Written by Katie
We took a train through the German countryside to the town of Wittenberg. It is here that Martin Luther posted his 95 theses and began the Protestant Reformation that would come to revolutionize the tradition of Christianity. Our tour guide, Christine, was very passionate about the subject and it was easy to see that she had a lot of knowledge to share about Luther's life.
We began the tour at Luther's house, where he shared this teachings and lived with his wife Katharina and their six children. In the early 1500s, it was an Augustinian monastery, but today the house is now converted into a museum, containing many artifacts and pieces from the time period of Luther's life like indulgences and the pulpit from which he preached. The next stop on the tour was the Parish Church St. Marian, where Martin Luther spoke to his congregation.
Our final destination was the Wittenberg Castle Church. It was here that in 1517, Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses. These documents described his grievances against the Catholic Church, mainly about the abuse of indulgences. Indulgences were sold by the Catholic Church to their followers, on the premise that purchasers could buy their forgiveness and entrance into Heaven. Through thorough studying of the Bible, Luther realized that the only way to get into Heaven is by grace through faith alone. He believed that selling indulgences was just a way for the church to raise money; in Luther's opinion the Pope could not directly grant pardons to sinners.
What we found really interesting is the way Luther's 95 Theses impacted the spread of communications and the use of the printing press. With the help of Gutenberg's technology, copies of Luther's findings were able to reach more people. Also, our tour guide told us that Luther played a large part in cementing the usage of the German dialect that is most commonly spoken today. Before Luther translated the Bible, there were many different variations of the German language. He wanted the lay people to also be able to understand God's word, and made it his goal to translate the book from Latin to German. His translation was a mix of high and low German, and along with the convenience of mass printing, the Bible brought the dialect Luther chose to become widely recognized and understood.
Language is an amazing thing; though it may seem like someone's life in Berlin is completely different from that of ours in the States, the only real difference is the way we sound out our words and put them together to create meaning. Through all the cultural differences and language barriers, everyone is pretty much living their lives the same way. Traveling through Europe has shown us that even though people's lives may seem different, and our languages sound nothing alike, we are all connected by the ways we communicate with each other.
We took a train through the German countryside to the town of Wittenberg. It is here that Martin Luther posted his 95 theses and began the Protestant Reformation that would come to revolutionize the tradition of Christianity. Our tour guide, Christine, was very passionate about the subject and it was easy to see that she had a lot of knowledge to share about Luther's life.
We began the tour at Luther's house, where he shared this teachings and lived with his wife Katharina and their six children. In the early 1500s, it was an Augustinian monastery, but today the house is now converted into a museum, containing many artifacts and pieces from the time period of Luther's life like indulgences and the pulpit from which he preached. The next stop on the tour was the Parish Church St. Marian, where Martin Luther spoke to his congregation.
Our final destination was the Wittenberg Castle Church. It was here that in 1517, Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses. These documents described his grievances against the Catholic Church, mainly about the abuse of indulgences. Indulgences were sold by the Catholic Church to their followers, on the premise that purchasers could buy their forgiveness and entrance into Heaven. Through thorough studying of the Bible, Luther realized that the only way to get into Heaven is by grace through faith alone. He believed that selling indulgences was just a way for the church to raise money; in Luther's opinion the Pope could not directly grant pardons to sinners.
What we found really interesting is the way Luther's 95 Theses impacted the spread of communications and the use of the printing press. With the help of Gutenberg's technology, copies of Luther's findings were able to reach more people. Also, our tour guide told us that Luther played a large part in cementing the usage of the German dialect that is most commonly spoken today. Before Luther translated the Bible, there were many different variations of the German language. He wanted the lay people to also be able to understand God's word, and made it his goal to translate the book from Latin to German. His translation was a mix of high and low German, and along with the convenience of mass printing, the Bible brought the dialect Luther chose to become widely recognized and understood.
Language is an amazing thing; though it may seem like someone's life in Berlin is completely different from that of ours in the States, the only real difference is the way we sound out our words and put them together to create meaning. Through all the cultural differences and language barriers, everyone is pretty much living their lives the same way. Traveling through Europe has shown us that even though people's lives may seem different, and our languages sound nothing alike, we are all connected by the ways we communicate with each other.