, and faith in Christ, they’re forgiven, and made pure. The result: they stand in a right relationship with God.