Wittenberg, Germany

So I’m finally getting around to posting some pics of our visit to Wittenberg after our mission conference in August. Martin Luther arrived in Wittenberg as an Augustinian monk, living at the monastery there. He studied theology at the newly created university starting in 1508, and upon graduation in 1512 he became a professor of Bible there. Two years later he became a preacher at the City Church.

The City Church

The alter piece, created by Lucas Cranach the Elder, for the City Church, depicting scenes from Protestant parish life.

View from the altar. Notice the pulpit on the left, with stairs leading up to it.

In the Vineyard of the Lord by Lucas Cranach the Younger sums up the Reformation in a picture. On the left, Catholic clergy destroy the vineyard, setting fires and wreaking havoc. Then they line up to receive their reward from Jesus. On the right, Protestant clergy carefully tend the vineyard, watering it and caring for it. Then they are seen kneeling humbling to receive their reward from Jesus. The Reformation was not a time for subtlety…

Some kid thought a drawing of Homer Simpson would be a good way to celebrate 500 years…

On October 31, 1517 Luther nailed his famous “95 Theses” to the wooden door of the Castle Church. This faithful Roman Catholic monk, at the time seeking only reform within the church, certainly had no idea at the time that this would turn out to be the opening blast of a revolution. The nailing of theses on the door of the church was the custom of the time – a call for open debate on a matter at the university. But his theses, though handwritten, were copied and printed as pamphlets thanks to a relatively recent invention – the printing press. They spread all over Germany and as they say “the rest is history…”

Praise be to God who is sovereignly directing history to his desired end – the preservation of his church as a gift to his Son for his glory.

Here’s some pics of the Castle Church, where the old wooden door, after a fire burned it down, was replace by a metal door with the 95 Theses engraved

Inside the Castle Church

The door of the Castle Church, with the 95 Theses engraved in Latin

One disappointing but not altogether surprising fact about the huge 500th anniversary celebration in Germany is that the gospel seems to be conspicuously absent. The signs advertising the anniversary were mostly about peace, tolerance, love, diversity, and an occasional inoffensive Bible verse.

It’s all rainbows and unicorns in Europe’s “500 years of Reformation” campaign…