Pazos 1

Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation

The Protestant Reformation was an act of separation from the Catholic Church that has

dominated Western European civilization.1 The movement began when Priest Martin Luther

decided to openly discuss all the wrongdoings of the Catholic church. This led to people to

question the church for the first time in a long time. Many kings and princes who were strongly

opposed to the pope's authority took this movement as an opportunity to separate themselves and

use it as a justification for their independence from the Catholic Church.2 It also had an impact

on the common people who were tired that they were funding the luxurious lifestyle of the

clergy. This caused a series of German peasant revolts. The Protestant reformation quickly

spread within and outside of Germany due to the printing press.The printing press was invented

in the 1500s and by 1520 Wittenberg became one of the leading publishing centers.3 As the

Prosentant reformation spread it led to the formation of other Protestant faiths for example,

Lutheran, Calvinst, Anglican, etc. The Catholic church did retaliate against the Protestants. On

August 24, 1572, they led a massacre of 3,000 Huguenots who were a Protestant minority group.

The conflict eventually ended with the Peace of Westphalia in 1648.4

Martin Luther was one of the most important figures of the Protestant Reformation. He

was born on November 10, 1483 in Eislenben to a small farmer class. His father and mother,

originally from Thuringia, moved to Eislenben for a better life. Even though he eventually got

university education later in life, he kept in mind his impoverished beginnings. Luther started off

studying law, however on July 17, 1505, he had a change of heart and decided to join the

monastery.5 It was believed that this drastic change occurred because he feared for his salvation.

1 Strayer, Robert W. Ways of the World a Global History with Sources. Bedford/St. Martin's, 2013.
2 Strayer, Robert W. Ways of the World a Global History with Sources. Bedford/St. Martin's, 2013.
3 Edwards, Mark U. Printing, Propaganda, and Martin Luther. Fortress Press, 2005.
4 Strayer, Robert W. Ways of the World a Global History with Sources. Bedford/St. Martin's, 2013.
5 Mackinnon, James. Luther and the Reformation. Russell and Russell, 1962.
 Pazos 2

This is a pivotal point because this will ultimately lead to him to discover how someone can

achieve salvation. After some time studying the scriptures, Martin Luther realized all the

malpractices the Catholic church was committing. So he decided to debate these wrongful

practices by writing the 95 Theses and nailing them in the church’s door in Wittenberg on

October 31, 1517. Martin Luther took advantage of the printing press to spread his thoughts on

the church. The catholic church was not happy about this. The first person to retract his ideas

was a Franciscan jurist, theologian, and satirist Thomas Murner.6 He wrote many treaties against

Luther’s ideas. He believed that matters of faith should not be disputed among the common

people.7 There were others who had the same thoughts Murner had, however, Luther was quick

to respond to whoever tried to retract his ideas.8 He demonstrated to people that they should

question the church and all the practices. At the end, in 1521, Pope Leo formally

excommunicated Luther from the Catholic church.9 However, this didn’t stop Luther from doing

what he believed was right. Even though his main intentions were never to stray away from the

Catholic church but invoke change.10 It led to an entire movement, Protestant Reformation,

where people question the beliefs that they were told and to seek out the truth for themselves.11

The COVID-19 pandemic has many similarities to the plague that occurred during Martin

Luther's time. In 1527, Germany was struck with a plague and it reduced a concerning amount of

the population.12 Similarly, currently the world is suffering through a global pandemic. Luther

6 Edwards, Mark U. Printing, Propaganda, and Martin Luther. Fortress Press, 2005.
7 Ibid, 62.
8 Martin, John Jeffries. “Why Martin Luther Was an Early Media Revolutionary.” Duke Today. Accessed
September 29, 2020. https://today.duke.edu/2017/10/why-martin-luther-was-early-media-revolutionary.
9 “Martin Luther Posts His 95 Theses.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 24 Nov. 2009,
www.history.com/this-day-in-history/martin-luther-posts-95-theses.
10 Klingerman, Brandi. “The Lasting Impact of Martin Luther and the Reformation.” Notre Dame News,
October 26, 2017. https://news.nd.edu/news/the-lasting-impact-of-martin-luther-and-the-reformation/.
11 Strayer, Robert W. Ways of the World a Global History with Sources. Bedford/St. Martin's, 2013.
12 Leroux, Neil R. Martin Luther as Comforter: Writings on Death. Leiden: Brill, 2007. Accessed
September 22, 2020. ProQuest Ebook Central.
 Pazos 3

