Editor's note: On April 17, 1521, Martin Luther confessed his faith to Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, at the Imperial Assembly of Worms, and when he was asked to abandon the reform and return to the Holy See, Luther shouted the famous words: "I have no choice, this is my position!" ”
Since the Beginning of the Ninety-Five Theses, the Reformation has intensified, eventually completely changing the face of Europe and the world. This article is an excerpt from the famous biographer Emil Ludwig's "The Germans: A Double History of a People", and the current title and subtitle are the editor's own.
Young humanists
Luther was born into a peasant family. His parents may have been bitter, and Luther often openly blamed his parents for his neurotic ailments in his letters and conversations. The fear of being beaten in childhood for fear of doing a small thing wrong greatly affected the pious man's thinking, and it was probably only this spiritual influence that could explain his life and why he made mistakes in his later years. Whether right or wrong, the Greek proverb says that a hard childhood produces great men, and comfort does not produce great character.
On Magdeburg Straße, the 14-year-old Luther jr. had no money, no ability, and often had a fever, and after being kicked out of his house, he had to beg along the street. Soon, the lady in a merchant's house saw that the child could sing and was sick, and she was kind to him. Fever and singing were a reflection of Luther's inner world, and the bouts of fever and salvation were far from just the events of his youth, but almost accompanied him throughout his life.
At the age of 17, at a critical juncture in Luther's economic and future crisis, his father gave the gifted son enough money to study law in Erfurt, hoping that one day he would become a minister of the mayor or archbishop. But Luther was willing to dedicate himself to philosophy, through which he could unravel his puzzles. He began to pay attention to women at the age of 20 and later swore to keep the chastity of a monk. 20 years later, at the age of 45, he already had 5 children born in wedlock. From this incident, we can see the extreme contradictions he is experiencing in his heart.
Luther was looking for god not so much knowledge as God, destined to share the fate of the world, but he was terrified of every fallen leaf. Some who knew him later described that occasionally during a feast he would gaze blankly ahead, listening in the midst of a clamor and immersing himself in the silence of a distant death. Not being able to eliminate his fears often made him lack confidence. He felt there was no reason to accept this pain that God had brought him, and he should try to get revenge. Once, during a hike, he suddenly drew his sword and stabbed at the lumbar artery, but fortunately it was not far from the town at the time, and his companion sent him to a surgeon in time to save him.
Shortly thereafter, he entered the Augustinian monastery and disappeared within the high walls of the courtyard. He was 21 years old.
The humble single hut, the tedious daily life of 70 monks in uniform, the strict discipline, the solemn vows of chastity and poverty, the solemn and cold demeanor of the elders and priests: all this shook him deeply. He held on to this life for quite some time, not officially giving up until 20 years later.
(Luther as an Augustine friar)
It was finally time for him to preside over the Mass of the monastery church for the first time, and at this critical moment he suddenly panicked, and under the tight grip of the abbot, he did not escape from the altar. This situation continued into his old age, and he had to be accompanied by someone on a regular basis in order to help him in the event of a sudden seizure. This depressed and repressed mood of Luther can be described by a curve: from asceticism to resistance and back to asceticism. Luther blamed all this on an irrepressible anxiety.
All he wanted from God was God's mercy, and at the same time he fervently wanted free will. So God sent him a friend, which seemed to symbolize hope. He was the Saxon nobleman and psychologist von Staupitz, who, as an agent of the bishop, came to the monastery to inspect the work. He took Luther to the University of Wittenberg, where he wore a black robe and became a professor and doctor, but still fasted, prayed, and did Mass with ordinary monks at the age of 25. He re-entered the secular world, and now, behind him was the monastery, and in front of him was life.
(Luther's residence in Wittenberg)
Frederick III, Elector of Saxony, was a benevolent monarch. He did care more about his people and began to oppose Rome's endless demands. On the orders of the Elector, Luther also served as a missionary. After handing in a written document on 15 questions, he asked to be dismissed as soon as possible, but he was forced to take to the pulpit on a Sunday due to the diocese's illness.
For the first time, he confronted so many masses, spreading his knowledge and beliefs to them. You are free to speak your thoughts in German, which was never before in the scholastic monasteries that used Latin. He immediately showed a talent for language and speech. His speech, which was based on the essays of St. Paul's collected writings, was very orthodox, but the more stupid Saxon peasants and citizens were deeply touched. The sermon tour took place, and on the second Sunday, the church was packed with crowds, and even the Elector himself attended. All eyes were fixed on the new preacher. Having heard countless old and dim-witted speeches, today I suddenly saw an inspiring young man speaking of God's mercy in vivid German, in connection with the daily life of a peasant. This is the God in the minds of the peasants. This also strengthened the missionary's own long-suppressed self-confidence. Gradually, the melancholy monk felt a little brighter in the world around him.
