Picture a man painfully heading up a long marble staircase on his knees. As he moves up one step after another, he profusely kisses each stair tread. The 28 steps are all scalloped and deeply worn from thousands of previous pilgrims’ hands, feet, and facial touches. Supposedly, Christ walked on these actual steps as He faced Pilate during the week leading up to the crucifixion. These steps had been transported to Rome, and the more painful and arduous a pilgrim’s retracing of Peter’s steps, the closer one might get to God from having had the experience.
One man certainly did get closer to God from groveling his way up Rome’s Scala Sancta: It was German monk Martin Luther, who pondered the words of Habakkuk 2 and Romans 1 as he climbed: “The just shall live by faith.” One day in 1510, on reaching the top, Luther doubted the efficacy of seeking penance by climbing the stairs on one’s knees. But trusting the promises of Holy Scripture, Luther became convinced that being justified in God’s sight was assured to all who place their faith in Jesus.
Preaching salvation by faith in Jesus— not human works— Luther was used by God as the primary, bold voice of what came to be known as the Protestant Reformation. On October 31, 1517, Luther famously nailed his “95 Theses” (or, grievances) to the door of the church in Wittenburg, Germany. The world is still benefitting from the faith, courage, and obedience of Martin Luther.
The seeds of the Reformation were actually sown beginning in the 1200’s. What historians would later call The Renaissance partially began as interest in Aristotelian logic grew (due to the apologetics and Biblical worldview voice of Thomas Aquinas, 1225-1274). Aquinas’ voluminous works promoted critical thinking skills, resulting in a questioning of the authority of the church. The ultimate result was the reformation, circa Oct. 31, 1517.
An irony of our times is that many non-Christians assume that faith in the Biblical God is irrational. In reality it was careful thought and examination of the texts and evidence that brought many of history’s most brilliant intellectuals to Christian commitment. Many have realized (the Reformers, among them), that Christianity is the most reasonable, compellingly evidenced worldview of all.
This October 31, a date so closely associated with ghosts and death, let’s remember the rediscovery of the Gospel so many centuries ago. Faith in Jesus truly is the pathway of life.
