“…God’s Truth Abideth Still…”
On October 31st, 1517, Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses on the door of the Wittenburg castle church. The PROTESTant Reformation was already in progress, but this hurled the issue front and center because as the story goes, a few men took Luther's writing, probably without his knowledge, to the recently invented printing press, enabling them to disseminate his protest into the hands of thousands. Following are a number of the major figures and events of the Protestant Reformation, the movement from which churches like our have sprung.
John Wycliffe Known as “The Morning Star of the Reformation,” Wycliffe called the corrupt clerics into account. Appealing directly to the Bible, he rejected the Roman Catholic view of the Lord’s Supper, (called “transubstantiation”) and called the pope “Antichrist.” Wycliffe, and his preachers, called “Lollards,” attempted reformation in England. In 1382, he (possibly with the help of others) translated the Bible into English.
Jon Hus Influenced by the teachings of Wycliffe, this Czech preacher convinced many of his beliefs. Eventually he was excommunicated but appealed in 1414 at the Council of Constance. The church imprisoned him for heresy and burned him at the stake on July 6, 1415. Many of his followers continued in what became the Moravian Church.
Gutenberg Printing Press The advent of this invention in 1492 by John Gutenberg allowed the Reformers “quickly” to copy tracts, books, and especially the Bible. Prior to this press, men would take a slate of wood, write their text on the wood, and then carve it leaving the raised letters as the type. Gutenberg’s press featured movable type which made the process much faster.
Erasmus’s Greek New Testament In 1516, this “Prince of Humanist learning” deposited his Greek-Latin New Testament. Most every reformer used the Erastian text. Ironically, Erasmus would prove to be an enemy of the Reformation, publicly debating Luther over the free will of man. You should check out Luther’s ‘The Bondage Of The Will’ if you haven’t!
Martin Luther As early as 1515, Luther could be found teaching the doctrine of “justification by faith.” On October 31, 1517, this Augustinian monk nailed his 95 Theses on the door of the Wittenberg Castle Church. Although this act typically invited public debate, it acted as a catalyst for the Protestant Reformation. The Roman Church threatened him with excommunication in 1520. He refused to recant and was excommunicated.
Diet of Worms In 1521, Luther was again asked to recant at this official assembly (Diet) of Roman Clerics. After 24 hours of deliberation, Luther gave his famous answer, “Unless I am convinced by the testimony of Scripture or plain reason…and my conscience is held captive by the Word of God…I cannot and will not recant…Here I take my stand, God being my helper. Amen” Luther ate not his words, nor any worms!
John Calvin This French Reformer developed and systematized many of the teachings of the Reformation with the first edition of his ‘Institutes of the Christian Religion.’ This work was first published in 1539 or 1541 by Calvin at the age of 27. This fugitive of the Roman Catholic Church fled from his native land in order to procure a life of peace, solitude, and study. Halted by Farel in Geneva, he helped to reform the church in Switzerland. Calvin is also known as the ‘father’ of Presbyterianism.
William Tyndale This English Reformer studied Greek at Cambridge only to later translate Erasmus’s Greek New Testament into English. He probably did this while at Wittenberg, visiting Luther and others, seeking a place of refuge. He completed his revised version in 1534. Tyndale was strangled and executed at the stake in 1536.
John Knox After they attacked St. Andrews the French took several prisoners, one of whom was John Knox. After his release, he worked with Thomas Cranmer in England, and eventually made his way to Geneva, where he studied under John Calvin and pastored a congregation of English refugees. He returned to Scotland and the rest is “history.”
More could be said about the Westminster Divines (pastors and theologians) who gave us the Confession and Catechisms by the same name, the Reformation in the Netherlands, and of course, the Covenanters in Scotland.
May the Lord give us the same conviction and boldness as those faithful Christians who’ve gone before us!
-Pastor Kevin