[drstevej]

***You underestimate Luther's gifts as a propogandist***

The Ninety Five theses were never intended for publication. They were written in Latin for academic disputation. They were translated and spread throughout Europe by people sympathetic to Luther, but it was hardly directed by Luther.

***If Charles V had been a German, history would have taken a very different turn. ***

Would Luther's execution have made Charles V a German? Your original point was that the burning of Luther would have spared Europe 100 years of war. Now you are saying that if Chas. V were German history would be different... If Thomas Munzer had had nuclear weapons we would be speaking German.

Luther was charismatic as a leader, but Zwingli and Calvin did not dance to his tune. Eck and Erasmus were not enamored with him. Luther's sucessor, Melancthon, lacked Luther's spine and leadership (although he was a brilliant theologian in his own right). Luther was strong among the Lutheran leaders and respected outside Germany. He was certainly no Pope.


Reform in Germany under a politic of Electors and princes was radically different than reform in the Swiss Cantons. The leadership of Calvin and Zwingli and Bullinger and Bucer was well suited to the cantons. Calvin in Germany or Luther in Geneva would have been a non-starter. God placed the right men in the right place. Men you would prefer to have been tried and fried.

[RobbyS]

Luther's address to the German Nobility had far greater impact; only in retrospect do the 95 theses mark the beginning of the Reformation. If Charles V had been a German, he would have used Luther to establish his ascendency over the Princes. Since he was not,but a Hapsburg with his power based in Spain and Austria and a great interest in Italy, he had to defend Catholicism. If he had seized and executed Luther, he would have denied the German nobility a powerfully gifted mouthpiece. He did oppose Luther but knowing his weakness in Germany dared not move against him. Yes, Luther was perfectly suited for his part, and Germany was a far greater stage than Switzerland. With Germany politically united behind Luther, the Reformation would probably have swept all Europenorth of the Alps instead of being fragmented into competing sects.