Historical Misunderstandings between the Church and Protestants During the Reformation

Martin Luther and the Break With Rome Martin Luther began as a simple Augustinian Friar in the Roman Catholic Church, the reigning power of Western Europe for hundreds of years, and he soon became the leader of the most important stand against the Catholic Church. I call Luther’s actions a stand rather than a revolt because he did not willingly mean to disrespect the entire church or even start a new denomination of Christianity, he was only trying to bring truth to it. Luther published writings such as The Ninety-five Theses, Address to the Christian Nobility of the German Nation and A Treatise on Christian Liberty, all which produced outrage in the Church for the fact that it blatantly accused the clerics, and especially the pope, of many wrong doings in their practice. Luther belonged to a church in Wittenburg, Germany and here he was a scholar as well as a priest. He, like many others, came to notice the corruption in the Church.

Others that broke off from the Roman Catholic Church include John Calvin and Ulrich Zwingli and even England’s King, Henry VIII. Each questioned the practices of The Church uniquely to their own beliefs. Some of them shared similar spiritual theories, others vastly differed. After translating The Bible into German, Martin Luther paved the way for Lutheranism. Luther believed that one must not repent their sins by payment or indulgences.

The sixteenth-century Protestant Reformation was inspired by Martin Luther. Martin Luther is a reformer and also a priest and professor of theology who, after studying the Bible led him to challenge the Roman Catholic Church. Martin Luther along with a few followers argued that religious leaders were not following the traditions of the Bible and Christian faith; for that reason, should be judged. This argument between Martin Luther and the Roman Catholic Church changed the tone in Catholic Europe. Martin Luther was determined to distinguish the difference between Protestant denominations and Roman Catholicism.

In his words, “Christians are to be taught that he who gives to the poor or lends to the needy does a better deed than he who buys indulgences.” This was a dominate practice in the church and they used the indulgences to make the Church extravagantly beautiful. Roman Catholicism and Protestantism have quite a few religious belief differences. A major difference is the Catholics believe that if you sin you can pay indulgences to the Church to help keep you out of purgatory. However, Luther did not agree with this, he believed, “salvation was by faith rather than by works and to denounce the Church’s practices of selling indulgences.” He did not think it was necessary for the pope, priests, saints or Mary to intervene and that everyone can have their own personal relationship with Christ. Martin Luther claims, “The bible is the sole authority for Christians.

There were reasons; reformers, both inside and outside of the church, sought changes in both doctrine and practice not easily absorbed. Luther’s key reason for posting the theses was to protest the church for indulgences. Luther did not think it was honorable that the church made people pay money for getting their sins forgiven. The church reasserted the Pope’s infallibility, Priest, Nuns, painting, relics, stained glasses, statues, sacraments, and the Holy Mary, however, the church did not reassert the cost of money for having sins forgiven. The Catholics counter argument for Martin Luther’s argument about Sola Scriptura and Sola Fide was that everyone needs the scriptures and needs faith but alone one cannot reach salvation because people need to act on God's word and act on their faith; actions speak louder than words.

Luther knew that the Catholic Church was distorted; he believed that the sale of indulgences, in particular, was the major source of corruption. In response, Luther nailed on the door of the Wittenberg Church a placard with 95 theses, or statements, criticizing the sale of indulgences and attacking other church policies. He also published hundred of essays advocating his idea that a person could be made just, or good, simply by faith in God’s mercy and love. Luther’s idea became known as justification by faith. Consequently, Luther was excommunicated from the Church for refusing to withdraw his teachings and criticisms of the Church.

The leaders of the Catholic Church were straying from the Biblical truths that were once their foundation. Power, corruption, and greed took root instead. They told people that they should buy indulgences, which is basically saying you can buy forgiveness for your sins. The leaders then used this money to fund the building of churches. Many people over the course of the 16th century noticed the corruption and took a stand against the church and its views.

It was centered around two central beliefs that the Bible should be and is the central religious authority and that humans may reach salvation only faith and not by works. Martin Luther has had these feelings about these practices for awhile but chose the 95 Theses to start his religious reformation. Resulting from that, this started the division of the Catholic Church, and Luther’s ideas created the religion of Protestantism later resulting in Lutheranism. The 95 Theses and his other writings changed religious and cultural history in the Western hemisphere. His refusal to renounce all of his writings at the demand of Pope Leo X in 1520 and the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V at the Diet of Worms in 1521 resulted in his excommunication by the Pope.

Emily Cavanaugh Tunstead Social Studies 9 March 10, 2014 Martin Luther: The Protestant Reformation According to Martin Luther, "every man must do two things alone; he must do his own believing and his own dying." Martin changed the way people viewed their religion and the churches. He believed in the separation of church and state, he also believed people could ask for forgiveness from God themselves. Furthermore, he thought the church couldn’t forgive your sins; it was only God who could. While overall, starting the Protestant Reformation.

Martin Luther almost single handedly lead the Protestant Reformation with his 95 Theses. A strict father who most likely did not accept “no” as an answer raised Martin Luther. Martin Luther turned out to follow in his footsteps in his fervor to change how a church teaches and practices Christianity. While the pope and the Catholic Church shunned Luther he took that time to create something that would be the foundation for the founding fathers and the empire that the United States would become. After studying the work of Augustine, Luther used his basic ideas to help form how he thought Christianity should be practiced.