Reformation Sunday commemorates 500 years since Martin Luther posted 95 theses on the door of Wittenberg Castle church on Oct. 31, 1517.  Luther, an Augustinian monk in Germany, was disgusted with the sale of indulgences, a practice where financial contributions to the church were seen as suitable alternatives to true confession and penance.  The sale of indulgences became increasingly corrupt.  Johann Tetzel was a monk tasked with raising money to rebuild St. Peter’s basilica for the pope in Rome.  Tetzel was a pretty good salesman, selling indulgences to people who were afraid that their dead loved one was burning in purgatory.  He is said to have created the jingle: So wie das Geld im Kasten klingt; die Seele aus dem Fegfeuer springt [translated: As soon as the coin in the coffer rings, the soul from purgatory springs].  Luther was infuriated by this act of preying on the poor and uneducated, but even more so of the butchering of the Gospel of God’s free grace through Jesus Christ.

The theses were posted to promote an academic discussion around these issues.  But with the recent dawn of the printing press, the theses became wide spread, bringing about massive concern about the nature of indulgences and the authority of the church that had abused its power.  What rolled out of this small action on Luther’s part in many ways led to the Western world as we now know it.

<This article has been updated since its original publication on October 25, 2016>