A long line of reformers set the stage for what happened on October 31, 1517, when Martin Luther posted his 95 Statements. Over a period of centuries protests had been raised to the various forms of corruption evident in the organized church. This broke down into three areas of concern.

• Those who saw greed as the biggest sin urged economic reforms.

• Those who deplored the scandal of incompetent and often immoral clergy.

• And those who saw the pride and power of the pope as the root of all evil called for more church councils to exercise control.

As frustration with the Holy Roman Empire grew so did the increasingly public demonstration of discontent. The political power base of the Empire was cracking. The Roman Catholic Church which derived its power over the people largely from the control it exercised in the political realm, saw all protest as an affront to its authority. In this climate of ferment and discontent malcontents were not welcome. The early Reformers mentioned here and countless others who gave their lives did so in the face of great peril. In so doing, they laid the foundation for the Reformation and subsequently for the Anabaptist movement which directly impacted our heritage.

1. Peter Waldo - A Love of the Scriptures

In the year 1176 AD Peter Waldo, a wealthy merchant of Lyon, France, asked a theologian for the best way to God. The answer was Matthew 19:21: "If you wish to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me." With that Peter responded by selling his property and dedicating himself to a life of study of the Scriptures. Meanwhile, the proceeds from the sale of his belongings provided for his wife and children.

His followers came to be known as the Waldensians. They were known especially for their love of the scriptures and their desire to put into practice what they read and studied. For a time they traveled all through Europe in teams of two preaching, witnessing and suffering as the organized church misunderstood and attempted to repress their influence. This movement has continued for some 700 years.

2. John Wyclif - The State as a Means of Reform

John Wyclif has been referred to as the "Morningstar of the Reformation." For most of his life Wyclif was a professor at Oxford University. Only in the last 10 years of his life did he become active in the reformation movement. As the result of a meeting with representatives of the Pope in 1374 Wyclif came to the conclusion that reform was impossible within the organized church councils and clergy.

He returned to England convinced that the only way to achieve lasting reformation was to bring the written Word to the people. He trained people to memorize long passages of the Bible and then recite them as they traveled about the country. These early preachers were really traveling evangelists. Due to his political connections John Wyclif enjoyed substantial protection and died a natural death, despite his radical ideas. Reportedly his opponents had his bones dug up and burned at a later date, a treatment reserved for heretics.

3. John Hus - Bible Study as a Means of Reform

While John Wyclif put special emphasis on the need of the state to be involved in bringing about reform in the official church, John Hus placed less emphasis there and more in the direct study of scripture by the people. Hus began as a professor at the University of Prague but his reformation ideas quickly cost him the support of the existing church hierarchy.

After he attacked the papacy, corruption amongst the clergy, and other issues, he lost the support even of King Wenceslas and was forced into hiding. Given a guarantee of safe conduct by Emperor Sigismund to defend his ideas before the council at Constance, he presented himself in Constance, only to be locked up in prison. Pope John XXIII, who reportedly was a pirate before his ascendancy to the papal throne, pressed for Hus' condemnation.

Hus wrote from prison: "It is better to die well than to live ill. One should not flinch before the sentence of death. To finish the present life in grace is to go away from pain and misery. He who fears death loses the joy of life. Above all else truth triumphs. He conquers who dies, because no adversity can hurt the one over whom iniquity holds no sway."

After one last chance to recant, he was taken outside the city and burned to ashes. The date was July 6, 1415. For the following 100 years war raged as his followers fought for religious and political freedom. What survived of the movement eventually was known as the Bohemian Brethren, subsequently known as the Moravians.

4. Martin Luther - Justification by Faith

Martin Luther served as professor of theology at the University of Wittenberg, Germany, from 1512 until his death in 1546. His early misgivings about his own salvation led to the decision to become a monk. As he said, he became a monk "against the wishes of my father, of my mother, of God, and of the devil." Eventually he accepted a position and began lecturing at the University. While lecturing on the book of Galatians and then Romans he finally found peace as he realized the full impact of Romans 1:17, "But the righteous man shall live by faith."

This truth was at the heart of his reformation zeal. When summoned by Rome to answer for his teachings, he remembered the fate of John Hus and refused to go. Subsequently he did defend his teaching before Emperor Charles and ended up fleeing for safety. It was under the protection of Duke Frederick the Wise that he carried out most of his translation, teaching, writing, and other activities for which he is known. It was under his influence that the practice of singing in church began, with hymns he had written such as "A Mighty Fortress is Our God."

Luther rejected the Anabaptist movement which grew out of his Reformation, because they criticized him for not going far enough with the Reformation. He referred to the Anabaptist followers as impulsive and emotional. By the same token, the Anabaptists called his Reformation a "halfway Reformation."

5. Thomas Muntzer - Reform Through Physical Force

One of the pivotal events that caused Luther to reject the Anabaptist movement was the Peasant's Revolt also known as the Muntzer Revolt, in 1525. While Carlstadt, a contemporary of Luther's, was considered a friend of the Anabaptists, Thomas Muntzer went even further in differentiating himself from Luther's Reformation. Luther's suggestion that he become a pastor led Muntzer to take up that office. Subsequently, he found a ready hearing amongst the lower classes with his message of political freedom as well as religious freedom. While Luther chose to work within the political structure of the day and the Anabaptists preferred to ignore or coexist, Muntzer preached that political power should be used to establish religious freedom.

As Muntzer's following grew he organized them into an armed force. His emblem or banner was a red cross and an unsheathed sword. Armed uprisings took place in many parts of Europe as a result. His followers thought that they were helping to fulfill God's divine plan for society. A military showdown occurred on May 15, 1525, at Frankenhausen. Thousands of peasants were killed by the well-armed nobles. Muntzer himself was captured, tortured and executed several days later.

In light of this military and political failure and the opposition from Luther's followers, the Anabaptists fell on hard times as they sought to sort out the critical issues and refine what their beliefs and place in society should be. To better understand who the Anabaptists were and where they got their start we now turn our attention to the Swiss Reformation and Ulrich Zwingli in the year 1519.