Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation
Martin Luther was an Augustinian monk and a Christian philosopher whose writings inspired the Protestant Reformation and had a significant influence on the beliefs of many different Christian traditions. I was born in Eisleben in 1483, and after becoming a German monk, I started one of the biggest religious revolutions in Western history, if not the biggest. I was baptized on the feast of St. Martin, after whom my parents, my father Hans Luther and mother Margaretha Luther titled me. People from all over the world and Christians throughout history will remember me as the man who opposed the papacy and dedicated my life to making Christianity understandable to everyone. I endeavored to reform the church due to its support for the purchasing and selling of indulgences which prompted further examination of various diverse issues in the Catholic Church. Although my attack of the Catholic Church brought about controversies and caused war among Christians, my teachings have positively influenced religious traditions. My teachings sought for the inclusion of all Christians despite their financial status as observed by my efforts to making an interpretation of the Bible into German for all everyday citizens to peruse, emphasizing the best approach to righteousness through God's word rather than indulgences, and creating catechisms and hymns to aid all Christians in comprehending the Bible. Disagreeing with indulgences additionally symbolized the position I took with the poor who could barely afford food let alone purchasing their entrance into Heaven and that salvation could be achieved through God's word. Calling the Church to return to the Bible teachings brought about the Counter-Reformation in the Roman Catholic Church and the formation of new customs within Christianity.
Difficult Childhood and Journey to Becoming a Monk
I had a tough childhood without the customary joys that other children had. Truth be told, on various occasions, my parents beat me until blood flowed (Ganns). In addition to my parents, in my early school day morning, I would be rebuffed no less than fifteen times. It was this severity and cruelty of the life I had that forced me to run away to a monastery and become a monk (Ganns, 1910). This period of my life is in all likelihood the primary reason why the suffering and pain in the lives of ordinary individuals disgusted me. It became one of my principal inspirations to change what was not right. In 1505, I entered the Augustinian monastery after I completed my studies and received a master's and lived a peaceful, cheerful life where my brain was undisturbed, and my heart was calm. Little did I know that my life was going to turn into one of the greatest ever lived.
Challenging the Roman Catholic Church
With a center in Rome, the Roman Catholic Church had manifested all over Europe. Going beyond national, linguistic, racial, and geographic borders, it had become similar to a disease that spread all over the continent, impacting each aspect of life, from culture to society. What I gradually found on my mission to Rome was that as a consequence of this rapid expansion, the attention of the Church on riches and influence appeared to overshadow its dedication to the search of sacredness in this world and salvation in the next (Perry). My goal was to change the church. I perceived God as a fierce judge who wanted sinners to procure their righteousness which started the Lutheran revolt. I began by simply publicly attacking indulgences. Few individuals at the time would speculate that I would, in the long run, divide the continent between religious boundaries. As opposed to following the Church's rules and regulations, Lutheranism was about believing in one's own personal faith. I educated the general population about how their fate was a result of their actions, not the expressions of the Roman Church, and certainly not liberalities. I trusted that everybody ought to have the capacity to peruse the book of scriptures and translate it in their own specific manner. I did not believe that clergies were a mediator between the people and God or necessary translators of the Bible. I introduced and ultimately defined individualism.
The Ninety-Five Theses and the Protestant Reformation
After publicly attacking indulgences, I released my ninety-five theses which immediately circulated all through Europe and served as the foundation for numerous reformers. In 1517, I changed the course of humankind's history when I nailed my Theses to the Wittenberg church door, condemning the Roman Catholic Church for heresy upon heresy. "I would never have thought that such a storm would rise from Rome over one simple scrap of paper" (Ganss). Many individuals refer to this act as the beginning of the Protestant Reformation. My action was primarily a reaction to the sale of indulgences by the Dominican priest, Johann Tetzel. I believed that indulgences were false and conflicted with God's salvation; people could achieve salvation through God's compassion and forgiveness rather than through money. I believed that "Our Lord and Master Jesus Christ, when He said Poenitentiam agite, willed that the whole life of believers should be repentance" (Luther). My charges challenged the clergy's position with respect to individual salvation.
