I feel bad too, that Luther acted from a very bad case of scruples. Luther does not sound to me to be a really bad apple, like say Henry VIII. Luther did not behead his wife (Anne Boleyn) on made up charges which are so disgusting (adultery, incest).
So Luther never stuck me as someone who was evil. There are two things which I hated which he did. First Luther giving permission for Phillip of Hess to engage in bigamy and then ordering him to cover it up, and the second thing is Luther’s anti-Semitism, which was far worse than almost anyone at the time, and it was an anti-Semitic time.
And I am Catholic too.
Luther was a flawed individual. (as were all the apostles and great men of the faith) Thank God HE uses flawed vessels mightily.
I never knew about those things. I tend to agree with you though about anti-Semitism.
I think anti-Semitism was fairly wide spread but we only know what's been written by those who could write and that wasn't too many folks.
As I recall my history Jews weren't allowed to own land in Europe. So, many turned to banking and lending.
They were a "closed shop," as the saying goes and, without doubt, there were bad feelings from both sides about the other.
Look up Johann Eck. He was a staunch Catholic, opponent of Luther and the Reformation, and a anti-Semite himself. Maybe the main difference between them was Luther became more famous. Who knows?