The next big bump in the road of history encountered by the Roman Catholic Church was the Protestant Reformation. For centuries, organized religion under the leadership of the Papacy had promulgated the unbiblical belief that salvation could be bought and sold. Believers from all social and economic strata periodically bought indulgences, performed various acts of penance, and paid large sums of money to have their loved ones prayed out of purgatory. Rulers and nations suffered the humiliation and inconvenience of various papal Bulls. If they dared to challenge the regal authority of the pope in any regard. Such a state of affairs existed for centuries because in all countries, the bible was not translated into the local vernacular; instead, it was written in Latin and chained to the lectern. Consequently, people were ignorant of the plain teachings of scripture.
The Protestant Reformation began on October 31, 1517, when Martin Luther, an Augustinian Monk and professor of moral theology at the University of Wittenberg, in the Electorate of Saxony (then part of the Holy Roman Empire, now part of modern Germany), posted 95 theses, or points for public discussion, nailed in paper onto the wooden public discussion doors of the churches of Wittenberg. These theses proposed an academic discussion of the efficacy of the then-current Catholic practice of indulgences, or written forgivenesses of sin sold by church leaders of the time under Papal authority. He also sent a copy of these theses in a letter to his ecclesiastical superior, Albert of Brandenburg, Archbishop of Mainz. QUORA: Where And How Did The Protestant Reformation Begin? By Angry Ape.
Martin Luther was the most pivotal figure of the Protestant Reformation. He was born on November 10, 1483, and died February 18, 1546. He was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, professor, and former Augustinian friar. Luther was the seminal figure of the Protestant Reformation, and his theological beliefs form the basis of Lutheranism. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in Western and Christian history.
Luther was ordained to the priesthood in 1507. He came to reject several teachings and practices of the contemporary Roman Catholic Church, in particular the view on indulgences and papal authority. Luther initiated an international debate on these in e.g. his Ninety-five Theses, which he authored in 1517. In 1520, Pope Leo X demanded that Luther renounce all of his writings, and when Luther refused to do so, excommunicated him in January 1521. Later that year, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V condemned Luther as an outlaw at the Diet of Worms. When Luther died in 1546, his excommunication by Leo X was still in effect.
Luther taught that justification and, consequently, salvation and eternal life, is not earned by any human acts or intents or merit; rather, they are received only as the free gift of God’s grace through the believer’s faith in Jesus Christ. Luther’s theology challenged the authority and office of the pope and bishops by teaching that the Bible is the only source of divinely revealed knowledge on the Gospel, and opposed sacerdotalism by considering all baptized Christians to be a holy priesthood. Those who identify with these, as well as Luther’s wider teachings, are called Lutherans, although Luther insisted on Christian or Evangelical (German: evangelisch), as the only acceptable names for individuals who professed Christ.
Luther’s translation of the Bible from Latin into German made the Bible vastly more accessible to the laity, which had a tremendous impact on both the church and German culture. It fostered the development of a standard version of the German language, added several principles to the art of translation, and influenced the writing of an English translation, the Tyndale Bible. His hymns influenced the development of singing in Protestant churches. His marriage to Katharina von Bora, a former nun, set a model for the practice of clerical marriage, allowing Protestant clergy to marry. WIKIPEDIA: The Free Encyclopedia: Martin Luther.
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