had various things to say about this matter on how to handle things when a pandemic occurs. For

one, he believed that if someone has spiritual responsibilities they should not flee from the

pandemic.13 Today, people are told to remain calm and stay at home to keep others safe. He also

expressed the need to help others when we see they are in trouble.14 During the COVID-19

pandemic people are starting to come together and help one another with food and job

insecurities.

Martin Luther has left a lasting impact on Protestant religions. Even still today

Protestants still celebrate the day he nailed the 95 Theses more than 500 years later. There are

some historians that believe that event may have never happened and Luther simply wrote it and

sent it to the Archbishop that day.15 Whether or not which of the two actually happened, he is

still considered one of the most influential leaders of the reformation. He inspired religious

freedom for all and created what is now known as the Lutheran faith. Martin Luther King Jr. was

inspired by him that he mimicked Luther’s 95 Theses by creating a list of demands for equal

rights to the Chicago city hall.16 He created the path for other Protestant religions besides the

Lutheran religion. Luther’s actions unintendedly led to people to decide whatever they want to

do in their life whether that spiritually or financially.17 Martin Luther became a big part of why

now people are able to choose what they want to do with their lives and decide for themselves

what path they want to take if that be spiritually or materially.

13 Leroux, Neil R. Martin Luther as Comforter: Writings on Death. Leiden: Brill, 2007. Accessed
September 22, 2020. ProQuest Ebook Central.
14 Ibid, 234.
15 Little, Becky. “Martin Luther Might Not Have Nailed His 95 Theses to the Church Door.” History.com.
A&E Television Networks, October 31, 2017. https://www.history.com/news/martin-luther-might-not-
have-nailed-his-95-theses-to-the-church-door.
16 Ibid.
17 Klingerman, Brandi. “The Lasting Impact of Martin Luther and the Reformation.” Notre Dame News,
October 26, 2017. https://news.nd.edu/news/the-lasting-impact-of-martin-luther-and-the-reformation/.
 Pazos 4

In this collection, there are a variety of primary sources. There are portraits, letters,

manuscripts, and photographs. The first portrait seen is one of Martin Luther painted in 1529 by

Lucas the Creator. The second piece is one of the many letters Luther has written to prove his

point that what the church nobility is doing is wrong and must be corrected. The third artifact the

widely known 95 Theses that is believed Luther has nailed onto the door of the church in

Wittenberg. The fourth is a photograph of one of the many memorials in Germany dedicated to

Martin Luther. The fifth is a hymn Martin Luther wrote about the worshipping the one true God

which was one of his biggest messages. The sixth primary source in the collection is an evening

prayer said by Martin Luther.

Martin Luther was a key figure for the Protestant reformation. His intentions were never

to separate from the church, however it brought up the idea that there were other ways to worship

God beside the way the Catholic church has taught them. He helped establish the idea that we

should be “letting God be God”.18 Which means that their focus is establishing a direct

relationship with God without having to go through legalities like rites of passage or sacraments.

These ideas ultimately led to the creation of Lutheran and other Protestant faiths throughout the

years. Many people back then and today believe that Luther was the chosen one from God to

lead the people through the reformation.19 There were so many parallels with the 1527 pandemic

and the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of his teachings on how to handle a pandemic have so many

similarities on how we currently handle it and how we should handle it. Martin Luther overall

became an influential figure in many of these Protestant churches and would even quote his

work. These churches would even celebrate the day he wrote 95 theses and nailed them at the

church of Wittenberg, which happened more than 500 years.

18 Marty, Martin E. “Reformer Revisited,” 2017.

19 Kolb, Robert. Martin Luther as Prophet, Teacher, Hero: Images of the Reformer, 1520-1620. Baker
Books, 1999.