Kauza Martina Luthera (1520 – 1521)
Martin Luther’s Case (1520–1521)

Summary/Abstract: In June 1518 a trial began against Martin Luther in Rome, in which he was accused of heresy. It was about controversial sentences in his 95 theses on the power of indulgences. On 15 June 1520 Pope Leo X invited him to withdraw within 60 days his theses incongruous with the Bible as it was interpreted by the conclusions of the councils and the writings of the church fathers. On 3 January 1521 he was declared an outlaw and excommunicated from the Catholic Church by a new bull.On the occasion of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation we selected four documents to be translated that best illustrate the whole Martin Luther’s case and help understand its essence. These are two papal bulls of Leo X (Exsurge Domine, Decet Romanum Pontificem), one reaction by Martin Luther (Warumb des Bapsts vnd seyner Jungern bucher von Doc. Martino Luther vorbrant seyn) and a work by an anonymous witness to the burning of papal books in Wittenberg. As sources we used critical editions of all four texts. We cite them in the introduction to each of the appendices. We believe that the first Slovak translation of the selected historical sources will allow the readers to look into the complicated religious debate of 1520 and 1521.

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