* 'Number Delimiters' only apply to 'Paragraph Order'
Daily devotionals.
Blue Letter Bible offers several daily devotional readings in order to help you refocus on Christ and the Gospel of His peace and righteousness.
Recognizing the value of consistent reflection upon the Word of God in order to refocus one's mind and heart upon Christ and His Gospel of peace, we provide several reading plans designed to cover the entire Bible in a year.
The Blue Letter Bible ministry and the BLB Institute hold to the historical, conservative Christian faith, which includes a firm belief in the inerrancy of Scripture. Since the text and audio content provided by BLB represent a range of evangelical traditions, all of the ideas and principles conveyed in the resource materials are not necessarily affirmed, in total, by this ministry.
View Desktop Site
Bible reference, biblical language resources, theological resources, topical indexes, help & support, devotionals.
Blue Letter Bible study tools make reading, searching and studying the Bible easy and rewarding.
Blue Letter Bible is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization
©2024 Blue Letter Bible | Privacy Policy
Translation selection order copied to bibles tab order, bibles tab order copied to translation selection order, translation selection order and bibles tab order have been reset.
You can copy the order of your preferred Bible translations from the Bibles Tab to the Version Picker (this popup) or vice versa. The Bibles Tab is found in the Tools feature on Bible pages:
Note: MLA no longer requires the URL as part of their citation standard. Individual instructors or editors may still require the use of URLs.
Share this page, email this page.
You must be logged in to send email.
Subscribe to the newsletter.
Interlinear |
Bibles |
Cross-Refs |
Commentaries |
Dictionaries |
Miscellaneous |
Login to your account.
Email / username or password was incorrect!
Check your email for password retrieval
Keep me logged in!
Did you forget your password?
Register a new BLB account
Complete the form below to register [?]
Error: That Email is already registered
Error: Please provide a valid Email
Error: Passwords should have at least 6 characters
Error: Passwords do not match
Error: Please provide a valid first name
Error: That username is already taken
Error: Usernames should only contain letters, numbers, dots, dashes, or underscores
← Login to Your Account
Passwords should have at least 6 characters. Usernames should only contain letters, numbers, dots, dashes, or underscores.
Thank you for registering. A verification email has been sent to the address you provided.
Your partnership makes all we do possible. Would you prayerfully consider a gift of support today?
Cookie Notice: Our website uses cookies to store user preferences. By proceeding, you consent to our cookie usage. Please see Blue Letter Bible's Privacy Policy for cookie usage details.
New testament.
(1483-1546)
Luther called into question some of the basic tenets of Roman Catholicism, and his followers soon split from the Roman Catholic Church to begin the Protestant tradition. His actions set in motion tremendous reform within the Church.
A prominent theologian, Luther’s desire for people to feel closer to God led him to translate the Bible into the language of the people, radically changing the relationship between church leaders and their followers.
Luther was born on November 10, 1483, in Eisleben, Saxony, located in modern-day Germany.
His parents, Hans and Margarette Luther, were of peasant lineage. However, Hans had some success as a miner and ore smelter, and in 1484 the family moved from Eisleben to nearby Mansfeld, where Hans held ore deposits.
Hans Luther knew that mining was a tough business and wanted his promising son to have a better career as a lawyer. At age seven, Luther entered school in Mansfeld.
At 14, Luther went north to Magdeburg, where he continued his studies. In 1498, he returned to Eisleben and enrolled in a school, studying grammar, rhetoric and logic. He later compared this experience to purgatory and hell.
In 1501, Luther entered the University of Erfurt , where he received a degree in grammar, logic, rhetoric and metaphysics. At this time, it seemed he was on his way to becoming a lawyer.
In July 1505, Luther had a life-changing experience that set him on a new course to becoming a monk.
Caught in a horrific thunderstorm where he feared for his life, Luther cried out to St. Anne, the patron saint of miners, “Save me, St. Anne, and I’ll become a monk!” The storm subsided and he was saved.
Most historians believe this was not a spontaneous act, but an idea already formulated in Luther’s mind. The decision to become a monk was difficult and greatly disappointed his father, but he felt he must keep a promise.
Luther was also driven by fears of hell and God’s wrath, and felt that life in a monastery would help him find salvation.
The first few years of monastic life were difficult for Luther, as he did not find the religious enlightenment he was seeking. A mentor told him to focus his life exclusively on Jesus Christ and this would later provide him with the guidance he sought.
At age 27, Luther was given the opportunity to be a delegate to a Catholic church conference in Rome. He came away more disillusioned, and very discouraged by the immorality and corruption he witnessed there among the Catholic priests.
Upon his return to Germany, he enrolled in the University of Wittenberg in an attempt to suppress his spiritual turmoil. He excelled in his studies and received a doctorate, becoming a professor of theology at the university (known today as Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg ).
Through his studies of scripture, Luther finally gained religious enlightenment. Beginning in 1513, while preparing lectures, Luther read the first line of Psalm 22, which Christ wailed in his cry for mercy on the cross, a cry similar to Luther’s own disillusionment with God and religion.
Two years later, while preparing a lecture on Paul’s Epistle to the Romans, he read, “The just will live by faith.” He dwelled on this statement for some time.
Finally, he realized the key to spiritual salvation was not to fear God or be enslaved by religious dogma but to believe that faith alone would bring salvation. This period marked a major change in his life and set in motion the Reformation.
DOWNLOAD BIOGRAPHY'S MARTIN LUTHER FACT CARD
On October 31, 1517, Luther, angry with Pope Leo X’s new round of indulgences to help build St. Peter’s Basilica , nailed a sheet of paper with his 95 Theses on the University of Wittenberg’s chapel door.
Though Luther intended these to be discussion points, the 95 Theses laid out a devastating critique of the indulgences - good works, which often involved monetary donations, that popes could grant to the people to cancel out penance for sins - as corrupting people’s faith.
Luther also sent a copy to Archbishop Albert Albrecht of Mainz, calling on him to end the sale of indulgences. Aided by the printing press , copies of the 95 Theses spread throughout Germany within two weeks and throughout Europe within two months.
The Church eventually moved to stop the act of defiance. In October 1518, at a meeting with Cardinal Thomas Cajetan in Augsburg, Luther was ordered to recant his 95 Theses by the authority of the pope.
Luther said he would not recant unless scripture proved him wrong. He went further, stating he didn’t consider that the papacy had the authority to interpret scripture. The meeting ended in a shouting match and initiated his ultimate excommunication from the Church.
Following the publication of his 95 Theses , Luther continued to lecture and write in Wittenberg. In June and July of 1519 Luther publicly declared that the Bible did not give the pope the exclusive right to interpret scripture, which was a direct attack on the authority of the papacy.
Finally, in 1520, the pope had had enough and on June 15 issued an ultimatum threatening Luther with excommunication.
On December 10, 1520, Luther publicly burned the letter. In January 1521, Luther was officially excommunicated from the Roman Catholic Church.
In March 1521, Luther was summoned before the Diet of Worms , a general assembly of secular authorities. Again, Luther refused to recant his statements, demanding he be shown any scripture that would refute his position. There was none.
On May 8, 1521, the council released the Edict of Worms, banning Luther’s writings and declaring him a “convicted heretic.” This made him a condemned and wanted man. Friends helped him hide out at the Wartburg Castle.
While in seclusion, he translated the New Testament into the German language, to give ordinary people the opportunity to read God’s word.
Though still under threat of arrest, Luther returned to Wittenberg Castle Church, in Eisenach, in May 1522 to organize a new church, Lutheranism.
He gained many followers, and the Lutheran Church also received considerable support from German princes.
When a peasant revolt began in 1524, Luther denounced the peasants and sided with the rulers, whom he depended on to keep his church growing. Thousands of peasants were killed, but the Lutheran Church grew over the years.
In 1525, Luther married Katharina von Bora, a former nun who had abandoned the convent and taken refuge in Wittenberg.
Born into a noble family that had fallen on hard times, at the age of five Katharina was sent to a convent. She and several other reform-minded nuns decided to escape the rigors of the cloistered life, and after smuggling out a letter pleading for help from the Lutherans, Luther organized a daring plot.
With the help of a fishmonger, Luther had the rebellious nuns hide in herring barrels that were secreted out of the convent after dark - an offense punishable by death. Luther ensured that all the women found employment or marriage prospects, except for the strong-willed Katharina, who refused all suitors except Luther himself.
The scandalous marriage of a disgraced monk to a disgraced nun may have somewhat tarnished the reform movement, but over the next several years, the couple prospered and had six children.
Katharina proved herself a more than a capable wife and ally, as she greatly increased their family's wealth by shrewdly investing in farms, orchards and a brewery. She also converted a former monastery into a dormitory and meeting center for Reformation activists.
Luther later said of his marriage, "I have made the angels laugh and the devils weep." Unusual for its time, Luther in his will entrusted Katharina as his sole inheritor and guardian of their children.
