The ninety-five prepositions posted by Martin Luther, traditionally on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg on 31 November 1517, inviting participants to debate on "the power and efficacy of indulgences," an act that is now remembered as the spark that set the Reformation alight.
In modern parlance the term 'theses' gives the idea of a heavy, in-depth exposition of a particular topic, such as required by senior students in universities. The Ninety-Five Theses, however, were rather ninety-five bullet-points. The basic thrust of the posting is that we are justified by faith and that the sales of indugences represents a false presentation of the gospel. In fact Luther was, at this point in his growth, not averse to all the concepts like purgatory, penance, and works of merit that undergirded indulgences. His criticism was directed more at the indecent manner in which the sales were promoted by Johann Tetzel, the friar commissioned to peddle them in the neighbouring pricipality. In addition to posting them to the door of the Church in Wittenberg, however, he also sent a copy of it to Prince-Archbishop Albrecht of Brandenburg, then Archbishop of Magdeburg, and soon of Mainz, and under whose parochial jurisdiction he fell, who then forwarded it to the Leo X. It was the pope's response—demanding that Luther recant but without providing him with an explanation—that pushed Luther into a "revolt" that resulted in the fire we now call the Reformation.
Further Reading & Resources:
☰ Philip Schaff, History of the Christian Church Vol. VII. Modern Christianity. The German Reformation. "The Ninety-five Theses."
©ALBERITH
050221lch