Martin Luther Religious Influence

Martin Luther was a German monk and professor at the University of Wittenberg in Germany. He is one of Western history’s most significant figures as his actions began the Reformation, a movement for religious reform. He lead a religious revolution that challenged the Church’s power. Martin Luther did more good than harm to the Church and European society as a whole because he sought truth about the Church, recognized that the selling of indulgences was unacceptable, and inspired the people of Europe. Luther recognized that the selling of indulgences was unacceptable and inspired others to speak up in what they believe in. A friar named Johann Tetzel was raising money to rebuild St. Peter’s Cathedral in Rome. He did this by selling indulgences and, “gave people the impression that by buying indulgences, they could buy their way into heaven.” (55) Tetzel’s method of raising money bothered Luther because you cannot simply buy your way into heaven. In the Bible, Christ teaches that by faith alone is the key to salvation and Luther believes that the Bible is the only reliable resource of truth. Luther and other reformers “found that many of the practices and teachings of the Church about how we

Because of the Reformation, Protestant churches flourished and new denominations developed. The Roman Catholic Church became more unified and both Catholics and Protestants gave more emphasis to the role of education in promoting their beliefs which led to the founding of schools and new colleges and universities throughout Europe. Also, individual monarchs and states gained power which led to the development of modern nation-states. Luther made Europe a better place and gave the people of Europe religious and political