From 1533 to his death in 1546, Luther served as the dean of theology at University of Wittenberg. During this time he suffered from many illnesses, including arthritis, heart problems and digestive disorders.
The physical pain and emotional strain of being a fugitive might have been reflected in his writings.
Some works contained strident and offensive language against several segments of society, particularly Jews and, to a lesser degree, Muslims. Luther's anti-Semitism is on full display in his treatise, The Jews and Their Lies .
Luther died following a stroke on February 18, 1546, at the age of 62 during a trip to his hometown of Eisleben. He was buried in All Saints' Church in Wittenberg, the city he had helped turn into an intellectual center.
Luther's teachings and translations radically changed Christian theology. Thanks in large part to the Gutenberg press, his influence continued to grow after his death, as his message spread across Europe and around the world.
We strive for accuracy and fairness.If you see something that doesn't look right, contact us !
7 Little-Known Facts About Saint Patrick
Saint Nicholas
Jerry Falwell
Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh
Saint Thomas Aquinas
History of the Dalai Lama's Biggest Controversies
Saint Patrick
Pope Benedict XVI
John Calvin
Pontius Pilate
Ninety-five Theses , Propositions for debate on the question of indulgence s, written by Martin Luther and, according to legend, posted on the door of the castle church in Wittenberg, Ger., on Oct. 31, 1517. This event is now seen as the beginning of the Protestant Reformation. The theses were written in response to the selling of indulgences to pay for the rebuilding of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. They represented an implicit criticism of papal policy and stressed the spiritual, inward character of the Christian faith. Widely circulated, they aroused much controversy. In 1518 Luther published a Latin manuscript with explanations of the theses.
This Day In History : October 31
Changing the day will navigate the page to that given day in history. You can navigate days by using left and right arrows
On October 31, 1517, legend has it that the priest and scholar Martin Luther approaches the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany, and nails a piece of paper to it containing the 95 revolutionary opinions that would begin the Protestant Reformation .
In his theses, Luther condemned the excesses and corruption of the Roman Catholic Church, especially the papal practice of asking payment—called “indulgences”—for the forgiveness of sins. At the time, a Dominican priest named Johann Tetzel, commissioned by the Archbishop of Mainz and Pope Leo X, was in the midst of a major fundraising campaign in Germany to finance the renovation of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. Though Prince Frederick III the Wise had banned the sale of indulgences in Wittenberg, many church members traveled to purchase them. When they returned, they showed the pardons they had bought to Luther, claiming they no longer had to repent for their sins.
Luther’s frustration with this practice led him to write the 95 Theses, which were quickly snapped up, translated from Latin into German and distributed widely. A copy made its way to Rome, and efforts began to convince Luther to change his tune. He refused to keep silent, however, and in 1521 Pope Leo X formally excommunicated Luther from the Catholic Church. That same year, Luther again refused to recant his writings before the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V of Germany, who issued the famous Edict of Worms declaring Luther an outlaw and a heretic and giving permission for anyone to kill him without consequence. Protected by Prince Frederick, Luther began working on a German translation of the Bible, a task that took 10 years to complete.
The term “Protestant” first appeared in 1529, when Charles V revoked a provision that allowed the ruler of each German state to choose whether they would enforce the Edict of Worms. A number of princes and other supporters of Luther issued a protest, declaring that their allegiance to God trumped their allegiance to the emperor. They became known to their opponents as Protestants; gradually this name came to apply to all who believed the Church should be reformed, even those outside Germany. By the time Luther died, of natural causes, in 1546, his revolutionary beliefs had formed the basis for the Protestant Reformation, which would over the next three centuries revolutionize Western civilization.
Violet palmer becomes first woman to officiate an nba game, this day in history video: what happened on october 31, stalin’s body removed from lenin’s tomb, celebrated magician harry houdini dies, earl lloyd becomes first black player in the nba.
Sign up now to learn about This Day in History straight from your inbox. Get all of today's events in just one email featuring a range of topics.
By submitting your information, you agree to receive emails from HISTORY and A+E Networks. You can opt out at any time. You must be 16 years or older and a resident of the United States.
More details : Privacy Notice | Terms of Use | Contact Us
Ed sullivan witnesses beatlemania firsthand, paving the way for the british invasion, actor river phoenix dies, indian prime minister indira gandhi is assassinated, king george iii speaks for first time since american independence declared.
From 1514 Luther was not only theology professor at Wittenberg University but also the priest at the City Church in Wittenberg. So he was also responsible for the salvation of his parish. , which quasi replaced confession and allowed people to buy their salvation, was completely repulsive to Luther. He strongly believed that one lived a life of humility in order to receive God's grace. After 1507, trade in Indulgences took a steep climb because both the Papal Court and Bishop Albrecht von Brandenburg Germany's representative for the sale of indulgence were in great financial trouble. In addition, the Dominican monk, Johann Tetzel, sold indulgences in the region around Wittenberg in a very ostentatious manner. Many stories started poping up about him such as, that Tetzel could redeem the sins of the deceased. which were to be used as the basis for a discussion on the topic. That Luther hammered his theses to the door of the in Wittenberg belongs to the realm of legends (the legend of ). Luther sent his 95 Theses to a few bishops and some friends; therefore he did not expect or receive a prompt response. By the end of 1517, however, copies of the 95 Theses had been printed in Leipzig, Nuremberg and Basel. Some humanists and princes passionately approved of the theses, but parts of the Roman Church completely rejected them. The most vehement voice against the theses was the , who supposedly categorized Luther as a follower of the heretic Jan Hus and threatened to have him burned at the stake. At first the bishops reacted mildly, they informed the Pope of the 'rebel within the ranks' and instructed Luther's direct superior to take a moderate roll in calming him. A few bishops actually welcomed Luther's ideas for reform. Because of increasing pressure, Luther found it necessary to explain and clarify his theses in writing. In 1518, Luther himself said that he only wanted to take care of an abuse (indulgence) and was not striving to unhinge the papacy with his theses. The avalanche, however, was now unstoppable. The Papal Court reacted drastically to the alleged heretic and in 1518 an inquisition was begun in Rome. This quieted down in 1519 during the search for a successor to the deceased Emperor Maximilian. Once Karl the V was elected as emperor, the fight against Luther and his followers continued. | |
What was the significance of the 95 theses.
What were the 95 Theses?
According to historic legend, Martin Luther posted a document on the door of the Wittenberg Church on the 31 st October 1517; a document later referred to as the 95 Theses. This document was questioning rather than accusatory, seeking to inform the Archbishop of Mainz that the selling of indulgences had become corrupt, with the sellers seeking solely to line their own pockets. It questioned the idea that the indulgences trade perpetuated – that buying a trinket could shave time off the stay of one’s loved ones in purgatory, sending them to a glorious Heaven.
It is important, however, to recognise that this was not the action of a man wanting to break away from the Catholic Church. When writing the 95 Theses, Luther simply intended to bring reform to the centre of the agenda for the Church Council once again; it cannot be stressed enough that he wanted to reform, rather than abandon, the Church.
Nonetheless, the 95 Theses were undoubtedly provocative, leading to debates across the German Lands about what it meant to be a true Christian, with some historians considering the document to be the start of the lengthy process of the Reformation. But why did Luther write them?
Why did Luther write the 95 Theses?
In particular, Luther was horrified by the fact that a large portion of the profits from this trade were being used to renovate St Peter’s Basilica in Rome. His outrage at this is evident from the 86 th thesis: ‘Why does the pope, whose wealth today is greater than the wealth of the richest Crassus, build the basilica of St Peter with the money of the poor rather than with his own money?’ Perhaps this is indicative of Luther’s opinion as opposing the financial extortion indulgences pressed upon the poor, rather than the theology which lay behind the process of freeing one’s loved ones from purgatory.
It is interesting to note that Luther also sent a copy of his 95 Theses directly to Archbishop Albrecht von Brandenburg. It appears that he legitimately believed that the Archbishop was not aware of the corruption inherent in the indulgence trade led by Tetzel. This is something which can be considered important later on, for it indicates that Luther did not consider the Church hierarchy redundant at this point.
Why were the 95 Theses significant?
Though the document itself has a debateable significance, the events which occurred because of its publication were paramount in Luther’s ideological and religious development. Almost immediately there was outrage at the ‘heresy’ which the Church viewed as implicit within the document. Despite the pressure upon Luther to immediately recant his position, he did not. This in part led to the Leipzig debate in summer 1519 with Johann Eck.
This debate forced Luther to clarify some of his theories and doctrinal stances against the representative of the Catholic Church. The debate focused largely on doctrine; in fact, the debate regarding indulgences was only briefly mentioned in the discussions between the two men. This seems surprising; Luther’s primary purpose in writing the 95 Theses was to protest the selling of indulgences. Why was this therefore not the primary purpose of the debate?
