According to Oberman, “Luther’s critique of Aristotle concerns the disregard of that fundamental nominalist axioma , the demarcation line between the realms of reason and faith. Provided that this distinction is respected, Aristotle is not merely useful but indeed to be respected. In a Latin sermon probably preached to the Wittenberg confratres on Christmas Day, 1514, Luther formulates this subtle balance beautifully: ‘Pulchra haec Philosophia, sed a paucis intellecta, altissimae Theologiae utilis est.’” The choices for interpretation the Reformation are that it “is held responsible for the disintegration of the medieval synthesis and was . . . the breeding ground of atheism and fideism” or “it discovered the personal God of biblical revelation and ultimately made possible a secular culture no longer relegated to the realm of limited subsistence.”
I would hope for some third alternative.
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