Role: Defense Attorney
Charges:
1.) Development and preaching of heretical doctrines
2.) Inciting members of the Catholic Church to rebel against the authority and established doctrines of the universal Church
3.) Willful denial of the authority of the Pope and the Catholic Church
Both attorneys are allowed four primary and four follow-up questions of Martin Luther, and three primary and three follow-up questions for each of the other witnesses.
Development and preaching of heretical doctrines:
The definition of “heresy” is “religious opinion that is opposed to the doctrines of the Church”. In no way is Martin Luther guilty of heresy. How could he be, when everything he has written about in his 95 Theses is based on the doctrines of the Bible and the Canon Law? Let’s start at the beginning: the action that shoved Luther into writing these Theses - the selling of indulgences. Indulgences can be bought by the public to ensure one or one’s family member’s safe travel to Heaven. Once you buy an indulgence, you receive a letter of absolution from your sins so that you can skip time in purgatory, granted by the Pope. However, (no offense, your Holiness) but the Pope, however holy he may be, is not God. Although he may be God’s voice on Earth, nowhere in the Bible does it state that he has the authority to remit punishment in purgatory. Is Heaven a movie theatre where you can buy ticket and walk right in? Martin Luther is not committing heresy by objecting against the sale of indulgences, as this “buying your way into Heaven” has no part whatsoever in the Bible.
Inciting members of the Catholic Church to rebel against the authority and established doctrines of the universal Church
I would like to point out that in 1521, once Luther realized that people in Wittenberg were rebelling against the authority of the Church because of him, he immediately wrote Admonition to All True Christians to Guard Themselves Against Sedition. In this, he wrote that there were no grounds for rebellion against the Church. Later, he preached for eight days at St. Mary’s Church about the need for patience and love. About how he was ashamed that violence was connected to his name. He continued preaching in order to fix the riots he had started. Luther’s friend, Andreas Karlstadt, who had performed the first Mass in German and shared communion in both bread and wine with the people, went against the laws of the Catholic Church. However, instead of approving of these actions, Luther disagreed, and tried to undo what Karlstadt had done. Several years later, in 1524 and 1525, peasants began revolting against their masters as they believed Luther would have wanted. They caused the destruction of their crops and many churches, monasteries, and castles. Instead of supporting these acts of rebellion, however, Luther worked to suppress them. He traveled to the towns of the villagers themselves in order to encourage them to cease with their violence. When they wouldn’t stop, he wrote Against the Murderous and Thieving Hordes of Peasants where he stated that the peasants need to cease their revolt.
So as you can see, Luther did not mean to instigate rebellion against the Church, and when he discovered that he had, he immediately attempted to stop it. He did not write his 95 Theses as a way to begin a whole new reformation - he just wanted to provide the spark for a discussion. He is not guilty of the fact that others interpreted his writings differently than he wanted them to. In fact, he sacrificed much in order for the violence caused by his writings to be prevented. He lost his friend, Andreas Karlstadt, and the peasants grew to hate him because he did not support them in their revolts. Martin Luther did not want people to rebel against the Church.
Willful denial of the authority of the Pope and Catholic Church
There is no question that Martin Luther denied the Pope’s request when asked to recant what he said in his writings, but he never denied the authority of the Catholic Church - only the actions of Leo X.
Who is Leo to say that Luther is denying the authority of the Catholic Church, when he himself is out spending thousands of ducats hunting, throwing lavish parties, building St. Peter’s basilica, and going to war? German peasants are paying money for parties they do not get to attend, wars that only cost them money, and a church they cannot even visit, as it is far from Germany, AND, they are doing this through indulgences, which Leo has no right to sell. His Holiness is abusing the power he wields. Didn’t Leo say, “God has given me the papacy, let me enjoy it”? Since when are parties and hunting part of the Pope’s duties? Since when is it more important for the Pope to enjoy himself than represent God and carry out God’s will? The Pope has so many responsibilities such as spreading the word of the Catholic Church, appointing bishops and cardinals, defining the Church’s position on issues facing the world, and more. How can one man complete all of his responsibilities and do them well, while still having time and money for so much excessive enjoyment? Luther was not going against the Church, or even the position of Pope - he was denying the right of Pope Leo the PERSON to sell indulgences and abuse his power.
Questions for Martin Luther:
1.) Why did you find it necessary to translate the Bible into German?
A. I wanted the people to be able to interpret the Bible for themselves. I think it is unjust to have the Bible interpreted for you by someone else, and I believed it was time for the people to decide for themselves what the Bible means.