Soon, the young monk and professor left for the Vatican in Rome for his honor. In Rome he met the secular Pope Julius II, who met him only from a distance, without any sense of righteous indignation. It wasn't until many years later that he summed up his past confession by saying, "I believed everything about Rome at the time, but then I regretted it." ”
Educational reform
Luther spent seven years of quiet life as a professor and missionary at the University of Wittenberg. He taught and enriched his knowledge tremendously. In the process of studying Greek, he found that the Latin translation of the Bible greatly distorted the original. At this moment the unknown monk found a word error in the book that almost filled the air of this small room with the threat of the end times, and its consequences have affected for generations, far more lasting than the edict of peace solemnly proclaimed by the German emperor to the Empire and the princes.
By this time Leo X had been promoted to pope, exercising much worldly power in addition to monopolizing theocracy. This was opposed by many German emperors and resisted by theologians. Leo continued to sell the indulgences he had laid down by his predecessors, and even more, he had to collect the national treasury tax from Germany.
Luther was infuriated by the abuse of theocracy. At that time, such issues could be debated in public. Luther wrote an outline in which he carefully applied the wisdom of his own peasants. The Pope's kindness, he wrote, was simply misunderstood. Faithful believers demand punishment, not just buy a ticket of redemption. How could the Pope care only about money?
(Luther posted the "Ninety-Five Theses")
Luther summed up these ideas in a ninety-five theses written in Latin and pasted them on the door of the church on October 31, 1517, the day before Halloween. On the surface, this outline has no text that has the potential to cause riots or rebellions, but its inner meaning ignites people's anger and arouses the contempt that people carefully conceal in their hearts. However, you know, this is written in Latin with a limited reading range! People were even more indignant when they heard what had been translated in German. Then a few unknown students took the pamphlets translated into German to the Saxon countryside, to the Elbe, the Rhine, the Danube, the seashore, to the Alps, to all the glorious old cities and impoverished remote villages, to Christ Churches, to the castles of the knights, to the court of the kings, and finally to the Holy See.
Gutenberg's invention of printing is so great, and the conviction that is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people is so powerful.
The author himself was most shaken by this document. He was surprised at first, then frightened. He saw that his articles were reverberating around the world, something he had never dreamed of or hoped for. Luther was shocked when he suddenly found himself embroiled in a worldly struggle, something he had never expected.
This year, Luther was 35 years old. When he appeared in monasteries, municipal halls, and taverns, citizens and peasants gathered to lift him out, pay homage to him, and scramble to catch a glimpse of him. They told their children that this was the Saxon who had recently refuted the Pope to no end. When he came to Heidelberg, the most famous university professors and rectors all competed to shake his hand, and he felt very proud!
The people—the young, the old, the devout, the learned—awakened for the first time in this monk, whose heart was full of fear and doubt, inferiority and neuroticness, a great sense of mission. Apparently, he was now facing Germans of a different race than the other races. They, he concluded, made him a fighter.
The Pope summoned him to Rome. To protect Luther, the Elector advised him to be censored in Germany. Luther faced the second test because it was the first time he had met the Kaiser!
Luther had held several public debates before this. One was between Luther and the theologian Ike. They all spoke Latin, and the debate was so intense that it had to be transferred to the Council of Churches. Luther suddenly turned against his usual mild-mannered routine and said:
"The church can make mistakes, and only the Bible is truly reliable."
"If you think so," Ike retorted, "then you're a pagan!" ”
At this point Luther suddenly said in German, "I do not deny the power of the Pope and the Church, but only because they come from God." But even if the German emperor is not of divine origin, we should honor him. ”
It was a decisive blow. The results of the debate were staggering. In an era when there were no newspapers and radio, the effects of oral communication were staggering. Luther saw a large number of humanists on his side, and his courage and fighting spirit grew. The ascetic found a very clever analogy: "Believers and God are like two lovers in love, and there is no need for a third person between them." ”
The storm is coming. The Pope demanded that Luther be surrendered and that he be expelled from the church. Rome issued a papal decree. Luther summoned students to the assembly to burn the papal decree. The gate was open, the students cheered around the fire, and Luther threw a bunch of parchment rolls into the fire amid the revelry.
(Luther's burning of the Papal Decree)
Now the Inquisition could put Luther into the fire at any time, just as he threw the papal decree into the fire, but the secular force, his monarch, protected him.
