The Man Who Turned the World Upside Down: The Great Reformer and Preacher Martin Luther

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Martin Luther (1483-1546) was a German priest best known for playing a leading role in the Protestant Reformation, a 16th century religious and political movement in Europe considered one of the most influential events in the history of Western Christianity. Luther rose to fame as the leader of the Reformation by raising his voice against indulgences, a practice in Roman Catholicism in which the clergy forgave people's sins in exchange for money. There are many interesting incidents in Martin Luther's life, including when he was kidnapped to keep him safe. In addition, there is a striking similarity between Luther and the saint for whom he was named. And then there was the amazing prophecy of another revolutionary monk who predicted Luther's success in his quest to reform Christianity.

1. The thunderstorm changed his fate

In 1505, Martin Luther received his master's degree from the University of Erfurt. Now he had the right to study one of three "higher" disciplines: jurisprudence, medicine or theology. Because his father wanted him to become a lawyer, he entered law school. It was around this time that an incident occurred that changed the course of Luther's life. Returning to university after a trip home, he was caught in a severe thunderstorm near the village of Stoternheim and was almost struck by lightning. The weather terrified him so much that Luther shouted to St. Anne:. When he managed to escape safely, Martin decided to fulfill his promise. Many historians, however, believe that this incident was only a catalyst, and the idea of becoming a monk was already formulated in Luther's mind. Moreover, his friends believed that the recent death of two friends may also have played a role in his becoming a monk.

2. Ninety-five theses

In 1516, Albrecht von Brandenburg, Archbishop of Mainz, who was deeply in debt, received permission from Pope Leo X to conduct the sale of a special plenary indulgence, which would give absolution of the temporary punishment for sin. In response, on October 31, 1517, Martin Luther wrote a letter to Albert of Brandenburg enclosing a copy of Martin Luther's "Dispute on the Power and Effectiveness of Indulgences," later known as the Ninety-Five Theses. According to popular legend, Luther nailed a copy of his ninety-five theses to the door of the church at Wittenberg Castle. However, many scholars now believe that he did not nail the theses, but rather hung them up, as was the custom, to start an academic discussion about his work. Be that as it may, October 31, 1517, the day he performed this act, is considered the beginning of the Protestant Reformation, and October 31 is annually celebrated as the Day of the Reformation.

3. Printing press

Martin Luther's teachings spread like wildfire throughout Germany and abroad as it appealed to the common people who were fed up with the corrupt practices of the Catholic Church. However, this became possible primarily thanks to the invention of the printing press by Johannes Gutenberg in 1440. Using the printing press, Luther began printing brochures that were printed in just one day and ran from sixteen to eighteen pages. His first German pamphlet was printed in 1518 and was known as the Sermon on Indulgences and Grace. Due to the speed of the printing press, at least fourteen thousand copies of the sermon were printed in one year. This allowed Luther to spread his message far and wide. In fact, in the first ten years of the reform movement, about six million pamphlets were printed. Surprisingly, as many as twenty-five percent of them were written by Martin Luther.

4. Luther was kidnapped

On June 15, 1520, Pope Leo X issued a public edict warning Martin Luther that he risked excommunication if he did not renounce forty-one sentences taken from his writings within sixty days. Luther instead publicly set fire to the decree on December 10. Thus, he was excommunicated by the Pope on January 3, 1521. Then, on April 18, the obstinate and just monk appeared at a meeting of the Diet (assembly) of the Holy Roman Empire, held in Worms, Germany. At the Worms Reichstag (Diet of Worms) Luther was again asked to recant his writings. However, he emphasized that he would only be shaken by reason or if it was written differently in the Holy Scriptures. Luther ended his testimony with a defiant statement: “Here I am. God help me. I cannot do otherwise. " Given the tense situation, Luther's defender, Frederick the Wise, realized that he needed to be hidden until the tension with the Church subsided. Therefore, he ordered a group of knights to "kidnap" Luther, who was then taken to the castle in Eisenach, where he went into hiding for ten months.

5. Predecessors

Attempts to suppress Luther and his followers by Roman Catholic rulers were unsuccessful, and within two years it became apparent that the reform movement was very strong. In May 1522, Luther returned to the church at Wittenberg Castle in Eisenach. By this time, the Reformation had acquired a more political character, and other reformers, including Thomas Münzer, Haldrich Zwingli, and Martin Buser, gathered a mass of followers. Thanks to this, after 1522, Martin became a somewhat less influential leader of the movement. In addition, it should be noted that he had several predecessors who also explicitly criticized the corrupt practices of Roman Catholicism. John Wycliffe and Ian Huss were the most famous of these critics. Wycliffe was an English intellectual, scientist and theologian. He criticized the church's practice of indulgences, as well as ostentatious ceremonies and the lavish lifestyle of the clergy. Jan Hus was a Czech priest who also criticized the teachings of the Church, preaching in his own church. He was executed in 1415 for his rebellion. His work, however, led to a movement called the Hussites - a pre-Protestant Christian movement against the Roman Catholic Church.