→ In your opinion, why would the Pope not think this way?
Because he wanted people to believe what he was saying, and nothing else.
2.) Did you mean for all the revolts and riots you caused in 1521 and 1524 to happen?
A. Of course I did not mean for those to happen! I am ashamed that violence and destruction is connected to my name! All I did was voice a few opinions. I never wanted any revolts against the Church or the nobility. You cannot accuse me of inciting a members of the Catholic Church to rebel against authority, because all I did was write a few books. Let me put it this way: in the future, if children were to play violent video games and then go out and commit violent acts, would it be the video-game company’s fault that the children committed violent crimes? Can you truly blame them for the children's’ acts? It is the same situation with me. Can you truly blame me for the choices made by the people? And, when I found out they were revolting, I told them to stop!
→ So did you do anything to stop it?
Yes, I did. When I heard that people were revolting, I told them to stop. In 1521 I wrote Admonition to All True Christians to Guard Themselves Against Sedition, and then I preached for 8 days at St. Mary’s Church about the need for patience and love. In 1524, when the peasants revolted, I traveled to their homes and told them to stop. They didn’t listen to me, so I wrote Against the Murderous and Thieving Hordes of Peasants which was about stopping the peasants. Afterward I wrote that, they called me their enemy.
3.) Why did you find it necessary to write the 95 Theses?
A. Because of these! (Holds up indulgence) Johann Tetzel was selling these indulgences - letting people buy their innocence - which is completely unholy and against the
4.) Were you denying the power and authority of the Pope and Church?
A. No, I never denied the power of the Church, nor the authority of the Pope. All I did was question the acts of one man: Leo X. I questioned his abusive use of the pontificate and his selling of indulgences - nothing more!
Questions for Jon Huss:
1.) In your opinion, how could a person who has sinned gain salvation?
A. By repentance! :) It has to be in your heart.
→ So do you think that someone who has murdered, taken multiple wives, fathered twelve children with other women, and stole from his neighbor, can receive absolution from these sins by paying for an indulgence with money?
A. Of course not! Anyone who has money can buy an indulgence and get into Heaven. In order to truly gain salvation, you must be truly repentant in your heart.
Questions for Henry VIII:
1.) Why did you separate from the Catholic Church?
A. My first divorce would have been legal, except that the Pope would not grant it. This was only for political gain, not spiritual at all. That was when I realized that our Pope is corrupt and that the Catholic Church needs cleansing. I took my nation away from the Pope because I believed that it was best for them.
2.) Just to clarify, could you please define the reason why you needed the divorce?
A. I wanted the divorce because I needed a son for the kingdom. If I did not have a son, then war would break out over who would get power…etcetc.
Questions for John Calvin:
1.) Did you believe that the Bible translated into German?
A. I think that everyone should be able to interpret the Bible for themselves
2.) Why do you think that the Pope does not want the people to read the Bible?
A. The Pope obviously does not believe that the people can read and interpret the Bible for themselves. I, on the other hand, believe perfectly of understand the Bible without the help of the Church.
3.) How do you view indulgences?
A. As Martin Luther has already said, the Pope does not have the power of God, he cannot be selling forgiveness, and he is also corrupt.
Questions for Andreas Karlstadt:
1.) What did you do after Martin Luther left the town of Wittenberg?
A. I took over being the leader of the town.
2.) When you took control of the town of Wittenberg, what did you do?
A. I changed the way Mass was celebrated and had a law passed in Wittenberg that made it so that all masses in the future would be like mine.
→ Did what you do go against the Catholic Church laws?
A. Yes, it did. I feel truly sorry about that now. :(
3.) After you invited Martin Luther to come back to Wittenberg, what did he do?
A. He totally vetoed all my ideas! He didn’t like that I was going against the Catholic Church, and made it all stop. He worked to undo what I had done!
→ So would you call Martin Luther a good Catholic?
A. Yes, because he undid all my own heretical reforms.
Questions for Leo X:
1.) Please explain the reason why the church funds were so depleted that you had to increase the sale of indulgences in order to complete St. Peter’s Basilica?
→ Is it not true that you spent 46,800,052 ducats on the Basilica, and is it not true that most of that money was from German peasants buying indulgences?
2.) Is it true that you spent an embarrassingly large sum of money on food, parties, hunting, and entertainment (of which form, we do not know), even though the Bible preaches against gluttony?
