What Is Luther's 95 Theses And Their Effect On German Lay People

Martin Luther’s 95 Theses and Their Effect on German Lay People

In October of 1517, Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of the Wittenberg Church. The start of the Protestant Reformation was marked by this moment and was followed by a long line of theologists that wished to follow in Luther’s revolutionary footsteps. The German lay people lost faith in an absent and oppressive religious regime and sparked civil unrest and disobedience. Luther found the unavailability of information and restriction of scripture to be a violation of what religion stood for, he saw it as a form of blasphemy. Luther’s focal point with his 95 Theses was the selling of indulgences, which allowed people to purchase salvation from the church at an extremely

high price, he believed this was done because of the Church’s greed rather than for the sake of the religious.

Luther, upon seeing this, wrote his 95 Theses as a response, claiming that “Christians should be exorted to be diligent in following Christ, their Head, through penalties, death, and hell. And thus be confident of entering into heaven through many tribulations rather than through the false security of peace.” With these words, the Protestant Reformation was set into motion and the lay people were given the opportunity to truly believe that they were worthy of salvation even if they were not rich. The German lay people directly contributed to the profound effect of Martin Luther’s 95 Theses because they used its controversial ideas to take power away from the Catholic Church, which had oppressed them for centuries. In addition, Melanchthon and Muntzer were two people who took Luther’s words and used them in entirely different ways, contributing to the flow of

revolutionary attitudes and social uprising against the Catholic Church.
Martin Luther first changed his mentality s concerning the Catholic Church when he saw a preacher, encouraging and preaching the purchasing of indulgences. This preacher professed that indulgences can free one from sin. Luther found this preposterous as he believed that a sinner could be forgiven through faith alone and that suffering in purgatory is just one part of a living a devout christian life. Luther believed that these teachings were blasphemous and in response to this, he wrote his 95 Theses on the injustices performed by the Church. The Theses were less of an act of rebellion as they were a simple series of suggestions; however, upon hearing the Church’s reaction, he turned against the Catholic Church almost entirely. Luther also had controversial opinions on the sacraments. In his Theses, he criticized the sacrament of penance and even the Pope himself. Luther degraded the Pope in a subtle way, claiming that his actions are not providing anybody with salvation and that he is violating the sacrament of Penance. He also believed that the sacraments should be tangible, which later led him to believe that the only true sacraments were the Eucharist and Baptism.
Luther, who was known for wishing to reform faith among people, opposed the peasants who wished to change secular law as well. Luther, just after being held at Wittenberg castle, worked on a translation of the bible into German because he believed that German priests were taking advantage of lay people who could not read the Latin scripture. First, he published the New Testament before the Old Testament because of its importance to the Theses as well as its focus on the sacrament of penance. Upon reading this, german people fought to have a secular system of law which would be ruled by the Bible because it was more straightforward than the rules they currently lived by. Much to the peasants surprise, Luther turned against them when they fought for biblical law when in German Peasants Revolt of 1524. Luther also had a developing opinion on the Self, at first he believed that it was a selfish being and that faith should be kept separate from personal improvement and progress. He is quoted remarking, “Progress is nothing other than constantly beginning.” Mary Gaebler argues in her journal, “Luther on the Self,” that he came to believe that the Self was extremely important to the study of faith and that the development of the Self was, in fact, part of being a devout christian.
Luther’s 95 Theses also inspired many other theologists, one of these being Phillipe Melanchthon. Melanchthon was a German theologist and is often considered the second founder of Lutheranism. He agreed with Luther in his opinions for the reform of the Church and his theologies largely followed Luther’s template. Not only were there those inspired by his movement, but it was also followed by other theologists in a completely different direction. Thomas Muntzer followed Lutheranism at first, but he quickly developed his own ideas of how religion should be interpreted. Muntzer, unlike Luther, was not opposed to the peasants rebellion, in fact, he supported it and was an extremely influential figure. Muntzer believed that the common people were the true vessels of God and that the aristocracy was the officialdom that was corrupt within the world. Muntzer believed that no man could fear both God and the secular world. He rejected officialdom and believed that Luther was simply a mouthpiece for rich and powerful due to his opposition to the peasants uprising. Because of his theology, Muntzer developed what was called the Subject and the Object, the Subject being God and the Object being man. This led him to believe that Luther was too busy with the fear of man and this made him a worshipper of the Object. Muntzer, as well as Luther’s ideas, inspired the Twelve Articles, which were generally agreed on by the common people during the Peasants Revolt of 1525. The Twelve Articles were a series of demands made by the common people of Germany. These demands included the abortion of serfdom, the return of fishing and hunting rights, and a restriction on taxes by the Church. Muntzer believed in rejecting officialdom and practicing civil disobedience. This inspired many peasants to do the same during the revolt.
The German Peasants Revolt of 1524 was caused by Martin Luther’s 95 Theses.

This information was largely available due to the printing press and an increase in the literacy among German common people. It began as a revolt against the Church but it quickly became a reflection of the social inequality during the period. Luther turns against the peasant people when they decide to fight for biblical law to become the secular law. Luther never intended to begin a secular war and only intended to point out the corruption within the Papacy and the Church. Muntzer was a true guiding force in this revolt, leading peasants to practice civil disobedience and a general rejection of the rules of the aristocracy. Most of these revolts were peaceful or involved small clashes of violence. During the climax of the rebellion, Luther wrote a book called “Against the Murdering and Robbing Hordes of Peasants,” in which he announced his opposition to the peasants rebellion and urged those trying to stop it to “stab, cut, kill, and do whatever else was necessary.” Luther pushed the aristocracy on, telling them that force was needed. Luther believed that this is what God wanted and that he was just in murdering the peasants who fought against him. Muntzer, in this time, repeatedly referred to him as “Dr. Liar,” and claimed that he had become a mouthpiece of rich and powerful. Muntzer, while developing his ideas throughout the peasants revolt, came to believe that Luther was blinded by a fear of the

aristocracy and that he no longer spoke for what God wanted.
Luther’s 95 Theses had a lasting effect on the Catholic Church and religions as a whole. Eastern Europe saw the rise of several new religions including Lutheranism, Calvinism, and Anabaptism. It also saw the rise of new theologists who were inspired by Luther’s theses on the Church. The questioning of religion in this era can also be tied to a rise in fear in the century to come. The Reformation can be tied to the witch trials. With the level of religious fear so high, people began to blame all things on the devil. Catholics would attack Protestants and call them witches and Protestants would do the same to Catholics. Thing such as homosexuality and female sexuality became linked to witchcraft and people were willing to accuse anyone if proper evidence was given. Despite these negative effects, the Protestant Reformation did free many people from the exploitation of the Catholic Church as well as create a lasting effect. Firstly, it inspired peasants to believe that they were capable of being saved even with the absence of money. The Theses questioned the Church’s taxes as well as questioned its authority. Peasants saw this as an opportunity to revolt as well as remain within the sanctity of religion. Secondly, Luther made advancements on the study of the self in perspective with religion. He criticized the sacraments and demonstrated that a quarrel with the Papacy could also be just in the eyes of God. Thirdly, Luther’s theses led to a rise in theologists who, in turn, transformed what religious society looked like. Theologists like Muntzer, proved to be influential in the peasants revolt and, although it was quelled, his method of civil disobedience carried on into literature and future rebellions. Luther’s Theses inspired peasants and theologists alike, creating a sphere of religious learning and a rise in doubt within the Catholic Church.