6. His marriage to a former nun created a huge scandal

Katharina von Bora spent her early life in monastic schools and later became a nun. However, after several years of religious life, she became dissatisfied with her life in the monastery and instead became interested in the Reformation movement. Katarina colluded with other interested nuns and wrote to Martin asking for help. On Easter Eve, 1523, Luther dispatched Leonard Coppé, a merchant who regularly brought herring to the monastery to help the nuns escape. They did this by hiding among fish barrels in his covered wagon. For two years, Martin arranged homes, marriages, or work for all the escaped nuns except Catarina, who insisted on marrying Martin himself. On June 13, 1525, Martin Luther married Katharina von Bohr. This caused a huge scandal among Catholics and at the same time allowed other clerics in the Lutheran churches to marry. The couple had six children. Katarina is considered an influential member of the Protestant movement as she helped define Protestant family life and set the tone for clergy marriages.

7. Anti-Semitic views

Some of the most disturbing aspects of Martin Luther's teachings are his deeply anti-Semitic views. At one time, he was more lenient and even criticized the Catholic Church for its cruel treatment of Jews. Over time, however, he became much more aggressive and harsh towards Jews. Martin claimed that Judaism was a false religion and he is also known for saying:. His violent fantasies and offensive rhetoric became more and more dangerous every year. Luther's major works on Jews included On the Jews and Their Lies and Vom Schem Hamphoras und vom Geschlecht Christi (on the holy name and origin of Christ). Both of these works were published in 1543, just three years before his death. In these writings, Luther argued that the Jews were no longer the chosen ones, but were "the people of the devil." Moreover, he even used violent, offensive language to refer to Jews in these texts.

8. He was named after the saint

Saint Martin of Tours was a soldier in the Roman army in the 4th century who refused to kill people because he said it was contrary to Christianity. He did this just before the battle in the Gallic provinces at Borbetomag (now Worms, Germany). Subsequently, he was accused of cowardice and sent to prison. In the end, he was released and decided to become a monk. Saint Martin has become one of the most famous Christian saints in the Western tradition. Martin Luther was named after Saint Martin as he was baptized on Saint Martin's Day (November 11). The similarities between Martin of Tours and Saint Martin are striking as both left a different path to become monks. Moreover, Martin of Tours staged his protest in the city of Worms, where the famous Luther Worm Diet took place.

9. His name was one of the greatest leaders of the twentieth century

In 1934, Michael J. King, a pastor from Atlanta in the US state of Georgia, traveled to Germany. While visiting places associated with Martin Luther, he was so inspired by Luther and the history of the Reformation that he decided to change his name to Martin Luther King. Consequently, he also changed the name of his five-year-old son to Martin Luther King, Jr. As we all know, Martin Luther King Jr. became one of the most famous leaders of the 20th century. He fought against discrimination against African Americans in the United States and was the most prominent leader of the American Civil Rights movement. He organized and led numerous marches for black suffrage, desegregation, labor rights, and other basic civil rights. His efforts bore fruit when the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 were passed, and most of these rights were enacted. On October 14, 1964, King received the Nobel Peace Prize for his leadership of non-violent resistance to racial prejudice in the United States. At the age of thirty-five, he was the youngest recipient of the award at the time.

10. Prophecy

Jan Hus, whose name literally means "Goose" in Czech, was a Czech priest who was an important figure in the Bohemian Reformation, the anti-Catholic movement that preceded the Protestant Reformation. For speaking out against the church, Huss was excommunicated and burned at the stake on July 6, 1415. Just before the burning, he said:. Almost exactly a century later (one hundred and two years), on October 31, 1517, Martin Luther hung his ninety-five theses on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, initiating the Protestant Reformation. Thus, many believe that Jan Hus's prophecy came true. Moreover, Martin Luther was heavily influenced by the teachings of Huss and called himself the swan that Huss prophesied about. At Luther's funeral in 1546, this prophecy was mentioned in a sermon. In addition, thanks to the prophecy of Jan Hus, the swan became a popular symbol associated with Martin Luther, and therefore can often be seen in Lutheran art.

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