The Reformation

Martin Luther

1483 to 1546 · Germany

Martin Luther (1483 to 1546) was a German monk and professor whose protest against church corruption ignited the Protestant Reformation. On October 31, 1517 he posted his Ninety-Five Theses against the sale of indulgences, and from his study of Scripture he recovered the conviction that sinners are made right with God by faith alone, as a gift of grace. His stand reshaped Western Christianity, though his later writings against the Jews remain a grievous stain.

Life and context

Luther was born in Eisleben in 1483 and became an Augustinian monk, tormented for years by guilt before God. Reading Paul’s letter to the Romans, he came to peace over the words ‘the just shall live by faith.’ As a professor at Wittenberg he objected to the church selling indulgences, certificates claimed to reduce punishment for sin, and posted his Ninety-Five Theses in 1517. The dispute spread quickly with the new printing press. Excommunicated, he was summoned to the Diet of Worms in 1521 and refused to recant, saying his conscience was captive to the word of God (the ringing line ‘here I stand’ may be a later embellishment). In hiding at the Wartburg he translated the New Testament into German, and in 1525 he married a former nun, Katharina von Bora.

What he taught and wrote

Luther’s central conviction was justification by faith alone: we are accepted by God not by earning it but by trusting Christ’s finished work, on the authority of Scripture alone. He wrote the Ninety-Five Theses, On the Freedom of a Christian, a German Bible that shaped the language itself, and catechisms for ordinary families, and he composed the hymn ‘A Mighty Fortress Is Our God.’ Honesty requires naming the worst of him too: late in life he wrote On the Jews and Their Lies (1543), a viciously antisemitic tract later exploited by the Nazis, which his own tradition has since repudiated.

What his witness points us to

For all his faults, Luther’s great gift was to point away from human striving and back to Christ. His message is that no one climbs to God by being good enough; God comes down to us in Jesus, and grace is received, not earned.

Frequently asked questions

What did Martin Luther do?

Martin Luther (1483 to 1546) sparked the Protestant Reformation. In 1517 he posted his Ninety-Five Theses against the sale of indulgences, and he taught that sinners are justified before God by faith alone, on the authority of Scripture alone.

What are the Ninety-Five Theses?

The Ninety-Five Theses were a list of objections Luther posted in 1517, mainly against the sale of indulgences. Circulated by the printing press, they helped ignite the Reformation.

Was Martin Luther antisemitic?

Yes. Late in his life Luther wrote On the Jews and Their Lies (1543), a viciously antisemitic work later exploited by the Nazis. It is honestly named among the dark parts of his legacy, and his tradition has since repudiated it.