Free Republic
Browse · Search
Religion
Topics · Post Article

To: wideawake
A couple of things:

Luther's posting of the 95 theses was noted by his personal secretary, George Rore in a volume in which Luther himself later made notations in his own hand. Roughly translated the note states:

On the night before All Saints' Day in the year of our Lord 1517, theses about letters of indulgence were nailed to the doors of the Wittenberg churches by Doctor Martin Luther.(emphasis mine)

The significance of the plural of doors and churches is that it was the common practice of Doctor Luther, and apparently all others in Wittenberg at the time, to post the subject of the next day's homily; the church doors serving as a sort of public bulletin board. It would have been notable had Luther not posted the theses.

Tetzel was not awarded his doctorate until 1518, a year after the posting of the 95 theses. So while the Magisterium displayed its disagreement with Luther by issuing the Exsurge Domine of 1520, and later the Decet Romanum Pontificem of 1521, it displayed it's disagreement with Tetzel's sale of indulgences by awarding him a doctorate and keeping the money.

16 posted on 11/02/2012 11:05:55 AM PDT by Mr. Lucky
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies ]


To: Mr. Lucky
Roerer's words were:

"Im Jahr 1517 am Vortag des Allerheiligenfestes hat Dr. Martin Luther in Wittenberg an den Türen der Kirchen seine Ablassthesen bekannt gegeben."

An accurate translation would be:

"In the year 1517 on the eve of All Saints Dr. Martin Luther had made his indulgence theses known at the doors of the churches."

This statement is ambiguous, not dispositive.

At no point does it say "were nailed to the doors."

Assuming that Luther carefully read Roerer's notes to this volume (it was a German language edition of Luther's own translation of the New Testament which he apparently used for reference at some point in the late 1530s - so I doubt he was focused on Roerer's annotations more on the text itself), and expressed personal approval of their historical accuracy, it really wouldn't prove that the theses were dramatically nailed.

And there really isn't any evidence that the church doors of Wittenberg were used as bulletin boards.

Tetzel was not awarded his doctorate until 1518, a year after the posting of the 95 theses.

Actually I believe it was awarded in early 1518, so just a few months after the 95 theses.

it displayed it's disagreement with Tetzel's sale of indulgences by awarding him a doctorate and keeping the money

The Magisterium does not grant doctoral degrees. The local faculty did. The Church kept the donations for the rebuilding of the basilica, because it is perfectly legitimate to request donations for the restoration of churches.

The reality is that when the Council of Trent was convened and the Magisterium clarified ambiguity on the doctrine of indulgences, Tetzel's expressed position and Luther's expressed position were both at variance with the Church's teaching.

However, Karl von Miltitz (the papal nuncio) had already evaluated Tetzel's 106 theses on indulgences in 1518 and told him that they were of questionable orthodoxy, and that he should refrain from characterizing his views as the Church's teaching. He did so refrain.

20 posted on 11/02/2012 11:45:16 AM PDT by wideawake
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 16 | View Replies ]

To: Mr. Lucky
You omitted some key details, which isn't at all surprising. The Dominicans, not Rome, awarded Tetzel his doctorate. Papal Nuncio Karl von Miltitz threatened Tetzel with being charged over his "immoral lifestyle" and "practice of selling indulgences". Tetzel reacted to the threat by retreating to the monastery at Leipzig where he died a recluse in 1519.

You should also truthfully detail the schizophrenic correspondence penned by Luther to Pope Leo X and reproduce in its entirety Tetzel's Vorlegung. You should but we all know that you won't.

28 posted on 11/02/2012 12:30:52 PM PDT by A.A. Cunningham (Barry Soetoro is a Kenyan communist)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 16 | View Replies ]

Free Republic
Browse · Search
Religion
Topics · Post Article


FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson