Essay about Religious Beliefs of Martin Luther

Martin Luther was born on November 10th, 1483 in Eisleben, Germany. He was born to Hans and Maragarethe Luther. Hans was brought into the world a worker and left the land to become an excavator. Luther's father wanted a better life for him, he had extremely high hopes for Martin, he wanted him to become a lawyer. At age five, Luther started his schooling at a neighborhood institution where he was educated in writing, reading, and Latin. He built up an early passion for religious life at the age of thirteen while attending a school in Magdeburg.

But since Hans has different plans for Luther, he pulled him back from the school in Magdeburg and sent him to a new school in Eisenach. Then, in 1501 Luther entered the University of Erfurt and earned a master's degree in 1505. In July of that same year, he got stuck in a brutal thunderstorm. During the storm he was almost struck by a lightning bolt, and Luther declared that if he lived through the storm, he would become a Monk. He felt his survival was a sign from God, and on July 17th, 1505 he entered an Augustinian monastery

Luther started to carry on with his life as a monk while he continued his studies at the University of Erfurt and also at a university in Wittenberg. He obtained his doctorate on October 19th, 1512 and developed into a teacher of scriptural studies. Throughout the following five years Luther's proceeding with religious studies would lead him to intuition that would have great significance for Christian idea for a great length of time to come.

For abounding centuries, the Catholic Church affected every part of European humanity, culture, and politics. In sixteenth century Europe a few scholars and researchers were beginning to scrutinize the lessons of the Roman Catholic church. Also, during this time interpretations of the Bible were becoming more broadly accessible. The Catholic Church’s routine with regards to allowing “indulgences” to give vindication to sinners progressively turned corrupt. In 1517, a priest named Johann Tetzel began selling indulgences to raise money to rebuild St. Peters Basilica, and also to pay off previous debts. “The church taught that some individuals go directly to heaven, some go directly to hell, and others go to heaven after spending some time in purgatory. Punishment is necessary for those who sinned excessively but had the good fortune to repent before death. Indulgences were intended to remit portions of that time and punishment.” Luther did not believe in this.

“Martin Luther had two central ideas, that the Bible was the central religious authority and that humans may reach salvation only by their faith and not by their deeds.” He thought that the person who puts their trust and confidence in Christ will be forgiven by God, and that the persons soul is purified and released from any weight or blame for sins they have committed. Doing good deeds and paying for indulgences will not get a person into heaven.

Devoted to his beliefs and his objections of the Catholic Church, Luther wrote the “Disputation on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences”, which is also known as “The 95 Theses.” These theses were a list of questions and concerns he had about the Catholic Church. On October 31st, 1517 Luther nailed a copy of his theses to the door of the Wittenberg Castle Church in Germany. The first two on his list were his central ideas, and the remaining ninety-three also went hand in hand with beliefs. Most of his 95 theses examined the practice of selling indulgences. Luther believed no church or person can determine an individual's faith. Copies of “The 95 Theses” rapidly spread through Germany and eventually made it to Rome.

In 1518 Luther’s presence was requested in Augsburg, Germany to fight for his beliefs in front of a congregation. The result didn’t go in his favor. On November 9th, 1518 the pope censured his writings for going against the instruction of the church. In July of 1520, after examining Luther’s words, Pope Leo X determined that they were heretical, and he gave Luther one hundred and twenty days to recant. After Luther’s refused, Pope Leo banned him from the Catholic Church. On May 25th, 1521 the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V ordered that his writings be banned and destroyed.

Martin Luther is a standout amongst the most compelling figures in Western history. His writings and beliefs alternated the series of theological and cultural history in the west and indefinitely. “The 95 Theses” began an open insubordination to the church’s influence and broke the solidary of Christendom. Luther arranged these ideas at a crossroad in history ready for advanced religious knowledge and divided Western Christianity. Martin Luther and his 95 theses not only sparked the Protestant Reformation, but also had major influence in the formation of Protestantism. Unlike everyone else who went along with the orders of the Catholic Church, Luther questioned, attacked, went against it, and stuck with his beliefs. Luther not only changed history during that time period, but he permanently changed it indefinitely. If it wasn’t for Martin Luther religion could be very different today.

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