Luther and Superstitions
Now, I'm not sure believing in the existence of Satan is just cause to label someone as superstitious. I believe Satan to be a very real presence in the world. And if we deny the existence, or even the potency, of Satan, then we deny anything else God told us about himself, ourselves, His Son, and our salvation.
One can make a case for the 1505 episode that propelled Luther into the priesthood, his terror at the thunder and lightning so that he prayed for Saint Anne's protection promising to become a priest if he survived. Here again this was a part of the Church superstition which Luther would later abandon.
But Luther was a man of faith who believed what God wrote in Scripture, believed Scripture was God's very Word, believed the Devil prowled like a lion seeking to devour us, and believed that Jesus died and rose again to pay for our sins and make each one of us a child of God. The reason Luther believed this is because of the testimony of those who saw the Lord and wrote for us: "We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased." We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the sacred mountain. And we have the word of the prophets made more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation. For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. (2 Peter 1: 16-21)
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