#53 Martin Luther - Wie wird man Reformator?

With Volker Leppin: Martin Luther was a college dropout. When the law student confessed to his parents that he wanted to become a monk rather than a lawyer, his father switched from the respectful formal "Sie" (you) back to the condescending informal "Du" (you) of their childhood. As a novice at the Augustinian monastery in Erfurt, Martin was still largely unremarkable theologically. Through his confessor, he came into contact with medieval mysticism, which did not make an experience of God dependent on outward deeds, but preached inner contemplation. After his studies, Martin Luther rose quickly within the order and became a professor of theology at the newly founded University of Wittenberg. In 1517, he suddenly mobilized there. He took offense at an indulgence tour. The Dominican Johannes Tetzel was touring neighboring territories collecting money for the construction of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. Tetzel promised that every donation would shorten the days in purgatory. His slogan: "As soon as the coin in the coffer rings, the soul from purgatory springs." Behind this hustle and bustle of indulgences lay a financial deal involving three powerful figures. The Archbishop of Mainz and Magdeburg owed the Pope 20,000 gold guilders. Jakob Fugger, the banker from Augsburg, had advanced the money to the Archbishop. The indulgence tour was intended to recoup the sum. The Pope and the Archbishop had agreed to share the proceeds equally. Luther was unaware of the background and wrote indignantly to the Archbishop, asking if he even knew what kind of shady business was being conducted. The professor had stirred up a hornet's nest. His protest went viral. The printers fired up their presses, and soon Luther, with his 95 Theses against indulgences, was a national celebrity in Germany. How a groundbreaking new religion developed from spontaneous outrage is the topic of my conversation with Volker Leppin, Professor of Church History at Yale University. You can find travel tips, more pictures, and information here: www.99xgeschichte.de To register for the evening with Professor Knut Görich and me in Würzburg on April 22, 2026, at 6:00 p.m., click here: https://eveeno.com/542701555 The Goethe-Institut offers this podcast series on its "Deutschstunde" platform. "Who we are and why it didn't work out..." is part of the networks Wissenschaftspodcasts.de, #Historytelling, and Mittelalter.digital. Want to learn more about podcasters with a passion for history? Then check out this talk: "Behind History" is a new talk format from independent history podcasters! https://open.spotify.com/episode/1SM9... #EarlyModernPeriod #Germany #WesternEurope #Europe