Luther's Theses
Which questions can this source help me answer?
How could some of the issues with the catholic church in the 16th century be fixed?
What was wrong with the catholic church at the beginning of the 16th century?
However, it is Luther's perspective therefore it's not completely unbiased and needs more sources to back it up
This source can help me to better understand the issues of the Catholic church during this time period
Calls out all the sources of corruption Luther believes there are by stating how they should be changed
Who perspectives are omitted/questioned/challenged
The people's
They are being told the church is wrong and they're being cheated
The people had been buying indulgences for years now, so this was like a slap in the face wake up call for them
The pope and clergy
They are essentially being called frauds by Luther
These were the highest ranking members of society in the 16th century
The church
Their authority is being challenged
This was a bold move as the church essentially wielded all power during this time period
What are the big ideas
Only god can forgive sin
The pope can only forgive those who have acted against him, not those who have acted against god
St Peter's basilica should be made with honest money
Says it has been built instead with the believers's livelihood, their flesh
Indulgences go against Catholicism as a religion
Heaven is earned through repentance and self reflection, not with cash
Who wrote it?
They chose to create the document as a way to protest against the church's corruption
Its purpose was to call out corruption in the church
He was a German priest and monk from the 16th century who took issue with the catholic church and spurred forward the protestant reformation
Martin Luther
Whose perspective does it reflect?
He's trying to show us how he thinks the church should run, ideally
This document clearly reflects Martin luther's perspective and opinions
Therefore, the perspective of an educated European monk in the 16th century
What ideas are left out?
Sticks solely to religious issues, doesn't really talk about social issues of the time
Social justice in Catholicism is mostly left out, sticks to talking about things directly related to religion and money
For example, he spends a lot of time on the purchase of indulgences, but does not mention the corruption of popes before Leo the X
He generally avoids directly criticizing the pope harshly
Understandable as the pope was the most powerful man in Europe at the time
Phrased instead as "the pope should.." for example, not "the pope must..."
The document I examined was missing 45 of the theses from the 95 theses
Only contained 1-50
How does the author communicate ideas?
He uses written word to get his point across
He writes concisely not using flowery language, straight to the point
He's firm but very professional when getting his point across
His choice of words is clearly thought out and carefully selected
He uses theses statements to try and get across his points leaving them open for discourse
Presents them as theories with no further evidence so they can be discussed
What does it look like?
It was nailed to a church door in Wittenberg, Germany
It contains 95 theses statements calling out what Luther thought were the church's malpractices
These these are carefully thought out and worded showing Luther put much time into it, it was not a rush job
