Luther, Martin

Cultural  

1. A sixteenth-century German religious leader; the founder of Protestantism. Luther, a priest of the Roman Catholic Church, began the Reformation by posting his Ninety-five Theses, which attacked the church for allowing the sale of indulgences. He soon became convinced that the Catholic Church was opposed to the Bible (see also Bible) on the question of justification by grace, through faith, and that no accommodation of his beliefs on this point was possible within the church. Luther concluded that reform of the church had to happen through formation of a new body of Christians (see also Christian). He denied the authority of the pope and many other aspects of Catholic teaching, including the doctrine of transubstantiation.

---

Discover More

Luther's most famous statement, made when he was called to account for his views before a meeting, was, “It is neither safe nor prudent to do anything against conscience. Here I stand; I can do no other.”

Example Sentences

Defense lawyers included former secretary of state Edmund Randolph, former attorney general Charles Lee and Luther Martin, a delegate to the Constitutional Convention.

From Washington Post • Sep. 26, 2022

Burr’s defense team included Edmund Randolph and Luther Martin, both former delegates at the Constitutional Convention and renowned advocates.

From Reuters • Jul. 9, 2020

She had been reading about Luther Martin, one of the Founding Fathers, who in 1787 refused to sign the Constitution in part because it did not prohibit slavery.

From The New Yorker • Feb. 11, 2019

Glenn Luther Martin looks like a Y. M. C. A. secretary and makes some of the world's most efficient bombers.

From Time Magazine Archive

Luther Martin, on the other hand, came out against the Constitution on the grounds that the protections afforded slavery render us contemptible to every true friend of liberty in the world.”

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis