martin luther
Uploaded by keleigh on Mar 15, 2007
Martin Luther, one of the reformers who began the protestant reformation, was born in 1483. He lived in the small mining community of eisleben, Saxony. At a young age, martin Luther wanted to become a lawyer, but upon being over come by a storm one summer day Luther called in desperation, "saint Anne help! I will become a monk!" from then on Luther gave up studying law, and began to study to become a monk. After doing all things required of him to penetrate his sins, including making a trip to the holy land in Rome, Luther still felt overburdened by his sins. Reaching into this feeling, Luther came to believe that ceremonies and good deeds meant nothing, but an internal faith to god could lead one to salvation. Based on this belief martin Luther then developed Lutherism. In 1517 Luther challenged Tetzel and the church by posting his 95 these on the door of the castle church in Wittenberg, Germany, which was a common place at the time to post important news. This news spread more quickly and widely than Luther had expected, and though Luther did not want to break with the church, but because he challenged the church, the church leaders denounced him. Still, though, Luther soldiered on saying that the only religious authority was the bible, and that priests had no special role in helping save a sinner. Luther then followed up this proclamation by writing three publications that outlined his doctrines, though soon after Pope Leo X declared Luther a heretic and excommunicated him. This was not, however the end of martin Luther. Roman emperor Charles V then summoned Luther to the Imperial Diet, a meeting of all the important rulers in the empire, where he was commanded to take back all his ideas. Luther refused, and the diet of worms prohibited all printing of his works, and banished him from the empire.