Samuel Torvend's original and important reconstruction of the emergence of Luther's and the early Reformation church's response to the poor gathers fragments from across Luther's early writings. He uncovers a striking counter-image to the usual portrait of a quietist orientation that left the world to deal with its own problems. Instead, he finds that Luther's concern emerged early in his career, centered around hunger and the hungry poor, and was deeply rooted in his encounter with the Bible and with the sacramental character of the local church.