Church presents on Martin Luther

CONSTANTINE — Messiah Lutheran Church in Constantine held a two-part series on Martin Luther (1483-1546) on March 8 and March 15, the first two in a five-part series “500 Years of Reform and Renewal — Our Reformation Heritage” on key figures of the Reformation era. This year is the 500th anniversary of the Reformation movement. Historians usually date the start of the Reformation to 1517 when Luther nailed his “Ninety-Five Theses on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences to the Archbishop of Mainz” to the door of the Wittenberg Castle church. Many churches celebrate “Reformation Day” on the last Sunday of October.
Rev. Dennis Smith, who pastors Messiah, presented the information on Luther.
“Martin Luther kicked off the Reformation, and with it Protestantism and Catholicism split in two. He contributed to the birth of our modern world,” Smith said. “Before the Reformation the only church in Europe was the Catholic Church. Today there are over 10,000 Christian denominations in the modern world.”
Angie Birdsall is a freelance writer who primarily covers Constantine.