Martin Luther was born in 1483 in Germany. This was a time of great prosperity for Germany, because new universities spread the ideas of Northern European humanists. These thinkers wanted to reform the church, but Luther offered a better proposition. As a young man, Luther was trapped in a dangerous thunderstorm, and he promised himself that if he escaped the thunderstorm alive, that he would become a monk. Luther survived, and keeping his promise, entered a monastery. In 1510, Luther visited Rome, and was shocked by the lifestyle of the Roman clergy. He saw that the cardinals had elaborate houses, and that the pope and bishops had broken their religious vows and fathered children. He noticed that the clergy seemed more concerned with gaining wealth and power instead of keeping their immortal souls. He saw other abuses also, such as poorly trained priests. He also noticed that church leaders gained power through wealth and political power rather than their moral qualities. Some bishops lived far from the rest, causing them to ignore their duties. The Catholic Church imposed large taxes on its members, but used the money to make the church "better-looking" and give a rich lifestyle to the pope. Another way that the church raised money was by selling pardons for sins, known as indulgences. Some priests guaranteed their followers that they would enter heaven if they gave a certain amount of money to the church. These issues divided and weakened the Catholic Church, and rulers began to oppose the political power of the church. The sale of indulgences appalled Luther the most. He believed that a person could not buy forgiveness, because God offered salvation to all faithful people. He thought that faith in God was all that was needed to earn salvation. When Luther witnessed the sale of indulgences again near Wittenberg, as well as the promise that buying the indulgence would get them into heaven, he decided to act by writing a list of theses, or arguments, against the sale of indulgences and posted the list on the door of the main church in Wittenberg. These arguments were eventually known as the 95 Theses. They challenged the church's authority and encouraged the spiritual character of the Christian faith. Thesis 37 argued against the church's view of salvation. Luther believed that God gave salvation to every true Christian as a gift, and that it did not need to be earned or bought. The theses were eventually translated into other languages, such as German. Because of this, copies of the document spread rapidly across Europe. Many people thought of the arguments as an attack on the Church itself. In fact, some rulers began to oppose the church's political power. Because of this, the pope excommunicated Luther in 1521. That same year, Luther was summoned before an assembly in Worms. The assembly, or diet, put Luther on trial for his attack on the Church. Luther was told to take back his criticism of the church, but he refused. This made him an outlaw, which made it a crime if anyone in the Empire offered him food or shelter. However, Luther already had many supporters at high ranks. In fact, one of them offered him a place to stay at Wartburg Castle. Throughout Germany, many declared him a hero for speaking against the church abuses.

By:eheim16