Martin Luther
Martin Luther (1483–1546) was a German theologian who will forever be known as the principal initiator of the Protestant Reformation in Europe.
Dating back to the eleventh century, the Catholic Church had accepted various forms of indulgences, especially granting indulgences to those who went on Crusades. These indulgences could be obtained by saying certain prayers, or by performing specified works, such as helping the needy, worship, giving money to the church, or taking part in a Crusade.
Born in Eisleben, his upbringing encouraged an appetite for learning, music, and the Bible. He entered law school, but never practiced. He was known by friends as “the philosopher” and “the king of hops,” since he loved beer.
Luther became obsessed about what to do to get deliverance from an angry God. According to a popular story, in 1505, he was returning from school during a thunderstorm when he was thrown from his horse. Terrified, he promised St. Anne, the patron saint of minors, that he'd become a monk.
At twenty-one, he entered a monastery in Ereford, shunned his worldly needs, and sought worthiness in God's eyes in all his actions. He even spent up to six hours in confession. But still he couldn't obtain spiritual peace. He learned Hebrew and Greek so he could pore over the most ancient manuscripts of the Bible. He was ordained a priest in 1507 and went to the University of Wittenberg to study and lecture on Aristotle.
In 1510, Luther was sent to Rome on business for his order, hiking to Rome over the Alps during a severe winter. When he first saw the Vatican, he dropped to his knees, proclaiming, “Hail, holy city of Rome.” But Luther was shocked by the spiritual laxity he found there. Upon his return from Rome, he completed work on his theological doctorate and continued to lecture at Wittenberg. For Luther, these were times of great spiritual anxiety and physical torment. His search for quietude and spiritual peace led him further into an intense study of the scriptures. He devoted himself to the work of the church and became district vicar in 1515.
The 95 Theses and the Sale of Indulgences
The final straw for Luther was when Johann Tetzel, a German preacher of the Dominican order, arrived in Saxony in 1517 to proclaim an indulgence granted by Leo X. Luther opposed indulgences — the church's practice of accepting money for absolving people's sins. At the time, Tetzel was selling indulgences so he could raise money in Germany for the construction of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. People brought pieces of silver to confession, happily claiming they no longer had to repent their sins.
So famed was German preacher Johann Tetzel for selling indulgences that he would speak the catchy couplet, “As soon as a coin in the coffer rings/the soul from purgatory springs.” Tetzel established a kind of science of indulgences, charting the price for each kind of sin.
This was an outrage to Luther, who promptly wrote his 95 theses. He wished to expose the fraud being sold to believers: Why should they pay money for forgiveness, when forgiveness was a gift of God? Each of the theses was a proposition, a set of principles, some addressing matters of church doctrine.
Why didn't the church act to eliminate indulgences?
The abuse of indulgences had been condemned by many Catholic theologians. On the other hand, indulgences produced great financial success for the church, so ecclesiastical authorities had not put an end to it.
Luther posted his 95 theses on the Wittenberg church door on October 31, 1517, hoping for a scholarly debate on the subject of the church's sale of indulgences. His actions jump-started the Reformation; October 31 is still celebrated as Reformation Day. People were inspired by his ideas, and the sale of indulgences dropped dramatically.
Luther's theses were widely distributed and read, finding a sympathetic audience among the exploited peasantry and among those civil authorities who resented the funds being sent to Rome. The propositions were brought before the pope, who feared they would cause dissention in the Augustinian order. Meanwhile, Luther also challenged the supremacy of the pope in public debates. In 1520, he was excommunicated. At the Diet of Worms in 1521, he defended his doctrines before Charles V, but he was made a pariah of the Holy Roman Empire.
Nevertheless, Luther's voice had been heard. By mid-century, a host of German and Scandinavian rulers had severed their links with Rome and set up new “Lutheran” churches in their territories. Luther's intention was not to split Christendom in this way, but he was left with little choice when his proposals of reform for the church fell on deaf ears.
Social Condition in Luther's Time
When Luther was born, nearly all of Western Europe looked to Rome as the head of the church. By the time he died, Europe was divided into Roman Christians and “protesting” or Protestant Christians. Born in Renaissance Europe, he grew up in a time of great social flux. Nearly 90 percent of the populace consisted of poor, illiterate peasants, pawns ruled by kings, nobles, and bishops. Most children died before adulthood. Plague was a constant fear. People worked the land, hoping only to survive the winter. Life for most was a dreary preparation for heaven. The Christian church gave people hope for a better life after death.
By Luther's time, the church was losing touch with people's needs. Corrupt popes and bishops lived in luxury while people struggled. The church's involvement in politics was ruining its reputation, and it had begun to pay its bills by selling forgiveness. Luther, known as the “Father of Protestantism,” changed all of that in one generation. He is considered, with Guttenberg and Newton, one of the most influential people of the past millennium.
