Intro Roman Catholic practice and belief were woven into the tapestry that made up life for a 15th-century German peasant, from the cradle to the grave, retrospectively, Martin Luther's ideas did revolutionise the practice of Christianity. Luther challenged the presiding religious authority of the time, the Roman Catholic Church, leading to a fracturing of Protestants and Catholics and eventually leading to the subsequent denominations we have today. Luther protested the commercialisation of salvation via the sale of indulgences. Maintaining that, ‘salvation was a gift from God’ obtained sola fide, by faith alone and not influenced by good deeds or acts of charity, as this is akin to bribery. He held the belief that the Bible was the ultimate …show more content…
He argues there are two distinct branches of authority: Secular and Spiritual. Spiritual authority is wielded by Christ and exercised through the Holy Spirit, secular authority is wielded by the government, which he refers to as ‘princes and lords’. Luther argues the majority of Christians are not truly Christian and will act in a way that is violent, selfish, and greedy; secular authority is legitimized by its ability to keep social order and prevent injustice; despite this pessimistic view of human nature, they do not need to be wise or virtuous to do …show more content…
Thus no man should be directing souls on how to get to heaven as they are ignorant of God's intentions. Luther seeks to delineate between secular and spiritual authorities as it allows for greater freedom of religious thought. Second Paragraph Indulgences were a feature of Roman Catholicism that granted full or partial remission of the punishment of sin, were endorsed and sold by members of the clergy to the laity supported by the Pope, citing their surplus treasury of ‘good merit’ stored up by past saints as a qualifier for ‘spiritually underwriting’ them Luther protested against this. This was secular authority (wielded by governments) infringing upon spiritual authority (wielded by Christ). They look to coerce belief, preaching that they have an assured way to save a soul or lessen time spent in