The Year is 1517

The Elbe River goes through Protestant Eastern Germany. The Rhine and Danube flows through Catholic Western Germany. While the country is now united, East and West are together as are Catholic and Protestant...the history of these areas is different. The seat of that “difference" is in Wittenberg, the home of a modest Theology Professor named Martin Luther who turned the religious world upside down. 

In 1517 Martin Luther wrote Ninety-Five Theses on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences with the idea that the “Church” (i.e., The Catholic Church) would reform it’s ways. In those days, if you wanted your opus read,  you posted it on the door of the church! So, Professor Luther posted his Ninety-Five Theses on the Castle Church door. He had no idea that he would start a revolution. As we all know, those 95 Theses were part of the beginning of the Protestant Reformation!

It’s hard to view Wittenberg without learning something about Luther. He’s everywhere...there’s even an actor playing Luther who walks around the town (during the summer I guess). As you can see, modern Wittenberg has a “tagging” problem.

We saw the famous “door” where the Theses were posted. 

We walked into the BOC (Big Old Church), which started out as Catholic and now is Lutheran. There’s something about these BOCs  that I like. The craftsmanship shown in all the details...no one builds a church (or any other structure) like this anymore!

After leaving Wittenberg we all had a better idea about Luther and how his ideas changed the country. The city is being “spiffed” up as in 5 years they are going to celebrate the 500th Anniversary of Martin Luther nailing the theses to the church door!