Martin Luther posted his Ninety-five Theses on the church door at Wittenberg in 1517. In the three years that followed, Luther clarified and defended his position in numerous writings. Chief among these are the three treatises written in 1520. In these writings Luther tried to frame his ideas in terms that would be comprehensible not only to the clergy but to people from a wide range of backgrounds. To the Christian Nobility of the German Nation is an attack on the corruption of the church and the abuses of its authority, bringing to light many of the underlying reasons for the Reformation. The second treatise, The Babylonian Captivity of the Church, contains Luther's sharp criticism of the sacramental system of the Catholic church. The Freedom of a Christian gives a concise presentation of Luther's position on the doctrine of justification by faith. This volume is excerpted from The Annotated Luther series, Volume 1 and The Annotated Luther series, Volume 3. Each volume in the series contains new introductions, annotations, illustrations, and notes to help shed light on Luther's context and to interpret his writings for today. The translations of Luther's writings include updates of Luther's Works, American Edition, or new translations of Luther's German or Latin writings.
Timothy J. Wengert is emeritus professor of church history at the United Lutheran Seminary. A parish pastor for seven years in Minnesota and Wisconsin with a doctorate from Duke University, he taught on Philadelphia's faculty from 1989 to 2013. He has written extensively on the Reformation, was coeditor of the English edition of The Book of Concord (Fortress, 2000) and translated Luther's Small Catechism, used throughout the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. In addition to books on Philip Melanchthon and Martin Luther, he coauthored with Susan Wood a book on Lutheran/Roman Catholic relations, Shared Spiritual Journey (2016), and currently serves on the US Lutheran/Roman Catholic dialogue. He lives in Long Valley, New Jersey. Erik H. Herrmann is associate professor of historical theology and director of the Center for Reformation Research at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri. James M. Estes is professor emeritus in the History Department at the University of Toronto. Paul W. Robinson is professor of historical theology and dean of the faculty at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri. He teaches medieval and Reformation history. His publications include Martin Luther: A Life Reformed (2010) and "Sermons on the Lord"s Prayer and the Rogation Days in the Later Middle Ages"; in A History of Prayer (2008).
