Initiator of the Reformation
Martin Luther (1483–1546) was a German monk and theologian who in 1517 posted his Ninety-Five Theses criticizing the Catholic Church’s sale of "indulgences," setting off the Reformation that swept Europe and giving rise at last to the Protestant tradition outside the Roman Catholic system. He held to "justification by faith alone" and "scripture alone," and translated the Bible into German so ordinary believers could read the text directly, profoundly changing the religious, political, and linguistic landscape of Europe thereafter. This history is the key point at which Catholicism and Protestantism parted ways; this card states only the historical facts, and makes no judgment on the rights of the doctrinal division.
Displeased with the Church’s trade of indulgences for the faithful’s money, promising remission of purgatorial punishment, Luther wrote the Ninety-Five Theses, traditionally held to have been posted on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, publicly questioning the theological basis of indulgences; through the printing press the matter spread swiftly across the German lands, the acknowledged starting point of the Reformation.
Summoned before the Imperial Diet at Worms and required to recant the views in his works, Luther answered, "unless I am convinced by scripture or plain reason, I cannot and will not recant, for to act against conscience is neither safe nor right. Here I stand; I can do no other." This statement became a much-quoted declaration in the history of the Reformation.
Below are how modern works borrow or reinterpret this name or story — not the original material. The two differ, so keep them apart.
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