Martin Luther

===Diet of Worms (1521)===
{{Main|Diet of Worms}}
[[File:Luther at the Diet of Worms.jpg|thumb|''Luther Before the Diet of Worms'', an 1877 portrait by [[Anton von Werner]]]]
[[File:Martin-Luther-Denkmal, Worms.JPG|thumb|[[Luther Monument (Worms)|Luther Monument in Worms]], a statue of Luther surrounded by the figures of his lay protectors and earlier Church reformers, including [[John Wycliffe]], [[Jan Hus]], and [[Girolamo Savonarola]]]]
The enforcement of the ban on the ''Ninety-five Theses'' fell to the secular authorities. On 18 April 1521, Luther appeared as ordered before the [[Diet of Worms]]. This was a general assembly of the estates of the Holy Roman Empire that took place in [[Worms, Germany|Worms]], a town on the [[Rhine]]. It was conducted from 28 January to 25 May 1521, with [[Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor|Emperor Charles&nbsp;V]] presiding. Prince [[Frederick&nbsp;III, Elector of Saxony]], obtained a [[safe conduct]] for Luther to and from the meeting.

Johann Eck, speaking on behalf of the empire as assistant of the [[Richard von Greiffenklau zu Vollrads|Archbishop of Trier]], presented Luther with copies of his writings laid out on a table and asked him if the books were his and whether he stood by their contents. Luther confirmed he was their author but requested time to think about the answer to the second question. He prayed, consulted friends, and gave his response the next day:

<blockquote>
Unless I am convinced by the testimony of the Scriptures or by clear reason (for I do not trust either in the pope or in councils alone, since it is well known that they have often erred and contradicted themselves), I am bound by the Scriptures I have quoted, and my conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and will not recant anything since it is neither safe nor right to go against conscience. May God help me. Amen.<ref>Brecht, 1:460.</ref>
</blockquote>

At the end of this speech, Luther raised his arm "in the traditional salute of a knight winning a bout." Michael Mullett considers this speech as a "world classic of epoch-making oratory."<ref name=mullettp25>Mullett (1986), p. 25</ref>

Eck informed Luther that he was acting like a heretic, saying,
<blockquote>Martin, there is no one of the heresies which have torn the bosom of the church, which has not derived its origin from the various interpretation of the Scripture. The Bible itself is the arsenal whence each innovator has drawn his deceptive arguments. It was with Biblical texts that [[Pelagius]] and [[Arius]] maintained their doctrines. Arius, for instance, found the negation of the eternity of the Word—an eternity which you admit, in this verse of the New Testament—''Joseph knew not his wife till she had brought forth her first-born son''; and he said, in the same way that you say, that this passage enchained him. When the fathers of the [[Council of Constance]] condemned this proposition of Jan Hus—''The church of Jesus Christ is only the community of the elect'', they condemned an error; for the church, like a good mother, embraces within her arms all who bear the name of Christian, all who are called to enjoy the celestial beatitude.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/luther/lutherbyluther.html#secondnarrative|title=Life of Luther (Luther by Martin Luther)|first=Martin|last=Luther}}</ref></blockquote>

Luther refused to recant his writings. He is sometimes also quoted as saying: "Here I stand. I can do no other". Recent scholars consider the evidence for these words to be unreliable since they were inserted before "May God help me" only in later versions of the speech and not recorded in witness accounts of the proceedings.<ref>Wilson, 153, 170; Marius, 155.</ref> However, Mullett suggests that given his nature, "we are free to believe that Luther would tend to select the more dramatic form of words."<ref name=mullettp25/>

Over the next five days, private conferences were held to determine Luther's fate. The emperor presented the final draft of the [[Edict of Worms]] on 25 May 1521, declaring Luther an [[Outlaw#In other countries|outlaw]], banning his literature, and requiring his arrest: "We want him to be apprehended and punished as a notorious heretic."<ref>Bratcher, Dennis. "[http://www.crivoice.org/creededictworms.html The Diet of Worms (1521)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171003172831/http://www.crivoice.org/creededictworms.html |date=3 October 2017 }}," in ''The Voice: Biblical and Theological Resources for Growing Christians''. Retrieved 13 July 2007.</ref> It also made it a crime for anyone in Germany to give Luther food or shelter. It permitted anyone to kill Luther without legal consequence.