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=== Wittenberg ===
=== Wittenberg ===
[[Image:Luther-Cranach.jpg|right|225px]]
Luther's fears continued to plague him. Repeated bouts of depression may have arisen partly from physical causes having to do with Luther's savagely ascetic lifestyle, which was self-imposed against the advice of his confessor. Of this experience, Luther wrote, "I vexed myself with fasts and prayers beyond what was common...if I could have got to heaven by fasting, I should have merited that twenty years ago.... I afflicted myself almost to death."<ref>Mullett, ''Luther'' p 44</ref>
Luther's fears continued to plague him. Repeated bouts of depression may have arisen partly from physical causes having to do with Luther's savagely ascetic lifestyle, which was self-imposed against the advice of his confessor. Of this experience, Luther wrote, "I vexed myself with fasts and prayers beyond what was common...if I could have got to heaven by fasting, I should have merited that twenty years ago.... I afflicted myself almost to death."<ref>Mullett, ''Luther'' p 44</ref>
In writing lectures on ''Psalms, Romans, and Galatians'' from 1513 to 1516, Luther came to the conclusion, fundamental to Protestant theology, that man depends for his salvation on the sheer grace of God, made available through the sacrificial death of Christ. Christ is not primarily the terrible judge who condemns sinners, but the redeemer upon the cross. Man has only to believe and to accept in trust what God has done in order to be forgiven, even though sin is never entirely taken away. This was to become the central doctrine of Luther's creed: the doctrine of [[Sola fide|justification by faith alone]].
In writing lectures on ''Psalms, Romans, and Galatians'' from 1513 to 1516, Luther came to the conclusion, fundamental to Protestant theology, that man depends for his salvation on the sheer grace of God, made available through the sacrificial death of Christ. Christ is not primarily the terrible judge who condemns sinners, but the redeemer upon the cross. Man has only to believe and to accept in trust what God has done in order to be forgiven, even though sin is never entirely taken away. This was to become the central doctrine of Luther's creed: the doctrine of [[Sola fide|justification by faith alone]].
The critical point at which Luther's position diverged from that of the Catholic Church was in his absolute denial of man's ability to do anything whatsoever toward his own salvation. The Catholic Church taught that, through grace, man is given by God the ability to fulfill His commandments and to earn God's favor by doing so. Since man is free to reject this grace, if he accepts it instead and performs good works, his deeds are meritorious. But Luther held that when good deeds are performed with an eye to reward, they are damnable sins.
The critical point at which Luther's position diverged from that of the Catholic Church was in his absolute denial of man's ability to do anything whatsoever toward his own salvation. The Catholic Church taught that, through grace, man is given by God the ability to fulfill His commandments and to earn God's favor by doing so. Since man is free to reject this grace, if he accepts it instead and performs good works, his deeds are meritorious. But Luther held that when good deeds are performed with an eye to reward, they are damnable sins.
===About indulgences===
===About indulgences===