Translated by Fr. Robert Nixon, OSB

     Most Catholics have only vague ideas about the life of Martin Luther, and these ideas are generally shaped by popular myths originating with pro-Luther writers.  This work, written by James Laing, a prominent Catholic historian who actually lived through the event concerned, and now translated into English for the first time by New Norcia's Fr. Robert Nixon, presents a more truthful picture of Luther.  In The Devil's Bagpipe, we read about an ambitious Luther trying to obtain for himself the dignity of the cardinalate at a young age.  We learn about the true motives of his objections to indulgences, which sprang principally from financial motives.  We witness also his bad temper and vitriolic tongue, his nocturnal converstations with demons, and his scandalous and degrading bouts of drunkenness and debauchery.