A Duel of Faith
Martin Luther and the Roman Catholic Church’s Battle of Beliefs
The theological showdown that led to the birth of Protestantism.
In the early 16th century, a German monk named Martin Luther found himself increasingly disillusioned with the practices of the Roman Catholic Church. His growing concerns would ignite a theological revolution, challenging the very foundations of the Church’s beliefs and leading to the birth of Protestantism.
The Spark: The Ninety-Five Theses
In the heart of the Holy Roman Empire, in the year 1517, a seismic shift was about to rock the foundations of the Catholic Church. Martin Luther, a German monk and professor of theology, was deeply troubled by what he perceived as grave theological errors and corrupt practices within the Church.
One of the most egregious of these was the sale of indulgences. These indulgences, peddled by Church officials, were essentially promises to reduce the temporal punishment in purgatory for sins committed by the purchaser or their loved ones. In essence, they were seen by many as “get out of purgatory free” tickets.
Luther believed that this practice not only exploited the faithful by playing on their fears of the afterlife but…
