Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation
Martin Luther was a German friar in the early 16th century. In 1507, he became a priest and started teaching theology at the University of Wittenberg in Germany. By 1512, Luther had earned his Doctor of Theology. During his studies, Luther came to reject several practices of the Catholic Church.
On October 31, 1517, Martin Luther is said to have nailed his ‘95 Theses’ to the door of All Saints Church in Wittenberg. These were 95 revolutionary ideas that served as the catalyst for the eventual breaking away from the Catholic Church and were later instrumental in forming the movement known as the Protestant Reformation. Luther’s ‘95 Theses’ called for a full reform of the Catholic Church and challenged scholars to debate with him on matters of church policy.
When Luther refused to renounce his writings at the demand of Pope Leo X in 1520, he was excommunicated from the Church. In 1521, the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V had Luther arrested as a “notorious heretic.” On his way to jail, Luther was kidnapped by masked horsemen. But it was a staged event by a wealthy supporter of Luther named Frederick III. The kidnappers ended up delivering Luther to the safety of Wartburg Castle in Eisenach, Germany. Remarkably, during a year of protective custody at the Castle, Luther performed the incredible feat of translating the Bible’s New Testament from Greek to German.
By 1534, Martin Luther and his team completed the translation of the Old Testament from Hebrew into German and published the entire Luther Bible. Luther’s version quickly became very popular, contributing to the development of the German language itself. It also influenced other common language translations, such as William Tyndale’s English Bible. The Luther Bible is still used by German-speaking people today.
Martin Luther was one of the primary reformers from the early 16th century, but there were other important voices from Northern Europe at that time, including Huldrych Zwingli and John Calvin from Switzerland. The basic motivation underlying the Protestant Reformation was to separate the Gospel of Jesus Christ from the institution of the Catholic Church. Solo Scriptura – “by scripture alone” — was the common Latin expression used by the reformers.
The Catholic Church ultimately responded with a Counter-Reformation, initiated by the Council of Trent in 1545. In the end, Northern Europe, with the exception of most of Ireland, became Protestant, while Southern Europe remained Catholic. However, just a few decades later, it would be the countries in the center of Europe that would be torn apart by the deadliest religious conflict in European history – the Thirty Years’ War. Sadly, between 1618 and 1648, about 8 million people were killed as a result of religious violence, famine, and plague.
Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation
Randall acts as the lead writer for ColdWater’s Drive Thru History® TV series and Drive Thru History® “Adventures” curriculum.
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