3.) If you truly have the power to release souls from purgatory, why would you not release all of them by the most holy thing of all: love?
Charges:
1.) Development and preaching of heretical doctrines
2.) Inciting members of the Catholic Church to rebel against the authority and established doctrines of the universal Church
3.) Willful denial of the authority of the Pope and the Catholic Church
Development and preaching of heretical doctrines:
The definition of “heresy” is “religious opinion that is opposed to the doctrines of the Church”. In no way is Martin Luther guilty of heresy. How could he be, when everything he has written about in his 95 Theses is based on the doctrines of the Bible and the Canon Law? Let’s start at the beginning: the action that shoved Luther into writing these Theses - the selling of indulgences. Indulgences can be bought by the public to ensure one or one’s family member’s safe travel to Heaven. Once you buy an indulgence, you receive a letter of absolution from your sins so that you can skip time in purgatory, granted by the Pope. However, (no offense, your Holiness) but the Pope, however holy he may be, is not God. Although he may be God’s voice on Earth, nowhere in the Bible does it state that he has the authority to remit punishment in purgatory. Is Heaven a movie theatre where you can buy ticket and walk right in? Martin Luther is not committing heresy by objecting against the sale of indulgences, as this “buying your way into Heaven” has no part whatsoever in the Bible.
Inciting members of the Catholic Church to rebel against the authority and established doctrines of the universal Church
I would like to point out that in 1521, once Luther realized that people in Wittenberg were rebelling against the authority of the Church because of him, he immediately wrote Admonition to All True Christians to Guard Themselves Against Sedition. In this, he wrote that there were no grounds for rebellion against the Church. Later, he preached for eight days at St. Mary’s Church about the need for patience and love. About how he was ashamed that violence was connected to his name. He continued preaching in order to fix the riots he had started. Luther’s friend, Andreas Karlstadt, who had performed the first Mass in German and shared communion in both bread and wine with the people, went against the laws of the Catholic Church. However, instead of approving of these actions, Luther disagreed, and tried to undo what Karlstadt had done. Several years later, in 1524 and 1525, peasants began revolting against their masters as they believed Luther would have wanted. They caused the destruction of their crops and many churches, monasteries, and castles. Instead of supporting these acts of rebellion, however, Luther worked to suppress them. He traveled to the towns of the villagers themselves in order to encourage them to cease with their violence. When they wouldn’t stop, he wrote Against the Murderous and Thieving Hordes of Peasants where he stated that the peasants need to cease their revolt.
So as you can see, Luther did not mean to instigate rebellion against the Church, and when he discovered that he had, he immediately attempted to stop it. He did not write his 95 Theses as a way to begin a whole new reformation - he just wanted to provide the spark for a discussion. He is not guilty of the fact that others interpreted his writings differently than he wanted them to. In fact, he sacrificed much in order for the violence caused by his writings to be prevented. He lost his friend, Andreas Karlstadt, and the peasants grew to hate him because he did not support them in their revolts. Martin Luther did not want people to rebel against the Church.
Willful denial of the authority of the Pope and Catholic Church
There is no question that Martin Luther denied the Pope’s request when asked to recant what he said in his writings, but he never denied the authority of the Catholic Church - only the actions of Leo X.
Who is Leo to say that Luther is denying the authority of the Catholic Church, when he himself is out spending thousands of ducats hunting, throwing lavish parties, building St. Peter’s basilica, and going to war? German peasants are paying money for parties they do not get to attend, wars that only cost them money, and a church they cannot even visit, as it is far from Germany, AND, they are doing this through indulgences, which Leo has no right to sell. His Holiness is abusing the power he wields. Didn’t Leo say, “God has given me the papacy, let me enjoy it”? Since when are parties and hunting part of the Pope’s duties? Since when is it more important for the Pope to enjoy himself than represent God and carry out God’s will? The Pope has so many responsibilities such as spreading the word of the Catholic Church, appointing bishops and cardinals, defining the Church’s position on issues facing the world, and more. How can one man complete all of his responsibilities and do them well, while still having time and money for so much excessive enjoyment? Luther was not going against the Church, or even the position of Pope - he was denying the right of Pope Leo the PERSON to sell indulgences and abuse his power.
Questions for Martin Luther:
1.) Why did you find it necessary to translate the Bible into German?
A. I wanted the people to be able to interpret the Bible for themselves. I think it is unjust to have the Bible interpreted for you by someone else, and I believed it was time for the people to decide for themselves what the Bible means.
