Between the doctrine of Christ, as taught in the Catholic Faith, and the doctrine of Luther, there can not be a greater divide. They are not the same. Martin Luther’s heresies continue to fracture the Christian religion throughout the world. Unlike what some Lutherans – and even Catholics might think – being a Lutheran is not being “Catholic lite.” Lutheranism is directly contrary to the religion established by Christ. It is not the True Faith, and those who adhere to it can not enter Heaven. Understanding the errors of Lutheranism is essential to refuting it.
A 2016 Latin Mass magazine details how Martin Luther actually admitted to having many discussions with the devil himself! In fact, many of the arguments he made against the Holy Mass came from the devil himself, and this is found in his own writings. There is clearly a great deal of ignorance on this subject. But this is mentioned in his own biography!
Please also read Exsurge Domine by Pope Leo X, issued June 15, 1520.
Who Was Luther?
At eighteen, Martin Luther entered the University of Erfurt and quickly completed his studies. His father hoped Luther would become a lawyer, but Luther, troubled by fears about his soul's salvation, decided to become a monk. However, life in the convent didn't bring him the peace he sought. Despite rigorous fasting, self-mortification, and frequent confessions, Luther remained tormented by his conscience.
In 1507, Luther was ordained as a priest and earned a Doctor of Theology degree in 1512. He was then assigned to teach at the University of Wittenberg. Despite his academic success, Luther's inner turmoil persisted. A visit to Rome in 1510 only deepened his dissatisfaction with his spiritual state. He eventually concluded that good works couldn't bring salvation and that faith alone justified a person before God. This belief led him to assert that, due to Original Sin, humans were incapable of doing anything good and were inherently sinful.
Luther began teaching these ideas at Wittenberg as early as 1516. In 1517, when Pope Julius II announced a Plenary Indulgence to fund the construction of St. Peter's Basilica, Luther publicly opposed the practice. He famously nailed his Ninety-five Theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg on November 1, 1517. These Theses, some of which challenged the Church's teachings on indulgences and purgatory, spread rapidly across Europe, gaining Luther widespread support, especially among those critical of the Papacy.
Luther's challenge to the Church did not go unanswered. Catholic theologians like Tetzel and Professor Eck published rebuttals, but Luther's skill as a writer and orator helped him gain a substantial following. The support of figures like Elector Frederick the Wise of Saxony further bolstered his confidence.
In 1518, Luther met with the Papal Legate, Cardinal Cajetan, in Augsburg, but the meeting failed to resolve their differences. Luther refused to accept the Church's teachings on indulgences and sacraments and appealed to a General Council instead. Despite writing a conciliatory letter to the Pope in 1519, Luther's later correspondence revealed his deep suspicion of the Papacy. His writings, such as "An Address to the Nobility of the German Nation" and "On the Liberty of a Christian Man," criticized the Church's abuses and advocated for the secular power's right to decide spiritual matters. This stance eventually led to the rejection of Church authority by civil leaders.
Ultimately, his own scruples and pride caused him to invent a religion that fit his views.
What's Wrong with Luther?
The “Open Letter to Non-Catholics” states:
One key figure in the Protestant Reformation was Martin Luther, a Catholic monk, who, led astray by private judgment, set himself against the Faith held for 1500 years. He decided that all Christians before him had been in error. Is it possible to believe that Jesus founded a Church to mislead the world, and then after 1500 years, approved of over 500 contradictory church denominations founded by men? But, you may say, the Protestant Church is the Church of Christ, purified of error, and only this purified form dates from Luther. I answer that you must choose between Luther and Christ. Jesus said His Church would never teach error (John 14:26); Luther says it did teach error. If Luther is right, Christ is wrong; if Christ is right, Luther and all his followers are wrong.
Luther's chief errors are contained in the following propositions: (1) There is no supreme teaching power in the Church. (2) The temporal sovereign has supreme power in matters ecclesiastical. (3) There are no priests. (4) All that is to be believed is in the Bible. (5) Each one may interpret Holy Scripture as he likes. (6) Faith alone saves, good works are superfluous. (7) Man lost his free will by original sin. (8) There are no saints, no Christian sacrifice, no sacrament of confession, and no purgatory.
