Reformation Day
What’s the big deal with Reformation Day? If you had asked me this two years ago, I would have said, “there’s a Reformation Day?” One of my first assignments as a Master’s student was to give a biography of Martin Luther. I knew very little about him, and after watching a few documentaries, I knew enough to give you the highlights of his life. One thing is for sure, if you want to study church history, you have to study Martin Luther and his impact on the Church… he’s that important.
I recently had the privilege of going to Rome to study as part of my Master’s requirements. I wish I could write down all of the things that I learned on that trip, but one that has stuck with me was the day we took the Reformation Walk. So, in this post, I want to share what I learned on that walk, some pictures, and why I believe as Christians, we should celebrate October 31st, Reformation Day.
Leonardo De Chirico is an author, professor, and pastor of a small evangelical church in the heart of Rome. My group sat in on two of his fascinating lectures about Roman Catholicism, church history, Vatican 2, and the Reformation. He took us to three different sites on our Reformation Walk, which started with the Sancta Sanctorum. The Sancta Sanctorum is where the stairs from Pontius Pilate’s praetorium were relocated by Constantine’s mother. These stairs are believed to be where Jesus climbed to receive his crucifixion sentence from Pilate. Many Catholics come to these stairs and climb up on their knees while praying as part of their pilgrimage to receive an indulgence.
Sancta Sanctorum
Martin Luther was a devout Catholic monk who lived in the early 1500s. If you study his life, you will hear about the agony and discontent he felt as he yearned to please God and earn his salvation. There are stories of him laying in the snow, restricting his diet, and sleeping without blankets to sacrifice to Christ and unite in his suffering. In 1510, he was chosen to represent the German Augustinian monks and make the pilgrimage to Rome and the Vatican, the epicenter of the Catholic faith. Upon arrival, he came to these sacred stairs. He saw men and women climbing the Sancta Sanctorum on their knees and paying the priest at the top of the stairs to receive an indulgence.
If you are unfamiliar, an indulgence is a piece of paper given by the Catholic church that grants full or partial remission from the punishment of sin. These indulgences claimed to guarantee that you can curb time in purgatory by donating to the Catholic church. Indulgences were also sold to family members of those who had died so that they could pass from purgatory to Heaven. Martin Luther saw the vast wealth of the Vatican and the corrupt practice of selling indulgences, and something didn’t sit right. To make the story short, he went back home, studied scripture, and became convinced that salvation could not be bought. So, he drafted the 95 Theses, and on October 31, 1517, he nailed them to the door of the church in Wittenberg, Germany.
This date is attributed to the start of the Protestant Reformation, which ultimately led to Protestants breaking away from the Catholic church over theological disagreements like justification. Luther was a faithful Catholic and wanted to start a conversation or debate about many of the corrupt practices of the Catholic church, but he would later be excommunicated and labeled a heretic.
The Sancta Sanctorum or Holy Stairs prompt Catholics to relive the passion of Christ. They are taught that they must do some good works in order to please God instead of simply receiving his grace as sufficient enough. This idea distorts the truth of scripture by causing Catholics to believe that God forgives sins and responds to us when we do things to please him. Why was the Reformation such a big deal? Because scripture tells us that Jesus Christ came to earth, lived a perfect life, and died for our sins. When we believe in Christ and make him the Lord of our lives, we are forgiven. Salvation was and always will be a free gift from God that we can never buy or earn.
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9
“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment but has passed from death to life.” John 5:24
“Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:1
These scriptures clearly tell us that it is our belief in the finished work of Christ that guarantees our salvation. So, why was this not clear prior to the Reformation? Sadly, all of the Bibles were in Latin (the language of scholars), were extremely scarce and expensive. To hear the word of God, you had to hear it through your priest at a local church. Martin Luther bravely translated the Bible from Latin to German. Others who tried to translate the Bible into a common language were burned at the stake as heretics. Leonardo shared that until 1870, Rome was run by popes, and possession of a Bible was a crime. He passed around this Bible, which had been smuggled into Italy.
Italian Bible that was smuggled into the country in 1870
Leonardo shared that one of the biggest hurdles he has had to overcome as an evangelical in Rome is that the Catholic church has labeled evangelicals a cult. One of their biggest tasks is opening their doors to the community to show them that they are not weird or scary but simply love Jesus and the truth of his word. Protestants could not really live in Rome until about 50-60 years ago because of the One State One Religion ordinance. Even several years ago, his church had a hard time getting a mortgage because the bank wanted approval that they were ok’d by the Catholic Church!
On the last stop of the Reformation Walk, we ended up in a park that showcased a Martin Luther sign. I honestly looked at this and thought, “what is the big deal?” Leonardo explained why it was. This sign, which was difficult to get approved, means something to the protestants living in Rome. It means that they, too, belong. That they have a place here in Rome. We sat in that park and sang the hymn, “A Mighty Fortress is Our God.” More so than ever before, I felt immense gratitude. Gratitude for men and women who throughout history fought for the truth of the gospel. Who, despite hardships, ex-communication, and even death, understood that what Christ did for us on the cross accomplished everything we need. That believed that we were meant to have a personal relationship with Christ and study the truth of his word.
There is still much I do not know about the Reformation and Church history, but I become more and more grateful every time I learn something new. I become encouraged that God’s truth stands. The name of this blog and my Instagram account is Testing for Truth which is based on Acts 17:11. In this passage, the Bereans did not simply accept everything that the apostle Paul told them, but they took it and compared it against scripture to see if what he said was true. You don’t need to be a scholar, pastor, or well-educated to test for truth. I want to encourage you to keep testing for truth, and by the way, you can do that because the Bible was printed in your language, thanks to the Reformers! Happy Reformation Day, friends!