Reluctant Revolutionary

Reluctant Revolutionary was narrated by Liam Neisen and talked about Martin Luther's contribution to the Protestant Revolution. Martin Luther nailed ninety five theses to the Catholic Church during the 16th century. After people saw theses it started an enormous controversy during this time period. People that were affiliated with the Catholic Church were extremely offended by the act of Luther and began to talk about how they were going to react to his doings. 

The ninety five theses that Luther wrote stated what he thought was wrong with the acts and rules of the Catholic church. Most of the problems that he had with the Catholic Church dealt with the fact that Catholics could pay money to the Church to be forgiven for the indulgences they previously took part in. According to the Catholic Church, you were able to indulge in sins, when you went to church you could pray to God, talk to the priest, and pay money in order to be forgiven by God. Martin Luther thought this was erroneous that people had to pay money to be forgiven by God. To me, just as Martin Luther thought, it seemed that they were kind of brainwashed into believing that you needed to have and give money in order to be forgiven and if you had money and gave it to the Catholic Church you were going to be forgiven and be able to be let into heaven.

In my eyes, I can look up to and respect any person that can stand up for what he believes in. Individuals such as Martin Luther are the people that have changed the world the most dramatically. Martin Luther was able to be an opposing force against the one of the most powerful empires at the time, the Roman Catholic Church, by just writing what he believed in and a piece of paper and nailing it to a wall. This act gave thousands, if not millions, of people the hope and option to believe in something other than the "All Powerful Catholic Church." 

On the other hand, even thought that I have the utmost respect for Martin Luther and how he stood up for he thought, I believe that Martin Luther was the main cause for the separation of the German speaking population. These ninety five theses ultimately caused much direst and despair between many individuals that were caught in the middle of this conflict but overall this does not change the fact that he began different thinking in the world of religious thought. 

After reading the first two chapters of Hagen Schulze’s Germany A New History the persons that intrigued the most were Martin Luther and Frederick the Wise. Luther, who started one of the most controversial reforms, the Protestant Reformation, in history by nailing his Ninety-Five Theses to the door of the Catholic church. I can connect the Protestant Reformation during the sixteenth century to a time in American history when America declared independence from Great Britain. I came up with this connection by comparing the people who started these reforms. Thomas Jefferson and gang, who convened together to fight against Great Britain are similar to what Martin Luther and Frederick the Wise did to fight for what they thought.

Martin Luther was better known than Frederick the Wise. Little do people know, Frederick the Wise protected Martin Luther in many ways. Because Frederick was a prince, he influenced many nobles to part ways with the Catholic Church and start questioning the antics of the Catholics. Frederick the Wise can be compared to a modern day Vice President of the United States. I find this comparison because Vice Presidents help to influence and persuade citizens to vote for the President and Frederick did the same for Luther and the Protestant Reformation.

On top of the Protestant Reformation, the other very important event that was stated in this book was the Thirty Years War. The Thirty Years was a conglomerate of wars sparked by different religious views. This war can be compared to the war that has been ongoing for decades between the Israelis and the Palestinians. The Israelis and Palestinians have been fighting over land and religion just as the Thirty Years War was fought between the Protestants and Catholics.

In my eyes the Martin Luther, Frederick the Wise, the Protestant Reformation and the Thirty Years were the most important people and events that were mentioned during the first two chapters of this book.

   

                                                                Martin Luther

Frederick the Wise

                                              Martin Luther’s 95 Theses