Luther & the Heidelberg Disputation
“Daddy, can we go to that bakery again?” Will said pointing to an enticing window of delicious treats.
I quickly turned my head, and glanced down at Will with a smile. “Of course we can,” I responded as we walked toward the Karlspatz. “But first we need to meet up with the tour, we're already running a little behind.” We were once again in Heidelberg, but this time for a highly anticipated 90-minute guided walking tour of the town’s church history. We located our friends from Trinity Reformed Church, and were quickly transported back in time.
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Heidelberg is a town of immeasurable charm.
Located on the Neckar River a little more than 16 miles away from its confluence with the north-flowing Rhine River, the town was founded in 1196 and is as picturesque as any in Germany. The Renaissance-era Heidelberg Castle, built during the 16th and 17th centuries, overlooks the town from its commanding position on the lower slopes of the Königstuhl. Founded in the 14th Century at the direction of Pope Urban VI, Heidelberg University sits in the heart of the Old Town, and is Germany’s oldest university. 35 years after the university’s founding, Germany’s oldest public library opened its doors. In the modern era, Heidelberg is home to multiple world-renown scientific institutes, is a popular tourist destination, and is home to our favorite bakery that we’ve found so far. Weaving amongst these historic firsts and modern achievements is the constancy of Christianity.Two monasteries and a church were built on the north bank of the Neckar during the early medieval period and the Roman Catholic Church was a driving influence for over 350 years. Then Heidelberg became a town of the Reformation.
Following the posting of his 95 Theses on October 31, 1517, Martin Luther was called by the head of his Augustinian order, Johannes Staupitz, to a disputation held here on April 26, 1518. Luther authored 28 Theses for this event and it was through these theses that Luther first offered a full exposition of a theology of the cross: that we are saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. For a more thorough discussion of the 28 Theses, Dr. Stephen Nichols provides an excellent overview in an episode of his 5 Minutes in Church History podcast.
Our tour spent the majority of its time in the city’s Protestant church, the Church of the Holy Spirit, located in the Marktplatz. We learned that at one point in its history, there was a dividing wall down the center of the church that physically separated the Catholics and Protestant congregants. The wall is long-gone, as is the typical Catholic ornateness that is present in cathedrals across Europe--though some still exist from a historical preservation point-of-view.
It in this church that the Heidelberg Catechism was hotly debated--at one point coming to a physical altercation--and finalized in 1563, and a commemoration of this event adorns the wall near the tomb of one of the last kings and queens of Heidelberg. The Catechism’s first question is cited: "What is your only comfort in life and in death? That I am not my own, but belong--body and soul, in life and in death--to my faithful Savior, Jesus Christ."
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Our tour concluded in the square located in front of the university. It was here that a plaque had been inlaid into the stone work to commemorate the 500th anniversary of Luther’s birth. Our large church group separated into smaller contingents and set off for lunch. We enjoyed a fabulous meal at the 315 year old Red Ox Inn restaurant and enjoyed the chance to get to know one of the newer families. Following lunch, we stopped by the Gundel Bakery and enjoyed our walk down the Haupstrasse, Heidelberg’s primary thoroughfare in the Old Town. As we walked toward the car, Will’s tugged on my arm and pointed excitedly at the Italian Gelato shop.
“Daddy, can we get ice cream too?”
