Martin Luther: Saint or Sinner
~Anna Harnsberger~
Saint
* Martin Luther wanted to get rid of indulgences, this challenged the Church in a good way because indulgences were corrupt and a way of getting money. This could be seen in the letter to the archbishop protesting the sale of indulgences.
*The famous works of Luther, the "Ninety-Five Theses", criticized the Church. This was good, because it helped to show people what they were doing right, and what they were doing wrong. It was good that he gave people direction, rather than saying buy an indulgence or pay to see a relic and move on.
*An example of Luther being a Saint is when he attends an Imperial Diet. Here he defends his knowledge, which shows his honor to his religion as well as respect towards God. He simply does not lie about his beliefs to avoid trouble and stay safe, like many others would have if put into that situation.
Sinner
*Luther was a sinner because of his speaking out, and challenging the Church. Although he did not mean to split the Church and cause conflict, he did. He did just that, he caused the churches to split and this matter caused conflict for more than one hundred years afterward.
*A reason for Luther being a sinner was because of his intense nature. He was a sinner when he would tell people that they were damned if they committed a sin, and there was no way to make up for it. This in itself was a sin because it was causing harm to people mentally to know for example that if they bought an indulgence they were damned, because they did not know any better.
*Luther was a heretic, as named by Charles V. He was also declared an outlaw and was excommunicated. So if you look at him from a favoring of the Catholic Church perspective, then he was definitely a sinner.
Works Cited
"Diet of Worms". Google Images. 22 Dec. 2015.
"Luther at the Diet of Worms". Google Images. 22 Dec. 2015.
"Martin Luther". Google Images. 22 Dec. 2015.
"Martinho Lutero". Google Images. 22 Dec. 2015.
"The Ninety-Five Theses". Google Images. 22 Dec. 2015.
"Vatican Announces Plenary Indulgence For Year of Faith". Google Images. 22 Dec. 2015.