HERE'S WHY POPE LEO X1V SHOULD REMOVE MARTIN LUTHER'S EXCOMMUNICATION

Martin Luther Defends Himself at the Diet of Worms

I wish Pope Leo the XIV well as he takes leadership of the Roman Catholic Church. In his opening speeches he has emphasized freedom and peace. In a speech to members of the press at the Vatican, he emphasized the “importance of the 'freedom of expression' and the press” and concluded by saying, “Let us disarm communication of all prejudice and resentment, fanaticism and even hatred.”

I applaud those words of Pope Leo, but I would like to see him move beyond mere words to real, pragmatic action. The Roman Catholic Church has a history of silencing and shutting down those who have dared to disagree. I would, therefore, like to hear him address the harsh, un-Christian treatment of Martin Luther by the Catholic Church.

Luther was a devout Roman Catholic priest who never wanted to leave the Catholic Church, but desired to see it reformed according to the Gospel. As the Professor of Bible and Theology at the University of Wittenberg, Luther had begun to see how far the medieval Catholic Church had strayed from Jesus and the New Testament.

He began to boldly teach that Scripture is the final authority for the Christian, rather than the pope. He also taught that we are saved through faith in Christ alone apart from church appointed works and sacraments.

His teachings were interpreted as an attack on the power structure of the Roman Church, and he was ordered to cease. Convinced that he was on the side of Scripture, he refused. Pope Leo X then excommunicated him on January 3, 1521, calling him a “child of the Devil" and describing him as “a wild boar that has invaded the Lord’s vineyard.”

Since heresy was a civil crime, Luther would have been arrested had he not been protected by the powerful German prince, Frederick the Wise. Luther later agreed to defend himself before a religious court in the German city of Worms and was guaranteed that he would not be arrested to and from this court.

At the Diet of Worms, Luther faced down the highest dignitaries in the empire, both religious and civil. Pope Leo was personally represented by the highest dignitaries in the Catholic Church. The Roman emperor, Charles I, was also present. The court ordered Luther to recant his teachings, but he refused, saying,

I consider myself convicted by the testimony of Holy Scripture, which is my basis. My conscience is captive to the Word of God; thus, I cannot and will not recant anything, because acting against one's conscience is neither safe nor sound. Here I stand! God help me! Amen!"

As promised, Luther was allowed to leave the court but after brief deliberations the court affirmed Leo’s excommunication of Luther, and an order was issued for princes and magistrates to seize Luther and turn him over to the Roman authorities. Christians were ordered not to read, print or publish any of Luther’s books, but to burn them, and such occurred in many cities.

Luther did not recant because he was convinced that he was on the right side of God and history, and history has shown he was right. The late Dr. Hans Kung, the most widely read Roman Catholic theologian in the world today, also believed Luther to be on the right side of history. He wrote,

And from a historical perspective there can be no doubt that it is not Luther but Rome which bears the chief responsibility for the way in which the dispute over the right way to salvation and practical reflection on the gospel very rapidly turned into a fundamental dispute over authority in the church and the infallibility of popes (Hans Kung, Christianity: Essence, History, And Future, 538).

One thing Luther did not have was "freedom of expression." And despite all the talk of freedom and peace, Luther remains a heretic according to Catholic doctrine. And, according to Catholic doctrine, Protestant believers are not fully Christian but are “separated brethren” and Protestant churches are not true churches but mere “Christian communities.”

Pope Leo XIV could begin a real movement toward freedom and peace by removing the Catholic Church’s ban of Luther and his designation as a heretic. This would not resolve all the issues, but it would certainly be seen as a sincere gesture of peace by the hundreds of millions of Protestant Christians around the world, including myself, who are convinced that Luther was on the right side of God and history.

Dr. Eddie L. Hyatt is a historian, Bible teacher, and revivalist. This article was derived from his books Apostolic Leadership:Returning to the Servant Leadership of Jesus and Early Christianity and The Charismatic Luther, both available from Amazon and his website at www.eddiehyatt.com.