Protestantism 101

In 1483, Martin Luther was born. He was a miner’s son who would eventually become the founder of Protestantism. Luther’s story starts when he published his 95 theses. He disagreed with the church’s practices of indulgences, transubstantiation, and papal bulls.   

Luther’s beliefs contradicted with everything the Catholic Church taught. In order to sort out exactly what was happening, the church council summoned Luther to the Diet of Worms.

Your first though for the Diet of Worms was probably:

 

But it was actually an assembly of the Estates of Empire in Worms, Germany.

 

There the council was trying to determine if Luther was a heretic. This resulted in an ultimatum for Luther: recant all his writings or be excommunicated. Luther chose excommunication and became an outlaw.

After being excommunicated, Luther hid in different German states. This Protestant Reformation started by Luther eventually made it to Switzerland through Ulrich Zwingli. Although Zwingli believed in reforming the church, they could not agree on every doctrine.  

However, they were able to agree on four points of Protestantism

1.    How are people saved?

Only faith can save a person. It does not matter if they do good deeds because only God can save you.

 

2.    Where does religious authority reside?

The bible alone has all the information a person needs. The church does not need people to guide them.

 

3.    What is the church?

The entire community of believers made up the church.

 

4.    What is the highest form of Christian life?

All vocations are equal in the eyes of Protestantism.