R&R Article Summary

Mullett, Michael. "Martin Luther's Ninety-Five Theses." History Today 2003: n.
    pag. History Today. Web. 12 Feb. 2013.

Martin Luther's Ninety-Five Theses
Michael Mullet

The article's main focus is on Martin Luther and the 95 Theses. The author's intention is to explain the role the the Martin Luther's 95 Theses had on the Lutheran or Protestant Reformation. Michael Mullett comments on the possible psychological implication Luther's parents had on his life and how Luther went into priesthood against his father's wishes to become lawyer. Mullett then goes on to tell of the origins of the document and how the drama that unfolded after it was nailed to the door was recorded. Another leading man in the reformation, Phillip Melachthon, first recorded Luther's actions and the reasons why the reformer felt it mandatory to protest the indulgences. Melachthon also transcribed the role of God in the entire reformation and his influence on Luther. Next comes that actual content of the document and Mullett goes through the different points of Luther's argument. Finally, he concludes with Luther's theology in 1517 and how he his stance when he nailed the 95 Theses was very far from the Protestant leader he would later come to be.