The 500th Anniversary of the Reformation is being celebrated this year, 2017. Why? Because historians acknowledge and date the beginning of the Reformation to October 31, 1517, the day Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany.
17. It seems necessary that, for souls in purgatory, as the horror decreases so love increases.
After defining Hell as "despair", Purgatory as "near despair", and Heaven as "assurance", Luther argues here that in this understanding, one slowly moves from a place of "near despair" to one of "assurance" as one works their way through the state of existence known as Purgatory. He will explore this a bit more in the next two theses.
Please note that I will be using Timothy Wengert's "95 Theses with Introduction, Commentary, and Study Guide." If you don't have a copy, pick one up, it is an excellent resource.
Lord Jesus, help us have "assurance" in the promise you've given in our baptism. Amen.
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