Questions week 1:

9/7/2018

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Question: What was the condition of the Catholic church on the eve of the Protestant reformation?

Answer: Many of the people of that time were clearly unhappy with the church. Some saw it as corrupt and full of greed, which sparked the movement of looking within ones self for divinity. Others were displeased that they were being pressured to spend money on indulgences. They felt as if their hard earned money was being spent on a far away city, distant from what they personally held dear.

Question: What were the 95 theses about? What was the basic message of Luther’s complaints?

Answer: Luther believed selling indulgences was deceitful and corrupt. He made the argument that it was giving people false hope; it was also making them spend money on St Peters church, a church many of the Germans would never even be able to visit. He questioned the churches power, saying it had no power over purgatory. People back then (whether they were upset with the church or with the indulgences) saw Luther as a real icon. A captain, you could say, to the revolution many wanted to see happen.