Martin Luther was a monk in the Holy Roman Empire. Luther had paved the way to question the church which eventually led to the Protestant Reformation. His views on Christianity appealed to many people, but they were a threat to the Roman Catholic Church, thus causing much commotion throughout the countryside. Western Europe went through a series of religious, social, and political changes during the sixteenth-century.
             Luther felt that Christian belief must be based on the word of God, tradition, and faith. He was convinced that salvation is a free gift of God through faith. Luther stated, "...the merciful God justifies us by faith" (Thornton 1983, 1). According to Luther, the church and priests were unnecessary. He also said that there is no difference between priests and commoners. He states, "All Christians are truly of the spiritual estate and there is no difference among them" (Robinson 1). That obviously went against the Pope's authority. Under the Catholic Church, salvation could be performed only with the aid of priesthood. Luther made his point clear by challenging the church doctrine with his 95 Theses.
             Protestantism was such a threat to the Roman Catholic Church that peasants started to defy their masters by adopting a different faith. Politically, it gave them less control and power over the people. They used to have control over large continents, but now it has spread out to form localized communities. The church was not collecting money because of the revolts. Without indulgences, land donations, tithes and taxations, there would be less money made for the Roman Catholic Church. The Roman Catholic Church tried to calm down the violence but it did not work. There was then a Counter-Reformation to the Protestants. They tried to convert Protestants back to Christianity, which did not work.
             Martin Luther's interpretation of Christianity was appealing to both ...