It's been quite a few months since my last post, but 2017 has been an exceptionally busy year. The school I teach at has moved to a much larger campus, increasing our number of students and my duties as well. While I come on here pretty frequently and stare at my blog, I simply haven't had anything notable to add. Rather, I've been in an intense 'learning mode' this year. With October marking the 500th anniversary of the beginning of the Protestant Reformation, I decided I needed to re-visit the writings of the Reformers (and not just read 'about' them as I have been in the past). I've made my way through many of the writings of Erasmus, More, Luther, Tyndale, and am soon moving on to Calvin. I hope to make some posts about Reformation writings in the near future, but for now I am simply ingesting all I can.
On a related note, here's a great post from Luther in Oxford on the three oldest prints of Martin Luther's 95 Theses. With the originals being lost to time, these sheets are probably the closest we'll ever get what Luther nailed to the church door in Wittenberg (if he ever actually did that!).
https://lutherinoxford.wordpress.com/2016/05/20/the-three-oldest-prints-of-martin-luthers-ninety-five-theses/
Okay, so this post is definitely 16 DAYS late, but better late than never!
Happy Reformation Day!
Despite October 31st being half a month ago, I feel that it's still important to recognise this major turning point in Christian history. On October 31st, 1517, Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses on the church door in Wittenburg, sparking theological discussions throughout the town, and later, throughout the nation and throughout Europe. Many of the religious issues brought up and discussed by Wycliffe and the Lollards found themselves right at home in Luther's mind. Why did he choose October 31st, despite the day's negative spiritual connotations? Well November 1st is celebrated as All Saints Day, and Luther knew that the church would be packed the next day. (Good move, Martin.)
The 500th anniversary of Luther's nailing of the 95 Theses will take place two years from now, and as we get closer, the academic and religious world might see rising interest in the modern impact of the Reformation and similar topics.
On a related note, November 1st is pretty neat also. Protestants (and Lollards) follow the Old and New Testament belief that 'the saints' include all true followers of God, and that All Saints Day can be a day spent in remembrance of all Christians past and present.
My opinions on Martin Luther oscillate between appalled and inspired, usually ending up around neutral. Catholics and secularists love to focus on all his terrible denunciations of the Roman Catholic Church, Jews, and other groups not in agreement with him (including some Protestant sects); Protestants on the other hand love to focus on his successful split from Rome, contributions to Biblical literacy, and his popular theological doctrines. I would never choose to completely 'endorse' Luther, but some quotes of his are very much share-able, including this one from his "First Sunday After Epiphany" sermon - certainly a Lollard precept:
"He who cannot - by the gracious and lovely message of God's mercy so lavishly bestowed upon us in Christ - be persuaded, in a spirit of love and delight, to contribute to the honour of God and the benefit of his neighbour, is worthless to Christianity, and all effort is lost on him."
Those words of Luther hearken back to the words pious assertion of Clement of Rome, who wrote in his epistle of 1 Clement 44:
"Who, then, is noble-minded among you? Who compassionate? Who full of love? Let him declare, 'If on my account sedition, disagreements, and schism have arisen, I will depart. I will go away wherever you desire, and I will do what the many command. Only let the flock of God live on terms of peace with the elders set over it'."