Luther's Errors Are Contrary to All of Christianity Before
The Bible As the Sole Authority: Luther emphasized the authority of the Bible as the sole source of religious truth in a rejection of any other authority. He rejected the Catholic view that tradition, along with Scripture, held equal authority in matters of faith. This Protestant view is refuted by both Scripture itself and 1,500 years of actual Church history.
Justification by Faith Alone: Luther held to the doctrine of "sola fide," or justification by faith alone. He taught that salvation comes through faith in Jesus Christ alone and does not require us to live out our faith through any works, which contradicts the teaching of our Lord directly.
Denial of the Visible Hierarchy Established by Christ in the Priesthood: He opposed the hierarchical system of the Church which was established by Christ to have a physical presence on earth, including the authority of the pope.
Rejection of Church Tradition: Luther objected to the veneration of saints and the use of images and relics. He also denied Purgatory and the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass as the re-presentation of Christ’s Sacrifice. Such rejections are contrary to the Bible and the actual practice of the Christian Religion as it was actually observed back to the time of the Apostles.
Christ vs. Luther
Following are some significant excerpts from Luther's writings and lectures, as compared with the teachings of our Lord Jesus Christ. (Taken from the hook CHRIST VS. LUTHER, edited by R. A. Short, copyright 1953 by the Bellarmine Publishing Company, Mound, Minn.)
Christ: "Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are fornication . . . murder . . . and suchlike. And concerning these I warn you, they who do such things will not attain the Kingdom of God" (Galatians 5:19-21).
Luther: "Sin boldly but believe more boldly. Let your faith be greater than your sin. . . Sin will not destroy us in the reign of the Lamb, although we were to commit fornication a thousand times in one day" (Letter to Melanchton, August 1, 1521, Audin p.178).
Christ: "And do not be drunk with wine, for in that is debauchery" (Eph. 5:18). "Keep thyself chaste" (I Tim. 5:22).
Luther: "Why do I sit soaked in wine? ... To be continent and chaste is not in me" (Luther's diary).
- On Good Works -
Christ: "What will it profit, my brethren, if a man says he has faith, but does not have works? As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also" (James 2:14,26).
Luther: "He that says the Gospel requires works for salvation, I say, flat and plain, is a liar" ("able Talk, Weimer Edition, II, p.137).
- On Truth -
Christ: "Do not be liars against the truth. This is not the wisdom that descends from above. It is earthly, sensual, devilish" (James 3:1~15). "Do not lie to one another" (Col. 3:9). "The Lord hateth... a lying tongue... a deceitful witness that uttereth lies. . . "(Proverbs 6:1&17). "A thief is worse than a liar, but both of them shall inherit destruction" (Ecclus. 20:27).
Luther: "To lie in case of necessity, or for convenience, or in excuse, would not offend God, who is ready to take such lies on Himself" (Enserch Conference, July 17, 1540).
- On Marriage -
Christ: "Whosoever shall put away his wife and marry another, committeth adultery against her. And if the wife shall put away her husband, and be married to another, she committeth adultery" ~ark 10:11-12).
Luther: "As to divorce, it is still a moot question whether it is allowable. For my part, I prefer bigamy" (DeWette, Vol.2, p.459).
- On Free Will -
Christ: "Woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It were better for that man if he had not been born" (Matt. 26:24). "Let no man say when he is tempted, that he is tempted by God; for God is no tempter to evil" (James 1:13).
Luther: "Judas' will was the work of God; God by His almighty power moved his will as He does all that is in this world" (De Servo Arbitro - Against man's free will). Accosted on all sides by charges of heresy, even by many of his former associates in the Protestant movement, Luther found refuge in this, the strangest of all his beliefs. No man is accountable for his actions, Luther taught, no matter how evil. Not even Judas!
Such are the teachings of the first so-called "reformer" of Christ's Church! If Luther was a man divinely inspired or called in an extraordinary manner, why did God permit him to fall into so many absurdities in points of doctrine?
"Luther finally brought himself to indulge the pleasing delusion that the Catholic Church was the detestable kingdom of Antichrist . . . that he himself was John the Evangelist... "(From the book LUTHER, P.65).
So you see the heresies, divisions, confusion, etc. resulting from the private interpretation of the Scriptures. Unless there is a church in the world, from the days of our Lord, which declares unmistakably (infallibly) who Jesus is, and what He taught, He might just as well have revealed nothing!
Source: Open Letter to Non-Catholics
