Martin LutherMartin Luther was a religious reformer during the Reformation. He was born in Germany and became a professor of Theology in Wittenberg. He was angry when John Tetzel tried to sell indulgences in Wittenberg.

In response he wrote the 95 Thesis and nailed it to the Castle door. In it he set out his reforms for the Church. He believed in “Justification by Faith Alone”. This meant he felt man could only get to heaven by faith alone and not with good works also. He believed priests could marry because it said nothing against it in the Bible. He rejected the power of the Pope and instead said people should look to the Bible alone for guidance. He believed in

only 2 sacraments, Baptism and Communion as they were the only two he found in the Bible. He also believed that all Church services should be in the native language of the people (vernacular).

The Pope sent Luther a Papal Bull (Letter) which Luther burned in public. Following this Luther was excommunicated. Luther was called to the Diet of Worms where he was declared an outlaw because he refused to withdraw his ideas. Luther was hidden by Frederick of Saxony in his castle. While he was there he translated the Bible into German. This helped the teachings of Luther to spread. Germany became divided into Protestants and Catholics. The conflict was resolved with the Peace of Augsburg. This stated that

the ruler of each region would decide on the religion of their own area. Luther’s reforms would go on to change Europe forever.