This Day in History: Reformation Day

It was on this day 483 years ago, 31 October 1517 CE, that Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of the Wittenburg Castle Church. Aside from inception of man, the life of Jesus, Moses, and Mohammad, this is the most potent event in human history. This is the day that modern Christianity was born.

As a brief history, Martin Luther was an obscure Roman Catholic monk. A German by birth, he had dedicated his life in service to the Church and Christ. The pope was selling 'indulgences' in an effort to raise money for the building and renovation St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. These 'indulgences' were supposed relics and treasures of the Church that could be bought for the forgiveness of the sins of living and dead family members. Luther was appalled by this practice--viewing it as an embezzlement of the poor--and as he studied the Bible, he found justification for his criticisms. These criticisms were laid out in his Theses:

"The true treasure of the Church is the Most Holy Gospel of the glory and the grace of God. But this treasure is naturally most odious, for it makes the first to be last."

Very few people would have heard the rantings of this little German preacher had it not been for a recent invention. The Guttenberg printing press had been developed a few decades earlier and it created the first mass-media. Within two months of his protest, Luther's Theses had been spread throughout the Catholic world. The monk was called to Rome and tried for heresy as his followers began to infiltrate the clergy.


Protestant clergymen were excommunicated, persecuted, and martyred as cities, states, and nations began to distance themselves from the Pope in Rome. Scientists and intellectuals were encouraged to question the "facts" that the Church had taught about the natural world. Theologians were encouraged to return to original biblical texts. Preachers were liberated to teach their sermons in the language that their parishioners could understand.


Most immediately, the Protestant Reformation led to the Enlightenment, the popularization of systematic theology, and two centuries of religious wars. By extension, nearly every world event in the past 483 years have been influenced by a protesting German monk. So this Halloween also remember that it's Reformation Day also. 

Morning Prayer: Immortal, Invisible God Only Wise

Immortal, invisible, God only wise,
In light inaccessible hid from our eyes,
Most blessèd, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
Almighty, victorious, Thy great Name we praise.

Unresting, unhasting, and silent as light,
Nor wanting, nor wasting, Thou rulest in might;
Thy justice, like mountains, high soaring above
Thy clouds, which are fountains of goodness and love.

To all, life Thou givest, to both great and small;
In all life Thou livest, the true life of all;
We blossom and flourish as leaves on the tree,
And wither and perish—but naught changeth Thee.

All laud we would render; O help us to see
’Tis only the splendor of light hideth Thee,
So let Thy great glory, Almighty, impart,

Through Christ in His story, Thy Christ to the heart.

Great Father of glory, pure Father of light,
Thine angels adore Thee, all veiling their sight;
But of all Thy rich graces this grace, Lord, impart
Take the veil from our faces, the vile from our heart.

~Walter Chalmers Smith, 1839

Something About This Blog

This is the first time I've ever blogged so please be patient.

The world is full of self-important people who are ever-ready to have their voices heard--blogging is a perfect outlet. I suppose I fall into this category. After all, I love voicing my opinion about everything and rarely do I have the same energy to listen as I do to speak. This is a way to satisfy both my opining personality and the burdened ears of my closest friends. You have a choice. You get to elect whether to hear me or not.

People want their voices heard and as I think about it, this stems from two urges. First, people are self-important. They want to matter and they want to be patted on the back for all of their brilliance. We live in a culture that has to reward every effort and action that we take. Our works are the most valued part of our existence; we are measured by our performance. We, however, don't want to be loved for our works. This flows into the second reason people want to be heard: The deepest and most sincere desire of every human soul is to be fully known and still deeply loved. This is true for every attention-seeking child, rebellious teen, crotchety old man, as well as the suited armies of faceless professionals who only work to make it to the nearest weekend (queue that catchy Loverboy song!). People wish to be known and loved deeply.

One August Dei is a blog that will explore all of the things that I find to be important. The title of this blog refers to the most important thing: God, who is the beginning and the end of every good thing, knows me fully and still He loves me deeply. The word 'august' is an adjective that describes majesty. Dei is the Latin term for God. So in one sense I'm just saying that there is only one God and he is majestic! In another sense, I'm just referencing the mundaneness of everything I'm writing about. There isn't anything special about an August day. They're usually sunny, peaceful and unmemorable. I hope that my words will convey both the eternal majesty of God and the very temporary importance of many of my greatest thoughts.

Thanks for listening.