Martin Luther Ninety Five Theses: Reasons and the Protestant Reformation
The Ninety Five Theses were the works of scholar and priest Martin Luther who approached the door of Castle Church in Wittenberg on the 31st of October 1517. The Castle Church was situated in Germany and the legends say that Martin Luther nailed the ninety five theses to the door of the church. These theses were considered to be some of the most important revolutionary opinions that would be a start from the Protestant Reformation. This came to be known as one of the most important events to take place since it started a very big movement in Germany.
This article discusses these ninety five opinions in great detail so that students can have more information from them.
An Introduction To Martin Luther Ninety Five Theses
In the theses that Luther posted on the walls of the Castle Church, he basically showed his contempt for the corruption and excesses that were a major practice in the Roman Catholic Church. Luther specifically addressed the practice of asking for payment, also known as “indulgences” in exchange for the forgiveness of the sins that were committed by the people. During that time, Johann Tetzel, who was a Dominican priest was commissioned by Pope Leo X and the Archbishop of Mainz, to organize a particular fundraiser in Germany in order to finance the re-building of the St. Peter’s Basilica that was situated in Rome.
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Prince Frederick III the Wise had actually banned this practice of indulgences in Wittenberg. However, most of the churches that were still situated in the area were practicing the rule prominently. Most of the members of the church actually went to purchase these indulgences even though it was banned. However, when they returned, they actually showed all the pardons that they were in agreement with Luther. They also said that they didn’t need to repent for the sins that they had committed.
The Reason Behind Martin Luther Ninety Five Theses
It can be said that Martin Luther ninety five theses were a call for justice and it showed the frustration that he had for the churches that were still practicing this tradition. In his frustration, he then wrote the ninety five theses. However, these theses were then snapped up and then translated to German from Latin. The wide distribution of these theses happened and one of the copies actually reached Rome. However, with that, several efforts were made in order to ensure that Luther would change the ways that he had. But all efforts went in vain as Martin Luther didn’t really accept the terms and refused to keep his mum. It was during this time in 1521 when Martin Luther was excommunicated from the Catholic church by Pope Leo X.
It was in the same year when Luther again made a refusal to recant the writing that he had in front of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V who was the ruler of Germany. A very famous Edict of Worms which declared Luther as an outlaw as well as a heretic was issued by the Roman Emperor. The emperor also stated that anyone who had a sighting of Luther was allowed to kill him and there will be no consequences. It was at that time when Luther was provided protection from Prince Frederick. Luther, after receiving the protection, then began his translation of the Bible in German. This task took him a total of 10 years to complete.
The Protestant Reformation Begins
According to the ninety five theses significance facts description and history, the Protestant term first started in the year 1529. This was when Charles V revoked a particular provision. Under this provision, the rulers of the German state were allowed to choose whether anyone would be enforced with the Edict of Worms. There were a huge number of princes as well as some other people who supported the writings of Luther who then issued a big protest. They made a declaration that the allegiance they had with God will trump the allegiance that they had pledged to the emperor. These people would further go down in history as Protestants, a name was given to them by their enemies. The name would then be applied to anyone who thought that the Catholic churches needed some form of reformation. The term traveled outside Germany as well. Martin Luther died of natural causes in 1546. With his death, the beliefs that he had were actually formed as the basis for the Protestant Reformation. These reforms would then pass over to the next 300 years in order to revolutionize the entire Western civilization.
To conclude, it can be said that Martin Luther ninety five theses were a call for reformation of the church, a thought that provoked many who were in support of it. Nonetheless, it helped in changing western civilization as we know it today.
FAQs on Ninety Five Theses
1. What were the Ninety five theses of Martin Luther?
According to the 95 theses summary, Martin Luther was a scholar who nailed his 95 theses to the church door of the Castle Church which was situated in Germany. The ninety five theses were actually 95 different opinions that he thought would have been useful for the Catholic Church. These theses formed the basis for the Protestant Reformation movement that began after the death of Martin Luther. The theses suggested that the Catholic Churches were corrupt and needed to change their ways in order to ensure that people were not affected by the practices that they had in the future. These theses met with wide opposition from the catholic churches and Martin Luther was also excommunicated from the Church by Pope Leo X due to these opinions.
The Protestant Reformation movement began after a scholar named Martin Luther nailed his 95 opinions named as the Ninety Five theses to the door of the Castle Church in Germany. Martin Luther faced terrible opposition from the church after writing these theses and was even excommunicated from the church. After receiving protection from Prince Frederick III who was in support of the theses and the banning of the practice known as ‘indulgences’, Martin Luther started working on the German translation of the Bible. It was after his death when his supporters and other princes began to realize the corruption in the Catholic churches and that led to the creation of the Protestant Reformation.
