The ninety five theses
If justification by faith alone made the sacrament of penance no longer central to salvation, it is obvious that Luther would become even more critical of the abuses involved in indulgences than he had been in the past. In 1517 when John Tetzel began selling his indulgence in the neighbourhood of Wittenberg, Luther felt bound to act. In his ninety five theses he condemned indulgences as the corrupt result of false teaching on the forgiveness of sins.
The theses were written in Latin and were meant for discussion within the church. Their consequences must have gone far beyond that which Luther intended. A printer translated them into German and distributed them throughout the empire. They attracted widespread attention in humanist, ecclesiastical and bourgeois circles.
Albert of Brandenburg was alarmed at the possible consequences the theses might have for the sale of the indulgence, and appealed to Leo X for support. At the same time, the Dominican order saw Luther’s attack on Tetzel as an attack on their order and reported Luther to Rome as a heretic. Leo was inclined to see the affair as a dispute between the Augustinian and Dominican orders and instructed the former to hold an enquiry. An interview between the order and Luther took place in Heidelberg in 1518, during which Luther refused to retract his theses. He had the backing of his university, and support for his views was growing throughout Germany. The sale of indulgences was drying up. Leo could not ignore the implications of this and summoned Luther to appear before him in Rome.
Probably with the fate of John Huss in mind, Luther appealed to his elector, Frederick of Saxony. Frederick’s decision to support Luther was made on pragmatic grounds. He was not particularly religious or moral, and, although he was to support Luther consistently, he never abandoned the Catholic church, possibly because of the advantages it offered him. He was a most unlikely ally for Luther. For example, although he had forbidden the sale of papal indulgences in Saxony before 1517, this had not been because he disapproved of them, but because they would have interfered with his own lucrative sales. He had collected over 17 000 relics in Wittenberg castle and boasted the possession of, amongst others, over 200 portions of the children massacred by Herod as well as a crumb from the Last Supper. Indulgences were granted to sightseers.
Frederick, however, valued the fame which Luther was bringing to the University of Wittenberg and was shrewd enough to realize the financial benefits Saxony could gain should Luther’s criticism of ecclesiastical abuses bear fruit. He was therefore prepared to protect Luther.
Frederick’s support was crucial if Luther was not to suffer the fate of Huss. Frederick was strong enough in his electorate to ensure the safety of Luther, and, at the same time, as an imperial elector he was in a strong position within the empire. In 1518 Emperor Maximilian was finalizing arrangements for the election of his grandson, Charles, as king of the Romans. He needed the support of the electors and, in order not to alienate Frederick, opposed Leo’s summons of Luther to Rome.
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