Martin Luther: Blog #3

Martin Luther’s work brought about a serious change in Germany during the 16^th century at a time when change seemed necessary. Luther’s defiance against the papacy brought about a change in religious ideology but also social change. Considering the way the German nation was ruled during the 16^th century, where few people held rights and the Church was taking advantage of the people it seemed like only a matter of time before a rebellion of some sort occurred. Luther’s actions were the spark of courage the German people needed to bring about a change. While Luther was writing his 95 theses that went against the Catholic Church, he spread the idea that ordinary people had a claim in the church, not just the clergy. He gained support of his ideas very fast, which points to the idea that many people were not happy with the way things were going in the empire. In the video, it said that Luther was the first person to stand up to authority and stay true to his conscience. It speaks a lot of his character that he stood firm in his faith to stand up to the Pope considering the punishment for heresy was often death. Luckily for him, he had help on his side from Frederick the Wise. Luther was just trying to follow the Bible, which he translated into German so the rest of the people could also know truth and the word of God, but it turned into an even bigger rebellion that brought about social change. I thought it was strange that Luther seemed so appalled by the violence that had ensued because of his work but then later he instigated the violence against peasants and Jews and anyone else that stood against his ideas about religion. Luther’s reformation traveled throughout Europe, spreading and taking on different forms. There were Catholics, Protestants, and Calvinists. So in one view, Luther was a remarkable person. His courage and firmness brought about in the long run a sense of freedom of religion. In his book, Schulze explains that in 1555, the Peace of Augsburg gave the rulers of a territory the right to choose the religion of that area, but also granted a person to move to an area where the denomination they wished to practice was established. The down side to the Luther Reformation was it continued to leave Germany divided both culturally and politically since Catholics focused on art and architecture while the Protestant’s focus was on building up the church, music, language, and literature (Schulze, 58,60).


This map shows the distribution of religious government during the 16th century. The yellow indicates a Luthern government and is concentrated mostly in the north east part of the Roman Empire. The blue is a Calvinist government. The green is the Catholic government. The red line shows the boundary of the Holy Roman empire.
Map taken from: http://msaculturaltours.com/BAVARIA/index.html on 9/8/12

This map only shows the separation of the Catholic Church and the Lutheran religion. From this map one can see the division between the religions as with the map from above. The religions didn't intermix really at all. There is a clear boundary where each religion was accepted.
 Map taken from: http://www.korcula.net/history/mmarelic/luther.htm on 9/8/12

 

 This is a picture of the 95 theses that Martin Luther wrote. These strong, firm, and daring statements are the ones  that started the Reformation bringing about a religious, political, and social change in the Germany.
Picture accessed from: http://foraslanandvolstate.wordpress.com/tag/martin-luther-95-theses/ on 9/8/12



This is a picture of the Luther Monument in Worms, Germany. The monument was constructed in 1868 and designed by Ernst Rietschel. Others included in the monument who played an important part in the reformation are Frederick the Wise of Saxony and Phillip of Hesse, John Wycliffe, and Jan Hus.
Photo and caption info accessed from http://www.sacred-destinations.com/germany/worms-luther-monument.htm on 9/9/12

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Blog #2

       One thing that struck me as very interesting about 15th century Germany is the lack of rights that many people had. Being from the United States where rights as a citizen are guaranteed, it is hard to grasp the concept of a significant chunk of a population having limited rights. Schulze explains that nearly 80% of people lived on a farm or in a rural area while 20% of people lived in a city. In the rural area, very few had property rights though peasants did have rights to use the land. East of the Elbe River, farmers had even less rights and peasants in that area held practically no rights until the nineteenth century (page 37-39). In the cities, very few held citizenship rights. I can see where old families, governing officials and such were given citizenship rights, and to some extent I can see where domestic servants, and beggars would not, but it is astounding that people such as members of nobility and clergy were also excluded from citizenship rights. It seemed like the Church held a lot of authority at this time that it seems weird that clergy member were not given citizenship rights. Jews were another group excluded from citizenship rights which isn’t necessarily that surprising considering they have been persecuted since Biblical times. In two of the captioned pictures (page 34 and 41), Schulze describes the hardships of being a Jew whom had little rights, protection, and barred from most trades in the late Middle Ages. The other caption on page 41 explains how a city council used the time period between Emperors to drive Jews out of a city. Anti-Semitism has existed all around the world for centuries not just in Germany but my point is during this time when Germany doesn’t even technically exist as a country, the identity forming seems to be one of an unequal balance of power. Because many groups of people did not have rights, the identity of Germany seems to be made up of only the elite who had the rights to make political choices. So from an American stand point from a country that was essentially founded on the belief that everyone is equal, Germany’s early history was one where political instability defined their country.

