Martin LutherMartin Luther (November 10, 1483 – February 18, 1546) was a Christian theologian, Augustinian monk, teacher, pastor and church reformer whose teachings inspired the Lutheran Reformation and profoundly influenced the doctrines of Protestant Traditions and other Christian traditions. Luther began the Protestant Reformation with the publication of his Ninety-Five Theses on October 31, 1517. In this publication, he attacked the Church's sale of indulgences. He advocated a theology that relied on the gracious activity of God in Jesus Christ rather than on human works. Almost all Protestants trace their history to Luther in one way or another. Luther's relationship to philosophy is complex and should not be judged solely by his famous statement that "reason is the devil's whore." In 1513, he began his first lectures on the Psalms. In these lectures, Luther's critique of the theological world around him began to take shape. Later, in the lectures on Paul's Epistle to the Romans, this criticism becomes more visible, and it was during these lectures that Luther finally found the confidence that had eluded him for years. Luther's life-changing discovery ultimately changed the course of Church history and European history. In Romans, Paul speaks of “the righteousness of God.” Luther always understood this term to mean that God was a just judge who demanded human justice. Luther understood justice as a gift of God's grace. He had discovered, or recovered, the doctrine of justification by grace alone, and it was this discovery that ignited him. In 1517, he posted a sheet of theses to be discussed on the door of the University chapel. These ninety-five theses present a devastating critique of...... middle of article ......ilip Broadhead. Totowa, NJ: Barnes & Noble Books, 1984. Forde, Gerhard, O. Being a Theologian of the Cross: Reflections on Luther's Dispute at Heidelberg, 1518. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1997. George, Timothy. Theology of the Reformers. Nashville: Broadman Press, 1988.Loewenich, Walter von. Luther's Theology of the Cross. Translated by Herber JA Bouman. Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1976Lohse, Bernhard. Martin Luther: An introduction to his life and work. Translated by Robert C. Schultz. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1986. Luther: The Man Between God and the Devil. Translated by Eileen Walliser-Schwarzbart. New York: Picture Books, Doubleday: 1982. Rupp, Gordon. Models of reform. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1969. Watson, Philip S. God be God! : An interpretation of the theology of Martin Luther. London: Epworth Press, 1947.