Luther

Last week, we finally saw the movie Luther. When it was on at the theater a couple of years ago, we had planned on going to see it, but just never got around to it. We were going through movies at the library, saw it on a shelf, and checked it out.



I thought this was a really good movie. It brought the story of the Reformation to life for me. The first time I watched it, I thought it was a little confusing. You would definitely have to know something of Luther's life and the history of what was going on at the time to keep up with the story. For the first thirty minutes, the plot kind of skips along too fast, but once he is settled at the school they begin to take more time and it is easier to follow. I liked the actor who played Luther, too.



What was interesting was to see those times come to life. Common people had no Bibles. Most church services were in Latin, which only the well-educated understood. Luther himself, even after becoming a monk, had never seen a copy of the Bible until going to the theological university. On October 31, 1517 he nailed his 95 Theses to the door of the church. He protested the selling of indulgences,held that the Bible is the only source of truth, and that salvation is a gift only God cam give, not something we can buy or earn, and stood before the Diet of Worms on April 18, 1521, to defend his several writings. Because he would not recant, he was excommunicated from the church, which in essence, made him an outlaw. He translated and published the first Bible in the language of the common people, an act which changed the Christian world. Even after reading my history books, I had never realized that the Reformation caused such upheaval, almost war. The movie showed the chaos, and the number of people who died.



The only part of the movie I didn't care for was when he and his wife became engaged. She pretty much proposed to him! I can't imagine a woman being that bold in that day and age, and from what I've read of the real story of how they met and married, it was totally off-base. It was a really good movie, though, showing how God used one man to change the world.