Martin Luther special on PBS

Documentary was shown on various PBS stations this week... (you know PBS--will be on again, surely--got to get something out of those tax dollars spent). It's worth taping...

Very good portrayal in my opinion...but downplayed his theology, mainly highlighting the social consequences of what Luther discovered in the Bible. Understandable when telling about such an important historic figure in just 2 hours.

Personally, I think, but for Luther's courage, there would have been no eventual United States of America...and we'd live in a very different world...

Driven to Defiance - Martin Luther is born into a world dominated by the Catholic Church. For the keenly spiritual Luther, the Church's promise of salvation is irresistible. Caught in a thunderstorm and terrified by the possibility of imminent death, he vows to become a monk. But after entering the monastery, Luther becomes increasingly doubtful that the Church can actually offer him salvation. His views crystallize further when he travels to Rome and finds the capital of Catholicism swamped in corruption. Wracked by despair, Luther finds release in the pages of the Bible, discovering that it is not the Church, but his own individual faith that will guarantee his salvation. With this revelation he turns on the Church. In his famous 95 Theses he attacks its practice of selling Indulgences, putting himself on an irreversible path to conflict with the most powerful institution of the day. The Reluctant Revolutionary - The Catholic Church uses all of its might to try and silence Luther, including accusations of heresy and excommunication. Protected by his local ruler, Frederick the Wise, Luther continues to write radical critiques of the Church. In the process, he develops a new system of faith that places the freedom of the individual believer above the rituals of the Church. Aided by the newly invented printing press, his ideas spread rapidly. He is called before the German Imperial Parliament in the city of Worms and told he must recant. Risking torture and execution, Luther refuses, proclaiming his inalienable right to believe what he wishes. His stand becomes a legend that inspires revolution across Europe, overturning the thousand-year-old hegemony of the Church. But as the reformation expands into a movement for social freedom, Luther finds himself overwhelmed by the pace of change and is left vainly protesting that his followers should be concerning themselves with God.

"Now it's 25000? Earlier it was 19000. Keep making this stuff up, it really helps you."

Actually, I always siad it was 25,000, and I've never heard any other figure. You can probably count at least 2,000 Protestant denomination while driving through the "Bible Belt" of the south. I've seen dozens upon dozens of Protestant "churches" in people's rundown garages down there, lol. Church names like "Church of Blessed Bible" appear out of nowhere. I think I even saw "Unlce Hanks Big Christian Church" on one shack sign. Now, if you can show me where I wrote "19,000" protestant denominations, I'll send you $5.00 for the filing fee for "Mister Wrigley's Old Fashioned Bible Church", and I'll even give you some ideas for the new theology. :o) pax Christi, Jim

In Protestantism, no matter what the denomination's name, there are only two basic theologies, Arminian and Calvinist. And charismatic theology being a variant in the Arminian theological camp. Those influenced by Luther, Calvin, Zwingli, etc. are Calvinists and those influenced by Arminius, Wesley, etc. are Arminians.

So you can have a truckload of different church or denominational names but only two or at most three basic theologies in Protestantism. Or you can go with Catholicism, and have one name, and one heirarchical system, and a constant influx of new unbiblical doctrines being added to this "church" over the years.

The New Testament epistles were written to specific local churches at a specific location [Ephesus, Thessalonica, etc.]. About 95% of the time, New Testament references to "church" are to individual local churches. On the other occasions, "the church" is spoken of in a generic or institutional sense [such as "the automobile"]. The way the New Testament uses the word church ["ecclesia" in the Greek] makes sense, since the word translated church literally means "assembly."

The New Testament compares the church to a body, a building and a bride. I don't have a universal body, I don't live in a universal building, and I sure didn't marry a universal bride. The true "universal" or "catholic" church will not be assembled all together until Christ returns. Those who will be in this assembly are those who, like the Apostle Peter, in faith acknowledge Christ as God himself, who came in human form to die and be raised from the dead for our sins, and follow His Word.

John 10:26 But you believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you.
27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:
28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.

Also, one major and often overlooked reason there are so many denominations and churches is a thing called "freedom." When one religion whether Protestant, Catholic, Muslim, Humanism, etc.] is forced on a population by the leaders of that religion AND the civil authorities [and even armies], it does cut down on the number of dissenting religious groups. One of the things that most endears me to the good old U.S.A. is that we have no state sanctioned religion.

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