Spread of Lutheranism and the Counter-Reformation
As a result of the recently created printing press, my ninety-five theses quickly spread far and wide, and they led to an incredible division in Germany as well as all through Europe. I thought the Church was at the time, a corrupt body, and expressing it so anyone might hear motivated others to back me. This group split from the Catholics and began the Protestant Reformation (Close). To respond to this Protestant Movement, the church began a Counter-Reformation (referred to as the Catholic Revival or the Catholic Reformation). It was a movement that aimed to reform the Catholic Church from within and shield itself from Protestant protests at the start of the Protestant Reformation (Schumacher). This Reformation was extensive and contained five noteworthy components: political dimensions, spiritual movements, religious orders, structural reconfiguration, and the doctrine (Schumacher). These reforms incorporated the establishment of seminaries for the best possible training for priests in the philosophical conventions of the Church, the return of religious life to spiritual foundations, and new profound developments focusing on the personal relationship between man and Christ.
Translating the Bible into German
I also translated the New Testament, and later the entire book of Scriptures into German - the people's local language. Before I translated the Bible, it was only intended to be perused by the clergy. I translated the Bible so that the people could figure out on their own what Jesus' teachings meant as well as what might prompt salvation (Zecher). My translation led to a development of Christianity making it so that it was no longer the clergymen ad papacy who totally controlled what the truth was, and what individuals ought to accept. It would be up to the peoples' interpretation on what they felt was true and what they ought to think as per the expressions of the book of scriptures. Other Protestant versions in different languages, mainly the English, Dutch, and French followed my version. The Bible became naturalized; it was no longer a foreign book written in a foreign tongue. As a result, it became significantly more clear and dear to the average citizens. From this point forward, the Reformation no longer depended on the Reformers' works; instead, it depended on the book of God, which everyone could read for themselves as a guide to spiritual life (Zecher). This tremendous gift of an open Bible for everyone, without the consent or mediation of priest or pope, denoted an enormous progress in Church history. This act gave ordinary individuals the ability to peruse the book of scriptures and comprehend it for themselves and likewise served as a final demonstration when the Roman Church lost its power. Despite the fact that my wish was not to overthrow the Church, I took a great stride in taking power from the Church amid medieval times. I opened numerous people's eyes and gave hope to the individuals that felt hopeless.
Legacy and Importance in Christianity
A professor of philosophy and theology, and above all, an important figure of the Protestant Reformation of the sixteenth century, I, Martin Luther, challenged the most powerful religion of the time. What I did influenced the lives of millions all around the globe. I am known as the father of Protestantism, the man that altered and reshaped the course of Christianity. My works resulted in a movement that has hugely impacted the modern western world. These works, justifying faith and giving the Bible the final authority over choices, were embraced by numerous other reformers. I was not the first person to attempt to bring the Church's corruption to the light, but by picking up where those before me had left, I managed to usher in new ideas that would forever change people's views of religion. Ultimately, I significantly impacted the expression and development of Christianity by the Protestant Reformation, which led to the Counter-Reformation, exposing the Catholic Church's corrupt nature, and translating the Bible into German. Due to these important reasons, I am a critical figure in Christianity's history and development.
Works Cited
Close, Niicole. "The Protestant Reformation, Magic, and Religion." 2006. Guided History. Web. 17 April 2017.
Ganss, Henry. "Martin Luther." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 9. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 17 Apr. 2017 .
Luther, Martin. The Ninety-five Thesis. 1517.
Perry, Marvin. Western Civilization, A Brief History. New York: Cengage Learning, 2015. Print.
Schumacher, John. "Recent Views on the Catholic Reformation." Ateneo Online Journal (1991): 46-76.
Zecher, Henry. "The Bible Translation That Rocked the World." Christian History 1992.
