Wartburg Castle

Faith and Learning
As noted in our catalog, "Wartburg takes seriously its duty to foster spiritual as well as intellectual growth and to help students integrate the two." One of the ways this is achieved is by providing opportunities for students to integrate their own faith, whatever that may be, with their undergraduate education. Two "Faith and Reflection" courses are required of all students, including a required course in Bible and another religion or philosophy course of the student’s choice. One of the goals of all Faith and Reflection courses is fostering critical reflection on personal beliefs and the beliefs of others. In addition, ethics is a required component of the capstone course in each major and other courses.

Historical Connections
During the Reformation, Martin Luther spent 10 months in seclusion at the Wartburg Castle, a fortress near Eisenach, Germany. At the castle, Luther undertook the task of applying his academic theology to the pastoral needs of the world in which he lived. There, he translated the New Testament into German, making the Bible accessible to the people and establishing the basis for a common German language. Luther then returned to the University of Wittenberg better equipped to continue his work of education and reform. By naming this institution Wartburg, our founders actively claimed for themselves and their descendants this tradition of the dynamic relationship between faith and learning.