Ultimately the debate served to further Luther’s development of doctrine which opposed the traditional view of the Catholic Church. In the debate he was forced to conclude that Church Councils had the potential to be erroneous in their judgements. This therefore threw into dispute the papal hierarchy’s authority, and set him on his path towards evangelicalism and the formulation of the doctrine of justification by faith alone. Yet it is important to bear in mind that, had the pope offered a reconciliation, Luther would have returned to the doctrine of the established Church.
An interesting point to consider about the aftermath of the 95 Theses is the attitude of the Catholic Church. It immediately sought to identify Luther as someone who had strayed from the true way and was therefore a heretic; it refused to recognise that Luther had valid complaints which were shared by many across Western Christendom. The 95 Theses could have been taken at face value and used as an avenue to reform, as Luther intended. Instead, the papal hierarchy sought to discredit Luther, and keep to the status quo.
What made the 95 Theses significant?
A document written in Latin and posted on a door like most other academic debates, it does not seem obvious when considering the 95 Theses alone to see just how they became as significant as they did.
The translation of the Latin text into German also helped make the document significant. Translated in early 1518 by reformist friends of Luther, this widened the debate’s appeal simply because it made the subject matter accessible to a greater number of people. ‘Common’ folk who could read would have been able to read in German, rather than Latin. This therefore meant that they would be able to read the article for themselves and realise just how many of the arguments they identified with (or did not identify with, for that matter). The translation also meant that these literate folk could read the Theses aloud to a large audience; Bob Scribner argued that we should not forget the oral nature of the Reformation, beginning with one of the most divisive documents in history.
Finally, the 95 Theses can be considered significant because they were expressing sentiments that many ordinary folk felt themselves at the time. There had been a disillusionment with the Church and corruption within it for a great deal of time; the Reformatio Sigismundi of 1439 is a prime early example of a series of lists detailing the concerns of the people about the state of the Church. By the time of the Imperial Diet of Worms in 1521, there were 102 grievances with the Church, something overshadowed due to Martin Luther’s presence at this Diet. Many of the issues Luther highlighted were shared among the populace; it was due to the contextual factors of the printing press and the use of the German language that made this expression so significant.
It would not be surprising if, when posting his 95 Theses on the door of the chapel on the 31 st October 1517, Luther did not expect a great deal to change. At the time, he did not know what such an act would lead to. The events which occurred due to the Theses led to Luther clarifying his doctrinal position in a manner which led to his eventual repudiation of the decadence and corruption within the Catholic Church and his excommunication.
Yet we must remember that whilst the 95 Theses can be considered to constitute an extraordinary shift in the mentality of a disillusioned Christian, they are very unlikely to have achieved the same significance without the printing press. If the 95 Theses had been posted on the 31 st October 1417 , would the result have been the same?
Written by Victoria Bettney
Bibliography
Dixon, Scott C. The Reformation in Germany . Oxford : Blackwell, 2002.
Dixon, Scott C ed. The German Reformation: The Essential Readings . Oxford: Blackwell, 1999.
Lau, Franz and Bizer, Ernst. A History of the Reformation in Germany To 1555 . Translated by Brian Hardy. London: Adam and Charles Black, 1969.
Lindberg, Carter. The European Reformations . Oxford: Blackwell, 1996.
McGrath, Alister. Christian Theology: An Introduction . Oxford: Blackwell, 2007.
McGrath, Alister. Reformation Thought: An Introduction. Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1998.
Scribner, Robert. ‘Oral Culture and the Diffusion of Reformation Ideas,’ History of European Ideas 5, no. 3 (1984): 237-256.
“The 95 Theses,” http://www.luther.de/en/95thesen.html , accessed 29.10.15
Post navigation, 3 thoughts on “ what was the significance of the 95 theses ”.
Interesting article! You rightly argue that the Theses were not the finished product but just a step in Luther’s theological development. That makes you think; should we really be celebrating 31 October 2017 as the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, or should we be remembering a different date?
Like Liked by 1 person
hit the griddy
Subscribe to the york historian.
Enter your email address to follow The York Historian and receive notifications of new posts by email.
Email Address:
Reformation Day on October 31 st reminds us of what the German theologian Martin Luther did for the Christian faith years ago, standing firm on his beliefs even when he had to stand before the Roman Catholic Church.
For many, the name Martin Luther would trigger thoughts of the great Martin Luther King Jr., standing in front of the Lincoln Memorial to share his I Have a Dream speech with thousands. However, there is another well-known Martin Luther who also was a leader and writer in his own right, composing the recognized 95 Theses that led to the establishment of the Protestant Reformation. With Reformation Day on October 31 st , let us journey back to the time of the German theologian to discover what led him to take a stand against the Roman Catholic Church and change the way we look at ourselves and our faith in God forever.
1. Law and Lightning Contributed to Martin Luther’s Beginnings Martin Luther (Nov. 10, 1483 - Feb. 18, 1546) was a German theologian in Eisleben, Germany who attended Latin school as a child, and when he was thirteen years old, attended law school at the University of Erfurt. He was nicknamed “The Philosopher” because he did so well in public debates in school. However, it was one stormy night in 1505 that really changed Luther’s life. As he was walking, lightning struck the ground nearby and caused him to cry out to St. Anne and vow to become a monk if he lived; he did so he honored his vow and became a monk.
2. Questioning of the Roman Catholic Church Increased before Luther’s 95 Theses In the sixteenth century, many scholars and theologians were questioning some of the practices of the Roman Catholic Church. Fueled by the writings of church philosopher Augustine, these individuals believed that salvation came from God only (grace alone through faith alone), while the Catholic Church believed that faith and works were needed in response to God's grace. Today the Catholic Church would say that faith and the sacraments of the faith are needed for salvation (J.D. Crichton, Christian Celebration: The Sacraments). Luther especially followed Augustine’s belief of salvation and that the Bible was the only religious authority, not that of Catholic Church figures. He would later use these beliefs to build the foundation for the Protestant Reformation.
3. The Final Push for Change Began with a Scandal This questioning of the Catholic Church’s beliefs was intensified due to a scandal involving giving indulgences; indulgences (a type of payment for sin) were given to the church so those paying (or those they were paying on behalf of) would be absolved of sins. One could even purchase indulgences for the deceased. Germany had banned indulgence-selling but it was still happening nonetheless; this was especially evident when a friar named Johann Tetzel decided to sell indulgences in 1517 to pay for renovating Rome’s St. Peter’s Basilica. Luther and others had had enough at this point and decided something had to be done.
4. The First Copy of 95 Theses was Nailed to a Church Door Fed up by the behavior of Tetzel, Luther decided a public and academic debate was in order and he wrote the 95 Theses (also known as the “Disputation on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences”) that listed some propositions and questions for debate. This he posted to the door of the Wittenberg Castle Church on October 31, 1517, in hopes that Archbishop Albert of Mainz, superior to Tetzel, would attend and also stop Tetzel from continuing to sell indulgences. Thanks to the invention of printing, the theses began to circulate around, and more people took notice and wanted answers from the Catholic Church.
5. The 95 Theses Called for Reform and Returning Repentance to God Written in a tone of questioning rather than accusing, the theses centered most on the first two theses Luther had written: that only faith leads to salvation and God desires for believers to seek repentance. The rest of the 93 theses focused on indulgences and why it didn’t line up with the first two theses. Luther even discussed the indulgence scandal involving St. Peter’s Basilica, questioning why the pope wouldn’t consider paying for the church’s renovations himself than taking from the poor (Thesis 86).
6. Luther Called to Defend His Teachings In the summer of 1518, many in Europe had been exposed to the 95 Theses, and Luther was called to Augsberg, Germany to defend his teachings of the theses. He was to present his theses to an assembly called a “diet,” led by the main anti-supporter of Luther, Cardinal Thomas Cajetan. After three days spent with the two men debating one another, a resolution couldn’t be reached, and Luther returned to Wittenberg.
7. The Pope Got Involved and Luther Was Called a Heretic Beginning on November 9, 1518, Pope Leo X stated that Luther’s teachings and position were in conflict with the church’s teachings, which led Luther to step down from public debate. However, others continued on without him and pushed against the church’s authority, strengthening the Protestant Reformation. Proceedings then continued in 1519 to examine more of Luther’s teachings, seeing them as scandalous and possibly heretical. However, it was in July 1520 that the pope considered Luther’s teachings heretical and demanded that he recant his beliefs or be excommunicated. Luther refused to yield.
8. Luther Was Excommunicated from the Roman Catholic Church On January 3, 1521, Luther was officially excommunicated from the Roman Catholic Church by Pope Leo X. Months later, April 17, 1521, Luther went before another assembly, the Diet of Worms, in Germany to see if he would recant his teachings, but he refused and a month later, on May 25, 1521, the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V signed an edict saying that Luther’s writings were to be burned. Luther’s return to Wittenberg in 1521 also showed him that the reforming from his 95 Theses was turning into a political debate and sparked the Peasants’ War in Germany; something he wasn’t for.