→ In your opinion, why would the Pope not think this way?
Because he wanted people to believe what he was saying, and nothing else.
2.) Did you mean for all the revolts and riots you caused in 1521 and 1524 to happen?
A. Of course I did not mean for those to happen! I am ashamed that violence and destruction is connected to my name! All I did was voice a few opinions. I never wanted any revolts against the Church or the nobility. You cannot accuse me of inciting a members of the Catholic Church to rebel against authority, because all I did was write a few books. Let me put it this way: in the future, if children were to play violent video games and then go out and commit violent acts, would it be the video-game company’s fault that the children committed violent crimes? Can you truly blame them for the children's’ acts? It is the same situation with me. Can you truly blame me for the choices made by the people? And, when I found out they were revolting, I told them to stop!
→ So did you do anything to stop it?
Yes, I did. When I heard that people were revolting, I told them to stop. In 1521 I wrote Admonition to All True Christians to Guard Themselves Against Sedition, and then I preached for 8 days at St. Mary’s Church about the need for patience and love. In 1524, when the peasants revolted, I traveled to their homes and told them to stop. They didn’t listen to me, so I wrote Against the Murderous and Thieving Hordes of Peasants which was about stopping the peasants. Afterward I wrote that, they called me their enemy.
3.) Why did you find it necessary to write the 95 Theses?
A. Because of these! (Holds up indulgence) Johann Tetzel was selling these indulgences - letting people buy their innocence - which is completely unholy and against the
4.) Were you denying the power and authority of the Pope and Church?
A. No, I never denied the power of the Church, nor the authority of the Pope. All I did was question the acts of one man: Leo X. I questioned his abusive use of the pontificate and his selling of indulgences - nothing more!
Questions for Jon Huss:
1.) In your opinion, how could a person who has sinned gain salvation?
A. By repentance! :) It has to be in your heart.
→ So do you think that someone who has murdered, taken multiple wives, fathered twelve children with other women, and stole from his neighbor, can receive absolution from these sins by paying for an indulgence with money?
A. Of course not! Anyone who has money can buy an indulgence and get into Heaven. In order to truly gain salvation, you must be truly repentant in your heart.
Questions for Henry VIII:
1.) Why did you separate from the Catholic Church?
A. My first divorce would have been legal, except that the Pope would not grant it. This was only for political gain, not spiritual at all. That was when I realized that our Pope is corrupt and that the Catholic Church needs cleansing. I took my nation away from the Pope because I believed that it was best for them.
2.) Just to clarify, could you please define the reason why you needed the divorce?
A. I wanted the divorce because I needed a son for the kingdom. If I did not have a son, then war would break out over who would get power…etcetc.
Questions for John Calvin:
1.) Did you believe that the Bible translated into German?
A. I think that everyone should be able to interpret the Bible for themselves
2.) Why do you think that the Pope does not want the people to read the Bible?
A. The Pope obviously does not believe that the people can read and interpret the Bible for themselves. I, on the other hand, believe perfectly of understand the Bible without the help of the Church.
3.) How do you view indulgences?
A. As Martin Luther has already said, the Pope does not have the power of God, he cannot be selling forgiveness, and he is also corrupt.
Questions for Andreas Karlstadt:
1.) What did you do after Martin Luther left the town of Wittenberg?
A. I took over being the leader of the town.
2.) When you took control of the town of Wittenberg, what did you do?
A. I changed the way Mass was celebrated and had a law passed in Wittenberg that made it so that all masses in the future would be like mine.
→ Did what you do go against the Catholic Church laws?
A. Yes, it did. I feel truly sorry about that now. :(
3.) After you invited Martin Luther to come back to Wittenberg, what did he do?
A. He totally vetoed all my ideas! He didn’t like that I was going against the Catholic Church, and made it all stop. He worked to undo what I had done!
→ So would you call Martin Luther a good Catholic?
A. Yes, because he undid all my own heretical reforms.
Questions for Leo X:
1.) Please explain the reason why the church funds were so depleted that you had to increase the sale of indulgences in order to complete St. Peter’s Basilica?
→ Is it not true that you spent 46,800,052 ducats on the Basilica, and is it not true that most of that money was from German peasants buying indulgences?
2.) Is it true that you spent an embarrassingly large sum of money on food, parties, hunting, and entertainment (of which form, we do not know), even though the Bible preaches against gluttony?
3.) If you truly have the power to release souls from purgatory, why would you not release all of them by the most holy thing of all: love?
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