"That's where I stand!"
In 1521, at the first Reichstag in Worms, Charles found the princes uneasy, worried about the rising atmosphere of unrest in Germany and their own future. Who can influence the young emperor? The young man was calm and unbiased. He said he was responsible to the pope and therefore seemed to immediately announce the disqualification of the monk from citizenship, but a few electors asked him to summon Luther, and Charles agreed.
Luther decided to see the driver. The electors of his region promised to protect him, and the emperor's edict itself was a security pass with sufficient mercy and security. Luther was sent on his way like an angel. Still, the whole of Germany shook. Will Luther be executed?
Isn't that what happened 100 years ago? A professor of theology was summoned by another emperor. The same edict, the same scene, and the result was that the emperor broke his promise. Luther himself was very excited, and he seemed to be a triumphant victor.
The process of summoning was simple, but it was unique in German history. Never before have the state figures representing the regime and the figures representing the spiritual and ideological circles so face-to-face look at each other's outward and inner strengths and engage in a direct contest. This confrontation is not a dialogue between the Church and the State in the past, but the first confrontation in German history between the forces representing the ideology and spirit and the power of the state, which in the past were accustomed to going their own way.
What did these two people see that day?
The Emperor saw in front of him a 37-year-old but still thin monk in black robes, reminiscent of The early side portrait of Cranach: a pointed nose, well-defined, pale, and a pair of dark eyes. The monk saw in front of him a great monarch wrapped in colorful velvet and ornate silk. Facing Charles V himself, he could not help but feel that the Dutch painter Ollie's portrait of the emperor was as vivid and vivid as photography. He was full of heaven, with a nose as straight as Luther's, but much more handsome, his lips slightly open, his two sword eyebrows as neat as if they were drawn, a thick black hair, very handsome and handsome, his hands resting casually on his chest, and the whole posture was beautiful and moving.
(Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor)
Both sides miscalculated the other. "He sat there," Luther later recalled, "like an innocent lamb coming between a herd of pigs and dogs." For Charlie, according to Reikat's later memoirs: "This man could never have led me into an evil path." "Both sides understand each other with subjective stereotypes. The Emperor always thought that Luther was at best a cunning and insane peasant; and the son of this peasant thought that all he saw was an ordinary simple-minded and simple monarch, greatly underestimating Charles.
Luther walked over to a table and was horrified to see his writings placed there. He saw that Dr. Ike was also there. Ike first asked him in Latin whether he acknowledged that the book was his work, and then asked him if he was willing to give up his views. To the first question, Luther answered in the affirmative in a very low voice; to the second he hesitated and fell silent for a moment. The often-present fear has re-emerged. He snorted and stopped talking. Reluctantly, he was allowed to adjourn the meeting, but at best until the next day.
Luther was soon restored. That very night, he wrote to a friend, saying, "Even if Christ forgives," I will never give up a word. When he re-entered the house the next night, he was confident.
At first, he answered the questions in Latin, and the sentences appeared long and graceful. His opponent, Ike, was a little impatient with these flowery rhetoric and demanded that Luther answer the question clearly in German. Luther thus replied in a tone of firmness that was completely different from yesterday's.
"Since His Majesty the Venerable Emperor and the noble gentlemen have asked me to answer the questions simply, I will say bluntly: Unless I am found to have committed a violation of the Bible or other well-documented crimes, I will, as always, and my conscience will be at peace because my actions are in accordance with God's teachings. I do not believe in unfounded language by the Pope and the Holy See, because the facts show that their words are false and often contradictory. I cannot and will not give up what I have said, for acts against my conscience are neither beneficial nor honorable. I have no choice, that's where I stand, and May God bless me. amen. ”
The Emperor asked Luther a question: According to Luther, was the Holy See also wrong? "The decision of the Holy See of Konstanz," Luther replied, "is a clear violation of the clear doctrine of scripture." As he spoke, he held out a finger in warning, just as Huss had done.
(Luther in the Imperial Council of Worms)
The emperor listened, got up leisurely, and led his retinue out of the hall. Ike saw that he was about to be forced to fight, but fortunately the emperor was gone, so he stopped speaking. Luther was ready to play a big game, but now that he has no opponent, he can't help but be a little disappointed. He murmured to himself, "I'm standing there, I can't move, God help me, Amen!" ”
The meeting was abruptly interrupted, and there was a clamor. People applauded and congratulated the monk. On the steps, candlelight flickered. At the gate of the court came the cry of the Spanish coachman: "Tie him to a pillar and burn him!" Luther finally returned to the street. The moon is in the sky, the stars are shining, and the night has completely arrived.