
I am here to tell the story of my friend, Martin Luther. Martin Luther is a monk who traveled to Rome on a pilgrimage. While he was there, he saw many disgusting things like prostitutes, blind people begging for money and most importantly, the clergy selling indulgences, which made him realize how bad the church was getting. I couldn't believe it! The church was telling people that if they paid for indulgences, then their dead relatives would leave purgatory and go to heaven. Luther realized the political corruption that was going on was hurting the peasants and benefiting the clergy and the rich. He knew that something had to be changed.
One of the most despicable indulgence sellers was Johann Tetzel. He would lure in poor peasants to pay for indulgences. He was one of the main reasons for inspiration for Martin Luther to write his 95 Theses. Luther's 95 theses were every wrong that he thought the church did. On October 31, 1517, he nailed the 95 theses to the church door. Then, he was excommunicated for going against the church. After that, he was called to the Diet of Worms, where he was put on trial. When the jury asked him if he would recant his words, he said, "I can not recant." He was accused of heresy, and he was supposed to be executed, but he was actually kidnapped by his friend Friedrich the Wise.
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They went to Friedrich's manor and Luther hid there, translating the bible into the German language. Little did he know, his translations were being shipped out and people were reading them and started to rebel, which caused the Reformation. People were going against the church, and Martin Luther eventually created his own religion, called Lutheranism. The followers of this religion were called Lutherans. He has done great things and I think he will be an important figure and remembered in the future.