9. Luther Withdrew from Public View, Married, and Raised a Family Now apart from the Protestant Reformation, Luther preached, taught classes, and began a project that took him a decade to complete, translating the New Testament of the Bible into German. His translating actually impacted the German language positively, as it allowed more to understand what the Bible was teaching, and many scholars followed the same approach in interpretation. He also decided to get married to a former nun, Katherine of Bora, and they had five or six children together. Previously, Luther had debated against the Roman Catholic Church on clerical celibacy and also felt the Peasants’ War was God signaling the last days before Christ’s return so marriage was returning to God’s order for mankind.
10. Luther Established What Is Now Called Being a Polemical Theologian Luther went back to the town of his birth, Eisleben, Germany, to settle a dispute between friends while dealing with advancing poor health. Before he could return home to his wife and family, he passed away on February 18, 1546. Centuries since his death, many have more books of Luther’s writings in their houses than many other well-known theologians, while his approach to theology, that of polemical theology, is seen by some as hard to argue and reconcile with it being formed through argument and controversy. However, no one can deny that the efforts Martin Luther made toward reforming Christianity are nothing short of inspiring.
Reformation Day on October 31 st reminds us of what the German theologian Martin Luther did for the Christian faith years ago, standing firm on his beliefs even when he had to stand before the Roman Catholic Church. Martin Luther devoted his entire life to believing in a God who forgives and provides the whole way to salvation and freedom from sin through His Son Jesus. We could all take a lesson from Martin Luther nowadays, in a world that is still looking to sell and/or pay for indulgences in order to rectify their sins. It’s about returning to God in faith and seeking Him for the good works we are to do. Reading and believing the Bible, as well as daily prayer and interaction with God, were steps Martin Luther did to strengthen his trust and faith in God, and they are steps we can take too to bring hope in a challenging time.
-95 Theses courtesy of BibleStudyTools.com
3 Reasons We Do Not Fear Christ’s Judgement
"The 16th Century Protestant Reformation was born out of Martin Luther’s 95 Theses. The reforms, particularly in regard to indulgences (payments taken in place of penance), were posted to a cathedral door in Wittenberg, Germany as a proclamation. The 95 Theses were written in Latin and wouldn’t have attracted the attention of the German-speaking people on the way in and out of the church the day he nailed them to the door. His intent was to reform the Catholic Church. “True revivals are provoked by the sovereign work of God through the stirring of His Holy Spirit in the hearts of people,” wrote R.C. Sproul, “They happen when the Holy Spirit comes into the valley of dry bones ( Ezek. 37 ) and exerts His power to bring new life, a revivification of the spiritual life of the people of God.” Though Luther did not intend to start a new denomination, he was accused of being a heretic and was excommunicated in 1520. ... Martin Luther’s personal struggle and revelation continue to remind us of the freedom and peace we have in Christ, despite our constant dysfunction and sin. Should we feel the burden of guilt and shame, we should remember Luther, run to God in Scripture, and embrace the Truth ourselves. Luther said, “Anyone who is to find Christ must first find the church, how could anyone know where Christ is and what faith is in him unless he knew where his believers are?” We are forgiven, once for all, though we all fall short. No penance on earth could erase the effects of our sins. Christ accomplished it once and for all on the cross." -Excerpted from " What Christians Need to Know about Reformation Day " by Meg Bucher
Related Article: What Christians Need to Know About Reformation Day
Photo credit: ©GettyImages/typo-graphics
5 Hallmarks of a Godly Man
How God Rebuilds Your Life from the Inside Out
Morning Prayers to Start Your Day with God
The Best Birthday Prayers to Celebrate Friends and Family
35 Prayers for Healing the Sick and Hurting
31 Night Prayers: Powerful to Pray Evening Rest and Bedtime
Is Masturbation a Sin?
If you think you’re living a secret life, it is no secret to God. You may be fooling people. You may put on a good performance as Judas Iscariot did. But the reality is that God knows. And God will forgive you if you repent.
Bible Baseball
Play now...
Saintly Millionaire
Bible Jeopardy
Bible Trivia By Category
Bible Trivia Challenge
Read {2} by {3} and more articles about {1} and {0} on Christianity.com
The world is a confusing place right now. We believe that faithful proclamation of the gospel is what our hostile and disoriented world needs. Do you believe that too? Help TGC bring biblical wisdom to the confusing issues across the world by making a gift to our international work.
On October 31, 1517, Martin Luther strode confidently to the door of Wittenberg’s Castle Church, nailed up his Ninety-five Theses, and in one swing of his hammer started what later became known as the Protestant Reformation. The defiant monk, enraged by the sale of indulgences that promised forgiveness apart from repentance, sought to overthrow the Roman Catholic Church with his teaching of justification by grace through faith alone.
Or so the story goes.
This story, however, is not without its holes. Consider the “nail,” the theses themselves, and Luther’s intention.
The image of Luther nailing the Ninety-five Theses to the door of Castle Church is powerful, and as Protestant heirs of his theological convictions, we appreciate the sense of confidence and finality the image carries.
Unfortunately, this story first shows up over a hundred years after the event. The first image of Luther with a hammer appeared in 1697.
The first image of Luther with a hammer came in 1697.
By contrast, the first historical accounts of the theses-posting date to the 1540s, and they say nothing about Luther nailing the Ninety-five Theses to the door. Peter Marshall* quotes Philip Melanchthon , Luther’s chosen successor, who recounted that the German monk, “burning with eagerness and piety, issued Propositions concerning Indulgences, which are recorded in the first volume of his works, and these he publicly affixed to the church next to the castle in Wittenberg, on the eve of the Feast of All Saints in the year 1517.”
Melanchthon didn’t report that Luther specifically nailed the theses, but affixed them.
Practically speaking, nails were tremendously valuable prior to the industrial revolution. A blacksmith had to make each one individually. Moreover, from other publicly posted documents that have survived, we know documents were typically glued up. Daniel Jütte recounts how in 1521, officials in Antwerp forbade the posting of anti-Catholic material in public places, and they were specific about how things were typically posted: “Slanderous libel, rondels, or ballads directed against those who are not followers of Luther shall not be written, distributed, or pinned and pasted to church doors or any archways.”
For these reasons, it’s unlikely Luther used a hammer and nail. But that’s the picture that survived. Why? Because an image of the reformer marching through town with a glue pot doesn’t seem as world defining.
Why does this matter? Understanding how Luther affixed the Ninety-five Thesis helps us to make sense of what Luther intended that day 505 years ago. And to answer that question fully, we ought to turn to the source in question: the theses themselves.
From the start, Luther didn’t intend to rend the Catholic Church. His goal was to be a faithful Catholic theologian and to clarify Catholic teaching on an issue he saw within the Church. In 1545, reflecting on his life, Luther stated that in 1517, he was a faithful Catholic who would have murdered in the name of the Pope.
It’s fascinating that the Ninety-five Theses are as famous as they are, as the publication of theses like these was tremendously common. But for reasons Luther never really understood, the Theses became wildly popular, propelling him to international fame. Nevertheless, the theology contained in the Theses ought not to be celebrated as beacons of Protestant light.
It’s at least problematic to date the Protestant Reformation as starting on October 31, 1517, because the theses themselves contain no distinctively Protestant doctrine. Michael Reeves writes : “If the ninety-five theses were meant to be a Reformation manifesto, they were a pretty poor effort: they contain not a mention of justification by faith alone, the authority of the Bible, or, indeed, any core Reformation thought.”
An image of the reformer marching through town with a glue pot doesn’t seem as world defining.
Before Luther, other reform-minded Catholics existed throughout medieval Europe: Jan Hus, John Wycliffe, and others. Bernard of Clairvaux sought to encourage reform in his own day, as did Thomas Aquinas and Anselm of Canterbury. It was common for theologians within the church to be frustrated with its leadership and to call the church to holiness. So, we must conclude that a reformation movement began within the Catholic Church in 1517, but it was later that this movement brought about the Protestant split.
By my judgment, April 26, 1518, was the day Protestantism began. On that date, Luther presented the Heidelberg Disputation , writing,
He is not righteous who does much, but he who, without work, believes much in Christ. For the righteousness of God is not acquired by means of acts frequently repeated, as Aristotle taught, but it is imparted by faith. . . . The law says, “do this,” and it is never done. Grace says, “believe in this,” and everything is already done.
Only then was the heart of salvation by grace through faith in Christ alone clearly seen.
Luther certainly posted the Ninety-five Theses to the door of Wittenberg’s church. Yet no evidence from his era implies he nailed them. “Nail, glue, pin—these are minor differences in the historical narrative,” we might say. Why does this question even matter?
Ultimately, getting the details right matters because this guards us against highlighting the wrong parts of the story. By the end of his life, Luther was a valiant defender of the truth. But in 1517, he was an obscure monk who was striving to be faithful to Catholic teaching.
