Martin Luther and John Calvin were both very important leaders of the Protestant
Reformation. Although they were both against the Roman Catholic Church, they brought about
Martin Luther founded the group that are today known as Lutherans. He was ordained
a priest in 1507. He dealt with questions dealing with the structure of the church and with its
moral values. These questions were important in Luther's eyes, but the most important was how
to find favor with God. Luther tried to pray, fast, and repent, but he never felt self-satisfaction.
He eventually concluded that God's love was not a prize or a reward to be earned or won, but a
gift to be accepted. Luther further concluded that until man stops trying to achieve God's favor
through his own achievements he cannot truly understand God's grace. Luther also had the idea
that one did not need a priest to talk to God, he believed that one could pray and repent without
the help of anyone else. This was the idea for which Luther became famous.
In 1517, Luther was involved in a controversy which involved indulgences. Indulgences
were the idea that a person could donate money to a worthy cause in exchange for forgiveness
of their sins. Luther opposed this idea and stated his beliefs in his Ninety-Five Thesis, which he
posted on the castle door in Wittenberg, Germany.
In 1519, Luther had a debate in Leipzig with Johann Eck, a Roman Catholic theologian.
During this debate, Luther denied the supremacy of the Pope and stated that church councils
In 1521, Luther was excommunicated by Pope Leo X. Luther was then ordered to
appear before a council which demanded that he retract his teachings. Luther intern stated that
unless he was inspired to do so by scripture he would not "since it is neither safe nor right to go
Possible the most important contribution of Luther to s
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