Martin LutherRevolutionary or Reformer?

Before Martin LutherIn Medieval Times

Fear of Authority and Fear of GodCatholic Church was the only church in

Western EuropeThe Bible was only to be read by priests or

Bishops

Before Martin LutherPeople believed....

If you died with a dirty soul you would either go straight to hell or to Purgatory

You had to go to church to get your soul cleanIf you died with a clean soul you would go to

heaven

Before Martin LutherOn the eve of the Reformation....

People (Hus, Wycliff, Erasmus) were calling for reform because of the corruption within the Catholic Church

People like Thomas More wanted a better society here on earth (not in heaven) - a Utopia

Pope(s) seemed more concerned with politics rather than spirituality

Julius II, the “warrior pope,” even led armies against his enemies

Before Martin LutherThings were changing....

People, not just priests, were learning to read

People started reading the Bible on their own

People stared to think on their own, and not listen to the priests

People started reading the ancient non-Christian Greeks – Homer, Aristotle, and Plato – once again

New ideas of science and mathematics from the Muslim intellectuals were being read

New scientific ideas by Copernicus and others questioned the thinking of the Church

Before Martin LutherThings were changing....

Erasmus and other thinkers were quietly pushing the church for reform

The new printing press rapidly spread revolutionary ideas

The rulers and priests in Germany were angry at seeing money earned in their states being sent to Rome to build rich palaces and churches.

The Muslims now controlled the Byzantine Empire and cut of Italy from the spices and silks of India and China

The Portuguese now sailed directly to India around Africa, bypassing the Italian middlemen and thereby offering cheaper prices for spices and silk

What Martin Luther DidLuther was a German monk who wanted to reform (not break away)

from the Catholic Church

Whilst comparing the Latin Catholic Bible with the

original Greek & Hebrew he found that certain parts were incorrectly translated.

Luther hung his 95 theses or complaints from his research on the local Church door in Wittenburg in 1517.

He disagreed with the Pope and began the Protestant religion.

What Martin Luther DidAngered by corrupt church practices, in 1517

Luther sent a list of Ninety-five Theses to his church superiors.

They attacked abuses in selling indulgences. Thousands of copies were printed.

What Martin Luther BelievedYou don’t have to go to Church to get your soul into heaven.. This is

“Justification of Faith” - his belief that salvation is personal and not linked to the rituals of the Catholic Church. The basis of Luther’s beliefs can be found in The Bible,in Romans, Chapter 10.

Read the Bible in your own language and not Latin.

Its wrong to make an image of God.

The Church is too rich.

What Martin Luther BelievedHe believed:

Salvation was only possible through faith Salvation is a gift from God Salvation can never be won or bought

Why is this a big deal? Because this radically different idea of faith will lead to:massive change in the all-powerful Catholic Churchnew forms of state sovereignty new ideas about individualismyears of bloddy wars fought in the name of

religions

So What Happened to Martin Luther?In 1520, Luther called for the German princes to overthrow

the papacy (pope power) and establish a reformed German church.

The Church excommunicated Luther in 1521.He was summoned to appear before the imperial Diet (legislative

assembly) of the Holy Roman Empire in the city of Worms. The emperor Charles V thought he could get Luther to change his

ideas.

Luther refused, which outraged the emperor.

So What Happened to Martin Luther?The Edict of Worms made Luther an outlaw in

the empire. His books were to be burned and Luther

delivered to the emperor. Luther’s local ruler, however, protected him.

http://thesituationist.files.wordpress.com/2007/12/galileo-image-by-marc-scheff.jpg

And then what happened?Luther’s religious movement soon became a

revolution.

It gained support from many German rulers, who took control of Catholic churches and formed state churches supervised by the government.

Luther set up new services to replace the Mass, featuring Bible readings, preaching the word of God, and song.

His doctrine became known as Lutheranism, the first Protestant faith.

What about the politics of this religion?From the beginning Luther’s movement was tied

to politics. He believed the state was called by God to

maintain the peace and order necessary to spread the gospel.

The Holy Roman Emperor (not the Pope but leader of this geographical area of Germany) Charles V ruled an empire consisting of Spain, the Austrian lands, Bohemia, Hungary, the Low Countries, Milan, Naples, and Spanish territories in the New World.

Luther’s preachings threatened his power!

Politics of the German ReformationCharles V’s chief political problem was his rivalry with

Francis I, king of France. Pope Clement VII also opposed him.

The pope joined the side of the French in their wars with Charles V.

Charles also had to send troops against the advancing Ottoman Empire.

Finally, many individual rulers of the German states supported Luther.

What happened in the German reformation?

Eventually Charles (the Holy Roman Emperor of Germany) was forced to make peace with the Lutheran princes.

It is the Peace of Augsburg

What happened in the German reformation?

It accepted the division of Christianity within Germany.

German states could choose between Catholicism and Lutheranism. All states would have the same legal rights.

Rulers could choose their subjects’ religion.

Peace of Augsburg