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Reformation Day is a religious holiday celebrated on October 31, alongside All Hallows' Eve, in remembrance of the Reformation. It is celebrated among various Protestants, especially by Lutheran and Reformed church communities. It is a civic holiday in the German states of Brandenburg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia. Slovenia celebrates it as well due to the profound contribution of the Reformation to that nation's cultural development, although Slovenes are mainly Roman Catholics. With the increasing influence of Protestantism in Latin America (particularly newer groups such as various Evangelical Protestants, Pentecostals or Charismatics),〔( Look who’s celebrating Reformation Day today )〕 it has been declared a national holiday in Chile in 2009.〔(Reformation Day in Chile )〕 In the United States churches often transfer the holiday, so that it falls on the Sunday (called Reformation Sunday) on or before October 31, with All Saints' Day moved to the Sunday on or after November 1. ==History== In 1516–17, Johann Tetzel, a Dominican friar and papal commissioner for indulgences, was sent to Germany to raise money to rebuild St Peter's Basilica in Rome.〔"Johann Tetzel," ''Encyclopædia Britannica'', 2007: "Tetzel's experiences as a preacher of indulgences, especially between 1503 and 1510, led to his appointment as general commissioner by Albrecht, archbishop of Mainz, who, deeply in debt to pay for a large accumulation of benefices, had to contribute a considerable sum toward the rebuilding of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. Albrecht obtained permission from Pope Leo X to conduct the sale of a special plenary indulgence (i.e., remission of the temporal punishment of sin), half of the proceeds of which Albrecht was to claim to pay the fees of his benefices. In effect, Tetzel became a salesman whose product was to cause a scandal in Germany that evolved into the greatest crisis (the Reformation) in the history of the Western church."〕 On 31 October 1517, Martin Luther wrote to Albrecht, Archbishop of Mainz and Magdeburg, protesting against the sale of indulgences. He enclosed in his letter a copy of his "Disputation of Martin Luther on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences," which came to be known as ''The 95 Theses''. Hans Hillerbrand writes that Luther had no intention of confronting the church, but saw his disputation as a scholarly objection to church practices, and the tone of the writing is accordingly "searching, rather than doctrinaire."〔Hillerbrand, Hans J. "Martin Luther: Indulgences and salvation," ''Encyclopædia Britannica, 2007.〕 Hillerbrand writes that there is nevertheless an undercurrent of challenge in several of the theses, particularly in Thesis 86, which asks: "Why does the pope, whose wealth today is greater than the wealth of the richest Crassus, build the basilica of St. Peter with the money of poor believers rather than with his own money?"〔 Luther objected to a saying attributed to Johann Tetzel that "As soon as the coin in the coffer rings, the soul from purgatory (attested as 'into heaven' ) springs."〔Bainton, Roland. ''Here I Stand: a Life of Martin Luther''. New York: Penguin, 1995, 60; Brecht, Martin. ''Martin Luther''. tr. James L. Schaaf, Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1985–93, 1:182; Kittelson, James. ''Luther The Reformer''. Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress Publishing House, 1986),104.〕 He insisted that, since forgiveness was God's alone to grant, those who claimed that indulgences absolved buyers from all punishments and granted them salvation were in error. Christians, he said, must not slacken in following Christ on account of such false assurances. According to Philipp Melanchthon, writing in 1546, Luther "wrote theses on indulgences and posted them on the church of All Saints on 31 October 1517", an event now seen as sparking the Protestant Reformation.〔Brecht, 1:200–201.〕 Some scholars have questioned Melanchthon's account, since he did not move to Wittenberg until a year later and no contemporaneous evidence exists for Luther's posting of the theses.〔Iserloh, Erwin. ''The Theses Were Not Posted''. Toronto: Saunders of Toronto, Ltd., 1966; Derek Wilson, ''Out of the Storm: The Life and Legacy of Martin Luther'', London: Hutchinson, 2007, ISBN 978-0-09-180001-7, 96.〕 Others counter that such evidence is unnecessary because it was the custom at Wittenberg university to advertise a disputation by posting theses on the door of All Saints' Church, also known as "Castle Church".〔Junghans, Helmer. "Luther's Wittenberg," in McKim, Donald K. (ed.) ''The Cambridge Companion to Martin Luther''. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2003, 26.〕 The ''95 Theses'' were quickly translated from Latin into German, printed, and widely copied, making the controversy one of the first in history to be aided by the printing press.〔Brecht, Martin. ''Martin Luther''. tr. James L. Schaaf, Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1985–93, 1:204–205.〕 Within two weeks, copies of the theses had spread throughout Germany; within two months throughout Europe. Luther's writings circulated widely, reaching France, England, and Italy as early as 1519. Students thronged to Wittenberg to hear Luther speak. He published a short commentary on Galatians and his ''Work on the Psalms''. This early part of Luther's career was one of his most creative and productive.〔Spitz, Lewis W. ''The Renaissance and Reformation Movements'', St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1987, 338.〕 Three of his best-known works were published in 1520: ''To the Christian Nobility of the German Nation'', ''On the Babylonian Captivity of the Church'', and ''On the Freedom of a Christian''. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Reformation Day」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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