The One That Started it All: Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation

Transcription

1 The One That Started it All: Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation Lydia Fielder Junior Division Individual Paper Student-composed words: 1,541

2 When the name Martin Luther is said, many people assume that Martin Luther King Jr. is being talked about, but that is not always true. In fact, Martin Luther had a very famous life. He not only stood up against something higher than himself, but he did it knowing that it could change the course of history. Luther lived in Germany, and had a very educational youth. In 1506, he decided to become a monk, and at the age of 23 his career launched into its wild journey. Martin Luther s stance against the Catholic Church planted a seed which later caused the Protestant Reformation. Luther s beliefs were very different than most, in fact he was considered a heretic by the Roman Catholic Church. A heretic is someone who has a belief against the church. Luther believed that the Bible is and was the only source of faith as well as that human nature had been totally corrupted by original sin and man. This means that he believes human nature is corrupt because of original man and the sin that came from them. He taught that faith alone can work justification. This means that he believed that faith gives you justification rather than people. In many of his sermons he referred to the Bible when speaking about salvation as well as God. Luther was the first of the protestant reformers. What Luther believed was not at all what the church was teaching so he broke off and taught it on his own. The 95 Theses was a letter written to the church by Luther that gave a list of reasons why he thought the church was being non biblical. This list addressed the indulgences given by the church and how he considered them to be not biblical or right. Indulgences are paying the church so you can go to heaven when you die. They were posted on the church doors on October 31st of 1517, which is 500 years ago from There were also many of the 95 Theses that were addressing

3 purgatory and its existence or nonexistence. Purgatory is believed to be the place where souls go to explain their sins before they go to heaven. The 95 Theses were written to get the attention of the church and not to insult or bash the church and its people. Once he got the church s attention, he wanted a scholarly debate that would bring reform into the church. He did not intend to start the Protestant Reformation. Luther attacked the Pope personally through them and the things he was saying were things going against the Pope. When the news of the 95 Theses got out to the public, it began to cause an uproar and even the civilians were concerned. At this point in time, it was very odd that you would defy the church or have your own beliefs, but many individuals were beginning to realize that there were other opinions and thoughts to explore. In Luther s time religion was everything to people where as in current times religion is important to some but not all and there is more of a variety of denominations. Many people today devote their lives to their religion but back in those times if you didn t attend a Sunday mass the Pope could have you put in jail. The Catholic Church was extremely powerful back in Luther s days and if someone were to stand against the church they would be committing a serious crime and causing a huge ordeal. This is the reason why Luther s acts of defiance against the church was so significant and when he stood up against the church he was giving people an out from the church. When Luther was put on trial it was because the church was angry with Luther and his acts of alleged heresy. Luther s trial was not a fair trial because they had already decided if he were guilty or not before the trial had even begun. The church called Luther a heretic and they made it very clear that they felt that way

4 before the trial and after. They did this by putting him on trial in the first place and threatening him with excommunication. Also the Pope had a great influence on the verdict, so that meant that Luther had a greater chance of being proclaimed guilty because in the 95 Theses Luther directed some issues at the Pope. In the end, Luther was proven guilty. He was threatened with excommunication and was going to be exiled if he didn t recant his statements. Luther once said, Here I stand. God help me. I can do no other (Martin Luther and the 95 Theses). When he refused to recant his statements it was taken as a sign that he was not going to budge on the matter and he was going to be arrested. Before he was arrested, Luther was taken by Frederick the Wise who hid him. Frederick the Wise was a king or a governor. His supporters made sure he was hidden well. Luther was kept in the dungeons of a castle. While Luther was in hiding, he translated the Bible from original tongues or Latin into German. This was thought to be his noblest achievement. Luther thought it was time that the Bible was translated into German and when it was published and distributed it spread like wildfire. If Luther didn t translate the Bible when he did then God s word would not have spread as fast. If it weren t for that happening then the Peasants Revolt may not have occurred. The Peasants Revolt was influenced by Luther. The revolt was caused because people didn t agree with how the government was handling issues or Luther s acts. Luther is even referred to as the instigator of the revolt. Luther was just coming back from exile when the revolt started. The revolt s causes are disputed as religious and if they were then it was because of Luther. This is because Luther gave the cause to the people to revolt. The revolt took a toll on Germany as a

5 whole. Not only peasants fought regardless of the name but many civilians fought and there were many deaths, some of which were executions. Luther did not want people to get hurt and was not a supporter of that part of the revolt. Later in his life, Luther started his own church. The church was founded in 1556 and he is still known today for his churches. Luther gave many sermons and he spread the word widely. His actions had become a known religious and political rebellion. Luther was very smart and this paid off and showed. After the revolt Luther went many places and gave many sermons and the high was in 1528 which was 195 sermons over 145 days (Bainton 349). This was extremely impressive at that time because the technology was not developed like it is present day so it was much harder to spread the word, especially at that rate. Luther did not intend for the Protestant Reformation to occur but it did, in fact, happen. The Reformation spread to England, France, and then eventually the rest of the world. This, however, does not mean that everybody agreed with it. There were many disagreements and issues about the Protestant Reformation. Many religions have gone through a reformation but not all. Luther was not the first to try to bring reform to the church. Jan Hus tried to but he was burned at the stake. Hus said that in 100 years someone would bring reform to the church and his prediction was true; Luther did. Many people didn t believe Hus when he made his prediction, but others did and lived by it. There is a difference between Hus and Luther. Hus intended to bring reform into the church, and Luther did not. Luther s life at home was different than his professional life. He was happily married with 6 kids. Although he was happily married and didn t have an

6 abnormally troubled home, he still had many stresses. Luther s whole life was against his struggles. He felt his depressions were necessary, but he also thought that they were dreadful. His life was by no means perfect or easy. There are many lasting effects of Luther s actions. Lutheranism is one of them. Many people still today are Lutheran. Although it is different from the Catholic church, it is still part of Christianity. This is called a denomination. There are a lot of denominations within Christianity, and many have sprouted and developed because of Luther s actions. Johannes Eck told Luther that if the Bible was put into the people s hands many new denominations would start, and that is exactly what happened. The Catholic church used to be the top religion and denomination, but ever since Luther stood up against the church, it began to change. Martin Luther s stance against the Catholic Church planted a seed which later caused the Protestant Reformation. Although Luther faced many struggles and obstacles he overcame them and fought for what he believed in. Martin Luther made a name for himself all by simply posting a list of suggestions for the church. Although he had his faults, he lived a long and purposeful life.

7 Secondary Sources Alloway, Dave. Martin Luther, the 95 Theses and the Birth of the Protestant Reformation. Video. YouTube. Google, 11 May Web. 16 Nov Bainton, Roland. Here I Stand. New York: Abingdon-Cokesbury, Print. Boehmer, Heinrich. Road to Reformation. Philadelphia: Muhlenburg, Print. Gritsch, Eric W. et.al. Martin Luther. Christian History. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Nov < Lenker, John Nicholas. Sermons by Martin Luther: Volume3 for Pentecost. Martin Luther: Werken. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 Dec < Loffler, Klemens. War of Peasants. The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol.11. New York: Robert Appleton, Dec Web. < Lovi, David. Personal interview. 8 Jan Martin Luther and the 95 Theses. History. A&E Networks, Web. 20 Nov < Martin Luther Biography. Biography. A&E Networks, 24 March Web. 20 Nov < Martin Luther s Life. A Mighty Fortress is our God: Martin Luther. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Nov <