It’s easy for those of us who are sympathetic to Luther, myself chief among them, to think his posting the Ninety-five Theses was intended from the start to be revolutionary. But it wasn’t. The chapel door was nothing more than the community noticeboard. There was likely no fanfare or gathered audience. Posting a series of disputations was the normal course of events for professors in German universities to make the public aware of points of debate he intended to address. Luther simply made use of a common practice.
Painting Luther in 1517 as more heroic than he was does him a disservice. To say he considered the Ninety-five Theses as his great rejection of Catholic teaching doesn’t do justice to how revolutionary his later teaching actually was.
It was when he was forced into a corner after posting the Ninety-five Theses that he found confidence in the gospel. The theology of the theses didn’t bring him that confidence. Rather, the beautiful truth of being justified by faith in Christ alone, as he stated in the Heidelberg Disputation, made him into the reformer we remember. That truth is worth its weight in nails.
*I disagree with Peter Marshall’s conclusion that Luther did not post the theses on October 31.
Forrest Strickland (PhD, University of St. Andrews) is an adjunct professor of church history at Boyce College and a member of Hunsinger Lane Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky.
1 can i tell an unbeliever ‘jesus died for you’, 2 the faqs: southern baptists debate designation of women in ministry, 3 7 recommendations from my book stack, 4 artemis can’t undermine complementarianism, 5 ‘girls state’ highlights abortion’s role in growing gender divide.
Here are the key beliefs of Jehovah’s Witnesses—and what the Bible really teaches instead.
Lessons on evangelism from an unlikely evangelist.
by Dr. Martin Luther, 1517
Disputation of Doctor Martin Luther on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences by Dr. Martin Luther (1517)
Out of love for the truth and the desire to bring it to light, the following propositions will be discussed at Wittenberg, under the presidency of the Reverend Father Martin Luther, Master of Arts and of Sacred Theology, and Lecturer in Ordinary on the same at that place. Wherefore he requests that those who are unable to be present and debate orally with us, may do so by letter. In the Name our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. 1. Our Lord and Master Jesus Christ, when He said Poenitentiam agite, willed that the whole life of believers should be repentance. 2. This word cannot be understood to mean sacramental penance, i.e., confession and satisfaction, which is administered by the priests. 3. Yet it means not inward repentance only; nay, there is no inward repentance which does not outwardly work divers mortifications of the flesh. 4. The penalty [of sin], therefore, continues so long as hatred of self continues; for this is the true inward repentance, and continues until our entrance into the kingdom of heaven. 5. The pope does not intend to remit, and cannot remit any penalties other than those which he has imposed either by his own authority or by that of the Canons. 6. The pope cannot remit any guilt, except by declaring that it has been remitted by God and by assenting to God's remission; though, to be sure, he may grant remission in cases reserved to his judgment. If his right to grant remission in such cases were despised, the guilt would remain entirely unforgiven. 7. God remits guilt to no one whom He does not, at the same time, humble in all things and bring into subjection to His vicar, the priest. 8. The penitential canons are imposed only on the living, and, according to them, nothing should be imposed on the dying. 9. Therefore the Holy Spirit in the pope is kind to us, because in his decrees he always makes exception of the article of death and of necessity. 10. Ignorant and wicked are the doings of those priests who, in the case of the dying, reserve canonical penances for purgatory. 11. This changing of the canonical penalty to the penalty of purgatory is quite evidently one of the tares that were sown while the bishops slept. 12. In former times the canonical penalties were imposed not after, but before absolution, as tests of true contrition. 13. The dying are freed by death from all penalties; they are already dead to canonical rules, and have a right to be released from them. 14. The imperfect health [of soul], that is to say, the imperfect love, of the dying brings with it, of necessity, great fear; and the smaller the love, the greater is the fear. 15. This fear and horror is sufficient of itself alone (to say nothing of other things) to constitute the penalty of purgatory, since it is very near to the horror of despair. 16. Hell, purgatory, and heaven seem to differ as do despair, almost-despair, and the assurance of safety. 17. With souls in purgatory it seems necessary that horror should grow less and love increase. 18. It seems unproved, either by reason or Scripture, that they are outside the state of merit, that is to say, of increasing love. 19. Again, it seems unproved that they, or at least that all of them, are certain or assured of their own blessedness, though we may be quite certain of it. 20. Therefore by "full remission of all penalties" the pope means not actually "of all," but only of those imposed by himself. 21. Therefore those preachers of indulgences are in error, who say that by the pope's indulgences a man is freed from every penalty, and saved; 22. Whereas he remits to souls in purgatory no penalty which, according to the canons, they would have had to pay in this life. 23. If it is at all possible to grant to any one the remission of all penalties whatsoever, it is certain that this remission can be granted only to the most perfect, that is, to the very fewest. 24. It must needs be, therefore, that the greater part of the people are deceived by that indiscriminate and highsounding promise of release from penalty. 25. The power which the pope has, in a general way, over purgatory, is just like the power which any bishop or curate has, in a special way, within his own diocese or parish. 26. The pope does well when he grants remission to souls [in purgatory], not by the power of the keys (which he does not possess), but by way of intercession. 27. They preach man who say that so soon as the penny jingles into the money-box, the soul flies out [of purgatory]. 28. It is certain that when the penny jingles into the money-box, gain and avarice can be increased, but the result of the intercession of the Church is in the power of God alone. 29. Who knows whether all the souls in purgatory wish to be bought out of it, as in the legend of Sts. Severinus and Paschal. 30. No one is sure that his own contrition is sincere; much less that he has attained full remission. 31. Rare as is the man that is truly penitent, so rare is also the man who truly buys indulgences, i.e., such men are most rare. 32. They will be condemned eternally, together with their teachers, who believe themselves sure of their salvation because they have letters of pardon. 33. Men must be on their guard against those who say that the pope's pardons are that inestimable gift of God by which man is reconciled to Him; 34. For these "graces of pardon" concern only the penalties of sacramental satisfaction, and these are appointed by man. 35. They preach no Christian doctrine who teach that contrition is not necessary in those who intend to buy souls out of purgatory or to buy confessionalia. 36. Every truly repentant Christian has a right to full remission of penalty and guilt, even without letters of pardon. 37. Every true Christian, whether living or dead, has part in all the blessings of Christ and the Church; and this is granted him by God, even without letters of pardon. 38. Nevertheless, the remission and participation [in the blessings of the Church] which are granted by the pope are in no way to be despised, for they are, as I have said, the declaration of divine remission. 39. It is most difficult, even for the very keenest theologians, at one and the same time to commend to the people the abundance of pardons and [the need of] true contrition. 40. True contrition seeks and loves penalties, but liberal pardons only relax penalties and cause them to be hated, or at least, furnish an occasion [for hating them]. 41. Apostolic pardons are to be preached with caution, lest the people may falsely think them preferable to other good works of love. 42. Christians are to be taught that the pope does not intend the buying of pardons to be compared in any way to works of mercy. 43. Christians are to be taught that he who gives to the poor or lends to the needy does a better work than buying pardons; 44. Because love grows by works of love, and man becomes better; but by pardons man does not grow better, only more free from penalty. 45. 45. Christians are to be taught that he who sees a man in need, and passes him by, and gives [his money] for pardons, purchases not the indulgences of the pope, but the indignation of God. 46. Christians are to be taught that unless they have more than they need, they are bound to keep back what is necessary for their own families, and by no means to squander it on pardons. 47. Christians are to be taught that the buying of pardons is a matter of free will, and not of commandment. 48. Christians are to be taught that the pope, in granting pardons, needs, and therefore desires, their devout prayer for him more than the money they bring. 49. Christians are to be taught that the pope's pardons are useful, if they do not put their trust in them; but altogether harmful, if through them they lose their fear of God. 50. Christians are to be taught that if the pope knew the exactions of the pardon-preachers, he would rather that St. Peter's church should go to ashes, than that it should be built up with the skin, flesh and bones of his sheep. 51. Christians are to be taught that it would be the pope's wish, as it is his duty, to give of his own money to very many of those from whom certain hawkers of pardons cajole money, even though the church of St. Peter might have to be sold. 52. The assurance of salvation by letters of pardon is vain, even though the commissary, nay, even though the pope himself, were to stake his soul upon it. 53. They are enemies of Christ and of the pope, who bid the Word of God be altogether silent in some Churches, in order that pardons may be preached in others. 54. Injury is done the Word of God when, in the same sermon, an equal or a longer time is spent on pardons than on this Word. 55. It must be the intention of the pope that if pardons, which are a very small thing, are celebrated with one bell, with single processions and ceremonies, then the Gospel, which is the very greatest thing, should be preached with a hundred bells, a hundred processions, a hundred ceremonies. 56. The "treasures of the Church," out of which the pope. grants indulgences, are not sufficiently named or known among the people of Christ. 