The grace offered through Reformation

On a blue gray day in 1517, a German Augustinian monk, pastor and university professor nailed a document on the castle church door in Wittenberg, Saxony. The day was Oct. 31. The occasion was the eve of All Saint's.

The Nov. 1 celebration was a community event. Town's people would gather at St. Mary's church, where the pastor preached, to remember and celebrate the lives of the Christian martyrs who died confessing their faith. University professors and students would gather to celebrate at the Castle Church. Church doors, in the medieval period, were the depository of community messages. For...