Martin Luther Flashcards
(30 cards)
Dates
1483-1546
95 Theses
1517
A list of arguments condemning the Catholic Church’s sale of indulgences and challenging papal authority, sparking the Protestant Reformation
Examples of theses: Doing the act means nothing without pure intention. God alone remits guilt and the Church only has the authority to dispense penance on rules they made
Luther catalysed ongoing change - what change? (3)
Fewer charitable institutions
Shift from charitable activities towards establishing academic institutions
Giving was increasingly seen in an ecology of relationships between rich/poor and living/dead
Five ‘Sola’s
Sola Scriptura (Scripture Alone) - This principle asserts that the Bible is the ultimate authority for Christian belief and practice, rather than tradition or human authority
Sola Fide (Faith Alone) - This emphasises that salvation is received through faith in Jesus Christ alone, not through good works or any other human effort
Sola Gratia (Grace Alone) - This highlights that salvation is a free gift from God, given through His grace, not earned or deserved by humans
Solus Christus (Christ Alone) - This affirms that Jesus Christ is the only mediator between God and humanity, and the only path to salvation
Soli Deo Gloria (Glory to God Alone) - This principle emphasises that all glory and praise belong to God alone, and that everything humans do should be done to His glory
Indulgence (3)
Penitence was allowed to be done by another person
Indulgences were certificates sold by the Catholic Church, claiming to reduce punishment for sins in purgatory
They were often marketed as a way to secure salvation for oneself or loved ones, exploiting fears of eternal damnation
What are indulgences based on?
Based on the idea that there are two distinct but related consequences of sin
Eternal consequences - Recognised in Catholicism that God does forgive freely
Temporal consequences - The Church is at liberty to dispense with punishment to restore God’s honour
Matthew 16:19
‘I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.’
Pope Leo X
Authorised the sale of indulgences to fund the rebuilding of St Peter’s Basilica in Rome
Johann Tetzel
Dominican friar
Became infamous for aggressively promoting indulgences in Germany
Tetzel’s slogan, ‘As soon as the coin in the coffer rings, the soul from purgatory springs,’ angered many reform-minded Christians
Luther on Indulgences (4)
Viewed the practice as a corruption of true Christian doctrine and an abuse of Church authority
Sola Gratia/Fide
Held that the truly repentant person has their sins remitted anyway (as it is a matter of intention) and so Indulgences serve no obvious function
If the Pope wants to remit temporal debts then he ought to do without getting paid for such
True peace of mind comes from following Christ and indulgences were a false spiritual security
Disputation Against Scholastic Theology, 1516 (3)
Not explicitly anti-Aquinas but distancing himself from Aquinas’ thought
Says Aquinas is wrong for saying one cannot become a theologian without becoming ‘one with Aristotle’
Believed scripture is the proper source on Christian theology
Treatise on Good Works, 1520 (5)
It is not only the obviously holy who are holy. The father who raises his children is being just as ethical as someone on a pilgrimage if his actions are in faithful service to God.
Argues that Christians must oppose injustice regardless of the victim’s status
Condemns hypocrisy and double standards, particularly towards the poor
Frames care for the marginalised as a non-negotiable Christian duty
Positions neglect of the poor as a moral failing of the Christian community
To the Christian Nobility of the German Nation, 1520 (3)
An appeal to secular rulers to take responsibility for reform, both spiritual and civic
Establishes Luther’s doctrine of the ‘two kingdoms’ – spiritual and temporal
Suggests that while theology underpins social welfare, the state is its executor
Diet of Worms, 1521
Luther’s defence rested upon the principle that theology should only proceed on the basis of the scriptures
Says he will only submit to the Catholic Church if they are in agreement with reason and/or scripture, as they were wrong so many times before
Defence and Explanation of the Articles, 1521 (4)
Lays out his central idea - ‘salvation through faith alone’
For Luther, the Gospel’s primary function is to illuminate the truth
The Church has a responsibility to hold the government to account when it fails
Exhorts the aristocracy to defend the Reformation from the Papacy
Ordinance of a Common Chest, 1522 (5)
A practical document outlining how the local community should manage charitable giving and resources for the poor via a shared treasury (common chest)
Advocates collective, structured support for the poor
Encourages community contributions from various trades
Shows Luther’s desire to institutionalise charity, not leave it to chance
Suggests a merging of civic administration with Christian duty
OCC - ‘knavery’
‘The knavery which is practised by officiales and other episcopal and spiritual officers’
Reflects Luther’s disillusionment with ecclesiastical authority.
OCC - ‘aid’ (3)
‘Aid should arise from ‘Christian love, to the honour and praise of God’
Highlights explicitly theological language framing social welfare
Connects love for neighbour directly with love for God
Luther’s political theology
Sometimes translated as ‘the Teaching of the Two Kingdoms’
An account of the ecology of relationships in a society such as the secular and ecclesiastical authorities belong together in a divinely ordered political life
Argued that the government is responsible for charity and care, but the Church had a role too
Who has said similar things?
Joachim de Fiore and Jan Hus
Why is so much emphasis placed on Luther?
Often too much emphasis is placed on this e.g. banknotes with Martin Luther on them in East Germany
Incredible orator
Move from a barter economy to a cash economy (4)
Money could be exchanged and transported, so labour could too
Money could be invested or borrowed
Rising middle class/bourgeoisie
Increased the Church’s reliance on monetary payments (like indulgences and tithes), fueling resentment over corruption
1529 Siege of Vienna by the Ottomans
Europe faced the very real possibility that a central capital could fall to the Ottomans, causing almost apocalyptic anxieties, prompting Catholic authorities to focus on external threats over internal reform - delaying the Church’s response to Protestant critiques and deepening divisions that fueled the Reformation
Technology (3)
Luther had the Gutenberg Press - 1440
40 books a year were published in German before, but in 1593 there were 498 books printed, half of which by Luther, the rest by other Reformers
Estimated that by 1546 there were 3.1 million copies of his writings in circulation
