His hands were surely trembling as he lifted his hammer to nail his theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany. The year was 1517. The man was Martin Luther. Luther had lived through many a crisis in his personal relationship to God. Out of his struggles he came to believe that much of what his church had taught him was simply wrong. It was wrong teaching that had caused his faith crisis.

Luther decided to go on the offensive. The topic for his offensive was the matter of "indulgences." The Christian church at the time of Luther believed that sins committed after one was baptized that were not specifically forgiven would have to be paid off in purgatory. Purgatory was understood to be the place where souls lived after their death and before their resurrection. An indulge…