57. That they are not temporal treasures is certainly evident, for many of the vendors do not pour out such treasures so easily, but only gather them. 58. Nor are they the merits of Christ and the Saints, for even without the pope, these always work grace for the inner man, and the cross, death, and hell for the outward man. 59. St. Lawrence said that the treasures of the Church were the Church's poor, but he spoke according to the usage of the word in his own time. 60. Without rashness we say that the keys of the Church, given by Christ's merit, are that treasure; 61. For it is clear that for the remission of penalties and of reserved cases, the power of the pope is of itself sufficient. 62. The true treasure of the Church is the Most Holy Gospel of the glory and the grace of God. 63. But this treasure is naturally most odious, for it makes the first to be last. 64. On the other hand, the treasure of indulgences is naturally most acceptable, for it makes the last to be first. 65. Therefore the treasures of the Gospel are nets with which they formerly were wont to fish for men of riches. 66. The treasures of the indulgences are nets with which they now fish for the riches of men. 67. The indulgences which the preachers cry as the "greatest graces" are known to be truly such, in so far as they promote gain. 68. Yet they are in truth the very smallest graces compared with the grace of God and the piety of the Cross. 69. Bishops and curates are bound to admit the commissaries of apostolic pardons, with all reverence. 70. But still more are they bound to strain all their eyes and attend with all their ears, lest these men preach their own dreams instead of the commission of the pope. 71. He who speaks against the truth of apostolic pardons, let him be anathema and accursed! 72. But he who guards against the lust and license of the pardon-preachers, let him be blessed! 73. The pope justly thunders against those who, by any art, contrive the injury of the traffic in pardons. 74. But much more does he intend to thunder against those who use the pretext of pardons to contrive the injury of holy love and truth. 75. To think the papal pardons so great that they could absolve a man even if he had committed an impossible sin and violated the Mother of God -- this is madness. 76. We say, on the contrary, that the papal pardons are not able to remove the very least of venial sins, so far as its guilt is concerned. 77. It is said that even St. Peter, if he were now Pope, could not bestow greater graces; this is blasphemy against St. Peter and against the pope. 78. We say, on the contrary, that even the present pope, and any pope at all, has greater graces at his disposal; to wit, the Gospel, powers, gifts of healing, etc., as it is written in I. Corinthians xii. 79. To say that the cross, emblazoned with the papal arms, which is set up [by the preachers of indulgences], is of equal worth with the Cross of Christ, is blasphemy. 80. The bishops, curates and theologians who allow such talk to be spread among the people, will have an account to render. 81. This unbridled preaching of pardons makes it no easy matter, even for learned men, to rescue the reverence due to the pope from slander, or even from the shrewd questionings of the laity. 82. To wit: -- "Why does not the pope empty purgatory, for the sake of holy love and of the dire need of the souls that are there, if he redeems an infinite number of souls for the sake of miserable money with which to build a Church? The former reasons would be most just; the latter is most trivial." 83. Again: -- "Why are mortuary and anniversary masses for the dead continued, and why does he not return or permit the withdrawal of the endowments founded on their behalf, since it is wrong to pray for the redeemed?" 84. Again: -- "What is this new piety of God and the pope, that for money they allow a man who is impious and their enemy to buy out of purgatory the pious soul of a friend of God, and do not rather, because of that pious and beloved soul's own need, free it for pure love's sake?" 85. Again: -- "Why are the penitential canons long since in actual fact and through disuse abrogated and dead, now satisfied by the granting of indulgences, as though they were still alive and in force?" 86. Again: -- "Why does not the pope, whose wealth is to-day greater than the riches of the richest, build just this one church of St. Peter with his own money, rather than with the money of poor believers?" 87. Again: -- "What is it that the pope remits, and what participation does he grant to those who, by perfect contrition, have a right to full remission and participation?" 88. Again: -- "What greater blessing could come to the Church than if the pope were to do a hundred times a day what he now does once, and bestow on every believer these remissions and participations?" 89. "Since the pope, by his pardons, seeks the salvation of souls rather than money, why does he suspend the indulgences and pardons granted heretofore, since these have equal efficacy?" 90. To repress these arguments and scruples of the laity by force alone, and not to resolve them by giving reasons, is to expose the Church and the pope to the ridicule of their enemies, and to make Christians unhappy. 91. If, therefore, pardons were preached according to the spirit and mind of the pope, all these doubts would be readily resolved; nay, they would not exist. 92. Away, then, with all those prophets who say to the people of Christ, "Peace, peace," and there is no peace! 93. Blessed be all those prophets who say to the people of Christ, "Cross, cross," and there is no cross! 94. Christians are to be exhorted that they be diligent in following Christ, their Head, through penalties, deaths, and hell; 95. And thus be confident of entering into heaven rather through many tribulations, than through the assurance of peace.
This text was converted to ASCII text for Project Wittenberg by Allen Mulvey, and is in the public domain. You may freely distribute, copy or print this text. Please direct any comments or suggestions to:
Rev. Robert E. Smith Walther Library Concordia Theological Seminary.
E-mail: [email protected] Surface Mail: 6600 N. Clinton St., Ft. Wayne, IN 46825 USA Phone: (260) 452-3149 - Fax: (260) 452-2126
Top of page
Back to Search Results
Online format.
The Library of Congress is unaware of any copyright or other restrictions in the World Digital Library Collection. Absent any such restrictions, these materials are free to use and reuse. Researchers are encouraged to review the source information attached to each item. For information on contacting WDL partner organizations, see this archived list of partners
The Library asks that researchers approach the materials in this collection with respect for the culture and sensibilities of the people whose lives, ideas, and creativity are documented here.
Credit Line: [Original Source citation], World Digital Library
More about Copyright and other Restrictions
For additional information and contact information for many of the partner organizations, see this archived capture of the World Digital Library site from 2021.
For guidance about compiling full citations consult Citing Primary Sources .
Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.
Luther, Martin, Author. Ninety-Five Theses . Nuremberg: Hieronymus Höltzel, 1517. Image. https://www.loc.gov/item/2021667736/.
Luther, M. (1517) Ninety-Five Theses . Nuremberg: Hieronymus Höltzel. [Image] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/2021667736/.
Luther, Martin, Author. Ninety-Five Theses . Nuremberg: Hieronymus Höltzel, 1517. Image. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/2021667736/>.
Martin Luther's 95 Theses , credited with sparking the Protestant Reformation in Europe , have become a cultural touchstone since he posted them 31 October 1517, but the little-known 97 Theses , posted only a month earlier, are equally significant in the development of Luther's (l. 1483-1546) vision and theology.
The 97 Theses are a series of disputations written to invite debate on the topic of scholastic theology and are also referred to as his Disputation Against Scholastic Theology . Scholastic theology was the accepted method of interpreting scripture and defining the nature of humanity in relation to God as well as the attributes of the divine itself.
This theological system was drawn from Aristotle (l. 384-322 BCE) and established by the Church Father Thomas Aquinas (l. 1225-1274) following the precepts and example of Saint Augustine of Hippo (l. 354-430). Aquinas' translation and use of Aristotle inspired the scholastic tradition in the medieval Church which was still central to the training of the clergy in Luther's time.
Although Luther was originally drawn to the works of Aristotle and those of the great medieval scholastic theologians, he began to feel they confused matters far more than they clarified. Once Luther became convinced that humans were justified by faith alone, and could do nothing to earn God's grace, he rejected scholasticism as a means toward knowledge of God and emphasized prayerful reading of the Bible as one's direct route toward communion with the divine.
The 97 Theses present Luther's theology based on the precepts of scripture alone and faith alone as the means of knowing God's will while dismissing the scholastic tradition as counterproductive and even unbiblical. The scholars he cites below in his arguments – William of Ockham (l. c. 1287-1347), Duns Scotus (l. c. 1265-1308), and Gabriel Biel (l. c. 1425-1495) – were among the most highly regarded scholastic theologians of their times who had helped shape church doctrine and vision.
The works of Aristotle, which formed the basis of the Catholic Church's theological approach, were understood by the Church as essential in developing a sound, rational theology, and these were required reading for any clergy. In taking issue with the works of these men, Luther was challenging church policy, but his careful phrasing kept his critiques soundly within the confines of the very system he was arguing against.
Scholar Lyndal Roper expresses the opinion of most modern-day scholars that the 97 Theses "are in many ways more radical and shocking than the Ninety-Five Theses" (81) in that the latter took aim at the church policy of selling indulgences and the authority of the pope while the former is an attack on the whole theological system of the Church including the concept of free will. Roper continues:
The theses are an extraordinarily confident set of propositions, which are ordered as though they follow from one another, but their sequence is emotional as much as logical. Briskly, Luther labels one after another of his statements as "contrary to common opinion" or "in opposition to the scholastics." They capture his rejection of the whole tradition of medieval theology in all its passionate fury as he concludes: "No one can become a theologian unless he becomes one without Aristotle." (81)
His rejection of Aristotelian logic is not a rejection of reason, however, nor of rational discourse. Luther had simply come to realize that one cannot rely on human reason to apprehend the divine. His revelation upon reading the line from Romans 1:17 – "the just shall live by faith” – convinced him that God provided humanity with the grace to know God's will and no system devised by humans could improve upon that.
