Martin Luther Shakes up the church

Martin Luther 1483 - 1546 German Religious Reformer

What were his opinions? Opposed the sale of indulgences Disliked church greed Believed that the path to God was through faith alone He wrote the “95 Theses” and nailed them to the church door. The ideas eventually became very widespread.

His intention He was inviting other scholars to respond to his ideas in a debate He had no idea that his challenge would “light a fire of protest” and change. His ideas sparked the Protestant Reformation and established the religious group called Lutherans

What risk did he take? He could be branded a heretic and be either excommunicated or executed for his ideas.

What did happen to him? Pope Leo X issued a papal bull (a statement of the Pope’s authority) He condemned Luther and banned his works. Defying the Pope, Luther publicly burnt the Bull. In 1521 Pope Leo Excommunicated Luther.

Why did Luther’s ideas succeed? They were challenging centuries-old Catholic ideas……

They succeeded because… Many people recognized the widespread corruption within the church and were eager for reform Luther wrote and spoke with conviction. His words were appealing to the people And…..

The Printing Press Pamphlets were printed and distributes They contained updates and new essays By 1523 about a million copies of Luther’s Pamphlets were in circulation.