CHRISTIANITY 235
A revolution in print
While the direct engagement of
people with the Scriptures was a
central plank of the Reformation,
there remained a large obstacle.
Many people were illiterate,
and even if they could read, the
Bible was available only in Latin,
and only to a select few, because
every copy had to be written out by
hand. Earlier attempts to translate
the Bible into the vernacular had
been resisted strongly by the
Catholic Church. As far back as
1382, John Wycliffe had translated
the Bible into English, but it was
not available to all.
By Luther’s day, however, the
printing press, which had been
invented by Johannes Gutenberg
in nearby Mainz in 1440, had
revolutionized the publishing
process. Luther harnessed this new
technology: he set out to translate
the Bible into the German language
as it was spoken by ordinary people,
publishing the New Testament
in 1522 and the whole Bible in
- The combination of Luther’s
colloquial language and the relative
cheapness of the printed Bible
meant that Christians across
Germany could soon read the
Scriptures for themselves. Before
long, both French and English
translations were printed, and
these fueled the spread of
Reformation ideas throughout
Europe. Alongside Bibles, the
printing presses of Europe churned
out hundreds of pamphlets and
books written by the Reformers,
which were eagerly consumed by
people thirsty for new ideas.Protest and schism
At first, Luther and his followers
simply wanted to bring about
reform within the Catholic Church,
hence their name, Reformers.
However, in a series of church
meetings known as “diets” (similar
to sessions of a parliament), it
became clear that the Catholic
Church would not accept the
demands of the Reformers, which
included independence from the
Pope, services in the local language
rather than Latin, and marriage for
the clergy. Hopes for reform of the
Catholic Church were finally dashed
at the Diet of Speyer in 1529.
Luther’s followers submitted a
“Letter of Protestation,” refusing
to submit to the authority of the
Church. From then on, they took
on the new name of Protestants,
which expressed their rejection
of Catholic authority in favor of
their newfound confidence in
interpreting the Bible themselves.Political support
The Protestant movement was
backed by a number of German
princes who took advantage of
Luther’s religious revolt to secure
the political independence of their
states. They began suppressing
the Catholic faith and Church
influence within their territories,
adopting the motto, Cuius regio
eius et religio (“Whoever is the ❯❯Martin Luther
Martin Luther was born in
Germany, in 1483. He gave up
law school in order to become
a monk, after nearly being
hit by a lightning bolt in a
thunderstorm. By 1508 he
was teaching theology at
the University of Wittenberg,
where he was also a priest.
Luther’s studies led him to
his key insight, which would
develop into the doctrine of
justification by faith: God
declares Christians to be
righteous in his sight simply
on account of their faith in
Him, and not because
of anything good they
might do (or, in the case
of indulgences, might buy).
Luther’s challenge to the
pope’s authority made him a
wanted man, but he refused
to recant. He spent the rest of
his life preaching and writing,
and by the time he died in
1546, the Lutheran Church
was well established.Key works1520 Appeal to the German
Ruling Class, calling for
reform of the church.
1534 the Luther Bible
(translation of Old and
New Testaments).Luther has been sent into
the world by the genius of
discord. Every corner of it
has been disturbed by him.
All admit that the corruptions
of the Church required
a drastic medicine.
Erasmus