The following comes from Martin Luther 's Basic Theological Writings , edited by Timothy F. Lull and William R. Russell, pp. 3-7. They are presented without commentary:
1. To say that Augustine exaggerates in speaking against heretics is to say that Augustine tells lies almost everywhere. This is contrary to common knowledge. 2. This is the same as permitting Pelagians and all heretics to triumph , indeed, the same as conceding victory to them. 3. It is the same as making sport of the authority of all doctors of theology. 4. It is therefore true that man, being a bad tree, can only will and do evil [Cf. Matt. 7:17-18]. 5. It is false to state that man's inclination is free to choose between either of two opposites. Indeed, the inclination is not free, but captive. Tiffs is said in opposition to common opinion. 6. It is false to state that the will can by nature conform to correct precept. This is said in opposition to Scotus and Gabriel. 7. As a matter of fact, without the grace of God the will produces an act that is perverse and evil. Remove Ads Advertisement 8. It does not, however, follow that the will is by nature evil, that is, essentially evil, as the Manichaeans maintain. 9. It is nevertheless innately and inevitably evil and corrupt. 10. One must concede that the will is not free to strive toward whatever is declared good. This in opposition to Scotus and Gabriel. 11. Nor is it able to will or not to will whatever is prescribed. 12. Nor does one contradict St. Augustine when one says that nothing is so much in the power of the will as the will itself. Love History? Sign up for our free weekly email newsletter! 13. It is absurd to conclude that erring man can love the creature above all things, therefore also God. This in opposition to Scotus and Gabriel. 14. Nor is it surprising that the will can conform to erroneous and not to correct precept. 15. Indeed, it is peculiar to it that it can only conform to erroneous and not to correct precept. 16. One ought rather to conclude: since erring man is able to love the creature it is impossible for him to love God. 17. Man is by nature unable to want God to be God. Indeed, he himself wants to be God, and does not want God to be God. 18. To love God above all things by nature is a fictitious term, a chimera, as it were. This is contrary to common teaching. 19. Nor can we apply the reasoning of Scotus concerning the brave citizen who loves his country more than himself. 20. An act of friendship is done, not according to nature, but according to prevenient grace. This in opposition to Gabriel. 21. No act is done according to nature that is not an act of concupiscence against God. 22. Every act of concupiscence against God is evil and a fornication of the spirit. 23. Nor is it true that an act of concupiscence can be set aright by the virtue of hope. This in opposition to Gabriel. 24. For hope is not contrary to charity, which seeks and desires only that which is of God. 25. Hope does not grow out of merits, but out of suffering which destroys merits. This in opposition to the opinion of many. 26. An act of friendship is not the most perfect means for accomplishing that which is in one. Nor is it the most perfect means for obtaining the grace of God or turning toward and approaching God. 27. But it is an act of conversion already perfected, following grace both in time and by nature. 28. If it is said of the Scripture passages, "Return to me,…and I will return to you" [Zechariah 1:3], "Draw near to God and he will draw near to you" [James 4:8], "Seek and you will find" [Matthew 7:7], "You will seek me and find me" [Jeremiah 29:13], and the like, that one is by nature, the other by grace, this is no different from asserting what the Pelagians have said. 29. The best and infallible preparation for grace and the sole disposition toward grace is the eternal election and predestination of God. 30. On the part of man, however, nothing precedes grace except indisposition and even rebellion against grace. 31. It is said with the idlest demonstrations that the predestined can be damned individually but not collectively. This in opposition to the scholastics. 32. Moreover, nothing is achieved by the following saying: Predestination is necessary by virtue of the consequence of God's willing, but not of what actually followed, namely, that God had to elect a certain person. 33. And this is false, that doing all that one is able to do can remove the obstacles to grace. This in opposition to several authorities. 34. In brief, man by nature has neither correct precept nor good will. 35. It is not true that an invincible ignorance excuses one completely (all scholastics notwithstanding); 36. For ignorance of God and oneself and good work is always invincible to nature. 37. Nature, moreover, inwardly and necessarily glories and takes pride in every work which is apparently and outwardly good. 38. There is no moral virtue without either pride or sorrow, that is, without sin. 39. We are not masters of our actions, from beginning to end, but servants. This in opposition to the philosophers. 40. We do not become righteous by doing righteous deeds but, having been made righteous, we do righteous deeds. This in opposition to the philosophers. 41. Virtually the entire Ethics of Aristotle is the worst enemy of grace. This in opposition to the scholastics. 42. It is an error to maintain that Aristotle's statement concerning happiness does not contradict Catholic doctrine. This in opposition to the doctrine on morals. 43. It is an error to say that no man can become a theologian without Aristotle. This in opposition to common opinion. 44. Indeed, no one can become a theologian unless he becomes one without Aristotle. 45. To state that a theologian who is not a logician is a monstrous heretic—this is a monstrous and heretical statement. This in opposition to common opinion. 46. In vain does one fashion a logic of faith, a substitution brought about without regard for limit and measure. This in opposition to the new dialecticians. 47. No syllogistic form is valid when applied to divine terms. This in opposition to the Cardinal. 48. Nevertheless, it does not for that reason follow that the truth of the doctrine of the Trinity contradicts syllogistic forms. This in opposition to the same new dialecticians and to the Cardinal. 49. If a syllogistic form of reasoning holds in divine matters, then the doctrine of the Trinity is demonstrable and not the object of faith. 50. Briefly, the whole Aristotle is to theology as darkness is to light. This in opposition to the scholastics. 51. It is very doubtful whether the Latins comprehended the correct meaning of Aristotle. 52. It would have been better for the church if Porphyry with his universals had not been born for the use of theologians. 53. Even the more useful definitions of Aristotle seem to beg the question. 54. For an act to be meritorious, either the presence of grace is sufficient, or its presence means nothing. This in opposition to Gabriel. 55. The grace of God is never present in such a way that it is inactive, but it is a living, active, and operative spirit; nor can it happen that through the absolute power of God an act of friendship may be present without the presence of the grace of God. This in opposition to Gabriel. 56. It is not true that God can accept man without his justifying grace. This in opposition to Ockham. 57. It is dangerous to say that the law commands that an act of obeying the commandment be done in the grace of God. This in opposition to the Cardinal and Gabriel. 58. From this it would follow that "to have the grace of God" is actually a new demand going beyond the law. 59. It would also follow that fulfilling the law can take place without the grace of God. 60. Likewise it follows that the grace of God would be more hateful than the law itself. 61. It does not follow that the law should be complied with and fulfilled in the grace of God. This in opposition to Gabriel. 62. And that therefore he who is outside the grace of God sins incessantly, even when he does not kill, commit adultery, or become angry. 63. But it follows that he sins because he does not spiritually fulfill the law. 64. Spiritually that person does not kill, does not do evil, does not become enraged when he neither becomes angry nor lusts. 65. Outside the grace of God it is indeed impossible not to become angry or lust, so that not even in grace is it possible to fulfill the law perfectly. 66. It is the righteousness of the hypocrite actually and outwardly not to kill, do evil, etc. 67. It is by the grace of God that one does not lust or become enraged. 68. Therefore it is impossible to fulfill the law in any way without the grace of God. 69. As a matter of fact, it is more accurate to say that the law is destroyed by nature without the grace of God. 70. A good law will of necessity be bad for the natural will. 71. Law and will are two implacable foes without the grace of God. 72. What the law wants, the will never wants, unless it pretends to want it out of fear or love. 73. The law, as taskmaster of the will, will not be overcome except by the "child, who has been born to us" [Isaiah 9:6]. 74. The law makes sin abound because it irritates and repels the will [Romans 7:13]. 75. The grace of God, however, makes justice abound through Jesus Christ because it causes one to be pleased with the law. 76. Every deed of the law without the grace of God appears good outwardly, but inwardly it is sin. This in opposition to the scholastics. 77. The will is always averse to, and the hands inclined toward, the law of the Lord without the grace of God. 78. The will which is inclined toward the law without the grace of God is so inclined by reason of its own advantage. 79. Condemned are all those who do the works of the law. 80. Blessed are all those who do the works of the grace of God. 81. Chapter Falsas concerning penance, dist. 5, 10 confirms the fact that works outside the realm of grace are not good, if this is not understood falsely. 82. Not only are the religious ceremonials not the good law and the precepts in which one does not live (in opposition to many teachers). 83. But even the Decalogue itself and all that can be taught and prescribed inwardly and outwardly is not good law either. 84. The good law and that in which one lives is the love of God, spread abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. 85. Anyone's will would prefer, if it were possible, that there would be no law and to be entirely free. 86. Anyone's will hates it that the law should be imposed upon it; if, however, the will desires imposition of the law it does so out of love of self. 87. Since the law is good, the will, which is hostile to it, cannot be good. 88. And from this it is clear that everyone's natural will is iniquitous and bad. 89. Grace as a mediator is necessary to reconcile the law with the will. 90. The grace of God is given for the purpose of directing the will, lest it err even in loving God. In opposition to Gabriel. 91. It is not given so that good deeds might be induced more frequently and readily, but because without it no act of love is performed. In opposition to Gabriel. 92. It cannot be denied that love is superfluous if man is by nature able to do an act of friendship. In opposition to Gabriel. 93. There is a kind of subtle evil in the argument that an act is at the same time the fruit and the use of the fruit. In opposition to Ockham, the Cardinal, Gabriel. 94. This holds true also of the saying that the love of God may continue alongside an intense love of the creature. 95. To love God is at the same time to hate oneself and to know nothing but God. 96. We must make our will conform in every respect to the will of God (in opposition to the Cardinal). 97. So that we not only will what God wills, but also ought to will whatever God wills. In these statements we wanted to say and believe we have said nothing that is not in agreement with the Catholic church and the teachers of the church. [year] 1517
Subscribe to topic Bibliography Related Content Books Cite This Work License
We want people all over the world to learn about history. Help us and translate this article into another language!
