Reformation still divisive, 500 years on

Five hundred years later, no one is 100% certain whether the frustrated German monk actually did nail his 95 arguments against Catholicism to the door of his local church. But the story went down in history anyway, and tomorrow its anniversary will be marked around the world.

That monk was Martin Luther, and his 95 Theses sparked a revolution still being felt today.

In 1517, the Catholic Church was the dominant power in Europe, including in Luther’s home country of Germany. But he felt that it had become greedy and corrupt. He was particularly angered by “indulgences”, payments to the church that would supposedly help people get to heaven. This contradicted the idea that it is your faith, not your wealth, that make you a good Christian.

Thanks to the invention of the printing press, Luther’s idea spread through Europe like wildfire. He initially wanted to reform Catholicism, not start a new religion. But soon he was excommunicated, which only fueled his supporters. In 1534, he published a translation of the Bible in German, while Henry VIII was breaking England from Rome.

The consequences of all this were enormous. In the 17th century, the Thirty Years War devastated Europe; up to 12m people are thought to have died. Three centuries later, another 30-year conflict between Catholics and Protestants cost thousands of lives in Ireland. It took until last year for the two churches to talk seriously about healing “this wound in the body of Christ”.

But the Reformation also launched a wave of creativity. Access to a vernacular Bible taught many ordinary people to read and think for themselves.

This spirit of free-thinking eventually led to the enlightenment, which promoted reason, science and individualism. Protestants colonised and shaped North America as we know it today. The “Protestant work ethic” may even have helped the industrial revolution.

Was all the bloodshed worth it?

I got 95 problems

Of course, say some. The Reformation’s effects were not always pretty, but it led to the world we live in today. It had a hand in everything from the founding of the USA to the spread of democracy. Without it, the Catholic church would have had too much power over Europe, and may never have faced up to its more unsavoury practices. Tomorrow should be a day of celebration.

For many Christians, it is not so simple. The Bible says that Jesus’s followers should be “completely one”, and yet Christianity now has countless denominations. Some historians even say that the industrial revolution could have happened sooner under Catholicism, without decades of religious wars getting in the way. Tomorrow should be a time to reflect on how to heal the remaining wounds.