Circuit Thoughts

Are you ready for Reformation Day? I can imagine the look on your face. I don’t have the paper space to give you the whole story, so I will sum up.

On Oct. 31, 1517, a monk/teacher by the name of Martin Luther, posted “The 95 Theses” on the door of the Wittenberg Church. The intent, to put it simply, was to address concerns he had with the Catholic Church. At the time, the Roman Catholic Church was the only church in Europe. This was not a statement of protest, but an honest inquiry into the practices of the late medieval church. What happened next was nothing short of extraordinary.

Thanks to the invention of the printing press, things took off. It seems that around 1440, the Guttenberg press was invented. This revolutionized how the world received information. The printing press was in full use by the time of Martin Luther. Someone went and copied “The 95 Theses” and then went to the local print shop and made flyers. The flyers then found their way into the hands of the people, both prince and pauper. This caused an uproar that could not be contained. Keep in mind, Martin Luther never meant to break away for the Catholic church, but he followed his conscience and would later become the face of the Protestant Reformation.

There were others before Martin who had the same questions. They were burned at the stake or condemned as heretics. Martin was the exception, and this was due in part to the printing press and the public being made aware of what was happening.

October 31 is the day we celebrate how God had used one man to open the door for more people to get to know God.

We owe a lot to that young German cleric. He was able to raise questions that many were afraid to ask. He stood up to a tyranny that never should have been. Martin even translated the bible into the local language. This was also an illegal act.

Thanks to the printing press, the cat was let out of the bag. After the Lutheran church was established, many other movements would take off. Most of the churches in our area have Martin Luther to thank for the freedom to worship as we are led to worship.

No God fearing, bible reading, Christ following church is wrong. What Martin did was to help others experience God on God’s terms. Eventually even the Roman Catholic Church would institute reforms to allow people to experience God in whole new ways.

So, you see, Oct. 31 is not only a day to shake down your neighbor for candy. It is truly a church holiday, for without the actions of Martin Luther in 1517, you and I would not be able to worship the way we do.

God will always provide a means to get to know him. We have no idea of what worship will look like in the future, but thanks to Martin and many others, we don’t need to be afraid to try new things.

Have a great Reformation Day.

See you in church.