I’ve wanted to travel to Wittenberg since traveling past it on my previous visit to Germany. I wanted to know how a man from such a small town could have such a large impact on world and church history and beliefs.
I was immediately lost on arrival at Wittenberg train station as the train station is not in the centre of the town like I had expected it to be. To ensure that I was even more lost there was no signage or map at the station showing the way to the centre of town.
I decided that the best idea was to follow the three people in front of me along the road. This plan worked until we came to the first intersection where the three people all walked off in different directions.
At this point I found a street name that matched the small printed map of Wittenberg that I had and despite realising I was in the complete opposite end of the town to what I thought I was at least I knew that I was heading in the right direction (For the record: Lutherstadt Wittenberg and Lutherstadt Wittenberg Altstadt are two different train stations).
My first stop in Wittenberg was at the Lutherhaus museum. I spent almost two hours here as the museum has a great overview of all aspects of Luther’s life and relationships with his family, community and contemporaries.
The pope neither desires nor is able to remit any penalties except those imposed by his own authority or that of the canons.
Hell, purgatory, and heaven seem to differ the same as despair, fear, and assurance of salvation.
They preach only human doctrines who say that as soon as the money clinks into the money chest, the soul flies out of purgatory.
Any truly repentant Christian has a right to full remission of penalty and guilt, even without indulgence letters
– Martin Luther
As I continued walking along Wittenberg’s main street I came across the Stadtkirche. It was hidden behind some houses so I managed to walk past it at first. I found it a great privilege to visit a church that Luther and others preached in and subsequently had such a profound impact on the history of Christianity.
The third location I planned to visit was Schlosskirche. However, the church was completely closed for renovations before the 500th anniversary of the reformation in 2017. I was fortunate that there was an information office about the church where I purchased a little Playmobil model of Luther and a small book about the church.
By this point it was time to walk back through the town to the train station to travel to Leipzig where I had dinner with a friend before returning to Berlin for the night.
