Martin Luther (1483-1546)
Major
leader of the German Reformation. Luther's father came from peasant background,
but achieved success in the mining industry so that he was able to afford an
excellent education for his son. Luther began his studies at the Ratschule in
Mansfeld and probably attended the Cathedral School at Magdeburg, where he came
under the influence of the Brethren of the Common Life. He completed his
preparatory education at the Georgenschule in Eisenach before entering the
University of Erfurt in 1501. He received his B.A. in 1502 and his M.A. in
1505. In accordance with his father's wishes he had begun study for a law
degree when a brush with death in a thunderstorm, July, 1505, caused him to
make a vow to become a monk.
While
in the monastery Luther began the serious study of theology at Erfurt. In 1508
he was sent to Wittenberg to lecture on moral philosophy at the newly founded
University of Wittenberg. In 1509 he returned to Erfurt, where he continued his
studies and delivered lectures in theology. His teachers at Erfurt adhered to
the nominalist theology of William of Ockham and his disciple, Gabriel Biel,
which disparaged the role of reason in arriving at theological truth and placed
a greater emphasis on free will and the role of human beings in initiating their
salvation than did traditional scholasticism. In 1510-11 Luther made a trip to
Rome on a mission for his order. While in Rome he was shocked by the
worldliness of the clergy and disillusioned by their religious indifference. In
1511 he was sent back to Wittenberg, where he completed his studies for the
degree of Doctor of Theology in October, 1512. In the same year he received a
permanent appointment to the chair of Bible at the university.
The
Reformation began in October, 1517, when Luther protested a major abuse in the
sale of indulgences in his Ninety-five Theses. These were translated into
German, printed, and circulated throughout Germany, arousing a storm of protest
against the sale of indulgences. When the sale of indulgences was seriously
impaired, the papacy sought to silence Luther. He was first confronted at a
meeting of his order held in Heidelberg on April 26, 1518, but he used the
Heidelberg disputation to defend his theology and to make new converts. In
August of 1518 Luther was summoned to Rome to answer charges of heresy, even
though he had not taught contrary to any clearly defined medieval doctrines.
Because Luther was unlikely to receive a fair trial in Rome, his prince, Frederick
the Wise, intervened and asked the papacy to send representatives to deal with
Luther in Germany. Meetings with Cardinal Cajetan in October, 1518, and Karl
von Miltitz in January, 1519, failed to obtain a recantation from Luther,
although he continued to treat the pope and his representatives with respect.
Martin
Luther did not draw deeply enough from God's word, to see the absolute
necessity of sanctification. He even preached against the teaching of Jesus, in
Matthew 5:48 "Be ye therefore
perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect." If Luther had received the spiritual insight
of William Law, he would of been used of God to lead many into the Spirit of
God, and out of "walking in the flesh!" And thus many would of been
saved, that were not!