This picture is of moneylending often done by Jews. Jews were not liked by Christians and were prevented  from most ways of making a living often including farming. Christians did not approve of lending money and charging an interest but Jews found it to be one way of making a living during this time period.
Picture and caption info from: http://www.historyforkids.org/learn/religion/jews/middleages.htm accessed 9/6/12.

This map shows the Elbe River (highlighted in red) in present day Germany. This river seemed to be a dividing point during the 15th century between the east and west. It was easier for me to visualize and comprehend what I was reading once I had located where the Elbe River was. As I mentioned above farmers east of the river suffered more from the lack of established rights. Also from a caption from Shulze's book (pg 38), he explains that little information is known about the area east of the Elbe River during the High Middle Ages.
Picture from: http://www.turkopedi.com/elbe-irmagi.html accessed 9/6/12

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Why I choose Germany

When thinking about why I decided I wanted to go to Germany, I couldn’t come up with the exact reason. I grew up in a tiny farm town of just over 200 people. I went to school with the same kids from preschool through senior year of high school. In other words, being from such a small town, there is little diversity, and essentially in relationship to the rest of the world, it is like growing up inside a closet. So college was my opportunity to broaden my horizons and traveling abroad was something I definitely wanted to do.  Because I transferred schools after my Freshman year and then changed my major during my Junior year, I didn’t have room for a whole semester abroad so this D-term trip is perfect for me.

            For as long as I can remember, I have always wanted to travel yet I have never been out of the country nor have I flown on an airplane! Germany has always been near the top of my list for travels and this trip will bring lots of new experiences for me. One reason I chose this trip is the fact that Germany is part of my heritage. Both of my parent’s families descend from Germany.

           Another thing that further increased my interest in Germany is the German foreign exchange student we had during my senior year of high school. It was interesting to listen to him speak in German but also learning about the differences between the United States and Germany. For instance, their laws about the legal age of driving and alcohol consumption are different and he said they have 5 years of high school versus our 4. I also thought it was interesting that they are required to take a certain amount of English classes. He got to see the country I live in and this D-term trip is my chance to see the country where he lives. 

This is a picture of Ferdinand (right), the German Foreign exchange student we had at my high school. He had played on a volleyball team in Germany but since we didn't have a men's volleyball team, he helped the women's team. In this picture we are warming up for a game. My sister is setting the ball to me (though I am not in the picture) and Ferdinand was there to try to block the ball.



 

 

The most significant reason I choose to study abroad in Germany is an academic reason. I am a history major and recently I have been very interested in German history. Last spring I took a class about WW I and II. Much of the class focused on Germany especially once we got to WWII. My sister also took a Holocaust class and is now writing her senior seminar paper on people who rescued Jews during WWII so I have been learning a lot about that as well. But it is one thing to sit in a class room and learn about something and I imagine a completely different learning experience to actually be in the place where the events actually occurred. Seeing places like the Berlin Wall and a concentration camp will only help me to gain a different perspective.                 

                                 

This is a picture of the entrance to the Sachsenhausen Concentration camp. The words translate to "Work makes you free". The camp, located outside of Berlin, was built in 1936 and was in operation until 1945. It was used to hold prisoners and was also used as a training center for German officers. Around 50,000 people died at this camp. Being in Germany and visiting places like a concentration camp and other historical places is an experience I don't want to miss.

Picture: Accessed from http://grieftour.files.wordpress.com/2011/04/113-2.jpg on 8/30/12

Caption info: Accessed from http://traveltips.usatoday.com/concentration-camp-tours-germany-14175.html on 8/30/12

 

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I am very excited for our trip to Germany!