The Luther Bible is a German language translation from Hebrew and Ancient Greek by Martin Luther. The copy illustrated is of the third edition, printed in 1536 by Hans Lufft (1495-1584), a printer and publisher who was described as "the Bible Printer" due to his prolific output. His printing house in Wittenberg produced the first editions of Luther's New Testament in 1522 and the complete Bible, containing the Old and New Testaments, in 1534. The Luther Bible was published in

One of the most prolific female printers of the sixteenth century, Magdalena Kirsenmann, helped advance the Lutheran Reformation in Tübingen. She got into printing after the death of her husband, Ulrich Morhart (c. 1490–1554). Through his first wife, Barbara, Morhart attained citizenship rights in Strasbourg and began printing there. In Tübingen he married his second wife, Katharina Zorn, who died only two years later. With Zorn’s dowry he financed his second press, the first

Without printing, would there have been a Protestant Reformation? Only a century earlier, both John Wycliffe and John Hus spawned movements of intense spiritual fervor and wrote prolifically. But the absence of adequate printing technology limited the distribution of their works. Wycliffe was condemned, Hus burned at the stake, and history casts both as mere harbingers of the main event. John Foxe wrote of the change printing had wrought in his famed Book of Martyrs: “Althoug

When the time to complete our biblical and Reformation sentence, "The just shall live by faith" (Galatians 3:11) was driven down to 38.20 seconds, I was quietly confident this could be the runaway winner on the Reformation Tours. However, this record that was set by Alison, Lydia and Emma-Jayne in August was shattered last Saturday. Another ​trio of ladies, Lisa, Nicola and Rebecca, pulled it down to 34.54 seconds. And tonight fresh celebration broke out in the 'Wartburg Cas

"Discover the story behind the man who sparked the Protestant Reformation. Told through a seamless combination of live-action storytelling and artistic animation, Martin Luther's daring life is presented in extensive detail while still making the film relevant, provocative, and accessible." So reads the advertising blurb on Amazon on the page where this movie may be purchased: Obviously many agree with this synopsis, with 69% of all viewers who have left a review on Amazon to

Martin Bucer may not be well-known to Christians, but he deserves to be. Pastor to John Calvin and friend of Thomas Cranmer, Bucer was one of the leading lights of the Protestant Reformation. In the fourth of The Christian Institute’s Autumn Lecture 2017 series, Revd Dr Peter Naylor spoke out about Bucer’s impact. Bucer was born in 1491 in Sélestat, in present northeast France, and became a Dominican monk aged 15. But it was in 1518, after moving to Heidelberg and listening t

These are the last Open Days this year in the Reformation Rooms at Martyrs – please don't miss out! We plan to open the doors @ 7:00pm on Monday 4 December and Thursday 7 December. This may suit people better than our previous Open Days which were held on Saturday mornings and afternoons – and may fit in with a possible trip to Belfast's Christmas Market! (Tours will be led by guides dressed in 'the Wittenberg way'; special edible treats will be provided!)

Tours to the Reformation Rooms at Martyrs are still proving popular. Word of mouth recommendations have resulted in bookings that will carry us through to the end of this year. Between Friday and Saturday of last week, almost 150 people took the 'Just By Faith Alone Tour,' including groups from Mourne (Youth Fellowship), Banbridge (Youth Fellowship), Cookstown (Ladies Outing), Portadown (Reach) and a family group comprised of persons from Ballymena, Ballymoney and Manchester.

Martin Luther is famous for his expression of the imputation of righteousness that we call the “sweet exchange.” Interestingly, Luther’s Augustinian mentor Johann von Staupitz – who crucially pointed Luther to look away from himself and consider instead the sin-remitting grace of God and man’s redemption in the Blood of Christ – preached a sermon that expressed this same “sweet exchange” idea. And, to travel back much further in time than either Luther or von Staupitz, a mid-