Martin Luther: Reluctant Revolutionary

Martin Luther quickly and almost unintentionally became a leading revolutionary of his time. His rise as a revolutionary was almost an accident on his part, as he did not realize how much of an impact his 95 theses would have. The Catholic Church felt attacked by Luther and he was quickly sought after by the church to be punished, later to be excommunicated. By this time, Luther, along with his 95 theses, a “revolutionary manifesto”, had already begun a religious revolution. Thousands of people read his sarcastic, yet witty, rousing, and inspiring writings and began to follow his beliefs, steering away from the Catholic Church. Luther quickly obtained a large following. However, in the winter of 1520, Martin Luther was excommunicated by the church and in 1521 traveled to the city of Worms for a hearing which would determine his fate. On his journey to Worms, Luther was able to witness the true impact his 95 theses had had. The city of Erfurt held a party for him, and citizens of Frankfurt presented him with gifts. It was becoming clear to Luther how widespread his revolution had become. It was also becoming clear how much of a religious revolutionary Luther himself had become. His cultural, political, and religious revolutionaries were an extremely important event in the history of Germany, and one that can be seen in many positive ways. It challenged the church, which had a lot of power at the time. With opposing forces and challenging beliefs, both the church and the revolutionaries had to fight for their beliefs, resulting in stronger and more determined followership for both sides. Without the opposing force of Martin Luther and his followers, the Catholic Church would be unchallenged, free to do what they thought was best, which may not have been best for many of their followers. To compare to modern times, Luther’s revolution can be seen as somewhat of a checks and balances for the Catholic Church, meaning Luther was the one who assured the Catholic Church was staying in line and acting in a proper manner.

This painting is a depiction of Martin Luther at the Edict of Worms in 1521, where his fate would be determined by head political and religious leaders, with Emperor Charles V presiding.

Martin Luther is shown burning the papal bull of excommunication, an official letter informing Luther that he has been excommunicated by the church. On the outside are paintings of other major figures from the Protestant Reformation.

I believe Martin Luther was important to German-speaking lands because he was one of few religious revolutionaries who were brave enough to stand up against the church; to point out that what they preached had possible flaws. He allowed others to see that there were other ways to see things, and that the people had the ability to obtain, create, and form their own views and beliefs. Martin Luther was also the revolutionary for new religions which would spread world-wide, having an impact on thousands of people throughout the world. These religions had such strong followership that they still exist in large numbers today.

The Luther Rose, a symbol of Lutheranism.

Martin Luther nailing the 95 theses to the door of the All Saints' Church in Wittenburg on October 31, 1517.

As one interviewee from “Martin Luther: Reluctant Revolutionary” states, “The emphasis on the individual, the courage of the individual, and the willingness of the individual, to undergo death for his profession, for his beliefs, in this way, Luther has to be ranked with the great emancipators of human history.” His creation of emancipation from the grip of the Catholic Church, for some, led Martin Luther to be known as a religious revolutionary who is comparable to other great emancipators of our world’s history.


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