1. Martin Luther:
Arguably the most important historical figure
Of his era
By: Molly Walker
APWH, Ms. McEachen
Lesson 15 PBA/EQDB Final Product

2. Brief Biography
•Born on November 10, 1483 in
Eisleben, Germany
•Family devoid of warmth and affection
•Beaten by both parents
•“It was this harshness and
severity of the life I led with them
that forced me subsequently to
run away to a monastery and
become a monk”
•Ordained to priesthood in 1507
•Began protesting the sale of church
indulgences in 1517
•(stated it is God’s will to
forgive, not the Church’s based
on monetary payment)

3. What started it all: The 95 Theses
•Written in 1517
•Called the “primary catalyst”
for the Protestant Revolution
•Tacked the theses to the door
of door of the Castle Church of
Wittenberg on October
31, 1517
•(also known as All Saints
Day)
•Luther also translated the text
into German
•Pope issued rebuttal to
Theses
• (Exsurge Domine)
•Main topics include:
•Indulgences
•Clerical abuses
•Absolution
•Baptism

4. So…what did Luther’s
Reformation preach?
•Luther and Protestants believed (unlike the Catholics) that the bible
should be printed in the “people’s language”, not simply Latin
•Introduced the notion that God can be sought without the Pope or
leaders in fancy robes
•Brought to light the idea that only God, not the Church itself, can forigve
sins
•Believed that churches did not have to be ornate to celebrate God
•JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH (Luther’s Key Tenet): A sinner is declared
righteous by God through faith alone, by God’s grace

5. What Happened to Luther?
•Luther was excommunicated from
the Church by the Pope on January
3, 1521
•The Pope had warned Luther if
he did not renounce 41
sentences of his Theses, such a
fate would occur
•Luther responded by sending
the Pope a copy of another of THE DIET OF WORMS ASSEMBLY
his written pieces: On the
Freedom of a Christian
•Soon after, Luther’s writings
were banned by the general
assembly (The Diet of Worms) of
the Holy Roman empire
•The Diet of Worms also made it
legal to kill Luther and illegal to
give him food or shelter

6. •Luther took refuge at Wartburg Castle
before returning the Wittenburg
Castle, place where he posted the
Theses, years later
•Translated the New Testament to
German and continued his attacks
on the traditional Church
•Created many hymns (even
inspired Johann Sebastian Bach) What happened to
•Began to dispute some passages
of the Bible (like the rich man and
Luther?
Lazarus) (continued)
•Posters depicting him of a large
and forboding size actually helped
to spread his new religious ideas
•Grew poor in health (suffered
from cataracts, kidney
stones, and arthritis)
•Died shortly after a severe stroke
robbed him of the ability to speak
on February 18, 1546

7. Impacts of Luther’s
Reformation
•Divided Christians
• Helped to reconfigure many
religious beliefs across the
European region
• Challenged the authority of the
Church and the Pope
• Allowed kings to regain some of
their absolute control taken by
the Church previously
•Raised speculation regarding
the concept of a feudal
government
•Conjured up democratic ideas
and thoughts that would later be
used in other revolutions

8. Other than change the course of Western civilization….
What else did Luther do?
• Luther translated the bible into German, making it both more
accessible to the people and furthering the development of the
German language
•The bible was then able to be mass produced in combination with
the printing press
•Literacy spread as a result of more of the world’s population
learning to read via the word of God

9. Martin Luther:
Arguably the most important historical figure
Of his era
SEE WHY?
By: Molly Walker
APWH, Ms. McEachen
Lesson 15 PBA/EQDB Final Product