Free for the world, supported by you.
World History Encyclopedia is a non-profit organization. For only $5 per month you can become a member and support our mission to engage people with cultural heritage and to improve history education worldwide.
, published by Random House Trade Paperbacks (2018) |
, published by Fortress Press (1989) |
, published by Oxford University Press (1985) |
, published by Abingdon Press (2013) |
, published by Oxford University Press (2019) |
Mark, J. J. (2021, December 06). Luther's 97 Theses . World History Encyclopedia . Retrieved from https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1897/luthers-97-theses/
Mark, Joshua J.. " Luther's 97 Theses ." World History Encyclopedia . Last modified December 06, 2021. https://www.worldhistory.org/article/1897/luthers-97-theses/.
Mark, Joshua J.. " Luther's 97 Theses ." World History Encyclopedia . World History Encyclopedia, 06 Dec 2021. Web. 30 Jun 2024.
Submitted by Joshua J. Mark , published on 06 December 2021. The copyright holder has published this content under the following license: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike . This license lets others remix, tweak, and build upon this content non-commercially, as long as they credit the author and license their new creations under the identical terms. When republishing on the web a hyperlink back to the original content source URL must be included. Please note that content linked from this page may have different licensing terms.
COMMENTS
Martin Luther was a German theologian who challenged a number of teachings of the Roman Catholic Church. His 1517 document, "95 Theses," sparked the Protestant Reformation. Read a summary of the ...
The Ninety-five Theses or Disputation on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences is a list of propositions for an academic disputation written in 1517 by Martin Luther, then a professor of moral theology at the University of Wittenberg, Germany. The Theses is retrospectively considered to have launched the Protestant Reformation and the birth of Protestantism, despite various proto-Protestant ...
Ninety-five Theses, propositions for debate concerned with the question of indulgences, written in Latin and possibly posted by Martin Luther on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg on October 31, 1517. The event came to be considered the beginning of the Protestant Reformation.
The 95 Theses. Out of love for the truth and from desire to elucidate it, the Reverend Father Martin Luther, Master of Arts and Sacred Theology, and ordinary lecturer therein at Wittenberg, intends to defend the following statements and to dispute on them in that place. Therefore he asks that those who cannot be present and dispute with him ...
Luther's 97 theses on the topic of scholastic theology had been posted only a month before his 95 theses focusing on the sale of indulgences. Both writs were only intended to invite discussion of the topic. Martin Luther (l. 1483-1546) objected to scholastic theology on the grounds that it could not reveal the truth of God and denounced indulgences - writs sold by the Church to shorten one's ...
brings with it great fear, and the smaller the love, the greater the fear. Theses #15 - 82 are the core arguments by Martin Luther against indulgences and. he. actics of the preachers who are selling letters of indulgence in Germany.15. This fear of horror is sufficient in itself, to say nothing of other things, to con. tit.
Protestantism - Reformation, Luther, 95 Theses: Against the actions of Albert and Tetzel and with no intention to divide the church, Luther launched his Ninety-five Theses on October 31, 1517. In the theses he presented three main points. The first concerned financial abuses; for example, if the pope realized the poverty of the German people, he would rather that St. Peter's lay in ashes ...
The original text of the 95 Theses was written in Latin, since that was the academic language of Luther's day. Luther's theses were quickly translated into German, published in pamphlet form and spread throughout Germany. Though English translations are readily available, many have found the 95 Theses difficult to read and comprehend. The ...
Reaction to Luther's Theses was immediate and strong, leading to his excommunication from the Roman Church and the eventual birth of the Protestant Reformation. Luther's historically important defense of the gospel is noted and celebrated annually on 31 October, Reformation Day. The following is the translated text of the Ninety-Five Theses.
Martin Luther was a German monk who forever changed Christianity when he nailed his '95 Theses' to a church door in 1517, sparking the Protestant Reformation.
Ninety-five Theses, Propositions for debate on the question of indulgences, written by Martin Luther and, according to legend, posted on the door of the castle church in Wittenberg, Ger., on Oct. 31, 1517. This event is now seen as the beginning of the Protestant Reformation. The theses were written in response to the selling of indulgences to pay for the rebuilding of St. Peter's Basilica ...
This Day in History: 10/31/1517 - Martin Luther Posts Theses. On October 31, 1517, legend has it that the priest and scholar Martin Luther approaches the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg ...
Luther sent his 95 Theses to a few bishops and some friends; therefore he did not expect or receive a prompt response. By the end of 1517, however, copies of the 95 Theses had been printed in Leipzig, Nuremberg and Basel. Some humanists and princes passionately approved of the theses, but parts of the Roman Church completely rejected them. ...
1517 Luther Posts the 95 Theses. An obscure monk invited debate on a pressing church issue—and touched off a history-shattering reform movement. Sometime during October 31, 1517, the day before ...
If people know only one thing about the Protestant Reformation, it is the famous event on October 31, 1517, when the Ninety-five Theses of Martin Luther (1483-1586) were nailed on the door of the Castle Church of Wittenberg in protest against the Roman Catholic Church. Within a few years of this event, the church had splintered into not just ...
What were the 95 Theses? According to historic legend, Martin Luther posted a document on the door of the Wittenberg Church on the 31 st October 1517; a document later referred to as the 95 Theses. This document was questioning rather than accusatory, seeking to inform the Archbishop of Mainz that the selling of indulgences had become corrupt, with the sellers seeking solely to line their own ...
Ten Things to Know about Martin Luther and His 95 Theses: 1. Law and Lightning Contributed to Martin Luther's Beginnings. Martin Luther (Nov. 10, 1483 - Feb. 18, 1546) was a German theologian in Eisleben, Germany who attended Latin school as a child, and when he was thirteen years old, attended law school at the University of Erfurt.
Advertise on TGC. On October 31, 1517, Martin Luther strode confidently to the door of Wittenberg's Castle Church, nailed up his Ninety-five Theses, and in one swing of his hammer started what later became known as the Protestant Reformation. The defiant monk, enraged by the sale of indulgences that promised forgiveness apart from repentance ...
13. The dying are freed by death from all penalties; they are already dead to canonical rules, and have a right to be released from them. 14. The imperfect health [of soul], that is to say, the imperfect love, of the dying brings with it, of necessity, great fear; and the smaller the love, the greater is the fear. 15.
Martin Luther's Disputatio pro declaratione virtutis indulgentiarum of 1517, commonly known as the Ninety-Five Theses, is considered the central document of the Protestant Reformation. Its complete title reads: "Out of love and zeal for clarifying the truth, these items written below will be debated at Wittenberg. Reverend Father Martin Luther, Master of Arts and of Sacred Theology and an ...
Martin Luther. "The Ninety Five Theses" — the common title to his "Disputation on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences" — is more widely associated with Luther's name than anything else he wrote. Luther posted his theses on the castle door at Wittenberg on either October 31 or No-vember 1, 1517. The disputation which Luther ...
Much of Luther's Ninety-Five Theses criticized the excesses of the people charged with selling indulgences, but the text also directly challenged the pope's spiritual authority. Luther wrote that the pope does not have the power to remit, or excuse, penalties owed to God for an individual's sins. He argued that the pope can only reduce earthly ...
The 95 Theses in many ways started the Protestant Reformation. Luther nailed the 95 Theses to the church door of Wittenberg, and the Catholic Church later ex...
Article. Martin Luther's 95 Theses, credited with sparking the Protestant Reformation in Europe, have become a cultural touchstone since he posted them 31 October 1517, but the little-known 97 Theses, posted only a month earlier, are equally significant in the development of Luther's (l. 1483-1546) vision and theology.
Martin Luther OSA (/ ˈ l uː θ ər /; German: [ˈmaʁtiːn ˈlʊtɐ] ⓘ; 10 November 1483 - 18 February 1546) was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, professor, and 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 ...