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    Start November by Giving Thanks for the Reformation at 500 Years

    What does the first post to go viral mean to us personally?   Suppose you wanted to know God and follow him. How might you get to know him? Where would you begin? Maybe you’d like to read what he said…500 years ago your only option would have been a Latin Bible.   Maybe you’d like to go to church…500 years ago your only option would have been a Latin mass.   You could pray…but suppose you felt unworthy. You wanted to come before God but felt you needed to begin by confessing your sin to him. You would need to confess to a priest. Rather than merely listening to…

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    Protestants at 500: The Best-Known Female Reformer

    In this year, which marks the five-hundredth anniversary of the start of the Protestant Reformation, many are focusing on the male reformers. But Germany is also focused on some of the females.  Though quite influential, they are often forgotten. And we can learn much from their lives. I'm thinking of one in particular. Come back in time with me to about 1499 in what we know today as eastern Germany—then called Saxony. And picture a girl born to a noble family. When she turns five, her mother dies and her father sends her to a cloister.  There she receives a nun's education. When she is about 24, she and some of her friends—aware of…

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    Wittenbery Tales

      Since long before Geoffrey Chaucer wrote of people making pilgrimages in the late Middle Ages, Christians have been journeying to holy sites, engaging in travel that aids their spiritual contemplations. And this year is no exception, as thousands are headed to Germany in this the five-hundredth anniversary year of what is considered the start of the Protestant Reformation. From the three E’s of Eisenach, Erfurt, and Eisleben to Torgau (left), Wittenberg, and many other cities, they will see outstanding museum after excellent exhibit after amazing church. They’ll find content that appeals to all ages, information presented through the five senses, creativity that incorporates the latest technology, recognition of women…

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    101: Martin Luther and MLK and The Reformation (at 500 Years)

    Not long ago, I was getting my hair cut, and I mentioned to my stylist—someone I love who has faithfully attended good Bible studies for two decades—that I was embarking on a press junket to Germany this month. My reason: to visit some of the “Martin Luther” sites, with a view to writing some religious-travel articles. Why now? Because in 2017, we'll mark the five hundredth anniversary of Luther’s nailing his 95 theses to the Wittenberg (“Vittenberg”) Door. In the time that followed with my stylist, she asked some good but basic questions that made me realize how little church history we teach. So here’s a tutorial to read and…