Martin Luther

Martin Luther is one of the most famous protestant figures of all times.  He basically took all the current beliefs in Catholicism and turned them upside down.  His first documented, defining moment was when Martin Luther nailed his ninety five thesis to the wall of the church in 1517.  This took him from an obscure monk to an open defiance of the catholic church.  With this defiance he flipped the Catholic church on top of itself and started one of the greatest religious revolutions since Jesus Christ.  It took a specific type of man for this job.  The man needed to be extremely strong in his faith, charismatic, and not afraid to die.  I believe Martin Luther was the man for the job.  When Martin Luther went before the cardinal to plead his case.  He knew what to say to free himself however, he was strong enough in his faith to defend himself.  Luther also had to plead his case in front of the emperor.  This man was all about ending the rebellion; so, Martin Luther had to have guts to tell him he did not want a rebellion even though he had started one.  Martin Luther's final turning point was when the catholic church accepted his doctrine.  All his life he had hoped to end the reign of the catholic church on the people and he had finally done it.  I personally have great respect for Martin Luther.  He is one of the men who decided to change history for the better.  Without him the catholic church may still be a superior power taking money from peasants.  However I've seen several churches that sell their own form of indulgences.  History repeats itself; so, we need to watch ourselves.  I also noticed Martin Luther is extremely charismatic, as most major reformers have to be.  As a random side note Martin's hairlow was a sign of a servant and of old age and wisdom.  Hie was a great example of both.  I enjoyed the movie.  It was better than the average catholic documentary.  It kind of had a robin hood vibe due to the same time period.  I hope I have half the spiritual strength of Martin Luther.  (www.pbs.org/empires/martinluther) (Luther)