The Protestant Reformation

In 1517 Martin Luther, a German monk and professor, circulated his 95 Theses criticizing the sale of indulgences, certificates said to reduce punishment for sin. Luther came to argue that salvation comes by grace through faith alone, that scripture alone is the final authority, and that all believers share a priesthood. The printing press spread his ideas rapidly, and German princes protected him for religious and political reasons, including resentment of papal taxes.

Other reformers followed: Ulrich Zwingli in Zurich, John Calvin in Geneva, who stressed God's sovereignty and predestination, and Anabaptists, who rejected infant baptism. In England, Henry VIII broke with Rome in 1534, initially over his marriage, founding the Church of England. The Reformation split Western Christianity permanently and led to religious wars, but also to translations of the Bible into everyday languages, wider literacy and, eventually, arguments for religious toleration.