Martin Luther’s 95 Theses
On October 31st, 1517, Martin Luther published his “Disputation on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences” (the 95 Theses). There is debate on whether he actually nailed them to the church door, and whether that occurred on the 31st if it happened at all. Posting an academic disputation on church doors was customary - and in fact at the time was required by the university in Wittenberg. The 95 Theses were written in Latin and sent to various people who Luther wanted included in the discussion, such as the Archbishop of Mainz, Albert of Brandenburg.
Luther’s nailing of the 95 Theses, if it happened at all, was not an act of protest. It was a standard protocol for a university professor who wanted a debate. It is the reaction of the Pope that turned an academic debate into what is now referred to as “The Protestant Reformation.”
The preface to the 95 Theses reads as follows:
“Out of love for the truth and from desire to elucidate it, the Reverend Father Martin Luther, Master of Arts and Sacred Theology, and ordinary lecturer therein at Wittenberg, intends to defend the following statements and to dispute on them in that place. Therefore he asks that those who cannot be present and dispute with him orally shall do so in their absence by letter. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.”
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In 1521, Luther was called before the Diet of Worms and asked to recant all of his works (25 books). He responded that he could not, because much of what was in his works was in line with the Vatican and basic Christian doctrine. He said that if anyone could show his errors by Scripture, he would recant. He said:
“Unless I am convinced by the testimony of the Scriptures or by clear reason (for I do not trust either in the pope or in councils alone, since it is well known that they have often erred and contradicted themselves), I am bound by the Scriptures I have quoted and my conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and will not recant anything, since it is neither safe nor right to go against conscience. Here I stand, I cannot do otherwise. May God help me. Amen.”
The term “Protestant Reformation” is an oxymoron. The Lutheran Reformation was never intended to be a protest or an effort to “make a new church”. It was always a call for reform and a return to the clear teachings of Scripture within the Church. Protestantism, by contrast, is marked by an intentional effort to break way from the Roman Catholic Church - rejecting many of the good teachings and practices of the Rome along with the bad.
