Home: www.ProphecyWatch.biz

The Ninety-Five Theses on the Power of Indulgences

Commonly known as The Ninety-Five Theses, was written by Martin Luther in 1517 and is widely regarded as the primary catalyst for the Protestant Reformation. Luther used these theses to display his displeasure with the Church's sale of indulgences, and this ultimately gave birth to Protestantism. The background to Luther's Ninety-five Theses centers on particular disputes with the Roman Catholic Church dealing with the offering of indulgences — the granting of forgiveness — being sold, and thus the penance for sin was a commercial transaction instead of a genuine change of heart. In short, the practice of indulgences became somewhat commoditized (along with venerating holy relics) and then commercialized. When these people came to confession, they presented their plenary indulgences which they had paid good silver money for, claiming they no longer had to repent of their sins, since the document promised to forgive all their sins. Luther was outraged that they had paid money for what was theirs by right as a free gift from God. He felt compelled to expose the fraud that was being sold to the pious people. This exposure was to take place in the form of a public scholarly debate at the University of Wittenberg. The Ninety-five Theses outlined the items to be discussed and issued the challenge to any and all comers. On October 31, 1517, Luther approached the competent church authorities with his pressing call for reform. On this day he presented them with his theses and the request that they call a halt to the unworthy activities of the indulgence preachers. When the bishops did not respond, or when they sought merely to divert him, Luther circulated his theses privately. The Ninety-five Theses spread quickly and were printed in Nuremberg, Leipzig, and Basel. Suddenly they were echoing throughout Germany and beyond its borders The Ninety-five Theses gained enormous popularity over a very short period of time. Luther's ideas resonated with people regardless of class, status, or wealth, at a time when such concepts were integral to social order.

Pope Leo X wished for Martin Luther to recant 41 purported errors, some from the Ninety-five Theses and others from other writings and sayings attributed to Luther. This Luther famously refused to do before the Diet of Worms in 1521, thus symbolically initiating the Protestant Reformation.

Sources:Wikipedia Mignt not reflect later edits to articles.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_95_Theses

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Ninety-Five_Theses&oldid=183287362

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________