Martin Luther, a Catholic monk, thought the Church had gone too far when it required people to buy indulgences - a kind of financial transaction to absolve sins. Luther was especially upset with Johann Tetzel, a Dominican monk, who told folks they could get their deceased friends out of purgatory if they only dropped money into Tetzel's indulgence box. (This site is not in English but has a terrific picture of Tetzel selling his wares.)

Remorse for sins - not coins dropping into a money box - was Luther's interpretation of the Bible. He thought it was wrong for people to think they could "buy" their way to salvation. He believed the Pope wanted people to buy Indulgences to profit the Church (and build St. Peter's in Rome), not to save the souls of the buyers. He said so publicly in his list of "95 Theses."

Not content to merely write up the abuses, Luther tacked them to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany for all to see. The Diet (governing council) was convened in Worms to judge Luther. At that "trial" Luther refused to recant and uttered his famous (probably apocryphal) words: "Here I stand; I can do no other." Those actions started the Protestant Reformation.

Saved from the stake by the help of the German ruler, Frederick the Wise, Luther had to hide from ecclesiastical authorities. Frederick put him up in the Castle of the Wartburg. During that time, using Tyndale's manuscripts, Luther translated the new Testament into German and ultimately translated the entire Bible.

Luther's Bible was the first book published for mass circulation on the Gutenberg press in the nearby city of Mainz. But Luther's Bible, like so many vernacular translations before it, fell victim to the Pope's decrees and was burned in 1624.

Luther's books were exquisitely illustrated, like this prayer book, and his hymns are still sung today. (This German original of "A Mighty Fortress is our God" is just one example). Here is a link to a beautiful page of Luther's 1582 Bible depicting Joshua praying for the people's courage and protection.

Even though they were ordered to be burned, the new invention - Gutenberg's printing press - made destruction of all Luther's translations very difficult. When books were no longer copied by hand, there were thousands more to destroy. Gutenberg's invention had changed everything.

GO TO STORY INDEX