The Early Luther
On November 10, 1483, Martin Luther was born in Germany. He was enrolled at the University of Erfurt to become a lawyer, and after graduating, he began to be interested in religious studies. During the summer, he was caught in a huge storm, and said that if he survived it, he would become a monk. His father disagreed with his joining the Augustinian Hermits back in Erfurt, but Luther constantly sought for his assurance of salvation. Luther struggled with accepting the sacrament of penance or confession. Even though Luther spent many hours confessing his sins, he did not believe that that was good enough. He spent a lot of time pouring over scripture and praying and studying so that he could figure out true forgiveness of sins. Many of his superiors suggested that he study theology, so he got his doctorate in 1512, and was a professor at the University of Wittenberg. Then, around 1513-1516, Luther came up with his answer. Luther said that humans couldn’t deserve salvation no matter how many good works they did, and that only through faith could they attain salvation. Justification became a key doctrine in the Protestant Reformation. Luther discovered all of this from the Bible, and therefore used it as his primary guide.
The Indulgence Controversy
Pope Leo X issued an indulgence in 1517 to help fund the building of Saint Peter’s Basilica in Rome. The selling of these indulgences bothered Luther very much. He did not agree that one could buy their way out of purgatory, and that the church and Pope merely did this as a means of getting money. He also believed that the people who believed in the power of indulgences were actually going the opposite direction of where they thought the indulgences would get them. He then came up with 95 theses, and nailed them to the door of the Wittenberg Church. Luther did not want to break his ties with the church, but to bring up the issue on hand and to reform it. Pope Leo X, however, did not even take Luther seriously. Therefore, in Germany, thousands of copies of Luther’s theses were issued. This was the beginning of a large controversy between the Pope and this German monk.
The Quickening Rebellion
In July of 1519, the controversy changed when Johann Eck, the man opposing Luther, challenged him to question and deny the power of the Pope and councils. Luther then knew that he would begin to see the consequences for standing up to the Catholic Church and the Pope, but this didn’t stop him because he knew he was doing what God was telling him to do. Luther then wrote 3 pamphlets: Address to the Nobility of the German Nation, Babylonian Captivity of the Church, and On the Freedom of a Christian Man, which were directed at the Pope and the problems within the Catholic Church. These pamphlets signaled a definite break in his relationship with the Roman Catholic Church. Because the church would not hear Luther’s pleas and arguments, Luther was excommunicated in January of 1521. He then was forced to appear in front of the Reichstag and was expected to take back his heretical beliefs, words, and writings. Luther refused, however, and the Edict of Worms was issued by Emperor Charles, which outlawed Martin Luther. Then, a search was conducted to find Luther, and his writings and documents were to be burned. He was no found, however, because the Elector of Saxony hid him at the Wartburg Castle for quite a while.